My most memorable occured 23 years AFTER leaving. Leuchars Airshow 2006. Was on the Enthusiasts package, and on the Saturday morning before flying display, we had the bimble round the flyers. After doing the Mig, Typhoon etc. I walked over to the Lancaster.

Bomb bay doors were open and I stood alone with my thoughts in the bomb bay.

I t may seem stupid to some. But to me it was an amazing privelige to be able to do that. :O:O

Slightly scared to post here, but the OP was connected to the ATC so...

As a young spacer keen to join up properly (and destined to be turned down by the medics) I attended a summer camp at Wittering.

Highlights that I remember were visiting Holbeach and watched a Jag and some A10's on the range and also back seating in a Chipmunk out of Cambridge.

My previous experiences with Chipmunks (Filton) had always been in poor weather, so the good conditions on that day really made it stand out. After letting me fumble with the stick the pilot asked if I'd like to try some aerobatics...

As mentioned earlier, fairground rides were always tame after that.

I was on the OCU for Middy Hopper's last flight: told to go out the Line Hut and go see him in. As I walked out the back door there was a Mighty 'Toom about head height, flying along the taxi way at about walking pace, wheels up but in full BLC. Then as it got to the entrance to the ASP (it's not a PAN!) revved up and shot off !!

Not my Greatest RAF Moment but one I remember !

regards
Howie

Passing out at the Towers


First solo in the Gnat


In the front seat of same jet when B.b T....r practised his Wright Jubilee sequence "not below 200ft"


Flying the Canberra


(Worst- when the medics grounded me - by a country mile)

Gaining the authority to write my own, or at the very least massage existing, training route itineraries.

Many, many nights in Memphis ensued over the next 2 years.

That and the even more frequent occurrences when a 'plane went t*ts up Stateside.

Surplus

That will be completely lost on the vast majority here, although even better when 20 minutes earlier you were contemplating a Charlie buoy.

YS:ok:

I find many visually stunning moments coming back to me after 30 years, which I never had the time to appreciate when they happened - Seeing the Northern Lights from 40,000ft in a fighter cockpit, etc - but I have perfect recall now, and can enjoy them without the workload of operating the jet.

The best was probably leading a 4-ship LL escort when we came across a 4-ship of phantoms who were not part of our exercise, but had a go at us anyway. It was about 10 seconds into this low level fur-ball that I suddenly realised I knew what the f#ck I was doing - that all the years and years of exhausting training had worked. An epiphany.

That, and winning my first solo ACM 5-0. Wo-hoo!

No contest, watching the first Black Buck launch on Ascension. The middle of the night, the noise, the lights, the dust and the general pandemonium. 2 Vulcans and multiple Victors one after the other, absolutely breathtaking.

The second was parading on Churchill's funeral, tried my hardest to get out of it, but after the event wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Oh, and 12 months on an 18-30s holiday at Goose Bay wasn't too bad either !

Best moments from 31 years:

Successfully passing out from Halton despite the instructors who thought I did not have a snowballs chance in hell of successfully completing the two years training.

Working on the Vulcan for two years on the 230 OCU at Scampton.
Many weekend flights and having a go flying Chipmunks doing aerobatics that apparently they could not do with the Air cadets while working on the NMSU at RAF Kinloss.

Then the first flight in a Nimrod MR1 just out of a major servicing (aircrew and my mates thought I was nuts to want to fly in an aircraft that we had just serviced), had another that turned a bit frightening when the windscreen cracked and had to return to the galley seat and strap in as we fell out of the sky rapidly but in a controlled fashion.

All the Jet Provost flights I had while at RAF Cranwell, even being allowed to carry out a practice engine flame out approach to a field.

Low Level experience flight in Vulcan as groundcrew who was attempting to become an AEO.

My time on 18 Sqn at RAF Gutersloh and most of the flying/rotortuning flights in Germany, Falklands, Ireland especially picking up a Wessex from an army base, gulf War 91 and the Turkey relief operation amazing views from the back of the ramp as you flew over the edge of the mountain and the ground just dropped away under you, then hovering while throwing supplies to the people who needed it.

Flight down to Ascension, then on to the Falklands spent most of the time in the flight deck, with the best moment being the approach and landing in the falklands.

Flight in the last Hunter at RAF Honington, with the pilot asking had I flown in a fast jet before, to which I answered yes Jet Provost, it was a while before he stopped laughing and asked me since when had JP pilots worn anti G suits.

Three promotions and my time running the Hydraulic & Tyre Bay at RAF Cottesmore under TTTE before it went Harriers and I left the RAF.

Missed opportunities:

Trip in a Lightning when at RAF Luqa, trip in an F16, trip in the Lancaster when it completed its major at St Athan, 16 years of not getting a flight in any mark of Tornado.

Difficult to pick a single one: landing a Puma in an almost empty Patrol Base during a major riot, with petrol bombs sailing over the fence towards me and seeing the metal fence sheeting 10 feet in front of my rotors being peeled away by the friendly chaps outside desperately trying to get in. Or.....seeing the smoke from the reds come on as they opened the 2012 Olympics, as we carried out a role never done before by UK RW.

However, my favourite memory is of a single moment within a tri-service smorgasbord of 7 helicopters all flat out (for a helicopter :E) at 50' in a loose gaggle as we approached a choke point in a wood line over a ridge. As one and without a word said we all seamlessly slid into line astern and thundered through the gap in the woods, which was full of sightseers, my very own (almost! :8) Apocalypse Now moment.

Skinny dipping at Fort Walton Beach one July evening with the lovely Victoria who I'd met the weekend before in the wonderfully named Daddy's Money night club.

Running up and down the Brecons for four months seemed worth it :cool:

As with many posters here I have numerous 'best moments'... forgotten the worst ones!
Passing out as a J.Tech after a year long course, which started with 18 guys and finished with 4! The chop rate was severe, to say the least.
My first flight, in a Meteor NF 11, at Sylt.
Gazing in amazement at the food on offer at Goose Bay ('''two or three eggs on your steak?'')
Lying in the nose of a Canberra, flying over the Niagara Falls.
Arriving back home in Cyprus, to my wife and young children, after a three month Det in Singapore.
Sitting on the flight deck of a Brit as we landed at Kia Tak. Again on the flight deck, as we approached Kathmandu.
Handing out warm clothing, shoes and other goodies,(which we'd clubbed together and bought in Hong Kong,) to the little urchins that hung around the airport.

The best bits were the Jaguar back seat trips on 226 behind Lightning Mate and others who may frequent this forum. The ultimate was being asked if I wanted a back seat in a clean wing Jag but it might be "rough". Up to 8000 feet and 2 practice displays proved he was right. My reward for not revisiting my breakfast was being allowed to fly the curcuits we then did and his plaintiff cry of "your supposed to aim at the concrete and not the Rwy Caravan, useless, useless!" Live with me like it was yesterday. They also taught me I would never have made it as a FJ demi god.

Skeleton, I sympathise. I also had a backseat trip in a "clean Jag" which was painful for different reasons.

It was a post-major airtest with the test pilot being the only FJ pilot on the station. Only one pair of anti-g trousers available and the test pilot insisted in wearing them ;) I can only remember parts of the 6g turns performed as part of the airtest. I was also flying with blocked sinuses but hadn't declared it because I had waited years for the chance of the flight. The subsequent depressurisation at FL200 was excruciating. Wouldn't have missed it for anything though :ok:

I am suprised that I am only the 3rd to say having my pilot's brevet pinned on - this was the start of a great 16 yrs.

Best route; a recce for HMY Britannia:

Benson
Prestwick
Reykjavik
Sonderstrom
Goose Bay
Boston
Dulles
Nassau
St Kitts
Antigua
Dominica
St Lucia
St Vincent
Barbados
Grenada
Trinidad
Tobago
Trinidad
South Caicos
Grand Turk
Bermuda
Quebec
Goose Bay
Sonderstrom
Reykjavik
Benson

We did't rush it took 21 days :cool:

Three others in the "nostalgia and homage " box


Ushering at the BoB Service at Westminster Abbey


Helping organise the Pathfinders 50th Anniversary bash at Wyton and sitting next to Ken Batchelor at the dinner in St John's College


Being the RAF representative when Hamish Mahaddie unveiled the Pathfinder Memorial in Warboys Church

Vendee that sounds like fun, I did have a back seat wearing the afore mentioned g trousers only to realise as we reefed into the first turn the oxygen wasn't on, cue much merriment from my driver amid my desperate pleas on how to switch it on. The switch as I remember was down the side of the seat somewhere. Convinced to this day the intervening turns were not needed lol.

Fox 3
 

Vertical twin jet perchance?

Vendee, Skeleten, my back seater in a Jag was after a JT armourer and we only had one spare G suit, as he climbed down and handed it to me he said it had scared him sh*tlesd and the G suit was soaking with his cold clammy sweat..
I strapped it on...urgh


.

Being told by my AE Leader that i had been successful in tunnelling out of Kinloss to start pilot training...many fabulous memories ensued.