Urban Legend
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Mid 70's, a mate indulged to Bermuda, since the place was so expensive, he had bought a tent in advance with the objective of "el cheapo" accommodation.
Unfortunately he arrived to be told in no uncertain terms that camping was not permitted on the Island and he was consequently lined up for immediate deportation. Recognising the depressed form of my mate, (He was in any case on terminal leave) the IO asked whether he had ever been a member of the Boy Scouts, to which my friend said he had.
No problem quoth the IO, that is the only category of camper permitted here, so get your shorts on and double down to the campsite.
One happy camper,
Imagegear
Unfortunately he arrived to be told in no uncertain terms that camping was not permitted on the Island and he was consequently lined up for immediate deportation. Recognising the depressed form of my mate, (He was in any case on terminal leave) the IO asked whether he had ever been a member of the Boy Scouts, to which my friend said he had.
No problem quoth the IO, that is the only category of camper permitted here, so get your shorts on and double down to the campsite.
One happy camper,
Imagegear
Join Date: Oct 2004
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DOMCOL & Indulgence Flights
ZOOM
I can confirm that DOMCOL was alive and well in the late 1990s. I took deferred DOMCOL back to New Zealand via Hong Kong in 96/97. BA Trooper to Hong Kong (sat in BA jump-seat into Kai Tak) and then transferred to CP Business Class flight to AKL. Upgraded to First Class (against my Socialist principals!) and made the most of it. Cathay Pacific were giving half bottles of NV Krug as prezzies to 1st class punters to celebrate 50 years of operation; most of them didn't bother to collect them so I staggered off the aircraft at Mangere with 6 bottles (all gift-wrapped) whilst the cabin crew giggled and murmured 'he he he, spot the upgrade!'
Indulgence travel within NZ was all the rage in the late 1980s. RNZAF Andover 'crew trainers' were put on for mates weddings and junior officer parties; the F27 Nav trainers used to trundle all over the place (including around Aussie) dropping people (myself included) at random, but convenient, airfields. Presumably the fun detectors cracked down on this - anyway both the Andover and Friendships have long gone!. One thing that used to grip light blue sh&t was the insistance from the army that their personnel were 'on duty' when proceeding to/from leave, and therefore would bump off us indulgees. Duty also extended to their overweight wives and snotty-nosed kids...but at least there was always a jump seat available and in such a small air force (and being aircrew at the time) it was always possible to know the crews and to get a seat. Also travelled a few times on VIP Andovers that were prepositioning, and the guys on the Cessna flight at Woodbourne were largely self-authorising...
I can confirm that DOMCOL was alive and well in the late 1990s. I took deferred DOMCOL back to New Zealand via Hong Kong in 96/97. BA Trooper to Hong Kong (sat in BA jump-seat into Kai Tak) and then transferred to CP Business Class flight to AKL. Upgraded to First Class (against my Socialist principals!) and made the most of it. Cathay Pacific were giving half bottles of NV Krug as prezzies to 1st class punters to celebrate 50 years of operation; most of them didn't bother to collect them so I staggered off the aircraft at Mangere with 6 bottles (all gift-wrapped) whilst the cabin crew giggled and murmured 'he he he, spot the upgrade!'
Indulgence travel within NZ was all the rage in the late 1980s. RNZAF Andover 'crew trainers' were put on for mates weddings and junior officer parties; the F27 Nav trainers used to trundle all over the place (including around Aussie) dropping people (myself included) at random, but convenient, airfields. Presumably the fun detectors cracked down on this - anyway both the Andover and Friendships have long gone!. One thing that used to grip light blue sh&t was the insistance from the army that their personnel were 'on duty' when proceeding to/from leave, and therefore would bump off us indulgees. Duty also extended to their overweight wives and snotty-nosed kids...but at least there was always a jump seat available and in such a small air force (and being aircrew at the time) it was always possible to know the crews and to get a seat. Also travelled a few times on VIP Andovers that were prepositioning, and the guys on the Cessna flight at Woodbourne were largely self-authorising...
Nixor ut Ledo
Join Date: Nov 2003
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Remember coming back from Sharjah on an indulgence (actually my mother had just died but they couldn't give me a priority compassionate for that). Anyway Kuwait Airways (courtesy of the COs Fund) to Muharraq then a Britannia C1 from there. The Brit was carrying aero engines and there were only a few seats in the back end and all were full with duty pax and the like. When we got to Akrotiri some Air Marshal was due to get on the flight and technically I should have been bumped. I watched as the movs staff quietly explained to him that rules or no rules he wasn't about to get on that particular flight.
The 'system' used to work magnificently sometimes.
The 'system' used to work magnificently sometimes.
Thought police antagonist
Join Date: Jul 2003
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Not sure about the round robin bit but certainly at Vallley had the pleasure whilst on duty crew of seeing in and out a VC10 a couple of times at Christmas which simply collected / deposited various pax from around the UK at that time of year---not a problem getting a seat as I recall from those who used it.
Did use the Danish equivalent whilst on a 6 week sabbatical at Karup however--a Dak to be precise
--until the embryonic fun police at Bruggen went and objected on some tenuous grounds
--so we, er, "adjusted" 
the speedo cable on the 1800 we had as transport--and continued our grand tour of Denmark that way--where there's a will there's a way
Did use the Danish equivalent whilst on a 6 week sabbatical at Karup however--a Dak to be precise
--until the embryonic fun police at Bruggen went and objected on some tenuous grounds --so we, er, "adjusted" the speedo cable on the 1800 we had as transport--and continued our grand tour of Denmark that way--where there's a will there's a way
