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British Airways Helicopters

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British Airways Helicopters
IATA ICAO Call sign
BA BAB
FoundedMarch 1974
Ceased operationsSeptember 1986
HeadquartersAberdeen Airport

British Airways Helicopters was a British helicopter airline from 1964 to 1986.

History

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BEA Bristol 171 Sycamore G-AMWG "Sir Gawain" at Gatwick Airport in April 1955 operating the passenger service from Birmingham

Starting in 1947, British European Airways (BEA) had operated a Helicopter Experiment Unit. It initially operated a fleet of five helicopters sourced from the United States - three Sikorsky S-51s and two Bell 47s.[citation needed]

The unit operated timetabled mail services in East Anglia during 1948 using their Westland-Sikorsky S51s. A scheduled passenger service was operated during 1950 between Cardiff (Pengam Moors), Wrexham and Liverpool (Speke), also utilising the S-51s. In June 1951, BEA introduced helicopter services between Northolt Aerodrome, Hay Mills Rotor Station in Birmingham and London Heathrow, operated by a pair of S51s.[1][2] These services were followed in 1954 by a passenger service between Southampton Eastleigh Airport, Heathrow and Northolt, operated by Westland Whirlwind helicopters.[3] The 1955 passenger service was flown between Birmingham, Heathrow and Gatwick Airport, with leased Bristol 171s.[citation needed]

A separate company was formed in 1964 as BEA Helicopters Limited and operated the first service between Penzance and the Scilly Islands on 1 May 1964 with a Sikorsky S-61. The airline later expanded into offshore oil support flights from July 1965. Operations from Aberdeen started in July 1967 and in 1971 from Sumburgh. With the change of name of the parent on 31 March 1974 the airline was renamed British Airways Helicopters. In 1981, the airline bought six Boeing Vertol BV-234 Chinooks for use on the offshore oil support flights.

The company was involved in setting up the Airlink high-frequency helicopter shuttle service between Gatwick and Heathrow airports in 1978. It was responsible for engineering and maintenance of the BAA-owned helicopter and for providing the flight crew. Cabin crew were from British Caledonian as was passenger handling at Gatwick. Heathrow handling was by British Airways.[4]

In 1986, the airline was sold by British Airways to Robert Maxwell's Maxwell Aviation and renamed British International Helicopters. The successor company still operated the Penzance to Isles of Scilly route forty years after it was first scheduled, until it was cancelled in 2012.

Aircraft operated

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Helicopter Experimental Unit

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Accidents and incidents

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Sikorsky S-61N (G-ASNL) crashed in the North Sea 1983
  • On 11 March 1983 a Sikorsky S-61N (G-ASNL) crashed in the North Sea, 75 nautical miles (139 km) north east of Aberdeen. All crew and passengers were rescued but the helicopter sank and had to be recovered from the sea bed.[5]
  • On 16 July 1983 a Sikorsky S-61N (G-BEON) crashed on approach to St. Mary's, Isles of Scilly with the loss of 19 passengers and one crew member.[6]
  • On 2 May 1984 a Boeing 234 (G-BISO) crashed in the East Shetland Basin of the North Sea, 8 miles (13 km) north west of the Cormorant Alpha platform. All crew and passengers were rescued by other helicopters and boats. Although not damaged in the accident the helicopter sank after 85 minutes.[7] The aircraft was recovered for post accident investigation and later refurbished to fly again.
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In the Beatles first film, A Hard Day's Night, the group is seen flying away from the concert venue at the end of the film on the BEA Westland Whirlwind, G-ANFH. The same aircraft appeared in the 1960 film, The Murderers and the 1963 Oliver Reed film, The Damned.[3]

See also

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References

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Notes
  1. ^ "Aviation News". Flight. 8 June 1951. p. 683.
  2. ^ Anderson, Ian (2014). Heathrow: From Tents to Terminal 5. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1445633893.
  3. ^ a b "Westland WS-55 Whirlwind Series 1". The Helicopter Museum. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  4. ^ Holland, Douglas (16 August 2006). "The Air Links between Gatwick and Heathrow" (PDF). p. 3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 February 2015. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  5. ^ Air Accidents Investigation Branch Report on G-ASNL
  6. ^ Air Accidents Investigation Branch Report on G-BEON
  7. ^ Air Accidents Investigation Branch Report on G-BISO
Bibliography
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