Crew Basic Training Requirements (BTRs) were defined for a 6 month period and it was up to the Captain to decide when they should be completed. He was also responsible for making sure that the navigators' and AEO's trainng requirements had been achieved. Woe betide any Captain whose crew members failed to achieve their BTRs! This included Target Study, EW training, nuclear weapon rig drills etc. etc.
In 1977 we didn't have any of this girly 'detailed planning days in advance' nonsense. On the day of flight, the pilots would go to the Met Off at around T/O - 4 hours to decide where we would fly to optimise the sortie time available. Back to the Main Briefing Room and we would tell the rear crew the mission outline - usually hi-lo-hi to wherever the LL Wx was best. The Nav Rad would have to sort out the LL targets (usually a minimum of 2), the co-pilot would agree the visual IPs and the Nav Plot would then get on with constructing and planning the overall route and flight plan. Meanwhile the Captain would check all NOTAMs and any new orders, the co-pilot would prepare the 50 thou IP-to-target maps and do the take-off performance planning whilst waiting for the Nav Plot's timings; the AEO would also check whether any Fighter Affil. or EW runs could be included. Gone were the days of the pilots acting as glorified taxi drivers for the lower deck occupants - the sortie was a crew event! Which often included some CT when we returned, but probably no more than an instrument approach and a visual circuit for each pilot.
At about T/O -2:15 we would hold the Crew Brief; if the Captain wasn't self-authorising, the Auth would turn up to listen to the brief and sign the Auth Sheets.
At about T/O - 2:00, the crew would go to the aircrew feeder for a pre-flight meal and to collect the in-flight rations, then go to the changing room to change into immersion suits and to collect bone domes, life preservers and PECs. Then onto the crew bus to be taken to the jet, aiming to be there at T/O - 1:00 at the latest.
After the F700 reading, we'd get on board to do the pre-flight checks whilst the Captain did the walkround. The co-pilot did the fuel levels / CG calculation using the slide rule, which had to be completed before his half of the challenge/response checks were called for. The lower deck did whatever checks they had to do, while the AEO was the checklist reader.
Normal engine start was at abut T/O - 0:20 as there were quite a few after start checks to be completed. Then taxy out was at T/O - 0:10.
A smoothly worked system which was also great fun.
At Scampton, if we landed after the OM bar was open, we'd stop by for a 'crew round' in the Scruffs' Bar. Beer was 20p per pint, so everyone chipped in £1 and we quaffed 5 pints each. Bear in mid that this was in the 1970s and we simply didn't know any better.
I had a wonderful 3 years on the Tin Triangle at Sunny Scampton - probably the best QoL time in my RAF career. Very little niff naff and triv., we were trusted just to get on with things. Our Boss could spot the old 'QRA queens' who weren't much interested in tactical low level flying, fighter affil. and EW runs and soon advised them to think again! The rest of us competed for good bomb/nav comp results aiming to be selected for Giant Voice, which meant several weeks in Louisiana, or for Red Flag at Nellis.
Happy days!!
Last edited by BEagle; 23rd Dec 2018 at 19:06.