Buccaneer Vangelis film
 

... not because of watching Vulcans display, not because of the cameraderie, not because of the flying, not because of the money ....

The real reason I joined up:

YouTube - RAF Buccaneer - NATO Opengate - Low Level Anti-Ship

Thank God - been looking for this for years!!!

It's amazing how often this comes round.

The music (in anticipation of the Q being asked) is 'To the Unknown Man' by Vangelis. Available on a number of his albums including here:

The Best of Vangelis

Other music suppliers are available!

STH

So had I:ok:

I found it about 2 weeks ago after years of searching...thought it was just me:}

I can still remember watching it in our ATC drill hall 25+ years ago...great stuff!

It was the music that did it for me too...although I never did join up:hmm:

Seeing life on a training camp whilst a cadet on a gliding school put me off!

The music at the start with the head-on shots of bananas taking off is also by Vangelis, the track is 'Spiral'.

I, too, remember being shown the film as a young spacie while at AEF & gliding school, and thought it was the mutt's nuts.

In a similar vein, the 9 Sqn Tonka video from the 80s is worth a look. I still work with 'The Boss', he hasn't changed much!

I used this film a lot when I was 'sentenced' to a spell as a schools liaison officer in the 1980s. Went down best at grammar schools (I think they liked the 'progressive' music, man!). The Watchdog film with a bit of fighting and explosions etc was a better choice for the inner-city comprehensives.

At one grammar school that was a regular, used to put the film on, dim the lights and nip out to chat up a very, very attractive careers teacher. Still sees her on a regular basis (morning, noon and night!) these days as she became Mrs LOTA. Therefore, I like this film a lot! (She told me to say that!)

Is there a downloadable version of this anywhere???

The Album the music came from was Spiral. I think the film was called 12 Sqn Bucanneers and if any one knows where i can get it from let me know. It was a film that i still remember even after nearly 30 years and would love to see it again. May be the Public Film Library should release it on DVD or Download.

Excellent footage.

I remember being on the bridge of the Glasgow in 87 on a JMC when she was bounced by a 4 ship of Buccs.

Didnt have to look up at them, they were at eye level, heading straight towards us.

The SHARS that followed about 2 minutes later we had to look up at, about 45 degrees up, but not the Buccs.

Great memories, great aircraft. Are there still any airworthy on the display circuit?

I suppose the GR4 did eventually deliver the sort of "next generation" Bucc type capability, didnt it? Will the F35 finally be everything the Bucc was and more?

Thoughts?

The original poster of the You Tube video (bryUK) has also ...

(click on 'more info' in the upper right hand side of the You Tube page).

A regular PPRuNe contributor appears to have a starring role in the film ....;)

Jabba;

There are 3 airworthy, but in Cape Town (google 'thunder city'). For a fee, you can take a trip in one (or Lightning, or Hunter)! In the UK, you can see Buccs doing 'fast taxi' at Bruntingthorpe - you never know, one might do a 'Victor':E

Wrath,

Is that so ??

A thread on this forum titled 'old film' dated 10 Feb 09 gives all the details of where you can buy a copy of a Bucc DVD with the Gibex film attached.

I bought a copy and it takes me right back to my spacie days!

My last tour in the service, 1985 - 88, was as a recruiter. Would not mind a quid for each time I showed this film to ATC/GVC Sqns, schools, et al! In the beginning, the music used to drive me 'bananas, bananas'!! After a couple of years, I was brainwashed and quite liked it. Even bought the CD which I still have and play occasionally.

Yes, it was a good film and it would be good to see it again. The 9 Sqn Tonka film was another that always went down well.

I well remember the absolute glee when this film was released for recruiting in the late 70s. Up until then we had to put up with a fairly boring repertoire of Red Arrows and the like. As far as I remember this was the first film that really showed the RAF as we hoped it was like.

Trudging round the schools and colleges of east London and Essex actually became worthwhile.

And then I was posted to Honington in early 1980 and came face to face with all the characters. The one who really sticks in the mind is the 4 feet of attitude which was Jock Frizzell. Rumour had it that he made the choice of Vangelis for the music.

Brilliant days in an Air Force which, perhaps, was in its glory post-war years and with an aircraft which was the duck's nuts. :ok:

As an aside - if the RN had accepted the fact that the Buccs were getting through their air defence screen in those days then perhaps there might have been a couple of ships and more than a few brave souls still alive today post Falklands.

Excellent vid. Good to see the old Kent again. Let me see... 540kts...100ft...Seaslug Mk1. Nope.:eek::}

Seconded....again:ok:

Sea Harrier F/A 2 + AMRAAM? Oooh yes, no problemo..... But sadly and unforgiveably no more...:ugh:

Nice to see the dual purpose radars that do sonar beeps. Novel that.:)

Excellent to see after a particularly sh*tty day banging head against brick wall of modern military bureaucracy. I didn't realise the Bucc was mounted from starboard, how continental!
Nice to see the dear old Nimrod, back in the days when we used to find contacts, fix their position, track them, then target them and... oh, hang on!

Sorry to be a party pooper. The images are great, if a little dated, but the music's awful (IMHO), dreary and turgid. Far better if they'd used Vangelis's 'Chariots of Fire' theme. Alternatively, plenty of Pink Floyd tracks available at that time would have done the trick. See if this link works.

YouTube - Sailor series -Aircraft from HMS Ark Royal at Vieques weapons range

If not search "Aircraft from HMS Ark Royal at Vieques weapons range" to see how good it can be with Buccs and Phantoms set to music.

Just my opinion, preparing to be flamed.

Edited: link seems to work fine. Enjoy. Oh, forgot to mention Gannet & Wessex in above comments, sorry to any ex drivers of those venerable machines reading.

Gainesy

Maybe they had overestimated just how low the Black Banana could go and were checking all levels.

Fantastic!

Duncs:ok::ok:

The Nimrod that is:O

The full 12 Sqn Bucanneers film is one of the four films on this video on sale at Amazon (as is the 9 Sqn Tornado one).Link at Amazon.co.uk: Great War Planes Of The RAF [VHS]: Explore similar items

The music was also used on a BBC Snooker Prog..... Was it "Pot Black"? or the World Championships"? :confused:

World Championships.

alwayslookingup,

How astute you are:

The 2 films were directed by the same man - Hugh Hudson! However, I cannot agree with you, the music from the Spiral album is now a part of Buccaneer folklore! Brilliant.

Foldie

Is it just my speakers or does Banana Lead sound like he is sucking helium instead of 02?

sisemen,

Correct - the choice was indeed concocted by wee Jock (he of hair-perm fame) and the assistant producer, and vetted by the cast!

alwayslookingup,

Not flaming you, but I agree with foldy and, as the Buccaneer Songbook author, he knows about such things. Dang-a-dang-a-dang (along with bananas-bananas) is entrenched in Buccaneer history, often nasally recited during tales of 12 Sqn daring-deeds at gatherings various.

A somewhat strange comment? The film was made some 30 years ago! Maybe we should make it again and update things - but then updating me would be very time-consuming, expensive and painful.

Auntie Mary had a ---- STOP IT.

StbdD

We were on something a lot stronger than helium in those days! You had to be to get through a night low level 3-ship close formation sortie at 300' over an inky black North Sea looking :sad: for the bloody Navy!

Ahhar! Them were the days!

Foldie

Did any of the vids of Buccs knocking down washing lines in Beirut ever surface? Ditto Red Flags?

Okay guys, hands up, I'm more than happy to let you have this one. But I still prefer the Ark footage.

Does no one else like it 'cos it is the dark blue Buccs & Phantoms (and I know they became light blue property after the Ark)? Head above parapet but NOW preparing to be flamed alive!.

alwayslookingup

OK, your vid is quite good and Pink Floyd does work but the problem with it is the lack of air-to-air close up in comparison with the 12 Sqn Buccaneers movie by Hugh Hudson.

But look, take it from me as an ex-Bucc man, it doesn't matter whether the Bucc is dark blue, light blue, desert pink or South African blue and grey. It's a Bucc and as far as Bucc guys (and the rest of the Bucc fans out there) are concerned that's all that matters!

Foldie:ok:

Foldie, not much to say after that, other than you're absolutely spot on! :ok:

For a non-mil, In the Vangelis vid, what does the phraseology Bananas Bananas mean please?

Go on then foldie, you're the quewhy. But there were also the tacticians ----

execExpress,

It's just a recognisable codeword that was used in the ASuW role to denote a specific range from a specific target in a specific tactical attack that identified that target to each navigator in the attacking formation on their radars.

Foldie

PS. Black Omega inbound!:=

--- and the pilots, them that had a clue, that is

Thanks Foldie.

P.S. Red Top outbound. :confused:

The reason I would have joined up...
 

1978 was the year I went to Edinburgh Uni, and applied for the University Air Squadron. Would have loved to have flown Buccaneers, Phantoms or LIghtnings (have a vivid memory of combined 23sqdn & 43 sqdn flypast at Leuchars in early 70s).

However, my eyesight let me down. Interesting to see one of the crew with glasses.

Thanks for the reminder!