'TH' Hangs up his G-pants
 

Dear fellow PPRuNers,
the white haired cavalier of Thumrait is about to retire from the RAF. Anyone who has been to Magic Carpet in the past 14 years has probably had the joy of being 71'ed with TH: kidnapped to an 80s decor bungalow, plied with single malt and then serenaded with American Pie and various guitar classics of the 70s.
TH has the record number of hours on the Jag (4700+!), as well as over 2500 on the Hawk. He retires from the RAF at the end of this month and I'm after some dirt, I mean photos and stories.
Please post any couth messages to this thread, and any proper dirt :eek: to my PM.

Much appreciated,

MDH

Well done TH:ok:

What will he do now?

Don't mention the Gogs!

The Silver Fox
 

I met him at Valley c 1981 when he was a creamy and ended up lumbered with the same job. Enjoyed his company albeit he was and probably remains larger than life. Back then a capable water ski buff and keen squash player who according to his son an AAC pilot even now rarely loses when they play.

Doubt that this is the end of his flying career as he will find something or somewhere to go, just not 10 AEF though, not sure the oldies could cope with him. The sim at Valley perhaps now that Dougie Mee has retired, but not gone, still alive and kicking at the age of 88.

Back then TH would get into the odd scrape including illicit trips to Northern Ireland to see some pretty dental nurse called April. Wonder what happened to her? Word has it still happily married.

TH part of a rare breed of pilots in every generation that survives and thrives in the hot seat while many others fall gracefully by the way side.

Resilient sod!

Regards Bigpants

If you pm me with an email I've a couple of photos of TH from 6 Sqn days.

TH
 

I worked with him at Thumrait until '99 when I left there. Give him my best wishes when you deliver the dirt.

Magic Carpet
 

I have had a few magic carpets and have always enjoyed TH's hospitality. On the work side of things, I remember passing a 9-line CAS brief and asking for a read back , all was good until we got to MAH readback where his answer was ''Im not telling you, its a surprise'' . He then proceeded to ''buzz'' the OP with a bit of terrain masking at @@ft. Much to the amusment of the Saffa pilot sat in the back of his Jag two seater. Back to his dusty bungalow for several single malts from his vast collection, he offered everyone to us , none were hidden. Followed by a drunken TH version of Billy Joel '' Piano man'' .

A top bloke, a top pilot and a fair voice. Ive had UHF comms with his son within the last year whilst away, and he has big flying boots to fill however is well on the way.

Calm down fellas. He might be reading this.

Reading this?
 

If he was, which I doubt, suspect he would have put his side of things by now.

Next job? Something which allows him to fly very low, fisheries protection perhaps based in Scotland close to a distillery....

Flown as pax with TH on magic carpets and loved every minute! Also had many a karaoke in his 'pad' and sampled many of his fine malts!!

A true gent, and a character that the RAF truly misses these days!!

I wish TH all the best for his retirement!!

Please forgive me for posting on a 'Master Race ' thread, but here goes!

Back in '93 when No1 son was on 41(F), I organised a visit to Colt' for ATCOs on my watch at Heathrow. They included 4 lovely members of the fairer sex plus Mrs B48N who came along for the ride, and to keep an eye on the men in her family!
In the bar that evening I noticed a shifty looking Sqn Ldr placing a post-it on her back. On it was written 'Best legs in the bar'; so I yelled across to No1 son,'Hey Shaun, some Squabbling Bleeder is eyeing your Mum's legs!'.
Cue deep blushing and squirming embarrassment from said Sqn Ldr who No1 introduced as TH.

Best wishes for a long and happy retirement TH.

Great stuff, keep 'em comin'.
For those that are wondering, and to prevent recurring questions:
THe man is still working, now in Muscat, where he flies a desk; only marginally lower than his Jag.
He's still riding his Repsol Fireblade.
71 is empty and is due for demolition. The end of an era.

Glad to see he improved since his creamy days!

More photos and stories please

TH
 

Hate to be the one to spoil your thread but, if you are planning ahead for his dining out/retirement bash, why not just elaborate what you have already said here - that he has enjoyed an exceptionally long flying career on fast jets and is a very generous host who enjoys entertaining and occasionally serenading his guests.

Why spoil it by soliciting for "dirt", he deserves better than that, especially now that he is retiring from the RAF.

Cynical?
 

Thanks for your input Mike. AKA Fun Police. :rolleyes:
Stating those well known facts would make for a short speech wouldn't it!?
This comedic request for dirt is not to smite the man, but to add a few anecdotes to the speech and to get some photos to commemorate a 30+ year career.

Context
 

Dirt has different meanings to different people, within the RAF no ones dining out would be complete without some entertaining faux pas from the past to balance the compliments of a job well done.

Olive oil on its own versus a dash of vinegar for a dressing etc etc.

Rather that than the US style endless over the top bigging up of someone's career to the point where it becomes embarrassing.

By the way are you Mike Rondot the aviation artist? Good work.

Regards Bigpants

Yes he is Bigpants and I agree with you. Dirt sticks but I'm sure MDH is only looking for war stories. Not tabloid rubbish!

Damn!!! If you wanted tabloid rubbish I have loads of that! :E;)

TH Photos and Anecdotes
 

The deadline approacheth.
We have ample stories, but photos of a young TH would be appreciated please.
And there are never to many funny anecdotes.