Old Photos of PIA, Orient Airways and Pak Air

[Abbas Ali]

For classic aircraft fans.

Orient Airways Douglas DC-3 Dakota registration AP-ABD - Click here to see photo.

Orient Airways Convair CV-240-7 registration AP-AEF - Click here to see photo.

Pak Air Douglas DC-3 Dakota registration AP-ADH - Click here to see photo.

&

PIA Lockheed L-1049C Super Constellation registration AP-AFQ - Click here to see photo.

Enjoy!

Abbas

[nopy99]

Nice pics.

I wonder what it must have been like flying from Karachi to the UK on a DC3 !

[Abbas Ali]

Probably Pak Air operated charter flights with its four-engine Douglas DC-4 aircraft for transporting emigrants from Pakistan to United Kingdom. Pak Air fleet included two DC-4 aircraft and here's a photo showing one of them.


Pak Air Douglas C-54A-10-DC Skymaster (Douglas DC-4) - registration AP-ADK.

Scheduled services operated by Pak Air included flights within West Pakistan and inter-wing flights between West Pakistan and East Pakistan.

Pak Air had a short life, the airline began operations in 1948 and on December 14, 1949 Pakistan's Ministry of Defence stopped Pak Air from operating flights after the loss of airline's two Douglas DC-3 aircraft in fatal accidents in Pakistan; first one in 1948 near Multan and second one in 1949 near Jungshahi. The short-lived airline was blamed for poor aircraft maintenance procedures.

Abbas

[PK777]

Thanks Abbas! I have searched for ages to find pictures of Pak-Air! All my searches were left unfulfilled until today!

[Abbas Ali]

^ You're welcome.

Here's postcard of air-to-air photo of Orient Airways Convair CV-240-7 wearing US registration N90836. It was registered in Pakistan as AP-AEG.

This particular Convair CV-240-7 was construction number 82 built in 1949.

On March 14, 1953, AP-AEG was operating Orient Airways scheduled passenger flight from Delhi (India) to Dacca (East Pakistan) when it began early descent in poor visibility and crashed into a mountain south of Kalahasahar (India). All five crew members and eleven passengers died in this accident.


Classic Airliner Cards No: 010 - Abbas Ali Collection

Abbas

[ConnieMan]

Bringing this thread to life with existence of ex-PIA's CV240 AP-AHS that is still parked at Camarillo airport in CA and is presently being dismantled to be transferred to a museum. I have been keeping tab on this aircraft's status for some years and it's really great to see one of early PIA's birds still in existence to this very day!.

After PIA, it switched many owners, became VIP aircraft and also carried celebrities during it's carrier. It was owned by Howard Hughes in 70s1 and then went under the ownership of actor Cary Grant.....here is it's history:

http://www.warbirdinformationexchange.o ... 16&t=18444

http://www.ruudleeuw.com/convair.htm

It was delivered as VH-TAS to Trans-Australia Airlines ("James Cook") oct.'48. Consider that, for a minute. In 1956 it went to Pakistan Int'l Airlines (AP-AHS). It went Dutch as PH-NLP for Fokker (operated for Euravia) and came home as N559R for Beldex Corporation (july'60). It was reregistered as N396CG for Faberge Inc in sep.'70 and flew for movie star Cary Grant. It went thru various owners, including Howard Hughes in the 1970s!. It was stored in Pontiac,MI 1982-1986. C&M Airways,TX bought it in aug.'89, but it was registered to another owner a few months later… It was leased by Renown Aviation, as a freighter, in the early 1990s. Current Owner has had it at Camarillo airport since the mid 90's.

It was last registered as N396CG, it has been at Camarillo Airport close to 20 years if not more!, over the years corrosion took it's toll on it's wing making it impossible to become airworthy again, so in 2009 it either sold or was donated to Air Heritage foundation who is taking it to a museum located at Beaver County Airport, Beaver Falls, PA (a little north of Pittsburgh).

I'm sure there are seniors on this site who must have flown on AP-AHS back in the days and would like to share there stories with this aircraft among us members of the site.

This is how AHS looked when it was flying with PIA in 50s!
http://www.historyofpia.com/olddays5.htm

More pictures of it...
http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.s ... entry=true

Google Earth's view..
http://virtualglobetrotting.com/map/car ... ?service=0

More on AHS's post PIA history..

N396CG Convair CV-240-5 93 R-2800 1960
wfu Oxnard AFB since 1998 in 2010 California Air Heritage Foundation started to restore it for Proud Bird Resturant next to LAX
N396CG leased early 1990s Renown Aviation
N396CG rg 9/70 Faberge Inc. (Cary Grant), rg 7/23/91 Gunnell Aviation Inc Santa Monica CA
N559R dd 7/60 Beldex Corp.
PH-EUT
PH-NLP Fokker operating for Euravia
AP-AHS PIA Pakistan International Airlines
VH-TAS dd 10/48 James Cook TAA Trans Australia Airlines