Vickers VC10 variant
Vickers VC10 VC10 C.1
RAF designation for the fourteen Type 1106: strategic transports with the Standard airframe, Super engines and a refuelling probe. Delivered between 1966 and 1968.
- 14
- Units built
- 6,273 km
- Range
- 150
- Passengers
History
A VC10 for the RAF
In 1960 the RAF issued Specification 239 for a strategic transport and in September 1961 the Air Ministry ordered five VC10s from Vickers; the order grew by six more in August 1962 and three BOAC cancellations in July 1964. The military version, Type 1106, combined the Standard combi airframe with the more powerful engines and fin fuel tank of the Super VC10, plus a detachable in-flight refuelling probe and an auxiliary power unit in the tailcone. All passenger seats faced rearwards for safety.
Service
The first aircraft was delivered for testing on 26 November 1965 and deliveries to No. 10 Squadron ran from December 1966 to August 1968. Each aircraft carried the name of a Victoria Cross holder above the forward door. Through the 1960s they flew two regular routes: the Far East, to Singapore and Hong Kong, and New York. By 1970 the fleet was carrying roughly 10,000 passengers and 730,000 lb of freight a month.
Other duties
Beyond strategic transport, the C.1 served in aeromedical evacuation and VIP roles: members of the British Royal Family and several prime ministers used it. It could be flown non-stop with two crews, and one circumnavigated the globe in under 48 hours. In 1982 C.1s formed part of the airbridge between Brize Norton and Ascension Island during the Falklands campaign.
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