RAF - how small?
Join Date: Dec 2001
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CSRO,
Really...AH to Yeovilton....mmm, that will be a"Ship" then..Apache not cleared for operations on HM Ships..that deals with that one.
Altough, the concept has merit..think of the transit time saved as the airframes can hop over to Wastelands and return for rectification of manufacturers faults as the begin to appear!
Really...AH to Yeovilton....mmm, that will be a"Ship" then..Apache not cleared for operations on HM Ships..that deals with that one.
Altough, the concept has merit..think of the transit time saved as the airframes can hop over to Wastelands and return for rectification of manufacturers faults as the begin to appear!
Don't forget Ternhill.
Airfield is still RAF but station became Brown many years ago.
"Can you not hover so near the tower, we're trying to have band practice...". I kid you not!
Airfield is still RAF but station became Brown many years ago.
"Can you not hover so near the tower, we're trying to have band practice...". I kid you not!
Like "Please don't break overhead the Saddle Club - it scares the horses". Tough - we did. They're probably so many tins of Doggiemeat Chunks now.......
Join Date: Apr 2002
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This is torture!
This is torture, watching us all beat ourselves up over what was and what could have been........lets just stop handbagging around, accept the inevitable and do this Joint thing properly. Hey, who knows it may even improve our Operational Capability after the teething problems that those above Cdr, Lt Col and Wg Cdr are bound to have because of their own selfish, career orientated hidden agendas!
Join Date: Jul 2000
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RAF Mount Pleasant (not on a mountain nor pleasant) is now some poxy 'FI garrison', dress it up in any pompous pongo name and it's still a crap way to spend June. J1- J9....J-What!
Join Date: Jun 2001
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Leconfield is the Defense School of Transport (read Really Large Corps School of Shouting & Driving) and Driffienld is a sub-site of theirs. Really sad to see.
What is impressive is Wattisham etc Officer's Messes - a classic RAF designed mess, but looks much better stuffed full of the impressive silverware etc the Army has 'liberated' from Johnny F-chap.
What is impressive is Wattisham etc Officer's Messes - a classic RAF designed mess, but looks much better stuffed full of the impressive silverware etc the Army has 'liberated' from Johnny F-chap.
Join Date: Dec 2000
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Driffield airfield is used as a Leconfield driver training area, the Hangers are used for grain storage. The domestic site was under the control of RAF Staxton Wold, Leconfield did use two blocks for over-flow accomadation, it has now been closed and sold off, I think some of the quarters are still under the control of DHE, but the majority of the quarters were sold off.
Join Date: Sep 2000
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RAF how small
now I know why I PVR,d .....I remeber saying to the AOC at my departure interview (short and not so sweet)
When I joined in 62 we had a strength of over 150,000, now you couldn,t half fill Wembley stadium with the RAF !!
Of course you couldn,t fill Wembely stadium with anything now except more rubble
next stop give all branches of the Armed Forces the same uniform just different cap badges hmmmm didnt the Canucks do that sometime ago and it didnt work
send three and fourpence the enemies confused
When I joined in 62 we had a strength of over 150,000, now you couldn,t half fill Wembley stadium with the RAF !!
Of course you couldn,t fill Wembely stadium with anything now except more rubble
next stop give all branches of the Armed Forces the same uniform just different cap badges hmmmm didnt the Canucks do that sometime ago and it didnt work
send three and fourpence the enemies confused
Join Date: Mar 2002
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STANDTO
I have fond memories of Jurby a few years back.
A night sortie out of Bruggen, the rest of the continent and UK was ****ty but we needed to night fly for hours/currency/etc. High-low-high into the Irish sea, descending on the gloom on TFR through the 1000 ft cloudbase into the inky blackness over the sea, a quick fix off the ‘point’ on the Isle of Man (just). Only 14Kgs loaded on the CBLS; 30 secs of TFR before a TF-Loft-TF manoeuvre. We had flown for 1 hour 20 mins of quiet transit followed by 5 mins of such hectic ‘heads-on-fire’ and then home.
‘How’s it looking?’ says the front seat. ‘It’s black as a witches t*t out there’.
I couldn’t see a thing; it was blowing a force 4 and the raft was bobbing up and down out of sync with the sweep of my GR1 radar. The green ‘porridge’ looked like ‘Speckled Jim’. Time seemed to be slowing down. 20 secs to the pull (up) … nothing…15 secs to the ‘pull’…still nothing!!! I’ve had one fix in the last 500 miles and I am praying that ‘Mr Kalman’ is on my side.
Suddenly with 10 secs to go before the ‘pull’ I got a ‘paint’. Slew, slew, insert. Another sweep and ‘it’ had gone again. Had I got the raft of was it a figment of my imagination. No. There it is again. Slew, Insert… 2… 1… pull.
Bombs gone. “RECOVER!”. Roll 135 (Klaxons in the ears) continue the pull. “TOP 3700 ON THE WAY DOWN”, “3500”, “3000”, 90 at the horizon, “2500”, 60 at 10 degrees nose down. “2000 FEET 1000 TO SAFETY ALTITUDE ARE YOU HAPPY”.
Good noises from the front seat “Happy, heads up cross checks, time to go home”. Chicken (bingo) fuel already! We’re on the way back up through the cloud again.
20 seconds later the man in the tower reported Delta Hotel so all 2 hours 35 were worth it!
Some things just stick in your mind!
I have fond memories of Jurby a few years back.
A night sortie out of Bruggen, the rest of the continent and UK was ****ty but we needed to night fly for hours/currency/etc. High-low-high into the Irish sea, descending on the gloom on TFR through the 1000 ft cloudbase into the inky blackness over the sea, a quick fix off the ‘point’ on the Isle of Man (just). Only 14Kgs loaded on the CBLS; 30 secs of TFR before a TF-Loft-TF manoeuvre. We had flown for 1 hour 20 mins of quiet transit followed by 5 mins of such hectic ‘heads-on-fire’ and then home.
‘How’s it looking?’ says the front seat. ‘It’s black as a witches t*t out there’.
I couldn’t see a thing; it was blowing a force 4 and the raft was bobbing up and down out of sync with the sweep of my GR1 radar. The green ‘porridge’ looked like ‘Speckled Jim’. Time seemed to be slowing down. 20 secs to the pull (up) … nothing…15 secs to the ‘pull’…still nothing!!! I’ve had one fix in the last 500 miles and I am praying that ‘Mr Kalman’ is on my side.
Suddenly with 10 secs to go before the ‘pull’ I got a ‘paint’. Slew, slew, insert. Another sweep and ‘it’ had gone again. Had I got the raft of was it a figment of my imagination. No. There it is again. Slew, Insert… 2… 1… pull.
Bombs gone. “RECOVER!”. Roll 135 (Klaxons in the ears) continue the pull. “TOP 3700 ON THE WAY DOWN”, “3500”, “3000”, 90 at the horizon, “2500”, 60 at 10 degrees nose down. “2000 FEET 1000 TO SAFETY ALTITUDE ARE YOU HAPPY”.
Good noises from the front seat “Happy, heads up cross checks, time to go home”. Chicken (bingo) fuel already! We’re on the way back up through the cloud again.
20 seconds later the man in the tower reported Delta Hotel so all 2 hours 35 were worth it!
Some things just stick in your mind!
Join Date: Aug 2001
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Madasacow quoted:
2000 FEET 1000 TO SAFETY ALTITUDE ARE YOU HAPPY”.
Interestingly I chose very similar [identical] words (Are you happy) recently as we were about to create the third cat 5 in as many months:
Must be one of those surreal moment things:
Anyone else been there?
PS We were lucky, and the kudos due is not coming or so it seems. Shame because 5h1t hits in record breaking time.
2000 FEET 1000 TO SAFETY ALTITUDE ARE YOU HAPPY”.
Interestingly I chose very similar [identical] words (Are you happy) recently as we were about to create the third cat 5 in as many months:
Must be one of those surreal moment things:
Anyone else been there?
PS We were lucky, and the kudos due is not coming or so it seems. Shame because 5h1t hits in record breaking time.
Join Date: Sep 2000
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madasacow
One of many tales from that range. The old station itself still has happy memories for those who went through IOT there
In real terms, it was ideal for anything that required commitment and lack of distractions - I still say they should move an FTS there
One of many tales from that range. The old station itself still has happy memories for those who went through IOT there
In real terms, it was ideal for anything that required commitment and lack of distractions - I still say they should move an FTS there
Join Date: Jan 2001
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Madasacow
Liked your post. It took me back to even earlier days: same base (sorry, station), same weather, different seat, no TF in the R and not-exactly-cutting-edge nav kit, but mighty similar fear/thrills/gung-ho mix - and the nice, warm feeling that we had plenty of thrust to get us out if we got it all wrong!
Liked your post. It took me back to even earlier days: same base (sorry, station), same weather, different seat, no TF in the R and not-exactly-cutting-edge nav kit, but mighty similar fear/thrills/gung-ho mix - and the nice, warm feeling that we had plenty of thrust to get us out if we got it all wrong!
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A couple of unconfirmed and probably untrue rumours about Abingdon:
1. When the RLC asked for funding to put inspection pits into the hangers the response was "Aircraft hangers dont have inspection pits."
2. Most damage to the runways and lights (none remain) was done before the army found the piece of paper that said: The condition of the runways at the time of the hand over is this! Here is the service schedule. You're responsible for repair. Next SSO "No vehicles on the runways."
3. To be fair to the army alot of the damage to 26 was probably done by West Mids Finest skid training car.
Give thanks to the Army. Without them we'd have to stay on the ground.
Yours,
Denying all knowledge
SP30
1. When the RLC asked for funding to put inspection pits into the hangers the response was "Aircraft hangers dont have inspection pits."
2. Most damage to the runways and lights (none remain) was done before the army found the piece of paper that said: The condition of the runways at the time of the hand over is this! Here is the service schedule. You're responsible for repair. Next SSO "No vehicles on the runways."
3. To be fair to the army alot of the damage to 26 was probably done by West Mids Finest skid training car.
Give thanks to the Army. Without them we'd have to stay on the ground.
Yours,
Denying all knowledge
SP30
Cheers RAF!
I would feel rather out of place these days on an Army camp if were not to have a control tower and a few 'C' type hangers!
I look forward to Lyneham becoming the home of 16AA Bdge! Seems sensible to me! Dearth of real estate in Colchester.....big (bent) runway at Lyneham with blocks and a spread of MQ's!
Rumour of course, but who knows? Now they have nearly finished Fairford they are bound to sell that as a Refugee camp too!
I would feel rather out of place these days on an Army camp if were not to have a control tower and a few 'C' type hangers!
I look forward to Lyneham becoming the home of 16AA Bdge! Seems sensible to me! Dearth of real estate in Colchester.....big (bent) runway at Lyneham with blocks and a spread of MQ's!
Rumour of course, but who knows? Now they have nearly finished Fairford they are bound to sell that as a Refugee camp too!
Join Date: Nov 2000
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The airships seem not yet to have perceived that the threat no longer comes largely from the North East. So we still shut down the more pleasant and historic stations in the South and West - and then panic about recruitment and retention. Presumably the thinking is that the grunts have bigger recruiting problems than the RAF - so give them the plum sites.