File:Bristol Britannia 312 ‘G-AOVT’ (51765847967).jpg

c/n 13427 Built 1958 Owned by the Duxford Aviation Society as part of the British Airliner Collection. On display at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford Airfield, Cambridgeshire, UK. 19th September 2021

The following history for ‘Victor Tango’ is from the Duxford Aviation Society website:-

“G-AOVT was the last of BOAC’s Britannia 312 fleet to be delivered, arriving at Heathrow on 1st January 1959 after having its cabin furnishings and seats installed by Marshalls at Cambridge. It operated on BOAC’s long-range routes for more than four and a half years. In 1959 BOAC introduced the world’s first round-the-world service with part being operated by Britannias and part by Comet 4s. ‘VT operated the first of those westwards flights, flying via New York, San Francisco, Honolulu and Wake Island to Tokyo, from where a Comet 4 took over to complete the service by flying back to London with stops at Rangoon, Delhi and Rome. When BOAC retired its Britannia 312s ‘VT was purchased by British Eagle International Airlines in September 1963, and it was used on Eagle’s inaugural internal UK services, and then on scheduled services and holiday charter and trooping flights until November 1968, when the airline ceased operations. ‘VT was bought by the newly-formed Monarch Airlines in May 1969 and based at Luton Airport. It was used mainly on holiday package tour flights throughout Europe, but it also flew worldwide in various passenger and freight configurations, before operating the last civil passenger service by a Britannia in Europe on 14th October 1974, from Lisbon to Luton. .VT’s cabin was then stripped of all fittings and it was leased to Invicta Airlines at Manston who used it on cargo charter flights to Europe, Africa and the Middle East for three months. It returned to Luton on 10th March 1975 and was stored awaiting disposal.