Danny 42C
Thanks for your kind compliments about my 1958-59 photos (post #6398 - above) of the mobile VHF/DF vehicles at Gan and R.A.F. Abingdon, here is a bit of background regarding the latter and a link to me seeing, reasonably closely, a serving president of the USA in the shape of President Eisenhower at R.A.F. Benson in August 1959.
In the early summer of 1959 I was a VHF/DF Operator based at RAF Abingdon in charge of a mobile [RV-105] VHF/DF station that provided cross bearings to Air Traffic Control at RAF Benson about 15-miles to the east. Aircraft on final approach to Benson called for a bearing and the bearing my operators took in degrees true from Abingdon was passed to Benson ATC by an always open landline (squawk box). Benson then plotted the bearing we gave allowing them to calculate with a fair degree of accuracy the distance the aircraft was from touchdown.
When things were quiet we VHF/DF operators at Abingdon chatted to the ATC bods at Benson and as a result were quite friendly, so much so that we occasionally went out for drinks together.
In June of that year I'd been accepted for training as an AQM and by late August had completed my training at 1 PTS at Abingdon and 242 OCU at Dishforth and was back at Abingdon awaiting my posting to 99 Sqn at Lyneham and as a result was back on the VHF/DF wheel giving bearings to Benson’s ATC.
One day in late August 1959 whilst still waiting for my posting to 99 Sqn, one of my Benson ATC friends at the other end of the landline at Benson told me that President Eisenhower was due to land at Benson in a 216 Squadron Comet on Saturday morning and would I like to see a real live US president? Ike had been on a courtesy visit to the queen at Balmoral and was returning south and flying into Benson to have talks with prime minister Harold Macmillan at Chequers.
Nothing ventured nothing gained, I decided to go over to Benson on Saturday and so armed with my camera, hopped on my motorcycle and went over to Benson. Wearing uniform and with a rather large “professional” looking camera around my neck [a Rolleiflex] to which I’d attached a flash-gun, it was assumed I was an “official photographer” and was ushered to the scaffolding dais specially erected for the press and photographers and duly took photographs of the Comet’s arrival, of it taxiing to a halt in front of the dais and with Ike disembarking. Sadly I was out of colour film and had to rely on B&W.
It must have been quite a feather in 216’s hat to have flown a real live US president making for a rather unique event. I suppose it also begs the question as to why he didn’t travel in AirForce One or whatever it was called in those days (a Super Connie I think), but in 1959 using 216 Squadron’s Comet 2s, the RAF operated the only military jet passenger service and Ike as a military man may well have savoured the experience of travelling in a military jet airliner, albeit R.A.F. rather than USAF.
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A visit to the National Archives at Kew and a look at 216 Squadron’s Operations Record Book for August 1959 provided the itinerary and crew details as below:
Comet XK 715 Flight No. Spec 1416
Crew:
S/Ldr P. E. Pullen
F/O J. Byrne
F/S D. Rance
F/S J. Hayley
M. Eng J. Clark
Sgt M.C. Wendler
Sgt (W) M. Wood
Routing:
27th August 1959 Lyneham — LHR 1600 - 1620
28th August 1959 LHR — Dyce (Aberdeen) 0845 - 1005
29th August 1959 Dyce — Benson 1045 - 1205
29th August 1959 Benson — Lyneham 1305 - 1400
The Times of 26th August 1959 provided further details of Ike’s visit as the press cuttings below record.
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The 216 Sqn Comet lands at RAF Benson
The Comet pulls up in front of the dais - and look at that bulled-up shiny finish!
...and Ike disembarks, doffing his hat as he does so
…a unique experience.
And as regards Memories of Gan - watch this space (or another thread) shortly for my 1958 illustrated memories of the place augmented by photographs taken earlier this year when I went out to see how the place has changed after 56-years.
Last edited by Warmtoast; 2nd Nov 2014 at 22:43.