British Secret Spy Planes during the Cold War
 

You can keep your SR-71's, U-2's and 'Aurora's'

Seems all you need is a Chipmunk...

BRIXMIS - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I knew BRIXMIS existed but I did not know they had spy planes.

There has to be some decent stories out there that deserve to see light of day. :)

But if you were told youd be shot........

:)

Bit anorak I know but there is a thread over at TankNet that has some VERY detailed specifics about what was seen (or what they let us see), when and how.

Even details about East German reports on how many times we broke the rules.

What was the classification of Ivan aircraft that departed from thier planned route to fly over Fylingdales etc ? I seem to recall X-Ray's being one level below Hostile but time may have clouded my memory....

The reciprocal arrangement by the Soviets was SOXMIS, and all BFG personnel were briefed on how to recognise the vehicles (the large red hammer and sickle on the badge on the door was the principle clue) and report them accordingly. I'm sure for every snippet we got, Ivan was just as busy, and on major FTXs with new equipment east of Hannover you could guarantee a visit from a SOXMIS team. They would delight in driving slowly through convoys, knowing that 300 squaddies would all be reporting the same SOXMIS sighting to the RMP's. Those were the days, a military mission with an objective.

Up at Spadeadam we done some 'They were here but they were not here' work with the Sky Shadow (think that what was it was called) pod and 617 I recall.

What felt like hours of a Tornado calling Music On/Off and us marking the calls on a paper plot.

The rumour was that the Red Menace had a trawler sat on the Solway Firth not doing much fishing.

Anyone remember some Intelligence pamplet doing the rounds called 'The Threat', at least I think it was called that.

Ahh.. SOXMIS!
Yellow and Red Number plate, little cards telling us all about them, dozens of the cards carried in all our cars...

If found, we were supposed to detain them or block their path using our new tax free purchases!...I think not, Group Captain.

They were supposed to be "normal" cars with fuel tanks filling the Bootspace and rear cabin (instead of seats) capable of travelling thousands of miles without refueliing...Meals, Drinks and other "Comforts" (wt...!) carried on board.

I'll admit I was mainly on the West side of West Germany but, in 11 years of living in BFG, I never saw one!

...the things we did, eh?

Had a book about Brixmis a while back. Fascinating read and very James Bond what with cars with interchangeable rear light patterns etc. Might have to see if it's in the cellar for another quick flick actually.

Bit like said Chipmunk as a matter of fact!;)

That would be the Malin Head AGI. Usually it was north of the channel and updated by us or marked by the RN. Occasionally, when unmarked, it would slip in to the Irish Sea.

One day we were tasked to locate her. We went down the channel, radar off, switched on for 3 sweeps, and the lead dry on radar marked some 50 contacts. We then set off for the one he thought was the AGI and checked two hookers on the way. The AGI was the third vessel!

In those days they were as likely checking out Eskmeals as Spade.

As ever, friend Heimdall's Spyflight website is good value on this subject - even for the Chipmunks

3 sweeps and fifty contacts!

What else would you expect from Mr Murgatroyd? And he directed us directly to the AGI!

Not bad for ASV21.

But then, Jayland, you were only 3 at the time :}

A sad tale vaguely connected with BRIXMIS/SOXMIS days, told to me by an old pongo mate.

Fellow cold warriors will remember the SOXMIS pocket aide memoire which we all carried - big coloured piccie of a SOXMIS vehicle plate, with a prominent number at Herford Mil to 'phone with the report.

Many will also remember the two poor squaddies in Belfast who unintentionally ran into an IRA funeral in the (?) 1980s. Apparently one or both had their SOXMIS cards on them still, and Paddy misread Herford as Hereford and assumed they were - ahem - from a unit in that location.

Probably didn't have much of a chance anyway, but that misident didn't exactly help ...... :(

There is a ex-BRIXMIS Opal Senator in the Cold War Museum at Cosford... :)

For the info of anyone interested, I assume you are referring to this book, by Tony Geraghty

Brixmis: The Untold Exploits of Britain's Most Daring Cold War Spy Mission: Amazon.co.uk: Tony Geraghty: Books

A thoroughly fascinating read! :ok:


Can anyone be a bit more specific about which forum and thread this refers too? I can't locate it on the Tanknet site.

I remember being very impressed with the photographs of blades of grass in the foreground.

But not half as impressed as the photgraphs of the inside of a Moss, until CIntO let on the source :)

There are some interesting threads on Arrse about BRIXMIS/SOXMIS (aka Potsdam Mission). Some of the content is quite humourous (in a British squaddy sort of way).

Try the 'Int Cell', 'Old & Bold' and 'Aviation' forums for starters.

BRIXMIS History
 

If you are interested, look at the BRIXMIS Association website -BRIXMIS Association.co.uk. It will give you some background.

Teeteringhead

What I found appalling about the incident you describe was the fact that everything was being watched overhead by a Lynx, but 'we' did nothing to help as 'we' though it was two of their baddies being attacked by another lot of their baddies.

I feel for the crew who later realised that they could have at least tried to help their own lads, instead of just watching their demise!

There is an interesting account in the RAF Historical Society archives by Gp Capt H Neubrock on the Chipmunk, saying that the Soviets established their first SAM-2 site outside the Soviet Union at a former Luftwaffe base at Glau some 20 miles south of Berlin, but nothing was known about it's associate Radar.

On a routine clockwise circuit just short of Glau, they dived down to 300ft & carried out some tight turns for photography. They returned to Gatow to have the films developed. They clearly showed the technical details. Next day, they flew the prints to HQ RAF Germany. They were later told that the prints were on President Eisenhower's desk the following Monday.

British Cold War Spy Planes
 

Chipmunks! - for a few shillings more you could have had a Percival Pembroke from that Goat Sqn.

That's the one MrB. Sadly I think my copy might have gone to Barnardos.

Many a true word spoken in jest Freddie boy!

If you're in Berlin pop along to the Alliertenmuseum, located in a former US military area in Grunewald. It's all about the Allied presence in Berlin, and has a fascinating display on BRIXMIS, including looped video footage shot on a jaunt into East Germany. The inspection by a Hind understandably gets the team a little excited.

They also have one of the Gatow Chippies in storage awaiting the building of a new hall, and outside is a Hastings.

Back in my seafaring days there was always at least one,often more soviet vessels anchored between Lowestoft and Orfordness.Bentwaters,Woodbridge,Alconbury and Mildenhall were all quite close. Colin. :oh:

I am still suprised the number of ppl who served at Wildenrath and who never realised the primary task of the goat squadrons Pembrokes.

Many do not believe it even now and think its a wind up.

Around Jun/Jul 2008 BBC Radio 4 did a programme on BRIXMIS ... if you can find it in the BBC archives please let me know as I'm damned if I can find the thing now:(

Barnstormer .... indeed - I've seen the video the Lynx took .... not nice viewing :(

BRIXMIS History
 

For a more relaxed description of how BRIXMIS operated, read the 2-part article reprinted from Pennant magazine (Forces Pension Society) on the Jever Steam Laundry website - www.rafjever.org/stationstor011.htm

Bring back the Iron Curtain! All is forgiven!

BBC 4/The BRIXMIS Story
 

Found it:

BBC - BBC Radio 4 Programmes - The Brixmis Story

but it's no longer available.

allyn
Thanks for that. Good news: I found a brain cell that worked, Bad news: the BBC pulled the plug! Hey Ho!

Not forgetting the strangeness that was on Orford Ness itself - Cobra Mist and all that.

MP3 download (3.27 MB) available here:

http://hfsurfing.googlepages.com/BRIXMIS.mp3 :ok:

Will play in Windows Media Player

WF

Between my Gnat and Hunter courses, having held at Wildenrath, I once bantered a chap (ex-pilot air trafficker) in the OM bar at Valley about 'those' Pemmies. He went rather quiet and 'invited me outside for a chat'....

"I don't know how the f*** you found out about that, but for f***'s sake you must STFU about it!", was all he would say.

So I did. Although it had only been a guess on my part....:suspect:

All sorts of 'interesting things' went on in what's currently termed 'The Cold War'....

Here's one... .

C'mon then! What were they up to?

I've never heard that version of events before. It was not part of the brief when we were shown the video. We were told the crew were aware of what they were filming, but were unable to intervene because of the SOPs they were operating under.

Wokafans

Brilliant, many thanks:ok:

Teeteringhead

This is the form in question.

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r...ortingform.jpg

At Rheindahlen ISTR some fearsome German who examined us for a BFG Driving Licence (the dreaded 'Tick-test') issued these forms to sucessful BFG licence applicants promising dire consequences if we failed to report sighted SOXMIS vehicles.

Tashengurt, a bit of Googleage returns references to Operation HALLMARK, and this image from a plastic model box:

https://hangar47.com/uploads/Percival_2.jpg

Which is strange, as the PR version of the Pembroke was acknowledged since the days of 81 Squadron in Malaya.

I've oft wondered about the fact that the UK 'Open Skies' aircraft was an ex-60 Squadron Andover that replaced the Pembrokes.........:E