BZZ

[TOWTEAMBASE]

Just seen an ad for a 6 parter starting next week on sky 1, behind the scenes at Brize. Looks good (and obviously sad at times too)

[Lima Juliet]

6 parter?

Part 1 - Arrive at Brize

Part 2 - Go to the Gateway and have a couple of beers.

Part 3 - Board your Tristar/VC10. Go U/S and sit there for 45 minutes. Go back to the departure lounge.

Part 4 - Back to the Gateway and have a couple more beers.

Part 5 - Board your spare Tristar/VC10. Go U/S and sit there for 45 minutes. Go back to the departure lounge. Get told that you'll be going back to Gateway without your luggage as it's too late.

Part 6 - Back to Gateway. Can't have anymore beers as bar is shut and get offered the airline food you would have been eating if your aircraft wasn't U/S.

Ooh, I can't wait for this...:suspect:

[Dan Winterland]

Trailer (http://www.sky.com/tv/show/inside-raf-brize-norton/video/trailer)

[The Helpful Stacker]

"Scuse ranks...."

[Pontius Navigator]

I would love to go back to Gateway to see if they have maintained the standards of 40 years ago.

"This is your early morning call. Breakfast will be ready in 15 minutes. Your flight has been delayed 4 hours."

The 2 1/2 in my room rolled over for another 4 hours kip.

"Acknowledge this call. Breakfast will be ready."

He did and was then ordered to get up there and then as the fat on the fried eggs was rapidly congealing.

[Hangarshuffle]

This thread and comments has actually cheered me up....PN that's funny. When I've stopped in the gateway, its like being in a time warp, like a 1960s time warp of architecture and design - fantastic really. They should shoot films there - make Thunderbirds or something....remakes of 1960s stuff. People in t'London pay top brass for that sort of stuff.

Scuse ranks!!! Instantly makes me pick up - that must be taught to them!!

Hope they show the irony of having to do the druggy piss test after you've been schnelled! through to that departure lounge. I mean, failing that could actually end your career but save your life if you got caught, but then you should be on drugs to be heading where your going anyway...

[Easy Street]

"Juice...." (sorry, "Jooose")

[Background Noise]

Already posted: http://www.pprune.org/military-aircrew/520779-sky-1-hd-goes-inside-raf-brize-norton.html

[smujsmith]

Towteambase,

Thanks for the heads up, all set for series record.

Smudge:ok:

[downsizer]

I'm sure the movers will star.....

[1.3VStall]

If the movers "star", it will certainly be the first time ever since they were invented!

[Mobile Muppet]

Stall/down please change the record your boring and you should probably spend your time worrying about keeping your own houses in order.

I hope it reflects the diversity and hard work that goes on at BZZ supporting the varity of routine tasking and Ops on a daily basis.

MM

[salad-dodger]

Starring already.

S-D

[Blue Bottle]

They are so quick to bite and easy to wind up.....well said MM. Take the hook out soon

[1.3VStall]

your boring

Certainly not starring with their grammar!;)

[Truck2005]

The muppet WO is the star. Wonder if they bleep out his slip of the togue:D

[Wyler]

As a passenger over many years I can honestly say it (Gateway and departures) has provided me with some of the worst experiences of my military career.
Not detracting from the many hardworking individuals who do their very best but it is just awful, awful, awful.

[Pontius Navigator]

I remember the tale from one DAMO. I believe a prisoner was being escorted to RAF Germany for his court martial. He was checked in and then requested permission to go to the toilet. The sensitive rozzer uncuffed him and let him enter the toilet.

Some minutes later curiosity got the better of him and he went in after the prisoner of whom, no sight. Our eagle eyed upholder of law and order then noticed a ceiling panel had been disturbed. Undaunted he stood on the pan and peered in - to the ceiling void.

The prisoner was still there and could find no way out but apparently it took quite some time to catch him which relieved the tedium of those waiting for their flights.

[nimbev]

Wyler said
As a passenger over many years I can honestly say it (Gateway and departures) has provided me with some of the worst experiences of my military career. Come, come Wyler dont be like that. Surely you realise that being a Truckie is one of the best jobs in the RAF ....... if you could get rid of the passengers.:ugh:


Although I am SURE that the current generation of Truckies dont feel that way - do they?:*

[downsizer]

One or two on 10 might....they should be more careful what they say in earshot of pax....:ooh::hmm:

[Ken Scott]

Steady, 'truckie' is a term of 'endearment' for a C130 operator, you seem to be confusing us with the 'shiny' sqns who do the airbridge. C130s & BZN/ Gateway is only in the very recent history.

To us truckies all freight is the same - whether on pallets, loose or self-loading. Although we don't give those delicious long-life boxes to non-SLF.

On consideration I suppose that we might have to grudgingly allow the 99 Sqn newbies to come under the truckie umbrella.

[nimbev]

Steady, 'truckie' is a term of 'endearment' for a C130 operator, you seem to be confusing us with the 'shiny' sqns Fair point KS. Nothing has changed. In the mid 60s when Luqa transit mess was the crossroads of the world and Abingdon to Nicosia was a 5 day round trip in a Bev, the Big Piston truckies (Bevs and Hastings) plus the Shack crews would be at one end of the bar in their sweaty flying suits shouting at each other having been deafened for 8 hours getting to Luqa, while the shiny Britannia and Comet crews would be in their smart uniforms at the other end of the bar trying to ignore the rabble. Cant remember where the Whistling Tit crews were, probably in the middle somewhere, disowned by both groups!

[1.3VStall]

nimbev,

Those were the days Five different medium/long-range transport types and a maritime force as well - and that was just at Luqa!

[On_The_Top_Bunk]

20:00 Tonight Sky 1.

I expect to see some choice comments on here and an in depth analysis by 21:01

:O :O :O

[Sandy Parts]

to make it more realistic I'm expecting an announcement just before the 2000hrs start to be told that 'technical issues' mean it will be delayed for a period yet to be determined. At which point I'll drive around the block, come back in to a meal from a plastic wrapper, get to the fridge for a beer just as it is closing and then settle down for along night of uncertainty! At least I won't have had the 12hr coach journey to get here first. :hmm: Thank god those days are done for me - hopefully soon to be done for everyone.

[Willard Whyte]

I am not able to watch it: I forgot to tune in before 17:00.

[downsizer]

I am not able to watch it: I forgot to tune in before 17:00.

Consider yourself lucky, I had to go to South Cerney first....:{

[SOSL]

Well let me tell you about the Gateway.

In nineteencanteen my dear old Dad became terminally ill while I was overseas.

The RAF gave me a comp A flight back to UK and my wife and 18 month old sprog came with me on indulgence.

Dad passed away and we headed back to base. As comp A, I was offered a flight immediately but wife and sprog would have to wait for the next available indulgence seats.

I negotiated with very understanding boss (by signal - remember them?) and elected to stay at Bzz until they could fly with me - result was 7 day stay in the Gateway - the guys and gals who worked there couldn't have been more friendly and helpful.

That was all a long time ago but whatever people may say today I reckon the Gateway guys and gals are still pretty fantastic!!

Rgds SOS

[Ken Scott]

I have to concur with SOS - the Gateway's not the Ritz but it compares favourably with a great many military camps and is more than adequate transit accommodation. The staff always try to be accommodating considering that many of the 'guests' turn up unannounced or with little notice at all times of the day & night. It's not the fault of the Gateway that flights are delayed, they just have to deal with the consequences and the stress and aggravation directed at them by said 'guests'.

I've only ever stayed there because I've had to, and as such tend to view the place with a slightly jaundiced eye, but the staff have always been friendly.

At least there is a place to stay & it's provided free of charge. Next time your Ryanair's delayed see what they provide you with......

[Melchett01]

Don't have Sky 1 - was it better or worse than the sheer embarrassment that was Airforce Afghanistan?

[Blue Bottle]

Wow I did think we would have loads of comments on here this morning, did anyone see the program ?

[Door Slider]

On the whole I thought it was fairly reasonable. Given that most of the target audience probably know nothing about the RAF I'm sure they would have found it fairly informative.

No programme would be complete without interviewing some brown types with berets on though. The Lt was rather 'ditsy', especially watching her tinkerbell impression in the back of the Herc

[twentygrand]

Ah - Luqa transit mess. Remember the triangular tinned sausages, and the neat lace covers with beads to keep the flies out of the water jugs.
About 8 hours Abingdon to Luqa in a Bev - longer back if the Mistral was blowing.

[downsizer]

Can't polish or sex up a turd. At the end of the day, routine Ops at Brize are never going to be compelling viewing like troops in contact.

And focusing on a pallet of eggs(!) that were delayed going to the FIs? Really? Surely a better storyline than that could have been found...:hmm:

[Wycombe]

One suspects that there may have been plenty of storylines that can't be used.

All very normal stuff, except a Tristar actually flew at one point :)

[Courtney Mil]

Going through Brize has never been a pleasant experience, but then that's not really the idea, is it? It's purpose is to move people and stuff around the world safely. Being a military outfit there's no requirement to provide any more than basic comfort and convenience. They feed you, give you somewhere to sleep and even have a bar. Pax are not customers, we're military assets in the wrong place.

I've always gone there expecting the worst - and have seldom been disappointed. It's just the way it is. Of course, the RAF Olympic Baggage-Smashing Team could lighten up a bit.

As for RyanAir, I have never and shall never fly with them. I'm just booking flights to the South of France for Mrs CM and me. I have elected to fly to a completely different (less convenient) destination airport and pay around £200 to fly BA in order to avoid RA - even though they are only charging £50.

[5aday]

the Shack crews would be at one end of the bar in their sweaty flying suits shouting at each other having been deafened for 8 hours getting to Luqa, while the shiny Britannia and Comet crews would be in their smart uniforms at the other end of the bar trying to ignore the rabble.


Quite fond memories of the Transit Mess. Based at Luqa on 203 sqn Nimrods,
they (the Transit Mess) were involved in our in flight rations and often (more often than not) converted some of our in flight money allowance to a case(s) of Hop Leaf. We, therefore, claimed for maximum number of people on board (I think 22 at the time) for an 11 hours duration.
Our inflight food was mainly fresh fillet steak and we had a Rima grill on board (which used to set off the under floor Smoke/Fire warnings almost every time). In the mess, and in Gan as well, the Shiny (10s, Brits and Comets) crews used to exclude themselves from some really good and often wild parties but then again - as one of their crew told us one time - they were 'operational'. He was cabin crew on one of the Comets. A Master to boot.
At the time - quite good fun.
PS Sweaty flying suits were a thing of the past. We had a modern Flying clothing section just beside Ops and were often en route to a party after landing, especially if we had just taken a load of Matelots flying with us.
For Matelots, also read WRNS from Whitehall Mansions (which also had another name but I cannot remember what it was)http://images.ibsrv.net/ibsrv/res/src:www.pprune.org/get/images/smilies/wink2.gif

[5aday]

Courtney - you are right.
I would rather walk than fly as a pax with Ryanair.
Everything about their airline is just awful.
Why do they still exist is the point?
Does anyone on this website work for them?:ugh:

[Party Animal]

5aday / Courtney,

Come, come gentlemen. Whilst I agree, Ryanair are one of the worst airlines in this hemisphere, they are nevertheless a very cheap transport option that covers big distances fast.

Yes, everything about their airline is awful with the exception of cost and running on time. They exist because there is demand for their services and they are a healthy profit making company to boot. If you think of them purely as a transport option, in a similar vein to the London Underground, then it is a more palatable comparison. Ask yourself - would you not use the underground because it is full of scumbags?

Meanwhile, for those of us still serving and working south of Watford with families living in Scotland, NI etc, the weekend commute between MB and Kinloss (as an example) means options such as walking or driving are neither realistic or practical and we will take whatever we can get.

[Alpha Whiskey]

Show last night was Ok - no better or worse than many other military fly on the wall documentaries.

However, based on many of those on camera, I would say OC Catering Flight deserves some sort of award. The grub is clearly good at Brize!

[Ken Scott]

Does anyone on this website work for them?

5aday - Why would anybody from Ryanair be on this site? Clearly as a site for:

A forum for the professionals who fly the non-civilian hardware, and the backroom boys and girls without whom nothing would leave the ground. Army, Navy and Airforces of the World, all equally welcome here.

they would be in an entirely different forum on PPRUNE!!!

[5aday]

Are there no ex RAF (retired?) people here? I certainly am - and I followed a career in civil aviation after retiring from the Nimrod fleet as an AEOp. If this site is purely for serving military then I have made a grave mistake. Either that or you are nit picking.

[Ken Scott]

Or jesting........?

[Whenurhappy]

Why, O why do the movers use the grammatically and euphonically incorrect 'Sirs, Ma'ams, ladies and Gentlemen' when simply Ladies and Gentlemen would suffice?


I incurred the unbridled wrath of an Army WO prior to my last deployment when I checked directly at the terminal and not at South Cerney for 48 hours of practice bleeding. I as not part of a FU move and I had faxed (by the way, who still uses faxes these days?) to advise JSMC that I'd check in directly at BZZ. But getting a biffing from the WO was infinitely preferable that sharing a hangar with a stack of tattooed troops from the 3rd Bn The Blankshire Regt and suffering the ignomy of starting my deployment on a wheezy double-decker Bus!!!

[Ken Scott]

The fact that the vast majority of 'customers' passing through Brize have already endured 24hrs + of sh1t through South Cerney etc before they even reach Brize must contribute to their rather jaundiced view of the place - the 'straw that broke the camel's back' in effect. Having had to at worst just get MT from Lyneham & now direct reporting to go on Det I've generally found Brize not too bad, certainly no worse than the process through Heathrow for example.

[BEagle]

Why, O why do the movers use the grammatically and euphonically incorrect 'Sirs, Ma'ams, ladies and Gentlemen' when simply Ladies and Gentlemen would suffice?

When I used to PA the pax, I found it simpler just to say "Hello everybody" - no messing about with morning/afternoon/evening/males/females/senior orifices etc.....

I thought it was a good fly-on-the-wall documentary and struck a good balance. Much better than other efforts.

Re. Ryanair, I will never fly with them - but not because of any safety concerns. Their crews are well-trained and their SOPs are entirely in accordance with Part-OPS. Including alternate and final reserve fuel requirements!! The ridiculous Ch4 documentary was grossly misrepresentative and was a classic example of the worst type of TV sensationalism. No, the only reason why I won't fly with them is their level of customer service.

Incidentally, Party Animal, I'm not aware that there's more than one company operating the underground rail system available in London? So comparison with the airlines is hardly fair.

[Blue Bottle]

Just watched it myself and agree with Beagle, they all came across well. Nice insight of what goes on, very well done all involved.:ok:

[Nomorefreetime]

Why, O why do the movers use the grammatically and euphonically incorrect 'Sirs, Ma'ams, ladies and Gentlemen' when simply Ladies and Gentlemen would suffice?

The above statement came about because some Army Officer complained that Ladies and Gentlemen was not good enough. It does get a bit annoying when you are on the bus and get 'SML&G blah blah blah' only to get it repeated everytime the escort wants your attention.

[Blue Bottle]

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/behind-the-scenes-at-raf-brize-norton

[Exascot]

PN re. post 18. Your escaping prisoner may be sligbtly incorrect or a different incident. I was the captain on a VC10 where one of my passengers was being sent back to his unit after a spell in the clink. He didn't want to go back, for reasons unknown, and climbed into the ceiling of the gents and fell through into the ladies. I would like to embellish the story and say that he landed on a Stn Cdr's wife enthroned, but it would be untrue.

[Onceapilot]

Thought part 1 was OK-ish. But how are they going to fill another 5 hours without more depth or a story/stories?
Same old problem with military documentaries. The only ones I would consider successful on TV were Fighter Pilot and Sailor (sorry folks:O), both with some raw military elements and...a storyline.
I doubt that anything other than scripted "party line" comments will be heard on this series:oh:.

OAP

[TOWTEAMBASE]

Saw all aircraft types featured that are stationed at Brize.......all except air tanker. Is this political do you think, as it isn't a fully RAF set up operation, or is it likely to feature In a future episode. Not even a brief glimpse ( unless I missed it)

[Dan Winterland]

I think most of it was recorded a while ago - before the Voyagers arrived.

[TOWTEAMBASE]

Ah ok, would make sense.

[Onceapilot]

FSTA, think there was a quick shot, one was parked there ages ago. Notice how carefully any shots of the new infrastructure were avoided. I guess there will be a final episode with "future sunny uplands" where super-fit and highly paid civies operate overpriced A330's and A400's from new super-dooper facilities.....:yuk:

OAP

[RAFEngO74to09]

For those living outside the UK, now on You Tube:

Inside RAF Brize Norton Episode 1 - YouTube

[Ken Scott]

Not a bad job all in all, even if it was a little bit of a C17 'love fest'.

Perhaps it should be compulsory viewing for the locals around Brize, might put a stop to some of the whinging, although I doubt it. They mostly purport to be 'supporters' of our armed forces, only they'd like us to fly our aircraft more 'quietly'.....

Maybe Sky could've shown some groundcrew doing an engine run to get the C130 serviceable before flying that urgent Med evac?

[ColdWarWimp]

EngO

Thanks for the U Tube, much appreciated.

CWW

[Party Animal]

BEagle,


Incidentally, Party Animal, I'm not aware that there's more than one company operating the underground rail system available in London? So comparison with the airlines is hardly fair.


That was partly my point! The comparison was based on the travel experience and that they are both forms of unfrilled mass transport. Ryanair is an awful flying experience (although safe) but some colleagues have to use them because there are no realistic alternative options. Same miserable experience with the underground in both travel terms and lack of alternatives. Take them or leave them both but if you compare Ryanair with the underground it makes it slightly more palatable and at least you get a seat - for now anyway.

There are many who will not fly Ryanair because they do not like competing for a seat with the great unwashed. These same people will however, quite happily use the tube. I do not see the difference.

Sorry for thread drift.

[TOWTEAMBASE]

Onceapilot......that's what I meant when I said political :-)


Ken Scott
It's the same everywhere ......move next to an airport and then moan about the noise :-)

[Blue Bottle]

Just watched the last episode and thought it was very good. I see they are still using the old air terminal building but remember Project Future Brize Web site saying they were building a new air terminal due to the increase in pax handling with the closure of LYN and the bigger capacity air tanker coming into operation. Any ideas when the new facility opens ?

Nice to see they are using proper airport busses at last, last time I went through they were using the old 55 seat coaches that took for ever to fill and empty.

[WE992]

Blue Bottle


Well spotted. Brize is suppose to be the AT and AAR hub yet they have not spent anything on improving the passenger terminal or cargo facilities since the arrival of Lyneham. Like most things with future Brize - pathetic!

[downsizer]

Blue Bottle.... Did we see the same episode? A mover telling us where David Beckham had a slash, bollocking someone for a lack of HiVis and organising "lunch" for a colleague in the gateway wasn't exactely riveting viewing...:suspect:

[Blue Bottle]

I thought the young couple being followed through the process was OK, also lots of interesting background stuff for those of us that don't normally see it, yer some of it was cheesy but all done with good humour I thought !

[charliethedog]

So,just to recap,we've had Damo's strutting about full of importance with their hi-viz jackets,over weight medics,air stewards in tailored flying suits and not a ginger in sight or mentioned. Am I missing something?:ugh:

[downsizer]

Yeah, C17 gingers appear in episode 1.

[charliethedog]

Hope they had their hi-viz jackets on.:=