Another airdrop tale. Those who wish to fall out may do so now. This one is out of the 'you could not make it up' file.
I was on 48 Sqn but not in Changi alas, but at Lyneham after we has brought the squadron back. On the 19 June 1972 in XV 179 we set off on the following route. Lyn -Bermuda- Nassau-Nassau ? (log book does not say why) Coolidge-Georgetown (Guyana)-Bermuda-Lyn. We were going to Guyana with kit for the British Army who were running a training scheme out there. We would be backloading a similar amount. We had two captains who were being route checked by 'Jolly Jack' H. All very routine as we left Guyana full up for the return home. As we neared Bermuda the US Navy controller asked us what our endurance was. This was unusual and we were puzzled as the WX forecast was good and there was no indication that the runway was 'blacked' for any other reason. The Nav and the Eng worked it out and we told them. I think in those days we may have operated the famous 'island holding' fuel reserve for Bermuda.
We were then told the reason for the request. A yachtsman was in distress off Bermuda. He was complaining of stomach pains. A US Navy P3 had been out on patrol and he was overhead the yacht but needed to land ASAP.
Could we orbit the yacht to provide a bit of reassurance ? There was a boat on the way from Bermuda but would not reach him until much later.
So off we went relieved the P3 and took up station.
Someone, I cannot remember who came up with a cunning plan. Why not help this chap by dropping a first aid kit to him ! It all snowballed from there with everyone putting up suggestions. Well the only first aid kit worth dropping was the ELFAK (Emergency Landing First Aid Kit) as it was well stocked.
It was left to me to work out how to do it, as it was not as straightforward as it seemed. We needed to put the ELFAK in a container, so the co pilot Graham C , great bloke with a wicked sense of humour- later of B.Cal and BA)
'volunteered' his RAF holdall. So in went the ELFAK, and I even remembered to unlock it first ! Now all airdrop has to obey certain rules and one of these is density. By necessity we would use the port para door as the ramp area was 'chokka'. Because of the size of the bag it needed to be weighted to achieve the min density so when it left the a/c it would not fly into the tailplane. In went several tie down tensioners until I was happy. We needed it to float so two pax LSJs were inflated and stuffed inside. Two more were inflated and securely tied on the outside. The lights on the LSJ were coaxed into operation by putting the batteries in a paper cup of water with salt from the lunch boxes. So we did a modified ASRA pattern with a dummy run then a live drop.
Immediately after the bag was despatched I looked out and with relief saw that the tailplane was undamaged. Job done.
We circled until we had to land, but not before we saw that he was close to retrieving the bag. The US Navy thanked us and we went to the hotel for a beer and to tell ATFOC the news. We expected a delay whist they sent a new ELFAK. No such luck, it was return as per the schedule.
Next morning the US Navy told us the chap had retrieved the bag and that the boat had reached him and he was OK.
Now you cannot dispose of kit belonging to HM in such a cavalier fashion and not be called to account. It took some while for the system to grudgingly admit we had acted 'in the best interests of the service' (wonderful phrase) and agree to write off the missing bits. Even the armchair 'experten' back at base thought we had done a half decent job.
All over then ? Not quite !
A few months later the co gets a call from the guardroom to the effect that the civvy police would like a word. So off he goes. The police show him a rather sorry looking RAF holdall and ask if it belongs to him. Graham turned it over and there a bit faded was his name. (did not we all put our names on the bottom ?). Yes he said, but how did they get it ? It turns out that the yachtsman had sent all the bits back to Lyneham. Of course having been written off they no longer existed as far as the RAF were concerned. So the holdall was sold to a local Mil surplus store. Someone bought it and it was discovered at the site of a break in containing the burglar's tools.
The police thought they had an easy case but Graham's story of it being turfed out of the port para door near Bermuda was easily verified.
The story of just another day in the life of 'K' truckie crew.