iscover
Many at TAA felt, with great justification, that if they could have imported the French Caravelle jet then the airline would have been in an unassailable position against the competition. Unfortunately due to the Two Airline Policy and Ansett-ANA preferring to stay with propeller-driven airliners, the airline was instead forced to substitute its Caravelle order with Electra propjets.
TAA Celebrates 40th Anniversary, Pt Ill
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TAA, or Australian Airlines as it has more recently become known has now celebrated forty years of airline service. What is generally not remembered nowadays is the political and funding traumas that marked its early years. In this three part series we relive the birth of Australia’s ‘other’ domestic airline, examine the aircraft and operating decisions that had such a profound impact on air transport during the fifties and sixties and finalise with a look to the future. New aircraft, a new corporate identity and a post-Two Airline Policy world of new frontiers.
Trans Australia Airlines Celebrates Forty Years of Achievement Part III
A major disappointment for TAA was their inability to purchase Caravelles. The Government turned down on three occasions, a request from the Commission to proceed with a Caravelle purchase.
TAA wanted to buy two to three Caravelles to be operated on the Adelaide/Perth route which was beyond the Viscounts optimum range capabilities on a regular basis. Even when the Viscount was used, it could not carry a full load. John Watkins had seen the prototype Caravelles at Toulouse in 1954 and was very impressed with what he saw. The intention was to operate the Caravelles from Sydney to Perth via Adelaide with a Viscount feeder service from Melbourne to Adelaide. It could on occasion have operated through Essendon but there was some doubt about Essendon’s suitability, but it was not vital to the plan that Essendon be used.
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