RAF Sharjah
Photo showing the aftermath of a storm that hit us in 1968 I think. We had one Canberra severely damaged and after some repair was flown back to Wyton at 10,000 feet or below.
Another Canberra, fully fuelled and chocked, was turned through 90 degrees.
Some squadron groundcrew were caught out in the open and had to attend medical for bruising caused by the giant hailstones.
84 Sqd hangar's roof was peeled back at the corners like a banana, scary.
And another.
And then the dedicated tea man turned up!
Another Canberra, fully fuelled and chocked, was turned through 90 degrees.
Some squadron groundcrew were caught out in the open and had to attend medical for bruising caused by the giant hailstones.
84 Sqd hangar's roof was peeled back at the corners like a banana, scary.
And another.
And then the dedicated tea man turned up!
denachtenmai - interesting pics! Reminiscent of a Salalah - Sharjah trip from K'sar in a 'Pig' in '58. Shortly after arrival came the rains - about 20 year's worth , all at once! Airfield out of action for 10 days.I note the 'upmarket' living quarters in your photos - ours were cosiderably less modern but did incorporate the blessed aircon - something which K'sar deemed unnecessary!!
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Haven't been on the site for a while so good to see there's been plenty of interesting photo's and information added. Here's another of my slides taken on 27.6.65.
This one shows the Red Devil 'zap' applied to a based Shackleton of 38 Sqd(coded 'W') My mate SAC Dereck Hine and his pals from the Fire Section were responsible for it being applied. No doubt other a/c transiting through were similarly adorned but I've never seen any other photo's of this particular 'zap.'
This one shows the Red Devil 'zap' applied to a based Shackleton of 38 Sqd(coded 'W') My mate SAC Dereck Hine and his pals from the Fire Section were responsible for it being applied. No doubt other a/c transiting through were similarly adorned but I've never seen any other photo's of this particular 'zap.'
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Thanks Laurence, nice to be in contact again. Best wishes to you for the coming year, and of course all of the contributors and readers of this thread.
I have at last invested in a decent flatbed scanner so here's another one I "did earlier!" This Javelin from 29 Sqd night stopped on 4th March 1966.
I have at last invested in a decent flatbed scanner so here's another one I "did earlier!" This Javelin from 29 Sqd night stopped on 4th March 1966.
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Here's another photo' to keep the thread going. This "golden oldie" is from November 1965. DC-4 YK-ADA of Syrian Arab Airlines is reported to have be "Damaged Beyond Repair" at Damascus A/P on 2/10/64! But as it was only a 'nose wheel' collapse on landing, it was obviously repaired.
Last edited by SAROSKEETERMAN; 14th Jul 2019 at 12:08. Reason: Update
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Hi Laurence. Here's two more pics I have scanned recently. Both taken on the 9th April 1966 from Twin Pioneer XM291 of 152 Sqd. We landed at a strip near to Buraimi and spent a couple of hours visiting the fort and town. Unfortunately I didn't take any photo's of the TP at the strip.
In the aerial photo of the town there appears to be a fort at top centre and mabye another one in the middle. Anyone know which ones they are please.
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Thank you very much Self loading bear for the info' on the fort and the castle. I would never have recognised them from looking on GE without knowing their names. Buraimi has become so built up since my visit in the 60's!!
Nice photo's brakedwell. Is that you standing by the TwinPin door? I have just scanned another photo of one of your 152 Sqd. aircraft, taken at Dibba in April '66. Looking on GE I see there's still a landing strip to the west of the Al Hisn harbour area just below a marked "Industrial area" Could this be the same one?
As for Buraimi, I see on GE there's still a rough airstrip visible just to the east of the Al Khandaq Fort mentioned by SLB. Would that be the same strip as in the 60's?
I've added a photo' similar to yours taken from the tower at Fort Jahili. After 7 years, only a few more buildings have been added in the background.
In the photo of the front 'gate' the notice to the left reads "B Squadron Trucial Oman Scouts."
Nice photo's brakedwell. Is that you standing by the TwinPin door? I have just scanned another photo of one of your 152 Sqd. aircraft, taken at Dibba in April '66. Looking on GE I see there's still a landing strip to the west of the Al Hisn harbour area just below a marked "Industrial area" Could this be the same one?
As for Buraimi, I see on GE there's still a rough airstrip visible just to the east of the Al Khandaq Fort mentioned by SLB. Would that be the same strip as in the 60's?
I've added a photo' similar to yours taken from the tower at Fort Jahili. After 7 years, only a few more buildings have been added in the background.
In the photo of the front 'gate' the notice to the left reads "B Squadron Trucial Oman Scouts."
Last edited by SAROSKEETERMAN; 22nd Jul 2019 at 22:00. Reason: Update
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brakedwell - this link was posted on the Telegraph Motoring FB page today - think there is some aviation content
https://www.agda.ae/en/catalogue/tna...p5Fx1p55zbzsoE
PZU - Out of Africa (Retired)
https://www.agda.ae/en/catalogue/tna...p5Fx1p55zbzsoE
PZU - Out of Africa (Retired)
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Thanks for the photos saroskeeterman. Apologies for my not replying straight away but life's a bit complicated at the moment. The other responders have filled in on the identity of the various forts. As you know, I was in the Al Ain/Buraimi area between 2000 and 2004, plus a few visits later. The whole topic of Buraimi forts and airstrips is quite complicated. They have all been rather changed in the last few years. Apart from the "new" airport (AAN, OMAL) just west of the city, there have been at least two others to the north and east of Al Ain.
Even the difference between Al Ain and Buraimi has changed. Before independence of the UAE, and for a while after, the whole area was referred to as Buraimi, and contained several other "villages", of which Al Ain. Since then the (larger) part of the area, in the UAE, is called Al Ain, and the Omani side Buraimi. When I was there, there was no hard border between the two countries, and there was free access between the two. It's different now.
The two airstrips were at Dau'di, south of the city, near the former Intercontinental hotel. It was used by the RAF, and was where Brakedwell used to go in his Twin Pioneer. He told me how after landing he would be picked up by Land Rover (before being scorched to a cinder - my words, not his) and whisked off to a cold "refreshing" drink in the fort, just a few minutes away. That would have been Jahili Fort - see his photo above. At the time there would have been virtually no other buildings in the way. Now, the same journey would take much longer, and cross residential zones.
Dau'di was also used, among other things, by RAF Argosies of 105 Squadron, as recounted to me by JW411 who, I believe, flew the first one in, in 1968. Dau'di finally disappeared to the bulldozer in 2009, and is now buried under housing.
North of there, in Buraimi (Oman) there is still (or was at least in 2005ish) an E-W strip at Hamasa, used by Omani police, just to the east of Buraimi Al Khandaq fort. (I think this is the one saro refers to in post 713).
I could dig out some illustrations of some of this if anyone would be interested.
Cheers, Laurence
Even the difference between Al Ain and Buraimi has changed. Before independence of the UAE, and for a while after, the whole area was referred to as Buraimi, and contained several other "villages", of which Al Ain. Since then the (larger) part of the area, in the UAE, is called Al Ain, and the Omani side Buraimi. When I was there, there was no hard border between the two countries, and there was free access between the two. It's different now.
The two airstrips were at Dau'di, south of the city, near the former Intercontinental hotel. It was used by the RAF, and was where Brakedwell used to go in his Twin Pioneer. He told me how after landing he would be picked up by Land Rover (before being scorched to a cinder - my words, not his) and whisked off to a cold "refreshing" drink in the fort, just a few minutes away. That would have been Jahili Fort - see his photo above. At the time there would have been virtually no other buildings in the way. Now, the same journey would take much longer, and cross residential zones.
Dau'di was also used, among other things, by RAF Argosies of 105 Squadron, as recounted to me by JW411 who, I believe, flew the first one in, in 1968. Dau'di finally disappeared to the bulldozer in 2009, and is now buried under housing.
North of there, in Buraimi (Oman) there is still (or was at least in 2005ish) an E-W strip at Hamasa, used by Omani police, just to the east of Buraimi Al Khandaq fort. (I think this is the one saro refers to in post 713).
I could dig out some illustrations of some of this if anyone would be interested.
Cheers, Laurence
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Thanks Laurence, fascinating information on the local Buraimi strips. I still have some photo's of the "Sumaini" airstrip you sent me some while ago, but I don't have the letter that accompanied it, so could you please let me know the location of it. I can't remember whether you put it in the Sharjah topic but if you did, please point me in the right direction because it takes ages now to trawl back through all of the posts!!
As 152 Sqd roamed all over the TOS during their time at Sharjah, I for one would be interested in any photo's of yours that we haven't seen. How many "official" strips existed I wonder. Any thoughts on that brakedwell?(or any other ex 152 Sqd flyers out there that are still reading this thread)
As 152 Sqd roamed all over the TOS during their time at Sharjah, I for one would be interested in any photo's of yours that we haven't seen. How many "official" strips existed I wonder. Any thoughts on that brakedwell?(or any other ex 152 Sqd flyers out there that are still reading this thread)
In Posts 433 and 434 there is talk of pottery and bones found in the area.
I worked out in Abu Dhabi where I came across the same. At the time we had a helicopter in Oman doing a servey for a Canadian Mining company. I used to go over there to service it from time to time and got talking to some of the Canadian. It turned out that they were looking for the place that the people, that lived there in Umpty BC, getting old and can't remember exactly, mined copper. They were called Dilmun and tablets translated from Ur told of a trade in copper. Anyway they found the old mine and now it a new mine doing very well in Oman. If you want to read more the book is called 'Looking for Dilmun' Very interesting for the history of the area.
Not 100% sure on the spelling of Dilmun it was all a long time ago.
I worked out in Abu Dhabi where I came across the same. At the time we had a helicopter in Oman doing a servey for a Canadian Mining company. I used to go over there to service it from time to time and got talking to some of the Canadian. It turned out that they were looking for the place that the people, that lived there in Umpty BC, getting old and can't remember exactly, mined copper. They were called Dilmun and tablets translated from Ur told of a trade in copper. Anyway they found the old mine and now it a new mine doing very well in Oman. If you want to read more the book is called 'Looking for Dilmun' Very interesting for the history of the area.
Not 100% sure on the spelling of Dilmun it was all a long time ago.
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Sevarg: l can confirm that there are bones from the Stone Age, pottery shards and Bronze Age copper smelters in the UAE and Oman.
Laurence
Laurence
Last edited by l.garey; 29th Jul 2019 at 08:18.
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In reply to your post no 716 Saroskeeterman, and at the risk of straying away from the topic of Sharjah (although it's not far away), I wrote on the thread "Airfields in UAE/Oman" in 2007 (!):
There are many old airfields around the UAE and Oman. One I visited fairly recently is Sumaini, Oman, at 24 39 10N, 55 53 40E. It is also visible on Google Earth, where you can even make out the white runway markers and the name “SUMAINI” in white. The striking thing is that it is absolutely clean, with no debris of any sort, not even marks from spilled oil or any sign of having been used. I have heard from a former Oman Air Force pilot that he landed a Beaver there in 1975.
Airfields in UAE/Oman
Contact me by email if you need anything more.
Laurence
There are many old airfields around the UAE and Oman. One I visited fairly recently is Sumaini, Oman, at 24 39 10N, 55 53 40E. It is also visible on Google Earth, where you can even make out the white runway markers and the name “SUMAINI” in white. The striking thing is that it is absolutely clean, with no debris of any sort, not even marks from spilled oil or any sign of having been used. I have heard from a former Oman Air Force pilot that he landed a Beaver there in 1975.
Airfields in UAE/Oman
Contact me by email if you need anything more.
Laurence