British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC): Operational Research Branch

The archive comprises the notes and reports of the various divisions of British Overseas Airways Corporation's Operational Research Branch, 1951-1974.

The British Overseas Airways Corporation was founded in 1939 by Neville Chamberlain's government. It was incorporated in January 1944. Later it became a subsidiary of British Airways plc and ceased to be active as an airline company.

There are two series, reports and notes. They have been arranged by the various divisions of the Operational Research Branch and then by that division's reference number. These reference numbers have been included in the Modern Records Centre reference number. The number series is incomplete. Where no reference was issued by BOAC the document has been given the number M, for example MSS.335/AI/2/M4 ‘The loading ratio for alternative menus', 1963. The descriptions of reports and notes are those used by BOAC

This collection is available to researchers by appointment at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick. See http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/library/mrc/using/

These reports, prepared by the Operational Research Branch of British Overseas Airways Corporation and its various divisions, were transferred to the Operational Research Society by Mr. N.R. Tobin, General Manager of Operational Research at British European Airways. The archive was subsequently deposited with the Modern Records Centre in February 1994 as part of the Operational Research and Operational Research Society Archive.

Link to full catalogue: http://mrc-catalogue.warwick.ac.uk/records/BOA

There are no restrictions on the use of this archive, apart from the requirements of copyright law.

This collection has been weeded for unannotated duplicates.

Further deposits are expected/not expected.

The Centre holds the following other collections relating to the history, development and practice of operational research and to pioneers and practitioners in this field (collectively known as the Operational Research Archive): British European Airways: Operational Research Branch (MSS.335/AI/1); British Steel Operational Research papers and Memoranda (MSS.335/BS); the Papers of Professor Stephen Cook (MSS.335/CK); the Community Operational Research Unit (MSS.335/COR); the East Midlands Operational Research Group (MSS.335/EMORG); Papers of the Fellowship for Operational Research (MSS.335/FOR); papers for British Gas Operational Research (MSS.335/GA); British Gas North West Operational Research Reports (MSS.335/GA/NW); GKN Operational Research Reports (MSS.335/GKN); Fellowship for Operational Research (MSS.335/FOR); International Federation of Operational Research Societies (MSS.335/IFORS);Interviews with Operational Research Pioneers and Related Papers (MSS.335/INT); the Institute for Operational Research (MSS.335/IOR); the Local Government Operational Research Unit (MSS.335/LG); Miscellaneous and Fragmentary Operational Research Papers (MSS.335/MIS); Operational Analysis Branch, NATO (MSS.335/OAB); Draft Obituaries of Operational Research Practitioners (MSS.335/OBIT); the Papers of Jack Plymen (MSS.335/PLY); the Papers of Professor K. Brian Haley relating to Operational Research Quarterly (MSS.335/SO/H); the Papers of Rolphe C. Tomlinson (MSS.335/TOM); and the Papers of Dr Edward D. van Rest (MSS.335/VR).