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The Manchester-based company A V Roe & Company Ltd., devoted itself to re-enter the
aero-commercial scene, beginning in 1957 when its future as a military aircraft producer
looked doomed after the infamous Duncan Sandys 1957 "Defence White Paper", which
axed its ongoing projects. The original 748 design development started in 1957 as a smaller
20-seat feederliner and was marketed as a potential replacement for the now-aged DC-3's
then in widespread service as feederliners. The project attracted very little interest from
the airlines, until an enlarged, twin Rolls-Royce Dart development of the aeroplane was
proposed. Avro was not the only company to see the potential for a
DC-3
replacement, and by this point the
Fokker F-27 Friendship
was well advanced. Avro decided to compete by producing a design with
better short-field performance, allowing it to operate from smaller
airports. In January 1959, Avro announced its intention to go ahead with
the project and build an initial batch of twelve aircraft, and work
started a month later on the construction of two flying prototypes and
two other aircraft for static tests. The Indian Government showed an
interest in the aircraft later in the year and even before the first
test flight had taken place a manufacturing agreement had been signed
for the aircraft to be built by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. in Kanpur,
India. On 24 June 1960, the maiden flight of the first prototype of the Avro 748, G-APZV
took place from Avro's Woodford plant airfield and was
piloted by Jimmy Harrison, the Avro Chief Test Pilot. The original 748 -
the Series 1 - was powered by two Rolls Royce Dart 6 Mk.514 turboprops
rated at 1600 hp. The second prototype, G-ARAY, was flown on 10 April 1961, and the two prototypes quickly proved the type's short field
performance. Eighteen 748 Series 1 aircraft were produced, The first to
operate this model was the British transport company Skyway Coach Air
(later known as Dan-Air Skyways), while the first foreign order came
from Aerolineas Argentinas. The series 2 entered production in 1961.
This version was powered by the Rolls-Royce Dart 7 Mk.531 rated at 1910
hp giving the Series 2 the capability of carrying a greater load over a
longer range. In 1962, the Royal Air Force ordered 31 Andover C.Mk.1s, a
modified military version of the 748, originally known as the 748 MF,
with a completely new rear fuselage, with a rear-loading door and an
unique "kneeling" landing gear, which permits the main landing gear
units to be partally retracted with the aircraft on the ground, giving a
range of movement at the rear door sill. With the reorganisation of the
British aircraft industry, Avro was absorbed into Hawker Siddeley in
July 1963. The Hawker Siddeley Group decided to combine the names of the
companies within the group into one and well known names like Gloster
and A V Roe became known as Hawker Siddeley Aviation Ltd. The Avro 748
became the Hawker Siddeley 748 (HS748) overnight. 198 HS748 Series 2
were built before the type 2A took over on the line. The Series 2A was
introduced in 1967. This had more powerful engines fitted - the Rolls
Royce Dart7 Mk. 532 which again improved the performance of the
aircraft. Many operators subsequently upgraded their Series 2 aircraft
to 2A standard by fitting replacement engines. The next version of the
748 to be built was the Series 2B with even more powerful engines, the
Dart7 Mk.536-2. In 1977, Hawker Siddeley and the British Aircraft
Corporation merged into British Aerospace. The designation of the
aircraft now became the British Aerospace 748 (BAe748), with the Series
2B becoming the main production model. Seventy-one were built, along
with 25 Series 2Cs. Production ended in 1988 by which time 382 aircraft
of the 748 had been built, including 160 assembled in India, comprising
mostly Series 2s. A larger development, the BAe ATP, failed to attract
significant orders and saw a limited production run. |
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On 9 October 1985, the 1961-built DAN-AIR London HS-748 (AVRO 748 Series 1) G-BEJD was photographed at
Groningen Airport Eelde in the Netherlands when in on a passengers charter. The BAe HS.748 Sr1/105
c/n 1543 flew first on 19 May 1962 as LV-PUF and was delivered
to Aerolíneas Argentinas on 05 June 1962. The airframe was re-registered LV-HHE on
13 June 1962 The LV-HHE, baptised "Ciudad de Resistencia", entered service
on 14 July 1962. The LV-HHE was transferred to Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales
on 18 April 1975. The aircraft was sold to DAN-AIR and registered G-BEJD in the UK
on 17 December 1976. The aircraft arrived in Manchester on 24 December 1976, and entered
service with DAN-AIR on 08 March 1977. Early 1987, the G-BEJD was converted into a
cargo version and re-entered service on 31 March 1987. On 15 July 1992, the entire Dan Air fleet
of six BAe 748s together with a large spares inventory was acquired by Janes Aviation748 Ltd., since renamed
EAL (Emerald Airways Ltd.) On 3 August 1992, HS-748 G-BEJD was registered with Emerald Airways Ltd. |
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