Did You Fly The Vulcan?? (Merged)
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
BS, I think flat tyres was a particular issue with the Blue Steel. It also happened about 1965 at Cottesmore. We had a period of over 10 days when engine starts were prohibited, I think there had been a starter fire.
I can't remember details but I think the fleet was grounded. Anyway the effect was all Start Engines or 02 were cancelled. The Bomber Controller went one further and cancelled 05 too.
Crews got increasingly twitchy as the time since the previous alert increased and we didn't have the pressure relief of a call out.
We told the controller that there was not a problem for cockpit readiness and so random alerts were called again.
I can't remember details but I think the fleet was grounded. Anyway the effect was all Start Engines or 02 were cancelled. The Bomber Controller went one further and cancelled 05 too.
Crews got increasingly twitchy as the time since the previous alert increased and we didn't have the pressure relief of a call out.
We told the controller that there was not a problem for cockpit readiness and so random alerts were called again.
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New book announcement
I am pleased announce that the print and ebook versions of my new book, 'Vulcan On The Line' is now available on that well-known website that begins with "A" and ends with "n". The book is written from the point of view of ground crew members on the Flight Line, mostly at RAF Waddington, during the Cold War days (including the Cuban Missile Crisis). I invite one and all to visit the above hinted-at website and type in the book title for a preview.
I am pleased announce that the print and ebook versions of my new book, 'Vulcan On The Line' is now available on that well-known website that begins with "A" and ends with "n". The book is written from the point of view of ground crew members on the Flight Line, mostly at RAF Waddington, during the Cold War days (including the Cuban Missile Crisis). I invite one and all to visit the above hinted-at website and type in the book title for a preview.
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Ref the rear crew scape.
A crew chief mate (Vince Braithwaite) designed a simple mod that would isolate the nosewheel retract system.
Seemed a good idea at the time having just lost 2 chiefs at Luqa.
Vince /Lynn has departed- avoiding the nose gear...RIP
A crew chief mate (Vince Braithwaite) designed a simple mod that would isolate the nosewheel retract system.
Seemed a good idea at the time having just lost 2 chiefs at Luqa.
Vince /Lynn has departed- avoiding the nose gear...RIP
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
I know that once it was blown down there was no possibility of retraction and I am not sure the state of the undercarriage at Luqa. Certainly as he intended to land he would not have wanted to retract it first. It really was one of those impossible situations.
I don't recall the detail but didn't he think the aircraft could be landed successfully?
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
I presume you meant on the first landing, very firm, massive fuel leak, visual circuit, and catastrophic fire. They hadn't realised the damage from that landing.
Same predicament as the Cottesmore crash with no reaction time at all.
Same predicament as the Cottesmore crash with no reaction time at all.
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
TL, thanks, we had in incident at Luqa in the 60s too. Landed, starboard main, IIRC, jammed, tyre worn to rim, and rim worn down too. We dug a deep gouge in their brand new runway. They said the captain must have had his foot on the brake because of rudder application in the cross wind. Wrong foot so it wasn't feet on pedals.
Wheel was so worn that we could not get the boggie Jack on. Then we found they only had two main jacks (or Jack heads) on the island. We finished up with the port wing tip practically on the ground.
Wheel was so worn that we could not get the boggie Jack on. Then we found they only had two main jacks (or Jack heads) on the island. We finished up with the port wing tip practically on the ground.
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
Timelord, there is another thread running elsewhere so I googled and found this:
https://www.timesofmalta.com/article...voidable.74993
Seems very interesting.
https://www.timesofmalta.com/article...voidable.74993
Seems very interesting.
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I along with most of the Avro staff at Woodford were witness to the most spectacular display by two Vulcans. They were practising for the Farnborough show in 1960 or maybe 1959. They took off simultaneousley one form each end of the runway then climbed underside to underside vertically before rolling over over the end of the runway they started from. Later we learned that the Farnborough people would not have a bar of it! It was a very strange feeling watching it especially when they were heading for a head on meeting on the runway.
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A Vulcan once broke the sound barrier (no doubt accidently!) at Woodford while on a company test flight and smashed most of the windows in the greenhouses at a Poynton nursery.
I was assigned to XA893 for 3 months at the Experimental section at Woodford and we had the MK2 AC system fitted as an extra system with a huge bank of resistors etc in the bomb bay. It did not fly very often but it used to ground run for days on end and when the tail was towards the airfield centre it blew a huge hole in the ground which used to fill with water until the next ground run and it would empty the pond. It left a massive arc of brown mud from the pond on to the grass. One day with the tail towards the farm the postman came down the back road into the airport on his bicycle and the cockpit was advised to reduce power but he got caught and he his bike and the mail got blown about! Never knew what hit him but he was not hurt. The CSD units were fitted up the walls in the engine bays and pigs to replace. Didn't help with engine changes either. Towing the aircraft up the hill from the hangar we had to walk behind with chocks behind the main wheels because of the snow/ice.
When the first set of ECM was fitted, to a MK1, they decided to test it in the middle of the Woodford airfield and all the radio, radar, TV etc went off air for miles around including Manchester Airport. The press put it down to a sun spot!
I see someone in a post above says the Tony Blackman book was a good book. Pity about all the mistakes in it and his display of stupidity in demonstrating the 748 in South America bragging about flying in adverse weather when the locals had more sense, and how clever he was to get through it. That is why Airline pilots get more pay!
He was also a "cowboy" at Farnborough telling his crew after watching the Victor demo "we will show them a real demo".
One day he took XA892, I think it was, on test and a hydraulic line broke in the bomb bay and he lost hydraulics, so elected to land at Boscombe. He had reecntly got married so 'borrowed" an Anson to get back home. He arrived at knock off time and taxied the Anson down between the hangars scattering everyone who was walking to the car park.
I was assigned to XA893 for 3 months at the Experimental section at Woodford and we had the MK2 AC system fitted as an extra system with a huge bank of resistors etc in the bomb bay. It did not fly very often but it used to ground run for days on end and when the tail was towards the airfield centre it blew a huge hole in the ground which used to fill with water until the next ground run and it would empty the pond. It left a massive arc of brown mud from the pond on to the grass. One day with the tail towards the farm the postman came down the back road into the airport on his bicycle and the cockpit was advised to reduce power but he got caught and he his bike and the mail got blown about! Never knew what hit him but he was not hurt. The CSD units were fitted up the walls in the engine bays and pigs to replace. Didn't help with engine changes either. Towing the aircraft up the hill from the hangar we had to walk behind with chocks behind the main wheels because of the snow/ice.
When the first set of ECM was fitted, to a MK1, they decided to test it in the middle of the Woodford airfield and all the radio, radar, TV etc went off air for miles around including Manchester Airport. The press put it down to a sun spot!
I see someone in a post above says the Tony Blackman book was a good book. Pity about all the mistakes in it and his display of stupidity in demonstrating the 748 in South America bragging about flying in adverse weather when the locals had more sense, and how clever he was to get through it. That is why Airline pilots get more pay!
He was also a "cowboy" at Farnborough telling his crew after watching the Victor demo "we will show them a real demo".
One day he took XA892, I think it was, on test and a hydraulic line broke in the bomb bay and he lost hydraulics, so elected to land at Boscombe. He had reecntly got married so 'borrowed" an Anson to get back home. He arrived at knock off time and taxied the Anson down between the hangars scattering everyone who was walking to the car park.
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A question on squadron based training ..... 1960s to 1980s (if I may)
Was training solely based around the BTR Scheme (or its predecessor) or was additional continuation / operational training carried out in parallel?. If it was the latter, what sort of training was classified as Continuation Training and what sort of training was classified as Operational Training?
Any help would be much appreciated
Regards
PeteT
Was training solely based around the BTR Scheme (or its predecessor) or was additional continuation / operational training carried out in parallel?. If it was the latter, what sort of training was classified as Continuation Training and what sort of training was classified as Operational Training?
Any help would be much appreciated
Regards
PeteT
In my time (1973-79) the BTR scheme ruled pretty much every trip. I’m trying hard to think of anything we did that wasn’t dictated by ticking BTR boxes but can only think of some dedicated Co-pilot upgrade trips (ICC
?) that we rear crew had to endure. Of course we did Group exercises where the sortie content was tasked externally but we still ticked off the BTRs we had achieved afterwards.
?) that we rear crew had to endure. Of course we did Group exercises where the sortie content was tasked externally but we still ticked off the BTRs we had achieved afterwards.
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
Time Lord has answered the question in a different way from What I thought. As far as training in flying he is correct. A sortie was put together by the plotter to meet the requirements of each crew member, a low level route, a number of attacks, fighter affiliation ,time for pilot training etc.
I would answer differently and consider ground training. Operational training was very much an individual crew thing and quite separate from BTRs. Target study was one hour per target per month. Crews were subject to no notice examination by wing staff using a Command authored questionnaire every 6 months and potentially for every target. Prificiency and safe handling of nuclear weapons was tested annually by an MOD Team that would examine all aircrew charged with nuclear weapons safety. Weapons engineers and security staff were also checked. The responsibility for on-sqn training for this was vested in a Wing Train ing Officer. Then each crew woukd be checked annually by a Group Standards Unit. Sqns were responsible for ground training programmes to meet the rigourus examination here. This was done through regular ground training sessions by leaders in the sqn.
Whilst the standardised aka 'the Trappers' were generally feared their searching questions were also intended to impart updated knowledge.
A crew failure with either weapons checks or aircrew standards could reflect badly on the San execs.
As an aside,a question that produced a WTF response was "how often does the R88 camera take a (radar) picture on a bombing run?"
7.5 seconds - correct.
"looking at the film you notice that the picture interval is not every 7.5 seconds why? "
"The camera firing pulse used the same 28b J-line as the Scan Tilt Up command"
Apart from the FFS response the reason for the question was because someone had reported a fault.
I would answer differently and consider ground training. Operational training was very much an individual crew thing and quite separate from BTRs. Target study was one hour per target per month. Crews were subject to no notice examination by wing staff using a Command authored questionnaire every 6 months and potentially for every target. Prificiency and safe handling of nuclear weapons was tested annually by an MOD Team that would examine all aircrew charged with nuclear weapons safety. Weapons engineers and security staff were also checked. The responsibility for on-sqn training for this was vested in a Wing Train ing Officer. Then each crew woukd be checked annually by a Group Standards Unit. Sqns were responsible for ground training programmes to meet the rigourus examination here. This was done through regular ground training sessions by leaders in the sqn.
Whilst the standardised aka 'the Trappers' were generally feared their searching questions were also intended to impart updated knowledge.
A crew failure with either weapons checks or aircrew standards could reflect badly on the San execs.
As an aside,a question that produced a WTF response was "how often does the R88 camera take a (radar) picture on a bombing run?"
7.5 seconds - correct.
"looking at the film you notice that the picture interval is not every 7.5 seconds why? "
"The camera firing pulse used the same 28b J-line as the Scan Tilt Up command"
Apart from the FFS response the reason for the question was because someone had reported a fault.
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
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Training
Thanks for the responses.
I am trying to find a way of summarising "squadron" activity throughout the year. I currently have the following, which you may like to adapt (as I would like to get it right).
I am trying to find a way of summarising "squadron" activity throughout the year. I currently have the following, which you may like to adapt (as I would like to get it right).
- Ground Training
- Flying Training in accordance with the Basic Training Requirement [BTR] Scheme
- Airborne Checks and Classifications
- Crew / Squadron / Station / Group Exercises documented in the Record Book during the year included: