JP Low Level Sqn at Finningley
I enjoyed flying with Tommy, very relaxed, however, no matter where my route was headed we always had to go onto to a stable owned by his friend right after departure, which often put me tight on fuel,
Sincs was another character who saved us from banging out after a duck strike over north york moors. Happy days
Sincs was another character who saved us from banging out after a duck strike over north york moors. Happy days
I had forgotten all about Sincs!! He was one of my instructors at 1 FTS at Linton in 1984 during my self-aborted attempt at joining the ranks of the ‘Two-Winged Master Race’! Apart from my ‘agricultural flying’ I had great difficulty in parking the mighty JP3 with its nose wheel aligned in a ‘fore and aft’ direction…hence Sincs nicknamed me ‘Bendy’ - no micro-aggressions in those days!! 🤔😉
I had almost erased the trauma of pilot training from my memory when I pitched up at Finningley…so imagine my shuddering embarrassment when my Course arrived at LLADTS for ‘Basic JPs’ and I was greeted with a loudly bellowed ‘BENDY’ from the aforementioned Sincs! 🤭 Trust me, this took one hell of a lot of explaining to the other guys on the course! 😬🤭
But to be honest he was a totally different creature as a Nav instructor than he was as a QFI!!! A pleasure to fly with…although as an ex-Jag mate I think he was always bemused as to the true value of a Nav!!!
I had almost erased the trauma of pilot training from my memory when I pitched up at Finningley…so imagine my shuddering embarrassment when my Course arrived at LLADTS for ‘Basic JPs’ and I was greeted with a loudly bellowed ‘BENDY’ from the aforementioned Sincs! 🤭 Trust me, this took one hell of a lot of explaining to the other guys on the course! 😬🤭
But to be honest he was a totally different creature as a Nav instructor than he was as a QFI!!! A pleasure to fly with…although as an ex-Jag mate I think he was always bemused as to the true value of a Nav!!!
There’s a book by Ewan Southby-Tailyour about his time in Croatia as a member off the EC Monitoring Mission (Paid to Predict). Sincs gets a mention as an ‘amusing dinner companion. Good for morale!’ I think that sums him up just right! I remember him going off for his 6 months UNPROFOR det. Always enjoyed his company and definitely the landaway nightstops.
Intrigued by the query of what type of JPs were operated on LLADTS I checked my logbook - I was a stude on 362 ANC between Feb 88 - Jul 89. I see that I was on 'Basic JPs' on LLADTS between 3 Nov - 21 Dec 88 - I finished 'Basic FNT' the afternoon of Lockerbie! - and again on 'Advanced JPs' between 23 May - 29 Jun 89. I flew 40 sorties in total ('Inky Swot' -no reflies!!! 
) and this was broken down as 28 in the JP5, six in the JP5A and six in the JP5B. Interestingly all of the JP5B sorties were on 'Advanced JPs - twice in the AD Phase and three times in the SA Phase.
!
) and this was broken down as 28 in the JP5, six in the JP5A and six in the JP5B. Interestingly all of the JP5B sorties were on 'Advanced JPs - twice in the AD Phase and three times in the SA Phase.!
I flew with Sincs on my FNT and always found him good company to fly with. Really sorry to hear about Jonny Alpha; a charming guy but only flew with him once and he suggested we didn't fly together after that - it was a good but fractious trip "so what's the radhaz around Staxton?" as we escaped off the tgt; "FFS, just put me on 189 degrees and we'll be well safe....". The ex-Jag mates were good, apart from when I went to Brawdy and the delights of P*** F**** - "just get in the back and turn yer mike off...". He must have found it really quiet in the 'Berra, where I understand he spent some time before becoming a 'single-seat god'.
The UK Serials Research Centre records this post-RAF as: to G-BWOF, to Coleg Cambria, Connah's Quay, Wales.
With regard to Wednesday sports afternoons, I seem to remember that at 5FTS Oakington in the early 70s, there were sports afternoons during the ground school phase. Although I also played rugby, there were occasions where some of us went punting on the Cam in Cambridge with suitable refreshments. As one had to self-declare in a book as to the sport that one had participated in, the usual entry was "Rowing".
Having returned to RAFC after 4 years of university and happy Chipmunking, 'they' ordained that we should have some exercise on Wednesday afternoons. "Went for run on north airfield" didn't specify how long the 'run' was and clever university graduates had established the definition of 'running'.... So a quick sprint to the senior entry car park before a drive to the bright lights of Sleaford / Grantham / Newark 
met the definition!
'They' then decreed that we should submit monthly Sitreps stating our extramural activities. After one of our number wrote "Week One - nothing to report, Week Two - nothing to report, Week Three - nothing to report, Week Four - filled in Sitrep' the requirement was quietly dropped...
Were Finningley JP pilots required to be ex-JP QFIs? Or could any RAF pilot apply?
met the definition!'They' then decreed that we should submit monthly Sitreps stating our extramural activities. After one of our number wrote "Week One - nothing to report, Week Two - nothing to report, Week Three - nothing to report, Week Four - filled in Sitrep' the requirement was quietly dropped...
Were Finningley JP pilots required to be ex-JP QFIs? Or could any RAF pilot apply?
Beags, I can't recall exactly but (from the hazy recollection of a student Nav then (marginally) in awe of 'the Staff') I think that there was a mixture of QFIs and ex-fast jet 'Pilot Nav Instructors' (PNIs). But what the ratio and selection process was is beyond my ken!
We seem to have strayed into a thread drift. Coltishall, late 1960s. Sports afternoons for Station teams only. Our section chiefy had been one of the RAF Rugby team until he got a detached retina, and switched to being a referee (those in the know were very aware of his blind side 
).. The rest of the section all decided to keep on his good side and be keen on rugby, and comprised a good third of the station team, leaving me plus one SAC to run the section from early lunch on Wednesday until enough aircraft serviceable for Thursday morning.
This earned me enough brownie points to take most of the summers off for gliding, ending up on the RAF team and a Station Commander's commendation. There must be a moral there somewhere.
).. The rest of the section all decided to keep on his good side and be keen on rugby, and comprised a good third of the station team, leaving me plus one SAC to run the section from early lunch on Wednesday until enough aircraft serviceable for Thursday morning.This earned me enough brownie points to take most of the summers off for gliding, ending up on the RAF team and a Station Commander's commendation. There must be a moral there somewhere.
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Having returned to RAFC after 4 years of university and happy Chipmunking, 'they' ordained that we should have some exercise on Wednesday afternoons. "Went for run on north airfield" didn't specify how long the 'run' was and clever university graduates had established the definition of 'running'.... So a quick sprint to the senior entry car park before a drive to the bright lights of Sleaford / Grantham / Newark met the definition!
'They' then decreed that we should submit monthly Sitreps stating our extramural activities. After one of our number wrote "Week One - nothing to report, Week Two - nothing to report, Week Three - nothing to report, Week Four - filled in Sitrep' the requirement was quietly dropped...
Were Finningley JP pilots required to be ex-JP QFIs? Or could any RAF pilot apply?
met the definition!'They' then decreed that we should submit monthly Sitreps stating our extramural activities. After one of our number wrote "Week One - nothing to report, Week Two - nothing to report, Week Three - nothing to report, Week Four - filled in Sitrep' the requirement was quietly dropped...
Were Finningley JP pilots required to be ex-JP QFIs? Or could any RAF pilot apply?
Below the Glidepath - not correcting
The Army had the right idea. Introduction to Low Level Nav was done using the Chipmunk at 250' AGL, always starting from the Sixpenny Handley roundabout just SW of Salisbury, followed by a very civilized lap of Salisbury Plain. With a strong headwind, a calendar proved to be more useful than a stopwatch, but it was all very civilized, until of course you eventually transitioned to the clattering rotary death machines...
NAVIGATION
On the Valley ( Gnat ) course the Final Nav Check consisted of ( if I remember rightly ) .
Climb out of Valley to the East ,cross the airways vis the Visual Corridor ,let down somewhere in N .Yorkshire
to LL .
Carry out a low level leg ( 500 ft 360kts ) and hit 3 preplanned targets each within 10 or was it 30 seconds.
RTB medium level.I thought this was impossible!
My check was a last minute surprise Friday afternoon sortie on a VERY windy day.
During the ( rushed ) pre flight checks my carefully prepared map blew away out of the cockpit and went miles away into the bundoo!
I thought s—t we will have to scrub the sortie!
But my examiner ( the famous and lovely Bertie Mee ) said no we will go and you can use my map!
This turned out to be a well used almost unreadable antique !
Goodness knows how but I passed!! ( the 1 in 60 technique was not that difficult at 6 miles a minute ! )
On the Valley ( Gnat ) course the Final Nav Check consisted of ( if I remember rightly ) .
Climb out of Valley to the East ,cross the airways vis the Visual Corridor ,let down somewhere in N .Yorkshire
to LL .
Carry out a low level leg ( 500 ft 360kts ) and hit 3 preplanned targets each within 10 or was it 30 seconds.
RTB medium level.I thought this was impossible!
My check was a last minute surprise Friday afternoon sortie on a VERY windy day.
During the ( rushed ) pre flight checks my carefully prepared map blew away out of the cockpit and went miles away into the bundoo!
I thought s—t we will have to scrub the sortie!
But my examiner ( the famous and lovely Bertie Mee ) said no we will go and you can use my map!
This turned out to be a well used almost unreadable antique !
Goodness knows how but I passed!! ( the 1 in 60 technique was not that difficult at 6 miles a minute ! )
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Brought back lots of memories, Sincs, Dangerous D....Johnny A...Tommy (didn't he fly the the Phantom Flypast at Cranwell??) I really struggled on JP Sqn due to air sickness and remember being caught out on my FNT having 5A FRCs rather than 5 FRCs and being made to walk back to the sqn from the Threshold to get the right cards!! Happy days...
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On our Staff College visit I got a trip in the JP as pax. Interesting - I was surprised how slow it seemed, [240kts?], but then all I had to do was look out of the window!. Sadly I had too busy a look-out [called a pair of A-10s, LL at 2 o'clock ... waggle] so had to knock it off as I barked! A bit of med level GH [I have control] cheered me up before trying a GCA approach [but not the last important bit].
Avoid imitations
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In1973 I was on 6FTS - we flew JP4's on the low-level part of the course. I had lost my A1 medical category, and transferred to nav. training. I flew most of the sorties with 'Diddy' Dave Marsh who had been a ground school instructor at Cranwell. Since I had around 90 hours on JP3s, he got me to fly the bloody thing as well - so my nav scores weren't quite as good as expected. The 4 was noticeably faster than the 3, though that's not saying much.
2P