Gutersloh, Mid 70s
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You can lob in the other RAFG bases with that accolade. A great place to be in the 70's. Flying over the (boring) N German Plain with a million others looking for low level action.I still remember climbing to our cruise height of 250ft and the indomitable Chapple saying " What a brilliant day (vis was better than 5nms) where are you you barstewards, come and try me!!"
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Not a lot of bases in the 60s could boast 5xSquadron standards - 2,4.18,19 and 92. Felt sorry for the 92 guys who let off the day end of a day night flare one dining-in night. Very expensive to clean those standards!
Great place -good beer, good company and excellent flying.
Anybody remember the chap who wrote in the mess suggestions book after almost every happy hour "I suggest draught beer be made available in the upstairs bar"?
Great place -good beer, good company and excellent flying.
Anybody remember the chap who wrote in the mess suggestions book after almost every happy hour "I suggest draught beer be made available in the upstairs bar"?
Fun fun fun!! LLSP over the Mohne and cleared to bounce anything that we saw!! Back to base, fill it up and do it all again!! Sometimes 4 times in a day and still be in the bar before 19 Sqn!!
THOSE WERE THE DAYS!!!!
THOSE WERE THE DAYS!!!!
I was at Gut '87 to '90, lived out at Senne in the only high rise block of flats in the area. Had a nice little earner going in the evenings as the "Eier Man", oh and I turned up at HSF on occasional days!
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We lived in Topferstrasse initially, but later moved to Avenwedde.
What was the name of the pub/bar that was just down the road from the camp entrance? I think their was a speed camera just outside of it.
Also used to play footie for PCSF (later PCMF) and have a fond memory of Taz Taylor being sent off in nearly every match I was involved with.
What was the name of the pub/bar that was just down the road from the camp entrance? I think their was a speed camera just outside of it.
Also used to play footie for PCSF (later PCMF) and have a fond memory of Taz Taylor being sent off in nearly every match I was involved with.
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Flugies! 'Zum Flughaven', just past the back road to Blankenhagen and the railway spur onto the base. All Brit Mil were banned when I was there! It's a dodgy looking nightclub now with a tax free motors enterprise operating from the same place.
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While I was there a murder (stabbing) occured in Fluggies, the bad guy made off across the airfield to escape the gestapho and offered himself for supper to one of the RAF PlodDogs patrolling 3 sqn.
Gestapho recovered the weapon which had been stuck (stabbed) into the ground whilst crossing the airfield.
The insurance company behind fluggies was Mike Meagers (ALM) lair, or at least his wifes. Medallion man (& survivor of a Belizean stingray) not heard of in a long time.
Gestapho recovered the weapon which had been stuck (stabbed) into the ground whilst crossing the airfield.
The insurance company behind fluggies was Mike Meagers (ALM) lair, or at least his wifes. Medallion man (& survivor of a Belizean stingray) not heard of in a long time.
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Recovery and Rugby
Great place to visit! Went there in 88ish, recovered jets. back again in 89ish, beat Gorillas to go to Gatow for rafg finals!
Ouch
DHI
Ouch
DHI
Last edited by DHI; 23rd Dec 2007 at 01:16. Reason: Cos I can
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I was a brat there in '61 when the Berlin Wall went up. For a few hours/days we really thought we were going to war. Truck sirens around the patch at 3am to get everyone up, Regiment running around digging fox holes in people's flower beds, my father (airframe/engines) strapping a pistol on in the bedroom..... Never did that even in WWII.
Scary stuff. What distance did they say it was from Gut to the inner-German border? 60 miles? 4.5 mins flying time for MiGs?
Scary stuff. What distance did they say it was from Gut to the inner-German border? 60 miles? 4.5 mins flying time for MiGs?
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RAF Gutersloh was my last groundcrew posting before I departed to 6 FTS in 1977.
I had a trip lined up in the Lightning T4 but OC 92 'phoned me to ask if I would defer my trip so that he could take OC 4 Sqn for a ride. As things turned out it was a blessing in disguise, because a double hydraulic failure forced them to bang-out on final approach! As for me, I was on crash guard duty that very day and I ended up guarding an engine that was precariously balanced in a tree... it was a bloody cold night!
Great place Gutersloh... fond memories.
I had a trip lined up in the Lightning T4 but OC 92 'phoned me to ask if I would defer my trip so that he could take OC 4 Sqn for a ride. As things turned out it was a blessing in disguise, because a double hydraulic failure forced them to bang-out on final approach! As for me, I was on crash guard duty that very day and I ended up guarding an engine that was precariously balanced in a tree... it was a bloody cold night!
Great place Gutersloh... fond memories.
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Actually it wasn't O.C. 4Sqn (Tony Chaplin), it was one of his exec's (Hoppy G. W.) They ejected over the middle of the airfield following the main leg extension failure, watched by just about all of us .(Gets you off any subsequent BOI)
.(Gets you off any subsequent BOI)
That explains why every man and his dog was watching 92 Sqn jet do a one-legged landing in the early 70's. Superb skills by the gentleman in the hot seat at the time.
That explains why every man and his dog was watching 92 Sqn jet do a one-legged landing in the early 70's. Superb skills by the gentleman in the hot seat at the time.
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The G-spot
Even after 2 tours at Bruggen and 1 at Laarbruch spanning the years 76-99, the best tour of all was Gutersloh 81-84. To echo a well known musical, here are a few of my favourite things:
Zeitung 47 (the exploits of SAC Gruntfuttock in particular)
The fair in Hovelhof during the admin break on ex-Handy Forge/Hill Foil/etc
The cellar bars and the Mally
Taking visiting family round Herman the German and the Adlerwarte
Having a gluhwein in the Marktplatz downtown in the run-up to Christmas
Giving directions to somewhere in town by saying "Go to the centre of the universe and turn left..etc"
Dickie Johns after I got admonished (going rate £200 and a severe dig) for being trashed and found in a police land rover
Happy, happy days. Even my wife agrees!
Best wishes for Christmas to all.
Zeitung 47 (the exploits of SAC Gruntfuttock in particular)
The fair in Hovelhof during the admin break on ex-Handy Forge/Hill Foil/etc
The cellar bars and the Mally
Taking visiting family round Herman the German and the Adlerwarte
Having a gluhwein in the Marktplatz downtown in the run-up to Christmas
Giving directions to somewhere in town by saying "Go to the centre of the universe and turn left..etc"
Dickie Johns after I got admonished (going rate £200 and a severe dig) for being trashed and found in a police land rover
Happy, happy days. Even my wife agrees!
Best wishes for Christmas to all.
Happy Memories of Gutersloh
Many happy memories of life at this outstanding base. Served on IV Sqn with a fine bunch of pilots under Eric Smith, and Tony Hopkins. The highlights were winning Royal Flush, the many happy hours in the keller bar, and finishing up as no 4 in the middle of 92 Sqn's diamond nine in my T7, when one of their Lightnings went tech( I had been giving the SMO a famil flight, and he got a lot more than he had bargained for !
The joys of being a batchelor at Gutersloh!! 76-79 on 18 Sqn.
Highlights of OPLL at 50ft agl avoiding the fast jets who seemed to be everywhere.
Taking a Lightning pilot on a famil and demonstrating a hover - asking him if he wanted a go and taking the autostab out while giving control - oh how we laughed as he explored most of the grass area between the runway and pan!! he then said the immortal words "Its not as easy as it looks is it"
Missed my chance of a return trip as the T bird was abandoned after a Hydraulic failure.
Gutersloh KOS and the teachers' parties
Happy memories
HF
Highlights of OPLL at 50ft agl avoiding the fast jets who seemed to be everywhere.
Taking a Lightning pilot on a famil and demonstrating a hover - asking him if he wanted a go and taking the autostab out while giving control - oh how we laughed as he explored most of the grass area between the runway and pan!! he then said the immortal words "Its not as easy as it looks is it"
Missed my chance of a return trip as the T bird was abandoned after a Hydraulic failure.
Gutersloh KOS and the teachers' parties
Happy memories
HF
Out with the old....
It's not too bad now, however the 'fluggies' bar shut, re-opened as 'sammies', shut and has now re-opened as 'paradise bar'....not the type of 'paradise bar' some of you may have been thinking! The pizza place near the gate has moved on, the KGB has shut and a shed load of singley blocks have spouted up. There's no longer a dry ski slope, the swimming pool doesn't get used and the air trooping terminal (1987 vintage?) is a post office...but, hell, it's still Germany 
Have a good new year, I'll sink a few 'wobblys' for you all
Have a good new year, I'll sink a few 'wobblys' for you all
4mastacker,
It wasn't a one-legged landing. The torque link on the port (I think) mainleg had sheared. The leg extended fully and locked down, but the wheel was free to rotate around the vertical axis.
There was much considered debate about whether the leg would fail on landing and whether the pilot should eject. In the event the considered wisdom was that he should land, which he did successfully.
The pilot was Norm Barker and the aircraft returned to flying after a Cat 3 repair.
And yes, Gut was a wonderful place to be in the 70s - the original work hard play hard ethic - happy days!
It wasn't a one-legged landing. The torque link on the port (I think) mainleg had sheared. The leg extended fully and locked down, but the wheel was free to rotate around the vertical axis.
There was much considered debate about whether the leg would fail on landing and whether the pilot should eject. In the event the considered wisdom was that he should land, which he did successfully.
The pilot was Norm Barker and the aircraft returned to flying after a Cat 3 repair.
And yes, Gut was a wonderful place to be in the 70s - the original work hard play hard ethic - happy days!
Thought police antagonist
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Whilst I was never based at Gut, I served there by default as it where ( approx 21 months of the standard singly 30months tour c/o 431MU ) and very enjoyable and profitable it was too.
My thanks to all those who used the 431 "King Edward" distribution service for ehancing my salary at the time....the Canberra guys from the UK being amongst the most regular and well organised customers as I recall
92 didn't have much luck with u/c legs did they......spent about 10months repairing "P" after the left leg sheared on landing, (the aileron went for a can of worms due to an "oops!" moment as well ) ....reason for the accident as I understand it was a spurious fire warning shortly after T/O and a rapid return to Gut after which the leg duly sheared.
Our boss at the time once asked....he was serious as well....as to why he had left Bruggen after us and arrived at Gut before us....not being a regular commuter he was blissfully unware of his troops contribution to the local economy at Recklinghausen restplaz...
My thanks to all those who used the 431 "King Edward" distribution service for ehancing my salary at the time....the Canberra guys from the UK being amongst the most regular and well organised customers as I recall
92 didn't have much luck with u/c legs did they......spent about 10months repairing "P" after the left leg sheared on landing, (the aileron went for a can of worms due to an "oops!" moment as well ) ....reason for the accident as I understand it was a spurious fire warning shortly after T/O and a rapid return to Gut after which the leg duly sheared.
Our boss at the time once asked....he was serious as well....as to why he had left Bruggen after us and arrived at Gut before us....not being a regular commuter he was blissfully unware of his troops contribution to the local economy at Recklinghausen restplaz...