I once had a trip over the Pennines in a Vanguard ... I was a callow youth and the driver was a be-medalled and grizzled Flt Lt. I asked him what was in the case he was carrying ...

"My boy, never get in a f:mad:g staff car without your f:mad:g tool kit, you'll f:mad:g need it mark my words!". He was right!

The advice served me well over many many years!

Union Jack,

One of that ilk was running round the taxiway bend just behind the Tower at Strubby in the late '50s; there was a loud crunch and the whole n/s front suspension parted from the vehicle, leaving it stranded, on its nose and listing to port with the wheel flat under it.

By ill luck a Canberra was coming round behind from the other side, the pilot unsighted by the Tower. Someone dashed out in front of it with crossed arms: it was stopped in the nick if time and had to wait until enough manpower had rushed out from the offices to manhandle the obstruction off onto the grass.

Danny.

There's no point in having power if you can't abuse it.

Rolling20
Thanks for posting this, only looked at it with vague interest and when I saw it it took me back some 60 years !!!

Dad used to go to RAF Uxbridge to pick up this vehicle and drive it to MOD in Whitehall .
I remember the roundels on the wing, dead cool !!
The one he had before that looked more like a posh Jeep but bigger like a mini tank.
His own car at the time was a Ford Popular 3 gear, kept immaculately and I still remember the reg 4664 H.

Memories.................

STANDARD VANGUARD
 

There was loads of them at RAF Weeton, ( No 8 SoTT) as it was a driving school aswell, wandering all over the Fylde. I remember being loaded in to one there as a 10 year old for an 'experience' on the skid pan at a Battle of Britain day around 1960.:\

Maybe not a service one


"In the style of RAF staff cars"




"Wasn't it an Austin A30 or 40 key that opened the Vulcan?

Vulcan Key
 

FP564, or was that Valiant ?

During Easter break from the Towers in 1969, 3 of us went on a detachment to Kinloss to visit the MPA world of the Shacklebomber.

A seemingly endless train journey and the overnight sleeper to Glasgow before the stopping train to wherever it was inspired me to find another method of getting back to Somerset. Which was solved by a friend of my late father who borrowed a Sea Vampire from Yeovilton and flew up to RNAS Lossiemouth.

I was promised MT would take me from Kinloss to Lossie - I had to wait at the guardroom and someone would pick me up. I did as instructed and a few minutes later this ancient Standard Vanguard screeched to a halt - I think it was an estate version, probably the last one in the RAF! Driven by a lunatic Flt Lt who hurled the old bus around the B roads at indecent speeds....

The 90 min trip in the Sea Vampire was rather more civilised and a lot less scary!

I took the RAF driving course at St Athan 1969. We started with a Morris Minor estate but being 6ft 4ins tall with size 13 shoes I had some difficulties. However, the RAF instructor was not deterred and next day our Morris Minor estate was replaced by an elderly Standard Vanguard estate; very spacious and lots of room for my feet on the pedals. And yes, I did pass the test!