In 1955, when Sud-Est Aviation from Toulouse launched the first Caravelle prototype on its maiden flight, it wasn’t yet clear, that this first twin-jet airliner with its revolutionary, rear-mounted engines would shape future generations of airliners to come. Flight testing lasted four years, after which in 1959, the Caravelle I went into scheduled service first at SAS and a little later for its biggest customer, Air France, on the route Paris to Istanbul. . 43 machines were purchased by Europe’s biggest airline. The second example was the original of this model, F-BHRB named “Lorraine”. In 1961, it was converted to Caravelle III standard and remained in operation until 1977.