SHFNI Stories!

[Oldsarbouy]

XR518

XR518 was indeed a yellow SAR cab and the one which picked up myself and P**L R******N up from Creag Meagaidh,near Fort Bill,after we parked our Sea King there on it's side and minus most of the sticky out bits! Don't know where it got the cam finish from, maybe it ended it's flying days at Shawbury.

[Tiger_mate]

2FTS (Shawbury) aircraft were never painted two-tone green. Therefore the aircraft must have been re-roled SH either with Sixty at Benson or 72 at Aldergrove. A guess would be Aldergrove as I am sure a yellow cab was seen there for a short time and they had a need of SAR cabs for their SAR cover.

[Bertie Thruster]

I think this is the Creag Meagaidh pickup (from a convenient 'step') that Oldsarbouy mentioned.

[PhamousPhotographer]

XR518

A guess would be Aldergrove as I am sure a yellow cab was seen there for a short time and they had a need of SAR cabs for their SAR cover.

Not yellow, but -



Never saw her in yellow livery, but I think this is what you’re looking for. S*** H****d makes a point to P*** M***s as they walk in from RAF Aldergrove dispersal after a SAR practice flight. I think 518 was the first dedicated SAR cab that 72 operated – note additional aerials, etc – but will defer to those who know. The 72 SAR line long pre-dated her arrival, and is still badly missed here as I’ve noted on other posts.

[Oldsarbouy]

XR518

BT, yes that indeed was the incident.
I was on 72 1991 to 1992 and can't find 518 in my log book. Also the photo taken at Aldergrove has a bubble window in the cabin door which wasn't fitted during my time there. As I recall the SAR standby aircraft was called the 813 cab as that was the spot it was always parked on. Ahh, happy days!

[Pink Panther]

A loose connection with SHFNI, but the above yellow Wessex gets a look in in the last episode "sting in the tail". Watched these over the last few nights, hadn't seen them for a while. Good stuff.


YouTube - Rescue

[lsd]

XR 518

Aaah!! August 5 1967 Jim Clark and I were target practice for the locals near Habilayn in the Radfan. At 90 kts. and 1000'agl they put at least 3 bullets in us (so we were lucky compared to to time they got 3 hits out of about 4/5 shots at guys moving around the camp one day). One went up thro' the cabin, missing the stick leaders spine by inches (pre metric days then!) and out thro' the gearbox deck with no significant damage; the other two went into the tail pylon and all but severed the tail rotor control cables, but hitting the turnbuckle and removing about 90% of it left enough to retain control to stagger on from Al Ma'amir to the strip.
Flew up spares and engineers and fixed that day. Can't recall much of an airtest or paperwork, just get on with it and a couple of beers that evening.
So fond memories of this particular Wessex, glad to hear she continued to look after crews for years.
A toast to the Queen of the Skies that never let me down despite my use and abuse in 3000hrs.
cheers, lsd

[PhamousPhotographer]

XR518

I was on 72 1991 to 1992 and can't find 518 in my log book.

Going through my notes again and have the date of that last one as 21st August 1995. From memory, 518 arrived re-painted, but retained all the former 22 Sqn kit - note the additional lamps under the tailboom, on the winch and u/c leg (both sides?) - as well as the radio fit and that bubble window as noted by Oldsarbuoy. Flotation boots, hidden by the trolley, were fitted to the mainwheels, along with the inflated one in the tail bay. Unlike the squadron's other line cabs which rotated on SAR turns, I believe 518 was kept on 'A' Flt specifically for SAR duties rather than everyday SH tasking. I think the squadron only retained her for a matter of months before transfer to Sixty. She was certainly gone by 1996. Corrections welcome if I'm wrong with any of this.

Another one of the same cab / same day to follow, but a couple of things to check first.

[The Helpful Stacker]

Wasn't '518' the Wessex kept by 60 Sqn after the types retirement from Shawbury for ground instructional duties?

[Yozzer]

Dons anorak:

XR516/V Sixty Sqn colours. Almost certain that this was in fact a 2FTS machine that was repainted (vice a crate of beer) for Sixty Sqn at Shawbury. The previous 2FTS Wsx (dressed up as 'Aires') gate guard was on loan from a private source at Hixon, Staffordshire and thus returned.

Doffs anorak: ...and relax.........

[RUCAWO]

Anyone know the background to this one, photographed in the Isle of Man ,July 93 on its way to Aldergrove, 60 Sqn markings and Rescue removed.

[941]

XR518

Slightly off the SHNFI track but I have a picture of XR518, 72 Sqn "D" Flt Manston 1974 with white bone domes and cold running nose door! How do I post a picture?

[Motleycallsign]

XR 518 appears in my logbook between Apr and Jun '74 as an 18 Sqn a/c at Guetersloh.

[Fareastdriver]

Seems like lots of XR518s. Reminds me of when 66 Sqn was disbanded at Seleter. They dragged out the war reserve Belvedere from the MU to break up and found it had the same serial number as one of the squadron's aircraft.

[Yozzer]

same serial number as one of the squadron's aircraft.

One member of the present Puma fleet has three serials to its heritage even if only one is painted on the tailboom. The top half (or rather 2/3) of the cabin having been to the seabed (English Channel), joined to the bottom of another that rolled and caught fire in Belize; all married up to the tailboom of a third one.

I knew that one SAR cab was flown by an SH Sqn when the Sea King fleet assumed all SAR inc training. Thought it was 72 but looking at the photo above, it was Sixty.

[941]

XR518

XR 518 did indeed come to us from Germany when we formed "D" flight of 72 Sqn at Manston in September 74. We also had the dreaded XR 501 which had an engine failure at least once a month and XT 602, I think it was, that always limped around the sky until someone discovered that one the big metal bolts holding the main gearbox on was broken!
Pictures by 103sqn - Photobucket

[Paul Chocks]

XR518 appears to have been on 72 until Jun 96 at least (that's when I last flew it). PP is correct in that it was a standard SAR cab painted green. If I recall, it had no defensive equipment at all. Can't remember if this was the reason it was withdrawn (ceasefire ended in Feb '96) - great machine though, they all were - Queen of the Skies! Happy Days.

[tomdocherty72]

518

Flew sorties in 518 many times at Aldergrove and other bases in the Province in '95 and '96. It was not there in '94.

[Tiger Tales]

I have been reading this thread with some interest since the beginning and finally decided to join in. It has brought back some fantastic memories, some great, some not so great.
A big thank you to PhamousPhotographer, who I remember very well from back in the day, for posting some of his fantastic records and photographs.
To see what has become of the FOBs, HLSs and Golf Towers is a real eye opener. It had to happen, but it still seems bizarre to see what became of them!
Anyway, in no particular order, some of the things that come to mind and might help jog other peoples memories of days gone by:

Aldergrove
The 'Happy Bus' going Northside
The 'Sad Bus' coming Southside
The Tiger's Lair
The Swift Retreat
The Rose Bowl on a Friday night!!
J.K's- I remember A.U being a regular patron of the Scooby Doo Burger (which had to be seen to be believed-it could harden arteries just by looking at it!)
The Top Corridor in the Mess- doors open, linked up chatrooms on certain websites (long before FaceSpace had been invented)
Helping organise the 2001 Mini Tiger Meet- NATO invades Belfast! (more to come later)

Down Town
Sponsored visits to RUC HQ! (never seem to remember the journey home!)
Shopping in Belfast at the weekend- turning right out of Queen's Castle car park! Only did it the once, after admiring the lovely murals on the blocks of flats!
The Fly!
'Mauds' for a Pooh Bear on the way home.
Temple P curry house where a certain Crewman would only order Omelette and chips!
Knutts Corner market to pick up the latest Cds and DVDs (allegedly!)

Armagh/South Armagh
MBP checks (in the Summer-you now what I mean!)
Calling Buzzard to put the kettle on when 2 minutes out
Under wires transits!!
"Red 850 Up the Tube, Red 850"
Confined Area landing in the Garden!
Hearing a GPMG open up on the pad!! (Outgoing-ish!)
Dropping a bollock (right outside the fence when a donk when bang!)
IMC road moves (How mad was that looking back on it?!)

The Greens
Rab and his 'special' deals!
Pizza deliveries at the gate for 10
Watching a Puma on the CCTV trying to imitate a Lynx landing on the HLS (ie no gear)
The Crewmans "stash" in the upstairs cell (often liberated back from the pilot's rooms)
Hiding the Sky card from TWA because you could
The 'lough run' from the South
The 'lough run' out to the North
Ambushing the romantics (don't think 'dogging' had been invented then?) at the car park lookout from below.
Border lottery at Belleek and Belcoo
Quarry visits with some interesting Underslung Loads and Paddy the Quarryman (same old boy appeared everywhere!)


Anyway, hopefully that has raised a few smiles! There must be hundreds more that haven't been mentioned (some probably shouldn't be!!) so would love to see them.

Tiger, Tiger, Tiger

Tweet,Tweet,Tweet

*Apologies for all the exclamation marks but they seem appropriate

[Rude C'man]

jerome the Dome
greeny RIP
Wally RIP
The Dingannon NVG simulator , the U/S fridge
The Dungannon Water heater U/s best banter I ever saw
Dungannon bullet holes , thanks TSW
POD snoring
Mr Blobby biscuit barrel
and the Famous nav qoute " Ive never been lost with a crewman on board ! "
Ah what a place work hard play hard especially after a Swift session driving down the O 's mess playing dodgems, then trying to explain the bar bills at the subsequent Courts marshall !!
Cresta Run Armagh , fishing at Armagh
Suzie the copper and Trina the stewardess !!