That was legal. Five up wasn't!

But did it ever happen? :E

Legals
 

Who mentioned legality? Similar sort of topic as "How many 11 gallon kegs of beer will fit in a Vulcan's pressure cabin?":=

Isn't anybody going to mention Durbs' 4-up groundstrike?

...Oh. Well I won't then.

Goodness, what a wealth of information and load of experience with 'the queen of the skies' here. Makes my 1200 odd hours and only four varients, T4, B2, B15 and 16, look very hum drum, but I have to say, very enjoyable.

But I was very impressed with the site mentioned by Beeayeate, 11 April, with all the variants, and the foriegn users. I was specially interested in the German aircraft, and delighted to see that 9935 is still looking good. After leaving Her Majesties employ I had a couple of enjoyable years flying those aircraft on photo survey and radar calibration flights, out of Cologne/Bonn. In my time we had a couple of English pilots, with German Luftwaffe navigator/photo operators, until eventually ex Luftwaffe pilots took over from us. I notice that I flew D9567 back from Decimommanu on 30Nov76, and flew it again as 9935 on 17Dec67 on radar calibration. Interesting job, and good mates.

My Dad claims:-

3627 hours and flew:-

Conversion Unit: B2, PR3, T4, PR7, PR9, TT18, T19 and T22. [Note: the T22 was borrowed from the R Navy for a special task from Wyton]

Canberra hours
 

I can't compete on this basis. But I might have a chance on 'How many automatic landings performed' on the Canberra.

At BLEU I always considered the Canberra as the most impressive aircraft to demonstrate this. What a pity it never entered service, might have saved some lives!!!

Canbera help - as you are the officionados, can you help identify these types please? They were photographed between 1953-56 and apologies for the reproduction.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...37Canberra.jpg
Were external tanks common?
And what does the P signify below? Prototype?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...ates/WD833.jpg
The one below is either WH713 or WD952 and photographed at Filton
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v1...es/Olympus.jpg

Canberra identities for GK430
 

I only just saw your post dated June 2007. Maybe someone has already identified the Canberras you ask about, but just in case:
WE137 is an early PR3 (tip tanks were often carried).
WD933 is the B2 Sapphire test-bed, hence the P for Prototype.
Both WH713 and WD952 were B2 Olympus test beds used at Filton. Your photo is I think of WH713, as WD952 had the standard black and grey bomber colours. WD952 was the holder of the world altitude record in 1953.

98 Sqdn Canberras
 

27mm

Have just found this thread on account of it being bumped up to the top, and can remember 98 Sqdn's other Canberra E15s as WH948, WH957, WH964 and WH972. There was also WH973, but it crashed on approach during night flying shortly after I arrived on the squadron in 1971 (Crew ejected safely).

I can remember these because I provided the references for the Modeldecal sheet for WH957, to be used on the Airfix Canberra.

I was a Corporal Electrician on 98 from 1971 until it disbanded in 1976 and before that was on 16 Sqdn with B(I)8s at Laarbruch.

Loved those Canberras. A couple of years or so ago one flew over where I live. Nearly stood to attention and saluted it!

Polecat

WH973
 

I remember WH973 crashing at Cottesmore. I was instructing on 231 OCU at the time and was SFSO as well. I have a piece of the control column on my desk !!

Wj 674
 

;)

I was a member of the crash and smash team from 71 MU, RAF Bicester that recovered the remains of Canberra WJ674 (231 OCU) in early Aug 73. It came to rest in a field just East of the A1 on the approach to RAF Cottesmore. We had to dig up the engines as they were completely buried. IIRC the crew ejected safely.

My how time passes.





'We knew how to whinge but we kept it in the NAAFI bar.'

Anyone know what happened to the PR3/5/7 that was at Bedford and`loaned` to the IAF in about `73/4` for hi-alt `wx research`?

Wj 674
 

I'm pretty sure WJ 674 crashed at night during a practice asymmetric approach and killed the pilot (John Dennis?); the nav ejected safely. However, I stand ready to be corrected!

I spent a very enjoyable 3 1/2 years in air traffic control at Wyton in the late 80s/early 90s. I was fortunate enough to amass just over 130 hours of pax flying in TT18s/E15s/B2s and a T4.

During that time I flew with some great people like the SBO, W+9, Zoot, Bad Boy and Grubs to name but a few. To the aircraft and lads on the Ton - thank you for making the early days of my career so much fun.

When I look through my log book that I managed to blag from the nice ladies in SPFS it is tough seeing some names of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice. RIP chaps.

Ekaton

Was there not a Canberra flying on the Met Research Flight at Bedford? I understand it had a total hyd failure but the crew got it back on the runway where it was declared a write off. Believe it was replaced by Snoopy?

Green Flash,
note quite. MRF got its first Canberra in 1957, a B2 WJ582. Around this time it also had briefly WE146, WE147 and WH952. The original aircraft was replaced in 1963 by WE173 for high altitude weather research. After modification, this aircraft had its first sortie for MRF on 7 Apr 64, but this was grounded 31 Mar 81 due to government cut backs. :sad:

Snoopy entred RAF service as a standard C Mk1 in 1966 with 48 Sqn in the FEAF at Changi. She was modified by Marshalls 1971-2 and first flew in the WMk2 guise on 21 Mar 73. Last flight MRF operational was 29 Mar 01, returning from Norway where she had been conducting research on Arctic ice.
:ugh::ugh::(

She is now back at Cambridge being used as the flying test bed for the engines for the Airbus A400M.

MRF
 

MRF were never based at Bedford. Originally formed from the High Altitude Flight at Boscombe Down moving to Farnborough in the mid-1940s and then to Cranfield as FAAM about 7 years ago.

WORF, do you know what happened to the ex-RNZAF B12s- were they scrapped or are they still parked somewhere?

Yes you are correct Peter...I was a rigger on 231ocu at that time,from memory it was a Staff Nav (Max M ?) whom istr felt the a/c roll and buffet - called eject to the student.
He thought the pilot had ejected safely and I think landed near the 'The Fox' on the A1 and 'popped in' for a drink (who could blame him)
Unfortunately the a/c had either rolled too far or was too low for a safe ejection for the pilot,comparatively slow ejection sequence on a canberra.We were all absolutely gutted by it.

I know that this has been covered on another Thead on PPRUNE, but the in the month that the first USAF casualty of 'GW-1' has been idnetified and repatriated, the Last Aussy MIA in Vietnam (RAAF 2 Sqn Canberra Crew) was also 'found' and laid to rest

Flt Off Michael Herbert (Pilot) & PltOff Robert Carver (Navigator)

...apologies for the thread creep - but those who follow the history of the Canberra, please not forget the contribution to low level bombing / CAS that 2 Sqn and their 'Magpies' made to the Vietnam conflict.

A Purveyor of the history of the jet might find that the RAAF dropped more tonnage 'for real' than any other organisation in the Canberra.- Can't comment on the 'Yield' however...!:cool:

'The unit flew a total of 11,963 sorties during the war.'

The RAAF Canberra in Vietnam

No. 2 Squadron - The Royal Australian Air Force in Vietnam