Events you never thought would happen.
TAC Int Bloke
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: UK
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27mm, I was the Intercept Control Assistant on that! (main job making sure there were enough Polos on console) The controller was WO Gordon K*****, nice bloke, a bit scary and about 1,000 years old, eck, that means I've worked for BEags too!
Two years later standing on the Berlin wall flicking the Vs to the Vopos -
Ask the younger generation and they'll say 'What's the Cold War granddad?'
Two years later standing on the Berlin wall flicking the Vs to the Vopos -
Ask the younger generation and they'll say 'What's the Cold War granddad?'
'With', not 'for', Maple mon brave.
And I never thought I'd be working in Dresden either - and taking the pi$$ out of an ex-East German (who was chatting up the lovely Susanna on my right) by saying he must be ex-Stasi, judging by the amount of questions he was asking!
Or crossing the old Helmstedt Checkpoint Alfa heading east on the Autobahn at 150 kph the other day!
Wader2, sadly you were wrong..... But the contact with various warm round bits as she squirmed into the space between the seat and the flight deck sill was highly enjoyable. Co-pilot R'f'K and I had the same thought though - "While you're down there, Janice......."
Charming lass - and kind enough to look after 3 of us a few weeks later at Farnborough.
And I never thought I'd be working in Dresden either - and taking the pi$$ out of an ex-East German (who was chatting up the lovely Susanna on my right) by saying he must be ex-Stasi, judging by the amount of questions he was asking!
Or crossing the old Helmstedt Checkpoint Alfa heading east on the Autobahn at 150 kph the other day!
Wader2, sadly you were wrong..... But the contact with various warm round bits as she squirmed into the space between the seat and the flight deck sill was highly enjoyable. Co-pilot R'f'K and I had the same thought though - "While you're down there, Janice......."
Charming lass - and kind enough to look after 3 of us a few weeks later at Farnborough.
Yes, Him
Join Date: Aug 1999
Location: West Sussex, UK
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1) Being with aforesaid "Flossie" Lowe for a week in Bangkok when she said she was too tired to do any more shopping, lets go have a few beers by the pool instead.
Confirmed shopaholic that lass, but lovely in every sense.
2) Taking pics of F.3s and Hawks from a Tu-95.
Confirmed shopaholic that lass, but lovely in every sense.
2) Taking pics of F.3s and Hawks from a Tu-95.
Join Date: Apr 2001
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Landing at Bratislava, Slovak Republic, and being met at the foot of the ladder by a FROGFOOT pilot. I realised we were all the same when the first thing he did was tell me where the beer, food and strippers were. The second task was learning profanities in each others' languages.
Wierd to notice how all the TACANs ran out at the West German border.
Interesting to notice the SA-2 site at the end of the runway at Bratislava. And what is was doing to my RWR.
Sweet getting rub-a-dub-dubbed on 3 quid.
Nice seeing myself on the Slovak 9 o'clock news - "....szszchszchsz sczzchessczc NATO Fighter spzczch sczeczsh....".
Wierd to notice how all the TACANs ran out at the West German border.
Interesting to notice the SA-2 site at the end of the runway at Bratislava. And what is was doing to my RWR.
Sweet getting rub-a-dub-dubbed on 3 quid.
Nice seeing myself on the Slovak 9 o'clock news - "....szszchszchsz sczzchessczc NATO Fighter spzczch sczeczsh....".
Getting a formal invite at the Hradec Kralove airshow, Czech Republic, which included the words "The Commander in Chief of the Czech Air Force invites you to a hangar party. Including food, beer, folk singing, striptease show......"
Can you imagine getting an invite at RIAT stating "Sir Jock Stirrup invites you to a piss-up and strip show"? That'd surely get the PC brigade and The Sun foaming at the relevant orifice!
'twas a good striptease show too - until the very attractive young Czech lady's modesty was protected by sqn zaps....and a 55 Sqn badge from one of the Victor team's flying suits ended up demonstrating the 'velcro effect'...
Can you imagine getting an invite at RIAT stating "Sir Jock Stirrup invites you to a piss-up and strip show"? That'd surely get the PC brigade and The Sun foaming at the relevant orifice!
'twas a good striptease show too - until the very attractive young Czech lady's modesty was protected by sqn zaps....and a 55 Sqn badge from one of the Victor team's flying suits ended up demonstrating the 'velcro effect'...
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Hampshire
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Two continents
Being in Berlin the night the Wall really crumbled. One year later, in Ostrava, being welcomed to sit in a Mig 21 and chat with some throroughly demoralised aircrew (who hadn't flown for months). They were also interested in selling any personal kit we fancied.......
Being shown around Pnomh Penh by a garrulous and contented guide, who turned out to have been General (President) Ne Win's Chief of Staff.
Tempus fugit.
Being shown around Pnomh Penh by a garrulous and contented guide, who turned out to have been General (President) Ne Win's Chief of Staff.
Tempus fugit.
Sitting at a barbecue in a Belgian hangar in what used to be Yugoslavia, having a burger and a beer with a 2 Yanks, a German, 2 Russians and 2 Hungarians from the comms site on the top of Goles mountain, discussing (well slurring at each other in a variety of languages none of us understood, but I think that was the general drift) how 10 years ago we would have been shooting at each other.
No strippers though.
Shame that.
No strippers though.
Shame that.
Join Date: Aug 2001
Location: Bristol
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Sitting in super secret Mig 21 somewhere in Germany the week before the wall came down. Then sitting in a Mig 29 at the Waddo air show in about 97. Controlling Mig29 Cap in Hungary during Kosovo air campain then being on 1 of the crews who controlled a Mig 29 shoot down.
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Australia
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Having spent all my time on the kipper fleet having regular contact with the russian navy, to go to Poznan in Poland to participate in NATO Air Meet along with Poles, Czechs and Bulgarians was a bit of a shock.
Great exercise though, and a great place to visit.
Y_G
Great exercise though, and a great place to visit.
Y_G
B
ds
Pilot Officer PPRuNe
Join Date: Jan 1999
Location: UK
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Still having a job over 17 years after getting my wings on the day the Berlin Wall came down (10 Nov 89!!!)... we were convinced we would be last in first out
Still can't believe the mess that started 16 years ago in the sand pit is still going on... oh well
And definitely can't believe I am still in after my first RO wrote in my 1st ever 1369 "Fg Off Tonkenna is more suited to a 60s commune than the RAF" 
Spot on
Tonks
Still can't believe the mess that started 16 years ago in the sand pit is still going on... oh well
And definitely can't believe I am still in after my first RO wrote in my 1st ever 1369 "Fg Off Tonkenna is more suited to a 60s commune than the RAF"
Spot on Tonks
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Scotland
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sittin' in the rooftop resturant in the Al Fallajh? hotel in Ruwi, with a German and his lovely Iraqi wife. What are you doing tomorrow? she says. Night before the shootin' started 1991. Doh!
Nixor ut Ledo
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: In a Beaut of a State
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Welcoming a East German Andoverski at the RAF Benson Families Day in 91? Then watching the crew flogging loads of gizzits to the punters to fund their new found capitalist existence back home.
Was impressed by the crane thingy at the rear of the aircraft.
Was impressed by the crane thingy at the rear of the aircraft.
Registered User **
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Cambridge
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Staying in a five star hotel in the middle of Budapest, whilst there with the mighty 'rod operating from the local airbase (Tokol ?) Hungarian Air Force couldn't do enough for us, but how they managed with some of that kit ? Power set mounted on the back of a truck (a big truck), half a dozen (leaky)bowsers to do a refuel, and a fire truck that should have been in a museum.
S_H
S_H
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Witney UK
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Climbing aboard, as captain, a Vickers Funbus, wearing a lightweight flying suit and headset, sitting in a comfortable seat, having an hot and cold running toilet, oven, fridge, knife, fork, spoon, cup of coffee et al after 25 odd years of bang seat, immersion suit, bone dome, sandwich box and pee tube but still getting plenty of fun flying, formation and foreign travel, indeed more of same. Sadly I believe those days have gone but the Funbus lives on.
"Climbing aboard, as captain, a Vickers Funbus, wearing a lightweight flying suit and headset, sitting in a comfortable seat, having an hot and cold running toilet, oven, fridge, knife, fork, spoon, cup of coffee et al......"
But still someone else to work the HFs, eh Arters?
But still someone else to work the HFs, eh Arters?