British European Airways (BEA) was officially formed on 1st April 1946 with aircraft leased from BOAC. On 1st February 1947, various other airliners were taken over resulting in the first of BEA’s DC-3s being operated from Northolt, before the airline moved to Heathrow. The venerable DC-3 (perhaps better known as the Dakota) was the mainstay of BEA from when the first was purchased after WWII in 1946 until the mid-1950s, remaining in service until the last was withdrawn on 19th May 1962. In all, some 70 DC-3s were leased or owned by BEA including G-AHCZ, which was a MkIII built in Oklahoma City and delivered to BOAC in 1946. It was transferred to BEA in 1947 and named Charles Samson, becoming a ‘Pionair’ Class DC-3 with modifications including an air-stair door. It flew the last BEA service between Northolt and Jersey in 1954 and was transferred to Cambrian Airways in 1959.
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