Originally Posted by
Bob Viking
Perhaps RCS would be better qualified to speak of the horrors of a heavy Jag at DM. Before you banter it was with a couple of thousand pounders, drop tanks and overwing missiles in +35C. DM being close to 3000’ AMSL.
As I recall his rotate speed was 193 that day and when he pulled back on the stick the jet didn’t want to rotate.
What followed was a high speed abort, a cable engagement and a few shredded tyres.
What also followed was early finishes for the remainder of the detachment.
What I should add was that on the first day of ops there we received 14 noise complaints from our use of runway 30. One of the complaints was from the Mayor.
Apparently the locals were happy with the A10s overflying the city on take off. They were not so happy with Jags in reheat at low altitude straight over downtown.
Some people just have no sense of humour.
BV
Cheers BV. Was the Jet E fit as well? I wouldn't know as it was before my time and assume the hot and high was enough to forget it. No Jag operating on a States det is clean. Hindsight is a fine thing (and I have a memory as well). RCS seems to be an engineers nightmare! Top bloke as we all know, but the last two major 6 bird strikes at Colt, he was flying! XX737, I have just got the F700 for (and donated to the RAF Colt Heritage Centre). Its terminal birdstrike was by RCS (and he never raised the F707 entry! I had to do so!). Queen of the Fleet XX112 also became a magnet for feathers in RCS's hand just before the closure of Colt. The scatter of gulls on the Head Up as RCS popped their mortal coils was most impressive. The comments by Dava of "Why didn't you divert to Coningsby?" was very apt at the time.
I have flown in a Jag that is Cool and Clean and one that was Hot and Dirty. One was a sporty Hawk, One was not. Chalk and Chesse. Watching a runway disapear as Lift and Thrust tries to beats Drag and Mass on the second did make this HNC quailfied engineer wonder. However the Jaguar is always going to be the most social aeroplane. It allowed the aircrew and groundcrew the opportunity have a drink during dets. In fact it was the last OC of a Jaguar Sqn that ensured that the JPs recognised the ground crew outside of the management structure. Morning briefs when I was SLOC. Groundcrew Recce. Name the Ground Crew from his mug shot. Then again the last Jaguar OC was Chershire, not Gibson. The end of the Jaguar was the best of days one would ever see.