What was your most rubbish det so far?
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What has been your most rubbish det so far?
I am on det myself and I was just thinking about some of the truly terrible places that we as armed forces personnel find ourselves. So to (hopefully) make me feel better about my lot, what is the worst place you have found yourself and why?
HG
p.s Yes I am very bored
HG
p.s Yes I am very bored
Last edited by heights good; 11th Dec 2010 at 06:12.
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Ironically I think the Falklands takes first and last place.
Professionally probably the most challenging and demanding . Just after the war some of the "initiatives" to provide things like running water were a sight to behold. The wildlife was amazing but Island Fever set in after about 4 weeks on both occasions. Loved every minute in retrospect but boy was I glad to leave.
Professionally probably the most challenging and demanding . Just after the war some of the "initiatives" to provide things like running water were a sight to behold. The wildlife was amazing but Island Fever set in after about 4 weeks on both occasions. Loved every minute in retrospect but boy was I glad to leave.
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Basrah.
I know some will have a different view on this. Personally, having 30+ rockets a week thrown at us, in tents designed to last 18 months (4 years after they were set up) with air con that did little to move around 55 degree heat. No real mortar protection in our pods, I absolutely hated every minute there I have to be honest.
Flying was boring, monotonous, and at times, pretty dangerous.
Brize Norton never looked so pretty on our return. Day trips to the deid felt like we were visiting the maldives.
I know some will have a different view on this. Personally, having 30+ rockets a week thrown at us, in tents designed to last 18 months (4 years after they were set up) with air con that did little to move around 55 degree heat. No real mortar protection in our pods, I absolutely hated every minute there I have to be honest.
Flying was boring, monotonous, and at times, pretty dangerous.
Brize Norton never looked so pretty on our return. Day trips to the deid felt like we were visiting the maldives.
Last edited by VinRouge; 10th Dec 2010 at 18:33.
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Definitely when I was in Shaw, South Carolina. A couple of us were 'attached' to a CAOC for a big exercise, nobody knew what we were supposed to do. As in there was nothing for us to do, we mostly sat around on our arses being bored whilst the Sqn flew big sorties against all sorts of fun opposition from some other base.
South Carolina sucks and sumpter is a hole, it was hot and muggy, poured down every afternoon without fail. Our hotel was on a dual carriageway and when we used to walk down the wide (10') grassy strip at the side to get to the pub, the charming fat Sth Carolinese used to beep their horns and hurl abuse ' get off the road' and 'use a ****en car' etc. They could get into their heads that people can walk further from the couch to the fridge and back.
Admittedly it was not mortars and tents, but the fact it was a couple of weeks in the States I was looking forward to made it worse. At least we got leathered and watched 'dodgeball' I suppose.
I really feel sorry for the F16 exchange guys posted to that crap corner of the world.
South Carolina sucks and sumpter is a hole, it was hot and muggy, poured down every afternoon without fail. Our hotel was on a dual carriageway and when we used to walk down the wide (10') grassy strip at the side to get to the pub, the charming fat Sth Carolinese used to beep their horns and hurl abuse ' get off the road' and 'use a ****en car' etc. They could get into their heads that people can walk further from the couch to the fridge and back.
Admittedly it was not mortars and tents, but the fact it was a couple of weeks in the States I was looking forward to made it worse. At least we got leathered and watched 'dodgeball' I suppose.
I really feel sorry for the F16 exchange guys posted to that crap corner of the world.
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Karachi was a bit poo.
http://www.pprune.org/military-aircr...e-karachi.html
Ascoteers Multiple Choice post # 77 / 79
You are tasked with setting up a Forward Base for resupplying the ISAF Brit contingent in Kabul. Do you choose...
a) Bahrain
b) Dubai
c) Muscat
d) Karachi, Pakistan. In a derelict 'hotel' where the e-coli (raw sewage) count in the water is 1000 times the permitted level and you are advised to keep your eyes shut in the shower...which fills up with the contents of your toilet when you flush. Where malaria and dysentry are rife. Where suicide bombers are active and have publicly annonunced your presence as their main target, but go for the softer target of some French ex-pats. Where the security guards are paid about a quid a day, supplemented by money from blackmail, drugs and prostitution...and are insufficiently trained to be allowed live ammo. Where home made mortar bombs fly over the site when you are sat in the pool (the only saving grace)...until the pool man accidentally back flushes the filter contents back into the pool, making it unfit for use. Using an airfield which flight path takes you close to a large refugee camp full of, wait for it, Afghanistanis who have fled over the border. Where the airport security guards relentlessly question you about your take off time, POB, destination etc. (very suspicious) Where your destination base, Kabul, is safer than your operating base. Where you have to wear long trousers to avoid offending the locals..whereas they think nothing of crapping in the streets. Where your Belgian, Greek and Portugese colleages are on $50 a day UN pay and you are on a few quid LSSA and a phonecard. (And the Greeks aren't flying having been shot at)
And where the overall cost of your stay is more than that at a), b) or c)
Correction to previous post - The Greeks stopped flying because the Belgians got shot at.
http://www.pprune.org/military-aircr...-choice-4.html
When PPRuNe was more fun
http://www.pprune.org/military-aircr...e-karachi.html
Ascoteers Multiple Choice post # 77 / 79
You are tasked with setting up a Forward Base for resupplying the ISAF Brit contingent in Kabul. Do you choose...
a) Bahrain
b) Dubai
c) Muscat
d) Karachi, Pakistan. In a derelict 'hotel' where the e-coli (raw sewage) count in the water is 1000 times the permitted level and you are advised to keep your eyes shut in the shower...which fills up with the contents of your toilet when you flush. Where malaria and dysentry are rife. Where suicide bombers are active and have publicly annonunced your presence as their main target, but go for the softer target of some French ex-pats. Where the security guards are paid about a quid a day, supplemented by money from blackmail, drugs and prostitution...and are insufficiently trained to be allowed live ammo. Where home made mortar bombs fly over the site when you are sat in the pool (the only saving grace)...until the pool man accidentally back flushes the filter contents back into the pool, making it unfit for use. Using an airfield which flight path takes you close to a large refugee camp full of, wait for it, Afghanistanis who have fled over the border. Where the airport security guards relentlessly question you about your take off time, POB, destination etc. (very suspicious) Where your destination base, Kabul, is safer than your operating base. Where you have to wear long trousers to avoid offending the locals..whereas they think nothing of crapping in the streets. Where your Belgian, Greek and Portugese colleages are on $50 a day UN pay and you are on a few quid LSSA and a phonecard. (And the Greeks aren't flying having been shot at)
And where the overall cost of your stay is more than that at a), b) or c)
_____________________________
...and at this time, India and Pakistan are threatening to go to war. Well known and published analysis states that any war will involve India destroying Pakistans main port, that is, a first strike, possibly nuclear, on KARACHI. And another thing, (more importantly) the Army that are running the place only allow the self run bar to be open for a couple of hours in the evening. Seeing as you take off at dusk, every night, you are unable to enjoy a relaxing beer, made all the worse as you brought the bonded store over in the first place.Correction to previous post - The Greeks stopped flying because the Belgians got shot at.
http://www.pprune.org/military-aircr...-choice-4.html
When PPRuNe was more fun
Last edited by SirPeterHardingsLovechild; 10th Dec 2010 at 19:06.
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In order:
Albania, specifically Tirana
Tashkent
Spending 4 days (for a trip that should have taken 8 hours) sharing the inside of a friggin' C130 with a ship's engine, never being allowed to move more than a wingspan away from the aircraft (wrong country!!)
An arbitrary bit of North Western Greece
Cairo West AB
Comparatively, Basra and Bagram were rather nice (you know - food, water, ablutions etc)
Albania, specifically Tirana
Tashkent
Spending 4 days (for a trip that should have taken 8 hours) sharing the inside of a friggin' C130 with a ship's engine, never being allowed to move more than a wingspan away from the aircraft (wrong country!!)
An arbitrary bit of North Western Greece
Cairo West AB
Comparatively, Basra and Bagram were rather nice (you know - food, water, ablutions etc)
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The Deid.
And yes, I know it is/was(?) relatively speaking the Maldives, but on my list of 'where was I when...' moments I vividly remember being sat in Ops (which sounds much grander than a knackered portakabin at the edge of the vast US 'Ops Town') one morning at 0330 and thinking there was more to life than this.
Whilst not in any way dangerous, The Deid was the haunt of many a thrusting JO who was given a simple but essentially non-job brief, but was close enough to the resident 1* to think that a 4-month surge of wankerism would help achieve promotion. Many of these sycophants tours could be plotted on a 4-month timeline as they glided from initial 'stupid/unrealistic ideas' phase through to 'leave the replacement a crap job I started' just before taking their career and integrity vacuum back home.
Faced with more of this sort of bolleaux in future, but with the very real likelihood that the same morons might be in a warzone one day - perhaps even on promotion - I took the safe route and put my notice in at the start of the economic downturn.
Haven't looked back
And yes, I know it is/was(?) relatively speaking the Maldives, but on my list of 'where was I when...' moments I vividly remember being sat in Ops (which sounds much grander than a knackered portakabin at the edge of the vast US 'Ops Town') one morning at 0330 and thinking there was more to life than this.
Whilst not in any way dangerous, The Deid was the haunt of many a thrusting JO who was given a simple but essentially non-job brief, but was close enough to the resident 1* to think that a 4-month surge of wankerism would help achieve promotion. Many of these sycophants tours could be plotted on a 4-month timeline as they glided from initial 'stupid/unrealistic ideas' phase through to 'leave the replacement a crap job I started' just before taking their career and integrity vacuum back home.
Faced with more of this sort of bolleaux in future, but with the very real likelihood that the same morons might be in a warzone one day - perhaps even on promotion - I took the safe route and put my notice in at the start of the economic downturn.
Haven't looked back
The movers in the Falklands (it's about time somebody had a go at the movers, isn't it?) used to hold up large banners saying 'Welcome to Hell' as the airbridge taxied in and the pax disembarked. They certainly got hell as a result - on the same flight as me were some of the luminaries of the Falklands Govt, who weren't at all impressed and communicated their displeasure to CBFFI. The katabatic flow of brown stuff was rapid and large!
the haunt of many a thrusting JO who was given a simple but essentially non-job brief, but was close enough to the resident 1* to think that a 4-month surge of wankerism would help achieve promotion.
Can I vote for you for CDS?
Backseat
Then you didn't discover "Shag Club" in Sumter then?
My worst place has got to FOB Robinson - at that point I thought I would never moan about an Air Force Det ever again!
iRaven
Definitely when I was in Shaw, South Carolina.
My worst place has got to FOB Robinson - at that point I thought I would never moan about an Air Force Det ever again!
iRaven
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p.s Yes I am very bored
PS, My most horrible detachment was……..I never had one, they were always brill in their own way. As long as you had a bit of banter none of them were bad.
PPS, Dallas, Cracking post
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Prilep.
F***ing hot tent, Ops room was a toilet (a real one) and bored out of my tiny mind. We gave it to the Canadians and laughed all the way to Skopje. Another crap place. Heaven was an Irish registered A310 going home and the hosties were uniformly pphhwwaarrrrrrrrrrrrr! (Are there any ugly Irish girls? I don't think so.)
Anyone remember the Tupolev departure at Skopje? We called him the MiG driver because as he lifted on an Northerly departure he slammed it into a 90 right with the gear still travelling going like snot.
And I echo Vin's words re Basrah. Especially the specialy armoured tents
Now I know we wern't getting it as bad as the folks downtown but no one slept much on camp; I felt better at work as at least it was concrete. Got bracketed one night by 107's, got a tent near us. Not a good place at all. Eventually it messed with my mind a bit, delayed action wibble at home; Doc was brilliant, got me de-fused quick and been out for more since.
F***ing hot tent, Ops room was a toilet (a real one) and bored out of my tiny mind. We gave it to the Canadians and laughed all the way to Skopje. Another crap place. Heaven was an Irish registered A310 going home and the hosties were uniformly pphhwwaarrrrrrrrrrrrr! (Are there any ugly Irish girls? I don't think so.)
Anyone remember the Tupolev departure at Skopje? We called him the MiG driver because as he lifted on an Northerly departure he slammed it into a 90 right with the gear still travelling going like snot.
And I echo Vin's words re Basrah. Especially the specialy armoured tents
Now I know we wern't getting it as bad as the folks downtown but no one slept much on camp; I felt better at work as at least it was concrete. Got bracketed one night by 107's, got a tent near us. Not a good place at all. Eventually it messed with my mind a bit, delayed action wibble at home; Doc was brilliant, got me de-fused quick and been out for more since.
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(Slight drift) The deployment that never was:
Many moons ago, as a trainee at RAF Locking, a recall was initiated for a TACEVAL. We all reported to the trg hangar with 14 days kit at 'stupid' o'clock. Our 'role' was to defend St Mawgan and we were all to be bussed there. Only we weren't, the 100's of us sat on the hangar floor, in 2's, pretending we were on a coach to St Mawgan (a surreal moment). The only light relief was when the staff inspected everyone's kit only to find an SAC's kit bag filled with styrofoam.
Many moons ago, as a trainee at RAF Locking, a recall was initiated for a TACEVAL. We all reported to the trg hangar with 14 days kit at 'stupid' o'clock. Our 'role' was to defend St Mawgan and we were all to be bussed there. Only we weren't, the 100's of us sat on the hangar floor, in 2's, pretending we were on a coach to St Mawgan (a surreal moment). The only light relief was when the staff inspected everyone's kit only to find an SAC's kit bag filled with styrofoam.
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Ahh simple..... Raf StAthans...... 1976.. middle of the night and the fires on the Breacon Beacons, sent up into the middle of nowhere where the tinder dry scrub was on fire and given beaters to put out any fires that came our way, as the fire approached we beat out any scrub that was on fire to see showers of sparks from the said beating spread far and wide in the wind resulting in 10 times the amount of fires we had before we started...
Reminds me of the Simpsons when I look back on it..... eventually we took up peeing on it and the sight of 30 odd trainees like abreast p*ssing on Wales to save it still gives me a chuckle.... I can safely say from a fire point of view we left that hill with more fires than when wee arrived........
Other highlights.......... Sennybridge in winter and raining......... I wouldn't wish that place on anyone.
Reminds me of the Simpsons when I look back on it..... eventually we took up peeing on it and the sight of 30 odd trainees like abreast p*ssing on Wales to save it still gives me a chuckle.... I can safely say from a fire point of view we left that hill with more fires than when wee arrived........
Other highlights.......... Sennybridge in winter and raining......... I wouldn't wish that place on anyone.
Avoid imitations
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The one in Germany where we arrived in our Puma in June, only to find no-one there. Should have been a fairly major army exercise in progress.
Having exhausted all possibilities, including checking to see that they hadn't muddled up the RV grid ref. with the telephone number, we eventually had no other option but to start up and RTB.
The tasking cell said they would investigate. Eventually they fronted up and told us they had sent us a month early, should have been July.
Having exhausted all possibilities, including checking to see that they hadn't muddled up the RV grid ref. with the telephone number, we eventually had no other option but to start up and RTB.
The tasking cell said they would investigate. Eventually they fronted up and told us they had sent us a month early, should have been July.
Fat Albert
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Leck, Northern Germany 1988
The JEngO on Tatty Ton did a 'deal' with our rates so that we could use the conscripts faciliies
Sixteen man rooms in the conscript block with triple deck bunk beds and blitz rations.
It threw it down for the entire week. Even the Oktoberfest was a washout.
Far worse and far more dangerous places out there now I know, but in the 'comfortable' pre Gulf War One days it was a bit of a culture shock.
The JEngO on Tatty Ton did a 'deal' with our rates so that we could use the conscripts faciliies
Sixteen man rooms in the conscript block with triple deck bunk beds and blitz rations.
It threw it down for the entire week. Even the Oktoberfest was a washout.
Far worse and far more dangerous places out there now I know, but in the 'comfortable' pre Gulf War One days it was a bit of a culture shock.
Last edited by C130 Techie; 10th Dec 2010 at 21:36.
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The JEngO on Tatty Ton did a 'deal' with our rates so that we could use the conscripts faciliies