Meteor Accident Statistics

[brakedwell]

I must have led a charmed life during my youth. As a twenty year old Hastings flap and u/c manipulator, and frustrated fighter pilot, I managed to talk my way into flying the Levant Comm Squadron Meteor T7 & F8's during a three month Nicosia detachment in the summer of 1958. My Meteor experience consisted of two one hour rides in the back of a 216 sqn T7 when I volunteered to fly lunchtime patrols over the south of the island. (It was too hot for the Hunters to operate between 1200 -1400) After devouring the pilots notes from cover to cover and passing an aural with flying colours I was expecting at least a couple of dual trips before being let loose on my own. The following day I missed lunch and reported to the LCS for my first dual trip. The CO welcomed me with: "952 is ready, sort yourself out with a bonedome." which I did and waited for him to join me in the crew room. Fifteen minutes later he came in and told me to sign the authorisation book and get airborne asap. Having never sat in the front of a T7 my first attempt at starting it was an embarrassing failure as the throttles were not fully back against the micro-switches. The ground crew put me right and I taxied out with full fuselage and ventral tanks. The next day I flew two one hour sorties in an F8, then gradually built up confidence and experience on type over the following two months, while carrying out my Hastings second pilot duties in a series of large mixed fleet night formation (cock-ups) exercises, practising for an operation that never came off. I did not fly a pure jet again for 18 years, when I converted on to the DC8 in 1976.

[Germander]

Moreton-in-Marsh Accident

Thanks for confirming my memories of Sqn Ldr Mack's accident at Moreton in Marsh. The date and circumstances tie in exactly.

DP

[Dennis Kenyon]

Meteor post for Alecoc

Having just joined the associated thread on: ... see ... 'The Night it Rained Meteors,' I'd like to make contact with Alecoc as I was also flying that night of Feb12th 1954 when FOs Tilley & Fry were lost along with three Meteor aircraft. Sadly one surviving pilot of that night was lost a few days later over the River Severn.

I'm the guy who managed to force land a Mk7 alongside the blocked runway in fog conditions and as mentioned on the other post, I've been asked to write an article about that occurrence at Weston Zoyland. If Alecoc gets to read this please make contact on [email protected]. Many thanks to the guys/gals on here. DRK.

[Jackw106]

some interesting reading here


link I

[Yankee Whisky]

Meteor Mk11 ground collision Twenthe AFB

Around 1955-56 a flight of 4 Mk11's dropped in at 326 Meteor Mk8 sqn stationed at Twenthe AFB the Netherlands. The next morning they were scrambled for take-off and one of the aircraft taxied into the back of another causing wing damage. We removed and replace the wing in our hangar before the aircraft was flown back to its home base.


Does anyone of the readers remember such an incident ?

[Danny42C]

Old Times.

Yankee Whisky (your #306),

Thank you for awakening old memories of a (too) exciting time! I did my Meteor conversion at Driffied (No.1 Short Course) in February '50, and a refresher at Weston Zoyland in November '54. Completed Course, then permanently grounded by CMB - sad story on "Pilot's Brevet" (p.196 #3901). Stayed at Weston until March '55.

Now for the nitty-gritty:

f11367c29261da620e61 (#267),

...On completion of my ground tour I also went through the Meteor Refresher. My instructor (Fg Off Lamont) had been a student of mine when I was instructing at CFS...

BEagle (#270),

...My instructor (Fg Off Lamont) had been a student of mine when I was instructing at CFS.
f11367c29261da620e61, if that's the Colin Lamont who later flew the Meteor T7 with the Vintage Pair, his final RAF years were as the DCFI and IRE at the University of London Air Squadron. He then became an Oxfordshire County Councillor for Harwell, before retiring finally in 2009...

Germander (#272),

...I have just reincarnated myself to this user name, as my rather inept initial registration landed me with an unintelligible string of characters. (Starting with f11367c2926 etc.)

My instructor at the School of Refresher Flying at Stubby was Colin Lamont. however I have no record of what he got up to after I left...

P2 Lamont was my instructor (on Harvards) at Finningley when I came back in in summer '49. Nice chap - almost certainly the same man.


Green Flash (#284),

...Somewhen before 1959 my father witnessed a Meteor accident near York. He lived south of York airfield and his attention was drawn one day to the sound of a jet aircraft above the overcast. A Meteor appeared, diving vertically at what appeared to be full throttle and went in with a terrific bang next to a railway line...

I would hazard a guess that the three-needle altimeter had claimed another victim.


A2QFI (#291),

...Don't forget the decoding of the PUNDIT beacons!...

A wartime tale (Tee Emm ?) told of a character who came upon a Pundit one dark night, orbited it a couple of times waiting for the ident - and then realised it was his port wingtip light !


alecoc (#277),

...Secondly, the double fatality night at Westonzoyland, where I was flying myself...

Dennis Kenyon (#304), for Alecoc,

...Having just joined the associated thread on: ... see ... 'The Night it Rained Meteors,' I'd like to make contact with Alecoc as I was also flying that night of Feb12th 1954 when FOs Tilley & Fry were lost along with three Meteor aircraft. Sadly one surviving pilot of that night was lost a few days later over the River Severn.

I'm the guy who managed to force land a Mk7 alongside the blocked runway in fog conditions and as mentioned on the other post, I've been asked to write an article about that occurrence at Weston Zoyland...

For a (grimly amusing) take on the aftermath of that night, read my Posts (on "Pilot's Brevet", p.197 #3931 and #3939.

But they were great days !

Danny42C.

[Danny42C]

A2QFI (#1),

A re-entrant in 1949, I did a short conversion Course on the Meteor at 203 AFS, Driffield (24.1.50 - 12.3.50). Got 15 hours in on them (then naturally, they posted me onto 20 Squadron, with Vampires). Was ever thus.

Yes, they were horrendous. My story of those early days starts on "Gaining a R.A.F Piot's Brevet in WWII" Thread, p.165, #3299, and there is a lot of good stuff right through till p.168, #3347, where I describe (IMHO) a major cause of the 'slaughter of the innocents'. It was soon after the war. Life was cheap, there were plenty more Bloggs where this one came from, flying's dangerous, we all know that, so what's the problem ? (serves you right, shouldn't 've joined if you can't take a joke).

(Curiously, then as now, written on a New Year's eve four years ago. Then as now, a Happy New Year to PPRune CyberCrewroom and all who dwell therein).

Danny42C.

PS: Started this two hours ago, went to sleep (old men do that), and as daughter out shopping not disturbed, sorry....D.

[Prangster]

Wasn't Norman Tebbit a Meteor driver? I seem to recall him giving an interview where he acknowleged the high loss rate then added ,'the air staff considered fighter pilots to be expendable' just rhetoric or an official position?

[Old-Duffer]

It's not quite like that.

Norman Tebbit was a Meteor pilot and was injured in an accident in same.

As to the expendable fighter pilot bit, Churchill asked about the heavy rate of accidents and was assured in a response from a civil servant that the rate was not something to be concerned about.

Evidence suggests that there were more accidents practising asymmetrics than happened for real. Then of course there's the spiral dive - but that's another story.

O-D

[brakedwell]

I can recommend Meteor Boys by Steve Bond , which was published a couple of months ago.
Norman Tebbit has written an account on his time in the RAF.

[Wander00]

O-D - Practice assymetric - similar for the Canberra I guess

[Fareastdriver]

O-D - Practice assymetric

I think the problem in the early fifties was that the Air Staff, who had to make the decisions about training were all of the piston engine era. The reliability of jet engines hadn't registered with them so engine out situations were at the forefront of jet training so most of the practise asymmetric accidents were in flying training. The operational squadrons flying Meteors didn't have the same problem because generally their asymmetric flying was, very infrequently, for real.

By the sixties this attitude had changed as I know from my own flying training. During the Provost T1 stage a 'Fanstop' was quite normal just after takeoff. On Vampires I never had the throttle pulled on me just after take off because there was no need and anyway, if all else failed it was 'If in Doubt, Bang Out'.

[Exnomad]

I was trainee pilot in 1952, Chipmunks and the next step should have been Meatboxes, but was scheduled to multi engine aircraft, so went on to Oxfords. Two of my intake were killed in Meteors, perhaps it was better I went to navigation.
My brother, older than me had had served in bomber command in the war, and was now an QFI on meteors, He said as long as you were very quick, an engine out on take off could be handled