A 'virtual' Short Super Sealand amphibian - SORTED!

[PR19_Kit]

The Super Sealand's done and DUSTED at last!

I've actually got three windows to Glue'nGlaze yet, but as each one is taking an entire DAY to dry off, I just can't be faffed sitting around waiting for that after finishing all the rest of it.

So here's G-AUST 'Austral Rose' in all her blue, white, grey and silver glory.





And this is the diabolical landing gear! Those tiny blue and grey gear doors tacked onto the top of the gear legs drove me to distraction, and caused not a few very loud, very rude, outbursts I can tell you! 

 

The very sleek and silver underside view, but hen it is a flying boat after all.



And lastly the starboard side, the one with only three windows glazed so far, but you can't see them anyway. 



And in a few minutes you can read the just slightly different backstory below.............. 

[PR19_Kit]

The Short SB7 Super Sealand, the backstory.

A mixture of real world, Whiff world and FSX flight sim world to amuse you.

                               

The Short Sealand first flew in 1948 and a number of production variants were sold to both civilian and military customers, although none of those were based in the UK. However during the mid 50s Albion Air Cargo, the Bournemouth based British air freight company, were expanding their operations into passenger flights, and into the holiday hotel market as well. Two of the hotels were in Jamaica and the Seychelles Islands, and because of the deliberately remote location of these resort hotels the airline, by now having been renamed Albion Airlines, decided to offer amphibian flights operating from the hotels themselves. These flights were not only to transfer the guests to and from the island's major airports, but also to offer sightseeing flights around the local area.

To this end Albion purchased six SB7 Sealands, with the longer span wing option and uprated DH Gypsy Queen engines, configured in a seven passenger  and a two crew cockpit configuration. A single flight attendant, or guide during the scenic flights, was also accommodated, as well as a substantial cargo hold aft. Three of the Sealands were allocated to each of the resort hotels and were put into service fairly rapidly as the resort hotel holiday market was beginning to grow, and the airline's long distance passenger flights to the two resort areas were making good money for Albion.

During the 60s and early 70s this market grew and shrank in turn, as the public's tastes changed, and while the hotels remained profitable the operation of the by now vintage amphibians was becoming more and more expensive. The Jamaican Sealand services were replaced by a flight of 4 Grumman Mallards, but the three Seychelles Sealands became surplus as a new, large airport had been built very close to the Albion hotel. Two of the small amphibians were sold to the Indian Navy, who already flew 6 of the same aircraft, and the 3rd aircraft was flown back to Albion's large, newly expanded base at the former RAF Tain in Scotland. The company's CEO, Les Jones, always had a soft spot for the six Sealands, and often flew them himself and keeping the last one close to hand at Tain seemed a good idea to him, especially as Inver Creek came within a few yards of Tain's 24 runway threshold and could be accessed via a newly built ramp. This enabled the last Albion Sealand to be taxied into the water, and out onto the Moray Firth from where it could operate in its maritime role.

The last Albion Sealand, named 'Austral Rose' (all Albion aircraft of the period were named '********* Rose') and registered G-AUST, operated for many years in a demonstration role, usually flown by Les Jones himself, but also by Albion's Special Operations Director, Kit Spackman, at various air shows around the UK. But the two Gypsy Queen engines were becoming expensive to maintain by the end of the 1990s, and Austral Rose made her last air show appearance at the Seawings 2000 event over Southampton Water in 2000, and was then returned to retirement as a gate guardian at Tain.



'Austral Rose' as the gate guardian at Albion's Scottish base at Tain.

However some years later interest in the vintage amphibian returned and she was moved to Albion's Engineering site on the north side of the airfield and under the direction of the airline's SpecOps Division she was fitted with two P&W Canada PT6 turbine engines, multiplying the power of the original piston engines by a factor of two! This change was triggered by an Air Rally which was being planned to cross Australia during 2024 and which garnered some interest among Albion's staff, and it was decided to fly Austral Rose out to the Antipodes to take part in the event. The PT6s would make things a lot easier from the point of fuel availability and also from the serviceability point of view. Accordingly flight tests were carried out from Tain with the new power plants and a revised C of A issued by the CAA.

The Rally was due to start in late January 2024 and Austral Rose's transfer flight out to Oz commenced on New Year's day that year. The 14 stages were up to 1000 nms in length and were routed via reasonably friendly territory, arriving in Perth on the 16th January.



G-AUST leaving Tain on the first stage of her journey out to Oz.



And turning onto finals at Perth's Jandakot Airport some two weeks later.



On approach for a water landing in Sydney Harbour at the end of the Trans-Australia Rally.



Just to prove she floats too. Most FSX models don't and you have to tweak them so they do it properly.

After taking part in the Rally itself, and making some demonstration flights from water airfields around Australia, plans were made to return to the UK. Originally this was to be the reverse of the outbound flight routing, but after some deliberation it was decided to carry on east-bound and to fly a full circumnavigation of the globe, surely a first for such a small amphibian.



Moored up at the Officer's Club at USN Kadena, Okinawa en route back to the UK eastbound.



On the downwind leg at an airfield well known to any flight sim fan, Chicago's Meigs Field, now sadly closed by an imbecile Mayor!

The return flight was considerably more difficult than the outbound one, and one stage was 1300+ nms over water from North Japan to one of the outlying Aleutian Islands and stretched the Sealand's capabilities to the limit. Austral Rose finally returned to the UK on April 12th and after much celebration returned to her role as Albion's gate guardian at Tain.



Turning onto the approach over Tarbat Lighthouse on her return to Tain some three weeks after leaving Sydney.

The colour scheme for the Sealand model is a close representation of that which I devised for an FSX flight simulation model of a Sealand which I really did fly around the virtual world in real time, on the dates mentioned in the backstory above, most of it using auto-pilot of course as I can't stay awake THAT long.

Albion Air Cargo and Albion Airlines were virtual airlines that I was involved in heavily during the late 1990s and early 2000s, and which sadly collapsed when one of our founder members suddenly died.

[Rheged]

YES!   I like this one very much indeed!

[Rick Lowe]

Very nice. 

[Old Wombat]

Great job, Kit!     

Although narrower & not as sturdy-looking, the landing gear gives me a very PBY-5A Catalina vibe. 

[Wardukw]

Beautiful build Kit ,,love the paint scheme and I;m with Guy too ,,that landing gear ,,oh so much Catalina there   

[chrisonord]

Absolutely marvellous Kit, I have a soft spot for amphibians, and this is perfect. 

[PR19_Kit]

Although narrower & not as sturdy-looking, the landing gear gives me a very PBY-5A Catalina vibe. 

It works just the same way as a Catalina's does too, but I'm not quite sure why Shorts designed it at that angle on the whole assembly. Maybe to do with it being a tailwheel design?

It's not obvious on the model but the tailwheel has a most bizarre retraction sequence! It rotates about its longitudinal axis so that the wheel points upwards, and that's it! 

[zenrat]

 

[ericr]

beautiful !

long live seaplanes !

[Charlie_c67]

 

[The Rat]

Flying boats are the business!   

And another rule could be "Many aircraft can be improved by a PT-6 conversion."

[PR19_Kit]

And another rule could be "Many aircraft can be improved by a PT-6 conversion."

Hehehe, I like that one!

Or for larger types, substitute 'Tyne' for 'PT6'.

Or maybe LOTS of PT6s?

[The Rat]

Hehehe, I like that one!

Or for larger types, substitute 'Tyne' for 'PT6'.

Or maybe LOTS of PT6s?

 

[NARSES2]

Come out well Kit