I remember 'MUF from my first few visits to Biggin in the mid-1970s and pleased to see she's still going strong at Redhill. I made a couple of visits to Hamble in the late 70s, pretty sure still several Chippies there amongst the CAT Barons and Cherokee 180s, property of Southampton UAS. Think UAS went to Bournemouth with the advent of Bulldogs?

The UAS Bulldogs did come to Hamble. Disappeared later to BOH, then Boscombe IIRC.

Tredigraph,

CAT itself certainly had chipmunks through July 80, my flight on one being cancelled due tech.

tubbyl and DaveR,

I am pretty sure it is a 707-436 photographed before the modifications required by D P Davies before it could go on the UK register. Listen here:-
https://www.aerosociety.com/news/aud...nnia-brabazon/

I remember that Hamble brochure well as I received one in 1959 or '60 before I went to Hamble in 1960.

Good find !

I'm still undecided as to whether it's a pre-delivery BOAC -436 or a -320 touched up in BOAC livery. I've found another photo, presumably taken on the same sortie as the Hamble brochure photo, but this time in colour:

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....228152e751.jpg

https://davidlearmount.files.wordpre...boeing-707.jpg

Note that, if it's genuine, it's flying pre-mod but with its G- registration.

What we need is an expert who can tell the difference between a JT3 and a Conway. :O

That aircraft has RR Conway engines - no doubt whatsoever!

G-APFB (ex N31241) date of UK CofA, May 1960. Probably delivered to BOAC very soon after DPD's required modifications.

The Hamble system worked too well !! After a while they found they were churning out more than BOAC could take so they were furloughed and we had two of them flying the Aztec at Air London based in Gatwick and Biggin !

Yes, its first flight (19th May 1959) was nearly a year before delivery (9th May 1960). So no prizes for guessing the reason for the long delay. :O

The UK registration was issued, along with the rest of the G-APFx batch, on 7th August 1959, so the photo must have been taken between then and delivery.

OK, thanks.

I can't recall the CAT Chipmunks or RAF Bulldogs there at all! My brother lived at Bursledon,so I often visited and usually nipped over to peer over the fence. Sadly he'd moved elsewhere by the time Ron Souch took over the hangar... I walked across the airfield a few years back, now a scrubby common with a few ponies as I recall.

SUAS currently flies from Boscombe Down.

A potted history of the squadron on the RAF website also mentions a spell at Lee-on-Solent: https://www.raf.mod.uk/our-organisat...-air-squadron/

I was a cadet there 1974-76. We still had 4 Chipmunks, G-ARMB,D,F,and G, although only 2 serviceable. At the beginning of my time there, the UAS operated Chippies before transitioning to the Bulldog.

......Chippies still there 79-80 too John ;-)

Must have seen them then but just recall a couple of UAS Chippies outside a small hangar on the SW side of the airfield.

When I arrived at Farnborough and commenced training on LARS in 1974, I was told not to pass a Hamble based aircraft his position (normally required in those days when identifying an aircraft) unless he actually requested it.
On more than one occasion, the student would come on frequency with a position report, then the instructor would come on and say 'I'll just get the student to un-plug then tell you where we really are'!

Lurking about with a flu virus from hell, this is a joyful find. On cost etc, having failed Hamble selection part one, AH Abbott steered me towards BUA but I failed the first stage interview of that too. However, got a BKS sponsored Cadetship at OATS in 1971. Ministry of Aviation no longer involved in funding so BKS paid all costs with graduates repaying one third (roughly) over five years from salary. As others have said, it was about a thousand quid. BKS/Cambrian cadets did quite well because we went straight from OATS or AST Perth to RHS Viscount. After Final Line Check (about three months) we were promoted from Second Officer (albeit flying P2 as Second Officers) to FO on 3 grand a year. That is the point at which BKS started taking back the one grand. We hardly even felt the repayment and after one year there was a salary review which wiped out the monthly repayment and all was bliss. I think the Hamble and other similar schemes were very good value indeed. One grand, then, representing, roughly, one quarter of costs. Today's stated comparison of twenty grand would make training cost 80,000 quid. I believe it costs a lot more than that today & Mum & Dad are usually funding. Glory days indeed.

I've tidied up DGAC's images:

BEA Hamble brochure
BOAC Hamble brochure

Fascinating, as is the fact that graduates had a choice of BOAC or BEA... now that surprised me!

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....f5160913ef.png

Flash, you are right. I don't recall having a choice. At stage one interview you were asked who you preferred and why. BOAC and BEA had equal pick of graduates depending on the airline's staffing requirement. The selection procedure was split into three separate visits to the College. Pitching up for part one the night before, at dinner (provided) in the cadets mess, one current cadet joined the table of candidates and during conversation said that he had been "earmarked" for BOAC VC10. No idea if it was true or how the earmarking took place.

I informed my interviewer that I preferred BOAC and when asked why, I further replied that it was the only job where you got free transport from pub to pub. I fell of my chair larfing but on regaining composure, I noticed he looked decidedly unimpressed.