Help required to trace aircraft

[Fatjoff]

Fellow pruners


I wonder if anyone out there is able to help trace aircrew who flew over Scotland last December.


I am currently stationed in North Yorkshire west of Harrogate where the guarding for the unit is MOD Police. One of our chief inspectors is the son of a Spitfire pilot who flew with 111 Sqn during WW2. Sadly, his father passed away in December 2014, and last December, he and his sister took his ashes back to his hometown in Scotland.


Whilst scattering the ashes, on 3 Dec 15 at approximately 1030hrs an aircraft flew over Carlingheugh Bay, north east of Arbroath, heading east. The aircraft then flew back over the North Sea about 45 minutes later, slightly higher and faster, over Lunan Bay near Montrose.


It turned out to be a bit of a spine-tingling moment because the aircraft appeared to waggle his wings as they were scattering his ashes. My colleague and his sister asked if I could help trace the aircraft so that they could personally write to thank the crew. The information as to the type they gave was fairly scant: black painted jet was about as much as I got. I have spoken to both Valley and Leeming - the obvious ones - but as yet they haven't come back to me.


Please feel free to pm me if you think you can help. I've informed the ChInsp that it may be a bit of a long shot, but if anyone can help, I'm pretty sure I've come to the right place.


Bert the real Red Lichtie - Arbroath Herald (http://www.arbroathherald.co.uk/news/local-news/bert-the-real-red-lichtie-1-3631662)


Cheers


Geoff

[Pontius Navigator]

As the aircraft was at low level it would have been booked in to the low flying system. The Low Flying Cell at RAF Wittering will have records of who, where and when.

RAF Wittering - Low Flying Operations Squadron (LFOS) (http://www.raf.mod.uk/rafwittering/aboutus/lfos.cfm)

They will the aircraft type, station and unit.

Good luck.

PS, I don't know how long since you wrote to Leeming and Valley but they should reply at some point in order to comply with the FOI. Provided you tell the LFC your name, address, and the form in which you want your answer then they are required to reply. As the date is recent it should not require any extensive research to provide the answer. They will probably not tell you the pilot's name but there should be sufficient information to write to the CO and make your request.

[Fatjoff]

Thanks PN. I asked Leeming and Valley in my capacity as a serving officer, not as a FOI request. And knowing how FOI requests are welcomed ( I get them from time to time) I wouldn't have wanted to go down that route.


Kicking myself though. I should have thought of the Low Flying Cell. Been away from the real air force too long!

[frodo_monkey]

Get someone with an account to look on CADS, should be able to pull up route/time/callsign and possibly crew (depending on how the unit inputs CADS data). If not then you can get whoever checks CADS to cross-reference STARS - if these acronyms are unfamiliar then get an Opsie and they should know what to do.

[airpolice]

Don't forget that the fish heads also have Hawks.

[tarantonight]

Don't forget that the fish heads also have Hawks.


Was thinking the same, RNAS Culdrose might be worth an enquiry. Very similar event happened whilst my father's ashes were interred. The aircraft was a Hawk which were then based at Yeovilton. Good luck.

TN.

[unclenelli]

Geoff
Check your PMs for correct channels

Let me know how he gets on.

[octavian]

Hey airpolice, shouldn't the navy have Sea Hawks?

Hat coat..........

[Gnd]

There were 2 Hawks, a Typhoon and a Tonka (Doing and IRT, my wings waggle all the time on an IRT????) around that period, my money would be on the Tonka.