Connel
CONNEL: Military aerodrome later civil aerodrome & gliding site
(Also known as NORTH CONNEL and now OBAN regional airport)
Note: These four pictures were obtained from Google Earth ©
A MIKE CHARLTON GALLERY
Note: These pictures from postcards were kindly sent by Mike Charlton who has an amazing collection. See, www.aviationpostcard.co.uk
Second picture: See on the apron is a Hebridian Air Services Brittan-Norman BN-2B Islander.
Fourth picture: Judging by the picture, possibly the inaugral flight service by the Highland Airways Brittan-Norman BN2B-26 Islander, G-SEIL in or around December 2007?
I decided, as one often does when engaged in this kind of stuff, to look up the history of this aircraft - and what an amazing story it has to tell - if only it could talk to us! Built by Pilatus Brittan-Norman at BEMBRIDGE on the Isle of Wight, it was registered to them as G-BIIP from the 1st December 1980 until the 26th August 1981. It then went to the USA, serving Jonas Aircraft & Arms as N411JA. In 1982 it went to Jamaica as 6Y-JQJ, serving first with Trans-Jamaican Airlines and afterwards with Air Jamaica Express.
Imported back to the UK, again as G-BIIP, it served with Hebridean Air Services from the 14th December 1998 until the 4th April 2003. It then appears to have served with Blue Islands in the Channel Islands from the 4th April 2003 until the 28th March 2007. Then, for a short stay back to Hebridean Air Services from the 28th March 2007 until the 7th December 2007.
It was when acquired by Highland Airways that it was re-registered as G-SEIL, and served with them from the 7th December 2007 until the 13th May 2011, before passing to MV Capital on the Isle of Man from the 13th May until the 5th April 2012. Can anybody kindly explain what it did, if anything, during this period? It was then sold to France.
Military user: WW2: RAF Coastal Command 17 Group
SLG (Satellite Landing Ground)
Operated by: 1980s/1990s: Strathclyde Regional Council
2000: Argyll and Bute Council
2001: Total Logistics Concepts
Airline: Hebridean Air Services, Highland Express
Note: It appears that Hebridean Air Services were/are based here since 2010, although their HQ was apparently at CUMBERNAULD, even though no services have been conducted from CUMBERNAULD.
The fleet was, and perhaps still is (?), comprised of four Brittan-Norman BN-2B Islanders. (G-BPLR, G-HEBI, G-HEBO and G-HEBS). It appears they operate regular services to COLL, COLONSAY and TIREE plus Air Ambulance operations.
Gliding: 1980s to - : Connel Gliding Club
Location: W of A828, 3.5nm NE of Oban according to a flight guide in 2000, 5nm NE of Oban by the reckoning of official WW2 sources according to another ‘reputable’ book. I’ll go for 3.5nm though
Period of operation: Military 1942 to 1945. Civil: ? to today
Note: These maps are reproduced with the kind permission of Pooleys Flight Equipment. Copyright Robert Pooley 2014.
Runways: WW2: 02/20 1280x46 hard 03/21 960x46 hard
1990: 02/20 1128x46 hard
2000: 02/20 1240x30 hard 04/22 950x30 hard
2001: 02/20 1200x30 hard 04/22 750x30 hard
Note: In 1993 it appears there was a helipad marked at the northern end of runway 04/22. By 2014 Oban had four helipads - presumably due to gas and oil exploration in the sea off the west coast? Two are just south of the terminal whereas H.3 and H.4 are at the southern end of what was runway 04/22.
NOTES: It seems hard to justify building two runways so very close in direction. Was this perhaps a very busy aerodrome in WW2 and one runway was used for landing and the other for taking-off? Or, was the possibilty of a crash on take-off and/or landing, closing a runway, enough to justify an alternative runway?
A RARE CASE
In 2017 I noted that at LYDD (KENT) a runway had been reinstated at some point between 1993 and 2000, and suspected that this was a very rare occurence. It now appears that this was the case here, with runway 04/22 being re-opended. However, it appears it was not used for long.
In 1985 private flying took place here. Although still listed in one flight guide in 2000, runway 04/22 was also given in the notes as being disused. On the other hand in another 2000 flight guide it is listed as active!
In 1990/2000 used as a gliding site and by microlight aircraft.
What an amazing image, obtained from Google Earth ©. Why the fog hadn't encroached on the land seems a mystery to me - as it normally does. Perhaps a good reason for building the airfield here.
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