RAF Gan 1958 and Later
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Danny
Re Land Crabs. Gan absolutely teemed with them. Crushed by a stone the shell's contents were irresistible to fish and were ideal bait for rod fishermen.
Re Land Crabs. Gan absolutely teemed with them. Crushed by a stone the shell's contents were irresistible to fish and were ideal bait for rod fishermen.
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Danny42C ... cigarette ash was indeed an efficient eraser of chinagraph. And, of course, in the average Tower there was a plentiful supply [back then].
Recollect on a day off on Gan:
Nav 1: "Hey, Bas, I'm going snorkelling to film sharks, do you want to come?"
Bas: "Well, er, SNORKELLING with sharks, not SCUBA you say."
Nav1: "Well, Nav 2 is going!"
Bas: "Oh, well, OK."
Shortly afterwards heard from along corridor: "Well, Bas is going!"
Later:
Find shark - formation dive with Nav 1 filming - shark flicks off into the deep blue.
On surface Nav 2 (sensibly) says he's had enough and is RTB whilst Nav 1 & Bas remain.
Subsequently heard that, on way back, Nav 2 saw fish head looking out of hole in coral and dived towards it. 'Fish' came out to greet Nav 2 followed by very long body. Nav 2 had met his first Moray
Nav 1: "Hey, Bas, I'm going snorkelling to film sharks, do you want to come?"
Bas: "Well, er, SNORKELLING with sharks, not SCUBA you say."
Nav1: "Well, Nav 2 is going!"
Bas: "Oh, well, OK."
Shortly afterwards heard from along corridor: "Well, Bas is going!"
Later:
Find shark - formation dive with Nav 1 filming - shark flicks off into the deep blue.
On surface Nav 2 (sensibly) says he's had enough and is RTB whilst Nav 1 & Bas remain.
Subsequently heard that, on way back, Nav 2 saw fish head looking out of hole in coral and dived towards it. 'Fish' came out to greet Nav 2 followed by very long body. Nav 2 had met his first Moray
JW411 & The Oberon, As ex apprentice eng and seagoing marine eng before RAF I concur.
I sometimes go on about excessive elfin safety but they do have a point cf some of the risks we unknowingly took.
About '57 we used Trichloroethylene (Sp?) for degreasing at the bench straight from the can. Many years later I noticed that it should be used in a box with an extractor fan running. I've a can in my workshop but always open the door and windows when I'm using it now.
I sometimes go on about excessive elfin safety but they do have a point cf some of the risks we unknowingly took.
About '57 we used Trichloroethylene (Sp?) for degreasing at the bench straight from the can. Many years later I noticed that it should be used in a box with an extractor fan running. I've a can in my workshop but always open the door and windows when I'm using it now.
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On the CTC sub-thread.
In the radio trades we used CTC to clean the mess from equipment when oil filled capacitors and transformers burst.
During the period Oct 62 to Oct 64, while I was in the Akrotiri Electronics Centre, it suddenly became forbidden and we had to use unleaded petrol.
Unleaded petrol didn't work! It didn't clean, it just diluted the oil and left a greasy residue.
In the radio trades we used CTC to clean the mess from equipment when oil filled capacitors and transformers burst.
During the period Oct 62 to Oct 64, while I was in the Akrotiri Electronics Centre, it suddenly became forbidden and we had to use unleaded petrol.
Unleaded petrol didn't work! It didn't clean, it just diluted the oil and left a greasy residue.
We used to have to read and write upside down and back to front...
Slab: The paged size frame on a slate bench that the type was set into.
Flong: A fibre sheet that was pressed onto the type to produced a casting face. The page was cast from it and bent to suit the printing rollers.
Linotype: A machine that had an ABC keyboard and dropped casting letters so that a strip of type could be cast from them. The typecasts used to clatter down a chute all the time they were being operated.
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Thanks for that picture of one of your previously-mentioned 'land crabs', Warmtoast.
I'd been wondering just what type you had over there at Gan.
That's a Terrestrial Hermit Crab.
Here, called sand crabs, they can be bought in pet shops and are reputed to be intelligent, friendly and clean.
There's a local pub in Sydney (The Friend in Hand) that keeps a dozen or so in a large aquarium-type tank.
Every Wednesday is "Crab-Racing Night" (Great Prizes to be Won!) - and it's a real hoot!
Anyway, on the question of their intelligence, I'd turned up something that military types would identify with - the "Vacancy Chain".
As you'd probably know, hermit crabs adopt second-hand sea shells as a portable means of shelter and protection.
To save taxing my limited brain cells too much, I'll just quote a couple of excerpts from Wiki:
"As hermit crabs grow, they require larger shells. Since suitable intact gastropod shells are sometimes a limited resource, vigorous competition often occurs among crabs for shells.
Several hermit crab species, both terrestrial and marine, have been observed forming a "vacancy chain" to exchange shells.
When an individual crab finds a new empty shell, it will leave its own shell and inspect the vacant shell for size. If the shell is found to be too large, the crab then goes back to its own shell and waits by the vacant shell for anything up to eight hours."
Now, here's the interesting bit...
"As new crabs arrive, they also inspect the shell and, if it is too big, wait with the others, forming a group of up to 20 individuals,
... holding onto each other in a line from the largest to the smallest crab.
As soon as a crab arrives that is the right size for the vacant shell and claims it, leaving its old shell vacant, then all the crabs in the queue swiftly exchange shells in sequence, each one moving up to the next size."
Sounds a bit better organised than what I've experienced around the 'Quartermaster's Stores' and elsewhere.
I'd been wondering just what type you had over there at Gan.
That's a Terrestrial Hermit Crab.
Here, called sand crabs, they can be bought in pet shops and are reputed to be intelligent, friendly and clean.
There's a local pub in Sydney (The Friend in Hand) that keeps a dozen or so in a large aquarium-type tank.
Every Wednesday is "Crab-Racing Night" (Great Prizes to be Won!) - and it's a real hoot!
Anyway, on the question of their intelligence, I'd turned up something that military types would identify with - the "Vacancy Chain".
As you'd probably know, hermit crabs adopt second-hand sea shells as a portable means of shelter and protection.
To save taxing my limited brain cells too much, I'll just quote a couple of excerpts from Wiki:
"As hermit crabs grow, they require larger shells. Since suitable intact gastropod shells are sometimes a limited resource, vigorous competition often occurs among crabs for shells.
Several hermit crab species, both terrestrial and marine, have been observed forming a "vacancy chain" to exchange shells.
When an individual crab finds a new empty shell, it will leave its own shell and inspect the vacant shell for size. If the shell is found to be too large, the crab then goes back to its own shell and waits by the vacant shell for anything up to eight hours."
Now, here's the interesting bit...
"As new crabs arrive, they also inspect the shell and, if it is too big, wait with the others, forming a group of up to 20 individuals,
... holding onto each other in a line from the largest to the smallest crab.
As soon as a crab arrives that is the right size for the vacant shell and claims it, leaving its old shell vacant, then all the crabs in the queue swiftly exchange shells in sequence, each one moving up to the next size."
Sounds a bit better organised than what I've experienced around the 'Quartermaster's Stores' and elsewhere.
HI can't recall seeing many of those crabs, the island certainly wasn't teeming with them, probably because the early Gannites smashed them with stones and used them for bait!
Also, the mpbw dug up most of the palm/coconut trees and planted non native trees like pine, which the crabs didn't like to nest in, the roots that is, not the branches.
Warmtoast. It wasn't the palmed treed tropical island when I was there, but there were a few coconut trees by the Marine Bar IIRC.
Also, the mpbw dug up most of the palm/coconut trees and planted non native trees like pine, which the crabs didn't like to nest in, the roots that is, not the branches.
Warmtoast. It wasn't the palmed treed tropical island when I was there, but there were a few coconut trees by the Marine Bar IIRC.
Last edited by uffington sb; 21st Apr 2016 at 16:21.
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I'd just like to say, this is one of the most enjoyable threads I've read on here for years. Having heard so many tales of these places from the 'senior' chaps on the squadron when I joined, its nice to see they weren't just making it up!! I think things really were better 'back in the old days'!! Thanks for the stories and the excellent pics.
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Land Crabs
The crabs in Gan may have been few and far between but a little further over the Indian Ocean the ones in Diego Garcia were definitely unfriendly. On my first trip there where we slept in yellow sheets on bunk beds and the walls never reached the ground courtesy of the U.S. Navy. We had a heavy night in "The Ship" the Brit run Pub which was the only source of serious drink on the Atoll. Our R.N. mates advised us against leaving toes, fingers or soft dangly bits hanging over the side of the bed because of nightly marauding land crabs. "Switch the light on before stepping out of your pit" they said. I was on the top bunk but at Oh Christ o'clock when the Co in the bottom bunk needed a wazz he leapt at the light switch on the wall from his pit and the din accompanied by a stream of profanity when the fluorescent light tube inches from my head burst into life woke all the block. I preferred Gan myself.
Thread Starter
Continued - Part 9
RAF Gan - Mementoes and Souvenirs
There wasn’t much in the way of trinkets or souvenirs to bring back from Gan apart from coral or sea shells and one item that I particularly admired, which was a sheath knife made locally. According to what I was told the metal blade of the knife was made from steel salvaged from the military vehicles and equipment abandoned on the Atoll at the end of WWII.
“Made in Hitadu” Sheath knife and Scabbard. The knife is wickedly sharp.
Close-up of the “Made in Hitadu” stamp on the knife blade
Shells were purchased/traded from the local Maldive Islanders, normally in exchange for cigarettes. I don’t recall the going rate for a Cowrie shell, but it wasn’t much, just a few cigarettes. I also broke off a small Coral head or two that I brought back with me but they have long since been lost.
The knife I still have, the coral has long gone as have most of the sea shells, but I still have a couple as shown below.
During my recent trip to the Maldives I noted the large signs displayed prominently in the airport departure halls that it was a serious offence to export from the Maldives without a special licence coral heads and sea shells - presumably they've been plundered to extinction!
RAF Gan - Mementoes and Souvenirs
There wasn’t much in the way of trinkets or souvenirs to bring back from Gan apart from coral or sea shells and one item that I particularly admired, which was a sheath knife made locally. According to what I was told the metal blade of the knife was made from steel salvaged from the military vehicles and equipment abandoned on the Atoll at the end of WWII.
“Made in Hitadu” Sheath knife and Scabbard. The knife is wickedly sharp.
Close-up of the “Made in Hitadu” stamp on the knife blade
Shells were purchased/traded from the local Maldive Islanders, normally in exchange for cigarettes. I don’t recall the going rate for a Cowrie shell, but it wasn’t much, just a few cigarettes. I also broke off a small Coral head or two that I brought back with me but they have long since been lost.
The knife I still have, the coral has long gone as have most of the sea shells, but I still have a couple as shown below.
During my recent trip to the Maldives I noted the large signs displayed prominently in the airport departure halls that it was a serious offence to export from the Maldives without a special licence coral heads and sea shells - presumably they've been plundered to extinction!
Last edited by Warmtoast; 22nd Apr 2016 at 16:05.
Thread Starter
Continued - Part 10
RAF Gan and Atomic Testing - 1958
Was Gan Affected by Nuclear Tests in 1958?
…well Yes ….and No
Nuclear Explosion Effects on HF Communications
As a VHF/DF radio operator I was based at R.A.F. Gan in the Maldives from January to November 1958. Gan had two HF/WT (Morse-code) circuits for connection to the outside world: an “Admin” circuit to RAF Katunayake (Negombo) Sri Lanka (Ceylon) for routine matters and an “Ops” circuit for communication with aircraft / ships etc on their way to and from the island.
R.A.F. Gan wireless operators working the “Admin” and “Operational” HF/WT Morse code circuits to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in 1958.
Most times HF/WT comms worked well except for the occasion in late-August and early-September 1958 when contact with Ceylon was lost for a couple of days. This resulted from Operation Argus, the secret detonation by the Americans between 27th August 1958 and 6th September 1958 of three low yield nuclear warheads in the upper atmosphere over the South Atlantic to assess whether very high-altitude nuclear detonations could interfere with the magnetosphere and the Van Allen radiation belts and if such blasts would affect long-range high-frequency radio communications — in the event as far as R.A.F. Gan was concerned these detonations did so — and badly!
Background
Over the years from the first A-Bomb test in the United States in July 1945 well over 1,000 nuclear weapons were detonated mainly in the atmosphere.
After a slow build-up, the United States and Soviet Union together with the United Kingdom routinely held atmospheric nuclear tests; between 1953 and 1958, the United States, Soviet Union and the United Kingdom, held a total of 231 nuclear atmospheric tests. So testing was quite routine, but all was to change at the end of 1958 as the big powers decided that a temporary ban on nuclear testing would be imposed, but the USA wanted to test a couple of weapons before any test ban came into operation and so Operation Argus was born.
Operation Argus
Operation Argus was a series of three high-altitude nuclear tests conducted by the United States Atomic Energy Commission in the South Atlantic Ocean in August and September 1958. The results of Operation Argus proved the validity of the Christofilos theory.
This theory proposed that a radiation belt is created in the upper regions of the Earth’s atmosphere by high-altitude detonations. The radiation belt affects radio and radar transmissions, damages or destroys the arming and fusing mechanisms of Intercontinental Ballistic Missile warheads, and endangers crews of orbiting space vehicles that might enter the belt.
The tests, conducted in complete secrecy, were not announced until the following year. Low-yield devices were carried to an altitude of approximately 300 miles by rockets before being detonated.
More than 4,500 military personnel and civilian scientists participated in the test operation.
All three shots were launched by a specially modified Lockheed X-17A three-stage missile fired from the USS Norton Sound.
After effects of W-25 Nuclear warhead detonation
Operation Argus from Published Sources
The three Argus tests with their W-25 nuclear warheads were detonated at high-altitude. Argus 1 was launched on Wednesday, 27th August 1958 and detonated at a height of 124 miles (200 km), Argus II on Saturday, 30th August 1958 and detonated at a height of 159 miles (256 km) and finally Argus III on Saturday, 6th September 1958 detonated at a height of 335 miles (539 km) — perhaps the highest nuclear explosion ever.
A total of nine (9) United States Navy ships participated in Operation Argus. Each ship left port separately with no knowledge of the others. Collectively known as Task Force 88 (TF-88), these ships came together for the first time at the Operation Argus South Atlantic test location in August of 1958. The missile launching ship for Operation Argus was the USS Norton Sound. Approximately 4,500 individuals participated in Operation Argus with the entire effort classified as Secret. The secret was well kept as it was only in the following year (1959) that the New York Times broke the story of this closely guarded secret test series.
The three Argus test warheads were launched in specially modified Lockheed X-17A three-stage missiles fired from the USS Norton Sound. The W-25 nuclear warhead was 27-inches long, 17-inches in diameter and weighed 220lbs (100kg). It is contained in the bulge at the top of the X-17A missile shown here ready for launching.
Problems at Gan
The absence of communications at RAF Gan caused a major upset as we didn’t know what was going on and with no reliable communications to the outside world we were totally in the dark! Shortly afterwards communications with the outside world returned to normal and as far as I can recall there was never an “official” explanation as to what had caused the communications blackout.
At the time I was one of the two operators who operated the RAF Gan amateur radio station VS9MA and communications on the amateur radio bands in the southern hemisphere were badly affected too. When things returned to normal there was much speculation by amateur radio operators on the HAM bands as to the cause of this major disruption, most theories centring on unusual solar activity being the culprit as abnormal solar activity is a known and regular disrupter of high-frequency radio communications.
With no other explanation, this theory afforded a plausible explanation of the event until it was finally reported a year later that the detonation of nuclear warheads in space was the real cause of the radio black-out.
RAF Gan and Atomic Testing - 1958
Was Gan Affected by Nuclear Tests in 1958?
…well Yes ….and No
Nuclear Explosion Effects on HF Communications
As a VHF/DF radio operator I was based at R.A.F. Gan in the Maldives from January to November 1958. Gan had two HF/WT (Morse-code) circuits for connection to the outside world: an “Admin” circuit to RAF Katunayake (Negombo) Sri Lanka (Ceylon) for routine matters and an “Ops” circuit for communication with aircraft / ships etc on their way to and from the island.
R.A.F. Gan wireless operators working the “Admin” and “Operational” HF/WT Morse code circuits to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in 1958.
Most times HF/WT comms worked well except for the occasion in late-August and early-September 1958 when contact with Ceylon was lost for a couple of days. This resulted from Operation Argus, the secret detonation by the Americans between 27th August 1958 and 6th September 1958 of three low yield nuclear warheads in the upper atmosphere over the South Atlantic to assess whether very high-altitude nuclear detonations could interfere with the magnetosphere and the Van Allen radiation belts and if such blasts would affect long-range high-frequency radio communications — in the event as far as R.A.F. Gan was concerned these detonations did so — and badly!
Background
Over the years from the first A-Bomb test in the United States in July 1945 well over 1,000 nuclear weapons were detonated mainly in the atmosphere.
After a slow build-up, the United States and Soviet Union together with the United Kingdom routinely held atmospheric nuclear tests; between 1953 and 1958, the United States, Soviet Union and the United Kingdom, held a total of 231 nuclear atmospheric tests. So testing was quite routine, but all was to change at the end of 1958 as the big powers decided that a temporary ban on nuclear testing would be imposed, but the USA wanted to test a couple of weapons before any test ban came into operation and so Operation Argus was born.
Operation Argus
Operation Argus was a series of three high-altitude nuclear tests conducted by the United States Atomic Energy Commission in the South Atlantic Ocean in August and September 1958. The results of Operation Argus proved the validity of the Christofilos theory.
This theory proposed that a radiation belt is created in the upper regions of the Earth’s atmosphere by high-altitude detonations. The radiation belt affects radio and radar transmissions, damages or destroys the arming and fusing mechanisms of Intercontinental Ballistic Missile warheads, and endangers crews of orbiting space vehicles that might enter the belt.
The tests, conducted in complete secrecy, were not announced until the following year. Low-yield devices were carried to an altitude of approximately 300 miles by rockets before being detonated.
More than 4,500 military personnel and civilian scientists participated in the test operation.
All three shots were launched by a specially modified Lockheed X-17A three-stage missile fired from the USS Norton Sound.
After effects of W-25 Nuclear warhead detonation
Operation Argus from Published Sources
The three Argus tests with their W-25 nuclear warheads were detonated at high-altitude. Argus 1 was launched on Wednesday, 27th August 1958 and detonated at a height of 124 miles (200 km), Argus II on Saturday, 30th August 1958 and detonated at a height of 159 miles (256 km) and finally Argus III on Saturday, 6th September 1958 detonated at a height of 335 miles (539 km) — perhaps the highest nuclear explosion ever.
A total of nine (9) United States Navy ships participated in Operation Argus. Each ship left port separately with no knowledge of the others. Collectively known as Task Force 88 (TF-88), these ships came together for the first time at the Operation Argus South Atlantic test location in August of 1958. The missile launching ship for Operation Argus was the USS Norton Sound. Approximately 4,500 individuals participated in Operation Argus with the entire effort classified as Secret. The secret was well kept as it was only in the following year (1959) that the New York Times broke the story of this closely guarded secret test series.
The three Argus test warheads were launched in specially modified Lockheed X-17A three-stage missiles fired from the USS Norton Sound. The W-25 nuclear warhead was 27-inches long, 17-inches in diameter and weighed 220lbs (100kg). It is contained in the bulge at the top of the X-17A missile shown here ready for launching.
Problems at Gan
The absence of communications at RAF Gan caused a major upset as we didn’t know what was going on and with no reliable communications to the outside world we were totally in the dark! Shortly afterwards communications with the outside world returned to normal and as far as I can recall there was never an “official” explanation as to what had caused the communications blackout.
At the time I was one of the two operators who operated the RAF Gan amateur radio station VS9MA and communications on the amateur radio bands in the southern hemisphere were badly affected too. When things returned to normal there was much speculation by amateur radio operators on the HAM bands as to the cause of this major disruption, most theories centring on unusual solar activity being the culprit as abnormal solar activity is a known and regular disrupter of high-frequency radio communications.
With no other explanation, this theory afforded a plausible explanation of the event until it was finally reported a year later that the detonation of nuclear warheads in space was the real cause of the radio black-out.
Last edited by Warmtoast; 22nd Apr 2016 at 18:54.
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Warmtoast,
Fascinating ! I remember that my Dad, who had been in Nigeria in the early 1900s, brought a whole lot of cowrie shells home as souveniers. They were used as a form of currency there, he said. They were all very small, as I recall - around 1cm long.
Pity the effect is so transient, as otherwise we would seem to have a good defence against nuclear attack ! (but then, I suppose, a way would soon be found to shield these vital parts from the radiation belt).
Danny.
Fascinating ! I remember that my Dad, who had been in Nigeria in the early 1900s, brought a whole lot of cowrie shells home as souveniers. They were used as a form of currency there, he said. They were all very small, as I recall - around 1cm long.
...The radiation belt affects radio and radar transmissions, damages or destroys the arming and fusing mechanisms of Intercontinental Ballistic Missile warheads...
Danny.
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I wonder if anyone has any gen on the Victor parked on the pan on Gan when arrived in 1966 and I think still there when I left? I was told it was the victim of an electricl fire in the bomb bay due to excess baggage en route to the UK. Great thread, lots of things come back to mind, must search the attic for the copies of the GIP up there somewhere.
Thread Starter
Danny
The US followed-up the ARGUS tests by a couple more tests (ORANGE and TEAK) at a lower altitude and later in 1962 a much more ambitious test "STARFISH PRIME" was detonated. The design yield was 1.4 megatons, but STARFISH was bungled and its electromagnetic pulse (EMP) is reputed to have knocked out several satellites in low Earth orbit and caused damage to several others including the UK's first satellite, Ariel 1. Damage was also caused to about 300 street lights in Hawaii - 900 miles away!
The after effects of the detonation of STARFISH were being observed two years after the test.
More about STARFISH PRIME here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starfish_Prime
Exciting days if one had a background in radio!
FWIW
A few years ago during a visit to the National Archives in Kew I asked to see any files regarding the communications outage at Gan in 1958. Seems file/s are available but not in the NA. NA referred me to the RAF Historical Branch, but enquiries there drew a partial blank, files existed, but the official in charge of and holding of these files was on extended sick leave (well over three months) and no one else was available to field a query, so I never did see what the official UK reaction / response to this event was, which is a pity.
Pity the effect is so transient, as otherwise we would seem to have a good defence against nuclear attack ! (but then, I suppose, a way would soon be found to shield these vital parts from the radiation belt).
The after effects of the detonation of STARFISH were being observed two years after the test.
More about STARFISH PRIME here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starfish_Prime
Exciting days if one had a background in radio!
FWIW
A few years ago during a visit to the National Archives in Kew I asked to see any files regarding the communications outage at Gan in 1958. Seems file/s are available but not in the NA. NA referred me to the RAF Historical Branch, but enquiries there drew a partial blank, files existed, but the official in charge of and holding of these files was on extended sick leave (well over three months) and no one else was available to field a query, so I never did see what the official UK reaction / response to this event was, which is a pity.
Last edited by Warmtoast; 23rd Apr 2016 at 15:10.
Another popular souvenir to take home was a painted turtle shell, the painting was usually of a Gan sunset and coconut trees. I did take home some cowrie shells and others including a giant Triton the I found while snorkelling.
All are (thankfully) totally unacceptable now.
The Pakistani DoE airfield electrician used to sell onyx figures, ashtrays etc outside the airmen's mess IIRC.
All are (thankfully) totally unacceptable now.
The Pakistani DoE airfield electrician used to sell onyx figures, ashtrays etc outside the airmen's mess IIRC.
Last edited by uffington sb; 24th Apr 2016 at 05:32.
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My souvenirs were confined to:
- Wife #1 from Singapore
- 2 x 105mm Shell Cases and a quarry-blasting rock-let from Port Stanley.
Don't forget the 'Gan Boats' - Palm wood (?) models of a typical Maldivian dhow which were also quite popular. Unfortunately although I got mine home with the rigging still intact central heating did for it in quick time.
