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Old 16th Apr 2020, 20:15
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BEagle
 
Join Date: May 1999
Location: Quite near 'An aerodrome somewhere in England'
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When I did a couple of days as RSO at RAF Pembrey Sands in 1976, I asked why there was a large dent in the clock in the RSO's tower. I was told that it was courtesy of a Harrier flying an FRA rather off the correct attack track and a 30mm case had scored a DH on the RSO's tower...

One day a couple of QFIs in a JP flew through the range - between the Hunter flying a 10deg strafe dive and the target - fortunately dry.

Not long before I did my stint, some aged Wg Cdr aviator on a 79 Sqn refresher course had managed to select both inboard pylons live (despite the 'lift the flap' and red bands around the switches) - and instead of a little 25lb practice bomb, off duly came 2 x 230 gall drop tanks containing rather a lot of Avtur, unplottable at 6. When he asked to continue, he was politely to bugger off...Sir!

I only did a couple of days filling in for the RSO, but it was quite an education!

The most impressive long bomb event I heard of was from a USAF exchange officer at Scampton. On one B-52D mission from Guam, they'd dropped a Buff load of bombs 15 minutes short of the target over some part of SE Asia due to a formation call-sign cock-up. But no-one ever complained.... Hardly surprising really, I guess.

Last edited by BEagle; 16th Apr 2020 at 20:27.
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