Luftwaffe escort for the Queen

[Martin the Martian]

I see that a pair of Typhoons (oops EF2000s) escorted the Queen and Prince Philip into Berlin yesterday. Nice touch, but what a shame that our Head of State has to use a chartered aircraft on official business. Frau Merkel can choose from a pair of A319CJs, two A330s or four Global 56000s when she comes to visit. I presume that 32 Sqdn were busy, or does the RAF not get involved in flying the Royal family around these days, unlike other Commonwealth air forces?

[Exascot]

It's an absolute disgrace.

Did they make their 'doors time'?

[Wander00]

Not a million miles so that a long haul aircraft was required. She'll be in the front of a rented Chipmunk next, although she might quite like that

[Wander00]

Sprintman - nice one!

[BEagle]

Martin the Martian, A340-300s, not A330s.

No doubt the beancounters (and miserable anti-royalists) would prefer the Queen to fly on a LoCo airline - QueenyJet?

Or perhaps Monarch would be an obvious choice ;) ?

[darkroomsource]

Can't please everybody.
If she was flying in a military plane, people would complain about the cost to the taxpayer.

[P6 Driver]

If she was flying in a military plane, people would complain about the cost to the taxpayer.

Possibly not so many complaints if it was down the back in a C-130.

[Biggus]

Having seen how she arrived at the 2012 London Olympics, surely she could have gone over in a C-130 and simply jumped out the back? :ok:

[NutLoose]

I suppose they couldn't put the Lanc on for her as it's not fixed yet :}

[sharpend]

Yes, totally agree. Though I am completely biased, when we flew HM and PM we did everything completely perfectly, even down to opening the doors to the second exactly in the correct place for the red carpet. I watched the first time HM flew with BA. They overshot the carpet and were not on time.

[Heathrow Harry]

but think of the savings!!

[TBM-Legend]

The BBMF Dakota or Easy Jet I'd say...

[Exascot]

even down to opening the doors to the second

Sharpend, this was THE aim after flight safety.

Standards :(

[TBM-Legend]

Of course the other option was to simply drive the Royal coach and horses into a C-17 and voila transport in Berlin

[rh200]

Isn't there an airworthy B17 in pommy land. Give her a lift in that, been a while since they where seen in the skies of Germany:E

[P6 Driver]

Yes, totally agree. Though I am completely biased, when we flew HM and PM we did everything completely perfectly, even down to opening the doors to the second exactly in the correct place for the red carpet. I watched the first time HM flew with BA. They overshot the carpet and were not on time.

I recall suffering some of those long distance 0.000017mph taxying feats from the comfort of a control tower.

[Exascot]

P6 Driver Not from me, it was all sorted out in the air. Very unprofessional on the ground. I can't imagine any of my colleagues at the time doing this either. Also no 50kt taxing. If you get to that you have lost it. High speed turns on the ground and you have got ADCs and PPOs trying to kit up with swords and shooters respectfully all over the cabin :eek:

[PAXfips]

http://img.pr0gramm.com/2015/06/24/e7d8f34a79b2ab45.jpg

[CoffmanStarter]

I always thought that when Her Majesty arrived somewhere 'foreign' in a British VC-10 of the RAF, it was all quite magical. If a civilian aircraft was required ... then Concord was the next best thing.

What a shame ...

[NutLoose]

Yes, totally agree. Though I am completely biased, when we flew HM and PM we did everything completely perfectly, even down to opening the doors to the second exactly in the correct place for the red carpet. I watched the first time HM flew with BA. They overshot the carpet and were not on time.

"'Er luv, it's not time, go and plonk yer butt and i'll tell ya when it's time to get orf" ;)

Do you think she misses the top of the toilet polished to a mirror finish, as was done on the VC10?

[Exascot]

It was Concord that Sharpend mentioned earlier that overshot the red carpet, had to fit the tug and push it back. Guess BA Captains don't have a chinagraph in their nav bag to make marks on the DV window on departure to line up eye with position of said carpet.

They should have left the job to the guys who did it all the time. No disrespect, like anything else it takes training and practice.

The whole operation is only like a timed bombing run. The IP is landing then you have to get the dividers onto the taxiway charts and work out the time for taxying and of course know even which way you are parking on the stand to get to target. It took 30secs to turn a VC10 gently through 180°.

[pr00ne]

Multi millionaire celebrity hires biz jet.
Why is this news?

[Ascoteer]

The Royal Family aren't entitled to abated cost travel by 32(TR) Sqn assets due to a grant they receive each year from DfT for their travel. They thus have to pay full cost (the cost of airfield, wages, fuel, gate guards etc etc) which makes it cheaper to rent a civilian jet.

Plus they're less likely to break down.

[BEagle]

The Royal Family aren't entitled to abated cost travel by 32(TR) Sqn assets....

So in that case, why are 32 still 'TR' Sqn?

I did like the tale of the Princess Royal who, when travelling somewhere by CivAir, was told of an ATC strike which would delay her. With a twinkle in her eye, she simply said "Off with their heads!", before waiting patiently for the flight to depart.

[Exascot]

Ascoteer. It is 20 years since I was last in this game which was for most of my time in the Royal Air Force. We never broke down, as you put it, on a Royal or VVIP flight.

Costings were very complex and involved 'creative accountancy'. Even then the PM would sometimes use another 'company'. Good PR of course for the lower tender.

[Ascoteer]

...
...

...

[NutLoose]

Ascoteer. It is 20 years since I was last in this game which was for most of my time in the Royal Air Force. We never broke down, as you put it, on a Royal or VVIP flight.

Costings were very complex and involved 'creative accountancy'. Even then the PM would sometimes use another 'company'. Good PR of course for the lower tender.


Blimey, I remember a few that cut it close, like fitting the VIP fit on the spare on route to pick up the VIP, it was pulled out of the primary and thrown across to the secondary aircraft freight door to freight door.

Maggie came back on two, I suppose that wasn't really broken down, only slightly :cool:

[sharpend]

We VVIP chaps have many tales to tell.

At the top of drop, the Nav set his watch time exactly from his comprehensive nav kit. He then advised the pilots of timings, distance and even down to where to turn off the runway and what speed to taxi at, always remembering the phrase 'Safely, Smoothly and On Time'. In that order.

I remember taking Prince C to Riyadh once and we opened the doors exactly abeam the red carpet and to the second. Shortly after HRH departed in the Limo a very irate British colonel appeared on the flight deck to demand why we were 10 minutes early. I asked him what time he had on his watch and when did he last set it. His face went bright red and that was that. Stupid man.

[sharpend]

We also NEVER BROKE DOWN.

At Saudi, with HRH, my slats failed to extend on finals. Sadly we did not have the tools to fix the problem before departure the following day; with HRH. The rules were thus a single fight back to home base with crew only. Sadly, BZZ could not get the spare VC10 to us in time due to the lack of diplomatic clearances.

But we had to take HRH to Bahrain the following day.

My solution? Make Bahrain my home base and make HRH crew. It worked, though HRH did appear on the flt deck to ask if he was getting crew pay.

True!

[Whenurhappy]

Great photos, and great elan from the Luftwaffe. I'd love to have been a fly in the cabin and hearing Philip's comments!

The Royal couple are the same age as my parents, if they were still alive. As was pointed out by observers during the recent State Opening of Parliament, requiring nonagenarians to travel on such a regular basis and to carry out a pretty arduous programme would be tantamount to abusive behaviour! Well done that they can do still do so.

[baffy boy]

Aren't there restrictions on how close to a Royal Flight another aircraft can get? Guess not looking at the picture but it seems a bit strange.

[hoofie]

Was Prince Philip holding on to a pair of imaginary Brownings and shouting "Dagga Dagga Dagga !" out of the window at the Luftwaffe pair ?

[Less Hair]

So G-THFC stands for "Tottenham Hotspur Football Club" as it is/was Daniel Levy's aircraft?

[Exascot]

my slats failed to extend on finals.

Hope you are better now Sharpend :E

[ian16th]

A quote:

The UK is the only G20 nation not to have a dedicated long range Head of State/Government aircraft like France's A330 or Germany's two A340s.From:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_transports_of_heads_of_state_and_government

Sad :sad:

[melmothtw]

Hard times for the Monarchy indeed - a luxury private jet to Berlin, and I hear also that the Queen might have to move to one of the 4 other stately London abodes while Buckingham Palace is refurbished (which, incidentally, those dastardly Scots might refuse to help pay for). Oh, the humanity!!

[BEagle]

Enjoy your time in the Tower as raven fodder, melmothtw....:sad:

[melmothtw]

:ok:












.

[Heathrow Harry]

the Queen doesn't travel enough by air these days to warrant a specific "Queens Flight".

I'm sure some of the army of lesser Royals would love one tho'

Cameroon travels by BA and they rent a 777 so they can get the journo's on and charge them squillions for the ride

Harry Lee always used to fly SQ scheduled when he could

[Less Hair]

For her Frankfurt daytrip from Berlin HM today uses Luftwaffe's A340 "16+02" a former Lufthansa aircraft.

[NutLoose]

I could never understand why a VVIP fit wasn't procured for the A330's, heck she could even trail her own air defence ;)

[seltsam]

Berlin - Frankfurt - Berlin
http://www.merkur.de/bilder/2015/06/25/5168179/1708208937-queen-deutschland-2015-frankfurt-dpa-Mo7p0qC1MMG.jpg

http://static2.demotix.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/a_scale_large/7900-2/photos/1435236552-royal-visit-to-germany-queen-elizabeth-ii-en-route-to-frankfurt_7939942.jpg

http://www.demotix.com/photo/7939942/royal-visit-germany-queen-elizabeth-ii-en-route-frankfurt
http://www.demotix.com/photo/7939942/royal-visit-germany-queen-elizabeth-ii-en-route-frankfurt

[NutLoose]

I know Betty and Phil the Greek are getting on, but an ambulance at the back of the cavalcade?

[Hangarshuffle]

Another British own goal. What's then Royal about an air force that can't fly the Queen around? People will actually begin to wonder what its for?
Truly have we not got, somewhere, a suitable RAF plane that can fly the Queen as far as Germany? Or our elected PM even? Fecking hell.

[gilderoy lockhart]

Derick,
I doubt the VC10 VVIP Operation would work in the age of Haddan Cave or the risk assessed world of Civ air in 2015!
In effect the Captain was making the risk assessment on the VVIP often outside of the VC 10 go/no go list.
IMHO some of the most risky flying the VC10 ever did, unknown to the VIP down the back.

[Heathrow Harry]

"but an ambulance at the back of the cavalcade"

pretty standard in a lot of countries since Dallas '63

POTUS always has one in his fleet..............................

[deptrai]

Aren't there restrictions on how close to a Royal Flight another aircraft can get? Guess not looking at the picture but it seems a bit strange.

Such rules are for potentially "bad guys". It's a common procedure that heads of state on official visits are escorted by fast jets of the host government in their airspace. They make the rules there. And the dedicated professionals who fly those jets in formation have been trained and screened and checked over and over again to the highest standards...they're not the potentially bad guys you need to keep away...

[biddedout]

Embraer must be chuffed. Much better than a clapped out 146.

At least we have moved on form the days when a longer trip involved a Tristar, three Nimrods and a huge hotel bill. Really hated all that hanging around for the return.