The Good Old Days...
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I admit it was rare to see it done and that was because there were additional risks...I have 48 Box Landings in my logbook
Here is a picture of us practicing the box landing at Wunstorf before going down to Rhodesia:-
It's from the book "Venom" by David Watkins.
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We are all formating on the leader as usual, but I in the box call the "Power Off" to make sure I get it done first. Naturally, I hit the ground first and then the others carry on downwards to touch down around me. I already have my fingers on the brake lever and formation is maintained on the landing rollout with twitches of brake...Just the same as any other formation landing.
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Just seen this - many thanks for posting the photos. Brings back memories of school at the Duke of York Nairobi, and watching first the Venoms and then the Hunters of 208 practice for the annual agricultural show. The show ground was near the school and I can still hear the sound of Hunters on the blue note as they flew overhead. Probably sparked my interest and subsequent time in the RAF.
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Just seen this - many thanks for posting the photos. Brings back memories of school at the Duke of York Nairobi, and watching first the Venoms and then the Hunters of 208 practice for the annual agricultural show. The show ground was near the school and I can still hear the sound of Hunters on the blue note as they flew overhead. Probably sparked my interest and subsequent time in the RAF.
I think back to that period of nearly three years as the best in my life
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So you should...but so did a lot of people at Eastleigh, a Station which seems to attract very little comment on these pages, yet was a very busy airfield at times. Not only were you and your mates carving holes in the sky, but there were visiting Canberras from just about everywhere that had them, plus all sorts of aircraft. We even had the occasional Valiant until one overnighter sank into the tarmac. I can recall ringing the bell at the Officers Mess and asking to speak to the Captain of said Valiant to advise him he might want to move his bird to a concrete pad. I don't think Eastleigh had anything which would tow a Valiant! There was an all-white Canberra which appeared from Aden now and then, piloted by one Jonny Johnson I think.
They also used to land Comets at Eastleigh, until someone one day heard the mud hitting the flaps [Eastleigh was unsealed] and decided Embakasi was the better strip for such aircraft. The runway was in constant state of repair by Works and Bricks, with scrapers and rollers out there all the time in the dry season. Those vehicles were cleared fom the runway by the very high-tech method of a controller leaning out of the tower window telling "Bang the gong" at an ancient African gentleman who sat in a shed holding a lump of metal with which he hit a suspended CO2 cylinder. He must have had the worst case of tinitus known to man.
Eastleigh was very laid back as I recall, the CO being a South African Gp Capt, in 1958 at least, later replaced by an Air Commodore whom I appeared in front of on my one and only ever charge as an airman. He dimissed me, and bollocked the Cpl who had charged me for wasting his time. What an air force it was.
They also used to land Comets at Eastleigh, until someone one day heard the mud hitting the flaps [Eastleigh was unsealed] and decided Embakasi was the better strip for such aircraft. The runway was in constant state of repair by Works and Bricks, with scrapers and rollers out there all the time in the dry season. Those vehicles were cleared fom the runway by the very high-tech method of a controller leaning out of the tower window telling "Bang the gong" at an ancient African gentleman who sat in a shed holding a lump of metal with which he hit a suspended CO2 cylinder. He must have had the worst case of tinitus known to man.
Eastleigh was very laid back as I recall, the CO being a South African Gp Capt, in 1958 at least, later replaced by an Air Commodore whom I appeared in front of on my one and only ever charge as an airman. He dimissed me, and bollocked the Cpl who had charged me for wasting his time. What an air force it was.
I thoroughly enjoyed looking at those pictures.I wasn't born for another ten years so I can't say they brought back memories but they gave me a nostalgiac glow nevertheless.I often think one lifetime isn't really enough.
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That Standard "Flying 9",[ a misnomer if ever there was one, the 9 referring somewhat wishfully to the number of horses under the bonnet] brings back a few memories because I was one of as group of four or five airmen who owned an identical car, same colour! I don't recall who we sold it to, though 25 quid sounds like a bargain.
We went through a number of cars, because collective ownership was cheap but they were all past their best: there was a Humber Super Snipe, a MK 7 Jaguar, and Austin A40 Sports, and a Citroen Big Six. Driving on corrugated Kenya roads in that Standard was interesting to say the least!
We went through a number of cars, because collective ownership was cheap but they were all past their best: there was a Humber Super Snipe, a MK 7 Jaguar, and Austin A40 Sports, and a Citroen Big Six. Driving on corrugated Kenya roads in that Standard was interesting to say the least!
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That Standard "Flying 9",[ a misnomer if ever there was one, the 9 referring somewhat wishfully to the number of horses under the bonnet] brings back a few memories because I was one of as group of four or five airmen who owned an identical car, same colour! I don't recall who we sold it to, though 25 quid sounds like a bargain.
We went through a number of cars, because collective ownership was cheap but they were all past their best: there was a Humber Super Snipe, a MK 7 Jaguar, and Austin A40 Sports, and a Citroen Big Six. Driving on corrugated Kenya roads in that Standard was interesting to say the least!
We went through a number of cars, because collective ownership was cheap but they were all past their best: there was a Humber Super Snipe, a MK 7 Jaguar, and Austin A40 Sports, and a Citroen Big Six. Driving on corrugated Kenya roads in that Standard was interesting to say the least!
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Peter Mc
Many thanks for the wonderful pics, brought back many memories of good looking a/c.
I was at Istres and Orange, in 57 and 58, 'saw through' many Hunters and Venoms.
A lot of the Hunters were for the Indian Air Force.
Many thanks for the wonderful pics, brought back many memories of good looking a/c.
I was at Istres and Orange, in 57 and 58, 'saw through' many Hunters and Venoms.
A lot of the Hunters were for the Indian Air Force.
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I remember being turfed out of a hangar there for "spying" on a secret Leduc 010!
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Peter Mc
The French were still playing around with a Leduc when I got to Istres in 57.
They used to inject smoke into the ramjet and it litrerally blew smoke rings
Happy Daze
The French were still playing around with a Leduc when I got to Istres in 57.
They used to inject smoke into the ramjet and it litrerally blew smoke rings
Happy Daze
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Surprisingly, I don't think anyone got killed flying that infernal machine
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The one I saw took off from a trolley that ran on rails, alongside the regular runway and landed on skids.
This site has a write up on the Leduc program and some of the photo's are at Istres : Leduc, the test flights
There was also one of the Languedoc 'launch' a/c parked at Istres all of my stay, I never saw it used.
As you say, it was a terrifying m/c. As for security, in my time we never got anywhere close to it and the RAF Liaison Party was moved to Orange in May 58. There was some talk about the move being a 'security' thing.
At Orange the French had one squadron of Mystre IVb's. 2/5 escadron de chasse.
As a matter of interest, I still have my Laissez-Passer for Orange! But I think I look a little different to the 52 year old photo, so they probably wouldn't let me in today
This site has a write up on the Leduc program and some of the photo's are at Istres : Leduc, the test flights
There was also one of the Languedoc 'launch' a/c parked at Istres all of my stay, I never saw it used.
As you say, it was a terrifying m/c. As for security, in my time we never got anywhere close to it and the RAF Liaison Party was moved to Orange in May 58. There was some talk about the move being a 'security' thing.
At Orange the French had one squadron of Mystre IVb's. 2/5 escadron de chasse.
As a matter of interest, I still have my Laissez-Passer for Orange! But I think I look a little different to the 52 year old photo, so they probably wouldn't let me in today
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The one I saw took off from a trolley that ran on rails, alongside the regular runway and landed on skids.
This site has a write up on the Leduc program and some of the photo's are at Istres : Leduc, the test flights
This site has a write up on the Leduc program and some of the photo's are at Istres : Leduc, the test flights
Thanks for that pointer to the test flights...Yes, it was this one that I saw there:-
http://aerostories.free.fr/construct...educ010_05.JPG
The prone pilot's head was between those two horizontal windows in the nose...How would you like to position and land a glider with only those views available. Brave chaps!!
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208 Squadron to Kenya...
Here is the text of an email that I just sent to my surviving squadron buddies and I thought I would post it here as it contains the URLs of all six HD videos (two of which have been updated) and a set of instructions on how to watch them if your bandwidth is not really up to it:-
The 208 Squadron Hunters on the restored concrete strip at Embakasi Airport, Nairobi, in Flight Simulator.
Well I managed to persuade my 12 Hunters to fly from Stradishall to Nairobi with the same legs that they used 50 years ago in 1960...I also managed to do it on the same days...1st, 2nd and 3rd June. I know that we had our fours flying separately but it would have been a bit boring in fours so I sent them as a 12 ship battle formation of three fours. I've been unable to establish exactly who flew in which four but here is how they are split in my simulation:-
Red section...Boss Ramirez, Tim Cohu, Pete Biddiscombe and Dicky Brown.
Blue section...Mac McLeland, Alastair Macnab, Pete Tate and Stu Grieve.
Green section...Des Melaniphy, Flick Hennessey, Dinga Bell and Huck Sawyer.
I put together some video clips taken on each leg and published a YouTube Video for each leg...so six videos.
The only pilots flying in this are AI (Artificial Intelligence) Pilots in the Traffic versions of the Hunters...I went along in REAL time by "Attaching" myself to one or other of the twelve and viewing (and videoing) from that position or from the ground for the take-offs and landings. The initial take-off from Stradishall is a rather unrealistic "Squadron scramble" but all the other take-offs are realistic stream take-offs in fours. The breaks for landing are from Battle Formation Fours except the final one at Nairobi where they get to use Echelon Fours for the break. Landings are all stream landings in fours but the spacing is a bit closer than real and even becomes close formation for the odd pair or three!
The videos are all YouTube HD and will only stream properly if you have enough bandwidth on your Broadband...If they won't run for you and keep stopping then see my note at the bottom about a good method to watch without interuptions. Each video runs for about 8 or 9 minutes.
These HD YouTube videos are best viewed with the resolution clicked up to 1080p and the Picture Size icon clicked to the larger size...You can even click on the Full Screen icon but on my very large monitor it looks sharper with the previously described setting.
Here are the six videos:-
Stradishall to Luqa:-
YouTube - 208toMalta1080.wmv
Luqa to Nicosia:-
YouTube - 208toCyprus1080new.wmv
Nicosia to Tehran:-
YouTube - 208toTehran1080new.wmv
Tehran to Sharjah:-
YouTube - 208toSharjah1080.wmv
Sharjah to Khormaksar:-
YouTube - 208toKhormaksar1080.wmv
Khormaksar to Nairobi:-
YouTube - 208toNairobi1080.wmv
NOTE ON HOW TO WATCH WITHOUT INTERUPTIONS.
1. Click on the URL to get your chosen video.
2. The moment the YouTube viewing screen showsclick the icon at the bottom left of the screen to STOP.
3. Go to the icon on the right for resolution and click it up to 1080p.
4. Click the two arrowed icon to the right of the resolution icon to select the largest of the two screen sizes.
5. Note that the video is STOPPED at the moment but it is still downloading as indicated by the PINK band moving slowly to the right, down on the left bottom edge.
6. Wait to allow this PINK band to move a couple of inches to the right (let it move to the bottom left corner of the image and then about the same distance again).
7. Click the icon at the bottom left of the screen to PLAY...It should now play from start to finish without interuption.
The 208 Squadron Hunters on the restored concrete strip at Embakasi Airport, Nairobi, in Flight Simulator.
Well I managed to persuade my 12 Hunters to fly from Stradishall to Nairobi with the same legs that they used 50 years ago in 1960...I also managed to do it on the same days...1st, 2nd and 3rd June. I know that we had our fours flying separately but it would have been a bit boring in fours so I sent them as a 12 ship battle formation of three fours. I've been unable to establish exactly who flew in which four but here is how they are split in my simulation:-
Red section...Boss Ramirez, Tim Cohu, Pete Biddiscombe and Dicky Brown.
Blue section...Mac McLeland, Alastair Macnab, Pete Tate and Stu Grieve.
Green section...Des Melaniphy, Flick Hennessey, Dinga Bell and Huck Sawyer.
I put together some video clips taken on each leg and published a YouTube Video for each leg...so six videos.
The only pilots flying in this are AI (Artificial Intelligence) Pilots in the Traffic versions of the Hunters...I went along in REAL time by "Attaching" myself to one or other of the twelve and viewing (and videoing) from that position or from the ground for the take-offs and landings. The initial take-off from Stradishall is a rather unrealistic "Squadron scramble" but all the other take-offs are realistic stream take-offs in fours. The breaks for landing are from Battle Formation Fours except the final one at Nairobi where they get to use Echelon Fours for the break. Landings are all stream landings in fours but the spacing is a bit closer than real and even becomes close formation for the odd pair or three!
The videos are all YouTube HD and will only stream properly if you have enough bandwidth on your Broadband...If they won't run for you and keep stopping then see my note at the bottom about a good method to watch without interuptions. Each video runs for about 8 or 9 minutes.
These HD YouTube videos are best viewed with the resolution clicked up to 1080p and the Picture Size icon clicked to the larger size...You can even click on the Full Screen icon but on my very large monitor it looks sharper with the previously described setting.
Here are the six videos:-
Stradishall to Luqa:-
YouTube - 208toMalta1080.wmv
Luqa to Nicosia:-
YouTube - 208toCyprus1080new.wmv
Nicosia to Tehran:-
YouTube - 208toTehran1080new.wmv
Tehran to Sharjah:-
YouTube - 208toSharjah1080.wmv
Sharjah to Khormaksar:-
YouTube - 208toKhormaksar1080.wmv
Khormaksar to Nairobi:-
YouTube - 208toNairobi1080.wmv
NOTE ON HOW TO WATCH WITHOUT INTERUPTIONS.
1. Click on the URL to get your chosen video.
2. The moment the YouTube viewing screen showsclick the icon at the bottom left of the screen to STOP.
3. Go to the icon on the right for resolution and click it up to 1080p.
4. Click the two arrowed icon to the right of the resolution icon to select the largest of the two screen sizes.
5. Note that the video is STOPPED at the moment but it is still downloading as indicated by the PINK band moving slowly to the right, down on the left bottom edge.
6. Wait to allow this PINK band to move a couple of inches to the right (let it move to the bottom left corner of the image and then about the same distance again).
7. Click the icon at the bottom left of the screen to PLAY...It should now play from start to finish without interuption.
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I have fond memories of 'socialising' with 208 in Sharjah in '69-'70. I was on 210 Sqn (Shacks) & 208 used to visit from Bahrain for a month's APC using the range just south of Dubai.