In early June 1982,a week or so after the Atlantic Conveyor had sunk, I was on the Pan at ASI talking to the Fg Off Supplier at ASI. Possibly after
I had landed after BlackBuck 6 or 7. Whilst chatting we were approached by the RAF Commander Gp Capt Jerry Price and the CAS ACM Sir Michael Beetham
who was visiting the island. During the conversation the Fg Off told CAS that he was concerned that he had no way of recording what was passing through ASI
either going South or North. CAS said "Do not worry! We will know what left UK and what gets back. Everything else will have been on the Atlantic Conveyor."
This is NOT an apocryphal story as it is an old tradition. I was first aware of it when a Planeguard Whirlwind fell into the sea after an engine failure astern of
HMS Eagle(?) in 1963 in the Far East. The Board of Inquiry provisionaly established that the 24 Mess Kits, 12 Aircrew Watches,12 Swords, sundry Generators and other
inventory items loaded to the aircraft had contributed to the accident as the aircraft was several thousand pounds above MTOW. ( Not in the Final Report!)
There was also an amazing amount of " lost inventory items " unfortunately burnt in the major fire at Kineton!!