Ahhhhhh - Merlins!!

[BEagle]

Up in Town today at a meeting in the City. We all stopped talking as the music of Merlins became apparent. What was it - the Zurich Insurance pig-vic? (Brilliant spoof commercial that!) - no, 'twas the BBMF Lanc en-route to St Paul's. Then it even made that 'wow-wow-wow' noise you hear in the Dambusters when they're turning with a higher power setting before going past again. MAGIC!!

Wonder how many Purple Pen Pushers at the Box even noticed......

[rotor tree]

Not Westlands finest then....!

[Ivchenko]

Passed over our Mayfair office as well. During a meeting about marketing strategy. Talk about extremes.:rolleyes:

[skua]

I saw it yesterday over the City too, doing 2 orbits. What a pleasant surprise! Any PPruners with influence care to ask the BBMF to do all their continuation training over the City ?

[Kiting for Boys]

Nearing top of London Eye with daughter on sightseeing trip, when Lancaster flew into view.....speechless tourists slowly ascending. Magic moment.

Met several old chaps in train chaos later (one veteran trapped in closing doors as attendant tried to get train moving).

[TURNBULL]

Beags,

Just for one moment, one glorious moment, I thought I had found someone who liked the three engined, barrel-in-a-net lifting, 22 seater, 1 kilometer ranged, severe icing cleared, Wessex replacement. But no, you were refering to an engine, used in a time when we procured aircraft that could do the job.

I guess I'll just have to keep looking, someone out there mustr love it!

[Downwind.Maddl-Land]

Waiting at Thameslink stn on day of Queen Mum's funeral - distant drone to stir the sinews; 3 ship flypast by BBMF brought the place to stop. Much craning of necks to see, even by the youngsters.

Disband the Dead Sparrows and create MMM (Many More Merlins) Flt!

[Yozzer]

If you check out:

http://www.artistic.flyer.co.uk/

..and wait the few seconds that it takes the page to download fully, then you are rewarded with the sound of merlins. Not sad enough to be able to say what they are on, but suspect more than one suggesting 2 or 4 engined bomber type.

YOZZER

[STANDTO]

go here - it is a fine place

http://www.clarkindustries.on.ca/real/spit6.ra

[DamienB]

http://www.thunder-and-lightnings.co.uk/clanc3.jpg

[The English Passenger]

DamienB.....

Great photo...where were you, sat in the runway caravan at Coningsby????:)

[Charlie Luncher]

How many hours on a Merlin powered aircraft have you got Beagle?:D

[DamienB]

T.E.P - not far off! Outside the fence dodging Greek POWs.

[BEagle]

CL - rotten bug.ger! The only Merlin I've ever had my hands on was a Davis-Charlton 0.75 cc diesel engine! Nothing like the power of the Cox TD 049 either.....

[STANDTO]

Boys and girls

Ive got something you might like to look at (ooooooer) if I only knew how to post pics. Anyone want to share the secret ([email protected])

[Dunhovrin]

Slight diversion chaps, but having flown grandson of the Lanc I can honestly say the best sound in the world was the sound of 4 Griffons getting airbourne. Because it meant you weren't on board.

[Blacksheep]

Four Griffs eh, Dunhovrin? Didja hear about the Shack pilot who got back to base with all four still running?

Had to shut one down 'cos he didn't know how to do a four engine landing. :rolleyes:

**************************
Through difficulties to the cinema

[aw ditor]

I found it (landing) easier on two,with the tide out!!:) :):mad: :mad:

[Dunhovrin]

Blacksheep: Good call me old and sadly true. One of my door stops at home is the remains of a conrod from an overspeed abeam the Orkneys. I think it took us an extra day to get home. (Of course we were so slow it used to take us 6 minutes to do a four minute hold. Tadum-chhhh Ithankyou:D ).

[Reheat On]

So you guys will have wtached that classic, The Malta Story [Sat afternoon, Beeb 2 - all the old stars inc Alec Guiness, Jack Hawkins etc] with lodsa good newsreel material, including the clipeed wing spit, the mark 20 something.

*sigh*

The only jet to do that I reckon was the Avon, at full chat from straight on - and I guess the Olympus/Conway. Hence a -10 can be an awsome sound.

[davjen]

Time and place. RR Flight test establishment Hucknall. Sublime early morn, early 1970's. Of all things turn corner of hanger and fall over a Defiant someones left lurking unattended. SATCO, Geroge by name is dragged from his morning sport chipping glof balls into the signals square. Where's the Defiant from George ?
'What Defiant, wake up lad your dreaming'

Was I ? Someone please confirm that in early 70's a B roundeled night fighter black Defiant was still airworthy 'cos I never sawthe damn thing leave.

[BEagle]

The RAF had a Defiant in store for many years; it was at Finningley in 1968 or 69 as I remember looking around it in the small museum which used to be there at the time. It was refurbished and later delivered to the Battle of Britain Museum, Hendon, in 1978 where it currently resides.

Perhaps it was refurbished at Hucknall?

[Jimlad]

what other goodies are in store in dockyards and airfields around the country.
Rumour has it that a few years ago some people at a railway marshalling yard in Florida got curious as to what some wagons were that had been there a long time. They opened them up to find they had been supply wagons for the 1898 war and had loads of stores onboard - the supply officers had forgotten about them though.
Anyone else got any good stories about ancient kit / stores being rediscovered?

[BEagle]

B£oody cold morning in 1969 at RAFC Cranwell and we were due to do yet more drill on the JMPG. But our kindly drill Sgt, Les Rodda (heart of gold - gave 5 of us a lift in his car to Grantham railway station when the taxis failed to turn up), arranged with a mate of his for us to drill in the relative warmth of an obscure stores hangar. Whilst milling around in the early morning gloom I peeked behind a wall of packing cases - and there in all its glory was a Gloster Javelin! I wonder whatever became of it?

[FJJP]

Re the topic title... errumm - I thought the Lanc on BBMF was powered by Griffins, the Merlins being kept available for the Hurricane and early Spitfires?

[Man-on-the-fence]

FJJP

Lancasters were never fitted with Griffins.:confused:

The Shackleton had Griff's but chose never to run all four at one time except for take off. :D

[BEagle]

Lovely early summer evening here in British West Oxfordshire - and the sound of Merlins was heard coming from the North. The BBMF Lanc has just gone overhead at 1850Z. Terrific sight!!

....and let's never forget that, 59 years ago this very moment, the guys on 617 were getting ready for the raid on the Mohne, Eder and Sorpe dams.

[Man-on-the-fence]

Beags

Quite right, I will have a pint or two and a quiet "moment" in their honour tonight.

Wasnt PA474 a lovely sight :D :D

[Captain Gadget]

BEags

Agree totally. Beautiful sight. :) :) :)

[spectre150]

Not only an excellent sight and sound (we got TWO flypasts!) but followed shortly after by an excellent dining in at the Purple Learning Centre from which my frail body is suffering as I type. You dont get demos by warships or armoured vehicles on Trafalgar Night or Arbitrary Regimenatl Dinner nights ;)

[BEagle]

Yes - wonderful sight indeed!! BEagle Towers was also graced with 2 flypasts, she came back this way a bit later!

[Lizzie]

Hmmm, Merlins. 135,000 produced (R-R & Packard)
Instead of the incredible Tornado, why didn't we produce hundrerds (thousands?) of Mosquito's, attach GPS, a Navigator (job creation scheme), and a smart 1000lb bomb. That would have been cost effective, fun and we would never get a noise complaint from joe public!!

I wonder.......

[4wings]

In Aden mid-60s Shacks were described as 10,000 rivets flying in close formation. Had first-hand description from engine fitter friend of engine overspeed when flight crew had insisted he went (reluctantly) with them. Frightening even to the brave by all accounts.

I also had the interesting experience of regularly watching sons of Lancs (aka Lincolns) doing 20 minute circuits from Changi bombing terrorists in Johore Bahru in 1953 and then grandsons (aka Shackletons) doing the same from Khormaksar over Radfan in 1965-7.

[Dunhovrin]

4wings:

I wish it had been me. But if Afghanistan every occupy the range marker bouy in the middle of the Moray Firth, I'm your man. As long as it involved flame floats and marker marines. I really do wish I had flown Shacks when they had the nose gun and lots of rag'eds as targets.

[Flatus Veteranus]

They are laying a new water main near here. Ploughing up a field, they found some WWII Jeeps left behind by the Yanks. Some reportedly still in their packing cases:)

[Shackman]

Dunhovrin,


Glad to say I did get to fire said 20mil Hispanos - we missed the r*****s, but did get the radar bouy! Last time they were fired too(using up the last of the stock of cannon shells at Changi), but I still have the cases as a memento -Sad but true.

Nothing beats the smell of cordite in the morning.



Pertama - (and still hovering)

[You want it when?]

Sorry - wandering Penguin here - YWIW senior flew Shackeltons with No 8 in Lossie - apparently it was considered a punishment posting in the early 70's. We had some happy times in Fochabers and thanks for reminding me! :p Gotta love the sound of those engines, not as good as night tests with Vulcans, but still loud

[FJJP]

Man-on-the-Fence. Apologies, you are right. Got confused - it was the Mk XIX Spit that was fitted with the Shack Griffin.

Research shows - the early Spitfires, the Mark IIa and Mark V have 30 series Merlins and the Hurricanes, Spitfire IX and Lancaster have Merlin 500s. The Mark XIX Spitfires have Griffon 58s, formerly fitted to Shackeltons, which have had the contra rotating prop gearbox replaced.

[Man-on-the-fence]

FJJP

Steve Hinton of Fighter Rebuilders over at Chino in the States has just flown a Spitfie XIX whith a Shack Engine that HASNT had the Contra Props removed. It looks mighty fine and apparently goes like stink.

[shack]

Having spent some 4000hrs, sitting between the props that were attached to four Griffons I can say that it was the greatest sound in the world. Note I say was, I cannot hear a b----y thing nowdays!!!!

[pulse1]

The loudest and best noise I have ever experienced was, as an ATC cadet, I was a passenger in stripped out Lincoln during an airtest. As it was a last minute thing I had no helmet or headset so got the full works (no seat either so had to lie on the floor during T/O and landing). When the engineer shouted into my ear, I could not even hear the sound of his voice. I could imagine that prolonged exposure to this wonderful noise would not be conducive to good long term hearing.

The loudest and worst noise was being in a hangar with a Vampire at the open doors at each end doing engine tests. That Gnome whistle used to split your head open - no ear defenders in those days.