Global Aviation Magazine : 60 Years of the Hercules
Camlobe,
Thanks for your post #1218, as someone who spent most of his Hercules GE career in the back of Albert, like you, I saw what it was like for our customers. As a "rigger" by trade, always enjoyed a bit of banter with fellow tradesmen on Squadron deployments etc, usually delivering a xx Squadron Houchin to Deci, to bring a YY Squadron Houchin back to blighty. I never knew that Houchins only worked on particular squadrons. Always found any old Houchin worked on Albert. Some good times though on OP Granby, where I think all branches of the RAF gave it their best.
Coff,
Welcome back and I'm sure you will find something of interest as you catch up. Hope it was a good time.
Smudge
Thanks for your post #1218, as someone who spent most of his Hercules GE career in the back of Albert, like you, I saw what it was like for our customers. As a "rigger" by trade, always enjoyed a bit of banter with fellow tradesmen on Squadron deployments etc, usually delivering a xx Squadron Houchin to Deci, to bring a YY Squadron Houchin back to blighty. I never knew that Houchins only worked on particular squadrons. Always found any old Houchin worked on Albert. Some good times though on OP Granby, where I think all branches of the RAF gave it their best.
Coff,
Welcome back and I'm sure you will find something of interest as you catch up. Hope it was a good time.
Smudge
Welcome back Coff. Trust you had a nice holiday.
Another pic of the nicest colour scheme (hope I have not posted it before !)
Not sure where it is but the prop line up should please smudge. The ladders are out and it looks like a panel laid on the ground just forward of the mainwheels.
Old style yellow chocks.
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@ #1187 DTWH?!? ... Welcome to the thread ... The whereabouts of Snoopy's little Elephant friend, with the red and white nose, as been asked about before on PPRuNe ... but to no avail 
Let's hope he's enjoying comfortable retirement somewhere.
If you have a picture ... it would be great if you could share it with us please
Vzlet, XV208 Snoopy ... Welcome to you also. I'm guessing ... but I assume both you guys were closely associated with Snoopy
I posted a very interesting paper from the Met Office some while back outlining 70 years of Atmospheric Research Flying ... with quite a lot of material (and pictures) about Snoopy if you are interested ... do you have any stories to share with us given that Snoopy started life as a C-130 K
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/media/pd...ARF_271112.pdf
Best ...
Coff.
Let's hope he's enjoying comfortable retirement somewhere.
If you have a picture ... it would be great if you could share it with us please
Vzlet, XV208 Snoopy ... Welcome to you also. I'm guessing ... but I assume both you guys were closely associated with Snoopy
I posted a very interesting paper from the Met Office some while back outlining 70 years of Atmospheric Research Flying ... with quite a lot of material (and pictures) about Snoopy if you are interested ... do you have any stories to share with us given that Snoopy started life as a C-130 K
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/media/pd...ARF_271112.pdf
Best ...
Coff.
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Smudge We had a great holiday thanks ... Hasn't Mrs Smudge found that Gunsight picture yet
Still hoping that someone will come forward with the "Bike-Pump" Chaff Dispenser story
... Hasn't Mrs Smudge found that Gunsight picture yet Still hoping that someone will come forward with the "Bike-Pump" Chaff Dispenser story
Last edited by CoffmanStarter; 25th Aug 2014 at 15:29.
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Weired & Wonderful Loads
Just an idea ...
Earlier in our thread there was an amusing tale of a load delivered by Albert out to a Pacific island consisting of a few bags of "Blue Circle Cement" along with one of Armitage Shanks finest "porcelain" products (of the seated variety) along with an assortment of related sanitary fittings ... just in case HRHPC needed a "comfort break" during a Royal Visit (that's what I call effective contingency planning).
Now ... I'm sure there are some other equally amusing tales of weired and wonderful loads delivered by Albert over his 60 years of service ... so who would like to kick-off this little humorous diversion
Let's leave Self Loading Freight off the Weired & Wonderful list for the moment
Earlier in our thread there was an amusing tale of a load delivered by Albert out to a Pacific island consisting of a few bags of "Blue Circle Cement" along with one of Armitage Shanks finest "porcelain" products (of the seated variety) along with an assortment of related sanitary fittings ... just in case HRHPC needed a "comfort break" during a Royal Visit (that's what I call effective contingency planning).
Now ... I'm sure there are some other equally amusing tales of weired and wonderful loads delivered by Albert over his 60 years of service ... so who would like to kick-off this little humorous diversion
Let's leave Self Loading Freight off the Weired & Wonderful list for the moment
Last edited by CoffmanStarter; 25th Aug 2014 at 11:02.
Once took two Royal Daimler cars to Gan for HMQ visit. It must have been all of a quarter of a mile from the airhead to the camp ! And of course they came home again.
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Once carried 3 Sub launched missiles from Prestwick to Navy North , wasn't until I chatted to the guys offloading that I found out they were misfires. Source of great amusement on the flight home imagining the stoppage drills for the sub!
Coff - 1986, trying to take over buildings at Mt Pleasant and open RAF Mount Pleasant on 1 May. Two banes of my life, sewerage system and central heating in Death Star (not then known as DS). Sewerage we fixed - filtration system built arse about face! Central heating was more difficult. part operated at something like 10 atmos and several 10s of degrees C above normal boiling (a long time ago). The low pressure end was something lower in both pressure and temperature. Where the two joined was some sort of pressure reducing equipment house (right under my bedroom) and if all failed an alarm sounded. call out technician and he changed a penny washer sized bit of plastic. However at one stage we were going through these at a ferocious rate and I had to signal for urgent resupply. They arrived in a small freezer bag in the pocket of a Hercules aircrew.
Just rethought this - on reflection, sorry, not an "Albert" story, but a "Tri*" story. I will go and reheat my Horlicks
Just rethought this - on reflection, sorry, not an "Albert" story, but a "Tri*" story. I will go and reheat my Horlicks
Last edited by Wander00; 25th Aug 2014 at 12:55. Reason: memory!
Not to do with freight as such but I once woke up in a US hotel room and on switching on the TV was greeted with an American breakfast news programme showing the window of my room at Lyneham Officers' Mess. It was when Terry Waite et al. were released and temporarily housed in the corridor opposite my room.
A slightly weird downroute moment.
A slightly weird downroute moment.
Of course there are always tales of loads that were not carried. The famous snowblower pickup from Sweden. Only to find once they got there it would not fit in the 'K' !
We used to do a trip in the summer with the Royal Marines and a load of wood for them to maintain their cabins ------- in Norway!!
Going back a few messages, we used to take Landrovers from Germany to Benbecula and the return load was (different) Landrovers.
Going back a few messages, we used to take Landrovers from Germany to Benbecula and the return load was (different) Landrovers.
Coff #1225,
That photograph is in my old Nav Bag, which I used to tote around routes with various course notes and diagnostic aids. What is actually missing is the Nav bag. We have had a couple of moves since demob, so are now in a cross oddled state with respect to knowing its location. Mrs Smudge will be on duty in the loft tomorrow, as I can't get up there any more, hopefully a result will be forthcoming. Have no fear, I know I have it, and it will be posted when I find it.
AA62, #1222,
Very smart props, on a very smart aircraft. Seeing the gloss black underbelly just brought a short memory back. In the early 70s I was employed doing Base 3 servicings on Albert at Colerne. One aircraft arrived from 70 Sqd in Cyprus for Base 3, and day one, the whole team is out on the wash bay doing the pre servicing wash (no civilian wash teams in those days). One of the lads, using a standard floor brush to scrub the underside of the aircraft, suddenly shouts for our Chiefy to come and have a look, the head of the brush had disappeared inside the falsework below the SPR panel, in the gloss black area. On checking there was a large hole that had been covered in black electrical bodge tape, for goodness knows how long, that now contained the head of the broom. No mention of this damage was entered in the F700 or any other paperwork. We all had a laugh at how "gash" those blokes in Cyprus seemed. Perhaps someone who is following this thread has an actual memory of how this happened.
Smudge
That photograph is in my old Nav Bag, which I used to tote around routes with various course notes and diagnostic aids. What is actually missing is the Nav bag. We have had a couple of moves since demob, so are now in a cross oddled state with respect to knowing its location. Mrs Smudge will be on duty in the loft tomorrow, as I can't get up there any more, hopefully a result will be forthcoming. Have no fear, I know I have it, and it will be posted when I find it.
AA62, #1222,
Very smart props, on a very smart aircraft. Seeing the gloss black underbelly just brought a short memory back. In the early 70s I was employed doing Base 3 servicings on Albert at Colerne. One aircraft arrived from 70 Sqd in Cyprus for Base 3, and day one, the whole team is out on the wash bay doing the pre servicing wash (no civilian wash teams in those days). One of the lads, using a standard floor brush to scrub the underside of the aircraft, suddenly shouts for our Chiefy to come and have a look, the head of the brush had disappeared inside the falsework below the SPR panel, in the gloss black area. On checking there was a large hole that had been covered in black electrical bodge tape, for goodness knows how long, that now contained the head of the broom. No mention of this damage was entered in the F700 or any other paperwork. We all had a laugh at how "gash" those blokes in Cyprus seemed. Perhaps someone who is following this thread has an actual memory of how this happened.
Smudge
Last edited by smujsmith; 25th Aug 2014 at 19:58.
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Remember the little brown packages of medical samples, ie stools, that had to be carried 'by hand of officer' and were invariably signed for and looked after by the co-pilot.
Coff,
Diagnostic aids refers of course to the seven Chicken Bones, presented to all GEs on successful completion of the course. The correct throwing, and recognition of patterns resulting, often led to successful rectification of faults down route. As an Airframe trade based GE (Heavy trade) I often found them useful on the Nav snags
Smudge
Diagnostic aids refers of course to the seven Chicken Bones, presented to all GEs on successful completion of the course. The correct throwing, and recognition of patterns resulting, often led to successful rectification of faults down route. As an Airframe trade based GE (Heavy trade) I often found them useful on the Nav snags
Smudge
Coffman,
your request is stirring some of my remaining memory cells into action again. I will drip feed them as it were.
Once Op Corporate was over we were bringing back lots of kit, much of it Argentinian. I remember radar cabins and various bits of comms kit.
One day the load turned out to be an a/c load of bombs on pallets. They looked very secondhand indeed. Chalked on each one was the inscription' X-ray checked fit to return to UK one flight only' Ummm ! I do not know whether they were ours or Argentinian or why it was necessary to bring them to the UK.
Someone somewhere was going to have 'fun' with them.
your request is stirring some of my remaining memory cells into action again. I will drip feed them as it were.
Once Op Corporate was over we were bringing back lots of kit, much of it Argentinian. I remember radar cabins and various bits of comms kit.
One day the load turned out to be an a/c load of bombs on pallets. They looked very secondhand indeed. Chalked on each one was the inscription' X-ray checked fit to return to UK one flight only' Ummm ! I do not know whether they were ours or Argentinian or why it was necessary to bring them to the UK.
Someone somewhere was going to have 'fun' with them.
Just to show that it was not all exotic locations for the 'K' crews !
WIDN62,
I remember well the 'air experience landrovers' and other bits of kit. Not all of it army by any means.
I remember well the 'air experience landrovers' and other bits of kit. Not all of it army by any means.