Bye Bye Klassic
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Ahhh for a missed comma smudge
It should have read
Doubt it, it will be parked outside
It should have read
Doubt it, it will be parked outside
I went to Cosford to give my two pence worth of memories of the K on 302.
No, there were no plans to put her inside, despite my contention that she was more worthy than the Belslow. Their Belfast has an MSP heavy drop platform inside. As it was incapable of opening the ramp in the air never mind drop anything this is misleading at best. No smudge, the props are still not lined up !
Noticed that they had buckets inside 302 ! Some things never change.
I remember when we came back from the Ethiopia Op, when it rained the splilled grain in the holes in the floor began to sprout ! It was suggested that the groundcrew be issued with lawnmowers.
No, there were no plans to put her inside, despite my contention that she was more worthy than the Belslow. Their Belfast has an MSP heavy drop platform inside. As it was incapable of opening the ramp in the air never mind drop anything this is misleading at best. No smudge, the props are still not lined up !
Noticed that they had buckets inside 302 ! Some things never change.
I remember when we came back from the Ethiopia Op, when it rained the splilled grain in the holes in the floor began to sprout ! It was suggested that the groundcrew be issued with lawnmowers.
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I remember when we came back from the Ethiopia Op, when it rained the splilled grain in the holes in the floor began to sprout ! It was suggested that the groundcrew be issued with lawnmowers.
Smudge:-
Unbelievable! I see what you mean when you mentioned, on the WWII Pilot Brevet thread:
Given stories like that, I can't say I do much.
reminds me of my sending a signal to OC Eng at Lyneham asking if he was comfortable in our flying loads of leaking bags of rock salt, to de ice the roads in Sarajevo... The Canadians, US and Norwegians had all refused to carry it. I never received a reply, but I did receive a "one way discussion" with the man himself on return from the det ( along the lines of "just do as you are told Chief, thinking is for real people").
us old SNCOs love to read about our leaders and betters
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Floor points
great story about the gadget for cleaning out the receptacles in the floor.
Funny how the floor points and fittings became quite contentious in the last days of this aircraft. We had one fall out during one of the last MSP airdrops. goodness knows what may have happened if it had been used to attach HUPRA or a despatchers harness.
The issues on the J are no different. The floor fittings are tolerant of debris but the dash 4a latches are certainly not. when we had a problem with dash 4a not working on one of the early airdrops a FOD sweep was conducted. A whole bag full of wine bottle corks, crisp packets and seat buckle clips was recovered. A photo taken for a flight safety campaign. (In the airdrop role the dash 4a was quite safety critical). You all guessed; a few months later the same thing occurred. These little access hatches made great waste bins. Then there was the Electrolube lacquer sketch. a story in itself. Another of those "you could not make it up moments!"
Funny how the floor points and fittings became quite contentious in the last days of this aircraft. We had one fall out during one of the last MSP airdrops. goodness knows what may have happened if it had been used to attach HUPRA or a despatchers harness.
The issues on the J are no different. The floor fittings are tolerant of debris but the dash 4a latches are certainly not. when we had a problem with dash 4a not working on one of the early airdrops a FOD sweep was conducted. A whole bag full of wine bottle corks, crisp packets and seat buckle clips was recovered. A photo taken for a flight safety campaign. (In the airdrop role the dash 4a was quite safety critical). You all guessed; a few months later the same thing occurred. These little access hatches made great waste bins. Then there was the Electrolube lacquer sketch. a story in itself. Another of those "you could not make it up moments!"
The K will still be around for a while in foreign service. Austria, Mexico and Sri Lanka operate ex-RAF examples.
Marshall Aerospace begins upgrade of Austrian Air Force's first C-130K - Airforce Technology
Austrian C-130K (Ex-XV292)
Photos: Lockheed C-130K Hercules (L-382) Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Mexican C-130K (Ex-XV222)
Photos: Lockheed C-130K Hercules (L-382) Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Sri Lankan C-130K (Ex-XV213)
Photos: Lockheed C-130K Hercules (L-382) Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Demobbed - Out of Service British Military Aircraft
Marshall Aerospace begins upgrade of Austrian Air Force's first C-130K - Airforce Technology
Austrian C-130K (Ex-XV292)
Photos: Lockheed C-130K Hercules (L-382) Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Mexican C-130K (Ex-XV222)
Photos: Lockheed C-130K Hercules (L-382) Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Sri Lankan C-130K (Ex-XV213)
Photos: Lockheed C-130K Hercules (L-382) Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net
Demobbed - Out of Service British Military Aircraft
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reminds me of my sending a signal to OC Eng at Lyneham asking if he was comfortable in our flying loads of leaking bags of rock salt, to de ice the roads in Sarajevo... The Canadians, US and Norwegians had all refused to carry it. I never received a reply, but I did receive a "one way discussion" with the man himself on return from the det ( along the lines of "just do as you are told Chief, thinking is for real people").
Last edited by NutLoose; 21st Jul 2013 at 15:26.
Chug, #45
Not the first run in with that OC Eng, and certainly not the last. (I could write a blooming book I suppose) I have to say, whatever might seem to be evident, I am not now and was never intolerant or disrespectful to my superiors. I did though join the RAF based on a very important, to me, principle. The blokes who flew the Spitfires, Hurricanes and beat the threat of invasion fought for it, the thousands who gave their lives flying Stirlings, Lancasters, Halifax and Wellington bombers believed in it. Our right to question authority, and a right to challenge the bullish misuse of rank when it is evident (blimey, it must be Sunday, I'm doing a sermon). Apologies if it offends anyone but I'm happy that my 30 years was an honest one. The OC Eng in question and a Flight Sergeant Eng controller at the time seemed to have decided that, aircraft were not to be delayed down route with faults, and, that GEs on routes who called in a fault were to be threatened with total doom and end of career. I was the subject of a couple of their attempts at intimidation. Suffice to say that the OC Eng was posted after only 1 year in post, the Flight Sergeant was offered, early release from service, and wisely accepted. I survived as a GE for a further four years. Honesty prevailed.
Nutloose,#43
On the Sarajevo run, we had that vacuum cleaner. Albert, had an overboard vent, Port side about 6 feet in front of the para door. Officially it was used when we carried LOX containers, typically the Belize LOX run, as a safety feature to dump the LOX in an emergency. A bit of tubing, an adaptor and at FL230 a decent GE could vacuum out the cargo bay of a Mk1 Albert before descent back into Ancona. It worked very nicely, and usually earned a pat on the back from the "front end" for a nice aircraft. I'm just wondering if this could constitute a breach of any international aviation conventions.
Nutloose #48
Having seen the inside of a Wokka once, thankfully, it went U/S before we left terra firma, I see that you guys had exactly the same problems with floor and cargo that we did. It's funny how way past the event we all see where the problems came from.
Albert was for me, most of my service career. Not just the aircraft, the crews, the muppets, the 47AD chaps, all contributed to the experience I had during my time. Sadly, as this thread attests, all good things come to an end. I'm sure that everything I was lucky enough to experience is still there with the J if they take the opportunity. My apologies for the long, rambling post. I doubt that we will have many threads to reflect our service on the C130 in future years, we are, really coming to the end of an era.
Smudge
Not the first run in with that OC Eng, and certainly not the last. (I could write a blooming book I suppose) I have to say, whatever might seem to be evident, I am not now and was never intolerant or disrespectful to my superiors. I did though join the RAF based on a very important, to me, principle. The blokes who flew the Spitfires, Hurricanes and beat the threat of invasion fought for it, the thousands who gave their lives flying Stirlings, Lancasters, Halifax and Wellington bombers believed in it. Our right to question authority, and a right to challenge the bullish misuse of rank when it is evident (blimey, it must be Sunday, I'm doing a sermon). Apologies if it offends anyone but I'm happy that my 30 years was an honest one. The OC Eng in question and a Flight Sergeant Eng controller at the time seemed to have decided that, aircraft were not to be delayed down route with faults, and, that GEs on routes who called in a fault were to be threatened with total doom and end of career. I was the subject of a couple of their attempts at intimidation. Suffice to say that the OC Eng was posted after only 1 year in post, the Flight Sergeant was offered, early release from service, and wisely accepted. I survived as a GE for a further four years. Honesty prevailed.
Nutloose,#43
On the Sarajevo run, we had that vacuum cleaner. Albert, had an overboard vent, Port side about 6 feet in front of the para door. Officially it was used when we carried LOX containers, typically the Belize LOX run, as a safety feature to dump the LOX in an emergency. A bit of tubing, an adaptor and at FL230 a decent GE could vacuum out the cargo bay of a Mk1 Albert before descent back into Ancona. It worked very nicely, and usually earned a pat on the back from the "front end" for a nice aircraft. I'm just wondering if this could constitute a breach of any international aviation conventions.
Nutloose #48
Having seen the inside of a Wokka once, thankfully, it went U/S before we left terra firma, I see that you guys had exactly the same problems with floor and cargo that we did. It's funny how way past the event we all see where the problems came from.
Albert was for me, most of my service career. Not just the aircraft, the crews, the muppets, the 47AD chaps, all contributed to the experience I had during my time. Sadly, as this thread attests, all good things come to an end. I'm sure that everything I was lucky enough to experience is still there with the J if they take the opportunity. My apologies for the long, rambling post. I doubt that we will have many threads to reflect our service on the C130 in future years, we are, really coming to the end of an era.
Smudge
I have just realised that I have referred to the Cosford Herc. as 302 !
It should of course be 202. Apart from 'tempus' my other excuse is that I had just finished reframing a print of XV 302.
It should of course be 202. Apart from 'tempus' my other excuse is that I had just finished reframing a print of XV 302.
Smudge,
like you the K was most of my service career, as I spent almost 30 years of my career on the a/c after a Hastings tour. I was fortunate to not to have a ground tour during that time and did every role that the a/c was cleared for, including the SF task before the SF Flight was invented. So my log books are a great memory jogger as are the pics (some seem to have vanished) of a very enjoyable time.
like you the K was most of my service career, as I spent almost 30 years of my career on the a/c after a Hastings tour. I was fortunate to not to have a ground tour during that time and did every role that the a/c was cleared for, including the SF task before the SF Flight was invented. So my log books are a great memory jogger as are the pics (some seem to have vanished) of a very enjoyable time.
Smudge, I joined my first Herc Sqn (30 Sqn) at Fairford, and with it the newly devised system of Centralised Servicing. First Line Servicing personnel up to then had been part of the Squadron (as they had been on 48Sqn Hastings at Changi). Morale on Eng Wing plummeted, so the Wg Co Eng and the two (30 and 47) flying Sqn bosses arranged that the two Eng Sqns (A & B) be adopted one each by 30 and 47. The friendly rivalry between the flying squadrons was instantly transferred to the Eng Sqns, each determined to outperform the other.
We still had bosses then that realised that no matter how shiny the kit, their greatest asset was people, and that their greatest duty was to those people. Loyalty in those days was a two way game, pity it changed.
BTW, visiting the office of that particular Wg Co Eng was an unnerving affair. Behind him on a shelf was a large bell jar, containing AVTUR. Thriving on the AVTUR was a fern like growth looking for all the world like something out of Quatermass. Its cousins evidently lived in our fuel tanks, and were busy trying to eat their way out!
We still had bosses then that realised that no matter how shiny the kit, their greatest asset was people, and that their greatest duty was to those people. Loyalty in those days was a two way game, pity it changed.
BTW, visiting the office of that particular Wg Co Eng was an unnerving affair. Behind him on a shelf was a large bell jar, containing AVTUR. Thriving on the AVTUR was a fern like growth looking for all the world like something out of Quatermass. Its cousins evidently lived in our fuel tanks, and were busy trying to eat their way out!
Chug,
I know loads of people from the era of centralised servicing, who would repeat your description in exactly the way you did. Whatever you happen to be with regard to trade etc. I certainly think that being able to identify with an organisation, Squadron etc, makes a big difference.
I suspect your Wing Co's Plant in the fuel was "cladosporium resinae", a really not nice fungal growth that lives at the interface of water and fuel. That's why the first thing a GE would usually do, on arrival at the aircraft in the morning was get the Prod out and do a drain along all tanks, it allowed the fuel time to settle overnight and you could get a good look at what was in it. Many were the Houchins around the world that became receptacles for the poly bags of drained fuel, always with the permission of the supporting local lads.
Smudge
I know loads of people from the era of centralised servicing, who would repeat your description in exactly the way you did. Whatever you happen to be with regard to trade etc. I certainly think that being able to identify with an organisation, Squadron etc, makes a big difference.
I suspect your Wing Co's Plant in the fuel was "cladosporium resinae", a really not nice fungal growth that lives at the interface of water and fuel. That's why the first thing a GE would usually do, on arrival at the aircraft in the morning was get the Prod out and do a drain along all tanks, it allowed the fuel time to settle overnight and you could get a good look at what was in it. Many were the Houchins around the world that became receptacles for the poly bags of drained fuel, always with the permission of the supporting local lads.
Smudge
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The happy days of watching the locals remove the clear poly bags with the water drain residue, and the delight of the coach driver in Dakar taking the remaining ham sandwiches home to feed his family . Particularly a rare treat at Ramadan.
Ksimboy,
Talk of Dakar, did you ever bump into the chap, I think he was a manager on the airport, who had picked up every gash bit of lashing tape he could get hold of from Alberts transiting to and from ASI starting in 82. Took them home and his wife unpicked the strands and wove him a white, lashing tape suit from it. I did hear that they liked us to leave a bag or two of water sediments as they used it for cooking.
Regards
Smudge
Talk of Dakar, did you ever bump into the chap, I think he was a manager on the airport, who had picked up every gash bit of lashing tape he could get hold of from Alberts transiting to and from ASI starting in 82. Took them home and his wife unpicked the strands and wove him a white, lashing tape suit from it. I did hear that they liked us to leave a bag or two of water sediments as they used it for cooking.
Regards
Smudge
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Indeed Smuj, and very smart he looked too. I also recall on an early trip into Dakar , the Nav instead of reading shut down checks storming from Albert to ATC to present the controller with a new "f******g bucket".
Ah the dreaded 'CR' in the tanks which could have been avoided by the use, from the start, of FSII in the fuel. It was not and cost the RAF a fortune as I recall. Like chugalug I remember the 'adoption' at Fairford (I was on 47) OF 'our 'servicing line. We still had beer calls in those days to which all attended.
Happy days !
Happy days !
I was on 48 in Changi when the whole lot closed down. We had our own ground crew and after we brought the Sqn back to Lyneham we used to invite them for beer calls despite the fact they were now in the centralised system. This was frowned on by the Eng Wing mafia so it died a death.
