Operational History
The DH.34 entered service with Daimler on 2 April 1922 on the Croydon-Paris service. Daimler operated a total of six D.H.34s, four of which were leased from the Air Council, with Instone Air Line operating a further four, all leased. One aircraft was built to the order of the Soviet airline Dobrolyot.
When Imperial Airways was formed on 1 April 1924, by the merger of Daimler Airway, Instone Air Line, Handley Page Transport and the British Marine Air Navigation Company, it inherited six D.H.34s, retaining the type in service until 1926.
The DH.34s were used heavily on the cross channel air services, with the fleet flying 8,000 hours in the first nine months of operation, and the second aircraft flying over 100,000 mi (160,000 km) without overhaul. Six D.H.34s were lost in accidents during the four years of their operation, of which several were fatal.
Read more about this topic: De Havilland DH.34
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