Madras 21

[ACW342]

Just spotted on FR24 Madras 21 Voyager on towline oriented NW - SE between IOM & WAL (11:55Z)

[Flap62]

Tanker on towline shocker - hold the front page.

[ACW342]

Just seen a Hawk climbing out from VY, presumably, to 30K and now descending to Madras 21 level of 20K

[ACW342]

As far as I am aware the Voyager is still working up. I might be wrong as I stopped firing 40mm ammo at drivers airframe trying to land without round things dangling some 24 years ago. Mind you, there's always somebody on pp who likes to extract urine instead of accepting that some of us find things like this over the Irish Sea as unusual (and interesting)

[BEagle]

Routine AAR on UK ARA13......:rolleyes:

[ACW342]

Thank you BEagle. In order to brief myself on the tanker force and not to have to "Hold The Front Page" I looked up the Voyager on the RAF's web site and am now somewhat bewildered. The start of the piece stated that one a/c was flying with another soon to follow. However, further on it said, if I read it correctly, that 10 Sqn was now complete and that another was now forming. The piece also reported that the company Air Tanker Ltd was supplying not only the a/c but also the aircrew!! In addition, if the RAF isn't too busy the company can use the aircraft for commercial work. Can the wise ones out there explain to me, in simple terms, how this works. What happens in war? Do the " Sponsored Reserve Aircrew" say " Not me chief, peace time reserve only" I presume there's a thread about this somewhere else on pp

A342

[ICM]

It sounds as if the RAF site is long out of date. 101 Sqn joined 10 to fly the Voyager within days of surrendering its last VC10 in 2013. There are to be 14 Voyagers in all, 12 have been delivered thus far, and all should be in place by end-2016. What has been designated the Core Fleet comprises 8 aircraft on the military register, with AirTanker operating the 9th on the civil register for MOD tasking. There will be 5 aircraft used by AirTanker to earn 'Third Party Revenue' ie to help make the whole scheme pay - and I think you'll find that one of these is now on lease to Thomas Cook. I think you'll also find that the personnel issue has been done to death on other threads. I live some way from Brize Norton but my understanding is that with AAR tasking in support of UK Air Defence, Falklands and current ops over Iraq, plus exercise support and similar tasking in the AT role, the men and women of both 10 and 101 are kept rather busy day-to-day, and are rather beyond the working-up stage.

There is a company website that may be of use:

News Centre | AirTanker (http://www.airtanker.co.uk/news-centre)

[ACW342]

ICM, Many thanks for the link. Praise the Lord (other deities are available) for retirement from both the blue suit and civilian worlds. I just have to worry that Vlad P doesn't start anything before I check out.

A342

[MPN11]

ACW342 ... I left in 94, and have long since given up trying to keep up with the changes! I suspect I would now be a "SO Something-Airspace Battle Management-UK Air" working for the Chief Executive of some Corporate Air Thing at Huge Wycombe.

Life was comprehensible when I were an ATCO :)

[ACW342]

MPN11
Not only comprehensible, but, from my perspective, great fun. Who else but the runway controller got to use his trusty 40mm pistol for real?

I would love to tell a few stories on here about "back in the day" (headline:STORIES FROM THE RUNWAY CARAVAN!!):but I think that might not prove popular amongst certain groups.

A342

[Davef68]

Is Madras a 10 Squadron call sign?

[Danny42C]

ACW342 (your #10),

Publish and be damned ! All stories acceptable to Mods welcome here (but no harsh word be spoken). But why not Post it on the "Pilot's Brevet" (that Prince of all threads in Military Aviation) ?

Your: "Who else but the runway controller got to use his trusty 40mm pistol for real?"

Tragic (but only too true) story (lifted from wartime Tee Emm):

During the war, some ATC clerks were larking about in the Tower. One lad had picked up the Tower Verey Pistol :=. He thought it was empty (it wasn't - the old, old story). The safety catch should've been on (it wasn't).

A WAAF got the red signal flare straight in her mouth, and died a horrible death.

Danny42C.

[6foottanker]

Madras is the 10 Sqn AAR call sign, Tartan is the 101 Sqn call sign. However, they are currently used day about, so Monday is Madras 11, Tuesday is Tartan 21, Wednesday would be Madras again. Crew from both Squadrons fly together on either.

[Davef68]

Thanks!

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