Gay (and others interested in WSC's wartime travel).... First, as an earlier commenter on this listserv has noted, Churchill often sailed in a warship or liner--on at least two occasions, the Queen Mary--in his trips to Washington, Quebec or the 1941 Placentia Bay conference. But he did fly on occasion, something not at all common at that time (both Pan American and Imperial Airways having only just begun such service, using four-engine flying boats, in mid-1939).
When WSC flew the Atlantic (one way or round trip) during the war (on three occasions) it was aboard a Boeing 314 flying boat, three of which had been transferrd from Pan American to BOAC (they were dubbed the "Berwick," "Bristol," and "Bangor"). His "land" or European flights (including those to the Med. and to Russia) were, respectively, on a twin-engine RAF DH95 "Flamingo" (only for his several May and June 1940 flights to France); modified B-24 bombers (C-87, at first the "Marco Polo," and later the VIP-equipped "Commando"), then the Avro York (dubbed "Ascalon"), and, finally, toward the end of the war, a C-54 (DC-4) provided by the Americans (this one didn't have a specific airplane name given to it). All , save the de Havilland, were four-engine craft. The Douglas DC-3 (a) does not have the range for a trans-Atlantic flight (specifications show a max range of about 1,600 miles, and that's with no margin for error), and (b) was a twin-engine aircraft in an era when four engines were presumed necessary (witness the flying boats, DC-4/C-54, etc.) for such a route. Nor is there any reference in the several Churchill "travel" books (happy to provide cites if you'd like them) about Churchill or anyone else taking a DC-3 across the Atlantic (indeed, I'd welcome a source citation if I'm wrong here). WSC did use a "Dakota" for at least two 1945 flights, one into Brussels, the other to the Rhine. The C-47 become a ubiquitous aircraft in all theaters--but not for long over-ocean flights. With all due respect (after all, I wasn't there, and you were!), I do not see how you could have taken a DC-3, even from the Azores, even in 1958. Were you really on a twin-engine aircraft that usually seated only 21 people (and did feature, as the documentary showed, square windows)? In any case, the DC-3 was never "crossing the Atlantic regularly" at any time in its long history. I would think the four-engine DC-4 would have been far more likely. See my "Churchill and Air Travel," in Finest Hour, 118:24-29 (Spring 2003). Hope this information is helpful . . . Chris Sterling ----- Original Message ----- From: Gay Congdon To: [email protected] Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2009 8:25 PM Subject: [ChurchillChat] Re: Into the Storm broadcast Chris Sterling is wrong.THE DC-3 WAS CROSSING THE ATLANTIC REGULARLY AS LATE AS 1958.. I KNOW BECAUSE I WAS ABOARD ONE, IT DID STOP AT THE AZORES BUT WE HAD STARTED FROM .. LANDSTULE WINSTON WOULD HAVE CROSSED FROM ENGLAND TO NOVA SCOTIA.. [email protected] On Tue, Jun 2, 2009 at 12:52 PM, Chris Sterling <[email protected]> wrote: With one small quibble, I thought it was very well done. The quibble was showing a "Dakota" (essentially a Douglas DC-3) as the aircraft in which WSC flew the Atlantic to see FDR in 1941. No way could that twin-engine aircraft have made it across the pond! But the characterizations seemed spot on, the settings fitting, and the wartime background well portrayed (especially the early scene at the RAF Fighter Command field). If anything it sped by too quickly . . . Chris Sterling (Washington Society for Churchill) ----- Original Message ----- From: Keith Thomas Leonard To: ChurchillChat Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2009 12:44 PM Subject: [ChurchillChat] Re: Into the Storm broadcast To one and all: After viewing "Into The Storm, any thoughts? On May 28, 5:35 pm, John Mather <[email protected]> wrote: > As you may know, HBO will broadcast the sequel to The Gathering Storm this Sunday night at 9 p.m. EST. It’s called Into The Storm and features Brendan Gleeson as WSC and Janet McTeer as Clementine. I’ve been told it covers the long swath of WWII history and has some reference to the late May 1940 debate. > > I hope it’s terrific. I’m attempting to uncover the UK presentation date, the later in this year or early next the better as I believe it will wet the appetite of WWII history buffs to our upcoming production. > > We still await word from Trevor Nunn as to whether he will direct the production. > > > > Bob Crothers > > Producer > > West Ninth Productions Inc. > > Penthouse D > > 69 West 9th Street > > New York, NY 10011 > > T: 212 673 9343 > > C: 917 589 4328 > > F: 212 673 9507 > > [email protected] > > www.westninthproductions --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "ChurchillChat" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/ChurchillChat?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
