10 February 2025
This website is regularly archived by the British Library who selectively archive websites with research values that are representative of British social history and cultural heritage.

Museum search


Viscount Survivors

Viscount Survivors


59 of the 444 Viscounts built survive as complete airframes or major components. Some are in very good condition and are looked after by museums while others are just wrecks. They can be found in 24 countries.

Viscount history

Letter from HRH Prince Philip

See and hear a Viscount

Newsletters

Flight Magazine Reports

Aircraft operational
records and photos

Viscount illustrations
by David Carter


Discover the history of the Viscount with film, video, contemporary reports from the pages of Flight Magazine, our newsletters, and aircraft operational records and photos from our database.


Share your photos and stories

Live Magazine


Our 'Live Magazine' is used by members and non-members to share their Viscount photos and stories with fellow enthusiasts located throughout the world in real time.

You are able to send in your photos, stories and comments by Facebook, Twitter or email and we will post them for all to enjoy.

Contact us

information@VickersViscount.net



Join the Vickers Viscount Network
for FREE

Membership details


Featured pages

Our website contains over 20,000 pages of photos and information that can all be accessed from the menu at the top of every page. Here are a few to get you started.


In the Beginning

The Turboprop World-Beater

Sir George Edwards

The Rolls-Royce Dart

c/n 1 G-AHRF V.630
The Prototype Viscount

c/n 2 VX217 V.663
The Tay powered Viscount

c/n 3 G-AMAV V.700
The V.700 series prototype

c/n 4 G-ALWE V.701
The first BEA Viscount

c/n 5 G-ALWF V.701
The oldest surviving Viscount

c/n 8 F-BGNK V.708
The first Air France Viscount

c/n 30 EI-AFV V.707
The first Aer Lingus Viscount

c/n 40 CF-TGI V.724
The first TCA Viscount

c/n 44 VH-TVA V.720
The first TAA Viscount

c/n 67 YI-ACK V.735
The first Iraqi Airways Viscount

c/n 70 CF-GXK V.737
The first Canadian DoT Viscount

c/n 71 VP-TBK V.702
The first BOAC Associated
Companies Viscount

c/n 74 G-ANRR V.732
The first Hunting-Clan Viscount

c/n 77 LN-FOF V.736
The first Fred Olsen Viscount

c/n 79 IU-683 V.723
The first Indian Air Force Viscount

c/n 88 N7402 V.744
The first Capital Airlines Viscount

c/n 97 VH-BAT V.747
The first Butler Air
Transport Viscount


This website does not use cookies or capture your details


Established 2005
Vickers Viscount Network
A Virtual Museum dedicated to the Vickers-Armstrongs VC2 Viscount
   

Viscount c/n 429

Operational Record

Photo of Viscount c/n 429
Türk Hava Yollari - Turkish Airlines (THY)


Turkey flag Turkey

This V.794D series Viscount was built for
Türk Hava Yollari - Turkish Airlines (THY) as TC-SEV

It first flew on Wednesday, 16 July 1958 at Hurn, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England powered by Rolls-Royce Dart 510 engines.

Photo of Viscount c/n 429
Türk Hava Yollari - Turkish Airlines (THY)


Turkey flag Turkey

Its final owner/operator was
Türk Hava Yollari - Turkish Airlines (THY) as TC-SEV.

Its fate:-
Crashed at Jordan's Wood, Rusper, Surrey, England on approach to Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England 17 February 1959. Six crew and nine passengers were killed, but seven survived including Turkish Prime Minister Adnan Menderes.


Operational record
Photo of Türk Hava Yollari - Turkish Airlines (THY) Viscount TC-SEV

Country of Registration Turkey

August 1958 to February 1959

Türk Hava Yollari - Turkish Airlines (THY)

TC-SEV - c/n 429 - a V.794D series Viscount
Turkey registered

16 July 1958
First flight from Hurn Airport, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England.

It was airborne for 30 minutes.

25 July 1958
UK Certificate of Airworthiness (CofA) issued.

1 August 1958
Delivered to Türk Hava Yollari - Turkish Airlines (THY) as a Type 794D.

The forward cabin was fitted with a 20 seat standard airline area and behind a partition there was a VIP area with 4 seats, 2 single beds and a 4 seater lounge area.

January 1959
Noted back at Hurn Airport, Bournemouth, Hampshire, England for modification work (no details).

17 February 1959
Crashed at Jordan's Wood, Rusper, Surrey, England on approach to Gatwick Airport, Surrey, England.

The flight had been diverted to Gatwick due to poor weather at London Airport (Heathrow), Middlesex, England and had left Rome at 13:02 local time.

The aircraft was on a special flight from Ankara, Turkey to London via Rome, Italy with the Turkish Prime Minister Adnan Menderes and a party of Turkish Government officials on board. They were coming to London to sign a treaty over Cyprus.

TC-SEV called London Airways at 15:56 after passing Abbeville, Northern France and was cleared by ATC to the Epsom Radio Range station, the holding point for London Airport. Because of poor approach visibility, the London Airport Commandant informed the Turkish Captain that he should divert to Gatwick Airport. At 16:21 hrs the aircraft reported over Epsom, Surrey and was given diversion instructions.

At 16:27 it left Epsom, Surrey for Mayfield, East Sussex, the holding point for Gatwick Airport, where it was informed by Gatwick Approach Control that it would be positioned by radar for an ILS approach to runway 09. The latest weather report for Gatwick was given as wind calm, visibility 1.1 nautical miles, mist, cloud 3 oktas at 600 feet, QFE 1036 mb. Over the Mayfield NDB at 4,000 feet the flight was instructed to steer a course of 280 degrees and to descend to 2,000 feet. This was acknowledged. A further descent clearance was given to 1500 feet. The aircraft overshot the centre line slightly as it turned onto the ILS approach path.

At 5 nautical miles from touchdown, the aircraft affirmed that it could continue on the ILS. The crew were then asked to change to the control tower frequency and this request was acknowledged. This was the last communication with the aircraft. At a position of 3.1 miles from the runway threshold and 550 feet to the north of the approach path centre line, the aircraft contacted tops of trees 390 feet above mean sea level at the edge of Jordan's Wood, Rusper, Surrey, England. The aircraft began to break up as it descended through the trees at an angle of about 6 degrees from the horizontal until the wheels made contact with the ground. After rising again slightly the main part of the wreckage came to rest about 100 yards further on and then caught fire.

The crew consisted of Captain M Ozbek (k), Co-pilot Captain L Biberoglu (k), Reserve Captain S Kazmaoglu (k), Navigator Captain G Tezel (k), Steward Mr T Erkay (i), Stewardesses Miss G Uygur (k), Miss N Yelkovan (i), Mechanic Mr A K Itik. (k) = killed, (i) = injured. 9 of the 16 passengers were also killed. Mr Adnan Menderes, the Turkish Prime Minister was injured but survived.

2 May 1959
Remains noted laid out inside a hangar at Croydon Airport, Surrey, England as part of the crash investigation. This could be part of the Rollason hangar as several ex RAF de Havilland DH82A Tiger Moths were noted in an adjoining walled off section of the hangar.

Total time 555 hours and 380 total landings.

PROBABLE CAUSE:
The crash is thought to have been caused by a mis-read or an incorrectly set altimeter. The evidence though is insufficient to establish if this is the true cause of the accident. There was no indication to suggest a technical failure of the aircraft or a failure of the external navigation services.

September 2006
A television documentary about one-time Prime Minister Adnan Menderes' life was compiled which featured Turkish Air Force Viscount (C/N 430) playing the roll of TC-SEV and painted up in the THY livery.



Photo of BEA - British European Airways Viscount G-AOJC

The Vickers Viscount Network is always interested to hear from anyone who has information or photographs to help complete the story of the Viscount. If you can help please contact us at
Information@VickersViscount.net.


Click here for more details about the Vickers Viscount Network

This website has been designed, built and is maintained by Geoff Blampied, Norwich, Norfolk, England.