A400 Atlas
 

Can anyone explain why the Air Bridge provided to Operation Barkhane in Mali is so poor? Night stop in GIB out and back! Schedules running days late. Landing slots unavailable in Brize! Have the serviceability problems we read about a while back been resolved?

So. I'm guessing you are not an aircrew, or related, person?
Any more direct operational questions you might like to ask?
You do know, don't you, that 'I Wonder..................'? isn't, honestly, actually, a question that anyone wants to answer?
Try, 'The Beano, Biffo says' for an answer that might please you.
Perhaps.
Maybe.
Who cares.

Night stops could simply be down to crew hours, fuel etc.

The stop in Gib might also be a "flag stop" to assert continued British sovereignty post-Brexit. As it's conveniently on the route, it would save mounting occasional exercises or detachments for the same purpose.

Single runway Brize is busy, and needs slot allocations? Who would have thought it! I blame Lyneham, for closing.

Nothing to do with the single runway MPN11, it’s most probably due to a lack of capacity with the Movers, being ‘MOGed’* was a regular occurrence when I was at Brize.

But not having Lyneham has definitely reduced the RAF’s AT capacity. Who’d have thought that in 2011?


(* MOG = Movements on Ground)

Fifty plus Hercules at Lyneham? Now, those WERE the days

Try sixty + airframes.

Yep, think we bought around 60 Hercs

Original purchase, yes. 62 IIRC. One went to the Met Office people (Snoopy), and by my time on the fleet I think three had been lost in accidents. Whatever the actual number, very impressive. The smoke cloud after a JATFOR departure took ages to clear!!

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....c6cc08271c.jpg
If you were further back then 4 or 5 then oxygen for the taxy and take off was essential

Herod

66 were purchased. I believe one of the first ( XV 177 or was it 178? ) went to Boscombe and stayed there for years.

By the time I left at my 8year option in late '73, one had been lost at Fairford in '69, another at Pisa in '71 and IIRC one was written off on landing at Tromso, '72 ?. I guess it was another 20 years before the next loss.

Snoopy ,208, had originally been one of the 12 at Changi with 48Sqn ( 198-209 ) and conversion commenced in 72/3.

XV178 was the one at Boscombe Down. XV180 was the one lost at Fairford, and (IIRC) XV216 was the one lost at Pisa. Tis airframe was extant on the dump there for many years afterwards.

LOST HERCULES
 

There was the one at Colerne about 1975.

Arron.

When I got to Lyneham there were 61 airframes. Four had been lost: Fairford (XV180), Pisa (XV216), Tromsø (XV194), and Colerne (XV198).

Snoopy (XV208) was at Farnborough.

AARON Yes you're right! I'd forgotten the Colerne one - pretty sure it was September '73, the day I was having my final medical at Lyneham. The skipper was Tony Barrett a Flt Cdr on 48, who had been on 30 before an exchange tour with the Yanks I think.

Luftwaffe A400M entire sortie cockpit video - including AAR of Tornado..
RAF A400M operators may be interested to compare cockpit procedures.

As far as I recall, Snoopy arrived at Farnborough either just before or just after the '74 airshow. I was posted in at the beginning of March that year but the main runway was being re-surfaced and this didn't finish until early August '74 although some aircraft operated off the subsidiary runways including a Comet 4 departure from runway 30; they pushed it back with a tug to get maximum TORA and a watching Andover pilot remarked 'some of us go forwards to take off'.

So the original posters enquiry about the Barkane Airbridge has been lost in a sea of nostalgia about Lyneham, which closed several years ago.

I love that a on thread called A400 Atlas most of the posts are about Hercules!

In 20-30 years the board will be filled with people reminiscing about what a fabulous aircraft the A400 was, why we MUST restart production and how Brize was the greatest airfield in the world......................

Hell - there are people posting on Pprune about bringing back the Hunter................

Great pic. What was the reason for so many Far East Hercs being at Lyneham at the same time (I presume they are, as looks more like a cold UK summer than the steaming tropics)?

In 20-30 years time they'll still be building the Herc, probably.

Bringing back? Did the Hunter ever leave? Hunter 2022

;)

I really, really doubt that...

I wonder how many people claiming that the Hunter would be a good fighter for today have ever flown one?

It was lovely to fly, but would need huge modifications in weapons and avionics to bring it even close to being useful today.

Those HHA chaps are lucky to have the T.72 though, as it has the 200-ser engine which our T7 / T8s didn't.

And now back to the A400M thread.

Spotter mode engaged:
The dark earth, mid-stone and black finish was the original colour scheme for RAF transport aircraft delivered in the 1960's.
They started to change colour to green, gray and light grey in the early 1970's. Perhaps that would help to date the picture?

Disengage spotter mode, get anorak dry cleaned.

Otherwise known as "Crud and Custard".

Could be because it's the better aircraft?

personally I prefer the C-47

:ok::ok: I never flew it, but one heck of an aircraft. 86 years since first flight, and counting.

Nice video.
I notice vapour trailing from the top of the fins at some points while they're hooked up.
Is that fuel related, or normal?

Fuel venting. Probably indicates tanks full.

Good news
 

“The RAF’s Atlas has successfully completed its first ‘mass parachuting sorties’ over Salisbury Plain. Troops from @16AirAssltBCT conducted low-level jumps, a vital skill for the UK’s Global response force.”

And the aircraft has only been in service for 8 years…!

Yes. By test pilots. The aircraft has been able to do it for yonks as we have watched the Europeans doing it. How many years until a frontline crew is able to do it and be competent enough to be trusted to do it operationally or even on a big exercise? Come to think of it how many frontline crews (not instructors) are dropping stores or high-altitude parachutists since those “capabilities” were announced? (Zero?)

"How many years until a frontline crew is able to do it and be competent enough to be trusted to do it operationally "

Not until the Test pilots et all have something else to test - if they sign off now they're asking to be cut..............

I flew in a Hawk a few weeks before flying in a T7. My impression was that the Hawk was more agile and slower (about 370 ias) but the Hunter was faster at about 460 ias and needed much greater control inputs.
But then I only had one flight in each type so I'm probably talking b0ll0cks.

Is that comment based on your experience of test flying or your experience of working in a pub?

Too true, in my particular area I recall a particular civvy standards team of around six. Back in the 70/80’s everybody got through their annual station visit which was a pretty rushed affair. As the RAF contracted the visits got longer and more complicated. After the pull back from RAFG and cutbacks stations started failing for the smallest thing requiring return visits which was becoming the norm.