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HAWKER SIDDELEY COMET 4

1956–64

STANDARD DATA: Seats 68-81. Gross wt. 162,000. HAWKER 400XP Empty wt. 74,900. Fuel capacity 10,686. Engines four 10,509-lb. s.t. Rolls-Royce Avon turbojets. PERFORMANCE: Top mph 526. Cruise mph 500. Range 4,030. Takeoff run 6,750. Landing distance (50') 6,880.

A BOAC Comet 4 was put into service Oct. 4, 1958, on the world’s first transatlantic jet service. It was a longrange version of the basic Comet design and was easily recognized by the projection of the two-pod fuel tanks on the leading edge of each wing. Most of the flight tests for the Comet 4 were conducted on the one and only Comet 3 built by Hawker. A great deal of structural knowledge was gained through the unfortunate accidents of four of the original nine Comet I models. This knowledge was later tested on the model 3 and applied to the model 4. Following the model 4, the Comet 4B was produced for intermediate-range flights carrying a high-density passenger load. The model C-2 was a military cargo airplane and was structurally far superior to the original Comet 1.

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