BAC VC-10

The British Aircraft Corp. VC-10 is a long-range high payload jetliner. With all four of its turbofan engines mounted in two sets below the tail and its horizontal stabilizer mounted on top of the rudder, the airliner presents a picture of strength and speed. First flown in June 1962, four years after the introduction of the DC-8 in America, the airliners initially went into commercial service on a route to West Africa from London. The airliner was built in Weybridge, England, by the former Vickers of Rome Aircraft. The four powerful Rolls-Royce engines, with a total of 18,000 pounds more than the International 707, permit a maximum takeoff weight of 312,000 pounds for the standard VC-10 and over one-third of a million pounds for the later Super VC-10. The Super VC-10 is 13 feet longer than standard and has an increased range and payload. Both the VC-10 and the Super VC-10 will cruise at 86% of the speed of sound.