“There wasn’t much we wouldn’t do”

The British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) One-Eleven played a significant role in the early development of European Aviation Air Charter. Nine years after the carrier stopped flying, some of its former bosses look back on those heady days. Bruce Hales-Dutton reports.

The BAC One-Eleven formed the backbone of European Aviation’s operation for more than a decade.
AIRTEAMIMAGES. COM/WOLFGANG MENDORF

European Aviation was formed in 1989 and originally bought and sold One-Elevens and their spare parts. But a change of business model five years later saw it become a charter airline, initially flying the British twin-jet. But in 2002 the enterprise faced a key turning point, with its One-Elevens being withdrawn from service due to their Rolls-Royce Spey engines not meeting the latest noise regulations. A major operational change was need in the way it operated.

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