Great tale

[max alt]

Speaking with an old f4 buddy ,he recounted the story of an american intercept of a royal navy fairy gannet.The gannet had twin engines driving counter rotating props or some sort of arrangement,that would enable one engine to be shut down to prolong airborn time.The gannet was also rather slow and could be flown with the cockpit slid back and why not in the med.The pilot of the gannet had a full beard up and was chugging away.
Ground controller to intercept pilot " can you identify the aircraft"? ",nope", came the fighters reply" but its been flown by jesus h christ himself and his engine is shut down" !!!!.
Got to love our american buddies.
Can anyone put some more meat on this as I just think it's great.
M:D

[Pontius Navigator]

Max, no, but a light blue VSO did ask why the Shackleton could not shut down some of its engines just like the Gannet.

[tyne]

I am a civvy, but have an ex 849 mate who told me this story once.

I also remember a tale about a legendary bearded old hand in the squadron who was there when he was training on Sea King AEWs in the early 80s. He hated helos, mistrusted things that flew without wings.

I can't recall it, but there is a funny story surrounding this guy and a Sea King which had to AKE an emergency landing near a pub.

[pulse1]

My old Sea Vixen mate from that era told me that he couldn't, have been mistaken for our Lord because he also smoked his pipe and put his feet out on each side.by

[LowObservable]

It occurs to me that if you were not familiar with the Gannet and its party trick, you'd more than likely see the prop that was stopped and miss the one that wasn't.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Fairey_Gannet_T.2_XA522_Farnborough_10.09.55_edited-2.jpg

[Martin the Martian]

I did read of the Shackleton AEW.2 that was intercepted by the CAP from a US Navy carrier when it approached the carrier group. The crew were listening to the conversation between the F-14 and the carrier, and when asked to identify the aircraft type the F-14 pilot reported that he thought it was a Liberator.

[Wageslave]

It's no wonder we have so many blue on blue incidents when out transatlantic cousins' aircraft recognition is so poor.

Thought it was a Liberator my a rse!

[4Greens]

Gannet engine runs on the flight deck were a problem as sailors thought the engine was stopped as all they could see was the stationary prop. So much noise around, there was no warning.

[Rossian]

.....during an Open/Closed Gate thingy out of Gib in a Nimrod2, an F18 pitches up on our starboard tiptank. He calls his carrier (with whom we were cooperating)
"It's like a concrete coloured airliner with blue and pink roundels, it's got tiptanks and a big dome thing on top of the fin, any ideas??"

I couldn't resist

"We are a Royal Air Force Nimrod maritime patrol aircraft cooperating with your Mother, should you care to check. Marks out of 10 for aircraft recognition? - Not very many! Now go away and do something useful!!"
He rolled rapidly away at warp factor 9 in silence and was not seen for the rest of the sortie.

The Ancient Mariner

He may also have been shocked into silence by the sight of one of my wet men's bare arse wedged into the stb'd beam window. Not a pretty sight!

[Sandy Parts]

Re the Gannet - had heard similar, but in this tale the stick-waggler had bunged on the auto-pilot and popped his head down into the Gannett bowels where the observers were beavering away. The intercepting jet thought it was an abandoned aircraft as no-one was visible in the cockpit.
Despite being (light-blue) maritime air, I never got up close to a Gannet other than one tucked around the back of the Bruggen MSU in the mid-80s! No idea why that was there back then? -It looked abandoned.

[N2erk]

Once on fall maritime exercise, daytime good wx somewhere west of the Faeroes, given a tgt to intercept- turned out to be a Gannet which proceeded to engage in VERY creditable ACT with us for a few minutes.

[NutLoose]

Sandy Parts, there should be one flying in the UK soon :) and the one in the USA is back in the air.

Lots of piccies here

http://forum.keypublishing.com/showthread.php?113913-HFL-Hunters-and-Gannet-at-St-Athan



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