BMI Airbus A319-131 departing Inverness Dalcross Airport, Scottish Highlands. XAV 3987-379
bmi's roots lie in the formation of Air Schools Ltd in 1938, a company which specialised in flying instruction for RAF pilots. In 1949 the company formed Derby Aviation and Wolverhampton Aviation, based at Burnaston in the Midlands offering ad-hoc charter and freight flights with De Havilland Rapides, as well as aircraft maintenance and brokerage. Roughly half a dozen people formed it in 1948 including Tommy Pike which who was an ASR pilot during the war. Flying instruction ceased in 1953 with the start of scheduled flights from Derby and Wolverhampton to Jersey. When the first Douglas DC-3 arrived in 1955, Wolverhampton Aviation had been phased out and the company's sole base became Burnaston Airport. International services commenced in 1956 to Ostend and holiday flights to mainland Europe began. The company was also contracted by Rolls-Royce to transport aero engines to customers throughout the world. In 1959, the company changed its name to Derby Airways. Domestic scheduled flights within the United Kingdom were launched toward the end of the decade. bmi Airbus A319-100In 1964 the company changed its name once again to British Midland Airways (BMA) and moved operations from Burnaston to the recently opened East Midlands Airport. The corporate colours of blue and white were adopted at that time, with the introduction of the first turboprop aircraft, the Handley Page Herald. Minster Assets, an investment and banking group, acquired the airline in 1968. Domestic and European expansion continued apace and in 1970 BMA entered the jet age with the introduction of the BAC 1-11, followed by the Boeing 707 in 1971. The BAC 1-11s were withdrawn from service in 1972 and the 707s leased to other airlines as BMA concentrated on turboprops such as the Vickers Viscount. Though the 707 fleet was increased, none operated for BMA on scheduled services, or charter services on their behalf until 1981. Instead they were leased to other operators. The Douglas DC-9 converted most of t
Size: 5380px × 3573px
Location: Inverness Dalcross Airport, Highland Region. Scotland. United Kingdom.
Photo credit: © David Gowans / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
Keywords: 6, 124, 400, a319, a320., a320m-7, class, holiday, miles, minimum-change, passengers, range, seating, shortened, similar, speeds, transport, travel, version
