Registration | Aircraft | c/n | Previous | Acquired | Disposal | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
VP-KMI | Airspeed AS.65 Consul | 5106 | LB527
G-AIUX |
1954 | 1955 |
Bought 27/01/47 from the R.A.F. by Airspeed. Converted to Consul and registered to Chartair Ltd., Thame on 14/02/47.Registered to BSAA 20/11/48 and named ‘Star Master‘. Transferred 30/07/49 to BOAC. Registered on 05/09/49 to BOAC Training Flight at Hurn. Registered 05/54 to East African Airways Corporation as VP-KMI. Withdrawn from use 12/11/55 due to wood and glue failure in tropical conditions. |
Airspeed Consul
The Consul was a civil conversion of the wartime Airspeed Oxford instrument trainer. Surplus Oxfords were bought back by Airspeed after the war to be converted into small airliners. In 1954 EAAC decided to improve it’s training scheme and bought a single Consul from BOAC. A number of radio officers were then trained as pilots on this machine until it was found to be beyond repair in the following year. The wooden built aircraft was suffering from glue failure and was simply coming apart!