Prince Andrew, war hero?
Timex, the AAC Sqns did DLQ on the little barge in Portland Harbour prior to doing a stint in FI. I did mine on a cracking Spring day, which did nothing to help the first time I ventured onboard a moving target. Good job I wasn't driving in those days.
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Is Nige still alive? I nlast heard of him at Portland where he was the MTP and also taken to lobbing himself off the Verne with some parathingy contrapption strapped to his back. I left Portland in '97 and have been in sunny Kernow ever since so haven't heard from Nige or any of his era since...apart from Shag who I understand is now outside but still fying at Fleetlands....
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Exocet Target
To answer the original question
He might well have acted as the decoy. In the early days of the conflict after the shooting had started we received a signal advising us of a method of providing decoys. We had to make a cube but with only three side, so much like a cone, and mount it out ahead of a helicopter and fly fairly low somewhere behind the ship. We cobled together such a cone made out of 18swg Dural and using a long girder mounted from a weapons hard point managed to get the device to be sturdy enough to actually be airworthy (of a sort). Off they flew every day from both Hermes and Invince.
The funny thing about it was that after the first few days we got another signal that told us that the dimensions were wrong in the first and that it should be bigger. So we had to quickly make a bigger one.
If the pilot pointed the thing in the direction of the threat the radar return of the cone appeared bigger than the ship and the Exocet would go after the Helo. When the pilot saw it coming he simply hauled up on the collective and climbed above the missile which simply passed beneath.
Whether it actually ever seduced a missile I don't know. After a few weeks of use we actually received some electronic gear which was fitted to a couple of Lynx which then took over the duty.
You can read more about it when my book comes out.
So Andy could well have been that decoy.
Sharmine
He might well have acted as the decoy. In the early days of the conflict after the shooting had started we received a signal advising us of a method of providing decoys. We had to make a cube but with only three side, so much like a cone, and mount it out ahead of a helicopter and fly fairly low somewhere behind the ship. We cobled together such a cone made out of 18swg Dural and using a long girder mounted from a weapons hard point managed to get the device to be sturdy enough to actually be airworthy (of a sort). Off they flew every day from both Hermes and Invince.
The funny thing about it was that after the first few days we got another signal that told us that the dimensions were wrong in the first and that it should be bigger. So we had to quickly make a bigger one.
If the pilot pointed the thing in the direction of the threat the radar return of the cone appeared bigger than the ship and the Exocet would go after the Helo. When the pilot saw it coming he simply hauled up on the collective and climbed above the missile which simply passed beneath.
Whether it actually ever seduced a missile I don't know. After a few weeks of use we actually received some electronic gear which was fitted to a couple of Lynx which then took over the duty.
You can read more about it when my book comes out.
So Andy could well have been that decoy.
Sharmine
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This is also known as a corner cube.
Orac.
Thanks for the update and the link. I see "it is also known as a corner cube" So I wasn't that far off.
Zeb
Pleased to be of assistance.
S
Thanks for the update and the link. I see "it is also known as a corner cube" So I wasn't that far off.
Zeb
Pleased to be of assistance.
S
Yes, Him
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Also known as a "Mongolian Ghost Trap".
They have a pair arranged either side of the runway at the PAR touchdown point so you can quickly re-align the azimuth markers on screen after a runway change.
(I knew that'd come in handy one day).
On topic, Missus Kwin's lad made me a cup of coffee at Portland once.
They have a pair arranged either side of the runway at the PAR touchdown point so you can quickly re-align the azimuth markers on screen after a runway change.
(I knew that'd come in handy one day).
On topic, Missus Kwin's lad made me a cup of coffee at Portland once.
820 nas
