Handley Page Hastings
I remember dropping an Austin Champ from a 99 sqn Hastings towards the end of 1957. We took off from Abingdon and destroyed it at Watchfield when none of the parachutes opened, I understand it was only two feet tall when the army recovered it. 
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I distinctly recall being on a Jeep Drop at Watchfield, there were two Jeeps in tandem underslung Hastings TG531 on 6th April 1955, the flight time from Lyneham to Watchfield and return was 1 hour and 15 minutes. My ATC 3822 mentions nothing more than this but I seem to recall 4 chutes deployed on each Jeep and what I recall that the aircraft appeared to 'lift' as the load was dropped. I was but 15 at the time
The set up was similar to this mock up at IWM Duxford Airspace hangar that I took a few months back
I distinctly recall being on a Jeep Drop at Watchfield, there were two Jeeps in tandem underslung Hastings TG531 on 6th April 1955, the flight time from Lyneham to Watchfield and return was 1 hour and 15 minutes. My ATC 3822 mentions nothing more than this but I seem to recall 4 chutes deployed on each Jeep and what I recall that the aircraft appeared to 'lift' as the load was dropped. I was but 15 at the time
The set up was similar to this mock up at IWM Duxford Airspace hangar that I took a few months back
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A photograph of a Hastings with a paratechnicon can be found at Air-drop jeeps in 1945? - Key Publishing Ltd Aviation Forums . Looks awful.
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I presume you are meaning in flight here rather than on the ground. Did the Hastings suffer from the same issue as its stablemate the Hermes, of flying excessively tail-down ? How did Handley-Page manage to get the C of G so wrong on this group of types ?
The tail dragging versions flew level as far as I Know.
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Hastings Drops
As an armourer I used to load the jeeps and lindholme canisters onto Hastings. !954 to late 1956 sounds about right. Lyneham and Abingdon. Can't remember the flat one though
Lancman, thanks for the lead. Maybe I should have said "has anybody got any OTHER photographs of the Paratechnicon" as those pictures were posted by me. Yes the Paratechnicon was awful and it was the cause of the demise of TG499 with all crew in September 49.
As for the Jeep airdrop I have a copy of the AP containing the rigging scheme. OK it is really for the Halifax but the only real difference was the supporting beam which attached the load to the aircraft. I also have a copy of a drawing of the Hastings beam somewhere in my collection which I did consider offering to Duxford so that they could sling that Jeep under their Hastings.
With regards to whistling Jeeps I knew a REME tiffy who was quite proud of the three he destroyed in one day, the last of which went in right in front of the queen, thus proving one of the laws of air-drop. 'The higher the rank of the visiting observer the greater the chance that things will go wrong.'
As for the Jeep airdrop I have a copy of the AP containing the rigging scheme. OK it is really for the Halifax but the only real difference was the supporting beam which attached the load to the aircraft. I also have a copy of a drawing of the Hastings beam somewhere in my collection which I did consider offering to Duxford so that they could sling that Jeep under their Hastings.
With regards to whistling Jeeps I knew a REME tiffy who was quite proud of the three he destroyed in one day, the last of which went in right in front of the queen, thus proving one of the laws of air-drop. 'The higher the rank of the visiting observer the greater the chance that things will go wrong.'
From a few trips 'meat bombing' from the Hastings, it certainly did fly tail down on those sorties. Quite noticeable 'cos we were dispatching paras and had to recover the static line bags after the drop. After dropping sim 15s, it was a mighty heave to get the lines and bags back on board AND uphill too!! Once back in it was exceedlingly pleasant to lean out of the open doors to get a slipstream head massage!!
Somewhat oddly, we were doing the Dispatcher's course for crewing duties on theValetta but all our dispatching was done on the Hastings.
Somewhat oddly, we were doing the Dispatcher's course for crewing duties on theValetta but all our dispatching was done on the Hastings.
Journalist thought it was extraordinary that they had been sent to the auction, and was scarcely able to conceal his amusement. I wonder who buys them and how much they give for them.
Journalist thought it was extraordinary that they had been sent to the auction, and was scarcely able to conceal his amusement. I wonder who buys them and how much they give for them.
Among these were a substantial number of army LRs which were being sold off, and at the end of a long line of these were a couple which had been air dropped without the benefit of accurate parachute packing, in the manner described above. They were literally flattened like a pancake, same ground area but about a 2 feet high pile of scrap.
Incidentally the reason this load went in was the Boscombe Trials Officer was being a 'bit of a pain' with the Industrial Staff who rigged the loads and acted as Air Despatchers. During the loading of the MSP the Industrials noticed that the Trials Officer had forgotton to remove the safety pins from the Hite-Finders that would release the main parachutes as the load passed through 2000 ft. Unsurprisingly the reason for the failure was obvious, as was the culprit.
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What was the Hastings that soldiered on at Scampton until 1977 actually used for?
Ah TG 536 - 2 hours 40 on 9 Oct 1973 - Scampton - Finningley, Brize and back to Scampton
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They also used the Scampton Hastings for Air Defence training. #1 AD course of 228 OCU was scheduled for two trips of "radar prediction" with acetate sheets of the forthcoming topographical features, overlaid on the slewed NBS piccie. Hours of shading along the supposed track, 3 navs per trip each meant to do one hour at a time.
On both trips I was #3 and never got to the scope - the kit went u/s on the first, the aircraft u/s on the second. Total 5 hours on the Hastings, not one minute in anger . . . .
On both trips I was #3 and never got to the scope - the kit went u/s on the first, the aircraft u/s on the second. Total 5 hours on the Hastings, not one minute in anger . . . .
