Avro York prototype - photo
Why the black nose? Surely airborne weather did not come in until the late '50s.
Churchill and Yorks Visiting Biggin Hill
I was at Biggin Hill from 1953 - 1955 and almost certainly, I saw an RAF York a couple of times whilst I was there.
I can only think it was doing a "dummy" run for possible time it would have been used to return Churchill to the UK if he’d become ill whilst abroad (for example he was a frequent guest of Aristotle Onassis on the latter’s yacht in the Med) and with Churchill living in Westerham near to Biggin this makes sense, but did we have Yorks in the RAF at that time - or was I mistaken?
I was at Biggin Hill from 1953 - 1955 and almost certainly, I saw an RAF York a couple of times whilst I was there.
I can only think it was doing a "dummy" run for possible time it would have been used to return Churchill to the UK if he’d become ill whilst abroad (for example he was a frequent guest of Aristotle Onassis on the latter’s yacht in the Med) and with Churchill living in Westerham near to Biggin this makes sense, but did we have Yorks in the RAF at that time - or was I mistaken?
but did we have Yorks in the RAF at that time - or was I mistaken?
There were also quite a collection of derelict Brigands and Mosquitos, parked around various dispersals and available for any cadets to clamber around and play being aircrew.
Shackman:
I live on that ridge SW of Oakington, and the original photo does not look like here to me. The ridge is all of 15m high - yes, a problem for an engine-out Varsity, but I think the photo is elsewhere. (We have several neighbours who bought houses here at weekends when 5 FTS was still active, and were shocked at 0805 local next day after moving in when the first Varsity of the day rattled their roof tiles...………………) Caveat emptor...………………..!
I live on that ridge SW of Oakington, and the original photo does not look like here to me. The ridge is all of 15m high - yes, a problem for an engine-out Varsity, but I think the photo is elsewhere. (We have several neighbours who bought houses here at weekends when 5 FTS was still active, and were shocked at 0805 local next day after moving in when the first Varsity of the day rattled their roof tiles...………………) Caveat emptor...………………..!
DaveReidUK and Fitter2
Thanks for the replies - so I was not mistaken, there were still RAF Yorks in operation at that time (early 1950's) .
ISTR there was a codeword allocated to a flight that would have been used to bring Churchill back to the UK if he'd fallen ill or even worse had died, but its so many years ago that I've completely forgotten it.
WT
Thanks for the replies - so I was not mistaken, there were still RAF Yorks in operation at that time (early 1950's) .
ISTR there was a codeword allocated to a flight that would have been used to bring Churchill back to the UK if he'd fallen ill or even worse had died, but its so many years ago that I've completely forgotten it.
WT
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Just a thought. It could not possibly be a photograph of a York Squadron's ground crew, based possibly at RAFWunstorf, assembled to mark the end of the Berlin Airlift. As I said just a thought.
However the presence of the B-24 and the fact that the York is in wartime camouflage makes me doubt that the photo is as late as 1948.
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Wow! This has become quite an educational thread as well as very interesting one since I first casually posted that mystery photo of a York.
I'm tending to go along with DaveReidUK 's suggestion that it could be at RAF Lyneham. If so I have marked with a couple of blobs the possible position of the aircraft on the Google View below:
Blue blob for the York, Yellow blob for the Liberator.
Here is another suggestion could it be a squadron photo ( ground crew included ) to celebrate the end of hostilities on VE Day?
I'm tending to go along with DaveReidUK 's suggestion that it could be at RAF Lyneham. If so I have marked with a couple of blobs the possible position of the aircraft on the Google View below:
Blue blob for the York, Yellow blob for the Liberator.
Here is another suggestion could it be a squadron photo ( ground crew included ) to celebrate the end of hostilities on VE Day?
I'm just wondering whether the hills in the background to the original photo in post #1 are at Abingdon?
As someone who spent some time at Abingdon in 1959 operating a VHF/DF station from the western side of the airfield the hills in the background looked familiar.
Attached photos show airfield looking north- east in 1956 and a recent Google Earth photo from Faringdon Road, again looking north east.
WT
As someone who spent some time at Abingdon in 1959 operating a VHF/DF station from the western side of the airfield the hills in the background looked familiar.
Attached photos show airfield looking north- east in 1956 and a recent Google Earth photo from Faringdon Road, again looking north east.
WT
Last edited by Warmtoast; 6th Dec 2018 at 14:44.
Re my post above.
Checking in the Air Britain publication "The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force" it shows that 40 Sqn equipped with York C.Mk.1's was based at Abingdon from December 1947 to June 1949 with a typical Serial No. of MW193 - so Abingdon is a possibility.
Checking in the Air Britain publication "The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force" it shows that 40 Sqn equipped with York C.Mk.1's was based at Abingdon from December 1947 to June 1949 with a typical Serial No. of MW193 - so Abingdon is a possibility.
But I don't think that 40 Sqn aircraft wore camouflage at that late date, and I'm pretty sure that there were never B-24s based there, so my money would still be on Lyneham.
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Quite are few of them are wearing the RAF forage caps!
I don't think I see any berets ( though I am not sure).
Forage caps were the main form of working headgear for all ranks right through WW2.
However when you start viewing photos of RAF personnel from the late 1940's onward many of them appear wearing berets - including
aircrew!
Perhaps someone on here will know when 'berets' stated became standard issue in the RAF.
Last edited by Wind Sock; 6th Dec 2018 at 21:24. Reason: spelling
Wind Sock
Perhaps someone on here will know when 'berets' stated become standard issue in the RAF.
I don't know when they were introduced, but when I joined in 1951 they were standard issue - see photo below taken at RAF Bridgnorth in May 1951.
...and I've had a go clarifying your original photo (above) and there doesn't seem to be anyone wearing a beret.
WT
Perhaps someone on here will know when 'berets' stated become standard issue in the RAF.
I don't know when they were introduced, but when I joined in 1951 they were standard issue - see photo below taken at RAF Bridgnorth in May 1951.
...and I've had a go clarifying your original photo (above) and there doesn't seem to be anyone wearing a beret.
WT
Wind Sock
Perhaps someone on here will know when 'berets' stated become standard issue in the RAF.
I don't know when they were introduced, but when I joined in 1951 they were standard issue - see photo below taken at RAF Bridgnorth in May 1951.
Perhaps someone on here will know when 'berets' stated become standard issue in the RAF.
I don't know when they were introduced, but when I joined in 1951 they were standard issue - see photo below taken at RAF Bridgnorth in May 1951.