page_title: Transatlantic flight of Alcock and Brown
section_title: RAF 60th anniversary crossing in 1979
hierarchical_section_title: Transatlantic flight of Alcock and Brown / Other crossings / RAF 60th anniversary crossing in 1979
caption_attribution_description: Twinkletoes, an air force officer's mascot. Photo taken at the RAF Museum Cosford, Shropshire, England.
context_page_description: British aviators John Alcock and Arthur Brown made the first non-stop transatlantic flight in June 1919. They flew a modified First World War Vickers Vimy bomber from St. John's, Newfoundland, to Clifden, Connemara, County Galway, Ireland. The Secretary of State for Air, Winston Churchill, presented them with the Daily Mail prize for the first crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by aeroplane in "less than 72 consecutive hours." A small amount of mail was carried on the flight, making it the first transatlantic airmail flight. The two aviators were awarded the honour of Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire a week later by King George V at Windsor Castle.
context_section_description: To mark the original transatlantic crossing, on 1 June 1979 two Royal Air Force McDonnell Douglas Phantom FGR.2s – XV424 (of No. 56 Squadron) and (RAF Coningsby based) XV486, were sprayed in special commemorative schemes. The scheme was designed by aviation artist Wilfred Hardy. As well as marking the anniversary of the crossing, the scheme also made reference to usage of Rolls-Royce engines in both aircraft: the Rolls-Royce Eagle in the Vimy and the Rolls-Royce Spey in the Phantom FGR.2, and on top of this it also marked the 30th anniversary of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
  It was decided that XV424 would make the flight and that XV486 would serve as back up. On 19 June, XV424 departed from RAF St. Athan to CFB Goose Bay from where the crossing would be made. The crew chosen for the crossing were: Squadron Leader A. J. N. "Tony" Alcock (pilot and nephew of Sir John Alcock who made the original crossing) and Flight Lieutenant W. N. "Norman" Browne (navigator). For the journey the pair brought with them Brown's original cat toy mascot 'Twinkletoes.'
  On 21 June, XV424 took off from Goose Bay, Labrador and began the crossing to Ireland. Flying subsonically the entire time, the journey took 5 hours and 40 minutes, setting a new record. The Phantom was refuelled five times throughout the crossing, with that being taken care of by Handley-Page Victor K.2 tankers of No. 57 Squadron. XV424 today is preserved at the RAF Museum in Hendon, sporting colours of No. 56 (Fighter) Squadron, while XV486 was scrapped in 1993.
caption: Brown's toy cat mascot 'Twinkletoes' which crossed the Atlantic in 1919 and also on the 60th anniversary flight in 1979.
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