AP-AHS - All Pakistan Aircraft Registration Marks

Registration:

AP-AHS

Certificate of Registration Number:

196

Registration Date:

July 1956

Operator/Owner:

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA)

Aircraft Type:

Convair CV-240-5

Construction Number:

Line Number:

Year Built:

1948

SelCal Code:

First Flight:

Test Flight Registration:

Delivery Date:

July 4, 1956

Aircraft Name:

Previous Registration:

VH-TAS

Previous Operator:

Trans Australia Airlines (TAA)

Fate:

Next Registration:

PH-NLP

Next Operator:

Additional Remarks:

Built in 1948. Construction number 93. Ordered new by Trans Australia Airlines (TAA). Construction completed at the San Diego plant on September 21, 1948. Entered in Australian Aircraft Register as VH-TAS on October 8, 1948. Registered to Australian National Airlines Commission. Departed San Diego on delivery flight in October 1948. Arrived in Melbourne at conclusion of delivery flight on October 24, 1948. Delivery route: London-Rome-Nicosia-Basra-Karachi-Delhi-Calcutta-Rangoon-Singapore-Makasar-Darwin-Alice Springs-Adelaide-Melbourne. Aircraft was named 'James Cook' & later 'Thomas Mitchell'. Entered service with TAA on November 3, 1948. Established a speed record for flight Melbourne-Hobart of 74 minutes on March 27, 1954. Operated its final TAA. service and withdrawn from use on June 22, 1956. Sold to Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) on July 4, 1956. Departed Melbourne on delivery flight to Pakistan on July 7, 1956. Arrived Karachi at conclusion of delivery flight on July 8, 1956. Delivery route: Alice Springs-Darwin-Sourabaya-Singapore-Bangkok-Rangoon-Calcutta-New Delhi-Karachi. Registration VH-TAS cancelled from Australian Aircraft Register on July 13, 1956. Registered in Pakistan as AP-AHS for PIA. AP-AHS sold to Fokker Aircraft Company, Netherlands, October 17, 1959. Registration AP-AHS removed from Pakistan Aircraft Register on October 17, 1959. Aircraft registered in Netherlands as PH-NLP. Netherlands registration PH-EUT not taken-up. Operated by Euravia Air Charter N.V. Sold to Beldex Corporation, July 6, 1960. Registered in United States of America (USA) as N559R. Ferried to St Louis for fitment of executive interior by Remmert-Warner. Sold to Peabody Coal Company, St Louis, January 6, 1961. Sold to Louis Larramore, California, September 30, 1961. Aircraft was reregistered as N559L. Sold to Beldex Corporation, May 11, 1962. Reregistered as N568R. Sold to Stephens Inc, Little Rock, Arizona, February 14, 1963. Sold to Little Rock Airmotive, then to Faberge Inc., September 21, 1970. Aircraft was reregistered as N396CG. Flew for actor Cary Grant. Sold to Western Commander Inc, August 22, 1972. Ownership transferred to Western Leasing Corporation, August 23, 1972. Sold to the Summa Corportation (Howard Hughes), August 21, 1974. Sold to Kings Point Corporation, Las Vagas, February 25, 1977. Sold to Gemini Management Corporation, Tulsa, Oklahoma, November 9, 1977. Sold to H. A. Cousins, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, July 24, 1980. Cancelled from the U.S. Aircraft Register, February 20, 1981. Placed in storage at Pontiac Airport, Michigan. Restored to the USA aircraft register, date unknown. Sold to C & M Airways Inc, Longview, Texas, August 25, 1989. Sold to Garr Aero Inc, Stillwater, Oklahoma, November 29, 1989. Sold to R. Stevenson, Haskell, Oklahoma, January 5, 1990. Sold to Gunnell Aviation Inc, Santa Monica, California, June 1991. Sold to E. A. Schnepf, Tucson, Arizona, October 29, 1993. Used as a personal transport by singer Glenn Campbell. Withdrawn from service and stored at Camarillo Airport, California as non airworthy, 1999. Reportedly being held in storage for a Camarillo museum since 2003. In 2010, California Air Heritage Foundation began restoring it for display at The Proud Bird Restaurant near Los Angeles International Airport, USA.

Photo:

Convair CV-240-5

Convair CV-240-5 (Abbas Ali Collection)

Convair CV-240-5 (registration AP-AHS)