____________________________________________________________________________________________________

HS.125 Dominie T Mk.1 (2)

Discover this business jet with a difference.  Crucial for the training of Royal Air Force Navigators for some 45 years, these jets were flown in ways never intended for standard civilian business jets. From a ceiling of 41,000', the Dominie could also be regularly seen flying at ultra-low-level through the hills of the famous Mach Loop in Wales, UK. From high-level to low-level, in all kinds of weather, the flights would also use the aircraft's exceptional range to fly longer-distance training flight to places such as Malta.

History

Having entered service in 1962 as one of the first-generation executive jets, the British Aerospace 125 has been operated by a wide variety of customers, ranging from government and military operators to private customers and businesses. It has also seen use by several airlines. Many of the aircraft's customers have been located in
North America; in 1990, out of the 650 aircraft then being operated, more than 400 were being flown in the United States. Reportedly, one aircraft was being sold every seven working days for a substantial period of the type's production life. Successively larger versions were introduced to extend the type's appeal and to better compete against larger jets being used for business travel, such as the Gulfstream IV and Falcon 900.

The Royal Air Force was a significant early operator of the type, receiving a number of aircraft for multiple roles, including some of the first batch of 30 aircraft to be produced. The majority of 125s were operated in an airborne training capacity for air force navigators, aircraft in this role were named as the Hawker Siddeley Dominie. Upgraded continously over the years, this model represents the final variant, the T Mk.1 that, due to major differences to the older versions, was also known as the Mk.2.

The Dominie served for more than 45 years before being retired.