RAF Halton
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RAF Halton
Saw a film called 'Allied' on telly the other night (yes my own fault I know); rubbish plot with Brad Pitt as a secret agent during WW2 who was also a RCAF Wg Cdr.
Apart from the usual bloomers like showing him using a 1950s phone box, he seemingly was able to just 'borrow' Lysanders at will.
One scene showed him driving onto an airfield along a narrowish road with a fence on the airfield side and as the camera panned round, some hangars came into view which I immediately recognised as those at Halton with Pitt entering not by the 'normal' gate but via the car park where the old control tower once stood. Course the CGI crew had been hard at work, adding extra hangars along the western airfield boundary as well as literally dozens of Lysanders and some Lancasters (were they ever used for SOE drops? I think not) but it was definitely Halton with 'F' type hangars and another hangar with a lowish lintel built in about 1970 to replace a Bellman which I remember well 'cos we kept our microlights in it in the early '90s before we were moved to one of the 'F' types to allow RAFP training in 'our' hangar.
Apart from the usual bloomers like showing him using a 1950s phone box, he seemingly was able to just 'borrow' Lysanders at will.
One scene showed him driving onto an airfield along a narrowish road with a fence on the airfield side and as the camera panned round, some hangars came into view which I immediately recognised as those at Halton with Pitt entering not by the 'normal' gate but via the car park where the old control tower once stood. Course the CGI crew had been hard at work, adding extra hangars along the western airfield boundary as well as literally dozens of Lysanders and some Lancasters (were they ever used for SOE drops? I think not) but it was definitely Halton with 'F' type hangars and another hangar with a lowish lintel built in about 1970 to replace a Bellman which I remember well 'cos we kept our microlights in it in the early '90s before we were moved to one of the 'F' types to allow RAFP training in 'our' hangar.
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Last edited by ex82watcher; 12th Dec 2018 at 14:45. Reason: finger trouble
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Yeah they must have had one real one and dozens of CGI copies in the film. All parked together in the open so a Baedecker raid could have nailed the lot!!
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If I remember correctly, the Lancaster crew hatch was much smaller than that on the Halifax, which resulted in a proportionately greater loss of Lancaster crews from those shot down. Maybe that was the reason the Halifax was preferred for agent drops?
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The Lancaster's main escape hatch was in the nose - the bomb aimer was lying on it. I believe that the parachute exit for the SD Halifax was in the fuselage, through the hole that had originally been used for the ventral turret. That would give more space for the agent and his/her kit whilst en route. As someone who grew up in 4 Group territory, I'm reluctant to suggest that the Halifax was given this role because Lancasters performed better in the bombing role, but I can't tihnk of any particular advantage it had for agent dropping.
The paratroop exit for the Lancaster had the same origin as that on the Halifax/Whitley/Wellington/Manchester and Stirling Mk I ie the hole left by the removal of the ventral turret. And yes all those types were cleared for para dropping from that exit by the AFEE it’s just that not all were used in that role operationally.
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I have to admit I 'pranged' the real VX275 just off the airfield on 17 May 1967.
It was assessed as Cat 5, but as it was a presentation aircraft (Mrs Heppel) it was sent back to Kirbymoorside and re-built whereas normally it would have been written off.
I did fly it again when it returned to Halton a year later (20 May 1968)
It was assessed as Cat 5, but as it was a presentation aircraft (Mrs Heppel) it was sent back to Kirbymoorside and re-built whereas normally it would have been written off.
I did fly it again when it returned to Halton a year later (20 May 1968)
