"just another day at the office"
apinun olgeta - i'm very new to the site but this is great stuff you've got going - i posted my "book on TAA-NG (1960/1973)" as a seperate topic on sat and it's been getting a few hits and has produced several welcome emails - pls have a look if you haven't already especially those lapun types from sunbird days - i've noted some interest in the lyrical work of the woolworths bomber and similar - frequenters of the TAA mess will recall that "eskimo nell" was sometimes rendered on "special" occasions - there were two noted performers as i remember - the first was stewie hobbs (traffic) known as "long 'un" - and then leon arthur (RIP) known as DC for "drunken cook - both very good - and the drunker they got the better they were - or did it just seem that way to those of us in similar condition - i wrote "just another day at the office" as an ode to pilots and others working on christmas day 1969 - the scenario was based on flt 1376 (lae/mag/wwk/mas/kvg/rab) not so fondly known as "the anti-nooki special" by married lae based pilots dead-heading to mag for the week - the correspoding return flt (1383 i think) was much more fondly known as "the nooki special" - hope you enjoy
“JUST ANOTHER DAY AT THE OFFICE”
IT WAS JUST ANOTHER DAY AT THE OFFICE
DRIVING AN OLD DC3
THAT STARTED OUT ALMOST “OPS NORMAL”
WITH TRANSPORT RUNNING QUITE LATE, YOU SEE
NO WORRIES WE’LL GO A BIT FASTER
AND STILL GET THE SHOW ON THE ROAD
WE’LL FLIGHT PLAN, AND FUEL UP, AND TAXI ON-TIME …
IF ONLY THE AIRCRAFT HAD BEEN ON THE LINE
THE F/O WAS HAVING HIS OWN STRIFE
HE WAS KNOWN FOR HIS FULL SOCIAL LIFE
AND HAD THOUGHT HE WAS ON A ROSTERED DAY-OFF
HE WAS ALMOST A TOUCH IMPOLITE
BECAUSE THE VOICE ON THE PHONE WAS OFFICIAL
ASKING “WHY AREN’T YOU HERE FOR YOUR FLIGHT?”
WHAT HE’D HAD ON HIS MIND FOR THE EVENING …
WASN’T EXACTLY A RABAUL OVERNIGHT
BUT WE PUT THOSE SMALL PROBLEMS BEHIND US
AND THEY EVENTUALLY FOUND US A PLANE
WE STARTED KICKING THE TYRES AND LOOKING UP AT THE SKIES
AND ACTUALLY FELT REASONABLY SANE
BUT THE FUEL SITUATION QUICKLY BROUGHT US UNDONE
SHED BEEN FUELED FOR KIETA, PLUS “A BIT MORE FOR MUM”
OUR FIRST STOP WAS MADANG, WE NEEDED ABOUT HALF …
THE CHOICES WERE OBVIOUS, CRY OR JUST LAUGH
NOW THESE THINGS ARE SENT BUT TO TRY US
AND WE FINALLY GOT UNDERWAY
A FULL LOAD DOWN THE BACK, THE WEATHER TURNING QUITE BLACK
IT CAN COME DOWN IN BUCKETS AT LAE
AND LAST LIGHT RABAUL WOULD BE A BIT TIGHT
JUST A HALF-CHANCE WE’D MAKE IT, BUT OPS SAID “SHE’D BE RIGHT”
IT BEATS DRIVING CABS, BUT THAT’S HARD TO REMEMBER …
WHEN ON TOP OF ALL THAT, IT’S THE TWENTY-FIFTH DECEMBER.
MERRY CHRISTMAS … 1969.
Copyright Barry Hockings 21st December, 1969.