British Airways Ltd was a British

airline An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in wh ...

company operating in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

in the period 1935–1939. It was formed in 1935 by the merger of Spartan Air Lines Ltd,

United Airways Ltd United Airways Ltd was a British airline operating in 1935, ending as part of British Airways Ltd. History Whitehall Securities Corporation was a wealthy investment company run by Clive Pearson, the son of the founder. He was interested in avi ...

(no relation to the US carrier

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.

), and

Hillman's Airways Hillman's Airways was a 1930s British airline that later became part of British Airways. The company was formed in November 1931 as Hillman's Saloon Coaches and Airways Limited by Edward Henry Hillman who was a coach operator in Essex. His pr ...

. Its corporate emblem was a winged lion. DH86-2112

CASA 352 (AKA Junkers Ju 52-3m) at RAF Museum Cosford

History

On 30 September 1935, Allied British Airways Ltd was formed for the purpose of merging the publicly quoted company Hillman's Airways with the private companies of Spartan Air Lines and United Airways Ltd, both controlled by Whitehall Securities Corporation Ltd (WSC), owned by the Hon. Clive Pearson. Its directors were W. D. L. Roberts, Harold Balfour and John DeC Ballardie from WSC, plus John R. McCrindle, Edgar L. Granville and Gerard L. D'Erlanger from Hillman's. On 29 October 1935, the name was changed to British Airways Ltd, and on 11 December 1935 it converted to a public company. Whitehall Securities was joined as investor in the merged airline by banking house Erlangers Ltd, through its Chairman, Leo d'Erlanger. The combined assets of 37 operational aircraft included Armstrong Whitworth Argosy II,

Spartan Three Seater The Spartan Three Seater was a British three-seat biplane touring and pleasure-flying aircraft built by Spartan Aircraft Limited. History Built as a three-seat version of the Simmonds Spartan The Simmonds Spartan is a 1920s British tw ...

, DH.60 Moths, DH.84 Dragons, DH.89 Dragon Rapides, DH.86As and

Spartan Cruiser The Spartan Cruiser was a 1930s British three- engined transport monoplane for 6 to 10 passengers built by Spartan Aircraft Limited at East Cowes, Isle of Wight. It was a development of the Saro-Percival Mailplane for passenger use. Design an ...

s.Doyle (2001) In early 1936, aircraft and services of Hillman's Airways were transferred from Stapleford Aerodrome to

Heston Aerodrome Heston Aerodrome was an airfield located to the west of London, England, operational between 1929 and 1947. It was situated on the border of the Heston and Cranford areas of Hounslow, Middlesex. In September 1938, the British Prime Minister, Ne ...

, the principal base of Spartan Air Lines and United Airways; the single-engined types and most of the DH.84s were then sold. The London to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

services of United Airways were discontinued, and the services between Liverpool, Blackpool,

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

and

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

were transferred to Northern & Scottish Airlines, a subsidiary company. The ownership of DH.89s and Spartan Cruisers was progressively transferred to Northern & Scottish, and the Argosy was withdrawn from use at

Stanley Park Aerodrome (Blackpool) Stanley Park Aerodrome was an airfield located in the Stanley Park area of Blackpool, Lancashire, England. It was also known as Blackpool Municipal Airport, and was in use for civil and military flying from 1929 until closure of the airfield in ...

. In April 1936 the airline merged with

British Continental Airways British Continental Airways was a British airline that operated between 1935 and 1936, when it merged into British Airways. History British Continental Airways Limited was formed on 15 April 1935 to operate airline services from Croydon Airpor ...

; the merged fleet continued to operate as British Airways. On 25 May 1936, the service from London to Cowes and Ryde aerodromes on the Isle of Wight, that was still jointly operated by Spartan Air Lines and

Railway Air Services Railway Air Services (RAS) was a British airline formed in March 1934 by the Big Four railway companies (the GWR, LMS, LNER and SR) and Imperial Airways. The airline was a domestic airline operating routes within the United Kingdom linking up ...

using DH.84s, was transferred from Heston to

Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport (), also known as London Gatwick , is a major international airport near Crawley, West Sussex, England, south of Central London. In 2021, Gatwick was the third-busiest airport by total passenger traffic in the UK, after H ...

. Gatwick was then undergoing renovation and redevelopment, to include a new terminal and linked railway station, completed in 1937. In 1936, services from London to

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

Ostend Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal pop ...

and Stockholm were flown using DH.89s and DH.86s. Four Fokker F.XIIs were purchased from

KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...

, after attempted purchase and use by Crilly Airways for a London- Lisbon service, and they were employed on the Paris service until sold in September 1936 for intended use in the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, link ...

. During 1936, and into 1937, various night mail contracts were operated, using DH.86s and additional two Fokker F.XIIs, two Fokker F.VIIIs, and three Junkers Ju 52s, to

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

, and

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

. On 7 February 1937, all services were transferred to Croydon Airport, after surfaces at Gatwick became water-logged due to heavy traffic on immature turf and drains that collapsed; some training operations remained there. In March 1937, the first four of seven

Lockheed 10 Electra The Lockheed Model 10 Electra is an American twin-engined, all-metal monoplane airliner developed by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation in the 1930s to compete with the Boeing 247 and Douglas DC-2. The type gained considerable fame as one was fl ...

s were delivered. On 12 August 1937,

Scottish Airways Scottish Airways was an airline serving most of Scotland, especially the Highlands and Islands. It was active from 1937 until 1947, when it was merged into British European Airways. History Foundation The company was established on 12 August 1 ...

Ltd was formed to merge the operations of Northern & Scottish Airlines with Highland Airways Ltd, and British Airways Ltd held a 50% stake. On 29 May 1938, most aircraft and services were transferred from Croydon to Heston, due to congestion and unpredictable fog, but night mail operations continued from Croydon. On 3 September 1938, the first of nine

Lockheed 14 The Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra was an American civil passenger and cargo aircraft built by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation during the late 1930s. An outgrowth of the earlier Model 10 Electra, the Model 14 was also developed into larger, ...

s was delivered. On 15 September 1938,

British Prime Minister The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As moder ...

Neville Chamberlain flew from Heston to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

for a meeting with German leader Adolf Hitler at Berchtesgaden. A Lockheed 10 Electra (G-AEPR) of British Airways Ltd was used on that first of three occasions, piloted by C. Nigel Pelly. On 22 September 1938, Chamberlain flew to

for a meeting at

Bad Godesberg Bad Godesberg ( ksh, Bad Jodesbersch) is a borough ('' Stadtbezirk'') of Bonn, southern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. From 1949 to 1999, while Bonn was the capital of West Germany, most foreign embassies were in Bad Godesberg. Some buildings ar ...

in Lockheed 14 G-AFGN, flown by Eric Robinson. On 29 September 1938, G-AFGN was piloted by Victor Flowerday on the final trip to Munich, that resulted in the

Munich Agreement The Munich Agreement ( cs, Mnichovská dohoda; sk, Mníchovská dohoda; german: Münchner Abkommen) was an agreement concluded at Munich on 30 September 1938, by Germany, the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. It provided "cession to Germany ...

, Chamberlain's widely publicised return at Heston on 30 September 1938, and his subsequent " Peace for our time" speech.Sherwood, 1999 During 1939, new services were operated to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

and Lisbon.

Second World War

Before the outbreak of war on 1 September 1939, the British government had already implemented the Air Navigation (Restriction in Time of War) Order 1939. That ordered military takeover of most civilian airfields in the UK, cessation of all private flying without individual flight permits, and other emergency measures. It was administered by a statutory department of the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of State ...

titled

National Air Communications National Air Communications was a British government organisation that directed civilian flying operations from the outbreak of World War II until April 1940. Pre-war preparations During the 1930s, and up to 1938, the British government progres ...

(NAC). By 1 September 1939, the aircraft and administrations of British Airways Ltd (BAL) and

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. Passengers ...

were physically transferred to

Bristol (Whitchurch) Airport Bristol (Whitchurch) Airport, also known as Whitchurch Airport, was a municipal airport in Bristol, England, three miles (5 km) south of the city centre, from 1930 to 1957. It was the main airport for Bristol and the surrounding area. Durin ...

, to be operated jointly by NAC. On 1 April 1940, British Airways Ltd and Imperial Airways Ltd were officially combined into a new company,

British Overseas Airways Corporation British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the British state-owned airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the pass ...

(BOAC), that had already been formed on 24 November 1939 with retrospective financial arrangements.

Fleet

British Airways Ltd operated the following aircraft:

Accidents and incidents

* On 16 May 1936, a

(G-ACYL) crashed on landing at

Hall Caine Airport Hall Caine Airport, also referred to as Close Lake Airfield, was an airfield on the Isle of Man located near the town of Ramsey. It was named after the author Sir Thomas Henry Hall Caine CH, KBE by his sons Gordon Hall Caine and Derwent Hall Cain ...

, Ramsey, Isle of Man. The aircraft was operating a scheduled passenger flight from Glasgow (Renfrew) Airport. Despite the loss of a wing in the accident, the aircraft was repaired and returned to service.

Notes

* Doyle, Neville. 2001. The Triple Alliance: The Predecessors of the first British Airways.

Air-Britain Air-Britain, traditionally sub-titled "The International Association of Aviation Enthusiasts", is a non-profit aviation society founded in July 1948. As from 2015, it is constituted as a British charitable trust and book publisher. History Air-Brit ...

. * Moss, Peter W. 1962. Impressments Log (Vol I-IV). Air-Britain. * Moss, Peter W. October 1974. British Airways. Aeroplane Monthly. * * Sherwood, Tim. 1999. Coming in to Land: A Short History of Hounslow, Hanworth and Heston Aerodromes 1911–1946. Heritage Publications (Hounslow Library)

References

External links

Photo of Spartan Cruisers
of British Airways Ltd at Hall Caine Aerodrome IoM, 1936
Photo of Dragon Rapide
(G-ADAG) of Hillmans Airways
Photo of De Havilland Dragon
(G-ADCT) 'Orcadian' of Highland Airways

(G-AEPR) at Heston, 15 September 1938
Polish National Archives photo of Lockheed 14
(G-AFGN) with Chamberlain at Heston, 24 September 1938
Polish National Archives photo of Lockheed 14
with pilot Giles Guthrie
Polish national Archives photo of Lockheed 14
(G-AFKE) at Warsaw, 1939 * {{DEFAULTSORT:British Airways Ltd (1935-39) Airlines established in 1935 Defunct airlines of the United Kingdom British companies established in 1935 1935 establishments in England Airlines disestablished in 1939 1939 disestablishments in the United Kingdom 1940 mergers and acquisitions 1935 mergers and acquisitions