Bristol Britannia 301 (G-ANCA) in flight, 1957

The Bristol Britannia 301 G-ANCA first flew on 31 July 1956. It was the prototype for the 300 which could accommodate 139 passengers in a stretched fuselage.

Britannia G-ANCA crashed on approach to Filton airfield on 6 November 1957 at the end of a test flight, killing 15 people on board; fortunately, no one was killed on the ground. The cause of the crash could not be found, but a fault with the autopilot was considered a possibility.