Short Solent
| Short p.45 Solent | |
|---|---|
 Aquila Airways Solent 4 - G-ANAJ "City of Funchal" in Southampton in August 1955 |
|
| Type: | Flying boat |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
November 11, 1946 |
| Commissioning: |
1947 |
| Production time: |
1946-1949 |
| Number of pieces: |
16 |
The Short Solent was a flying boat that had been built for passenger transport by the British aircraft manufacturer Short Brothers since the late 1940s .
history
The Short Solent is based on the older Short Seaford flying boat , which in turn was derived from the Short Sunderland flying boat, which was originally used for military purposes .
The Short Solent had its maiden flight in 1946 and was manufactured until 1949. The flying boats were put into service by British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) and Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL). Used flying boats were later also used by smaller airlines, such as the British Aquila Airways . The machines were in regular use until 1958.
Furnishing
The Short Solent is a high wing in aluminum construction and is supported by four double radial engines of the type Bristol Hercules driven.
The flying boats used by BOAC were equipped for night flights with 24 passengers and could carry 36 passengers on day flights. A total of six cabins were available for travelers, two on the upper deck and four on the lower deck. There was also a dining room and kitchen on the upper deck, while changing rooms, toilets and three luggage rooms were on the lower deck. The crew consisted of a total of seven people: two pilots , a navigator , a radio operator , a flight engineer and two stewards .
The Short Solents used by TEAL could carry 45 passengers. In all equipment variants, the flying boats offered travelers more space and luxury than is common today.
business
BOAC used the machines on a service between Southampton and Johannesburg , along the Nile and the Great Lakes of East Africa, offered three times a week from 1948 to 1950 . The flight time was four days, with overnight stays on the ground.
Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL) used five Solent flying boats between 1949 and 1960 in scheduled traffic between Sydney , Fiji , Tahiti and Auckland . On board they cooked and the food was served on china . The prices for the tickets were, however, correspondingly high. In these Solent were first in the New Zealand aviation history stewardesses used. The target group for the flights were wealthy tourists.
Some Solents have been put into service by Aquila Airways on routes between Southampton, Madeira and the Canary Islands . The flying boats used had been bought by BOAC and TEAL.
Incidents
- On January 28, 1951, a Short S.45 Solent 3 of the Australian Trans Oceanic Airways ( aircraft registration VH-TOA ) crashed while taking off from Marsaxlokk , Malta . The aircraft was on the delivery flight to Australia and was destroyed. One passenger died.
- On November 15, 1957, the City of Sydney , a Short Solent of Aquila Airways, crashed at Chessell on the Isle of Wight after two engines failed. Out of 58 people on board, only 13 survived.
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| crew | 7-8 |
| Passengers | 24-45 |
| Wingspan | 34.50 m |
| length | 27.40 m |
| Engines | 4 × 2,040 PS Bristol Hercules 73 |
| Cruising speed | 404 km / h |
| Altitude | 5,212 m (17,100 ft) |
| maximum range | 4,828 km |
Specimens preserved in a museum
- TEAL's Short Solent ZK-AMO Aranui is now on display at the Museum of Transport and Technology in Auckland. The flying boat initially operated between Auckland and Sydney, then it was used on the Coral Route until 1960 and flew from Auckland to Fiji, Samoa , the Cook Islands , Tonga and Tahiti. After a restoration, the flying boat has been on view again since 2013.
- A copy of the BOAC, initially owned by Howard Hughes , is now on display at the Oakland Aviation Museum in Oakland . This flying boat made a brief appearance in the film Raiders of the Lost Ark , in which it had to fill in for a Martin China Clipper .
See also
literature
- Christopher H. Barnes, Derek N. James: Shorts Aircraft since 1900. 2nd edition. Putnam, London 1989. ISBN 0-85177-819-4 .
- Aubrey J. Jackson: British Civil Aircraft since 1919. 2nd edition. Volume 3, Putnam, London 1988, ISBN 0-85177-818-6 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ National Archives Airworthiness Division Type Records
- ↑ Flight v. January 3, 1946, p. 10.
- ^ Flight (1948): To South Africa on the First Springbok Flying-boat Service
- ^ A b Aubrey J. Jackson: British Civil Aircraft since 1919. Volume 3, London 1988, p. 160.
- ^ Accident report Short Solent VH-TOA , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on March 14, 2019.
- ↑ Flight v. August 8, 1958, p. 208.
- ↑ Solent ZK-AMO "Aranui" in the Museum of Transport and Technology, Auckland ( Memento from March 5, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ Solent in the Oakland Aviation Museum ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
