Factory Errors

There is a similar error with the Caravelle 60f but it is due to the design office, not to the assembly staff. The blue of the tricolour must always be on the left. The instructions for the position of the US star should be on the factory assembly drawing or memo. It is the case for several other Dinky Toys.

Here are a number of Military vehicles from Dinky, Corgi and Solido: I have a theory about the positioning of the American Star on the bonnet (hood) of military vehicles. Logic would have it that the Five Pointed Star should face forward on US military vehicles but in fact it faces backwards when placed horizontally. I believe that this is so it is always the correct way up as seen by the senior military person taking the salute at a military parade. This is not the case with US military aeroplanes. On the sides of aeroplanes, and vehicles, the single point of the star is always upwards. However on the bonnets (hoods) of vehicles it always faces backwards - this is exactly the opposite to what is always seen on American military aeroplanes. I put this theory forward on another forum some years ago but had no response, it seemed appropriate to raise it here in view of the cooment above. Dave

Jacques Meccano did in fact get the Tricolour in the correct location, based on the following images of Caravelles in service with Air France. So I am unsure about the blue always being on the left. However, the left (port) side of the aircraft does show the blue on the left in the same way as the actual aircraft. However, it is possible Meccano got the registration incorrect, as F-BGNY was allocated to a de Havilland Comet, but following the early crashes of this new type, Air France returned the aircraft to De Havilland. Maybe when the Caravelle came on-line, Air France did register a Caravelle with F-BGNY. Kind regards Bruce

Bruce, Then it is Air France who got it wrong. That is even worse. This is probably the same as the American star, they placed the flag in the direction of travel. But Meccano got it wrong with the Air Algrie model. I have researched all the registrations of the Dinky Toys aircraft and found several mistakes. About the registrations of the Dinky Toys Caravelles. Roulet states that F-BGNY is a short for Bobigny but it is the correct registration for one of the three Comets 1a which Air France owned. Error from Meccano, the registration H-BICX Swissair should be HB-ICX. Error from Meccano, the registration S-EDAA S.A.S should be SE-DAA. Alfa Alfa finished it's life without it's cockpit as a traning frame on Stockolm Arlanda Airport. About the registrations of the Dinky Toys Comets. On may 2, 1953 G-ALYV crashed 25 miles west of Calcutta killing all 43 passengers and crew on board. At the time a 14 year old boy from Jugalgari village reported he saw a red flash and what looked like a wingless airplane low over the sky. The aircraft crashed hitting trees and exploding. Wreakage was strewn over and eight square mile area the wings and engines being found four miles apart. As had occured with the Dinky Toys flying boats, Meccano has decided to change the registration into G-ALYX. G-ALYX has been scrapped in June 1955 Frame 6022, G-APAS, ex-Air France F-BGNZ, exists as the only surviving and in-tact example of a de Havilland Ghost-powered Comet 1 series aircraft. Converted to Mk. 1XB in March, 1957, the aircraft was re-registered XM823 and subsequently as G-APAS; its final flight was made on 8 April 1968 and the aircraft was thereafter retired. Currently residing at the Aerospace Museum at Cosford, near Shifnal in Shropshire, England, 'Alpha Sierra' appears to have been remarkably well preserved albeit in open air storage for more than thirty years!About the registrations of the Dinky Toys Viscounts. F-BGNL was re-registered F-BOEC and later became G-ARBY owned by the British charter company Alidair. G-ARBY crashed without any casualties near Exeter on July 17, 1980. Having been badly refueled in Santander and having unreliable fuel gauges the plane got short of fuel 8 miles short from the runway and made a forced landing in a field. G-AOJA departed London at 15:16 GMT on October 23, 1957 for a flight to Belfast-Nutts Corner. At 16:45 the flight was taken over by the Precision Approach Controller for a GCA talkdown on runway 28. Within a mile from touchdown the aircraft had drifted right of the runway centreline. An overshoot was carried out, but the aircraft crashed 1000 feet south of the western end of runway 28. F-BGNK had been choosen by Meccano France as the registration for it's Viscount after the first aircraft delivered to Air-France but as this plane crashed Meccano changed the registration into F-BGNX before issuing the model. F-BGNK departed Paris-Orly on December 12, 1956 at 08:49 for a training flight to Reims. The aircraft climbed to an altitude of about 3000 feet, just above the cloud layer and continued VFR to Reims. At 08:58 clearance was requested and given to climb to 5000 feet in order to remain VFR above the cloud layer. A little later eyewitnesses saw the aircraft crash at a steep angle of descent. F-BGNX was not a Viscount, It was an Air France Caravelle which ended up it's life in Mosquito Museum in London Colney. Conclusion : Meccano SA was not very good at registering aircraft although the factiry was very near the Bourget Airport.

Jacques Thank you for your very detailed response on the registration errors with Meccano France. As for Air France getting it wrong, perhaps the front of the aircraft is considered the direction of travel and therefor the nose represents the flag pole. I somehow can't see Air France getting it wrong and no Frenchman (or woman) complaining. In considering that Dinky got it right for the Air France, it is only the transfer on the right (starboard) side that Dinky made an error with the Air Algrie version. It is possible the small numbers produced for the Air Algrie version did not warrant Meccano being very specific or it was overlooked at the time, or if noticed it was disregarded for cost reasons. Bruce

Long ago already an heraldic expert told me that a coat of arms must always face to the left, but that there is the freedom to have it face to the right in order to comply with the direction of movement (of a vehicle). Example: the Foden Mobilgas Tanker (I haven't one so I cannot show) which on the left hand side and on the rear have the pegasus facing accurately to the left, but the pegasus on the right hand side faces to the right, in concordance with the direction of forward movement. In the same way - I presume - it might be allowed to show a flag reversed. Kind regards, Jan

Jan, Your explanation is probably right.

janwerner wrote: 'Long ago already an heraldic expert told me that a coat of arms must always face to the left, but that there is the freedom to have it face to the right in order to comply with the direction of movement (of a vehicle). Example: the Foden Mobilgas Tanker (I haven't one so I cannot show) which on the left hand side and on the rear have the pegasus facing accurately to the left, but the pegasus on the right hand side faces to the right, in concordance with the direction of forward movement. In the same way - I presume - it might be allowed to show a flag reversed. Kind regards, Jan' Jan Pegasus faces towards the front on both sides for the 504 and 941. At the rear Pegasus faces to the left. Bruce

The Mobilgas Tanker is not the only Dinky Toy to always show the logo facing forward. Here is the 965 Euclid Dump Truck which shows 'Euclid' facing forward just like the real world vehicle. On the earlier Black and White logo this was not the case and he was facing the wrong way on one side, this was rectified when the logo was correctly amended to Red, Black and White. Dave

Here is a Euclid I sold some time ago. The logo here is the wrong way round, it is correct on the other side. Dave

buzzer999 wrote: 'The Mobilgas Tanker is not the only Dinky Toy to always show the logo facing forward. Here is the 965 Euclid Dump Truck which shows 'Euclid' facing forward just like the real world vehicle. On the earlier Black and White logo this was not the case and he was facing the wrong way on one side, this was rectified when the logo was correctly amended to Red, Black and White. Dave' Dave You are indeed quite correct. Of the 32 Euclids that have passed through my hands, (sixteen of which are still in my collection) five have had the Euclid Black and White logo reversed with the outreached arm pointing to the rear. Of these five, four had the insignias on both sides pointing to the rear and one only on one side. I have not encountered one logo in red, black and white pointing to the rear; all are pointing to the front as it should be. The incorrect example you have with the red, white and black label is the only one I have seen. (Of course a careful perusal of auction catalogues over the years may produce others on the side photographed.) The five black and white logo examples I have were quality checked in September and October 1955, indicating that as the model commenced rolling off the assembly line, some confusion existed as to the correct manner of affixing the transfer which was later corrected when the amended logo was received. Bruce

Greetings All, This factory error was no doubt extremely common due to the similarity of both base plates. The error was affixing a 199 Austin Seven Countryman base plate to a 197 Morris Mini Traveller. In fact HRH The Duke of Gloucester had such an example in his collection that was auctioned in 1995. It would be interesting to know just how common this mistake occurred with 199 base plates being affixed to 197s and vice versa. Kind regards Bruce And this is the little fellow sitting on its correct box! The box for the above Morris Mini Traveller has a UK price written on it in pencil of 3/6. This price was applicable from the time of the models release in May 1961 to August 1961. The following month the price had risen to 3/7. I just happened to look inside one of the main end flaps, and was pleasantly surprised to see an inspection stamp consisting of three lines of three numerals with the bottom line being 561 which undoubtedly refers to May 1961. Being manufactured in the early days of the 197/199 production, this may account for it being accidentally fitted with a 199 Austin Seven Countryman base plate at a time when the ladies were unfamiliar with these two models.