Originally Posted by
BEagle
NickB wrote:
I hope so too as I have rather a soft spot for the 'Vixen!
51 (
) years ago after I'd won an RAF Scholarship, the RAF wouldn't let me have an air experience flight in a Chipmunk as our school only had a pongo section of the CCF; however, thanks to a family friend, the FAA gave me a trip in the coal hole of a 'Vixen - in the 1966 Farnborough Air Show display, no less! No clear view looker's roof in those days - all I could see were the pilot's legs and the outside world through the small side window. But it was a fantastic experience!!
Nice story Beagle - I can't imagine what it was like!
A friend of mine is an ex-FAA Observer on Phantoms although he started his training on Vixens - he couldn't wait to get on to F4s as it wasn't a pleasant place to be in the coalhole, day in, day out. I think a lot of the time was spent assisting the pilot with fuel management!
Fingers crossed she gets back into the air.