Global Aviation Magazine : 60 Years of the Hercules
smudge,
I did several JASIGS and I can still taste the vodka. Memory (AKA my log book) tells me we had a lightning strike after a Kiev trip.
I did several JASIGS and I can still taste the vodka. Memory (AKA my log book) tells me we had a lightning strike after a Kiev trip.
AA62,
Yes, I well remember the vodka. I still have the Matryoshka dolls I bought for Mrs Smudge, and the hat that Pete E is wearing in the photo of him. Kiev was a really interesting place as far as the churches etc go, so an interesting time usually.
Smudge
Yes, I well remember the vodka. I still have the Matryoshka dolls I bought for Mrs Smudge, and the hat that Pete E is wearing in the photo of him. Kiev was a really interesting place as far as the churches etc go, so an interesting time usually.
Smudge
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The JACIG trips were always quite interesting. I have a funny feeling I went to Kiev with Pete E..... - I seem to recognise that hat!
I did one to Minsk - the 'Handlers' were 2 Colonels: a Belorussian (ex GRU) who spoke good English and a Ukrainian (ex KGB) who claimed not to.
My Captain at the time was a Scottish fellow whose accent really rather thickened up whenever alcohol was consumed.
Many vodkas later, cue him telling some execrable Scottish ditty to which the Ukrainian fellow fell about laughing.
Hmmmm....
I did one to Minsk - the 'Handlers' were 2 Colonels: a Belorussian (ex GRU) who spoke good English and a Ukrainian (ex KGB) who claimed not to.
My Captain at the time was a Scottish fellow whose accent really rather thickened up whenever alcohol was consumed.
Many vodkas later, cue him telling some execrable Scottish ditty to which the Ukrainian fellow fell about laughing.
Hmmmm....
ExAscoteer,
I seem to recall from a briefing that those who openly spoke Russian were KGB trained and those who pretended they did not were real KGB !
On one of the early trips we were advised that chocolate would ease our passage through the system. Thus a boxful of Mars Bars and the like became a no-go item. Oh yes it worked.
I seem to recall from a briefing that those who openly spoke Russian were KGB trained and those who pretended they did not were real KGB !
On one of the early trips we were advised that chocolate would ease our passage through the system. Thus a boxful of Mars Bars and the like became a no-go item. Oh yes it worked.
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I found that a slab of Coca Cola worked wonders in places like Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Oh and $20 US for a jam jar sized jar of Beluga Caviar in Moscow.
Happy days...
Oh and $20 US for a jam jar sized jar of Beluga Caviar in Moscow.
Happy days...
One of my fellow GEs always went on JACIG trips armed with a few of the well known girlie mags. I well remember us spending a whole night drinking vodka in the hotel workers bar, on the strength of one 2 year old playboy magazine. The one I always disliked was Bulgaria. I remember on one occasion we were taken to an Officers Mess for our evening meal, we were given a bowl full of thick gravy that covered a large lump. On cutting into it, it was simply a ball of boiled fat, from which animal I have no idea. The Captain suggested it was just the starter, turned out to be the main and only course. I did a couple to Sofiya, but never ate on the ground there again.
Smudge
Smudge
Last edited by smujsmith; 12th Jun 2014 at 19:45.
smudge,
My main JASIG food memories were 'how many ways can you cook cabbage' ?. The vodka would have made a good substitute for AVPIN in my opinion.
My main JASIG food memories were 'how many ways can you cook cabbage' ?. The vodka would have made a good substitute for AVPIN in my opinion.
Still in Fiji. This Tiger Moth could do with a bit of smudge's TLC or at least a roll of his speed tape. I wonder if it still exists. Would be worth a lot of money now even in that condition. Upgently fancy restoring it ?
Just a slight chronology drift as I understand Brazil is in the news at the moment. Taken during Op Corporate. This is the famous beach and as you can see the WX was abysmal. So thinking we may never visit the place again we trod on the soggy sand and I took some pics. We then retired to a bar to become as wet inside as we were outside. On subsequent visits the WX was much better.
That triggers memories of one of our SNCOs giving his magnificently gruff summary of Hawaii when he returned from a Global - 'It were like Blackpool, but wi' tanned goddesses'.
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AA62 ...
My apologies for being a bit of a laggard ... but Mrs Coff had me on gardening duties today
The Tiger in Fiji is still flying and in the hands of the RNZAF Historic Flight under Reg NZ622.
She appears to have had quite an interesting career ...
Best ...
Coff
My apologies for being a bit of a laggard ... but Mrs Coff had me on gardening duties today
The Tiger in Fiji is still flying and in the hands of the RNZAF Historic Flight under Reg NZ622.
She appears to have had quite an interesting career ...
Previously T5763. Built at Cowley, UK and assembled in NZ.
Shipped to New Zealand on 05 July 1940 on "Rangitikei".
BOC Unit 18 Rongotai 04 October 1940.
With No.4 EFTS Whenuapai 1941-1942.
With No.2 EFTS New Plymouth/Ashburton 1942-1943.
Issued free to New Plymouth Aero Club from No.42 Squadron on 29 January 1946 and entered the New Zealand Civil Aircraft Register as ZK-AIE on 18 January 1946.
To Aircraft Services NZ Ltd., Auckland on 04 September 1951 for use as topdresser named "Doh Doh".
To D. Freeth 27 August 1956 and restored to normal configuration.
To R. Simpson 22 September 1958. To S. Askew 11 April 1960.
To A. Bell 08 April 1961.
To W. Christofferson 25 August 1965.
Registration cancelled 10 September 1965 as exported to Fiji.
Registered as VQ-FAG on 24 August 1965 and first flown in Fiji during early October 1966.
Grounded in October 1970 and stored at Nausori until 1973.
To G. Kingsbury, Mid Canterbury in 1973 and imported into New Zealand but not restored to register.
To RNZAF in early 1985 for restoration to NZ662 as part of RNZAF Historic Flight. First flight after restoration was at Wigram on 08 January 1987.
Currently airworthy in that role with RNZAF Historic Flight.
Shipped to New Zealand on 05 July 1940 on "Rangitikei".
BOC Unit 18 Rongotai 04 October 1940.
With No.4 EFTS Whenuapai 1941-1942.
With No.2 EFTS New Plymouth/Ashburton 1942-1943.
Issued free to New Plymouth Aero Club from No.42 Squadron on 29 January 1946 and entered the New Zealand Civil Aircraft Register as ZK-AIE on 18 January 1946.
To Aircraft Services NZ Ltd., Auckland on 04 September 1951 for use as topdresser named "Doh Doh".
To D. Freeth 27 August 1956 and restored to normal configuration.
To R. Simpson 22 September 1958. To S. Askew 11 April 1960.
To A. Bell 08 April 1961.
To W. Christofferson 25 August 1965.
Registration cancelled 10 September 1965 as exported to Fiji.
Registered as VQ-FAG on 24 August 1965 and first flown in Fiji during early October 1966.
Grounded in October 1970 and stored at Nausori until 1973.
To G. Kingsbury, Mid Canterbury in 1973 and imported into New Zealand but not restored to register.
To RNZAF in early 1985 for restoration to NZ662 as part of RNZAF Historic Flight. First flight after restoration was at Wigram on 08 January 1987.
Currently airworthy in that role with RNZAF Historic Flight.
Coff
Last edited by CoffmanStarter; 13th Jun 2014 at 19:21.
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Whilst I have posted this link before on another thread ... It would seem that some of the current contributors may have missed the pics of the K's in storage at St Athan
Image Credit & Report Author : Tom Gibbons GAR
Aviation Feature ? RAF C-130K Hercules in Storage | GAR
Coff.
Image Credit & Report Author : Tom Gibbons GAR
Aviation Feature ? RAF C-130K Hercules in Storage | GAR
Coff.
Ex Ascoteer,
mea culpa. Rest assured it will not be the last time I get something wrong. Always happy to be corrected.
mea culpa. Rest assured it will not be the last time I get something wrong. Always happy to be corrected.
Coff,
many thanks for the info on the Tiger Moth. Very happy to know she is still in existence and enjoying life in NZ. Another test for your research skills. Is this 748 still around ?
As you can see the 'K' in this pic is our old friend 179.
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AA62 ...
Still flying ...
Aircraft Data C-FYDY, 1968 Hawker Siddeley HS.748 Series 2A C/N 1661
Best ...
Coff
Still flying ...
Aircraft Data C-FYDY, 1968 Hawker Siddeley HS.748 Series 2A C/N 1661
A 1968 Hawker Siddeley HS 748-233 Series 2A. Now C-FYDY, Air North, Yukon’s Airline (Air North Charter and Training Ltd.), Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada, based at Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport, Whitehorse, Yukon.
VQ-FBH, Fiji Airways (Fiji Airways Limited), Nausori Airport (SUV/NFNA), Nausori, Viti Levu, Fiji from 1968 to 1970.
Change of airline name and headquarters to Air Pacific (Air Pacific Limited), Nadi International Airport (NAN/NFFN), Nadi, Viti Levu, Fiji in 1970.
Re-registered as DQ-FBH from 1970 to 1979.
ZK-MCJ, Rotorua, Mount Cook Airline (Mount Cook Group), Christchurch, New Zealand in 1979.
Mount Cook Airline owned by Air New Zealand Limited after 1989
registration cancelled in 1996.
1996 registered to Air North, Yukon’s Airline on August 29, 1996.
VQ-FBH, Fiji Airways (Fiji Airways Limited), Nausori Airport (SUV/NFNA), Nausori, Viti Levu, Fiji from 1968 to 1970.
Change of airline name and headquarters to Air Pacific (Air Pacific Limited), Nadi International Airport (NAN/NFFN), Nadi, Viti Levu, Fiji in 1970.
Re-registered as DQ-FBH from 1970 to 1979.
ZK-MCJ, Rotorua, Mount Cook Airline (Mount Cook Group), Christchurch, New Zealand in 1979.
Mount Cook Airline owned by Air New Zealand Limited after 1989
registration cancelled in 1996.
1996 registered to Air North, Yukon’s Airline on August 29, 1996.
Coff
Coff,
thanks again. Must something about the air in Fiji that helps preserve these older a/c.
thanks again. Must something about the air in Fiji that helps preserve these older a/c.
Gentlemen, as a GE I only dreamed of such exotic places as Fiji, Christmas Island etc. it seems my generation were destined for more sandy climes. That's why screeching in at Trapper Johns, and a night stop at the Bermudiana Hotel were so special. Of course, times changed, and continue to do so. I wonder what today's crews are experiencing, apart from the loss of the K.
Now, a GEs tale for a Saturday night, pull up a sandbag, and pour yourselves a nice single malt. I'm not religious or superstitious, but I have sometimes come close to converting to the "Déjà vous" way of thinking. A Belize schedule back in the day, and off we set, me with a brand new Flying Officer Engineering Officer as SVC (Even these guys need a break from bossing line shifts). Night stop Gander then flag Dulles for Belize. Standard route, for a change the crew are the Staneval mob, and what could possibly go wrong. Night stop Gander was great fun, and my SVC was full of enjoyment as we carried him back to his room at the "Albertross". He made wheels the following morning, and off we set. Of course, he decided that rather than help with the Before Flight, he would accompany the "front end" to Flight Planning. I only just managed without him
On landing at Dulles, I followed the Loadie down the crew steps, nose wheel chocks in hand, positioned them, and watched 3 and 4 wind down. Now there's different, a wisp of blue smoke coming from No 3s jet pipe as it comes to a stop. But what made me look ? Who or what knows, I decided that it needed a bit of a look after the fuel went in. Well, I got the ladder out, looked all around the engine and no sign of trouble, by now I know there's a problem, because something is telling me to go a bit further. So, with the Loadie on the long lead, me in the skippers seat and Engineer playing his role, we fire up number three, and see what we shall see. Start up and all normal at "low speed bone idle" so we decide to upshift and see. On pulling the button, the Loadie starts saying lots of things that you won't hear in church, we shut down. I didn't need the ladder to diagnose the Labyrinth seal failure, the oil was running freely from the tailpipe. But what made me think there was anything wrong, apart from a transient wisp of blue smoke. Our aircraft was heavily loaded and the loss of the donk on take off might have made it quite interesting.
My SVC did not enjoy assisting me to prep for the engine change the next day, he suffered a few minor cuts from removing wire locking etc. I would never expect a recovery team to arrive and find I had not done everything I could to ease their task. His eight hours of toil was rewarded with a full 24 hours off, and a tour of the great city. To this day I wonder what made me look at No3 winding down, it certainly wasn't my normal routine. I doubt it saved any lives, but it certainly prevented risk to a few. It's unfortunate that like all mechanical beasties, Albert was well capable of throwing a wobbly now and again. In many cases, the wobbly could be nursed home, this wasn't one of them. We took the rescue aircraft on to Belize, and home, our broken frame was still at Dulles as we flagged northbound a couple of days later. I'm sure others have had that "feeling" that made us have a good look that day..
Smudge
Now, a GEs tale for a Saturday night, pull up a sandbag, and pour yourselves a nice single malt. I'm not religious or superstitious, but I have sometimes come close to converting to the "Déjà vous" way of thinking. A Belize schedule back in the day, and off we set, me with a brand new Flying Officer Engineering Officer as SVC (Even these guys need a break from bossing line shifts). Night stop Gander then flag Dulles for Belize. Standard route, for a change the crew are the Staneval mob, and what could possibly go wrong. Night stop Gander was great fun, and my SVC was full of enjoyment as we carried him back to his room at the "Albertross". He made wheels the following morning, and off we set. Of course, he decided that rather than help with the Before Flight, he would accompany the "front end" to Flight Planning. I only just managed without him
On landing at Dulles, I followed the Loadie down the crew steps, nose wheel chocks in hand, positioned them, and watched 3 and 4 wind down. Now there's different, a wisp of blue smoke coming from No 3s jet pipe as it comes to a stop. But what made me look ? Who or what knows, I decided that it needed a bit of a look after the fuel went in. Well, I got the ladder out, looked all around the engine and no sign of trouble, by now I know there's a problem, because something is telling me to go a bit further. So, with the Loadie on the long lead, me in the skippers seat and Engineer playing his role, we fire up number three, and see what we shall see. Start up and all normal at "low speed bone idle" so we decide to upshift and see. On pulling the button, the Loadie starts saying lots of things that you won't hear in church, we shut down. I didn't need the ladder to diagnose the Labyrinth seal failure, the oil was running freely from the tailpipe. But what made me think there was anything wrong, apart from a transient wisp of blue smoke. Our aircraft was heavily loaded and the loss of the donk on take off might have made it quite interesting.
My SVC did not enjoy assisting me to prep for the engine change the next day, he suffered a few minor cuts from removing wire locking etc. I would never expect a recovery team to arrive and find I had not done everything I could to ease their task. His eight hours of toil was rewarded with a full 24 hours off, and a tour of the great city. To this day I wonder what made me look at No3 winding down, it certainly wasn't my normal routine. I doubt it saved any lives, but it certainly prevented risk to a few. It's unfortunate that like all mechanical beasties, Albert was well capable of throwing a wobbly now and again. In many cases, the wobbly could be nursed home, this wasn't one of them. We took the rescue aircraft on to Belize, and home, our broken frame was still at Dulles as we flagged northbound a couple of days later. I'm sure others have had that "feeling" that made us have a good look that day..
Smudge