POINTS IN TIME 歷史時刻
PHIL HEARD on how the DC-6B took Cathay higher and further Phil Heard講述DC- 6B客機如何令國泰航空的事業更上層樓
FOUR SPLUTTERS, CLOUDS of blue smoke and the recognisable roar of vintage aircraft engines cut through the still air of a frozen wilderness.
Astonishingly, 60 years on from its purchase, Cathay Pacific’s very first DC-6B continues to fly today – ferrying cargo around Alaska for Everts Air Cargo. They built them tough in those days. The plane’s ruggedness makes it ideal for the temporary and gravel runways dotted around the vast northern American state. But it was also the ideal aircraft to negotiate a very different environment in the 1950s.
Cathay Pacific Airways was 10 years old and under mounting pressure to start making money for its owner, Swire. Its directors decided to increase their investment – and gain some face in the Asian market – by upgrading its small fleet of propeller-powered twin engine DC-3s and four engine DC-4s. Chairman Jock Swire went about raising the necessary capital for the bigger, newer DC-6.
Like the existing DC-4s, the DC-6 had four piston engines. Unlike them, it had a pressurised cabin. The aircraft thus brought the fleet closer to the modern age and enabled it to climb above some of the region’s bumpy weather.
The aircraft was well received in the local market, with the press describing the plane as ‘sleek’, and the ride as ‘extremely smooth’. It put in a sterling service on the Hong Kong to Singapore route, leaving its home base at dusk and arriving at midnight before flying back.
Passengers enjoyed the reduced journey times and sleeping berths on the ‘Midnight Special’. But according to Gavin Young’s portrait of the airline, Beyond Lion Rock, pilots renamed it the ‘Midnight Horror’ due to the lack of navigation aids and the frequent thunderstorms that needed to be dodged.
The journey became less horrific in 1958 with the purchase of the airline’s first DC-6B. It went on to pioneer the route to Taipei, which was to later become one of the airline’s most lucrative.
The DC-6B was a game-changer.
It was the first aircraft that Cathay Pacific bought new from the manufacturer – it cost HK$6,736,860 – while for those sitting in the cockpit, it came equipped with radar, also a novelty for the fleet at this time. It sent out another signal, too: that Cathay Pacific was about to join the top table of global airlines. 四個活塞引擎各自發出劈劈啪啪的聲音，並且噴出一團又一團藍色的煙，一聽就知道是一架老式飛機發出的吼聲，劃破阿拉斯加寂的天空。
令人驚奇的是，國泰航空於60年前購買的首架DC-6B客機，至今依然翱翔天際，為空運公司Everts Air Cargo在阿拉斯加一帶運送貨物。北地偏遠，不少臨時供飛機升降的跑道上遍佈砂礫，但當年製造的飛機性能堅固耐用，是當地理想的運輸工具。而當年只有十年歷史的國泰航空，亦藉著這件理想的運輸工具，應對1950年代截然不同的營商環境。
當時歷史尚淺的國泰已著手籌謀如何為母公司太古賺錢。首先決定由太古增加投資，將以螺旋槳推進的雙引擎DC-3客機及四引擎DC- 4客機組成的小型機隊加以改進，藉此在亞洲市場內爭取表現。太古主席施約克於是著手籌集所需的資金，用來購買更大型的現代化DC- 6客機。
DC- 6客機跟當時的DC- 4客機一樣，有四個活塞引擎；不同之處，是DC- 6擁有一個加壓機艙。這架新款飛機不但令機隊進一步現代化，同時也可以飛至一個不受區內惡劣天氣影響的高度。
這架新款客機推出後受到本地市場歡迎，報章形容這架飛機外形「時髦」，飛行時「極為平穩暢順」。這架客機服務往返香港與新加坡的航線，黃昏時從香港出發，午夜時分抵達新加坡，然後再飛回香港，表現十分出色。
這一趟「午夜特別航班」不但航程時間縮短，機上更設有臥舖，令乘客可以享受更快捷更舒適的旅程。但是根據由Gavin Young撰寫的國泰航空歷史《Beyond Lion Rock》內所說，機師們卻將這趟航程稱之為「午夜驚魂」，因為當時導航工具不足，而且經常要避開雷暴。
其後國泰於1958年購買首架DC- 6B客機時，將上述的問題解決了一部分。這架客機投入新開拓的台北航線服務，後來這條航線成為國泰其中一條獲利最豐厚的航線。
DC-6B客機在很多方面都創下先河。它是國泰航空首次從製造商購入的全新飛機，價格為6,736,860港元，而駕駛艙內亦設置了雷達，對當年的機隊來說，這是相當新穎的儀器。不過最重要的是，它預告國泰航空將在世界航空業的舞台佔上舉足輕重的一席。