7 little weeks of Sadness..... XV109 today
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7 little weeks of Sadness..... XV109 today
Posted over on the Flypast Forums, but just to let you see her today, so sad. 
What a crying shame, she was my favourite on the fleet and I had many happy memories of working on her.
More pictures by Plazz here..
VC10's at Brunty - Page 4 - Key Publishing Ltd Aviation Forums
What a crying shame, she was my favourite on the fleet and I had many happy memories of working on her.
More pictures by Plazz here..
VC10's at Brunty - Page 4 - Key Publishing Ltd Aviation Forums
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My first productive tour as a very junior engineering officer was at Brize Norton Line Servicing Squadron - working on Belfasts and VC10s. The latter were so new that we found the reason No2 Doppler was having regular problems was that the 'earth' bonding to frame didn't work because of paint! I was very proud to be working on them.
Over 40 years ago.
Sad to see them being scrapped - but it's inevitable, of course.
Over 40 years ago.
Sad to see them being scrapped - but it's inevitable, of course.
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Could well have been so very different
I flew on 109 as part of a MAMS team in Sep / Oct 1988 from Brize to Hong Kong and then two shuttles to Kathmandu. I think it was on that trip that that the Sgt (poss FS) Load Mistress ended up in the swimming pool, late at night, in Kathmandu...assisted a little by the Stewards and MAMS.
My trip on 109 was the one that could have been a different ending for her.
8 Dec 1988 109 was tasked to recover RM pax from Gardermoen when a Hercules went u/s. Gardermoen - Leuchars - Brize no problem except over, Birmingham a bang was heard from the wheel well. Apparently one of the main wheels had exploded and the debris had taken out the fuel lines to 2 of the engines as well as the auto pilot and hydraulic system. The crew managed to recover to Brize and the 50 or so RM and crew evacuated the aicraft via the enmergency slides. We later heard that this was the closest to losing a VC10 that the RAF had come.
8 months later though, 109 brough me home from a 6 month tour in Belize. Not sure if that was a good move or not as I got engaged not long after. But I suppose after almost 20 years of marriage....yes it was a good thing.
I flew on 109 as part of a MAMS team in Sep / Oct 1988 from Brize to Hong Kong and then two shuttles to Kathmandu. I think it was on that trip that that the Sgt (poss FS) Load Mistress ended up in the swimming pool, late at night, in Kathmandu...assisted a little by the Stewards and MAMS.
My trip on 109 was the one that could have been a different ending for her.
8 Dec 1988 109 was tasked to recover RM pax from Gardermoen when a Hercules went u/s. Gardermoen - Leuchars - Brize no problem except over, Birmingham a bang was heard from the wheel well. Apparently one of the main wheels had exploded and the debris had taken out the fuel lines to 2 of the engines as well as the auto pilot and hydraulic system. The crew managed to recover to Brize and the 50 or so RM and crew evacuated the aicraft via the enmergency slides. We later heard that this was the closest to losing a VC10 that the RAF had come.
8 months later though, 109 brough me home from a 6 month tour in Belize. Not sure if that was a good move or not as I got engaged not long after. But I suppose after almost 20 years of marriage....yes it was a good thing.
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I think there are only 4 pilots (ie 2 crews)who landed a VC10 on 2 engines (real not sim assymetric). The story above is one. I might have had involvement in the other! Aug 02 and I think XV109 IIRC at BZN post 3 eng ferry. I'll have to check my logbook next week.
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Didn't Maggie go out to Washington on a Vc10, land in a Trident, set off back in a Trident and land back at Brize in a 1-11? and all the same aircraft.. 
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I think there are only 4 pilots (ie 2 crews)who landed a VC10 on 2 engines (real not sim assymetric). The story above is one. I might have had involvement in the other! Aug 02 and I think XV109 IIRC at BZN post 3 eng ferry. I'll have to check my logbook next week.
Sad but inevitable
The photos of XV109 remind me of a Beverley which had been blown up in the middle east and was lying at the side of the strip, looking so forlorn with its crew standing around.
The bubble caption has one of the crew saying: "How long to fix it, Eng?"
The bubble caption has one of the crew saying: "How long to fix it, Eng?"
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November, I remember that incident clearly as I should because here is the whole story. The aircraft came into Leuchars and was seen in by myself (The VAS line supervisor at the time) and 2 others did a walk round and noticed a large "scalop" out of one of the tyres looked like if you had carved a slice out of it with a knife. I advised the FE of what we had seen and advised that as far as we were concerned it was U/S we proceeded to the mess for supper only to be told by radio that the aircraft was leaving we rushed back and sure enough the G/E was on the headset directing the start-up I spoke to him and also advised him that IMO the tyre was U/S and had to be changed he said no it is ok they subsequently left. I returned to the VAS office and wrote what I had seen/advised etc. in the diary and said to the other 2 to sign, we also had a movements team(4 people) from Leuchars who I had said to go and look at the tyre. We did not hear anything about what happened until sometime later approx 3 weeks IIRC this was conveyed to me from the board of enquiry that had been set up and who were to travel to Leuchars to interview me, at that the Captain said that he was unaware of my missgivings but this was refuted by myself and my team because when I advised the FE they were both together and the Captain then instructed the FE to check it out I also had my 2 lads as witnesses to the event. I was also advised that this was very close to loosing the aircraft and only caused by your crew, obviously I am very happy it turned out ok but I can tell you myself and 2 lads were extremely annoyed(put mildly) by the way your crew tried to implicate the 3 of us in this however there were just to many witnesses to coroborate what really went on, I have no idea what the outcome of the B of I was if you know please let me know.
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Wouldn't suprise me, reminds me of the one in Hong Kong that they noticed fuel leaking out of a wing, close inspection revealed a couple of inch crack in the lower wing skin, now these skins are rolled so all the metal grain runs in one direction for strength I believe, which means the crack can rapidly open like a zip...... so what did they do, they flew it back to the UK!!
BTW MAMS are movers and would be PAX not crew.
BTW MAMS are movers and would be PAX not crew.
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Nutloose...why the dig
as I can't see anywhere on here where anyone has claimed the MAMS were crew. MAMS teams were usually manifested as Support Crew just the same as the GE were but never Air Crew.
MatKat
Thanks for the extra details. As I remember it, the crew were also told in Gardermoen by the Norwiegians that the wheel was U/S.
BTW MAMS are movers and would be PAX not crew
MatKat
Thanks for the extra details. As I remember it, the crew were also told in Gardermoen by the Norwiegians that the wheel was U/S.
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Wasn't meant to be an intentional dig or inferred to be, simply the line
reads as if they were part of the crew,
"by the way the crew" would have distanced him from being part of them, does that make sense??
Sorry for any confusion, thats why I put about the movers to show that they wouldn't be part of the flying crew.
by the way your crew tried to implicate the 3 of us in this
"by the way the crew" would have distanced him from being part of them, does that make sense??
Sorry for any confusion, thats why I put about the movers to show that they wouldn't be part of the flying crew.
matkat, thanks for your account. When we of the superior VC10 tanker squadron used to visit Leuchars, we had nothing but good things to say about Leuchars VASF. Many a time on operational air defence detachments Big George and the rest of his happy gang would provide us with truly excellent assistance.
The actions of that 'shiny' crew are perplexing, to say the least. If you were so worried as to have such clear concerns about the aircraft's safety, the captain should most certainly have taken your advice and had the tyre changed. Bloody daft not to have done so, in my opinion.
Next time (I hope that there won't be one, of course), Flash call the tower and tell them that the aircraft taxying out has been seen to have a badly damaged tyre - and get them to call OC Ops Wg (or whatever silly title he now has...). No-one will ever criticise caution.
Pressonitis, a tyre explosion and failure of 2 LP fuel cocks as a result. They were very, very lucky.....
A VC10K3 once landed with 2 engines stuck at idle in the early days of the VC10K - it seemed that the stub wing drainholes had been blocked since delivery and water had frozen at altitude, effectively jamming the throttle controls which couldn't be moved after a long descent. A good job that the same fault wasn't also present on the other side....
The actions of that 'shiny' crew are perplexing, to say the least. If you were so worried as to have such clear concerns about the aircraft's safety, the captain should most certainly have taken your advice and had the tyre changed. Bloody daft not to have done so, in my opinion.
Next time (I hope that there won't be one, of course), Flash call the tower and tell them that the aircraft taxying out has been seen to have a badly damaged tyre - and get them to call OC Ops Wg (or whatever silly title he now has...). No-one will ever criticise caution.
Pressonitis, a tyre explosion and failure of 2 LP fuel cocks as a result. They were very, very lucky.....
A VC10K3 once landed with 2 engines stuck at idle in the early days of the VC10K - it seemed that the stub wing drainholes had been blocked since delivery and water had frozen at altitude, effectively jamming the throttle controls which couldn't be moved after a long descent. A good job that the same fault wasn't also present on the other side....
