Short Solent – Photos & Videos

The Short Solent is a passenger flying boat that was produced by Short Brothers in the late 1940s. It was developed from the Short Seaford, itself a development of the Short Sunderland military flying boat design, which was too late to serve in World War II. The first Solent flew in 1946. New Solents were used by BOAC and TEAL, production ending in 1949. Second-hand aircraft were operated until 1958 by a number of small airlines such as Aquila Airways.

Source: Short Solent on Wikipedia

The Short Solent was a passenger flying boat that was produced by Short Brothers in the late 1940s. It was developed from the Short Seaford, itself a development of the Short Sunderland military flying boat design. The first Solent flew in 1946. New Solents were used by BOAC and TEAL, production ending in 1949.
The Short Solent had a high-wing monoplane configuration and an aluminium construction. It was powered by four Bristol Hercules engines, which could be replaced by Bristol Centaurus engines on some models. It could carry 34 to 45 passengers and seven crew members in its basic version. The passengers enjoyed spacious and luxurious cabins, a lounge/dining area, a kitchen, dressing rooms, toilets and freight compartments. The flight crew consisted of two pilots, a navigator, a radio operator and a flight engineer.
The Short Solent operated on various routes across Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It was mainly used by BOAC and TEAL, but also by some smaller airlines such as Aquila Airways. The Solent provided a comfortable and reliable service for its passengers, but faced competition from land-based aircraft that were faster and cheaper to operate. The last Solent-operated service was flown in 1960 by TEAL between Fiji and Tahiti. Two Solents are preserved today, one at the Museum of Transport and Technology in Auckland, New Zealand, and one at the Oakland Aviation Museum in California, USA.