Vickers VC10

Vickers VC10 History

The VC10 was born under the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) brand established in 1960. The company is a bit of a consortium that includes the well-known Vickers, Bristol and English Electric groups. In 1951, a government initiative called for the design of a military transport vehicle that could carry men and supplies for the Royal Air Force (RAF). Commercially oriented British Overseas Airways (BOAC) was aware of the upcoming design and ditched its interest by finding a capable airliner for "hot and high altitude" routes in Africa, the Far East and the low Pacific. The civilian design was named VC7 ("Vickers Civil - Design No.

7"), while RAF interest was thwarted by impending budget cuts. The program then evolved over several years, resulting in the name VC10, which was officially adopted by BOAC for the aircraft in May 1957. Then, on January 14, 1958, an order for 35 people was placed.

Design work on the VC10 continued for the remainder of the decade when the prototype first flew on June 29, 1962. After passing the necessary testing, assessment and certification requirements (achieved in April 1964), the VC10 was officially introduced to British Overseas Airways at London Heathrow Airport on 29 April 1964 (the company was eventually introduced in March 1974). end of March 31). The VC10 was manufactured from 1962 to 1970, but with narrow-body market share dominated by the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8 lines, total production was only 54 units. In 1960, the RAF finally regained power with this product for a strategic transport role, with an initial order of five VC10s.

The militarized VC10 gets an upgraded engine, enlarged internal fuel stowage, an oversized cargo door and a refueling probe. In its heyday, the RAF owned and operated as many as 28 jets - initially as brand new production examples and later as conversions of existing ex-civilian models in the aerial tanker role.

The VC10 series was born from a prototype known as the Model 1100. Only one copy was made. BOAC received Type 1101, completed according to customer requirements, numbered 12 copies. The Type 1102 was finished in a similar way to Ghana Airways standards, but only three examples were built. Two copies of the Model 1103 were produced for BUA.

Nigeria ordered two standard 1104 prototypes, although these were never built. Lakers Airlines leased the Model 1109 (born from the Model 1100). Models 1102, 1103, 1104 and 1109 are all known by the common BAC title "Standard VC10" to differentiate them from the upcoming "Super VC10 Series".

The original 1101 model line was equipped with 4 x Rolls-Royce Conway Mk. The 301 Series turbofans each generate more than 22,500 pounds of thrust and can reach top speeds of 580 mph. Range is close to 5,850 miles, with service capped at 43,000 feet. The curb weight is listed at 140,000 pounds, and the maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) is 334,880 pounds.

Overall length is 159 feet, with a wingspan of 146 feet and a height of 39.5 feet.

The Super VC10 series started with the base model Model 1150, leading to BOAC's Model 1151, of which 17 examples were produced. Thirteen examples of the Type 1151 followed, but none were actually built. Five 1154 aircraft were produced for East African Airlines.

Military brands include the RAF's original VC10 C1 strategic transport aircraft, based on the Type 1106 configuration and produced in 14 examples. The VC10 C1 first flew in November 1965 and deliveries began in 1966.

The VC10 C1K is the Type 1180, designed as a hybrid transport/air tanker body, and later a double tip. The 13 examples of the VC10 C1 predecessor were then converted to the VC10 C1K standard. The VC10 K2 (VC10 by default) became another RAF variant (as Type 1112) and evolved from the original Type 1101 series to be used as a tanker.

The VC10 K3 (Super VC10) and VC10 K4 (later Super VC10 retrofit) subsequently joined the RAF stables as aerial tankers, although these were equipped with three tankers and the K4 did not have the K3's main deck. The first RAF tankers were delivered in 1984.

Externally, the VC10 follows generally accepted airliner design, which includes an aerodynamically improved tubular fuselage, a well-forward flight deck, low-mounted, swept-back monoplane wings and a high-T tail. The four engines were mounted as pairs of nacelles on either side of the rear fuselage. Ridge-like stripes are found along the main wing surface. The cockpit has relatively good visibility, with a multi-section window arrangement. The landing gear consists of two main legs, each with four wheels, and a two-wheeled front leg.

The cabin is accessed through doors mounted on either side of the fuselage. Of course, the original cockpit was full of pin gauges and placed the two pilots side by side with a center console in the middle. Two additional crew members can sit directly behind these main seating positions.

A full VC10 crew consists of four flight attendants plus three flight attendants, carrying approximately 151 passengers (for the commercial passenger version).

Today (September 2013) the RAF decided to phase out its entire fleet of VC10 aircraft, some examples of which were delivered to The final destination, living there as a museum exhibit. Nicknamed the "Voyager" by the RAF, the MRTT aircraft is detailed elsewhere on this site and will be phased out of the older fleet of Lockheed L1101 TriStar aircraft due to retire in March 2014.

The last flight of the RAF VC10 was on September 25, 2013. During its 47 years of service, the VC10 became an important logistical part of British military operations, especially as an aerial tanker.

Qatar becomes the only other notable military operator in the VC10 family, along with a staggering number of civilian operators: Bahrain, Ceylon, East African Community, Ghana, Lebanon, Malawi, Nigeria, Oman, Sri Lanka and United Arab Emirates Emirates . Qatar and the UK thus became the military and civilian operators of the VC10, while the UK, Ghana and East African airlines took their place in history as the initial launch customers for the VC10 route.

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Like many other strategic bombers having outlived their bombing usefulness, the H-6 went on to enjoy something of an extended service life as aerial refueling tanker aircraft (similar to the post-bombing role inherited by the British Vickers Valiant nuclear bomber for the RAF). The initial models were designated as "HY-6" with conveniently retained their full combat capabilities.

This then resulted in the streamlined HY-6U series following and the solid-nosed HY-6D production mark (this born from the H-6D bomber mark). Another tanker variant became the HY-6DU series which entered service with the Chinese Air Force and was based on the refined HY-6D variant.

As it stands, the Xian H-6 force is still an active part of Chinese military operations and would be called upon in full strength in the event of all-out war with its neighbors or the West. While largely outmoded by modern technology and holding origins in a 1950s directive, the H-6 family of aircraft are available to the Chinese military in useful numbers to provide a decent stopgap threat to advancing land targets and maritime shipping in the theater. Modifications to the base H-6 system have only enhanced the original aircraft's offering and allowed for the H-6 to remain a viable battlefield tool in 2013. However, there is no denying that this family of aircraft has lived beyond its expected usefulness and retains many design limitations when compared to modern offerings.

It offers little stealthy features and its performance is regarded as only adequate.

Xian H-6 Specification

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