Canadian Warplanes 6: de Havilland DH.106 Comet

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301).

de Havilland DH.106 Comet‍

The de Havilland DH.106 Comet was the world's first commercial jet airliner. Developed and manufactured in the United Kingdom, the Comet 1 prototype first flew in 1949. It featured an aerodynamically clean design with four de Havilland Ghost turbojet engines buried in the wing roots, a pressurised cabin, and large square windows. For the era, it offered a relatively quiet, comfortable passenger cabin and was commercially promising at its debut in 1952.

Two RCAF Comet 1As were rebuilt with heavier-gauge skins to a Comet 2 standard for the fuselage, and renamed Comet 1X. In March 1953, the RCAF received its first Comet. With the arrival of this aircraft, the RCAF became the first air force in the world to operate jet transports and the first operator to make scheduled trans-Atlantic Crossings.

Unfortunately, within a year of entering airline service, problems started to emerge, with three Comets lost within twelve months in highly publicised accidents, after suffering catastrophic in-flight break-ups. Two of these were found to be caused by structural failure resulting from metal fatigue in the airframe, a phenomenon not fully understood at the time; the other was due to overstressing of the airframe during flight through severe weather. The Comet was withdrawn from service and extensively tested. Design and construction flaws, including improper riveting and dangerous concentrations of stress around some of the square windows, were ultimately identified. As a result, the Comet was extensively redesigned, with oval windows, structural reinforcements and other changes. Rival manufacturers meanwhile heeded the lessons learned from the Comet while developing their own aircraft.

Although sales never fully recovered, the improved Comet 2 and the prototype Comet 3 culminated in the redesigned Comet 4 series which debuted in 1958 and remained in commercial service until 1981. The Comet was also adapted for a variety of military roles such as VIP, medical and passenger transport, as well as surveillance; the last Comet 4, used as a research platform, made its final flight in 1997. The most extensive modification resulted in a specialised maritime patrol derivative, the Hawker Siddeley Nimrod, which remained in service with the Royal Air Force until 2011, over 60 years after the Comet's first flight. (Wikipedia)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet Mk. IX (2), (Serial No. 06017), RCAF (Serial No.5301), and (Serial No. 06018), RCAF (Serial No. 5302).

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301).

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301).

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301).

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301).

(Canadian Forces Joint Imagery Centre Photo, PL-71711)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301), 10 Feb 1958.

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301)

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301).

(CFJIC Photo PL-143467)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5301), Uplands 12 Sep 1963.

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5302).

(RCAF Photo)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet, RCAF (Serial No. 5302), Uplands, Oct 1959.

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3714418)

de Havilland DH.106 Comet flown during the 1959 Royal Visit Canada. RCMP Inspector E. Portier Officer Commanding the Calgary Sub-Division, is introduced to Queen Elizabeth on her arrival at Calgary Airport, Alberta, on 9 July 1959.