Drool, drool, DROOL, F-ING DROOL! Darin, this isn't a fantasy livery but it looks tremendous nonetheless! I'll definitely be printing these out for the office wall.
All three of AirWest's 727-100s came from Pacific Air Lines as you pointed out. The information I have on hand shows the following:
N2969G (blue/mustard) - MSN 19304/ LN 287 - delivered November 1967. Leased for a time to BWIA for a cooperative service between BWIA and Air Jamaica. Eventually ended up with Alaska Airlines where she crashed in Juneau with loss of 111 lives in September 1971 while executing an NDB approach- the captain descended prematurely, resulting in CFIT. If you've ever seen pics of the approach into Juneau, you can see how that could happen.
N2979G (lime/blue) - MSN 19305/LN 300 - delivered August 1966. Information is a bit scant, but looks like she ended her days flying with AeroPeru and is displayed as a gate guard in Lima now. You have N2968G as the reg number, Darin. Is that right?
N898PC (pink/orange) - MSN 19620/LN 377- delivered March 1967. Information on this one is scant as well but it looks like it's had quite a service career, having flown most recently for the government of Tartarstan (one of those semi-autonomous Russian repubics, I think). My info shows her as a derelict in MIA. Anyone there seen it?
I don't know if any of these birds made it into Hughes Airwest colors, but there were all sold off within months of the buyout. Funny thing is, Hughes Airwest ended up taking delivery of 727-200s beginning in 1976 right up to the acquisition of the airline by Republic in 1980.
The next issue of Airliners will be profiling AirWest, picking up where the current issue leaves off with the histories of Pacific and West Coast up to the three-way merger with Bonanza.
Great renderings, Darin! Now what's it gonna take to see these in 1/400?
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Piss on noise abatement!
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