Fleet Air Arm jiggery pokery
 

Hello Chaps & Chapesses
Can anyone help please? I am trying to find details of an event that I'm sure I read about ages ago. The essence of the tale is that a R.N carrier, (in a harbour somewhere like Malta) was turned 180% about by having aircraft (back in the propeller era) stationed at either end of the flight deck, all lashed down, and facing into the centre of the ship, and given the signal, all applied power and gradually the ship turned on its axis. It might well be someone was shooting a grog-inspired line. If anyone could throw some light on this I would be obliged.
Thank you. N.Z.

Definitely not a grog-inspired line! The manoeuvre is called the 'Pinwheel' or 'Windmill' and I have heard of it done by prop aircraft but not jets. In the early 1980s. the 20,000 tonne Australian carrier HMAS Melbourne was docked by, ISTR, 6 Grumman Trackers on a boiling hot day when Melbourne tugboats were on strike. The aircraft were lashed down at opposite ends and the crews set power according to orders from the bridge. There is a first hand account of it in this book:

https://melbournebooks.com.au/produc...ten-in-the-sky

There is a fictional account of a Windmill in one of James Mitchener's shorter books, The Bridges at Toko Ri, which would indicate that it was in use by the USN. Also portrayed in the movie.

The exercise was not popular among the squadrons due to the prospect of overheating engines but being the navy, the ship always came first.

Seven Page PDF about PINwheeling&Dealing with PORT, featuring HMAS Melbourne in MELBOURNE, Port Phillip Bay on the DAY. “10 Dec 1980 Ship departs Melbourne. Operation Pinwheel was carried out by [VS] 816 Squadron [S-2E/G] Trackers as the Tug boats were on strike.” HS 817 Sqdn Diary Excerpt

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....2a4602204d.jpg

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....ea490ca1b9.jpg

https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/i...ject/205163243

shows it in Malta

Thanks for the replies folks! N.Z.

Strictly speaking more "General Service" than "Fleet Air Arm".

Jack

Demonstrated by AD-4 Skyraiders in the film of Bridges of Toko-Ri at 2min 26sec

Fargo, thanks for the clip, beautiful aircraft and shots of carrier ops. I found The Bridges at Toko-Ri was one of the better American war movies, the tragic ending a nice change from those of John Wayne winning WW II on his own.