Originally Posted by
treadigraph
One (at least) of the B-52s has been for an overnight stroll down to the Strait of Gibraltar via a big circular-ish route, just heading back into Fairford...
I recall cracking across to Heathrow early one morning in my first car with a mate to catch up with my first IL-76, or rather two of them - Iraqi Airways examples picking up goodies when Saddam was our friend. Rumour was MD530s but I can't find any evidence they ever had any. We made the trip several more times. Managed to get home in time to change and whizz into work for 9am. We must have been mad, especially as we repeated the stunt several times.
We used to come down from Teesside on the bus to see those, National express £6 return, bonus drive through Luton airport. Also heard the helicopter rumour and we joked that Flying Tigers supplied both the Iraqi IL76s and the Iranian 747F.