| Viscount | |
|---|---|
 Cambrian Airways Vickers Viscount | |
| General information | |
| Type | Turboprop airliner |
| National origin | United Kingdom |
| Manufacturer | Vickers-Armstrongs |
| Status | Retired |
| Primary users | British European Airways |
| Number built | 445 |
| History | |
| Manufactured | 1948–1963 |
| Introduction date | 18 April 1953 with British European Airways |
| First flight | 16 July 1948 |
| Retired | January 2009 |
| Developed into | Vickers Vanguard |
The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner.
The Viscount was well received by the public for its cabin conditions, which included pressurisation, reductions in vibration and noise, and panoramic windows. It became one of the most successful and profitable of the first postwar transport aircraft;[1] 445 Viscounts were built for a range of international customers, including in North America.
- ^ "No Profit in Building Civil Aircraft in Britain?" New Scientist, 69(988). 19 February 1976. ISSN 0262-4079.