For those who truly appreciate the wonders of the Wessex you had to have some time in on the Mk3.
This amazing machine had a cockpit full of gadgets and gizzmos to make the editors of "STUFF" magazine weep. In 1969 we had a fully coupled two-lane autopilot with 4 axis capability. Fully integrated nav-displays that make today's stuff look like Meccano. A fantastic platform for IFR and for those who chased submarines in the fog at 150 feet rad-alt it was the perfect chariot .......................... with some minor drawbacks .......... or not so minor ........ like it only had one engine. Not only that but the one engine was a Napier (later Rolls Royce) Gazelle turbine! Still we didn't know any better in those days and we just thought that having 2 engines meant there was twice as much chance of one failing!! It was also a bit short of fuel ............ 1 and a half hours at most. We thought that this meant you didn't have to worry about when you were next likely to be near a loo ..... then some ratbag invented IFR (in flight refueling) . In the case of the Wx3 this meant you had a refueling nozzle next to the entrance door to the cabin and instead of being allowed to go backto "mum" when you ran out of juice you had to stop by at your local friendly frigate, where, unable to land, you winched up the refueling rig and plugged in. To avoid restricting the frigate's freedom of movement they were allowed to weave around with you in your Wx being towed around like a dog on a lead...... which was not a lot of fun at night????
Still .... fond memories of this a real Wessex, properly painted Blue and Yellow and not disguised as a dog-turd (We loved you really).
Anyone got any Wx3 photos? John Eacott??
