Changi Slip July 1969
Instructors at 242 OCU at Thorney Island often joined the Changi slip pattern starting at Lyneham, where we picked up a copilot from one of the squadrons, to complete the crew .
On this occasion our ALM, Hutch, gave the rest of the crew a lift in his car from Thorney. Time to briefing was a bit tight and we were concerned when a wheel on Hutch’s car deflated near Wroughton. ‘ You have got a spare haven’t you Hutch’? we said. To which Hutch replied ‘Yes’ and proceeded to get a rim, a tube and a tyre from the boot and said ‘I’ll just hitch to the nearest garage and get them put together’. We thought that this guy was a bit crazy and that there was no way we were going to be at Ops at the briefing time but to our amazement, Hutch turned up after about 20 mins with an assembled wheel and we got airborne on schedule.
We flew from Lyneham direct to Bahrein by overflying Turkey and Iran (relatively friendly then) which was about a 10 hr flight and then from Bahrein direct Changi about 12 to 13 hrs. Crew Duty then was 19 hours.
A marvelous few days at Changi Creek Hotel and shopping in Changi village and then the return home loaded with goodies.
The return trip to Gan was on a lovely day when it was a pleasure to fly, no clouds, calm blue sea, basic crew (unusual for 242OCU), Gan NDB rock steady and pointing reassuringly dead ahead . Very relaxed until--
Hutch asks who would like a hot dog and proceeds to make them. About 10 mins later there is an enormous explosion by the crew door with lots of white vapour. My immediate thought was that the crew door had opened and I was going to be sucked through it. Then a sheepish voice over the i/c said ’Don’t worry,' explains Hutch, ’it’s only a sausage can exploding. I forgot to puncture the can before I put it in the oven’.
The white smoke was a combination of vapour and atomized sausage meat. Incredibly the oven door had remained closed but the explosion had forced the contents of the can past the oven seal, with majority of the atomized sausage being plastered down the freight bay. Luckily no pax or they would have been a bit smelly.
When it was time to call Gan, to give our serviceability state, the captain,trying not to laugh, requested a cleaning party to clean the freight bay after 'a large sausage explosion'! It was seemed very funny at the time.
Hutch was a wild card! Maybe somebody else remembers him?
Last edited by DeanoP; 13th Nov 2015 at 23:56.
Reason: Title missing