Spitfire Beer Haulers
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Spitfire Beer Haulers
Pardon me if I have missed a previous thread about this....but saw an email today that had this article.
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I've read - or been told - somewhere that Westland did something similar with barrels of cider on Spitfires that were going direct to front-line squadrons.. Possibly a memory of something my family said when I was young.
Certainly its seems to be documented that they used barrels of cider to ballast the rear seat of contract built de Havilland bombers during WWI if they were going straight to the front line.
Certainly its seems to be documented that they used barrels of cider to ballast the rear seat of contract built de Havilland bombers during WWI if they were going straight to the front line.
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Hi Drag Kegs......
There's a story about a USN squadron at Guantanamo Bay when it was still a US airbase. They were due to return to their base on the East coast. One of the big (300 gallon?) drop tanks carried on the centre line of their A4's was steam cleaned and filled with good Cuban rum at some derisory price. The fuel transfer switches were firmly wire locked off and the aircraft set off. The pilot had to stop off on the way for fuel, and to clear customs. He got back to his aircraft just in time to see the refueller screwing the top back on the tank with the cheery cry of "It was nearly full, sir, but I topped it up anyway"
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There's a story about a USN squadron at Guantanamo Bay when it was still a US airbase.
Obama only promised to close the facility.....and we know what an Obama Promise is worth!
There's a phot in one of my WW2 famous person's books ( I think Johnny Johnson but I'm not certain) of a Spitfire carrying beer barrels under the wings instead of bombs.
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Beer Haulers
I do not know about under wing stores, but in 1945 my brother was employed bringing back POWs from Italy in his Lancaster. The bomb bay was filled with other goods. We had a good stock of Italian wine.
I imagine the bomb release switches were disabled.
I imagine the bomb release switches were disabled.
Seem to recall a Hunter at Chivenor (before it closed the first time) had made an emergency landing at some remote airfield whilst hauling Salmon & other stuff in sterilised drop tanks from a Scottish base, apparently crash & smash folk were pretty ill when they took the tanks off after 2 weeks in the open air.
Said Hunter had to be flown with everything locked down (rumour had it that the seat was pinned too) to Brawdy after our rather hasty evacuation of Chiv
Not sure how much (if anything) is true as I was in a drunken haze during my 6 months there
Said Hunter had to be flown with everything locked down (rumour had it that the seat was pinned too) to Brawdy after our rather hasty evacuation of Chiv
Not sure how much (if anything) is true as I was in a drunken haze during my 6 months there
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I knew I'd seen a painting of this in my dim and distant pass:
Friendly Ordnance by Ronald Wong.
Factory Fresh Spitfire Mk IXe's make their way to the forward airfields of Normandy carrying kegs of beer. The English brewery of Heneger and Constable donated fresh beer for the troops fighting in Normandy, and someone (history does not record who) came up with the idea of strapping the beer kegs to the underwings of the Spitfires that were being shipped to the forward airfields. The troops loved the freshly delivered, cold beer, but as with all good things, the British Ministry of Revenue and Excise stepped in and notified the brewery that it was in violation of the law in that it was exporting beer without paying the taxes on it. Needless to say, this morale raising gesture was shortly terminated.
Friendly Ordnance by Ronald Wong.
Factory Fresh Spitfire Mk IXe's make their way to the forward airfields of Normandy carrying kegs of beer. The English brewery of Heneger and Constable donated fresh beer for the troops fighting in Normandy, and someone (history does not record who) came up with the idea of strapping the beer kegs to the underwings of the Spitfires that were being shipped to the forward airfields. The troops loved the freshly delivered, cold beer, but as with all good things, the British Ministry of Revenue and Excise stepped in and notified the brewery that it was in violation of the law in that it was exporting beer without paying the taxes on it. Needless to say, this morale raising gesture was shortly terminated.
...whilst hauling Salmon & other stuff in sterilised drop tanks from a Scottish base...
Although in the Summer of '76, one chap did a fair bit of low level on the way home, which rather ruined the plan to pop the prawns into a freezer as they were already turning rather less than fresh after their flight back to Brawdy in the summer heat...
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Surely it was perfectly normal, for some marks of the Spitfire, to have a single barrelled cannon on each wing?
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And wasn't there a Buccaneer crew who forgot where they had loosely stowed their "duty frees" and personal kit after a detachment and then rolled the bomb door open during a departure "flypast"? 
My father who was based at RAF Friston in 1944 is sitting with me reading this thread and he remembers the filling of drop tanks with beer and hanging of beer kegs from Spitfires. He also has a vague memory of the Mustang having similar modifications to allow for beer to be carried but isn't 100% certain of this.
According to him it was not at all an uncommon a practice.
It has started a flow of more stories............
According to him it was not at all an uncommon a practice.
It has started a flow of more stories............
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Machrihanish 'fish runs' were once quite common.
The "freight-deck executive" was not happy chasing them around, and I suspect some returned to the Irish Sea in free fall....
Got some lovely mackerel for free there once - the crab/lobster fishermen used them cut up as bait.
Was enjoying one for dinner in the Mess later that evening, when some one else joined the table as said to the steward:
"Mmmm, the mackerel looks good - I'll have that"
Cue aged retainer (Cecil IIRC):
"I'm sorry sir, they are for Mr Teeters and his crew and guests only ....!"
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Found this a few minutes ago.