Free rides?
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"My brother keeps asking if I'd like to go up in a Nimrod, but although I'd love to see what a Nimrod pilot does I don't fancy being pinged to serve tea and pies to all those crew members"
Don't worry about it stacker, you're not cleared to handle in-flight refreshment - you need to complete the highly intensive week-long course before you can go solo on the teapot, tagged onto the end of the 6 month Nimrod OCU:
Day 1 - Theory: number of teabags required per pot (average 10)
Day 2 - Practical: Water Boiler famil
Day 3 - Practical: Teapot handling during extreme manouveres (MAD Comp/Radr Homings/Co-Pilot flying
Day 4 - Theory - Knowing who to 'accidentally' pour hot liquid over the AEO
Day 5 - Practical - Oven famil/Demonstrating the ability to cram it with as much cr*p as possible.
Followed by a full skills test: Aims-to make teaspoon stand up in pot, burn as many pies as possible, receive only 12/13 complaints about the service.
The Pilots/Navs complete the 'short course'
Day 1 - Theory: Galley avoidance techniques
Day 2 - Theory: Strange lumps in liquid recce
Day 3 - Practical: Sit on arse and wait for it to come to you
Don't worry about it stacker, you're not cleared to handle in-flight refreshment - you need to complete the highly intensive week-long course before you can go solo on the teapot, tagged onto the end of the 6 month Nimrod OCU:
Day 1 - Theory: number of teabags required per pot (average 10)
Day 2 - Practical: Water Boiler famil
Day 3 - Practical: Teapot handling during extreme manouveres (MAD Comp/Radr Homings/Co-Pilot flying
Day 4 - Theory - Knowing who to 'accidentally' pour hot liquid over the AEO
Day 5 - Practical - Oven famil/Demonstrating the ability to cram it with as much cr*p as possible.
Followed by a full skills test: Aims-to make teaspoon stand up in pot, burn as many pies as possible, receive only 12/13 complaints about the service.
The Pilots/Navs complete the 'short course'
Day 1 - Theory: Galley avoidance techniques
Day 2 - Theory: Strange lumps in liquid recce
Day 3 - Practical: Sit on arse and wait for it to come to you
1 Jan 2000, MPA.
My brother was over from NZ with wife and my Nephew. We spent the first morning of the new Century flying around the islands Low Level in the 1312 Flt Herc. Absolutely fantastic.
Occasionally watch the video I took. Some of those shadows are VERY big.
My brother was over from NZ with wife and my Nephew. We spent the first morning of the new Century flying around the islands Low Level in the 1312 Flt Herc. Absolutely fantastic.
Occasionally watch the video I took. Some of those shadows are VERY big.
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I've been reading this thread with interest, not least because I've scrounged rides in pretty-much everything the RAF's got, at some stage or other. It's fair to say that some lucky non-aircrew folks do still occasionally get given flights but it's even rarer these days than it used to be. Us civilian photographers and writers have a hard time getting many chances these days and even the occasional "celeb flights" don't pop up too often. I think the last one was the afore-mentioned Lorraine Kelly; a saga which frustrated me in particular as if it hadn't been for her, I would have gone instead! But you have to look at things in PR terms and although it's easy to scoff at these "joyrides" for celebs, you have to appreciate that it's often the only way you can get the RAF onto the TV (unless it's some mis-reported war zone story of course) as the television folks don't want to know unless there's some banal "angle" to make a story. Clearly, it's always a good thing to get the RAF shown in a positive light, so you can't blame the PR people for doing it once in a while. I guess it must seem a bit annoying to all the folks who are stuck on the ground day in and day out, supporting the aircraft but never getting to fly in them, but in wider terms, it makes good sense to pop poor ol' Lorraine in the back of an F3... surely, out of all the people who will have watched the TV coverage, there's a fighting chance that at least one person might have thought about the RAF as a career... so it's got to be worth doing?
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
Akula, quite right, it was a long time ago. On the Shack we used a tray though as we could not manage a tea pot over the spars.
Mad Boom, you forgot something. It featured on both the knocker and exec courses:
Oven cleaning - checks before flight, checks before incineration and post flight cleaning. Not ot mention allowing extra time for cooking the pies after a MAD trap.
PS - knockers to clean and execs to find other more important trivia
Mad Boom, you forgot something. It featured on both the knocker and exec courses:
Oven cleaning - checks before flight, checks before incineration and post flight cleaning. Not ot mention allowing extra time for cooking the pies after a MAD trap.
PS - knockers to clean and execs to find other more important trivia
There is, of course, the notorious legend of the UAS Bulldog stude on a solo sortie, who was spotted landing in a field near his parents' house by a QFI in a different aircraft...never quite established whether the landing was to drop off the stude's dad after a trip, or whether the stude was only about to pick his dad up...
To answer the original question: even in my rotary niche, we only get to fly family members on Families' Day - and even then, it's spouse/dependent children only, and they are carefully programmed to fly with a crew which doesn't include their aviator relative. From what I hear, the Fun Police have done a thorough job of preventing the tales related on this thread from ever happening again
To answer the original question: even in my rotary niche, we only get to fly family members on Families' Day - and even then, it's spouse/dependent children only, and they are carefully programmed to fly with a crew which doesn't include their aviator relative. From what I hear, the Fun Police have done a thorough job of preventing the tales related on this thread from ever happening again
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To answer the original question: even in my rotary niche, we only get to fly family members on Families' Day - and even then, it's spouse/dependent children only, and they are carefully programmed to fly with a crew which doesn't include their aviator relative. From what I hear, the Fun Police have done a thorough job of preventing the tales related on this thread from ever happening again
Yesterday 17:55
Yesterday 17:55
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I do my best, but I just can't see it in the very near future because obviously the Mayor of Angelsey or Lorraine Kelly are far more deserving of the slot.
Avoid imitations
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I'm sure the Mayor of Anglesey deserves slotting.
Anyway, Lorraine Kelly has her own slot - I once saw it in another photo of her on the web..
Got my wife flights in a Bulldog and a Puma some years ago - only constraint was that they didn't allow husband and wife to fly together (in the case of an accident, no-one wanted the kids). I flew someone else's wife.
More difficult to get them flights in FJs due to the aeromedical concerns.
Anyway, Lorraine Kelly has her own slot - I once saw it in another photo of her on the web..
Got my wife flights in a Bulldog and a Puma some years ago - only constraint was that they didn't allow husband and wife to fly together (in the case of an accident, no-one wanted the kids). I flew someone else's wife.
More difficult to get them flights in FJs due to the aeromedical concerns.
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As a young siggie between the OCU & 201Sqn in the early 80s I put myself about a bit. Made a few brass-neck phone calls, gave up some leave and have 4 trips in a Hawk, a couple of hours in a JP3 & a couple more in a JP5.
Good fun!
Good fun!
Free ride - for the good of the Service
A long, long time ago, when the world and Pumas were young, and I was a JO, I had the role of running a TacDet - a half dozen Landrovers, some tents, and some mixed Gunners and Engs - to provide support for a flight of four Pumas. We deployed to the moors of south-west Wales , and set up camp in a long narrow wood, the helos on the field out front, while the single-track road wound across the moor, over the humpy bridge and along the back of the wood.
The machines were away doing tasking somewhere, when one of the Gunners called into my Ops Tent, in the middle between the Eng Empire and the Rockies, to tell me a police van was approaching. So I put my hat on to go meet what turned out to be the local sergeant. Lots of handshakes and courtesy noises, he asking what we were doing and where the aircraft were, and me walking him down to the Eng end, with the big fire, where we cadged a mug of tea from the perpetual urn.
The police sergeant was introduced to the half-dozen SNCOs around the fire, conversation limped along as it does in such circumstances, and I had to deflect the heavy hint of 'I'd love a ride in one of those helicopters', for there wasn't one around. Then I became aware of a strangeness in the comments and discussion, and that we were distinctly unwelcome around the fire. So I drew the 'polis' away up to my Ops Tent, to look at the maps and stuff, and to ask the siggie to find out if any C/S was nearby. There was something wrong....
Anyway, one C/s did say he was just a few minutes away, so I asked him if he couldn't 'drop back to base'. He did, I asked him if he'd take the local bobby for a brief flight, and that was sorted after a quick safety brief.
No sooner had the Puma got airborne again and lifted over the hill, policeman on board, than I was straight back to the Eng fire with "WTF's going on?" They sheepishly pointed to the large lamb roasting on a spit over the fire....
The 'polis' was delighted with his flip, and was escorted back to his van without passing near the offending roast lamb supper, and went happily on his way.
That was one of the very few occasions I got a 'Thank you, sur!' from the Sqn Eng Section - and a big plate of roast lamb for supper.
The machines were away doing tasking somewhere, when one of the Gunners called into my Ops Tent, in the middle between the Eng Empire and the Rockies, to tell me a police van was approaching. So I put my hat on to go meet what turned out to be the local sergeant. Lots of handshakes and courtesy noises, he asking what we were doing and where the aircraft were, and me walking him down to the Eng end, with the big fire, where we cadged a mug of tea from the perpetual urn.
The police sergeant was introduced to the half-dozen SNCOs around the fire, conversation limped along as it does in such circumstances, and I had to deflect the heavy hint of 'I'd love a ride in one of those helicopters', for there wasn't one around. Then I became aware of a strangeness in the comments and discussion, and that we were distinctly unwelcome around the fire. So I drew the 'polis' away up to my Ops Tent, to look at the maps and stuff, and to ask the siggie to find out if any C/S was nearby. There was something wrong....
Anyway, one C/s did say he was just a few minutes away, so I asked him if he couldn't 'drop back to base'. He did, I asked him if he'd take the local bobby for a brief flight, and that was sorted after a quick safety brief.
No sooner had the Puma got airborne again and lifted over the hill, policeman on board, than I was straight back to the Eng fire with "WTF's going on?" They sheepishly pointed to the large lamb roasting on a spit over the fire....
The 'polis' was delighted with his flip, and was escorted back to his van without passing near the offending roast lamb supper, and went happily on his way.
That was one of the very few occasions I got a 'Thank you, sur!' from the Sqn Eng Section - and a big plate of roast lamb for supper.
Lorraine Kelly.....I don't think even 'Moulinex' would......
Re. free rides, it was often the case that SORF formation flights at Leeming would be asked to take a stn pax sandbag along for a ride in the lead JP. One pilot wasn't much impressed when told to take some lad along for a trip, just made sure he was strapped in, then ignored him.... It may be recalled that such trips leading refresher students around often culminated in a humdinger of a no-holds barred tailchase.
"How did your pax enjoy it?", he was later asked.
"No idea - he went to sleep at one and a half G and didn't wake up until we landed" came the reply!
He didn't take any more pax!
Re. free rides, it was often the case that SORF formation flights at Leeming would be asked to take a stn pax sandbag along for a ride in the lead JP. One pilot wasn't much impressed when told to take some lad along for a trip, just made sure he was strapped in, then ignored him.... It may be recalled that such trips leading refresher students around often culminated in a humdinger of a no-holds barred tailchase.
"How did your pax enjoy it?", he was later asked.
"No idea - he went to sleep at one and a half G and didn't wake up until we landed" came the reply!
He didn't take any more pax!
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The last time we took a Nim down to Lyneham for one of thier 'wing days' they were flying the families for most of the day...
THS...I doubt you would be trusted with the pies...Certainly if you were on board with me there would be some manipulation of distribution to avoid the gopping 'Jock' pies...
THS...I doubt you would be trusted with the pies...Certainly if you were on board with me there would be some manipulation of distribution to avoid the gopping 'Jock' pies...
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Yes, it can be done, but sometimes 'slightly outside the rules'. Several years ago my partner was offered a Hawk trip from 4 FTS in reciprocation of status as a ATPL/SFO with a UK airline. Result: chundering within ten minutes of low level in Wales clad in an immersion suit as opposed to a collar and tie. How I enjoyed the subsequent respect for my day to day flying.
Bottom Line: Two seat FJ. Forget it. Cockpit time within the current yoke of CFT is too valuable. T-Bird: Try your luck - what have you got to lose.
Bottom Line: Two seat FJ. Forget it. Cockpit time within the current yoke of CFT is too valuable. T-Bird: Try your luck - what have you got to lose.
