The very first passenger jet aircraft was the de Havilland Comet 1. Designed and produced in Great Britain, this revolutionary aircraft first flew in 1949 and entered service in 1952.
You would be very lucky to have flown on board this aircraft, as they were only in service for two years before being withdrawn. BOAC, Air France and UAT were the three airlines to have them in service. Why did they have such a short career?
de Havilland Comet 1 Video
The people who put together the video of the Dassault Mercure last week also produced this one. It provides an interesting overview of the de Havilland Comet 1 and why it was not a success.
Comet aircraft flew higher than any aircraft of the era, being the only jet aircraft in service. This meant the cabin was pressurised which is the same as aircraft today.
Unfortunately little was known about metal fatigue due to repeated pressurisation of the fuselage when it came to such high altitudes. For the Comet, this meant they had a tendency to explode in mid-air once the cabin failed.
A major investigation discovered the reasons behind the failures. Aircraft manufacturers took the hard earned lessons from the Comet and applied them to future aircraft. This is why depressurisation due to metal fatigue is virtually unheard of nowadays.
Overall Thoughts
Pioneering work by the British almost had them steal a march on jet aircraft production. The Comet was so well received that even America’s Pan Am placed orders for the aircraft, which was considered a ringing endorsement at that time.
While the Comet 1 went out of service, a strengthened and enlarged version called the Comet 4 entered service in 1958 and flew successfully through to 1980 when Dan-Air flew the final services.
Did you ever fly on a Comet 1? Maybe a Comet 4? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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Featured image via Zoggavia.com
The reason the Comet 1 suffered such failures was the use of SQUARE windows as were used on earlier lower altitude flights. The fuselage suffered cracks and failures at the corner of the windows. If you notice subsequent Comets and ALL modern aircraft now have windows with rounded corners and in the case of the SST almost round port holes. Visited the SST at Manchester Airport and took the guided Technical Tour one Sunday, even got to visit and sit in the cockpit and get a full explanation of all the dials gauges and switches, plus a full tour around the under area with explanations.
Well worth the money and I highly recommend it !
Yes, the Concorde at Manchester is a really great experience – I’ve visited there too. I enjoyed it and would recommend anyone to go there. The windows are around the size of a Passport – quite small indeed. Agree with you on the Comet, it also had thinner gauge skin which did not help. Thanks for the comment!
I was a passenger on BOAC’s Comet iV from London to New York in the summer of 1958. As I recall, it was an all first class flight (similar in seating to the Concord, on which I flew some years later). Further, if I remember correctly, we had to make a refueling stop in Gander.
I never had the chance to fly either the I or IV. All I remember of the Comet was the nickname of the I – the “Vomit Comet” due to its’ propensity to fall apart in air.
I have only heard that term – “Vomit Comet” in relation to the aircraft they use to simulate weightlessness for the NASA astronauts. Never heard it applied to the aircraft detailed here, so I’d question that. Thanks for the comment!
Well, the aircraft didn’t go into service until October 1958, so perhaps it was the following summer you were on board? Either way, you would have been on the aircraft quite early on. I am not sure if it was all first class or not, as I have not seen a seating plan from back then. Gander was the stop when travelling westbound. Thanks for the comment!