Post Script
 

Well, I've been in Santa Monica for three days now, recovering from the trip and playing with my granddaughter. :)

I neglected to mention that the reason I drove rather than flew, was that I was delivering a family heirloom that I didn't want to ship. My father, who was in the furniture industry in High Wycombe, had a child-sized Windsor chair made for me, by one of the last "chair bodgers", Jack Goodchild of Naphill. My daughter used it when she was young and now her daughter is the proud owner of it.

I must say it feels very odd driving around Santa Monica in my own car, rather than an airport rental car.

The direct route would have been 1600 miles. I ended up driving 2500 miles! That's like driving to Los Angeles from Pittsburgh.

Alternatively, in European terms, it's like driving from Aberdeen to Vienna, and then continuing to Istanbul.

Thanks to all for the positive feedback - it encouraged me to visit many more locations than I had planned and to see many more interesting aircraft.

I42,
Thank you so much for taking to time and trouble to post that log of your purposeful meanderings.

For me (and, I'm sure, lots of others) it held particular interest because it featured airplanes, locomotives and geology.
I savoured every picture - Good work! :ok:

When your father had that chair made he could never have envisaged that it would be the direct cause of your giving so much pleasure not only to your grandaughter but to all of us who have so enjoyed (and envied) your wonderful road trip. Another demonstration of the only universal law, The Law of Unintended Consequences. Thank you.

For your next trip can I ask for automobiles and hot chicks as well?

And late to this thread I missed the Eagles reference to Winslow.

"Well, I'm standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona,
and such a fine sight to see
it's a girl, my Lord, in a flat bed Ford
slowin' down to take a look at me......"

Take easy.

SGC

Sir George,

I'll see what I can do. I may have an opportunity to fulfill one of your requests quite soon, since I might have to make a detour to Vietnam before I start my trip back to Canada.My "local" in Saigon advertises itself as having "cold beer and hot women". :ok:

On my trip up the coast, I'll also keep an eye out for coachmen in low-performance gliders!

In the meantime, here's an automobile picture for you. It's the Tesla I pulled up behind on Santa Monica Boulevard (another song reference) when I arrived in SMO last week. They are almost two-a-penny here and are usually driven by blonde chicks! ;)
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....c6fd5564b.jpeg

PS I'm still annoyed that I forgot about the Eagles song, when I was standing on a corner in Winslow!

Gnat F1 and Ajeet - gun muzzles and engine intakes -
 

While you agin' rockers are Takin' it Easy ....

from - Folland's little revolutionary: the Gnat - Aircraft InFormation.info

"Primary armament on the Gnat consisted of two 30-mm Aden Mk 4 revolver-type cannon mounted in the outer portions of the air intakes with 115 ** rounds per gun.

On most other aircraft this would have caused the engines to flameout from gas ingestion, but this never happened to the Gnat as the muzzles were carefully designed to deflect gases out to the sides of the intakes. A row of four circular holes on the outside of each barrel and triangular extensions of the intake in front of each muzzle kept gas from being sucked into the engine."

** I thought I remembered it as 60 rpg, I have seen 90 rpg quoted for the Ajeet. I was surprised to see the above article saying 115 rpg. Take your pick.

The two links below refer to the two wars in which IAF Gnats took a prominent part. The Ajeet never saw combat – first flight mid-70s – out of service by early 90s.

Neither the Gnat or Ajeet were equipped with air to air missiles, whereas even the Pakistan F-86s had AIM-9B Sidewinders. Mind you, early Sidewinders would growl at anything hot.

IAF-commissioned book takes a candid look at the 1965 war - The Economic Times

The Flying Hero of the 1971 War - Rediff.com India News

LFH,

Thanks for the update. You can just see the holes in one of my pictures:
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....2ef3adf8e.jpeg

I was very puzzled by them.

I'm just jumping in again to thank you for this most interesting thread, I24.
Great photos, great narrative and rock music! The power of Pprune.:D:ok::cool:

Seconded.............!!!!:ok:

Don't miss the two JRM-1 Martin 'Mars' at Sproat Lake - the largest operational flying boats in the world still operational (but not for long)!

"Hawaii II" is still operational (just) while "Philippine Mars" has been repainted in USN colours for eventual display at NAS Pensacola, FL.

twochai,

A very timely reminder. I'll be going "up island" to visit a friend, so a detour to Sproat Lake would be easy.

However, it won't be until mid-October, since I have to make a business trip to Vietnam first!

I've only seen a Mars once, many years ago. It was working a fire near the coast just west of Victoria and I was on a boat. I initially thought it was a Sunderland and then I saw the "V" float struts and realized it must be a Mars, based on a picture in a WWII recognition book that I pored over during my teenage years!

Another one for Sir George
 

I pulled up beside this immaculate RHD DB5 this afternoon (don't worry - my daughter took the photo).
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....4a1f3e063.jpeg

I spoke to the driver (it wasn't Sean Connery), elbow to elbow as we were:

"Nice car. 1964?"
"Yes"
"I thought so from the B registration."
"Really? Not many people know that!"

Six and a half years later!

I've just been fixing my photos by removing* all the logos that Photobucket so rudely put on top of my images. :E

It's given me the opportunity to update some of the posts and add this one, with some details about the Windsor chair that I delivered to my granddaughter. I didn't have access to any of the photos, when I was on the road.

Here's the chair:
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....a75394feb.jpeg

My 2 ½ year old granddaughter in "her chair". She's now nearly nine!
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....9a7a07a0bf.jpg

Following on from aa62's "Unintended Consequences" post, here's an engraving of Jack Goodchild, with a very appropriate title: "He heapeth up riches and knoweth not who shall gather them" :
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....c97aaa10f.jpeg


https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....409bf92965.png

More picture can be seen here:
https://www.vads.ac.uk/digital/colle...ck%20goodchild

and here:
https://astonrowant.wordpress.com/ch...n-chairmakers/


My return trip can be found here:
https://www.pprune.org/aviation-hist...monica+calgary



* Thanks to Jhieminga: https://www.pprune.org/pprune-proble...-download.html