Imperial Airways: The Definitive Newsreel History 1924-1939 (1939)
1h 51min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
This is the definitive celebration of Britain's first national airline - Imperial Airways. Imperial Airways were the forerunner of BOAC, BEA and the British Airways of today. In 1924, the British Government amalgamated many of the complicated array of pioneering small British airlines into one company, Imperial Airways. Original newsreels give us a fascinating and detailed insight into early operations from London's first airport in Croydon - At first, the passengers flew in comfort while the pilot still sat in an `open' cockpit! By 1926, there were whole fleets of airliners and new flying boats were commissioned. Amy Johnson arrived from Australia in 1929 and by 1930 the new Handley Page four-engined airliners became reality. Pioneering is dangerous - as the R-101 Airship crash proved to the airlines. Imperial Airways even experimented with a radio link between The Flying Scotsman and one of its aircraft. Imperial Airways flew the first car and even transmitted Jack Hylton and his band `live' from the air. Throughout the 1930s, Imperial Airways kept expanding throughout the `Empire' over to Australia. We spend 24 hours in Sharjah and witness a nasty crash at Croydon! 1936 saw the birth of the new giant `Empire' flying boats and in 1937, Imperial Airways became air partners with PanAmerican and trans-oceanic flying was born. The hazards of ice, early air-to-air refuelling and the Short Mayo Composite aircraft are also shown and explained. - Studio:
- Strike Force Entertainment
- Genres:
- Children & Family, Documentary, Special Interest