Hessenberg Collection 1: Imperial Airways Flying Boats, Africa, 1937

A film made by Leon Levson of Imperial Airways flying boat flights from Durban to Alexandria, on Short 'C' Class flying boats carrying the names Circe and Coriolanus. The Short Empire was a medium range four engined monoplane flying boat, designed and developed by Short Brothers during the 1930s to meet the requirements of the growing commercial airline sector, with particular emphasis on its usefulness for core routes that served the UK. It was developed and manufactured in parallel with the Short Sunderland maritime patrol bomber, which went on to serve in the Second World War. Great attention in the film is paid to the landing and taking off procedures. There are interior shots of the aircraft's passenger salon, showing its passengers eating and relaxing during the flight. The footage is of 2 separate flights; the first starts at Durban and goes north while the second starts at Alexandria and goes south down the Nile valley to East Africa. Creator: Leon Levson