UK Mil Control Tower designs
Mention of WAAFs in towers reminds me of a story of the 60s, and a plan to introduce a limited number of WAAF post at Cranwell. ATC was selected because the tower was away from the nasty cadets. Cue big meeting, at the end of which the stumbling block was only 2 loos, "Officers" and "Airmen". "OK" says SATCO, "we'll put a tent outside as a loo for the girls." "That's no good" says Command WRAF Officer, "My girls like permanent erections"
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Waddington's oldest tower was used by Customs and Excise in the 60s, the next house Approach and the third was Local. The oldest has now gone, Approach, as WD said, is condemned, and yet another was built.
You would think that after 4 attempts . . .
You would think that after 4 attempts . . .
QUOTE
" "That's no good" says Command WRAF Officer, "My girls like permanent erections"
Whereas RAF Finningley had "Officer i/c Temporary Erections" in the supplement to the station phone directory for B o B Day. And yes, Met had a large temporary erection, a chestnut paling fence to cover the long but thin zone swept by the nodding beam cloud base recorder.
" "That's no good" says Command WRAF Officer, "My girls like permanent erections"
Whereas RAF Finningley had "Officer i/c Temporary Erections" in the supplement to the station phone directory for B o B Day. And yes, Met had a large temporary erection, a chestnut paling fence to cover the long but thin zone swept by the nodding beam cloud base recorder.
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And then there was Coningsby, standard tower, radio room on ground floor, approach above and local on top. Ops HQ scabbed on one side with Met below and GRSF round the back.
Then, doing some maintenance, it was discovered the Approach windows had simply been filled in with a single layer brick infill - no structural strength and no load bearing for the concrete built local above.
Given that some airfields had remote towers, Cottesmore, Finningley and Dishford amongst others, I wonder why others were sited in the main target area.
Then, doing some maintenance, it was discovered the Approach windows had simply been filled in with a single layer brick infill - no structural strength and no load bearing for the concrete built local above.
Given that some airfields had remote towers, Cottesmore, Finningley and Dishford amongst others, I wonder why others were sited in the main target area.
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One of the problems was getting the Local Controller to actually have a view of the runway. So the WW2 Tower begat the Remote Local, and the crumbling WW2 tower later begat the new NATO-funded one out near the runway.
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MPN, quite. From a short grass runway whose ends were visible from the hangar line, to a 6,000 ft strip, to a V-bomber 9,000 ft to a . . .
Now if the tower had been built on the other side of the runway. OK, I know that would mean traffic flying behind the tower.
Now if the tower had been built on the other side of the runway. OK, I know that would mean traffic flying behind the tower.
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PN, during my time we constructed an Alternate Local, using a redundant dispersal caravan semi-buried in the grass. Naturally, that meant the controller's eye-line was only a few feet agl. After a lot of walking about I found a spot where, even from that low altitude, you could see both ends of the rw.
Looking at Google Earth, it seems to have been developed. It's at the end of the stub road running NE from F Dispersal, with a proper bund around it. There's an unclear image of something semi-buried you zoom to ground level view in GE. Can anyone validate that?
(Curiously, there's a lot of detail in Ground Level view, which I wasn't expecting to find at an MOB)
Looking at Google Earth, it seems to have been developed. It's at the end of the stub road running NE from F Dispersal, with a proper bund around it. There's an unclear image of something semi-buried you zoom to ground level view in GE. Can anyone validate that?
(Curiously, there's a lot of detail in Ground Level view, which I wasn't expecting to find at an MOB)
The tower at Manston had a dumb waiter connecting the Ops room with the Comcen below and Met on the ground floor. A system of bell rings indicated who was to bring the carrier to their level and a long ring was used to warn others that you were about to winch the thing up or down. Occasionally this would be forgotten and someone would have their hand in the carrier as it began to move. A torrent of abuse would then be directed down the lift shaft at the miscreant.
Landing fees (for civilian aircraft) at RAF Elvington were collected by lowering a plastic bucket on a long rope from the VCR balcony. The improved Mk2 version included half a brick in the bucket in an attempt to counteract drift on windy days!
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Autre Temps, Autre Moeurs.
Leeming ('67 - '72) and (I'm nearly sure) Thorney Island ('58 - '59) had the "Gaydon" pattern Tower. Nicest of the lot INHO.
Strubby ('55 - '58) had wartime cube with draughty, leaky, cold, garden shed on top for Local (access by external iron stairs).
Geilenkirchen ('60-'62) had a sort of single storey terrace between S taxiway and Camp main drag.. Most of it was Flying Wing and Sqdn offices, but in the middle ATC had a slice projecting forward a bit (?) with a rudimentary glasshouse on top. May have been standard for the "Clutch" ?
Forget what they had at L-o-O ('62-'64) or Shawbury ('64 - '67).
"Kutcha" strips in India/Burma best of all (No ATC [who needs it ?] = no Tower - no nuffin'). Every man for himself !
Worked like a charm.
Danny42C.
Strubby ('55 - '58) had wartime cube with draughty, leaky, cold, garden shed on top for Local (access by external iron stairs).
Geilenkirchen ('60-'62) had a sort of single storey terrace between S taxiway and Camp main drag.. Most of it was Flying Wing and Sqdn offices, but in the middle ATC had a slice projecting forward a bit (?) with a rudimentary glasshouse on top. May have been standard for the "Clutch" ?
Forget what they had at L-o-O ('62-'64) or Shawbury ('64 - '67).
"Kutcha" strips in India/Burma best of all (No ATC [who needs it ?] = no Tower - no nuffin'). Every man for himself !
Worked like a charm.
Danny42C.
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ATC Gemas, 1969 
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do you mean ALL ALONG THE CONTROL TOWER ?
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I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
This site gives a better impression:
RAF Wainfleet - The Tower (ref UKC1178) in Friskney, near Skegness, Lincolnshire | cottages.com
RAF Wainfleet - The Tower (ref UKC1178) in Friskney, near Skegness, Lincolnshire | cottages.com
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Pontius N. (#55),
Nice conversion, but don't think I'll be booking anytime soon ! In its heyday, would look like my favourite Towers: Thorney Island ('58-'59) and Leeming ('67-'72), both were examples of what I think were called the "Gaydon Pattern" Towers. The plus point was the big octagonal VCR ("Local") on top, wonderful visibility.
Danny.
...This site gives a better impression:
RAF Wainfleet - The Tower (ref UKC1178) in Friskney, near Skegness, Lincolnshire | cottages.com ...
RAF Wainfleet - The Tower (ref UKC1178) in Friskney, near Skegness, Lincolnshire | cottages.com ...
Danny.
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
Danny, we even had the windows replaced about 4 years before we closed at a cost of £17k, then immediately replaced as they weren't toughened, then half again through condensation.
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Pontius N. (#57),
A depressingly familiar story ! But at that, they were better than what had gone before - wartime wooden shacks stuck on top of the main structure, cold, damp, draughty, leaky and accessible only by an outside iron staircase (eg Strubby '55-'58).
But they were good days ...........
Danny.
A depressingly familiar story ! But at that, they were better than what had gone before - wartime wooden shacks stuck on top of the main structure, cold, damp, draughty, leaky and accessible only by an outside iron staircase (eg Strubby '55-'58).
But they were good days ...........
Danny.
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Dishforth tower.
Wonderful views, could see everything on the airfield. Until.......
Monday morning, switched on the air con and and 10 million* bluebottle flies were pumped into the VCR.
We discovered a number of rats had invaded the air con working parts and some of them had 'gone to meet their makers'.
*OK, it may have been a few million less, but the bu*gers wouldn't stand still to count them properly
Wonderful views, could see everything on the airfield. Until.......
Monday morning, switched on the air con and and 10 million* bluebottle flies were pumped into the VCR.
We discovered a number of rats had invaded the air con working parts and some of them had 'gone to meet their makers'.
*OK, it may have been a few million less, but the bu*gers wouldn't stand still to count them properly
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Where do they go in the wintertime ?
taxydual,
Know the place well (Leeming 1965 - 72). In my long and inglorious career have been troubled by ****ehawks, elephant (1), snakes, tiger (?), crows, rats, goats, racing pigeons, hares, wasps, and an Unidentified Flying Object - but blue-@rsed flies are a new one on me !
YLSED ! - what did they do, hang sticky flycatcher rolls up in Local and issue fly-swats ? (Possible solution: a few lizards borrowed from Zoo and parked on windows).
Where do they go in the wintertime ?
(Google "Bobby Comber ♫ The Flies Crawl up the Window ♫)
Danny.
Know the place well (Leeming 1965 - 72). In my long and inglorious career have been troubled by ****ehawks, elephant (1), snakes, tiger (?), crows, rats, goats, racing pigeons, hares, wasps, and an Unidentified Flying Object - but blue-@rsed flies are a new one on me !
YLSED ! - what did they do, hang sticky flycatcher rolls up in Local and issue fly-swats ? (Possible solution: a few lizards borrowed from Zoo and parked on windows).
Where do they go in the wintertime ?
(Google "Bobby Comber ♫ The Flies Crawl up the Window ♫)
Danny.