the TEAL 'Coral Route'

The Short Solent was produced by the Short Brothers in the second half of the 1940s. The first Solent flew in 1946 and production ceased in 1949. In New Zealand Solents were used by Tasman Empire Airways Limited or TEAL. Five were in operation between 1949 and 1960. On their scheduled routes they flew between Sydney, Fiji and Auckland. A flight to Sydney from Auckland would take 7½ hours(!) compared with less than 3 hours today.

In 1951 TEAL introduced its Coral Route service which became one of the world's prestige passenger routes.

TEAL Solents could carry 45 passengers. The aircraft had two decks. An onboard chef cooked meals to order and meals were eaten at tables with linen table cloths and a complete silver service. There was even a powder room!

ZK-AMO flew its last flight on 14 September 1960 between Fiji and Tahiti. It is now preserved at MOTAT in Auckland, the only MK 4 Short Solent left in the world.


edited from the Vintage New Zealand 1930s - 1990s blog (calling the 1990s "vintage" makes one feel old!) and detailed info is in the book The Aircraft of Air New Zealand and Affiliates since 1940.