RAF KHORMAKSAR
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Originally posted by TTN
Remember it well, must have been the most floodlit illuminated piece of K´sar.
Also remember your lads cruising past as I struggled along (t)rusty 303 in hand. Thought at the time, if any member of FLOSY or the NLF were watching me they´d surrender on the spot.
6 months patrolling within the wire at Khormaksar was pretty tedious
Also remember your lads cruising past as I struggled along (t)rusty 303 in hand. Thought at the time, if any member of FLOSY or the NLF were watching me they´d surrender on the spot.
Last edited by Shack37; 24th Nov 2017 at 15:16.
"Mildly" Eccentric Stardriver
It then gives 13 Oct '67 as the date the squadron moved to Sharjah, where it stayed until disbanding on 21 Dec 71.
Brian - Khormaksar SAR Flight changed their Sycamores for Whirlwind 10s in January and February 1964. A second pair (intended ultimately to form a SAR flight in Muharraq) came in July. In November 1966 the flight got 2 Wessex 2s, and the Whirlwinds left in May 1967.
Ah! Prune at its best - not like all the political ranting that seems to be in vogue lately!
Sorry folks - in my rush to be helpful I took Jefford's mighty tome off the bookshelf and of course its title is 'RAF Squadrons' - my oversight on forgetting that there are smaller units called Flights. The latter haven't always been well covered or documented in lists of units. For instance when I was at Changi in the late 60s I think the biggest unit in terms of numbers of airframes was the Meteor Target Towing Flight ( 1574? Help! ) which IIRC had more aircraft than the 12 Hercs we had on 48 Sqn. Another unit that never gets mentioned is Far East Comm, which had 3 Hastings and 2 VIP Andovers - or was it the other way round?
Anyway back to Aden - Some of you may have copies of the 'Action Stations' series of books; I looked at the edition that covers overseas airfields and under Khormaksar the author ( Tony Fairbairn, like Jefford a son of an RAF Officer ) states that by the mid-60s RAF strength peaked including 3 Sycamores of the SAR Flt. He doesn't say when they were replaced by Whirlwinds.
Anyway TTN one way or another your question has been answered.
Herod in no way would I dispute the date you gave, maybe the paperwork and admin stuff moved to Bahrain in October while the folks in the front line stayed on till the end? My copy of Jefford's book is the 1st edition and I know there has been a 2nd edition.
Happy Days all!
Sorry folks - in my rush to be helpful I took Jefford's mighty tome off the bookshelf and of course its title is 'RAF Squadrons' - my oversight on forgetting that there are smaller units called Flights. The latter haven't always been well covered or documented in lists of units. For instance when I was at Changi in the late 60s I think the biggest unit in terms of numbers of airframes was the Meteor Target Towing Flight ( 1574? Help! ) which IIRC had more aircraft than the 12 Hercs we had on 48 Sqn. Another unit that never gets mentioned is Far East Comm, which had 3 Hastings and 2 VIP Andovers - or was it the other way round?
Anyway back to Aden - Some of you may have copies of the 'Action Stations' series of books; I looked at the edition that covers overseas airfields and under Khormaksar the author ( Tony Fairbairn, like Jefford a son of an RAF Officer ) states that by the mid-60s RAF strength peaked including 3 Sycamores of the SAR Flt. He doesn't say when they were replaced by Whirlwinds.
Anyway TTN one way or another your question has been answered.
Herod in no way would I dispute the date you gave, maybe the paperwork and admin stuff moved to Bahrain in October while the folks in the front line stayed on till the end? My copy of Jefford's book is the 1st edition and I know there has been a 2nd edition.
Happy Days all!
Last edited by Brian 48nav; 24th Nov 2017 at 08:19. Reason: Needs a capital letter
NRU74:
Thanks for that; the 84 Squadron bit rings a bell. I had a look at Aden casualties and I have found a Sgt Bryan Hughes - shot dead on 19 Aug 67.
Could that be him?
Thanks for that; the 84 Squadron bit rings a bell. I had a look at Aden casualties and I have found a Sgt Bryan Hughes - shot dead on 19 Aug 67.
Could that be him?
"Mildly" Eccentric Stardriver
Brian. Not criticising you at all; merely setting the record straight regarding an error in the book. As I understand it, the warships moved out to the territorial limit so as to be a British presence until independence. My diary records that "Intrepid" weighed anchor at 22:30. On the stroke of midnight, all ships moved the few yards necessary to be outside that limit. perhaps someone knows otherwise?
Off on a different tangent, is there by any chance a pilot on here from the Khormaksar Hunter Wing who recalls escorting an Argosy during a leaflet dropping sortie up to the northeast of Aden on the afternoon of 31 December 1966? An unexpected bit of end-of-year fun after flying a morning's continuation training. We landed from that to find that this task had come in and that my fellow Navs - DougieM and others - had volunteered me and then gone off to the Mess to prepare for New Year. A pair of Hunters had also been set up for the occasion, we briefed with the pilots and set off upcountry and, about an hour later, were delighted to see them diving in front of us as we approached the first dropping point. There was no particular threat that we were told of and I've no idea what the leaflets said, but it was a pleasant afternoon's sport.
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Brian 48nav ... 1574 it was. I may possibly have an OT photo of one somewhere, ready for when a FEAF Thread gets started 
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I was in Aden in January 1956. My mother had been instructed by my dad that when Asturias docked she had to go ashore and find a market trader who sold cameras and barter for a Zeiss Ikon. In my mind's eye I can see my mother, my younger brother and I walking to the market. Unbelievable how intrepid and fearless the women of that generation were.
This was similar to the camera she bought.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/ZEISS-IKON-...-/152454694618
MPN11's post reminds me that I must get those colour slides -- taken with the Zeiss Ikon -- converted into digital format. My father invariably had his camera with him when flying into the forts and when we travelled around the Penisular. There is a shoe box full of them.
This was similar to the camera she bought.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/ZEISS-IKON-...-/152454694618
MPN11's post reminds me that I must get those colour slides -- taken with the Zeiss Ikon -- converted into digital format. My father invariably had his camera with him when flying into the forts and when we travelled around the Penisular. There is a shoe box full of them.
Last edited by roving; 24th Nov 2017 at 12:10. Reason: syntax
On the morning of 01.04.67 the heavens opened and Aden got deluged like it had not been deluged upon before in living memory. Those of us who lived down town could not got home due to the subsequent floods until late afternoon. (I have already posted several photos of the effects that the floods had on the Jungle Bar).
In the coming days all sorts of gruesome stories started to emerge about some of the effects that the downpour had produced. It was said that one of the local cemeteries was awash with skeletons and another that a missing person had been found face-down in the municipal reservoir.
However, to me the most amazing thing was that after a few days, Shamsan started going green. I would have thought that to be impossible but there it was for all to see. To think that those seeds had been lurking around those barren rocks for God knows how long just waiting for a downpour boggled my mind somewhat.
Of course, the brave little plants did not last long in the searing heat and the green coating had gone within the week.
In the coming days all sorts of gruesome stories started to emerge about some of the effects that the downpour had produced. It was said that one of the local cemeteries was awash with skeletons and another that a missing person had been found face-down in the municipal reservoir.
However, to me the most amazing thing was that after a few days, Shamsan started going green. I would have thought that to be impossible but there it was for all to see. To think that those seeds had been lurking around those barren rocks for God knows how long just waiting for a downpour boggled my mind somewhat.
Of course, the brave little plants did not last long in the searing heat and the green coating had gone within the week.
Oldpax:
On the post about houses of ill repute, there were some on Maalla Straight.
Brakedwell:
I wonder where they were.
I have to admit that the presence of such establishments escaped my attention during my stay in Aden. However, if any of you read the article "The Aden Emergency 1963 - 1967" (the link of which I provided yesterday) might have come across the bit where two soldiers of the Aden Brigade were assassinated outside a hovel situated in the shanty town up the hill towards Shamsan behind Maalla Straight. They had been visiting the resident "Somali whores".
They certainly would seem to have lacked a great deal of common sense but I suppose you could say that they went with a bang.
On the post about houses of ill repute, there were some on Maalla Straight.
Brakedwell:
I wonder where they were.
I have to admit that the presence of such establishments escaped my attention during my stay in Aden. However, if any of you read the article "The Aden Emergency 1963 - 1967" (the link of which I provided yesterday) might have come across the bit where two soldiers of the Aden Brigade were assassinated outside a hovel situated in the shanty town up the hill towards Shamsan behind Maalla Straight. They had been visiting the resident "Somali whores".
They certainly would seem to have lacked a great deal of common sense but I suppose you could say that they went with a bang.
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Depends if they successfully discharged their weapons first.
Moslem Cemeteries
The cemetery at the back of the Britannia House transit crew hotel in Manama suffered from flooding when rained heavily, admittedly it happened very rarely. Shrouded bodies were known to appear on the surface on such occasions because they had been buried in very shallow graves. Fortunately the cemetery was not visible from the bar while we were drowning our sorrows!
The cemetery at the back of the Britannia House transit crew hotel in Manama suffered from flooding when rained heavily, admittedly it happened very rarely. Shrouded bodies were known to appear on the surface on such occasions because they had been buried in very shallow graves. Fortunately the cemetery was not visible from the bar while we were drowning our sorrows!
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JW411. Thanks for posting the picture of a green Shamsan; I wouldn't have believed it otherwise. I arrived a month after that, and I confirm there was no green anywhere around.
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Who could ever forget the pain of playing football in Aden.
Notwithstanding the previous post, it 'never' rained in Aden. The pitches consisted of sun baked hard compressed sand/rock granules and were prepared by the locals who watered (with filthy stinky water) and then rolled the pitches flat with a heavy roller.
We used to play a full game at least five times a week in the afternoons after finishing work at 1300. During the game you would tackle and slide and fall over or be fouled and every time you hit the sand you would incur a graze. No problems I hear you say.
Wrong! Because every graze would turn septic because of the filth put on the pitches.
You could always tell a footballer by the bandages around each elbow and both knees in his vane attempt to heal the infected wounds!!
These 'injuries' could mostly only be healed by spending full time in air conditioning and , if you spent too much time off work could lead to being banned from playing football altogether.
I was eventually banned from football when I was cruelly fouled by some Khormaksar joker who hoiked me about 3 ft in the air from behind. The ensuing slide on my hip bone led to a gruesome injury which I tried to ignore but it went very septic and led to 2 weeks in air conditioned SSQ and a permanent ban from the Boss. Hey ho!
Notwithstanding the previous post, it 'never' rained in Aden. The pitches consisted of sun baked hard compressed sand/rock granules and were prepared by the locals who watered (with filthy stinky water) and then rolled the pitches flat with a heavy roller.
We used to play a full game at least five times a week in the afternoons after finishing work at 1300. During the game you would tackle and slide and fall over or be fouled and every time you hit the sand you would incur a graze. No problems I hear you say.
Wrong! Because every graze would turn septic because of the filth put on the pitches.
You could always tell a footballer by the bandages around each elbow and both knees in his vane attempt to heal the infected wounds!!
These 'injuries' could mostly only be healed by spending full time in air conditioning and , if you spent too much time off work could lead to being banned from playing football altogether.
I was eventually banned from football when I was cruelly fouled by some Khormaksar joker who hoiked me about 3 ft in the air from behind. The ensuing slide on my hip bone led to a gruesome injury which I tried to ignore but it went very septic and led to 2 weeks in air conditioned SSQ and a permanent ban from the Boss. Hey ho!
Last edited by Dundiggin'; 25th Nov 2017 at 12:45.
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Notwithstanding the previous post, it 'never' rained in Aden. The pitches consisted of hard compressed sand/rock granules and were prepared by the
You could always tell a footballer by the bandages around each elbow and both knees in his vane attempt to heal the infected wounds!!
These 'injuries' could mostly only be healed by spending full time in air conditioning and , if you spent too much time off work could lead to being banned from playing football altogether.
You could always tell a footballer by the bandages around each elbow and both knees in his vane attempt to heal the infected wounds!!
These 'injuries' could mostly only be healed by spending full time in air conditioning and , if you spent too much time off work could lead to being banned from playing football altogether.
And the Sharjah skies opened in March 1960. The sand runway was unusable, so we used a dry area on the northern edge of the airfield to operate the Twin Pioneer.
The announcement having been made that we were going to withdraw from Aden at the end of 1967, we were also told that repatriation of our families would commence in May. As flats fell vacant on the main Maalla Sraight, we were moved out of Bazara South into one of them on the north side. For the life of me I can't remember which block we moved into but we were opposite Osborne Flats. Nothing very much happened while we were there apart from a couple of general strikes when the streets around us became pretty much deserted. I have posted some photographs taken from our new flat during such an event.
It had been decided that 105 Sqn would operate as a "split" squadron until the withdrawal. Those of us who had the least amount of time to serve until the end of their tour were to have their families sent back to UK in July. The rest would have their families moved up to Bahrain. Luckily, I fell into the latter category so our next flat was in Manama just 100 yards from the Malcolm Club near the old Green Palace. It was wonderful to get out of Aden intact and life in Bahrain was good.
From a flying point of view, very little changed. We operated from both ends and when it was necessary to night stop at the Aden end, we would as often as not get rooms in the air-conditioned comfort of Merrifield House which had hitherto been the preserve of the Shiny Fleet (VC-10s and Brits). A lot of the chaps had moved out of Maalla when their families went home and they were now living in vacated married quarters behind the wire at Khormaksar. I went to some good parties there.
My last night stop in Aden was 22/23 November. We went down to the NAAFI and bought a large amount of booze to take back to Bahrain. The NAAFI were virtually giving the stuff away. When we paid for our booty I asked the cashier (a local) what he was going to do when the British left in a few days time.
With a great smile he announced that he was going to become the new NAAFI manager! He had it all worked out or so he thought.
Next morning we flew XP408 back to Bahrain and I never saw Aden again.
It had been decided that 105 Sqn would operate as a "split" squadron until the withdrawal. Those of us who had the least amount of time to serve until the end of their tour were to have their families sent back to UK in July. The rest would have their families moved up to Bahrain. Luckily, I fell into the latter category so our next flat was in Manama just 100 yards from the Malcolm Club near the old Green Palace. It was wonderful to get out of Aden intact and life in Bahrain was good.
From a flying point of view, very little changed. We operated from both ends and when it was necessary to night stop at the Aden end, we would as often as not get rooms in the air-conditioned comfort of Merrifield House which had hitherto been the preserve of the Shiny Fleet (VC-10s and Brits). A lot of the chaps had moved out of Maalla when their families went home and they were now living in vacated married quarters behind the wire at Khormaksar. I went to some good parties there.
My last night stop in Aden was 22/23 November. We went down to the NAAFI and bought a large amount of booze to take back to Bahrain. The NAAFI were virtually giving the stuff away. When we paid for our booty I asked the cashier (a local) what he was going to do when the British left in a few days time.
With a great smile he announced that he was going to become the new NAAFI manager! He had it all worked out or so he thought.
Next morning we flew XP408 back to Bahrain and I never saw Aden again.
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What's that odd-looking vehicle in Photo #1, please. Local modification, along the lines of a large Humber Pig?