British Marine Air Navigation Co Ltd was a short-lived British
airline
An airline is a company that provides civil aviation, air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or Airline alliance, alliances with other airlines for ...
operating
flying boat
A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...
s across the
English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
in 1923 and 1924. It merged with three other airlines in 1924 to form
Imperial Airways
Imperial Airways was the early British commercial long-range airline, operating from 1924 to 1939 and principally serving the British Empire routes to South Africa, India, Australia and the Far East, including Malaya and Hong Kong. Passenger ...
.
Formation
British Marine Air Navigation Co Ltd was formed in 1923 in a joint venture between
Supermarine
Supermarine was a British aircraft manufacturer that is most famous for producing the Supermarine Spitfire, Spitfire fighter plane during World War II as well as a range of seaplanes and flying boats, and a series of Jet engine, jet-powered figh ...
and
Southern Railway (owners of
Southampton Docks
The Port of Southampton is a passenger and cargo port in the central part of the south coast of England. The modern era in the history of the Port of Southampton began when the first dock was inaugurated in 1843. The port has been owned and op ...
), the
Woolston
Woolston may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Woolston, Cheshire, a village and civil parish in Warrington
* Woolston, Devon, on the list of United Kingdom locations: Woof-Wy near Kingsbridge, Devon
* Woolston, Southampton, a city suburb in Ham ...
base becoming Britain's first commercial flying boat base, with its own Customs and Immigration facilities. The world's first scheduled passenger flying boat service began on 14 August 1923, with flights to
Cherbourg
Cherbourg (; , , ), nrf, Chèrbourg, ) is a former commune and subprefecture located at the northern end of the Cotentin peninsula in the northwestern French department of Manche. It was merged into the commune of Cherbourg-Octeville on 28 Feb ...
,
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...
and the
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
.
Aircraft
Three
Supermarine Sea Eagle flying boats, designed by
Reginald Mitchell of later
Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Griff ...
fame, were purchased, and formed the inaugural fleet in 1923.
Imperial Airways
On 31 March 1924, British Marine Air Navigation Co Ltd merged with
Handley Page Transport
Handley Page Transport Ltd was an airline company founded in 1919, soon after the end of the First World War, by Frederick Handley Page.
The company's first planes were Handley Page Type O/400 bombers modified for passenger use. They flew a Lo ...
,
Instone Air Line
Instone Air Line was an early British airline from 1919 to 1924. Along with other private airlines of the time, it was absorbed into Imperial Airways.
This airline is not to be confused with Instone Air Line (1981) of Stansted, which operated ...
, and
Daimler Airway
Daimler Airway was an airline subsidiary of the Birmingham Small Arms Company (BSA)'s Daimler Company. It was created to use some of the assets of the failed ventures Airco and its subsidiary, Aircraft Transport and Travel, which was acquired ...
, to form Imperial Airways.
See also
*
List of aircraft of Imperial Airways
*
List of defunct airlines of the United Kingdom
This is a list of defunct airlines of the United Kingdom.
See also
* List of airlines of the United Kingdom
* List of airports in the United Kingdom and the British Crown Dependencies
References
*
*
{{List of defunct airlines ...
References
External links
Imperial Airways enthusiasts' website
Airlines established in 1923
Defunct airlines of the United Kingdom
1923 establishments in the United Kingdom
{{Europe-airline-stub