VR-NAO Handley Page H.P.R.1 Marathon 1A
(c/n 128)
West African
Airways Corporation was established in 1946 as a public
corporation owned by the
governments of
Nigeria, the Gold Coast,
Sierra Leone and the Gambia. BOAC provided management
and
technical
support. Although services commenced with DC-3s a number of
"replacement" types
was used,
including a fleet of seven Marathons, fobbed off on the airline by BEA
who did not want
them.
This aircraft was just one of a succession of types tried by the
the Corporation before acceding
to the
fact that the only aircraft
capable of replacing the DC-3 was another DC-3.