RAF Waddington 1960 "Delta 8-3"
The Delta 83 documentary players which I recognize are Neddy Claypham, Mike Pilkington, John Sewell and the Groupie was, I believe, Bootsie Griffiths. Mike Pilkington eventually became an Air Marshal with a knighthood as CinC Training Command. My own captain whose crew I joined as co-pilot in Finnigley in 1962 was Colin Adams who took part in the documentary but not shown on the stills here. I joined 83 Sqn which was then at Scampton.
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
John, I agree the staish looks like Boots but Boots was the station cdr in '67, probably from '65 or '66. He was replaced by Charles Maughan in turn replaced by Mike D'Arcy in '69.
You seem to have aged well, I don't remember you as only 4 years old than me
You seem to have aged well, I don't remember you as only 4 years old than me
PN
I'm afraid that your memory is playing tricks: Mike D'Arcy replaced Bootsie in 69. I'm fairly certain Charles Maughan preceded Bootsie. The period you suggest for Bootsie being station commander was probably when he was OC 101 - **** off Capp et al.
I'm afraid that your memory is playing tricks: Mike D'Arcy replaced Bootsie in 69. I'm fairly certain Charles Maughan preceded Bootsie. The period you suggest for Bootsie being station commander was probably when he was OC 101 - **** off Capp et al.
I'm afraid that your memory is playing tricks: Mike D'Arcy replaced Bootsie in 69. I'm fairly certain Charles Maughan preceded Bootsie. The period you suggest for Bootsie being station commander was probably when he was OC 101 - **** off Capp et al.
I wonder if the **** off Capp incident is apocryphal ( although it would be in character!) as I have heard it credited to Joe(?) Bradley when he was OC 50.
Good days - looking back!
YS
I don't own this space under my name. I should have leased it while I still could
Yes, you are right, I was fortunate that CCM left soon after I arrived and the larger part of my tour was with Boots. I then had a near death experience with Mike d'Arcy - not his fault but he was the operating pilot, but that is another story.
On the CCM-Boots bit, I was summonsed to the staish's office to change the safe combination on their handover. CCM gave me a piece of paper with his combination. I opened the safe and cleared the combination. Boots then gave me a piece of paper and I reset the combination.
I still remember the numbers of each - 44 - 50 - 01. I never told either that they were using exactly the same numbers
The only thing in the safe, IIRC, were the duplicate keys to the SSA bunkers.
On the CCM-Boots bit, I was summonsed to the staish's office to change the safe combination on their handover. CCM gave me a piece of paper with his combination. I opened the safe and cleared the combination. Boots then gave me a piece of paper and I reset the combination.
I still remember the numbers of each - 44 - 50 - 01. I never told either that they were using exactly the same numbers
The only thing in the safe, IIRC, were the duplicate keys to the SSA bunkers.
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Lincolnshire
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
"I thought he was a dead-ringer for Bob Iveson (Harriers and then Tornado GR1 Sqn Cdr) - but 1960 was too early for that so must be Bob's dad!"
Stumbled on this by accident so just quickly registered to say good call - that's my Grandfather and Bob Iveson is my father. I've resisted the tash so far.........
Stumbled on this by accident so just quickly registered to say good call - that's my Grandfather and Bob Iveson is my father. I've resisted the tash so far.........
I was not in the film but I saw it at a Monseigneur cinema in London just before I joined the RAF from the RCAF in 1961. Would you believe that 6 months later I was a co-pilot on that very squadron (83) which had then moved to Scampton. A few people I recongise, Neddy Claypham, John Sewell, Mike Pilkington (he ended up as Sir Michael C-in-C Training Command). The Station Commander was, I think Gp Capt Bootsie Griffith. If it was him, it was he of foul language..
Yes we are all in our 80s and 90s. Those memories will not fade.
Yes we are all in our 80s and 90s. Those memories will not fade.
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: France
Age: 79
Posts: 14
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I was not in the film but I saw it at a Monseigneur cinema in London just before I joined the RAF from the RCAF in 1961. Would you believe that 6 months later I was a co-pilot on that very squadron (83) which had then moved to Scampton. A few people I recongise, Neddy Claypham, John Sewell, Mike Pilkington (he ended up as Sir Michael C-in-C Training Command). The Station Commander was, I think Gp Capt Bootsie Griffith. If it was him, it was he of foul language..
Yes we are all in our 80s and 90s. Those memories will not fade.
Yes we are all in our 80s and 90s. Those memories will not fade.
Sram
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Somewhere flat
Age: 68
Posts: 5,558
Likes: 0
Received 45 Likes
on
30 Posts
I was not in the film but I saw it at a Monseigneur cinema in London just before I joined the RAF from the RCAF in 1961. Would you believe that 6 months later I was a co-pilot on that very squadron (83) which had then moved to Scampton. A few people I recongise, Neddy Claypham, John Sewell, Mike Pilkington (he ended up as Sir Michael C-in-C Training Command). The Station Commander was, I think Gp Capt Bootsie Griffith. If it was him, it was he of foul language..
Yes we are all in our 80s and 90s. Those memories will not fade.
Yes we are all in our 80s and 90s. Those memories will not fade.
Although as someone once said "Don't forget that he was also a Vulcan co-pilot once!".
Good to see that you are alive and kicking John. I well remember a conversation we once had about Chomsky. Bootsie was station commander when I arrived at Waddo in '68.
When Bootsie was CO Waddington, a practice Blue Steel HTP offload was scheduled on his staton from a Scampton aircraft. This was meant to be a daylight exercise but it was dusk when the aircraft arrived. The Co-pilot, Keith Walters, whose duty it was to assist the radar to offload the HTP into a concrete pit, just got out of the aircraft - all engines still running - when a semi circle of car headlights came on and from a very loud megaphone Bootsie's voice said "Get off my f**ing station and take your f**ing HTP away". Keith climbed back on board and the Vulcan flew back to Scampton.
A bit of drift here but for anyone who is interested in 'Hank' Iveson;
Aircraft accidents in Yorkshire.
and read page 113 of
The Insubordinate and the ... - Google Books
Aaron.
Aircraft accidents in Yorkshire.
and read page 113 of
The Insubordinate and the ... - Google Books
Aaron.
Don't just read page 113, read the whole chapter. It is very instructive!
I was aware of the LMF/ Waverer policy but not how variable its application could be. And whilst I knew that your chances of being selected for aircrew and officer duties were enhanced by having been to a public or grammar school, I had not picked up on the medical opinions (driven by Air Cdre Smartt) that one's predisposition to what we would now describe as a psychiatric injury was a product of one's breeding! But those were the prevailing attitudes of the day... My wife's grandfather was on a Lancaster crew that was withdrawn from ops 2 trips earlier than planned, after the whole crew had a 'chat' with the doc about the condition of their pilot and he agreed a rest was called for. To be fair, they had done 30 missions by then, had lost 2 gunners (one dead, one wounded) and had survived being shot down and a night ditching, which puts it all in perspective. And he was on a second ops tour 6 months later.
20 years after this film was made, I had some dealings with the LMF route while I was (unusually!) in a personnel job and became involved in helping to manage a case at one of the FTS where a young man had a psych problem that ought to have been easily treatable (some 'simple' anxiety issues). The rules in play then were enshrined in "Leaflet III - Personnel Unable to Withstand the Stress of Flying Duties" and roughly translated meant that either you were fit and therefore just didn't want to fly, in which case you were chopped, or you had a medical problem, in which case you were also chopped! Once someone (OC PMS or OC PSF) decided to take Leaflet III off the shelf there was no way back. I pointed out to the hierarchy that this was a bit arbitrary and unfair, and we got some work started to try to unravel it but I was back on an FJ sqn within a couple of months and never found out the result.
Sorry for the thread drift.