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Thread: Vickers Varsity
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Old 5th Jan 2009, 13:09
  #115 (permalink)  
oxenos
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: uk
Posts: 791
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Early in this thread was a question about a Varsity "bent" at Oakington when 2 students lost it while doing a barrel roll. It happened in the summer of 64, when I had just finished the course and was waiting to start the Shack (MOTU) course. I went to have a look at it in the hangar and there were distinct stretch marks in the lower wing skin. I've a pretty good idea who dunnit (not me). Perhaps it happened again later, if people recall it as 66/67.
Also that summer was the 5 FTS "Balbo". The fast jet FTSs had been doing 4 ship flybys at the BFTSs, and the CFI, Stanislas Wandzilak was determined to go one better. All 26 Varsitys got airborne, and formed a 24 ship formation with a spare and a "whipper in". "Did" all the BFTSs, returned to Oakington and shuffled into a 26 ship echelon starboard for a run over the field, peel off port and a stream landing, landing left and right sides of the centre line. We were on short finals with about 8 aircraft ahead on the runway, luckily no-one had a brake failure.
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