Getting The Chop
Ternhill 1956. Nobody on our Piston Provost course of 18 was scrubbed, but I do remember a very young student on a couple of courses after us going out with a bang! He lost his virginity to the very attractive daughter of a wing commander during a Saturday night party at her dad’s married quarter. Rumour has it he was walking round in a daze on Sunday and had not fully recovered before he set off on a solo aerobatics flight on Monday morning. Somewhere south of the Wirral he became “uncertain of his position” and called for a bearing from Ternhill, then set off 180 degrees in the wrong direction. He lost radio contact then ran out of fuel north of Liverpool and carried out a successful forced landing in a field surrounded by houses. Unfortunately he managed to hit the only telegraph pole in the field during the roll out. A fire engine on it’s way to the crash scene overturned while the intrepid aviator was guarding the wreckage from a local bobby, who had arrived on a bike. Young PD was chopped on his return to Ternhill and was remustered as an air trafficker.
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brakedwell (#63)
Put the QTE on his compass and flew it, I reckon. Happened before, it'll happen again.
Must have caused him a wry smile when he got into ATC and was in front of a CR/DF tube !
and called for a bearing from Ternhill, then set off 180 degrees in the wrong direction.
Must have caused him a wry smile when he got into ATC and was in front of a CR/DF tube !
