Westland Scout Helicopter XV121
 

Can anyone help me to trace any history for a Westland Scout helicopter that was with the British Army / forces from around 1967 ? Maybe you flew her or worked on her ? I am hoping to assemble a complete history for this aircraft which I now proudly fly on the UK civil register and believe to be the finest remaining example ! Any photos, documents, stories or recollections of any sort would be very gratefully received.

Just type XV121 into Google. You'll be amazed at the gen the result uncovers.

I was at the AAC Museum in Middle Wallop on Friday 13th June...I'm sure they had a Scout on display there. I'm sure they have plenty of info for you.

Edit: Although Army ID cards don't get you free entry if you're Royal Engineers, like myself...you have to be Army Air Corps or the little old lady who resembles Heinrich Himler will take your money!:)

As a Bootneck pilot I flew XV121 for 27 hours between July and September 1973 when it was based at Long Kesh and belonged to 660 Sqn.

P21

How about a photo of her as she is now?

Have you thought about posting this on the Arrse site?

http://www.arrse.co.uk/cpgn2/Forums/viewforum/f=24.html

Might get some results on there!

Thank you 123.

Scout Leader, I was going to dig out my log book and check for you however, that paint job shows a lack of respect for the Queen of the skies.
I regard it akin to a Bentley 4.5 painted red opposed to racing green, a JPS Norton with a pink and gold paint job, a poodle dyed purple. Red peas. It can be done but those that do it are regarded by the sane.....as eejit's.

I will accept, better it is flying at all, but come on Scout Leader, you can do better than that.

:ugh:

Mmmmmmmmmm
 

Well at least its still green'ish and flying, checked the log book but this one avoided me, scout leader I might have some pilots notes in a box, now where did I put them.................................:confused:

Last flew xv121 on 24 nov '81 with 659 sqn 9 regt AAC Detmold. :ok:
Had an interesting EOL up the banks of the Mosel river on07 April that same year in 121 with Graham Thorpe crewman. Engine changed in situ and field airtested before returning it to Detmold.:ok::ok:

Apart from discount carpets and Scrapheap Challenge there's lots of photos of his own wobblycopter. :hmm:

That being the case, I may well have pushed it in and out of the hangar, polished the windows and filled it with Avtur.:\

Sorry to go off at a tangent. Is there any reason why the civil scouts don’t have the big rear doors? Is it the rules under which they fly or just aesthetics and fuel consumption.

It was at Bosocmbe Down in January 1987 for trials on a Strobe Light and Landing Lamp. I flew in it twice. One of my first flight trials.

Slightly off thread - I found the remains of a Scout in a Hong Kong film studio.
No markings on it and the airframe is well stripped.
My research leads me to believe it was a former 660 Squadron AAC helicopter.

Would anyone know any further history of Scout ops in HK or is ARrSE is the best place to find out ?

Thank you.

Kluge,

if you can get back to that particular Scout ... open the rear port door and lift up the padded back-rest on that side (which is probably not there, as it's been stripped, but you get the idea ...) and there _should_ be a little plate with an 'F8/nnnn' number on it. If you can let me know that number then I might be able to help to pin it down to an exact airframe.
That number is the 'pod-number'. All the Westland Scouts and Wasps were made up from various parts, and each part had a distinct number. These numbers are not the same as the manufacturers 'construction number', which (as far as I can tell) there is no plate on a Scout or Wasp to help.

XV121 from the original query should have a pod-number of 'F8/6043' on that plate (does it?). According to all the records that I have ever seen, XV121 should have a manufacturers construction-number of F.9696. Is there a plate on XV121 with that stamped on it?

[/sad mode - off]!

Taking the work that's done on helicopters over the years, there's very little of the original left in any of them. XV121 (or any other number) is just the number on the tech. records file.

Example from memory: Whirlwind HCC10 XV763 in for a Minor* - new engine, transmission, transmission platform, main rotor gearbox, front and rear 'A' frames, cabin floor, landing gears, tail cone (with rotor transmission) and tail rotor gearbox. If that's a 'Minor' imagine what a Major might involve. :ooh:

Blacksheep, Shades of Trig's (Del Boy) broom; He'd had the same one for 14 yrs., only had 6 handles and 8 heads and 'still as good as new'!

Kluge, regarding your Q

One of 660's Scouts based at RAF Sek Kong ended up submerged (up to the pilot's moustache but no further !!!!) in a duck pond up near the Mai Po marshes in circa 1979 (tail rotor driveshaft went west during a dawn II sweep I recall), a very slim chance it might be bits of that one you found in the studios ? pp

Thx chaps.
The thlot pickens.
I will research and report back.
Apologies all for thread drift.