Originally Posted by
treadigraph
Seeing that pic of the C-123... in the summer of '77 at my school a few miles south of Guildford, I was playing cricket and a high wing, twin radial engined transport droned NE towards London at about the height and on the same route that airliners approaching the Ockham hold followed. Without the aid of binoculars and mindful of the cricket ball being hoicked around the pitch, my glances identified it as a C-123 - pretty sure it wasn't a Pembroke or a Sea Prince. Can't think of anything else it might have been, but did the USAF have any in Europe as late as that? Might have been civvy one being ferried somewhere interesting I suppose.
Occasionally saw USN C-131s or C-118s on the same route as I recall, inbound Northolt.
More likely it was a US Navy C1 Trader.
Whenever a USN carrier approached UK waters, they would 'fly off' mail and anything else important to Northolt.
I 'controlled' several of these flights from Farnborough in the '70s/'80s, the Trader not being retired until 1988; I don't think any C123s operated in Europe after about 1970.
I remember C123s (and C130s) departing Bovingdon in the '60s; their 'standard' departure route took them towards Beacon Hill fan marker near Princes Risborough which meant they passed directly over my home town, Chesham,