Editing Vickers VC10 (section)

===Commercial service and sales===

A total of 12 Type 1101 VC10s were purchased in 1964–65, followed by 17 Type 1151 Super VC10s in 1965–69. The VC10 became an immensely popular aircraft in the BOAC fleet with both passengers and crew, being particularly praised for its comfort and low cabin-noise level. BOAC (and later British Airways) obtained higher load factors with the VC10 than with the 707 or any other aircraft in its fleet.<ref name="Encyclopedia Civil p778">Donald 1999, p. 778.</ref><ref name="Harrison 498">Harrison 1965, p. 498.</ref> Operational experience soon resulted in the deletion of the inboard thrust-reversers due to continued tailplane buffeting despite the engine repositioning. One BOAC Super VC10 was lost during the [[Dawson's Field hijackings]] in 1970.

[[Ghana Airways]] ordered three VC10s in January 1961: two to be fitted with a cargo door, known as Type 1102. The first was delivered in November 1964 and the second in May 1965. The third was cancelled.<ref name = "cole 131">Cole 2000, p. 131.</ref> Ghana Airways leased one aircraft to Tayaran Assharq Alawsat ([[Middle East Airlines]]; MEA), destroyed at [[Beirut]] during an Israeli raid in December 1968. The other was retired from service in 1980. MEA also leased the prototype aircraft that Vickers had kept until 1965, leased from [[Freddie Laker]]'s charter airline.<ref name="Jackson Civil p233">Jackson 1988, p. 233.</ref>

[[British United Airways]] (BUA) ordered two combi versions (Type 1103) in 1964, receiving them in October that year.<ref name = "cole 129">Cole 2000, p. 129.</ref> When BOAC ceased VC10 operations to South America, BUA took them over, purchasing Ghana Airways' cancelled third aircraft in July 1965 (Type 1103). The prototype aircraft was purchased from Vickers/BAC by Freddie Laker and converted from Type 1101 to Type 1109 in 1968. It was initially leased to Middle East Airlines, but returned to Laker in 1969.<ref>Walker and Henderson 1998, pp. 76–79.</ref> This particular aircraft never flew in Laker livery as it was sold on to British United to join their existing fleet. The prototype was damaged beyond economical repair in a landing accident at Gatwick in 1972, and the others were sold in 1973–74. One saw further service with Air Malawi, being retired in 1979. Another was sold to the Sultan of Oman as VIP transport and has been preserved at [[Brooklands#Brooklands Museum|Brooklands]] since its retirement in 1987. One aircraft went to the Royal Aircraft Establishment for equipment tests and was retired in 1980.

[[Nigeria Airways]] had planned to buy two VC10s but cancelled the order for financial reasons. They leased a BOAC aircraft from 1969, but it was destroyed in a landing accident at Lagos in November that year.<ref name = "cole 134">Cole 2000, p. 134.</ref> The final VC10 was one of the five Type 1154 Super VC10s built for [[East African Airways]] between 1966 and 1970. Of these, one was destroyed in a takeoff accident at Addis Ababa in 1972, and the other four were retired in 1977 and returned to BAC, subsequently being purchased by the RAF. After the last aircraft was delivered in February 1970, the production line closed, 54 airframes having been built. The 707 and [[Douglas DC-8]], with their superior operating economics, encouraged many of the world's smaller airports to extend their runways, thus eliminating the VC10's main advantage.

Marketing overtures were made elsewhere, particularly in Mexico, [[Argentina]], [[Lebanon]], [[Thailand]], [[Czechoslovakia]], and [[Romania]], often fronted by British politicians.<ref>Walker and Henderson 1998, pp. 29–32.</ref> The final serious enquiry for VC10s came from the Chinese [[CAAC Airlines]] in 1971. It was confirmed in 1972 but by then the production equipment had been broken up.<ref>Walker and Henderson 1998, pp. 32–33.</ref> Czechoslovakia, Romania and China eventually purchased the Ilyushin [[Il-62]].

BOAC's successor [[British Airways]] (BA) began retiring their Super VC10s from trans-Atlantic flights in 1974, mainly due to the [[1973 oil crisis]], and using them to displace standard VC10s. Ten of the eleven surviving standard models were retired in 1974–75. Of these, five were leased to [[Gulf Air]] until 1977–78, then purchased by the RAF.<ref>Walker and Henderson 1998, p. 64.</ref> One was leased to the Government of Qatar for VIP transport until 1981 when it was purchased by the RAF as an instructional airframe. The Government of the United Arab Emirates used another for similar purposes until 1981; it is preserved at [[Flugausstellung Hermeskeil|Hermeskeil]], Germany. The other three were traded in to Boeing as partial payment on new aircraft, and were scrapped at [[Heathrow Airport|Heathrow]]. The last standard VC10 in BA service, G-ARVM, was retained as a stand-by for the Super VC10 fleet until 1979. It was preserved at RAF Cosford in the British Airways Museum collection; its condition deteriorated after BA withdrew funding, being reduced to a fuselage in 2006 before being moved to the [[Brooklands#Brooklands Museum|Brooklands Museum]].

Retirement of BA's Super VC10 fleet began in April 1980 and was completed the following year. After failing to sell them to other operators, British Airways sold 14 of the 15 survivors to the RAF in May 1981 (the other went for preservation at [[Duxford Aerodrome]]). The VC10 served its intended market for only a decade and a half. Written down and amortised by the 1970s, it could have continued in airline service much longer despite its high fuel consumption, but high ground-noise levels sealed its fate. [[Hush kit|Hush-kitting]] the Conways was considered in the late 1970s, but rejected on grounds of cost.