Global Aviation Magazine : 60 Years of the Hercules
Great shots again Chickenlover, after a few days of searching my "cuddly" Fat Albert finally turned up. He has been living with my son for the past 8 years, so he was reluctant to being him back;
I seem to remember winning it at a Lyneham families day, around 1990. Rumour had it that they were made by 70 Squadron Wives. Anyone else got one ?
Smudge
I seem to remember winning it at a Lyneham families day, around 1990. Rumour had it that they were made by 70 Squadron Wives. Anyone else got one ?
Smudge
Last edited by smujsmith; 6th Jul 2014 at 15:16.
My mistake - not sure why I put Marcus as his first name but it may have something to with simultaneously booking tickets to a Classics forum at Cambridge...
I go with Bunta, definitely, cuddly Albert is the product of a Lady. And that's exactly what I suggested in posting the photograph. Of course, we should all recognise the support we had from our ladies, that made our lives so easy, down route.
Smudge
Smudge
Another tale from the Hammock
As I sit here on a quiet Sunday evening, my mind goes back a few years, and I see a tale, from a non aircrew viewpoint that might be of interest. For those who have no time, and for my longevity on it, I apologise, but a true story it is;
The Canadian Jobby
Off we went on a simple trip to Calgary, via St Johns (Newfie, but I didn't need to tell you lot that). As I recall, during the descent in to St Johns, the Co, who was doing the approach noticed a rather large clunk and kick back through the rudder pedals. The Captain took control, and experienced the same "kick" and clunk going through the neutral line of the rudder range of movement. In anticipation that it would not reproduce itself on the ground, I actually was invited to sit in the Co's seat to experience it for myself, it was very obvious. First things first, the A Team put Albert on the ground with a view to sorting it out. After Landing, myself and the Flight Engineer, if he follows PPRUNE he will remember this route, spent some time investigating. At first we suspected the Rudder booster pack was snubbing, then we hit each other around the head because snubbing is a function at the extremities of travel, not mid range. So, I acquired a safety raiser, removed a panel, and looked inside the "ducks bill" area.
I will try to keep it simple. The output rod from the rudder booster pack to the rudder lower operating lever is supported by a triangular piece of structure, obviously designed in that manner to maintain rigidity. As the Engineer operated the Rudder (we dropped the lever and ran it off the Aux pump) I watched as every rivet holding that bit of structure together wobbled loosely in its hole. A passing Flt Engineer (T Le C) had a look and joined me in considering an Eng Rep was in order. In fact his opinion would be well and truly "edited" by the mods on this site.
Following the eng rep, I phoned Lyneham Ops to speak directly with the duty Eng Ops Flight Sergeant, who on answering offered all the help one might expect from someone who has just had his pizza break disturbed. I was informed, in no uncertain manner that C130s do not go U/S down route, with structural problems (this bloke took a similar attitude on a later snag in Portugal, where he threatened me with career ending repercussians and OC Eng, perhaps something for another post) and I could safely ignore it. Luckily, the Eng Rep had also arrived at FATCOCK who decided that a replacement rudder booster pack and two "rigger" corporals would appear in St Johns the next morning. I asked for the equipment to replace the loose rivets in the support structure, which I was sure was causing the "lumpiness" in the rudder system. Somehow, the lads, the replacement booster pack and the rivet gun arrived, minus the oversize rivets I needed. Now, all GEs know that if you want something to mend your Albert, you can usually find it if you beg, so off I went, and actually found the oversize rivets I needed. We replaced the rudder booster pack, and even without the flight loading, still had the clunk. One by one we replaced the loose rivets, and blow me, the support structure regained its rigidity, and the clunk disappeared. By now we had worked 16 hours straight, the two Corporals straight off shift, an 8 hour flight and 16 hours mending. The Lineys were true gold. We were fixed and ready to go, 24 hours delay, and hot to trot as the crew arrive.
By now, I had spoken directly to the FATCOCK Eng controller, and having discussed our task he agreed that the two lads should be sent to the hotel, and would recover with our aircraft on the way back in two days time. So off we set for Calgary. I feel sorry for the Air Eng, Paul K, who I was pleased to meet again later in life. But we landed at Calgary on three engines having had No 2 prop go daft and overswinging beyond limits. So, a prop change. Paul and I did all the prep before going to the hotel, for the prop change team, who would arrive in 2 days, and I eventually saw a hotel room three days after leaving Lyneham. With a day off, I enjoyed a lie in, a couple of hours doing the tourist tick, and a few beers with the crew. Next day, the prop change team arrived, and we did the job. Ground runs and all ready to go, surprisingly we were given a night off again, before departure. The plan now, night stop St Johns for Lyneham, collecting two rigger Cpls on the way through (they would get back just in time to be on shift). On arriving at St Johns, only one of the two Cpls was in evidence, and as they were both blokes I had worked on shift with, I was concerned for the missing man. According to the one I found the other had met someone, night one, and not been seen since. Now, as I was a neighbour of this bloke on the patch, and knew him and his family well, I was taken aback a bit. However, as the night went on we managed to contact him, and convince him that it would be in his interest to attend our departure the next morning. He did, and he went on to both divorce his wife and marry the girl he met in St Johns, and, also became a C130 AGE.
A simple 4 day trip turned in to a week long nightmare. I suspect almost every ex GE, and possibly current ones can relate to this, it was bad news for me, goodness knows what the crew thought. From a GEs point of view, any snag on a route like this could mean you missed doing the Australia trip you were scheduled for after your day off at home. Thankfully it was not typical (apart from the Portugal unscheduled jobby) and Albert was basically a very reliable aircraft from an Engineering support point of view. I apologise for the long winded dialogue, I'm sure though that many Albert operators have had similar experiences.
Smudge
The Canadian Jobby
Off we went on a simple trip to Calgary, via St Johns (Newfie, but I didn't need to tell you lot that). As I recall, during the descent in to St Johns, the Co, who was doing the approach noticed a rather large clunk and kick back through the rudder pedals. The Captain took control, and experienced the same "kick" and clunk going through the neutral line of the rudder range of movement. In anticipation that it would not reproduce itself on the ground, I actually was invited to sit in the Co's seat to experience it for myself, it was very obvious. First things first, the A Team put Albert on the ground with a view to sorting it out. After Landing, myself and the Flight Engineer, if he follows PPRUNE he will remember this route, spent some time investigating. At first we suspected the Rudder booster pack was snubbing, then we hit each other around the head because snubbing is a function at the extremities of travel, not mid range. So, I acquired a safety raiser, removed a panel, and looked inside the "ducks bill" area.
I will try to keep it simple. The output rod from the rudder booster pack to the rudder lower operating lever is supported by a triangular piece of structure, obviously designed in that manner to maintain rigidity. As the Engineer operated the Rudder (we dropped the lever and ran it off the Aux pump) I watched as every rivet holding that bit of structure together wobbled loosely in its hole. A passing Flt Engineer (T Le C) had a look and joined me in considering an Eng Rep was in order. In fact his opinion would be well and truly "edited" by the mods on this site.
Following the eng rep, I phoned Lyneham Ops to speak directly with the duty Eng Ops Flight Sergeant, who on answering offered all the help one might expect from someone who has just had his pizza break disturbed. I was informed, in no uncertain manner that C130s do not go U/S down route, with structural problems (this bloke took a similar attitude on a later snag in Portugal, where he threatened me with career ending repercussians and OC Eng, perhaps something for another post) and I could safely ignore it. Luckily, the Eng Rep had also arrived at FATCOCK who decided that a replacement rudder booster pack and two "rigger" corporals would appear in St Johns the next morning. I asked for the equipment to replace the loose rivets in the support structure, which I was sure was causing the "lumpiness" in the rudder system. Somehow, the lads, the replacement booster pack and the rivet gun arrived, minus the oversize rivets I needed. Now, all GEs know that if you want something to mend your Albert, you can usually find it if you beg, so off I went, and actually found the oversize rivets I needed. We replaced the rudder booster pack, and even without the flight loading, still had the clunk. One by one we replaced the loose rivets, and blow me, the support structure regained its rigidity, and the clunk disappeared. By now we had worked 16 hours straight, the two Corporals straight off shift, an 8 hour flight and 16 hours mending. The Lineys were true gold. We were fixed and ready to go, 24 hours delay, and hot to trot as the crew arrive.
By now, I had spoken directly to the FATCOCK Eng controller, and having discussed our task he agreed that the two lads should be sent to the hotel, and would recover with our aircraft on the way back in two days time. So off we set for Calgary. I feel sorry for the Air Eng, Paul K, who I was pleased to meet again later in life. But we landed at Calgary on three engines having had No 2 prop go daft and overswinging beyond limits. So, a prop change. Paul and I did all the prep before going to the hotel, for the prop change team, who would arrive in 2 days, and I eventually saw a hotel room three days after leaving Lyneham. With a day off, I enjoyed a lie in, a couple of hours doing the tourist tick, and a few beers with the crew. Next day, the prop change team arrived, and we did the job. Ground runs and all ready to go, surprisingly we were given a night off again, before departure. The plan now, night stop St Johns for Lyneham, collecting two rigger Cpls on the way through (they would get back just in time to be on shift). On arriving at St Johns, only one of the two Cpls was in evidence, and as they were both blokes I had worked on shift with, I was concerned for the missing man. According to the one I found the other had met someone, night one, and not been seen since. Now, as I was a neighbour of this bloke on the patch, and knew him and his family well, I was taken aback a bit. However, as the night went on we managed to contact him, and convince him that it would be in his interest to attend our departure the next morning. He did, and he went on to both divorce his wife and marry the girl he met in St Johns, and, also became a C130 AGE.
A simple 4 day trip turned in to a week long nightmare. I suspect almost every ex GE, and possibly current ones can relate to this, it was bad news for me, goodness knows what the crew thought. From a GEs point of view, any snag on a route like this could mean you missed doing the Australia trip you were scheduled for after your day off at home. Thankfully it was not typical (apart from the Portugal unscheduled jobby) and Albert was basically a very reliable aircraft from an Engineering support point of view. I apologise for the long winded dialogue, I'm sure though that many Albert operators have had similar experiences.
Smudge
Last edited by smujsmith; 6th Jul 2014 at 23:30.
Smudge
Whilst I did not hear of this one previously, I have oft hear mention of the Portuguese incident you refer to, along with rumoured OC Eng involvement.....do spill the beans...
In my years on Albert, we relatively infrequently broke; when we did, it was a very mixed bag of advice received from Lyneham. The most fatuous suggestion was to fly back across the Pond with a bung in one of the dump masts to 'cure a fuel leak'.....you couldn't make it up!
Cheers
Whilst I did not hear of this one previously, I have oft hear mention of the Portuguese incident you refer to, along with rumoured OC Eng involvement.....do spill the beans...
In my years on Albert, we relatively infrequently broke; when we did, it was a very mixed bag of advice received from Lyneham. The most fatuous suggestion was to fly back across the Pond with a bung in one of the dump masts to 'cure a fuel leak'.....you couldn't make it up!
Cheers
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Morning all
Sadly off today to the funeral of a friend and fellow Ascoteer, Ken McCredie.
Thought this was sort of fitting.
If you haven't seen it before, watch out as it seems to stir all the dust in your house right into your eyes.....
Apologies if you've all seen it.
Sadly off today to the funeral of a friend and fellow Ascoteer, Ken McCredie.
Thought this was sort of fitting.
If you haven't seen it before, watch out as it seems to stir all the dust in your house right into your eyes.....
Apologies if you've all seen it.
smudge,
I think most of us ex 'K' chaps can relate to the tale you have just told. The armchair 'experten' back home always thought we were swinging the lead.
Not the first time either that I have set off on a simple Akro n/s to return home many days later.
One on of these Akro n/s we turned up at ops expecting to go straight to Lyneham only to be told we were to go to Athens. A 'K' loaded with a fast jet squadron move was u/s. We were to take his load and go home from there.
So off we go. As we are taxing in I start to laugh over the i/c. We are in a Mk1 and the u/s 'K' is a Mk3 (stretched). The captain asks why I am laughing as he is sure group has not made an error. I am equally sure that any fast jet squadron move will be full to bursting. (on the 'we may just need it' grounds).
We shut down and I liberate the key from the battery box and climb aboard the striken a/c.
It is very full.
So I shut up the Mk3 and put the key back. The co organises a phone patch with group and I ask the ops controller which bit of the cargo he wants left behind. A bit of a tirade ensues (he is only talking to an ALM after all). When I get a word in I point out the physical impossibility of a straight transfer as our a/c is 15 ft too short. The penny drops at last and we are brusquely told to return to Akro and they will make other arrangements.
It could all still be there now !
I think most of us ex 'K' chaps can relate to the tale you have just told. The armchair 'experten' back home always thought we were swinging the lead.
Not the first time either that I have set off on a simple Akro n/s to return home many days later.
One on of these Akro n/s we turned up at ops expecting to go straight to Lyneham only to be told we were to go to Athens. A 'K' loaded with a fast jet squadron move was u/s. We were to take his load and go home from there.
So off we go. As we are taxing in I start to laugh over the i/c. We are in a Mk1 and the u/s 'K' is a Mk3 (stretched). The captain asks why I am laughing as he is sure group has not made an error. I am equally sure that any fast jet squadron move will be full to bursting. (on the 'we may just need it' grounds).
We shut down and I liberate the key from the battery box and climb aboard the striken a/c.
It is very full.
So I shut up the Mk3 and put the key back. The co organises a phone patch with group and I ask the ops controller which bit of the cargo he wants left behind. A bit of a tirade ensues (he is only talking to an ALM after all). When I get a word in I point out the physical impossibility of a straight transfer as our a/c is 15 ft too short. The penny drops at last and we are brusquely told to return to Akro and they will make other arrangements.
It could all still be there now !
Still with VR at Pope AFB. All smartened up ready for inspection in the Little Lyneham HQ area
This is straight after the MSP drop on VR we check that everything has worked as advertised and we are not into report writing !.
chickenlover,
had the pleasure of meeting JB in Delhi when he was the Air Attache there. We were supporting the Reds out to Langkawi for the Air Show.
No pics unfortunately as the film in my ancient Canon snapped !
had the pleasure of meeting JB in Delhi when he was the Air Attache there. We were supporting the Reds out to Langkawi for the Air Show.
No pics unfortunately as the film in my ancient Canon snapped !
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RIAT Flypast.
Chickenlover,
Good to see you today albeit in sad circumstances, too often the case over the years.
Cheers for the RIAT Flypast link, as I said today I'm flying the 6 bladed devil's work nearest the crowd, however, I won't repeat the story I told today about the last minute formation change on this public forum.
I'm going photo rummaging in the cellar this evening, be nice to find one of the air to air photo chase with the blue Canberra for it's 40th anniversary, God that makes me feel old and I was only the Co
.
Good to see you today albeit in sad circumstances, too often the case over the years.
Cheers for the RIAT Flypast link, as I said today I'm flying the 6 bladed devil's work nearest the crowd, however, I won't repeat the story I told today about the last minute formation change on this public forum.
I'm going photo rummaging in the cellar this evening, be nice to find one of the air to air photo chase with the blue Canberra for it's 40th anniversary, God that makes me feel old and I was only the Co
.
A Cracking Route (AKA the Portugal Jobby)
2 May 1990, a day of sadness. It was the day that the crew of the Shackleton, that had crashed in the Outer Hebrides returned home to Lossiemouth. RIP all, their return was to play a part in this story, which shows how occasionally, the ground engineering element of C130 support occasionally fell a little short. It was to be the start of a few days away that made me think seriously about Aircrew defect reporting, and subsequent abuse of the NFF (No Fault Found) by us ground tradesmen. I apologise beforehand for the length of this missive, but some heard about it, I lived it, and it gives a flavour at least of "how we were". I also accept that its only my version of events, I would welcome any input from others who "enjoyed" the trip.
So, I was detailed as the AGE on a five day trip that would run as follows. Night stop Lossiemouth, next night Gib, Lossiemouth, Gib flag Lossiemouth for Lyneham. There were two bonuses. The two night stops Gib came with an off base authorisation, at the time an allowance of £100 sterling, and probably the best rate on the planet (Kerching, as they say). Lossiemouth of course was in the Mess. The second bonus was the crew, all chaps I had been down route with before, and all top men. The skipper, who I will call BJ, was a particularly pleasant bloke, and extremely professional in his approach to the trip. We all knew each other, and I hope had a professional attitude to getting the job done.
So, day one, leg was Lyneham To Lossiemouth, and a civilised departure time due to the short flight time. As was my habit, having stowed my yellow box of tools, and personal baggage, I joined the Eng on the Flight deck for a coffee and a peruse of the F700 while awaiting the arrival of the "royals" from Ops. We both noted in the defects log that the aircraft had been snagged twice for rather large pressurisation fluctuations in the past week. Both times it had been investigated and cleared as NFF by the line lads. Well, who were we to argue, but it was something that stood out prior to departure. The front end eventually turned up, and off we went, northbound for Lossiemouth. In the cruise, and for once not in my hammock, my ears started "whanging about" horrendously, on discussing it with the crew, we all agreed that it started just after we had passed through some light turbulence, but made no sense with respect to the pressurisation system. As we had around 16 hours on the ground at Lossiemouth, I said I would have a look and see what I could find. After The A/F, loading of one small box in the middle of the freight bay between the MLG walls, I made use of a couple of the VASS lads to do a pressure run using the inboards only, and had achieved "max diff" before ATC told me to shut down, as the aircraft returning the Shack Crew was about to land. I complied immediately, shut Albert down, and could only tell my Air Eng, that I, like my Lyneham Line compatriots could find no fault. Now is a good time to recharge your glasses chaps !
Next day, we prepare to depart for our £100 bonus. I'd never stopped "off base" at Gib, and it seemed that we had been put in a very nice hotel. Apart from the box in the middle of the freight bay, we had a passenger, an RN Lt Cdr, on his way to Gib to join an exercise. So off we went. And all was fine, I arranged myself on some para seats in a well known resemblance of a GE in flight, and looked forward to a nice warm arrival in Gib. Somewhere over the Med a couple of hours later we hit a bit of turbulence, and I woke up with a lot of pain in my ears. The Navy chap was also suffering. As I woke up, I had positioned myself on the para seats immediately aft of the RH MLG (Right Hand Main Landing Gear), I looked up and saw a big gap between the RH MLG sidewall skin, and the angle fittings used to attach the centre wing section to the fuselage (Drag Angles). Noticing also that the RH MLG soundproofing was being sucked in to the sidewall, I stood on the cargo, and removed the soundproofing. A crack, around 12 inches long presented itself, busily farting out our pressurised air, and obviously having something to do with the fluctuations we were experiencing. I asked to go on the flight deck, and discussed it with the Eng and the Captain. Now the Captain wanted a look, so we went back to the freight bay, and he had a good look at what was happening to his aircraft. The crack, the drag angle, none of it looked good, and after his return to the front seats, he took the decision to divert to Porto, which was off to our left. We landed, I prepared an Eng Rep ( Engineering report) and duly dispatched it to Fatcock and Lyneham Ops. We had found the reason for the pressurisation fluctuation, and were all in agreement that it could not have been found, without the flight loading on the aircraft.
I have to digress very slightly, my experience to that point, apart from obviously passing the famous C130 AGE course (noted as being the hardest thing to pass in the RAF) I had previously been employed on Base 3 (major servicing) of Albert, and had served for several years as a team leader on Field Repair Squadron (formerly 71 MU) and was authorised to carry out repairs to primary aircraft structure. I was no newcomer to structural damage, so my Eng Rep was clear and concise in what I had found. I requested that Lyneham send the RAF Structural Assessor, using the Gib Schedule, due overhead the next day, who could advise on the status of our aircrafts structure. If that were done our passenger could be picked up to join his detachment too. This took a couple of hours, and I was grateful that both Captain and Eng stayed to help me both A/F the aircraft, and compile our report (including detailed diagrams). Our arrival at the hotel was met by a receptionist informing me that I was required on the telephone. My "friendly" Flt Sgt from ops had decided to communicate with me. Chief Tech Smudge, he said. "I'm not sure how many times I have to tell you that the Hercules does not go unserviceable for structural problems. You are to tell the Captain that in your opinion it is safe to continue the route with the aircraft as is". Well, what part of go away fornicating did he not understand ? Particularly as my Captain was listening in on an extension line. I explained what we needed, and whilst the Flt Sgt only informed me that I should make the most of my last trip as a GE, he confirmed he had read the Eng rep, and understood my suggestions. The next thing was a message for the Captain from Fatcock. Chief Tech Structural Surveyor to arrive on re routed Gib Sched in the morning. Prep pax and freight for transfer to the Sched, and take it from there. Once again, Command show at least some understanding of our situation. We now get to the nasty bit.
On arrival, the structural surveyor looked at his copy of my Eng Rep, and compared it to what I showed him. I had located a piece of paper in the cracked MLG skin in flight, which had now closed up, so the paper showed the crack clearly, likewise the wing attachment angle had been given the same treatment. On having a bit of a tug, he pulled out around six securing rivets on the angle, just by hand. His obvious knowledge of the structure led us to the rear RH MLG strut track, which had a long crack, most of the way down its length, and several very solid attachment bolts (around half an inch diameter) sheared off or missing altogether. We both agreed, it looked like the aircraft had had a very heavy landing, that went unreported, and developed to the current state. His decision was that the aircraft was unfit to fly, until some fly in repairs were carried out. He compiled a complete report on the damage found, and sent it off to Lyneham, not Fatcock. We then headed for the hotel to await developments. At the hotel, our surveyor briefed the Captain on what he had found, his recommended course of recovery, and answered any questions about the structure involved. So, the skipper was quite comfortable with the situation when he received to phone call from my friend, the Flt Sgt in Ops at Lyneham (he was a persistent bugger), who told him that OC Eng Wing had read the report, and that the aircraft was safe to fly back to Lyneham tomorrow morning. Skipper says "put OC Eng on the phone then", Oh, he's stepped out at the moment says Flt Sgt. "Well get him to phone me back when he steps back in" says the skipper. Next we receive a signal/FAX from Lyneham, telling us that, on the authority of the Station Commander, OC Eng Wing was authorising one flight, unpressurised, gear down direct to Lyneham on the next day. The skipper had it in writing, and put it to us that he would have to comply with such an order. There was no discussion as far as I remember, only that our structural surveyor said he wanted a civilian air ticket back to the UK (he eventually came home with us). The flight back to Lyneham took around 7 hours as I remember, was particularly worrying as we encountered more turbulence at the lower altitudes, and I watched the crack in the sidewall extend by over an inch during the flight. The surveyor could not be coaxed from the bottom bunk, it would have taken a tyre lever to get me away from that crack.
It turns out that on the evening of the last signal, the Station Commander had not been appraised of the situation, and that the signal/FAX had used his authority in a less than genuine light. Whatever, we got back, I spent a few more years as an AGE and as for OC Eng ? Well, for some reason he was short toured. Surprisingly I was never interviewed or questioned about my part in it, there was usually some sort of post mortem on such events. But the piece of skin with the crack in it,removed by the Marshalls fitter, when repairing the sidewall remains in my possession to this day. The structural surveyor made it fairly clear that he would not do "down route" surveys in future. And the crew from that route remain top of the pops in my book. Fact is, as I proved myself, finding this fault on the ground would have been difficult in the extreme, the leaks came as a result of pressure differential, and the different flight loading on the structure in flight. In later years we had an Aircraft on air test from AES that exhibited the same characteristics. Knowing the Flight Test crew at the time, I was allowed to go on the second air test, after no fault could be found on the ground. We pulled some sound proofing off and asked the Captain to put a little G on, crikey did the pressurisation fluctuate. The Portugal Jobby was a funny old event, and my second "stoppage" due to structure. I'm sure any other ex GEs reading this will have a chuckle. Perhaps some were blighted with particular snags. I apologise for such a long post, perhaps I should have written a book instead. But for me, it's another memory of supporting Albert down route.
Smudge
So, I was detailed as the AGE on a five day trip that would run as follows. Night stop Lossiemouth, next night Gib, Lossiemouth, Gib flag Lossiemouth for Lyneham. There were two bonuses. The two night stops Gib came with an off base authorisation, at the time an allowance of £100 sterling, and probably the best rate on the planet (Kerching, as they say). Lossiemouth of course was in the Mess. The second bonus was the crew, all chaps I had been down route with before, and all top men. The skipper, who I will call BJ, was a particularly pleasant bloke, and extremely professional in his approach to the trip. We all knew each other, and I hope had a professional attitude to getting the job done.
So, day one, leg was Lyneham To Lossiemouth, and a civilised departure time due to the short flight time. As was my habit, having stowed my yellow box of tools, and personal baggage, I joined the Eng on the Flight deck for a coffee and a peruse of the F700 while awaiting the arrival of the "royals" from Ops. We both noted in the defects log that the aircraft had been snagged twice for rather large pressurisation fluctuations in the past week. Both times it had been investigated and cleared as NFF by the line lads. Well, who were we to argue, but it was something that stood out prior to departure. The front end eventually turned up, and off we went, northbound for Lossiemouth. In the cruise, and for once not in my hammock, my ears started "whanging about" horrendously, on discussing it with the crew, we all agreed that it started just after we had passed through some light turbulence, but made no sense with respect to the pressurisation system. As we had around 16 hours on the ground at Lossiemouth, I said I would have a look and see what I could find. After The A/F, loading of one small box in the middle of the freight bay between the MLG walls, I made use of a couple of the VASS lads to do a pressure run using the inboards only, and had achieved "max diff" before ATC told me to shut down, as the aircraft returning the Shack Crew was about to land. I complied immediately, shut Albert down, and could only tell my Air Eng, that I, like my Lyneham Line compatriots could find no fault. Now is a good time to recharge your glasses chaps !
Next day, we prepare to depart for our £100 bonus. I'd never stopped "off base" at Gib, and it seemed that we had been put in a very nice hotel. Apart from the box in the middle of the freight bay, we had a passenger, an RN Lt Cdr, on his way to Gib to join an exercise. So off we went. And all was fine, I arranged myself on some para seats in a well known resemblance of a GE in flight, and looked forward to a nice warm arrival in Gib. Somewhere over the Med a couple of hours later we hit a bit of turbulence, and I woke up with a lot of pain in my ears. The Navy chap was also suffering. As I woke up, I had positioned myself on the para seats immediately aft of the RH MLG (Right Hand Main Landing Gear), I looked up and saw a big gap between the RH MLG sidewall skin, and the angle fittings used to attach the centre wing section to the fuselage (Drag Angles). Noticing also that the RH MLG soundproofing was being sucked in to the sidewall, I stood on the cargo, and removed the soundproofing. A crack, around 12 inches long presented itself, busily farting out our pressurised air, and obviously having something to do with the fluctuations we were experiencing. I asked to go on the flight deck, and discussed it with the Eng and the Captain. Now the Captain wanted a look, so we went back to the freight bay, and he had a good look at what was happening to his aircraft. The crack, the drag angle, none of it looked good, and after his return to the front seats, he took the decision to divert to Porto, which was off to our left. We landed, I prepared an Eng Rep ( Engineering report) and duly dispatched it to Fatcock and Lyneham Ops. We had found the reason for the pressurisation fluctuation, and were all in agreement that it could not have been found, without the flight loading on the aircraft.
I have to digress very slightly, my experience to that point, apart from obviously passing the famous C130 AGE course (noted as being the hardest thing to pass in the RAF) I had previously been employed on Base 3 (major servicing) of Albert, and had served for several years as a team leader on Field Repair Squadron (formerly 71 MU) and was authorised to carry out repairs to primary aircraft structure. I was no newcomer to structural damage, so my Eng Rep was clear and concise in what I had found. I requested that Lyneham send the RAF Structural Assessor, using the Gib Schedule, due overhead the next day, who could advise on the status of our aircrafts structure. If that were done our passenger could be picked up to join his detachment too. This took a couple of hours, and I was grateful that both Captain and Eng stayed to help me both A/F the aircraft, and compile our report (including detailed diagrams). Our arrival at the hotel was met by a receptionist informing me that I was required on the telephone. My "friendly" Flt Sgt from ops had decided to communicate with me. Chief Tech Smudge, he said. "I'm not sure how many times I have to tell you that the Hercules does not go unserviceable for structural problems. You are to tell the Captain that in your opinion it is safe to continue the route with the aircraft as is". Well, what part of go away fornicating did he not understand ? Particularly as my Captain was listening in on an extension line. I explained what we needed, and whilst the Flt Sgt only informed me that I should make the most of my last trip as a GE, he confirmed he had read the Eng rep, and understood my suggestions. The next thing was a message for the Captain from Fatcock. Chief Tech Structural Surveyor to arrive on re routed Gib Sched in the morning. Prep pax and freight for transfer to the Sched, and take it from there. Once again, Command show at least some understanding of our situation. We now get to the nasty bit.
On arrival, the structural surveyor looked at his copy of my Eng Rep, and compared it to what I showed him. I had located a piece of paper in the cracked MLG skin in flight, which had now closed up, so the paper showed the crack clearly, likewise the wing attachment angle had been given the same treatment. On having a bit of a tug, he pulled out around six securing rivets on the angle, just by hand. His obvious knowledge of the structure led us to the rear RH MLG strut track, which had a long crack, most of the way down its length, and several very solid attachment bolts (around half an inch diameter) sheared off or missing altogether. We both agreed, it looked like the aircraft had had a very heavy landing, that went unreported, and developed to the current state. His decision was that the aircraft was unfit to fly, until some fly in repairs were carried out. He compiled a complete report on the damage found, and sent it off to Lyneham, not Fatcock. We then headed for the hotel to await developments. At the hotel, our surveyor briefed the Captain on what he had found, his recommended course of recovery, and answered any questions about the structure involved. So, the skipper was quite comfortable with the situation when he received to phone call from my friend, the Flt Sgt in Ops at Lyneham (he was a persistent bugger), who told him that OC Eng Wing had read the report, and that the aircraft was safe to fly back to Lyneham tomorrow morning. Skipper says "put OC Eng on the phone then", Oh, he's stepped out at the moment says Flt Sgt. "Well get him to phone me back when he steps back in" says the skipper. Next we receive a signal/FAX from Lyneham, telling us that, on the authority of the Station Commander, OC Eng Wing was authorising one flight, unpressurised, gear down direct to Lyneham on the next day. The skipper had it in writing, and put it to us that he would have to comply with such an order. There was no discussion as far as I remember, only that our structural surveyor said he wanted a civilian air ticket back to the UK (he eventually came home with us). The flight back to Lyneham took around 7 hours as I remember, was particularly worrying as we encountered more turbulence at the lower altitudes, and I watched the crack in the sidewall extend by over an inch during the flight. The surveyor could not be coaxed from the bottom bunk, it would have taken a tyre lever to get me away from that crack.
It turns out that on the evening of the last signal, the Station Commander had not been appraised of the situation, and that the signal/FAX had used his authority in a less than genuine light. Whatever, we got back, I spent a few more years as an AGE and as for OC Eng ? Well, for some reason he was short toured. Surprisingly I was never interviewed or questioned about my part in it, there was usually some sort of post mortem on such events. But the piece of skin with the crack in it,removed by the Marshalls fitter, when repairing the sidewall remains in my possession to this day. The structural surveyor made it fairly clear that he would not do "down route" surveys in future. And the crew from that route remain top of the pops in my book. Fact is, as I proved myself, finding this fault on the ground would have been difficult in the extreme, the leaks came as a result of pressure differential, and the different flight loading on the structure in flight. In later years we had an Aircraft on air test from AES that exhibited the same characteristics. Knowing the Flight Test crew at the time, I was allowed to go on the second air test, after no fault could be found on the ground. We pulled some sound proofing off and asked the Captain to put a little G on, crikey did the pressurisation fluctuate. The Portugal Jobby was a funny old event, and my second "stoppage" due to structure. I'm sure any other ex GEs reading this will have a chuckle. Perhaps some were blighted with particular snags. I apologise for such a long post, perhaps I should have written a book instead. But for me, it's another memory of supporting Albert down route.
Smudge
Last edited by smujsmith; 7th Jul 2014 at 22:23.
smudge,
no apology needed. As I said before it is amazing how the armchair 'experts' sitting comfortably back in the UK always know better than the man /woman on the spot.
no apology needed. As I said before it is amazing how the armchair 'experts' sitting comfortably back in the UK always know better than the man /woman on the spot.