The Vickers Vanguard was a short/medium-range

turboprop A turboprop is a turbine engine that drives an aircraft propeller. A turboprop consists of an intake, reduction gearbox, compressor, combustor, turbine, and a propelling nozzle. Air enters the intake and is compressed by the compressor. Fuel ...

airliner An airliner is a type of aircraft for transporting passengers and air cargo. Such aircraft are most often operated by airlines. Although the definition of an airliner can vary from country to country, an airliner is typically defined as an ...

designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer

Vickers-Armstrongs Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, w ...

. The Vanguard was developed during the mid-to-late 1950s in response to a specification issued by

British European Airways British European Airways (BEA), formally British European Airways Corporation, was a British airline which existed from 1946 until 1974. BEA operated to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East from airports around the United Kingdom. The a ...

(BEA) for a 100 seat airliner; Vickers decided to design such an airliner as a follow-up to the existing Viscount series, the principal difference from which being an expanded airframe that provided considerably more internal volume. Another key innovation was the Tyne engine, which was roughly twice as powerful as the Viscount's

Rolls-Royce Dart The Rolls-Royce RB.53 Dart is a turboprop engine designed and manufactured by Rolls-Royce Limited. First run in 1946, it powered the Vickers Viscount on its maiden flight in 1948. A flight on July 29 of that year, which carried 14 paying passe ...

engine, and allowed for increases in both cruising speed and altitude. Throughout the design process, the needs of two airlines, BEA and

Trans-Canada Air Lines Trans-Canada Air Lines (also known as TCA in English, and Trans-Canada in French) was a Canadian airline that operated as the country's flag carrier, with corporate headquarters in Montreal, Quebec. Its first president was Gordon Roy McGrego ...

(TCA), heavily shaped the Vanguard's specifics. The Vanguard was brought into revenue service on 17 December 1960, around the same time as the commercial availability of a new generation of jet-powered airliners; as a result, these competitors quickly overshadowed its performance and led to the type being largely ignored by the market. Only 44 aircraft were ever built, the type having been ordered by BEA and TCA. After only about ten years' service, TCA experimentally converted one of its Vanguards to a freighter configuration, calling it the Cargoliner. Considered to be a success, the majority of Vanguards were converted into freighters during the early 1970s, those from BEA becoming the Merchantman. As a freighter, the type remained in service for many years, the final example being retired in 1996.

Development

Background

The origins of the Vanguard can be traced back to speculative discussions between Vickers and the airline

(BEA) conducted as early as 1953, the same year in which the commercially successful

Vickers Viscount The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner. The Visc ...

airliner first entered revenue service. Even at this early stage, the two firms had envisioned the introduction of a successor to the Viscount entering service around 1959. This envisioned successor airliner would possess economics 10 percent greater than those of the Viscount, while also being considerably faster throughout all operational stages. Out of BEA's internal analysis of various options, which studied both

and pure

jet propulsion Jet propulsion is the propulsion of an object in one direction, produced by ejecting a jet of fluid in the opposite direction. By Newton's third law, the moving body is propelled in the opposite direction to the jet. Reaction engines operating o ...

arrangements, it became clear that a larger aircraft that could accommodate bigger payloads was highly desirable.Andrews 1969, p. 451. On 19 April 1953, BEA's chief executive,

Peter Masefield Sir Peter Masefield (19 March 1914 - 14 February 2006) was a leading figure in Britain's post war aviation industry, as Chief Executive of British European Airways in the 1950s, and chairman of the British Airports Authority in the 1960s. Histor ...

, outlined the company's requirements in a letter to Vickers; these criteria included a cruise speed of 370 kt, a standard range of 1,000 miles (with 305 miles in reserve fuel), the ability to accommodate up to 100 passengers, and an explicit preference for a high-wing configuration. Coincidentally, another airline,

(TCA), also made contact with the manufacture with its own list of requirements, calling for a Viscount-like airliner capable of servicing its intercontinental routes while carrying up to 60 passengers. Recognising the potential to fulfil both airlines' requirements in a single airliner, Vickers' design team commenced work on producing such an aircraft. Vicker's initial proposal, known as the ''Type 870'' or alternatively as the ''Viscount Major'', was incapable of meeting BEA's criteria, and was quickly dismissed. On 14 May 1951, Vickers met with Rolls-Royce representatives to discuss potential engines for their envisioned airliner; the meeting led to the decision to adopt the in-development

Rolls-Royce Tyne The Rolls-Royce RB.109 Tyne is a twin-shaft turboprop engine developed in the mid to late 1950s by Rolls-Royce Limited to a requirement for the Vickers Vanguard airliner. It was first test flown during 1956 in the nose of a modified Avro Linc ...

powerplant for its revised proposal. While considerations towards adopting a

turbojet The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine which is typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet which includes inlet guide vanes, a compressor, a combustion chamber, and ...

s engine were made, a study performed in November 1953 found that such an engine would produce inferior performance over shorter routes to a turboprop counterpart.Andrews 1969, pp. 451-452. It was around this time that Vickers' design team also discarded notions of adopting a

swept wing A swept wing is a wing that angles either backward or occasionally forward from its root rather than in a straight sideways direction. Swept wings have been flown since the pioneer days of aviation. Wing sweep at high speeds was first investigate ...

, largely due to its providing little benefit at the envisioned airliner's 400 mph cruise speed, as well as its inferior performance during the approach stage of flight.Andrews 1969, p. 452.

Redesign

Despite BEA's initial preference for a high-mounted wing, the company opted for a low-mounted wing following the adoption of a ''double-bubble'' fuselage. This type of fuselage was necessary because of the large proportion of freight which BEA needed to carry. It was considered by Vickers to be impractical if carried at the same level as the passengers due to the excessive length that would be required, but carrying the freight in a lengthy hold beneath the main cabin was a practical arrangement. Furthermore, TCA wanted a low-mounted wing, which would make the aircraft easier to refuel, de-ice and service, as well as giving a statistically significant improvement in survival in the event of a water landing.Andrews 1969, p. 453. By 13 April 1955, the range of design studies had been shortlisted down to five, these remaining concepts were jointly evaluated by BEA and Vickers. Of these submissions, it was recognised that the combination of the low-mounted wing and the double-bubble fuselage represented the optimum configuration, having offered the best capacity and versatility amongst other attributes. This conceptual aircraft, referred to as the ''Type 870 Scheme 16a'', could accommodate 88 passengers, a cruising speed of 420 mph at 25,000 ft, and payload of 20,000 lb. While BEA were interested in relatively short, sub-1000 mile, routes, its fuel tanks were progressively enlarged over several revisions to give a range of 2,600 miles so that the airliner would be acceptable to TCA as well.Andrews 1969, p. 454. The ''Type 900'' was a further revision of the design, featuring an expanded payload capacity of 21,000lb and carry up to 93 passengers. Following some relatively minor revisions, which largely bolstered the gross weight upwards, that were made to better suit the design to the needs of global customers, the definitive ''Type 950'' proposal emerged. On 20 July 1960, BEA placed an initial order for 20 Type 950s, the type becoming subsequently known as the ''Vanguard''; the airline publicly announced the order and its intended plan for the new airliner to succeed the Viscount in its fleet.Andrews 1969, p. 455. At the time, TCA was, while intensely interested in the airliner, not yet willing to commit itself, partially due to the basic model not entirely fulfilling their requirements, such as its capacity for

air mail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...

. Vickers recognised that a high-density seating configuration, accommodating up to 139 passengers to be carried, would likely be attractive to more operators, and designed the ''Type 952'' model for this market. Following a particularly vigorous evaluation, during early January 1957, TCA announced that it had placed an order for 20 Type 952s. With a follow-on order for three more aircraft, it would be the largest single dollar export deal in

postwar In Western usage, the phrase post-war era (or postwar era) usually refers to the time since the end of World War II. More broadly, a post-war period (or postwar period) is the interval immediately following the end of a war. A post-war period ...

Britain's history at that time.

Into production

The launch of the programme commenced immediately following BEA's initial order for the type. Due to the substantial growth of the airliner during the concept phase, engine supplier Rolls-Royce set about scaling up the Tyne engine from its initial output of 2,750 hp to at least 4,000 hp. As the Vanguard's production line was coming online at Vicker's

Weybridge Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a crossing point of the ...

facility, BEA recognised that, due to the typically short length of its routes, a higher density economy seating configuration could be adopted without impacting performance. Accordingly, on 23 July 1957, Vickers announced a new model, the ''Type 953'', which could handle payloads of up to 29,000 lb, which greatly improved the operating costs for BEA's preferred model; the airline quickly converted its order to six Type 951s and 14 Type 953s.Andrews 1969, p. 456. On 20 January 1959, the first Type 950 prototype ''G-AOYW'' conducted its

maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. The maiden flight of a new aircraft type is alwa ...

.Wright ''Air International'' April 1997, p. 242.Andrews 1969, pp. 456-457. The flight, a transfer to Wisley three miles away, had been planned for December but the engines were returned to Rolls-Royce for minor work. Proper flight testing was then carried out from Wisley. While development proceeded relatively smoothly, apart from over 2,000 flights being required to resolve unacceptable stalling characteristics, the last weeks of trials with BEA in early 1960 uncovered some engine-related difficulties, necessitating a brief delay while the compressor rotor was modified.Andrews 1969, pp. 458-459. With the issue resolved, the Vanguard entered revenue service with TCA on 1 February 1961, and with BEA one month later.Andrews 1969, p. 459. However, by the Vanguard's entry to service, the attitudes of the travelling public had shifted in favour of the new bypass jet engines which didn't use propellers.Andrews 1969, pp. 459-460. Passengers typically preferred the additional speed, even at the disadvantage of greater operating costs and thus higher ticket prices, that came with jet-powered airliners. As such, the turboprop-powered Vanguard did not sell well, although those examples that were introduced typically performed well in numerous capacities, and often had lengthy service lives.Andrews 1969, p. 460.

Design

The Vickers Vanguard was a

-powered airliner designed for short and medium-range services. The principal difference between the Vanguard and the preceding Viscount was in the construction of the

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

; the Vanguard lower fuselage was similar to that of the Viscount but the top section had a larger-diameter giving a ''double bubble'' cross-section (somewhat similar to the

Boeing Stratocruiser The Boeing 377 Stratocruiser was a large long-range airliner developed from the C-97 Stratofreighter military transport, itself a derivative of the B-29 Superfortress. The Stratocruiser's first flight was on July 8, 1947. Its design was advanced ...

). The primary result of the larger upper portion was a more spacious interior, along with an increase in cargo capacity below floor of the main cabin. A low-mounted straight wing was also adopted for the type, despite considerations towards shoulder-mounted and swept wing alternatives.Andrews 1969, pp. 452-453. Aviation author C. F. Andrews observed the design to be orthodox in practically every respect.Andrews 1969, pp. 457-458. The Vanguard's larger and heavier fuselage presented an obvious need to be combined with a more powerful engine, which led to the adoption of the newly-developed

engine. This powerplant was capable of generating a nominal , in comparison to the Viscount's

of about . The Tyne engine enabled the Vanguard to be operated at a substantially greater service ceiling and cruising speed. The Vanguard was one of the fastest turboprop airliners to ever be built, including much later designs such as the

Saab 2000 The Saab 2000 is a twin-engined high-speed turboprop airliner built by Swedish aircraft manufacturer Saab. It is designed to carry 50–58 passengers and cruise at a speed of . Production took place in Linköping in southern Sweden. The Saab ...

and

de Havilland Canada Dash 8 The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was later bought by Boeing in 1988, then by Bombardier in 1992; then by ...

. A pilot report describes maintaining 10,000 ft altitude with three engines at idle power and propellers feathered and the port outer engine at maximum cruise power. The flight deck of the Vanguard was particularly spacious for the era.Andrews 1969, p. 458. The flying controls were designed with manual operation in mind and were aerodynamically balanced. In spite of this arrangement, according to Andrews, the onboard electrical systems were a major advance over the previous generation of airliners; amongst other capabilities, the engines could be started without the aid of a ground support cart. The Vanguard possessed relatively docile stall characteristics, in part due to the dihedral positioning of its horizontal stabiliser, which kept it clear of the jet efflux from the engines and aided longitudinal stability.Andrews 1969, p. 457. However, acceptable stalling behaviour only came after an extensive programme of over 2,000 stalls to correct initial very violent tendencies which included rolling inverted.

Operational history

The Vanguard entered service with BEA and TCA in late 1960. BEA operated its first Vanguard schedule on 17 December from Heathrow to Paris. Following delivery of its full fleet of six V951 and 14 V953 aircraft by 30 March 1962, the type took over many of BEA's busier European and UK trunk routes. The aircraft received names of famous

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

warships; the first (registered G-APEA) was named "

Vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives fr ...

", however by the time that the aircraft were delivered, BEA had adopted its new "red square" livery, which saw the end of naming and none of the Vanguards actually carried a name. Initial seating was 18 first-class at the rear and 108 tourist, but this was changed to 139 all-tourist, in which configuration, the Vanguard had very low operating costs per seat/mile. On flights up to , such as from London to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam, the type could match the block times of the pure jets which were being introduced in the early 1960s. The remaining BEA fleet passed to

British Airways British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a populati ...

(BA) on 1 April 1974 and the last BA passenger flight with the type was on 16 June 1974.Davis 1981, pp. 87–88. TCA initiated Vanguard schedules on 1 February 1961 with two flights from Toronto and Montreal via intermediate stops to Vancouver. The fleet was also used on services from Toronto and Montreal to New York and Nassau, Bahamas. Tyne engine reliability was a concern to the airline in the early 1960's. They had a Constellation on stand-by at Dorval Airport in Montreal and at Toronto to take Vanguard passengers in case an engine wouldn't start.

Cargo operations

Vickers 953C Merchantman, British Airways Cargo AN1927866

In 1966, Air Canada removed all the seats from one of its aircraft and refitted for pure cargo work, in which role it could carry of freight. Known by the airline as the "Cargoliner," it was the only such conversion, but survived to be the last Canadian Vanguard to be retired in December 1972. BEA operated nine Vanguards modified to the V953C "Merchantman" all-cargo layout from 1969, with the first two conversions being designed and carried out by Aviation Traders Engineering Ltd (ATEL) at

Southend Airport Southend-on-Sea (), commonly referred to as Southend (), is a coastal city and unitary authority area with borough status in southeastern Essex, England. It lies on the north side of the Thames Estuary, east of central London. It is bordered ...

. BEA modified the remainder at Heathrow using kits from ATEL. A large forward cargo door measuring was incorporated. The Merchantmen continued in service with BA until late 1979 when the remaining five were sold. Air Bridge Carriers purchased several of the Merchantmen and operated them until 1992, when it changed its name to

Hunting Cargo Airlines Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...

. Hunting Cargo operated its last V953C flight on 30 September 1996 and donated the aircraft, registered ''G-APEP'', to

Brooklands Museum Brooklands Museum is a motoring and aviation museum occupying part of the former Brooklands motor-racing track in Weybridge, Surrey, England. Formally opened in 1991, the museum is operated by the independent Brooklands Museum Trust Ltd, a pri ...

on 17 October 1996.Wright ''Air International'' April 1994, pp. 240, 245.

Accidents and incidents

* On 27 October 1965,

Vanguard registration G-APEE, flying from

Edinburgh Airport Edinburgh Airport is an airport located in the Ingliston area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2019, handling over 14.7 million passengers. It was also the sixth-busiest airport in the United Kingdom by t ...

to London

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...

during a landing in poor visibility attempted an overshoot but crashed on runway 28R. All on board died - six crew and 30 passengers."Accident description: Vickers Vanguard G-APEE, 27 October 1965."
''Aviation Safety Network.'' Retrieved: 20 October 2010. * On 2 October 1971,

British European Airways Flight 706 British European Airways Flight 706 (BE706/BEA706) was a scheduled international passenger flight from United Kingdom to Salzburg, Austria. On 2 October 1971, whilst en route at , the Vickers Vanguard suffered a failure with its rear cabin pr ...

operated by Vanguard G-APEC crashed near

Aarsele Aarsele is a village in the Belgian province of West Flanders and a subdivision of the city of Tielt. History The earliest written reference to Aarsele dates from 1038 when it appears as Arcela, a Germanic word joining ''arda'' (= meadow) and ''sa ...

in Belgium. The cause was the failure of the rear pressure bulkhead and subsequent destruction of the tailplane. All eight crew and 55 passengers died."Accident description: Vickers Vanguard G-APEC (2 October 1971)"
''Aviation Safety Network''; retrieved 20 October 2010. * On 10 April 1973,

Invicta International Airlines Flight 435 Invicta International Airlines Flight 435 (IM435) was a Vickers Vanguard 952, flying from Bristol Lulsgate to Basel-Mulhouse, which crashed into a forested hillside near Hochwald, Switzerland on 10 April 1973. The aircraft somersaulted and ...

, operated by Vanguard registration G-AXOP crashed near Basel-Mulhouse Airport Switzerland. Four crew and 104 passengers died."Accident description: Vickers Vanguard G-AXOP (10 April 1973)"
''Aviation Safety Network''; retrieved 20 October 2010. * On 29 January 1988, Inter Cargo Service Flight 1004, operated by Vanguard F-GEJF crashed on takeoff from

Toulouse–Blagnac Airport Toulouse–Blagnac Airport (french: Aéroport de Toulouse–Blagnac) is an international airport located west northwest of Toulouse, partially in Blagnac, both ''communes'' of the Haute-Garonne department in the Occitanie region of France. I ...

when takeoff was attempted with only three fully operable engines. There were no casualties of the three crew and one passenger aboard."Accident description: Vickers Vanguard F-GEJF, 29 January 1988."
''Aviation Safety Network''; retrieved 20 October 2010. * On 6 February 1989, Inter Cargo Service Flight 3132, operated by Vanguard F-GEJE crashed on takeoff from

Marseille-Marignane Airport Marseille Provence Airport () is an international airport located 27 km (17 miles) northwest of Marseille, on the territory of Marignane, both ''communes'' of the Bouches-du-Rhône ''département'' in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur ''rég ...

, France. Three crew died; there were no passengers on board."Accident description: Vickers Vanguard F-GEJE, 6 February 1989."
''Aviation Safety Network''; retrieved 20 October 2010.

Variants

;Type 950: Prototype, one built and two fuselages were used as static test airframes. ;Type 951: BEA, 20 ordered, six delivered. All in 127-seat, mixed class configuration (18 first and 109 economy). ;Type 952: TCA, more powerful engine and stronger fuselage and wing for higher weights, 23 delivered. ;Type 953: BEA, Same engines as 951, but the stronger airframe of the 952. Mostly operated as 135-seater, all economy, but some configured as 127 mixed class the same as 951. A total of 14 delivered replacing an order for 951s. ;Type 953C Merchantman: Nine Cargo conversions from Type 953.

Operators

These airlines operated the Vickers Vanguard:"Database: Vickers Vanguard". ''Aeroplane'', January 2012, pp. 169-183; . ♠ original operators ;Canada *

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and ...

inherited 23 Srs 952s from Trans Canada Air Lines in June 1964 *

♠ 23 Srs 952, became Air Canada in June 1964 ;France * Europe Aéro Service * Inter Cargo Service * Occitan Air ;Gabon *

Air Gabon Air Gabon was the national, state-owned airline of Gabon, operating out of Libreville International Airport to a variety of destinations across western and southern Africa, as well as to Europe, South America, and the Middle East. Founded in 1951 ...

;Iceland *

Air Viking The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

one aircraft leased in 1970 * Thor Air Cargo two aircraft leased in 1971 Merpati Nusantara Vickers 953 Vanguard Fitzgerald

;Indonesia * Air Fast one aircraft was operated by Air Tenggara on Air Fast services *

Angkasa Civil Air Transport The National Space Agency ( ms, Agensi Angkasa Negara), abbreviated ANGKASA, was the national space agency of Malaysia. It was established in 2002 and its charter includes aims to upgrade, stimulate and foster the country's space programme thro ...

leased one aircraft in 1970 *

Merpati Nusantara Airlines PT Merpati Nusantara Airlines, operating as Merpati Nusantara Airlines, was an airline in Indonesia based in Central Jakarta, Jakarta. It operated scheduled domestic services to more than 25 destinations in Indonesia, as well as scheduled intern ...

;Lebanon *

Lebanese Air Transport Lebanese Air Transport s.a.l. is a Ground Handling Company based in Beirut, Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It i ...

leased one aircraft in 1970 ;Singapore * Air Tenggara leased one aircraft in 1981 and operated for Air Fast ;Sweden * Air Trader three aircraft leased in 1972 ;United Kingdom Invicta International Vanguard G-AZRE

* Air Bridge Carriers *

inherited three passenger aircraft and nine Merchantman freighters on formation in 1974 *

♠ - 20 Srs 951/953s some later converted to Merchantman * DHL Air * Elan Air Cargo *

Invicta International Airlines Invicta International Airlines Ltd was a charter airline based at Manston Airport in the United Kingdom. It operated non-scheduled passenger and freight services between 1965 and 1982. Company history 1960s Invicta International Airlines was fo ...

Silver City Airways Silver City Airways was an airline, based in the United Kingdom, that operated mainly in Europe, between 1946 and 1962. Unlike many airlines at the time, it was independent of government-owned corporations; its parent company was Zinc Corpo ...

, one Air Holdings aircraft operated in 1973

Aircraft on display

* Type 953C Merchantman ''Superb'' (formerly registered G-APEP) at the

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

, England. The only intact airframe in existence."Vickers Merchantman (Vanguard) 1969."
''Brooklands Museum''. Retrieved 14 July 2011. * Type 953C Merchantman ''Swiftsure'' (formerly registered G-APES) on static display at East Midlands Aeropark (nose section only)

Specifications (Type 952)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* Andrews, C.F. ''Vickers Aircraft since 1908''. London:Putnam, 1969. * Andrews, C.F. and E.B. Morgan. ''Vickers Aircraft since 1908''. London:Putnam, 1988. . * Davis, Peter W. ''Vickers Viscount and Vanguard.'' Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1981. . * Green, William. ''The Observer's Book of Basic Aircraft: Civil''. London: Frederick Warne & Co. Ltd., 1967.

''Flight,'' 1 June 1956. * Prins, François. "Homage to the Vanguard: Vickers' Four Turboprop Workhorse Bows Out". ''

Air Enthusiast ''Air Enthusiast'' was a British, bi-monthly, aviation magazine, published by the Key Publishing group. Initially begun in 1974 as ''Air Enthusiast Quarterly'', the magazine was conceived as a historical adjunct to '' Air International'' maga ...

'', No. 69, May–June 1997. pp 21–29. . * Stanfield, Robert I.
Aviation Week Pilot Report: Vanguard Demonstrates Single Engine Flight Traits
. ''

Aviation Week ''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', often abbreviated ''Aviation Week'' or ''AW&ST'', is the flagship magazine of the Aviation Week Network. The weekly magazine is available in print and online, reporting on the aerospace, defense and aviati ...

''. 14 September 1959, Vol. 71, No. 11, pp. 54–57, 59, 61, 65. (Registration required). * Swanborough, F. G. '' Turbine-engined Airliners of the World.'' London: Temple Press Books, 1962.
"Vanguard: A presentation of Britain's new turboprop airliner."
''Flight,'' 9 January 1959, pp. 61–73. * Wright, Alan J. "Right Aircraft, Wrong Time". ''

Air International ''AIR International'' is a British aviation magazine covering current defence aerospace and civil aviation topics. It has been in publication since 1971 and is currently published by Key Publishing Ltd. History and profile The magazine was fir ...

'', Vol. 52, No 4, April 1997, pp. 240–245. .

External links

Vickers Vanguard at BAE Systems site

Brooklands Motorsport and Aviation Museum

a 1955 ''Flight'' article by

Bill Gunston Bill Gunston (1 March 1927 – 1 June 2013) was a British aviation and military author. He flew with Britain's Royal Air Force from 1945 to 1948, and after pilot training became a flying instructor. He spent most of his adult life doing research ...

"Vanguard"
a 1959 ''Flight'' article on the Vanguard {{Authority control 1950s British airliners 1950s British cargo aircraft

Four-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Four-engined turboprop aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1959