Channel Airways: Southends Airline Book

For anyone interested in how the post war independent airlines were formed and grew into international carriers there are two recommendations I would make. The ITV series ‘Airline’ from the 1980’s that tells the fictional story of Ruskin Air Services, based apparently in part on Channel and Laker, and this book, Channel Airways - Southend’s Airline by Keith McCloskey.

The thought of reading a book about the rise and demise of a post war independent British Airline might not seem attractive to many people, especially one that details the history of every aircraft owned by the company, but this book is different. Clearly, I have an interest, so there may be some bias in my comments, but I found it very readable and absolutely fascinating. It is both a commercial history, a record of flying operations and an insight into the social aspects of a well loved and successful airline. It is written in a way that draws the reader in from the first page and while full of well researched information and data, the book reads like an adventure story with plenty of details of the thrills, spills and funny moments of an airline that went as far as covering up previous aircraft operators livery with sticky tape and putting overbooked passengers in the cockpit jump seat.

The book has a wealth of photographs from private collections, details of the significant aviation incidents and information on the various associated money making schemes that founder and managing director Jack Jones used to broaden his commercial base – for instance a ‘Gentleman’s Club’ over the Channel Airways travel agent on the floor below! There are also personal recollections from staff including the story of a foggy day when Channel’s home airport was so overwhelmed with diverted traffic that the director’s secretaries were out on the apron marshalling loaded passenger aircraft onto the stands. It is all wrapped in a very readable style that makes the book difficult to put down.

For anyone with an interest in post war commercial aviation or someone who lives in Southend or the Channel coastal towns, this book is a must. It also covers my home town of Bristol where Channel operated BAC1-11 jets. With a westerly wind we never knew what aircraft rattled our single glazed top flat windows when I was a child, but it is difficult to forget that dull thunder of Rolls Royce Spey jet engines. The runway that was at the same height as our flat, 10 miles away, and the house would literally shake. Now we know. It was one of Jack Jones’ ‘Golden Jets’ flying another batch of low cost package holiday makers to the Med.

Keith McCloskey has a lively style of writing and brings the characters and even the aircraft to life. My own special interest, the Ventnor accident is treated with care and respect and what for me began as a speed read to discover what was said about the crash soon turned into a very pleasant few hours beside the wood burner reading about a fascinating time in British Aviation history. I hope my wife enjoyed it to. Perhaps not the occasional explosive fireside guffaw but perhaps being read unannounced snippets of text relating to some of the more extreme moments of the Channel Airways story – I think she did.

Absolutely superb.

Ross Floyd
November 2025