BBC: 15 military airfields have been earmarked for closure over the next six years.
ExAScoteer,
METS was initially formed at Leeming and only later moved to Finningley.
Seeing as how Leeming was home for quite some time to a full wing of 3 Tornado F3 Squadrons I can't see how orientation can play any part in it not being selected as an actual Typhoon base? Surely it was merely the case that the previously planned 7 squadron Typhoon force was reduced to five meant that the Leeming option was canned?
METS was initially formed at Leeming and only later moved to Finningley.
Seeing as how Leeming was home for quite some time to a full wing of 3 Tornado F3 Squadrons I can't see how orientation can play any part in it not being selected as an actual Typhoon base? Surely it was merely the case that the previously planned 7 squadron Typhoon force was reduced to five meant that the Leeming option was canned?
Re-construction for the Tornado 'wing' commenced shortly after my visit.
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You are quite correct, METS formed at Leeming in 1977 as part of 3FTS until 1979 when it moved to 6FTS RAF Finningley. I had assumed that after the mothballing of the Jetstream and the demise of 5 FTS at end '74 (after the first 2 Jetstreams had been delivered to Oakington), that the formation of METS in 1977 was at Finningley.
Mea culpa!
Mea culpa!
You are quite correct, METS formed at Leeming in 1977 as part of 3FTS until 1979 when it moved to 6FTS RAF Finningley. I had assumed that after the mothballing of the Jetstream and the demise of 5 FTS at end '74 (after the first 2 Jetstreams had been delivered to Oakington), that the formation of METS in 1977 was at Finningley.
Mea culpa!
Mea culpa!
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RFS was at Church Fenton in 1986, operating JP5s.
PS. Pretty much every flying training station had a CFS element that acted as the unit trapper and I think they could also recategorise instructors to B1/A2.
PS. Pretty much every flying training station had a CFS element that acted as the unit trapper and I think they could also recategorise instructors to B1/A2.
Originally Posted by chevvron
Was there a School of Refresher Flying? Maybe that was the JP unit at Leeming in'79 but there was definitely (according to wiki) a CFS 'presence' at Leeming.
You are quite correct, METS formed at Leeming in 1977 as part of 3FTS until 1979 when it moved to 6FTS RAF Finningley. I had assumed that after the mothballing of the Jetstream and the demise of 5 FTS at end '74 (after the first 2 Jetstreams had been delivered to Oakington), that the formation of METS in 1977 was at Finningley.
Mea culpa!
Mea culpa!
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I believe that Lindholme had a 800' circuit so as to deconflict with FY and was the RLG from 1980 - 85. Lindholme is about 3.5 NM from the FY R/W 20 touch down so an instrument approach into FY would cross the Lindholme overhead at just over 1000ft.
By the time I got to METS Lindholme was long gone and we used Elvington.
By the time I got to METS Lindholme was long gone and we used Elvington.
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As an ATCO there for the period under discussion, I can confirm that from circa Feb 79 the flying elements at Leeming comprised:
CFS 1 and 2 Sqns flying JPs and Exam Wg on frequent visits withHawks to/from Valley for re-cats;
CFS Bulldog Sqn;
RFS flying JPs;
METS flying Jetstreams;
RNEFTS flying (lots of) Bulldogs;
Yorkshire (?) UAS flying Bulldogs;
An AEF (7?) Flying Chipmunks.
This situation continued until about Aug 81, with the exception that METS left to go to Finningley in the meantime as recorded above. As the unit was an MDA (then MEDA) with a foam carpet capability, ATC was manned H24 and to the list above should perhaps be added an almost permanent detachment from the 20th and 48th TFWs’ F-111s! An evening shift was always enlivened by numerous PDs from the same with a regular Mayday or Pan actual diversion with various:
'Utilities failures, for heavy-weight approach end RHAG engagement, Sir’.
It got to the point where the engineers arranged for an Aardvark tow-bar to be positioned at Leeming so we could tow the blighters off the runway with a bit more expedition.
Three runways to play with (frequently with 2 in use at the same time and the ILS on the wrong end!), two ATC briefings in the morning – 0730 and 0800 for RFS, METS, RNEFTS and then CFS respectively then dash back to the (old WWII) tower just in time for the sequential METS
‘airborne, simulated engine failure on take-off, request single-engined PAR, missed approach and IFR climb-out’
and the RNEFTS ‘le Mans start’ and mass flyout to Topcliffe, hoping that they would be behind RFS and METS for their engine run-ups, not to mention the reciprocal at 1715…..
‘Romeo 34, hold off, 6-in, 2 holding off before you; radar traffic 7 miles, land…’
This, of course, was when the aerodrome was a real aerodrome and the Vale of York was black with JPs and Bulldogs as Linton AND Church Fenton were pushing tin out at a similar (but lesser, being league-division 2 units!) rate.
The ATCO i/c for the MEDA watch was the nominated Officer i/c various contingency plans too; a scenario comprising:
A nuke armed Vulcan (for example), short of fuel, diverting in with a 'no-undercarriage emergency', from overseas, in the middle of a North Yorkshire snow storm would have had the ATCO i/c responsible for:
The operational aspects of an actual emergency diversion and liaison with D&D as the rostered Approach Controller;
O i/c foam carpet laying;
O i/c Op Blacktop;
O i/c nuke incident handling (can’t remember the codeword – except your radio callsign was ‘Red Top’ – not to be confused with the missile of the same name!) Edit: (Or was it 'Red Hat'?)
HM Customs representative.
All at the same time!
Best tour EVER!
(sorry about the layout - indenting and various other editing facilities don't appear to be working....)
CFS 1 and 2 Sqns flying JPs and Exam Wg on frequent visits withHawks to/from Valley for re-cats;
CFS Bulldog Sqn;
RFS flying JPs;
METS flying Jetstreams;
RNEFTS flying (lots of) Bulldogs;
Yorkshire (?) UAS flying Bulldogs;
An AEF (7?) Flying Chipmunks.
This situation continued until about Aug 81, with the exception that METS left to go to Finningley in the meantime as recorded above. As the unit was an MDA (then MEDA) with a foam carpet capability, ATC was manned H24 and to the list above should perhaps be added an almost permanent detachment from the 20th and 48th TFWs’ F-111s! An evening shift was always enlivened by numerous PDs from the same with a regular Mayday or Pan actual diversion with various:
'Utilities failures, for heavy-weight approach end RHAG engagement, Sir’.
It got to the point where the engineers arranged for an Aardvark tow-bar to be positioned at Leeming so we could tow the blighters off the runway with a bit more expedition.
Three runways to play with (frequently with 2 in use at the same time and the ILS on the wrong end!), two ATC briefings in the morning – 0730 and 0800 for RFS, METS, RNEFTS and then CFS respectively then dash back to the (old WWII) tower just in time for the sequential METS
‘airborne, simulated engine failure on take-off, request single-engined PAR, missed approach and IFR climb-out’
‘Romeo 34, hold off, 6-in, 2 holding off before you; radar traffic 7 miles, land…’
This, of course, was when the aerodrome was a real aerodrome and the Vale of York was black with JPs and Bulldogs as Linton AND Church Fenton were pushing tin out at a similar (but lesser, being league-division 2 units!) rate.
The ATCO i/c for the MEDA watch was the nominated Officer i/c various contingency plans too; a scenario comprising:
A nuke armed Vulcan (for example), short of fuel, diverting in with a 'no-undercarriage emergency', from overseas, in the middle of a North Yorkshire snow storm would have had the ATCO i/c responsible for:
The operational aspects of an actual emergency diversion and liaison with D&D as the rostered Approach Controller;
O i/c foam carpet laying;
O i/c Op Blacktop;
O i/c nuke incident handling (can’t remember the codeword – except your radio callsign was ‘Red Top’ – not to be confused with the missile of the same name!) Edit: (Or was it 'Red Hat'?)
HM Customs representative.
All at the same time!
(sorry about the layout - indenting and various other editing facilities don't appear to be working....)
Last edited by Downwind.Maddl-Land; 21st Nov 2018 at 09:51.
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[QUOTE=air pig;10126075]One of the very few RAF airfields on the West coast, has an Auxi squadron and is very handy for the local Reserve Army and RM when using Altcar and others for the Morcambe Bay gas field and the ship traffic into Liverpool. Rumours are the runway will be resurfaced.[/QUOTE]
A dead cert for impending closure then!
A dead cert for impending closure then!
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Re RAF Halton closure.
This month's issue of the Wendover News has some details about proposed uses of the site.
Briefly, Halton House to become a 5 star hotel or luxury care home, while new housing will replace SHQ, workshops, Kermode Hall and the Warrant Officers' Mess.
May 2018 edition. See pages 30/31.
This month's issue of the Wendover News has some details about proposed uses of the site.
Briefly, Halton House to become a 5 star hotel or luxury care home, while new housing will replace SHQ, workshops, Kermode Hall and the Warrant Officers' Mess.
May 2018 edition. See pages 30/31.
Just been on a thread about Air Cadet gliding which made me wonder about Little Rissington. Who 'owns' it now; is it still RAF/MOD?
I was Admin Officer for a course at 637 VGS there in 1991. The domestic site and 'main' hangars had, of course, been taken over by USAF for use as a hospital during GW1; I explored the places I had been when at camp there as a cadet in '62; all appeared to be full of beds and medical equipment but no patients!
On the airfield, the main runway had been re-surfaced (courtesy of USAF) and there was a permanent Fire Service established 'just in case' an F111 diverted in after departure from Heyford.
Course all this will be different now but who actually owns it?
I was Admin Officer for a course at 637 VGS there in 1991. The domestic site and 'main' hangars had, of course, been taken over by USAF for use as a hospital during GW1; I explored the places I had been when at camp there as a cadet in '62; all appeared to be full of beds and medical equipment but no patients!
On the airfield, the main runway had been re-surfaced (courtesy of USAF) and there was a permanent Fire Service established 'just in case' an F111 diverted in after departure from Heyford.
Course all this will be different now but who actually owns it?
I understood that the Rissy RW resurfacing was courtesy of the film makers of a Bond movie at that time?
The logic being that if they'd paid MoD in cash, that would have disappeared into the usual black finance hole - so they wanted to ensure that something more useful was achieved!
The logic being that if they'd paid MoD in cash, that would have disappeared into the usual black finance hole - so they wanted to ensure that something more useful was achieved!
I understood that the Rissy RW resurfacing was courtesy of the film makers of a Bond movie at that time?
The logic being that if they'd paid MoD in cash, that would have disappeared into the usual black finance hole - so they wanted to ensure that something more useful was achieved!
The logic being that if they'd paid MoD in cash, that would have disappeared into the usual black finance hole - so they wanted to ensure that something more useful was achieved!
There was definitely a USAF fire crew with 2 trucks there H24; the gliding school occupied the control tower and the fire station was next door.
