Instruct: Given a question, retrieve documents that can help answer the question.
Query: When did BOAC end?
British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the British state-owned airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the passing of the Civil Aviation Act of 1946, European and South American services passed to two further state-owned airlines, British European Airways (BEA) and British South American Airways (BSAA). BOAC absorbed BSAA in 1949, but BEA continued to operate British domestic and European routes for the next quarter century. A 1971 Act of Parliament merged BOAC and BEA, effective 31 March 1974, forming today's British Airways.[1]
The closest town-to-town reference to Boac is the municipality of Mogpog which is approximately 5 kilometers. Boac is connected to Mogpog and Gasan by the Marinduque Circumferential Highway or the Pan-Marinduque Highway. Two bridges connect the north and south area of the municipality: the narrow Tabi Bridge which connects Brgy. Tabi and Brgy. San Miguel and the said-to-be the longest bridge in the province, Biglang Awa Bridge (186m), which connects Brgy. Tampus and Brgy. Bantad. A narrow minor road connects Boac and Mogpog via Buliasnin-Nangka Road, and Boac and Gasan via Duyay-Tapuyan Trail. Boac has a total road network of 117.61 kilometers.
BOAC-Cunard leased any spare capacity to BOAC which could use it to supplement the main BOAC fleet at peak demand, and in a reciprocal arrangement BOAC would provide capacity to BOAC-Cunard on some operations when it had a shortfall.
The Solent 2 introduced by BOAC could carry 34 passengers and 7 crew. Between 1948 and 1950, BOAC operated their Solents on the three-times weekly scheduled service from Southampton to Johannesburg taking a route down the Nile and across East Africa. The journey took four days, including overnight stops. The Solents replaced Avro Yorks running the service.
The last Solent-operated service on the route departed from Berth 50 at Southampton on 10 November 1950, bringing BOAC's flying-boat operations to an end.
British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC, which subsequently became British Airways) also used Wake Island as a refueling stop. During the late 1950s, BOAC operated Bristol Britannia turboprop aircraft on their twice a week westbound service between the U.K. and Asia via the U.S. The routing of these flights was London-New York-San Francisco-Honolulu-Wake Island-Tokyo-Hong Kong. The Wake Island stop was discontinued when BOAC replaced the Britannia propjet with Boeing 707 aircraft on the same route as part of their around the world services.
Ghana Airways was founded on 4 July 1958 by the government of Ghana with start up capital of ₤400,000; the government holding a 60 percent stake, with BOAC holding the remainder. When the company was founded, a seven-year agreement between the airline and BOAC was signed, which saw BOAC personnel being seconded to Accra, and Ghanaian personnel being trained in order for them to take over management and operation of the airline. Prior to the foundation of the company, BOAC and West African Airways Corporation were responsible for international services from Ghana, operating pool services from West Africa to London. For their initial operations, Ghana Airways joined the pool services, when BOAC began operating the Accra–London route on 16 July 1958 with a Boeing 377 Stratocruiser, with the aircraft being operated with the Ghanaian flag and in a livery minimally adapted from that of the UK carrier. The airline's relationship with West African Airways ceased on 30 September, and on 1 October they began operating the domestic and regional flights formerly offered by WAAC . The airline's first aircraft, and hence the first aircraft to be registered in Ghana since the nation became independent, was a de Havilland Heron delivered on 30 December. At the end of the airline's first year of operation they had made a net profit of US$28,000.
In October 1947, with work already underway, Bristol had settled on a Centaurus-powered design, with an all-up weight of and a payload of . The anticipated Karachi-Cairo run necessitated a 48-seat limit with a requirement for sufficient fuel for the lengthy stage. On 5 July 1949, the Ministry of Supply ordered five prototypes to this specification with the understanding that BOAC would contract for an additional 25 production examples. BOAC purchased options for 25 aircraft on 28 July, to be powered initially with the Bristol Centaurus engine, but to be re-fitted with the Bristol Proteus when available. In November 1948, the Type 175 design was revised again to accommodate 74 passengers and a longer span wing in a contemplated long-range version aimed at long-haul Empire and transatlantic routes rather than the medium-haul Empire routes originally planned. On reflection, BOAC decided that only a Proteus-engined aircraft was worth working on, necessitating a further redesign with Bristol eliminating the Centaurus option. Senior figures within BOAC such as the Deputy Chairman Whitney Straight, however, considered the Proteus engine to be "an obsolete contraption". Despite BOAC's desire to have a turboprop engine, the Type 175 project was contingent on the Proteus passing a 150-hour Type Test.
The 1956 Kano Airport BOAC Argonaut crash occurred on 24 June 1956 when a British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) four-engined Canadair C-4 Argonaut airliner registered "G-ALHE" crashed into a tree on departure from Kano Airport in Nigeria, three crew and 29 passengers were killed.
The next major order of Boeing aircraft was for 11 747-100s. On 22 April 1970 BOAC received its first 747, but the aircraft did not enter commercial service until 14 April 1971 due to BOAC's inability to settle crewing and pay rates with the British Air Line Pilots' Association. BOAC's successor British Airways later became the largest Boeing customer outside North America.
In 1959, Skyways leased four Lockheed Constellation airliners from BOAC. These replaced Hermes on the London—Singapore scheduled freight service Skyways operated on behalf of BOAC. This was the year Skyways embarked upon a major expansion in the Caribbean, following its acquisition of an 80% stake in Bahamas Airways from BOAC. Skyways allocated two Hermes aircraft with completely refurbished interiors to its new joint venture, the renamed "Skyways (Bahamas) Ltd". However, these did not appeal to the largely US-based clientele of Bahamas Airways, and stiff competition from Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) between Nassau, Fort Lauderdale, Miami and West Palm Beach resulted in few passengers and mounting losses. As this situation had become untenable, Skyways's holding company, Eric Rylands Ltd, decided to sell back to BOAC its shares in Bahamas Airways. That year, Skyways also launched scheduled passenger services between London Heathrow and Tunis, utilising the refurbished Hermes aircraft that had originally been allocated to the unsuccessful joint venture in the Bahamas. This was furthermore the time London's premier airport became the airline's main operating base. Although the airline's Yorks were by then nearing the end of their service lives, they were still kept busy ferrying spare parts around the world on behalf of BOAC and Pan Am.
In 1953 Vickers had started building the swept wing VC-7/V-1000 with Rolls-Royce Conway turbofan engines, but BOAC short-sightedly decided the Britannia and Comet 4 would be adequate for its purposes, and when the military version of the V-1000 was cancelled in 1955 the 75% complete prototype was scrapped. In October 1956 BOAC ordered 15 Boeing 707s with Conway engines (briefly the most economical commercial engine option). They entered service in 1960. (The British airworthiness authorities insisted on tail-fin modifications which Boeing made available to all 707 users.) Sir Giles Guthrie,[6] who took charge of BOAC in 1964, preferred Boeing aircraft for economic reasons, and indeed BOAC began turning a profit in the late 1960s. After a row in Parliament the government instructed BOAC to purchase 17 Vickers VC10 aircraft from a 30-aircraft order which Guthrie had cancelled.[7] The Standard VC10 had higher operating costs than the 707, largely due to BOAC's requirement at the design stage for the aircraft to have excellent hot and high performance for Commonwealth (African/Asian) routes, but the larger Super VC10 was a success with American passengers on the North Atlantic and was profitable.
In mid-1968, BOAC applied to the ATLB seeking revocation of British Eagle's Caribbean charter licence due to alleged irregularities in the conduct of the tour services. BOAC's complaint included claims that British Eagle was abusing the terms and conditions of its inclusive tour licence by promoting services as if they were scheduled services. The ATLB found in BOAC's favour and revoked British Eagle's Caribbean licence at the end of the summer season. To circumvent UK regulatory restrictions, the airline proposed to replace its IT flights between the UK and the Caribbean with a scheduled service between Nassau and Luxembourg through its Bahamian subsidiary, Eagle International Airlines (Bahamas), as the ATLB's and BOT's jurisdiction did not extend beyond the UK.
Early in 1940 BOAC ordered eight aircraft to be powered by the Perseus XVI and originally intended as ten-seaters. The first BOAC aircraft was delivered to Whitchurch on 5 September 1940. The second BOAC aircraft was impressed by the Air Ministry and allocated for Admiralty use at RNAS Donibristle. To replace the impressed aircraft BOAC were later allotted the aircraft ordered by the Egyptian Government. After a period of training all the BOAC Flamingos were moved to Cairo to operate in the Middle East. The BOAC aircraft were named after English Kings and were named "K-class" by the airline.
Bloody Biscay: The History of V Gruppe/Kampfgeschwader 40 by Christopher H. Goss revealed one of the most detailed versions of the attack. The book states that BOAC Flight 777 was not intentionally targeted and was shot down when it was mistaken for an Allied military aircraft. The account is composed of the author's analysis of events and interviews, conducted decades after the war ended, with some of the German pilots involved in the attack.[5]
BOAC declared that they were perfectly happy with the Britannia for their trans-Atlantic routes, and would remain so until an enlarged de Havilland Comet 4 arrived in a few years. In the end, BOAC's decision would quickly be reversed when it became clear that their competitors were going to enter the jet age before them. The VC7 had been cancelled by this point, and a study demonstrated it would be too costly to restart the line. Instead, BOAC ordered the Boeing 707 in October 1956, ironically in a special model to be powered by the Conway. Contrary to BOAC's worries, the Conway proved to have an almost flawless development cycle, and on several occasions outstripped the development of the models it was meant to power.
In 1947, a proposal to form an airline in Aden using a pair of Bristol Wayfarers did not materialize. An engineering base was established by BOAC in Asmara, Eritrea, in January 1948 as part of BOACs No.5 Line, which was centered on Aden and served Cairo, Nairobi and the Red Sea area. On 7 March 1949, Aden Airways Ltd was established as a wholly owned subsidiary of BOAC. A fleet of six BOAC Douglas DC-3 aircraft were based at Aden and these were taken over by Aden Airways. Operations commenced on 1 October 1949 with the aircraft operating under their United Kingdom (G-) registrations. On 1 February 1950, the aircraft were placed on the Aden (VR-A) register.
After its first six Lockheed 049 Constellations, BOAC had to use some ingenuity to increase its Constellation fleet. In 1947, Aerlínte Éireann in Ireland bought five new Lockheed 749 Constellations, and prepared to launch a transatlantic service with assistance and crew-training from Captains O.P. Jones and J.C. Kelly-Rogers of BOAC. The project was abandoned in February 1948, and BOAC were able to buy the almost new 749s without dollar expenditure four months later. This enabled BOAC to serve Australia with Constellations from 1949. A total of 25 Constellations passed through the BOAC fleet, including 12 749As obtained from Capital Airlines in the mid-1950s, with BOAC's older 049s in part exchange.
Slattery took over as chairman of the state owned carrier BOAC on 29 July 1960, after Gerard d'Erlanger stood down from the role to return to his other business interests. Slattery served as chairman on a full-time basis unlike d'Erlanger, who held the position on a part-time basis. The appointment to BOAC ended Slattery's 12 years with Shorts, he was replaced as chairman by his predecessor as Bristol Aircraft chairman, Cyril Uwins. Slattery also joined the Airworthiness Requirements Board around the time of his appointment with BOAC.
Slattery retained Basil Smallpeice as managing director, and the duo set about cutting costs at the airline as the deterioration which had begun under d'Erlanger's tenure continued. BOAC would incur significant losses in 1961 and 1962 amidst decreasing passenger loadings, comparatively high maintenance costs and ongoing payments to Vickers for the VC10 orders.
He spoke to Harold Howitt when he was thinking of leaving the BTC and was informed that Miles Thomas needed an experienced accountant to institute strict financial controls at BOAC. Smallpeice would turn down the role initially, fearing BOAC (also state owned) would be similar to the BTC in terms of culture and manageability. Howitt pressed Smallpeice to reconsider and following a meeting a few days with Miles Thomas and he accepted the position at BOAC, which was tailored to the role he and Miles Thomas desired he have within the company.
The largest flying boat of the war was the Blohm & Voss BV 238, which was also the heaviest plane to fly during World War II and the largest aircraft built and flown by any of the Axis Powers.
In November 1939, IAL was restructured into three separate companies: British European Airways, British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC), and British South American Airways (which merged with BOAC in 1949), with the change being made official on 1 April 1940. BOAC continued to operate flying-boat services from the (slightly) safer confines of Poole Harbour during wartime, returning to Southampton in 1947. When Italy entered the war in June 1940, the Mediterranean was closed to Allied planes and BOAC and Qantas operated the Horseshoe Route between Durban and Sydney using Short Empire flying boats.
The largest flying boat of the war was the Blohm & Voss BV 238, which was also the heaviest plane to fly during World War II and the largest aircraft built and flown by any of the Axis Powers.
In November 1939, IAL was restructured into three separate companies: British European Airways, British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC), and British South American Airways (which merged with BOAC in 1949), with the change being made official on 1 April 1940. BOAC continued to operate flying boat services from the (slightly) safer confines of Poole Harbour during wartime, returning to Southampton in 1947. When Italy entered the war in June 1940, the Mediterranean was closed to allied planes and BOAC and Qantas operated the Horseshoe Route between Durban and Sydney using Short Empire flying boats.
By March 1949 with the loss of the "Star Ariel" unexplained, the permanent grounding of the Tudor IVs for passenger flying, and the lack of other long-range aircraft, the government proposed amalgamating the airline with BOAC. BSAA passengers to Bermuda were already being carried by BOAC aircraft via New York. The airline did have Saunders-Roe Princess flying-boats on order but they would not be delivered until 1951 and the transfer of Canadair North Star which were on order for BOAC was considered. On 15 March the Minister of Civil Aviation announced that BSAA and BOAC would be amalgamated.
Gerry Bull, a former BOAC engineer, said that when he inspected the aircraft in Rome he looked for "incidental damage", and as he did not find any, he believed the Comet was fit for flight. Bull and the same team of engineers later examined South African Airways Flight 201 before its final flight.
BOAC countered Eagle's move to establish itself as a full-fledged scheduled transatlantic competitor on its Heathrow—JFK flagship route by forming BOAC-Cunard as a new £30 million joint venture with Cunard Steamship Co. BOAC contributed 70% of the new company's capital and eight Boeing 707s. Cunard Eagle's long-haul scheduled operation — including the two new 707s — was absorbed into BOAC-Cunard before delivery of the second 707, in June 1962. BOAC-Cunard leased any spare aircraft capacity to BOAC to augment the BOAC mainline fleet at peak times. As part of this deal, BOAC-Cunard also bought flying hours from BOAC for using the latter's aircraft in the event of capacity shortfalls. This maximised combined fleet utilisation. The joint fleet use agreement did not cover Cunard Eagle's European scheduled, trooping and charter operations.
In early 1957, services to the United Kingdom were launched on a once-weekly basis, at first operated by BOAC on EAA's behalf and then in EAA's own right with ex-BOAC Argonauts. This tourist-class service had low load factors when it was started, as it competed with same-fare BOAC Britannias and Viscounts. Also in early 1957, the Nairobi–Aden route was started; in mid-September the same year the route was extended farther east, from Aden to Bombay via Karachi, and Argonauts were also deployed on it.