Bristol 175 Britannia prototype (G-ALBO) at Filton, 1952

The Bristol Britannia first flew in 1952 but it didn’t enter service with British Overseas Airways Corporation until 1957 and the Royal Air Force in 1959.

It was originally planned that the prototype Britannia, G-ALBO, would be powered by Bristol Centaurus radial engines but the design was changed to accept the Bristol-Siddeley Proteus turboprop instead. G-ALBO made its first flight on 16 August 1952 and appeared in public at the SBAC display at Farnborough in September 1952.