Odd things seen on the train
 

I was travelling on Beardie's trainset to Euston yesterday afternoon and as I got up from my seat to start walking towards the front of the train so that I could make my connection, I glanced at the passenger behind me and saw a very ,very senior RAF officer in uniform . I didn't think that sevice personnel were allowed out in uniform and given his rank why wasn't he travelling in First Class?

Probably a Walt. Why on Earth would a very very senior officer be travelling unaccompanied. How would he be able to find his way around?

I was going to say that, still he got a seat unlike some politicians, did you ask him if he was off to some fancy dress do?

We've been allowed out in uniform for years now. Although a VSO in Economy is a bit rare!

Are you sure he wasn't an RAC patrolman who's lost his van?

Was he clipping tickets?

Why would anybody want to impersonate a VSO?

If he was in first class someone would be on here to complain about the waste of taxpayers money. Damned if you do...
BV

Having done a bit of googling, I think that it was the Assistant Chief of the Air Staff. By a bit of judicious pre-booking first class tickets can be very cheap, and cheaper than a walk on standard fare.

I was going to be facetious and suggest politician or VSO when I saw the title, but fair play to him. Leadership by example, need more of it. That said, Bob is correct - it's largely a perception and image thing at heart. The rules say that First Class is now pretty much verboten, although I suspect that for VVSOs or on security grounds there may be exceptions. But the reason I cite image above all else is that IIRC, those same rules say First must be authorised by the someone equivalent to the PM or UN Sec Gen EVEN when CHEAPER than standard!

Fair play to him and I wish I had realised he was sat behind me as I would have enjoyed the opportunity for a professional chat to make the journey more tolerable.

Tolerable, Sir? Train journeys are meant to be stressful as an aid to character-building!

Even when issued a cattle class ticket I upgraded to first. After all tjhere is no excuse for travelling below your pay grade.

Perhaps he had just realised that he was responsible for RAF Training?

....or being an ex-Vulcan man he had confused HS2 with H2S?

Govt policy is very clear. No MOD/Mil/wider CS personnel, under any circumstances are to travel first class rail. If you do, then expect to face disciplinary action.

First Class rail travel as a 'perk' went nearly 10 years ago as one of the first cuts of austerity regime.

Just seems a bit daft when you can get an offer that makes First cheaper than Standard. Also never understood why the MOD never leveraged purchasing power to do a deal that permitted use of rail cards giving 1/3 off.

It can be cheaper on fixed trains, but that depends on VSO's diaries not overunning. Also never forget the Court of the Daily Mail...

Why not? If I were still in I'd be delighted to proudly walk around High Wycombe in uniform glaring at any beardy who eyeballed me.

p.s. Recently had RAF march through our town with bayonets fixed and band playing.
Although, to be honest, the only time I've seen an RAF bayonet draw blood was when a colleague, polishing his for parade*, fell off his bunk and gave himself a handsome duelling scar across the forehead.

* No sniggering at the back!

Well done that VSO!

The current ACAS has no Vulcan background, Wensleydale.

Sometimes the regulations are stupid cases of "the computer says no".
As a civvie with a freedom to choose I often travel to London for various meetings; I travel 1st Class.

My colleague who works for the local government authority attends the same meeting. He travels 2nd class as that is their rules to save money. My ticket is often 10-15% cheaper than his and I get fed and watered; he claims additional expenses for his meal!
No matter how he protests to his bosses, it just falls on deaf ears.

Basil,

"I'd be delighted to proudly walk around High Wycombe in uniform glaring at any beardy who eyeballed me."


What have you got against the Navy?

About four years ago, I saw an uniformed Gp.Captain get on at Bristol Parkway, the station as we know being convenient for a well known M.o.D establishment and alight at Cheltenham.....cattle class.

That, and those lower down the food chain can always been seen in uniform at Motorway services, any day / time of the week.....invariably it has to be said in the queue for Mc Junk et al......so much for healthy eating then..;)

However, with regard to train travel, it's actually quite easy to ensure you make significant savings IF, you are in a position to book well in advance, are prepared to make some short term personal inconveniences to your journey and have a basic knowledge of the UK's rail network and geography for split ticketing along with being prepared to do some research as to times and routes.

As one passionately opposed to privatisation, it's nice to be able to play the TOC's at their own game and deprive them of revenue.

First is generally a waste of time / money on short journeys other than for a bit of ego massaging of course... but lets face it, £15 (in round figures) Crewe to Glasgow ( cattle ) represents far better value for money. That said, the best I've ever done was Aberdeen -Kings Cross.....£42 single First when it was ECML in public ownershio.

It's all about appearances methinks. One has a mate at Leuchars (or whatever it's called now) who frequently needs to go to London.

Never mind the UN Sec Gen authorising 1st Class on the train, it needs God to authorise flying - although SqueezyJet is cheaper than (cattle class) train from Scotland to London. Go figure!

The very first thread I ever started on PPRune was on the subject of wearing uniform in public. Living near Culdrose I see a lot of Navy personnel in uniform out and about in Helston. At the time I commented on the scruffiness of some of them, notably officers, the worst example being one chap emerging from his car in his flying suit, throwing a civvie hoodie on top of it and ambling off, hatless, down the street.

I'm very pleased to say that things have tightened up a lot, and I only ever see very smart ratings and officers when in the town now. The ladies in particular are always very well turned out and are a credit to their service, so credit where it is due. Mrs TTN has had to put a stop to my complimenting these ladies when I meet them in the aisles of Tesco, because she says it makes me look like a dirty old man :(

You'd know if the gent was a Walt - he'd be the bloke wearing a chest full of mismatched, but beautifully polished, medals, as well as a fine military outfit.

Quote:
....or being an ex-Vulcan man he had confused HS2 with H2S?

Yes, but you don't have a joke without the Vulcan connection............

Once again H2S = V Bomber = Vulcan :*

In fact the H2S equipped Victor K2 was in service till 1993, many years after the Vulcan left the service, post Falklands (558 had its H2S removed, I believe). So it would be at least plausible that the ACAS, who is an engineer who entered the service in 1988 might have had a Victor background, although in fact he was a Nimrod/Tornado man in the days when he was still getting his hands oily.

A sign of the times when ACAS is an Eng :)

I can remember when a 2* Nav was a cause of comment!

Nothing; and I have to watch what I say about beards as well ;)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ps37nyhzs3.jpg

Gawd! That was a lifetime ago :{

Guaranteed way to find your wife if you've lost her :E

TTN,doubt ACAS ever got his hands oily...wouldn`t be able to get up the pole if he did....

72 squadron log books
 

From a thread from 2006, a mentioned was made of 72 squadron log books.........did you serve with 72 Squadron and are you willing to share the information in your log books?

Basil, forgive the intrusion but is that a Doxford hiding behind?

No, it's a Parsons geared steam turbine.
Controls are Ahead Valve, Astern Valve and Astern Shut Off Valve (Just to be on the safe side :))

IIRC, Fyffes SS Chicanoa on trip to/from Tiko, Cameroon.
Steam at 600psi superheated to 600F. Used to consider worst case scenario when the 12" steam main was bouncing around in its supports in an Atlantic storm :uhoh:

Used to be a requirement for steam engineers to spit if they inadvertently uttered the D***** word :E
Even when I was at sea, the Doxford was an old design but I loved how you could see the top pistons operating. I'd heard that, at low RPM, some young tearaways would try to sit on them.

Way too slim to be a steamy..

In the 1980s the CS [or at least the Met. Office MoD part of it] got knickers twisted with travel rules, as also did Rail with its pricing strategy.

I slaved under rules that demanded the smallest total outlay for, say, a day duty in London when based in Leeds. I hope memory serves correctly, but these days there are risks attached.

My very switched - on gopher did the homework and frequently bought me the following:

Car parking at Doncaster Station [living in Gainsboro, commuting daily to Leeds]
White Rose Pullman Doncaster to KX First Class, and return
Full English, plus newspaper
and Half day subsistence for lunch in town, usually liquid, with the balance paying for dinner on the train on the way north.

TOTAL LESS THAN CATTLE CLASS PLUS FULL DAY SUBSISTENCE.

Needless to say I rather looked forward to a summons to the Smoke.

Mad, my masters, mad

Basil ... did you serve on Fyffes Cavina or Camito on the 50s/60s? We [family] emigrated and repatriated to/from Jamaica on them ;)

Everything's meant to be booked through Hogg-Robinson these days. When it works it's OK. Not good, not efficient, not easy and not cheap; just OK. Must book at least 2 hours before the trip, so you cannot book a Day Travel Card on the day because that 'started' at 0001 hours on the day (for example). System will allow one to book First Class, but all sorts of red lights go off and I am pretty sure the Command Accounts Team are personally alerted. As others have said, being seen to travel in First is a recipe for a knuckle rapping, even if it's possibly cheaper because chances are there are cheaper versions of your ticket that will put you in Standard Class
The result of this approach is that people leave it until late and then get the most flexible ticket possible, which can cost more than a cheaper type of First Class ticket booked well in advance.
So what? Well, if I am sitting in 1st with plenty of space, a working power supply, a DII Laptop and free Wi-Fi, I am going to work. In standard, I don't even take the laptop for fear of some knobber looking over my shoulder and taking a photo of something which is OS (Restricted as was), and this appearing in the Daily Mail or some such. As it is, if the RAF CS doesn't feel my time is worth £30 an hour, then I will take my own entertainment and watch NCIS. I can get 3 episodes in during a trip to Abbey Wood.
Price of everything, value of nothing.
By the way, the rules have changed about internal flying, though it wouldn't surprise me if some Travel (Prevention) Cells keep the changes to themselves for fear of people realising that they aren't actually needed any more.

TTN

I helped the EMI guys install what I believe was the 1st H2S Mk9 for the 'trainer' at BCBS Lindholme in 1955!

So that was quite a reasonable service life for valve driven kit.