Op Fabulous / QRA / Battle Flight 1950s-1960s
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Op Fabulous / QRA / Battle Flight 1950s-1960s
I have been doing some reading around the above subject and I would love to hear any ideas about what aircrew did during the quiet moments between scrambles. I am particularly interested in the time from say July 1950 to the arrival of Q Sheds.
In OP Fab or 2TAF when aircraft were said to be at 'two minute cockpit readiness' were pilots actually in the cockpit or perhaps seated close by? I'm imagining (quite probably unrealistically) sprawled out on deckchairs or the grass beside the ORP!
Without activity as such, how long do you think would they each be required be at cockpit readiness?
For later periods were there pilots' crew rooms or similar, maybe caravans by the ORPs?
No source seems to provide a definitive answer!
Interested to hear your thoughts...
BB
In OP Fab or 2TAF when aircraft were said to be at 'two minute cockpit readiness' were pilots actually in the cockpit or perhaps seated close by? I'm imagining (quite probably unrealistically) sprawled out on deckchairs or the grass beside the ORP!
Without activity as such, how long do you think would they each be required be at cockpit readiness?
For later periods were there pilots' crew rooms or similar, maybe caravans by the ORPs?
No source seems to provide a definitive answer!
Interested to hear your thoughts...
BB
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Crumble
I was on a day fighter sqn, on Meteors at the time you are enquiring about.
I recall that we just called it 'Fabulous' and were either at 15 minutes dismounted readiness in the crew room or two minutes on the ORP. At some stage telescramble was fitted to the ORP and we would sit in cockpits picking our noses whilst the station operations officer read the newspaper to us over the telescramble. One day, a local residential telephone line got crossed with the telescramble and we all heard some love lorn cove beseeching his loved one not to leave him. His pleadings were interjected by lewd calls from the four cockpits of the standby section. Sometimes the Canadians came over from North Luffenham with their Sabres to take part in Fabulous, but not being fitted with telescramble the fours leader was given a long lead portable 'phone - bells and all - which he balanced on the cockpit coaming. We were sharing the ORP with a Sabre section when Sector scrambled them; having listened to the scramble directive the Sabre Fours leader just hurled the 'phone out on to the ORP where it smashed into many pieces. Obviously, most scrambles were false alarms, but one day I was in a section vectored out at low level over the North Sea when we saw our 'bogey' at very low level turning away from the English coast onto an easterly heading. Fleetingly, it looked like a TU-2 and we thought we were in for some exciting action, but as we closed going balls to the wall we spotted the Dutch markings and realised that it was a Netherlands Air Force Lockheed Harpoon. Usually, after a scramble we would turn the trip into a training exercise - a section would replace us on the ORP - but it wasn't possible to indulge in any form of dog fighting practice or violent tail chases as we were carrying full ammo and the armourers were inclined to become upset if after landing they were presented with kinked or jumbled ammo belts on their Between Fight inspections. Also, we often took GGS cine during tailchases and the possibility of inadvertently shooting each other down was deemed too risky and caused a local flying order to prohibit such activity. Finally, it was often the case that there had been a resounding squadron thrash the night before a Fabulous detail so we were glad just to sit quietly in the cockpit sucking oxygen.
I recall that we just called it 'Fabulous' and were either at 15 minutes dismounted readiness in the crew room or two minutes on the ORP. At some stage telescramble was fitted to the ORP and we would sit in cockpits picking our noses whilst the station operations officer read the newspaper to us over the telescramble. One day, a local residential telephone line got crossed with the telescramble and we all heard some love lorn cove beseeching his loved one not to leave him. His pleadings were interjected by lewd calls from the four cockpits of the standby section. Sometimes the Canadians came over from North Luffenham with their Sabres to take part in Fabulous, but not being fitted with telescramble the fours leader was given a long lead portable 'phone - bells and all - which he balanced on the cockpit coaming. We were sharing the ORP with a Sabre section when Sector scrambled them; having listened to the scramble directive the Sabre Fours leader just hurled the 'phone out on to the ORP where it smashed into many pieces. Obviously, most scrambles were false alarms, but one day I was in a section vectored out at low level over the North Sea when we saw our 'bogey' at very low level turning away from the English coast onto an easterly heading. Fleetingly, it looked like a TU-2 and we thought we were in for some exciting action, but as we closed going balls to the wall we spotted the Dutch markings and realised that it was a Netherlands Air Force Lockheed Harpoon. Usually, after a scramble we would turn the trip into a training exercise - a section would replace us on the ORP - but it wasn't possible to indulge in any form of dog fighting practice or violent tail chases as we were carrying full ammo and the armourers were inclined to become upset if after landing they were presented with kinked or jumbled ammo belts on their Between Fight inspections. Also, we often took GGS cine during tailchases and the possibility of inadvertently shooting each other down was deemed too risky and caused a local flying order to prohibit such activity. Finally, it was often the case that there had been a resounding squadron thrash the night before a Fabulous detail so we were glad just to sit quietly in the cockpit sucking oxygen.
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Fabulous
Like Crumble, I was also on a day fighter Meteor squadron, in Cambridgeshire, '51/'53 ish.
I do remember once getting airborne rapidly from the ORP, (not with the trolley acc still attached, although I did see one dragged a few yards before the lead pulled out) but with the fire warning light covers which I had been carefully unscrewing to relieve the tedium hastily stuffed into a pocket. I hadn't got as far as fiddling with the bulbs though. "Fab" for us day fighters was strictly dawn to dusk only, and I think we were in the habit of getting airborne for the dusk fab - can't remember about the dawn period - probably not because the aircraft would just stay on the ORP for the next shift. I think an hour would have been about tops at immediate cockpit readiness - the ejector seats weren't built for comfort.
Hey, we were still flying those early jets in leather helmets and big old-fashioned Mae Wests. We did loll about in really old mess furniture outside tents on the airfield grass near the ORP in the summer on exercise standby, but maybe not the norm for Fab, which I think was often managed back in the crew room, but memory is struggling a bit here.
There must be some more octogenarians out there to contribute.
Happy days ....
I do remember once getting airborne rapidly from the ORP, (not with the trolley acc still attached, although I did see one dragged a few yards before the lead pulled out) but with the fire warning light covers which I had been carefully unscrewing to relieve the tedium hastily stuffed into a pocket. I hadn't got as far as fiddling with the bulbs though. "Fab" for us day fighters was strictly dawn to dusk only, and I think we were in the habit of getting airborne for the dusk fab - can't remember about the dawn period - probably not because the aircraft would just stay on the ORP for the next shift. I think an hour would have been about tops at immediate cockpit readiness - the ejector seats weren't built for comfort.
Hey, we were still flying those early jets in leather helmets and big old-fashioned Mae Wests. We did loll about in really old mess furniture outside tents on the airfield grass near the ORP in the summer on exercise standby, but maybe not the norm for Fab, which I think was often managed back in the crew room, but memory is struggling a bit here.
There must be some more octogenarians out there to contribute.
Happy days ....
