West Drayton & Cobham
I started at RAE Farnborough in 1981, and moved over to Pyestock in 1983 at the start of the third year of my apprenticeship, Pyestock having just become RAE rather than NGTE.
One of the departments in which I did a three month stint was Chemical and Petroleum Testing. This would involve running engines on any fluid used by the MOD (and I mean any) to determine its flammability and lubricating properties.
This department is the one which had previously been at Cobham, (Petroleum Chemistry and Technology Division, Royal Aircraft Establishment, Cobham, Surrey (formerly the Admiralty Oil Laboratory).
Another department was known as 'Diesels', This, I believe is the one which moved from West Drayton, where it had been the Admiralty Engineering Laboratory. We ran endurance testing on Paxman Valenta or 'SSK' diesel engines for submarine generating sets, and the regular stripping down of these 2000 hp,16 cylinder, 210 litre engines was a real sod. I remember trying to push the piston and conrod out with some crummy double pivoted tool which didn't want to stay straight. Other work in this department included testing outboard motors for the Royal Marines 'rigid raider' boats and testing a Ford 1.6 diesel engine driven fire pump (that was great fun, and needless to say, got everyone very wet).
After Pyestock I moved back to Farnbough as a trainee UAV pilot (we called then UMAs (UnManned Aircraft) at the time. I had several trips to Pendine Sands to operate them, although they had been flown at Greenham Common, Larkhill and Suffield in Alberta before I joined that Dept.
A promotion led to a change of Dept and working on night vision goggles and Forward looking Infra Red (FLIR). We did trials in Cyprus ("Mechta, we're doing going to do a trial in Cyprus, how long do you want to go for?" "Cyprus? Permanently, please...")
Later trials took us up to West Freugh ('Wet Through') where we tested the TIALD pod on the Buccaneer in preparation for the first Gulf War. Working at West Freugh involved regular trips in the Navaho Chieftain ferry aircraft, with stops at Boscombe Down, Aberporth, Llanbedr and Warton. The latter had the EAP and a Lightning chase plane on the apron at the time. On one trip into Llanbedr, we had to loiter whilst a Jindivik was recovered, giving us a grandstand view.
I baled out of Farnborough before it became DERA, and from my contact with friends who stayed on, I did the right thing, as many got very depressed watching the decline of the place whilst waiting for redundancy.
I did get a brief spell back working for QinetiQ on the Zephyr solar powered UAV, which was very interesting, working with a very enthusiastic and dedicated team.
With regard to names, many of the older people with whom I worked, had worked with people who would only refer to it as 'The Balloon Factory'.
Last edited by Mechta; 16th Dec 2012 at 13:50.