Airlines & Airliners 1970 - 2006

Airlines & Airliners - First Series 1970-1975

In 1970, 'VHF Supplies' - an Aviation Hobby Retailer specializing in Airliner Models and Airband Radios located in Harlington, Middlesex, England, launched the first volume of a series of booklets for aviation enthusiasts and airliner spotters titled 'Airlines & Airliners.'

No. 1 served as a prototype for future editions, presented in a larger format with a vibrant colour front cover artwork, as opposed to the black and white photo-pictorial covers that characterized the smaller volumes in the first series. 

The experimental design of Volume 1 made it quite unique as it featured four airline histories along with complete historical fleet lists for National Airlines, Olympic Airways, Laker Airways, and Cathay Pacific.

Additionally, there was a full Production List of the Boeing Stratocruiser, including a double-page spread showcasing artworks of the aircraft in the liveries of ten different operators.

However, the bulk of this edition focused on comprehensive Jet Airliner Fleet Lists organized by Type and Airline. This was likely the first fully updated listing attempt since the release of 'All The World's Jet Airliner Markings' by World Traffic Editions Vevey in 1963 (refer to the JP Airline Fleets section of this website). Furthermore, the volume included striking colour and black and white photographs of various airliners.

From Volume 2 onwards in the first series, the format transitioned to examining different makes of airliners (one per edition). The release of Volume 2 coincided with the establishment of 'Airline Publications & Sales Ltd' as an offshoot of VHF Supplies, dedicated to publishing books for aviation enthusiasts and spotters. Notable titles included Gunter Endres' 'World Airline Fleets' and Nigel Tomkins' 'Airliner Production List,' both of which were published regularly throughout the late 1970s and into the 1980s.

Today, the first series of 'Airlines & Airliners' from numbers 2 to 14 remains an intriguing collection, especially for those passionate about airline history books. Alongside chronicling well-known airliner types, the series delves into more obscure or less-common airliners of the '60s and '70s, such as the Nord 262, Handley Page Herald, Short Skyvan, Hawker Siddeley 748, and the commercial version of Lockheed's Hercules.

Each edition includes a minimum of one double-page spread of colour artworks highlighting the aircraft in various operator schemes, and often features photos of flight decks and passenger cabins.

Every volume also contains a complete production list for the specific airliner up to the publication date, detailed information about the airlines operating the aircraft, and, in many cases, diagrammatic representations illustrating the freight capacity and cabin layout, notably for the Skyvan.

The first series can be summarized as follows:

1. Jet Airliner Fleets / Stratocruiser / 4 x Airline Histories (1970)

2. Skyvan (1971)

3. Herald (1971)

4. Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet Part 1 (1971)

5. Nord 262 and Fregate (1972)

6. Lockheed 382 L100 Hercules (1972)

7. Vickers Viscount 700 (1973)

8. Trident (1972)

9. Super Constellation (1973)

10. DC-10 (1973)

11. L.1011 Tristar (1974)

12. Hawker Siddeley 748 (1974)

13. Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet Part 2 (1974)

14. Vickers Viscount 800 (1975)

Airlines & Airliners - Second Series 1992-2006

The Second series of 'Airlines & Airliners' commenced in 1992 and continued until 2006. It was created in a large portrait softback format using high-quality glossy paper, reminiscent of the 'Bookazine' style that has become standard in the 2020s, as exemplified by publishers like Key Publishing today.

Interestingly, Series Two was produced in the same format as the later editions of the monthly 'World Airline Fleets News' published by The Aviation Data Centre, a company that evolved from the earlier 'Airline Publications and Sales' mentioned previously.

From No. 6 Stratocruiser in 2002 until the last edition No. 9 Vickers Viking in 2006, Series Two was a collaborative effort between the Aviation Data Centre and The Aviation Hobby Shop.

Similar to Series One, Series Two features the Vickers Viscount series 700 and the Hawker Siddeley Trident, but these airliner types are covered with much greater depth than in previous editions. This thoroughness extends to the airline histories of each operator concerning the aircraft types featured in all nine editions that comprise Series Two.

The subsequent series also boasts an impressive collection of colour photos, which increase in number as the series progresses (with only a few included in numbers 1 to 3).

A full production list detailing changes of ownership and the ultimate fates of each airframe is included.

The second series can be summarized as follows:

1. Trident (1992)

2. VC-10 (1993)

3. Vanguard (1994)

4. Bristol Britannia (1996)

5. de Havilland Comet (1998)

6. Boeing 377 Stratocruiser & related variants (2002)

7. Vickers Viscount 700 series (2002)

8. BAC One Eleven (2003)

9. Vickers Viking (2006)

For connoisseurs of airline and airliner history, both series are invaluable additions to any aviation library. However, the earlier editions are now quite rare, and volumes from the later series often fetch higher than average prices on the secondhand market due to their limited print runs, especially for the final volumes.