In the previous year there had been a milk shortage in England, and flights had been arranged with Skyways to bring in supplies from Northern Ireland. One notable Halifax operation was the airlift of milk from Belfast to England in 1948. Particularly common were loads of spare parts for the shipping and aviation industries worldwide, perishable foods from Europe and newspaper deliveries to Ireland. These included a charter from Liverpool to New York via Prestwick, Iceland and Gander, and other flights included destinations such as Johannesburg, Singapore & Sydney. Conversion of Halifaxes from military to civil use took place here, and these started to be used for extensive charter flights. Īlso in 1947, the company opened a new passenger terminal at Yeadon, along with engineering facilities known as Yeadon Engineering. Later in his career Rylands started a similar, even more successful service linking London to Paris with Skyways Coach-Air. Coach-air services were also operated from Blackpool to Paris via Beauvais and to Strasbourg. LAC operated IT charters from Manchester to Tarbes, France, and from London Gatwick Airport. ![]() Eric Rylands resurrected this idea in 1947 with Squires Gate as his hub, and it proved very successful, with up to 16 rotations per day in peak season, using the Rapides. Armitage and Sons (Progress buses) to bring passengers from towns in Yorkshire to Blackpool to fly onwards to the Isle of Man in the airline's Saro Cutty Sark three-passenger amphibian. This number includes around 15 Halifax C.6 transports which LAC bought only for their spare parts and were never civilianised or used operationally.īritain's first airline to link air services with coaches ("Coach-air" services) was British Amphibious Airlines. LAC then started charter flights from Squires Gate and Bovingdon and would go on to own at least 34 of the type, including the Halton 10-seat passenger variant, until the last were retired in 1953. These were civilianised at LAC's new base at Bovingdon, about 25 miles north-west of London. In September 1946 LAC took a big step with the purchase of five Handley Page Halifax C.8 four-engined military transport aircraft from the RAF. LAC incorporated single-engined Percival Proctors and Auster V light aircraft into the fleet, used for pleasure and charter flights along with army cooperation flying, often as targets for anti-aircraft gunnery and radar training. For example one Rapide, G-AHAG, performed charters to Oslo and Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). These aircraft were in great demand during the Blackpool holiday season for pleasure flights and charters to the Isle of Man, but were also used for charters further afield. LAC De Havilland DH.89A Dragon Rapide G-AKNV restored in the company's standard livery Towards the end of the war, activity there also included the parting-out and scrapping of many Hawker Hurricanes and Supermarine Seafires. LAC was appointed to the Civilian Repair Organisation, and won business repairing Bristol Beaufighters and Beauforts, in 1944 expanding the Beaufighter work to Blackpool's Stanley Park Aerodrome. ![]() One of the founders was John Eric Rylands, (born 29 June 1909), who was destined to become a major influence on the British airline industry, alongside Harold Bamberg of British Eagle and Freddie Laker. The headquarters were in Berkeley Street, London W1. Lancashire Aircraft Corporation (LAC) was formed at Samlesbury Aerodrome near Blackburn, Lancashire, during World War II, along with a subsidiary, Samlesbury Engineering Ltd. Its major subsidiary, Samlesbury Engineering, supported its operations and converted many military aircraft for commercial use, also founding Lancashire Aircraft Company. It also flew scheduled routes and was important in the development of Coach-air services, leading to the founding of Skyways Coach Air and the start of the Inclusive Tour (IT) industry. It played an important role in the Berlin Airlift. Lancashire Aircraft Corporation was a major British charter airline after World War II. ![]() Isle of Man, Manchester, Birmingham, London (Northolt), Jersey Defunct British charter and scheduled airline and engineering company
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