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Air Cadets grounded?

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Air Cadets grounded?

Old 13th Feb 2016, 14:04
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Since many have separate aerotow and winch releases, it is theoretically possible to have a glider which has only used one form of launch, but has to have an unused release replaced. (The one never used for launching would of course be exercised every time the other was used for launching).
Only if you have a separate release for each hook. Although the one not used doesn't 'take the strain' it gets operated and hence the spring gets weakened.
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Old 13th Feb 2016, 18:27
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ATC 75th at Hendon

I do wonder if the 'PR' dept at HQ ATC Cranwell actually paid someone to design
the 'opening' background for the 75th at Hendon.
CV was trotted out for this occasion with a very large picture of Viking ZE 608 as the main picture behind her (how clever was that)

I would have thought it was not beyond the wit of man to find an 'ex Cadet' from the early years together with a young boy and girl from 'now' with a real Mk 111 as the backdrop.

Far more 'honest' in my mind and a great tribute to the machine that sent so many off solo for so long; (a record that will never be broken) and is the trusty steed that put the AIR in Cadets and Venture in Adventure.

When i say 'for so long' i of course was referring to its time in doggedly reliable service not the duration of the 2-3 min flights,which again must be a record for the 'lack of dual time' before solo. Its been downhill since (just like its performance).

Last edited by POBJOY; 13th Feb 2016 at 19:31.
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Old 14th Feb 2016, 08:17
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Pobjoy

Your talk of the Mk3 is bringing back Happy memory's likely to but is likely bring tears to my eyes but only suppressed by the anger I feel for the lazy incompetent & greedy people who's total failure to what they have been paid to do precipitated this crisis.

There are a lot of people working towards getting servicable aircraft for the cadets to fly but this is still being hindered by people who are in positions of power but lack the knowlage and experience to make sensible decisions and so to hide their lack of ability under outlandish technical requirements and mountains of paperwork.

My hope is that 2017 will see a new broom sweeping through the technical side of VGS gliding provision with the contracts run by people who understand composite structure and have the ability to use the military airworthiness system for the reason it was put in place, not as an excuse for not doing any work.

When the dust settles following the award of contracts will the full story be told but IMO even the apparent lacklustre performance of some of the military VGS management will be seen in a different light when the full story comes to light.

Only when the VGS system has been purged can the cadets benifit from the same opportunity to learn to glide that I and a lot of others on this forum enjoyed and this will come not one moment to soon.
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Old 14th Feb 2016, 09:09
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Drinking port the other evening, there was a rumour percolating that 2 FTS were confident of FOC in 2018.
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Old 14th Feb 2016, 10:40
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FOC 2018

With 'virtual' staff no doubt to go with the part task trainers in the Squadron creche's.

Imminent missive expected from Cmmt 2FTS to all schools with regard to implementing emergency 'cryogenic' program to preserve critical staff for 'reborn Squadrons' for 2018.

These 'clowns' are rewriting the book on how not to fix a problem.
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Old 14th Feb 2016, 11:05
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Clowns

Pobjoy,
Sorry to disagree with you, but what have clowns ever done to you? For me, they entertained, made me smile and laugh and brought tears of joy rolling down my face.

No, i'd rather use the relatively modern term, a bunch of Dick Heads, with no idea of organisation, proper engineering and management and have no honour. Not one of them, AFAIK, has offered to "Fall on their sword" The only tears they have brought to my face are tears of anger and frustration.

A342
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Old 14th Feb 2016, 15:21
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NO disrespect to Real Clowns

Quite right ACW and i usually put in such a disclaimer,but i was lulled into being kind at the thought of seeing the F....W... driving around the circus ring in cars that fall to pieces and thinking;the poor souls think that is normal.
On a more positive note; on a recent trip to the Bristol area i happened across the old RAF Locking camp to find it completely obliterated (although the Spitfire plinth remained) (no doubt kept for a Viking).I had several visits there way back as a Cadet on an advanced course and then to help.It amused me to see the electrical trainees parading in the mornings with nice little tool kits as opposed to rifles.
Weston Airport has also finally succummed to the developers with the runway now ripped up (we used it when the cloud was on the hills around Cheddar).
BUT the dear old Halesland site lives on and is still a little gem of a location with the original hut and hangar still ok plus a new installation and trailer park down near the 'ROCKS'.
In my day there were some 'markings' 400ft and Robbies head at that end but there is a 621 number still visable.
So at least the ATC left its mark on that piece of the Mendips.
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Old 14th Feb 2016, 21:28
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Halesland...

Ahhh.....Halesland, that is a name to remember.

Advanced Instructors' Courses with the good guys from CGS. The ridge never seemed to work when I was there but I did manage to get my Silver distance by flying the Air Cadet hot ship (the Swallow) from Halesland to Upavon.

Oh, I seem to remember some great evenings at the Webbington Country Club - seems the Officers' Mess at Locking had a special membership arrangement!!

It is a pity that we are not discussing the return of the current fleet of air cadet gliders, all those promises from 2FTS over a year ago seem to have been forgotten.......I wonder what is happening to the current crop of instructors at ACCGS, have they got fed up with this debacle??

Will we will get any news this week?
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Old 15th Feb 2016, 12:43
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Thread Creep Halesland

Whilst the 'system' swims around in a sea of very thick custard we can do well to remind ourselves why we are so 'annoyed' at the way they 'broke' a fine operation.**
Halesland was one such 'gem'.
Very much the 'baby' of 87/621 School at Weston Airport it emerged to become a well used site for Cadet advanced flying and later schools summer deployment.
By modern standards it was 'limited' but its location and the ability to get a 'C' in a Prefect was in itself a real jump from flying the circuit at your normal base.
Even the drive to the site was fun and the unspoiled scenery quite spectacular;via the 'back way' through Burrington Combe.I seem to remember the ATC would not allow cadets to be driven via the more direct route as the hill was considered rather steep for the brakes of the day.
One took 'rations' for the day and for 'scouts' like myself it was back to organising cooking and meals.
Many times there would be a local shepherd up there huddled in a simple shelter (we would supply him with tea) and i well remember getting a ticking off for giving him a hot drink.
The main kit was T21/Prefect and the occaisional Swallow.
On my first visit there was a BRAND NEW V8 winch up there which was not used as we had the MB twin drums by then.
Halesland weather could give you sunburn or hypothermia,and it could change very quickly.The field 'undulated' to the point that taking up slack would show up the gullies with the cable becoming a bridge.
This was the real spirit of the ATC in action;operating from a 'field' that had no resemblance to our normal base yet Cadets would be popping off in the Prefect after a few trips in the T21.The site was vacated when the glass ships arrived however the civvy club who are now resident seem to get along ok and have 'improved' the runs to cater for the later machines.
Happy memories of mega 'fry ups' when the weather clamped and i still wonder where that 'new' V8 barrage balloon winch went !
**I am not blaming the 'system' for the demise of Halesland, but merely suggesting this was just one example of how well the the system ran without an excess of paperwork, and how capability ruled the day.
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Old 15th Feb 2016, 14:51
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Memory; herding the cattle out of the field before flying, then following the field-phone cable along the wall to find out where the cows had eaten the insulation...
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Old 15th Feb 2016, 22:23
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Greetings from Sedbergh WJ 306 to all who flew her at Halesland.

Still flying - which is more than you can say about her plastic successors!

Sorry - I'm not good at posting photos - can't make the link work

Last edited by astir 8; 16th Feb 2016 at 18:08.
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 08:18
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WJ 306

Does not appear in my Halesland visits,but is a frequent 'mount' in my Predannack days from 69 on;which according to my LB included some 'evening' cable twinkling fly ins. Oh dear i will prob be grounded again for that.Most of my other freq mounts went up in flames in the Kenley hangar fire,and my Cadet first solo machine was w/o in the 60's.
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 14:39
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Halesland.

The success of Halesland was almost entirely due to dear old Robbie, who found the place and named it after the local landowner from whom he arranged the sale -Mr Hale. He was sorely missed, but at least he was given some recognition for his remarkable efforts in his well-earned MBE.
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 16:58
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Robbies Head

As alluded to earlier 'Robbies Head' was a feature made down near the rocks. I suspect some of him was robbed to make a 400ft mark at the 'Rocks end'.
Now we have some 'Haleslandite's' on thread does anyone know if any flights were made to Weston from there, or any aero tows 'in' to the site to position aircraft.
On one 'very non gliding day' i was killing time down at Weston where the windsock was stuck out like a carrot at 90 degrees to the single wet runway.
I was then somewhat surprised to hear the roar of a couple of large radial engines followed by the sideways view of a Varsity on finals appearing out of the gloom (i mean sideways).To say this looked spectacular (i still remember it) as the beast stayed sideways until a few feet before a late kick off and spike on followed by more noise and lots of spray.
It was the only powered machine i ever saw there in my ATC visits.
Years later i needed an early morning 'fuel stop' for my non radio Turbulent and duly popped in after a phone call the prev day. The Air Traffic 'hut' was perched on stilts (stiil there) and had started life as the Taxi rank booking office from WSM sea front. This is near the Helicopter museum and i believe they are trying to 'list and preserve it'.
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 18:23
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Still way off thread

POBJOY

Quite right WJ 306 was at Predannack 1969 - 76 and Weston/Halesland 1976-81 with a refurb spell at St Athan late 80-early 81.

http://www.pprune.org/aviation-histo...-glass-22.html

shows WJ 306 in silver/dayglo patches but after 1981 became red/white/grey in which she remains

(I still can't get the link to Photobucket to work to show her in her present AIRWORTHY state !)
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 20:27
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National Security is at Risk.......

Our national security is at risk as a result of this cock up............have a look here.

What a load of
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 20:49
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Whoever it was needs a good rogering with last year's Christmas tree. To be honest, the only thing that surprises me now in this whole saga is the depths of stupidity to which various decision makers are seemingly capable of plunging. I'm starting to think they're competing with each other for some sort of prize. A balloon and an ice cream, maybe.
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 21:22
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Originally Posted by POBJOY
Years later i needed an early morning 'fuel stop' for my non radio Turbulent and duly popped in after a phone call the prev day. The Air Traffic 'hut' was perched on stilts (stiil there) and had started life as the Taxi rank booking office from WSM sea front. This is near the Helicopter museum and i believe they are trying to 'list and preserve it'.
WSM used to share a frequency with Farnborough (122.5) and I can remember listening to a VFW 614 going in there probably late '70s.
Looking at WSM on www.flashearth.com , there's no sign of building/re-development going on (don't know when the satellite photos were taken though).
What a waste of a perfectly useable airfield.

Last edited by chevvron; 16th Feb 2016 at 22:25.
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Old 16th Feb 2016, 21:29
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Freda

We all know the press don't like to let the truth get in the way of a good story, a quick look at the plans has this building situated next to two buildings that look the same, to the south there is an industrial estate, to the west a field full of solar panels and to the north a motorway service area......... It by planning policy is on a brownfield site !

But I do so admire the local paper hack for this one I have not often seen the truth stretched to these limits even by the grown up press in the Nationals......... The Membury M4 service area an AONB ?......... Pull the other one !

But returning to the thread, it shows some one is putting money into getting the VGS flying if new hangars are being put up.

Last edited by A and C; 17th Feb 2016 at 06:03.
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Old 17th Feb 2016, 07:55
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Our national security is at risk as a result of this cock up............have a look here.
Those nasty planners are to blame. Everybody in MoD cleared. Crack on.
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