BOAC: The Speedbird Routes Across the World 1950: #2

Continuign from the previous post, the Speedbird Routes of BOAC touched a surprising number of non-Anglophone cities as they extended south from London to Casablanca, Port Etienne, then Bathurst, Freetown, Takoradi, Accra, and Lagos. A planned route would continue to Kano and cross the center of Africa to Khartoum, where the eastern line extends south to Nairobi and Johannesburg.

Less impressive than its African network are its trans-Atlantic routes, as just two left the home countries from Glasgow and Shannon, met again at Gander, and extended into North America to New York and Montreal. A single route from Baltimore linked Bermuda offshore.

BOAC: The Speedbird Routes Across the World, c.1950

The might of the empire spans the newsprint continents in this vintage route map of BOAC. Trunks routes out of London connect five continents, with a major trunk route crossing the Mediterranean at Malta, heading east to Cairo, Basra, Bahrain and Karachi, where the routes splits north along a Delhi-Calcutta-Rangoon-Bangkok axis, turning northeast to terminate at Hong Kong, while a second route reaches far southeast to Singapore, stopping intermittently at Surabaya, somewhat surprisingly, then into Antipodea at Darwin, finally reaching Sydney, where Tasman Empire Airways connects to Auckland. 

The next post will detail the African and North Atlantic routes. 

Scheduled Passenger Routes from Hawaii, 1971: West of the Dateline

Examining the left-hand side of the same map from the previous post, a State Department of Transportation map from 1971-2. There are many flights between Hawaii and Australia, connecting nonstop from Honolulu to Brisbane and Sydney, as well as Auckland, while connecting New Caledonia and Fiji along the way and with Melbourne as an onward destination. The  trans-Micronesia service is shown in special green, dipping down to Nauru, with a major west Pacific base at Guam, which connects onward to Manila, Hong Kong, and Taipei. Tokyo and Okinawa are served non-stop.

Its somewhat difficult to discern which routes certain airlines, listed above, served at the time, especially BOAC and VARIG; Pan Am likely served many of these flights.

BOAC: Addis Ababa to London, January 1973

The holder of this envelope can almost hear the roar of BOAC's super VC-10s quad engines as the airliner touches down for the first time at Bole Airport in early January1973. The gorgeous illustration, set at a dynamic perspective, dominates this stately and information-backed first flight cover.

BOAC's classic, dashing speed bird emblem appears several times, most notably at the header of the paragraph-long Official Flight Endorsement which provides exacting detail on the itinerary of this piece of paper from Heathrow to Addis Ababa and back, although it is elsewhere, at far right, that the intermediate stops: Nicosia and Cairo, the latter categorized, curiously, as "unscheduled."

More space, if not heavier ink, is given over to the regal Lion of Judah, symbol of the Ethiopian monarch and not dissimilar from Queen Elizabeth's heraldic menagerie.

Saudia: Eastbound Intercontinental Schedule, October 1969

The airline of Saudi Arabia was still diminutive in 1969, but already had a presence on a prestigious passage: London to Bombay, via the Kingdom.

On Sundays, a Saudia B707 left Heathrow and stopped in Frankfurt. From whence it flew directly to Dhahran, finally arriving early Monday in Riyadh. That same Monday, a second Saudia B707 left London and arrived after 1AM on Tuesday in Jeddah. The Frankfurt-Geneva-Jeddah axis was covered on Thursdays. A BOAC plied London to Jeddah direct on a roaring VC-10. On Mondays and Fridays, jets left Jeddah for Karachi and Bombay, stopping at Riyadh and Dhahran.

Tickets could be purchased at any BOAC or TWA office worldwide.

BOAC: Worldwide Routes, 1962

Showing some unusual destinations, such as Brazzaville, Kano, Dakar and Windhoek that are no longer served by successor British Airways.

BOAC: East Africa & The Horn

Another spread from the BOAC's 1960 atlas, this one showing the connections south of Cairo, namely Khartoum, Entebbe, Nairobi, and, interestingly, an offshoot to Asmara ending at Aden, but not the larger Addis Ababa. Southward routes continue to Salisbury (Harare) and Johannesburg.

BOAC: West Africa Routes, c.1960

Like earlier posts, this page from BOAC's substantial 1960 route map and guide shows the former importance of Kano, Nigeria. British Airways does not serve Kano any more; its second destination in Nigeria is today the capital, Abuja.