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Sounds plausible, Chugalug2 ... as we approach Post #10,000 ;)
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I'm sure fellow pPruners will know that the Whirlwind was designed by W E Petter, who went on to design the Folland Gnat and two English Electric products, the Canberra and the Lightning. Those were the days ...
Chug, the other example of lateral thinking was on the Tsetse Mosquito, where de Havilland turned to the Molins cigarette packaging company to design the feed for its monster cannon which thereafter was known as the Molins gun. And very well it worked, by all accounts, until its replacement by RP. I suppose the gun round resembles a giant cigarette, and both products were hazardous to health, even though the ciggies take longer to do the job. := https://s20.postimg.org/ttskw66nh/tsetse.jpg |
I have just noticed that this is page 500 on our thread! Fifteen posts to go ...
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Originally Posted by BernieC
(Post 9629715)
MPN11
Thanks for the AW 52G info. I hope you are right, but young as I was then, I am sure that I would have recognized if was being towed and also would have "spotted" a Whitley, a type that never did come within my eyeball distance. There must have been a self-propelled flying wing, but I have never found any trace of it in the very small researches made. It was flown from Baginton and Boscombe Down but no mention of Radlett which of course belonged to a competitor. I've been trying to think of another UK flying wing and come up blank. The DH 108 is a possibility although not a true flying wing. Based at Hatfield they would be likely to fly over London Colney but again, the first two didn't fly until mid 1946. |
If we're talking about Handley Page, could the "Flying Wing" be the tailless HP Manx?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handley_Page_Manx |
Fantom Zorbin and DHfan (#9978),
...Danny, you didn't miss much, the water is desalinated and makes the tea taste ghastly ... after 2+ years it tastes a little better but the tea back in the UK takes a bit of getting used to on RTB!!... Reminds me that, when on a tour in RAF(G) with the precious New Car, most people were able to adjust to driving on the right with no difficulty at all. The rot set in when you came back to UK and had to change back to the left ! Danny. |
precious New Car Friday night on the train to Joberg. Then a connection to P E and be there at lunchtime. You would then take charge of anything from a big Chevrolet/Ford/Plymouth/AustinA90/Worsley6 and proceed to drive these in convoy up north. Another night stop in Joberg and Sunday afternoon these dust laden, race proven cars would arrive at their respective dealers to have their pre-sale service, plus other corrections, before the purchaser saw it. Couth dealers, like Jaguar and Bristol(Glasby's Garage) would have their cars shipped up by rail. |
Originally Posted by Chugalug2
(Post 9631220)
If we're talking about Handley Page, could the "Flying Wing" be the tailless HP Manx?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Handley_Page_Manx |
The rot set in when you came back to UK and had to change back to the left ! |
I managed as a pedestrian!
Got off the boat train at Victoria Station, looked the wrong way for the oncoming traffic, and stepped out in front of a black cab. The driver fortunately screeched to a halt a few thou from my legs, and I learnt some delicate Cockney phrases. :rolleyes: |
THE PARKHOUSE MEMOIRS – PART 23
https://s23.postimg.org/8e1u76tm3/Su...nd_Hamburg.jpg
The memoirs of Sqn Ldr Rupert Parkhouse, recorded in 1995 – Part 23. First post in this series is #9775 on page 489 of this thread. I LEFT 201 Sqn immediately and went for interview at the Air Ministry with a very pleasant South African called Fats Lowe, who told me that I was quite useless and that I would have to be re-trained. In early 1948 I went to 201 AFS at Finningley. By this time Flying Training Command was really getting its act together and I was given a very well organised course on the Wellington Mk 10, and since I was going back to Coastal Command I then had to do the maritime OTU at Kinloss on Lancasters. The feeling of taking off in a Lancaster is one of the great memories of my flying life, it was an absolutely superb sensation opening up all four Merlins. At the end of that course I went to 223 OCU at Calshot where I had a course on Sunderlands and on August 1 I was transferred supernumerary to 230 Sqn, commanded by another former POW my old friend Tony Payne, and based at Finkenberger on the River Elbe flying the Berlin Airlift. Between September and December 1948 I did about 40 trips into Berlin carrying 10,000 lbs of salt inwards and about 40 refugees, usually children to whom we gave our chocolate ration, returning to evacuation centres and schools in Hamburg. [The corrosion-protected Sunderland was the only aircraft which could carry salt without risk of structural damage – Ed.] On December 16 1949 I flew back with a load of ground crew to Calshot, where the squadrons were going to be taken off the airlift and moved to Pembroke Dock. After Christmas leave I rejoined 201 Sqn, now at Pembroke Dock, and became CO of the squadron in January 1950. |
Counting the remaining posts before 10,000 carefully ... :)
There is sometimes satisfaction in Staff appointments. I can think of 4 (out of 7) that I actually enjoyed! OK, so I'm weird, OK? :) |
Chugalu2
HP Manx must indeed be what I remember seeing, Thank you! |
And the Wikipedia page to which we were referred reminded me of another Handley Page-related experience of that time. How it came about I do not recall, but presumably a school-organised visit some time in early 1944 after we had returned to London: a tour of the HP works at Cricklewood. Utterly confusing to me at the time except for a walk into the wooden mockup of the HP Hermes (name only half-remembered), which left some memory-trace.
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Geriaviator (pp Rupert Parkhouse #9992),
One aspect that Rupert has not touched on - his return to the UK must surely have been cushioned by the five year's Back Pay (what deductions did the Germans make ? - I seem to recall that our old pal Fredjhh [RIP] had to pay for being scalped by the Camp Barber). Even so, would've thought there was a nice little nest-egg waiting for him ! Danny. |
Geriaviator (pp Rupert Parkhouse #9992),
...carrying 10,000 lbs of salt inwards... Did the Sunderlands land in the Havel lake ? ... and about 40 refugees, usually children to whom we gave our chocolate ration... Danny. |
The dropping of chocolates to the Berlin children was started by Gail Halvorsen, aka 'Uncle Wiggly Wings' - see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gail_Halvorsen
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(Bit of a "Bum's Rush" from now on, to put you out of your misery).
Not too well known is that there looked like a replay coming up in 1961, when the Berlin Wall rose like a mushroom in the night, and we thought that Khrushchev was going to try again. Trouble was, after the first gefuffle had settled down peacefully, we'd left the old MPN-1 ("Bendix") in position at Gatow. No way were they going to let us get a CPN-4 in there now (did we have anything which could airlift it ?) So a hue 'n cry went up in RAF(G) for any old hairies who could still remember how to operate the old Gatow museum piece. Off goes Danny from Geilenkirchen - Helmstedt - Marienborn - Gatow (creepy, lonely, stretch of autobann) to spend a few weeks enjoying himself in bright lights of Berlin, before they got a relief Controller up to him, and he came back same way to a rather cross (because carless) Mrs D. Das war ja Zeite ! Danny. |
Geriaviator pp Rupert Parkhouse (#9992 - tension rises - roll of drums !)
...A close shave with a Sunderland convinces Rupert to finish his flying career and join the ranks of the penguins, where at last he finds contentment as a staff officer... 10,000 on the clock ! Never thought I'd see the day ! Thanks, fellas and popsies ! (Roll on 11,000). Coincidentally, it is nearly five years to the day (27th January 2012) that I timidly put in my first Post on PPRuNe. How time flies ! I stand aside now, Ladies 'n Gentlemen. The field is free ! Nunc dimittis.....(well, not just yet), Danny. EDIT: Overshot ! (always did come in too fast) D. EDIT (2): No, I didn't - it was the PPRuNe Gremlin who clocked 10,001 on me (I Swear) ! D, |
Congratulations Danny! And I'm sure everyone on this matchless thread will join me in thanking you for past years in which you have right royally entertained us with wit, wisdom, and experience. Go easy on the Nunc Dimittis, the Magnificat would be more appropriate :D
I don't know about Rupert's back pay, Danny, I presume he cashed in as did other POWs. I certainly hope so as small compensation for giving up the best years of his life in a prison camp; today he remembers nothing about it. Yes, the Sunderlands did land on Lake Havel, apparently Berlin needed more than 30 tons of salt among the 6000+ tons of general supplies delivered daily. Operation Plainfare has its own very interesting entry on Wiki. |
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