Eject! Eject! - John Nichol
Another masterpiece from John Nichol. I cannot praise this highly enough. Captures the life changing enormity of assisted escape from a high performing (mostly) military aircraft. As the tag line says "escape from the aircraft is only the beginning". Stories of amazing determination, amazing bravery, amazing luck all made possible by amazing engineering and pursuit of perfection by Martin Baker and the many other seat makers around the world. Thanks John. Spoiler, not available until 25th May on Amazon.
|
Originally Posted by Tarnished
(Post 11435009)
Another masterpiece from John Nichol. I cannot praise this highly enough. Captures the life changing enormity of assisted escape from a high performing (mostly) military aircraft. As the tag line says "escape from the aircraft is only the beginning". Stories of amazing determination, amazing bravery, amazing luck all made possible by amazing engineering and pursuit of perfection by Martin Baker and the many other seat makers around the world. Thanks John. Spoiler, not available until 25th May on Amazon.
A number of Pprune contacts helped me with background information (as they always do) so my thanks again. As many of us know.... pulling the black & yellow handle is just the start of a journey.. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....4bc6b12f92.jpg |
Looking forward to this. Have never been in a fast jet, but have experienced most other types, but have witnessed a live, low-level ejection as a spectator at the Lowestoft Air Show when the Harrier went for a swim. (I handed my binoculars to the lady having hysterics next to me so she could see the pilot was alive snd waving from the dingy just a couple of hundred metres away) I have enjoyed JN’s Lancaster, Spitfire and Tornado as well as Tornado Down and Team Tornado (bought a second hand copy on a book selling site recently and found it had an invitation card for the publication party, signed by JN and JP inside!) as well as a couple of his novels.
Always found John’s books very well researched and written, with that authenticity that can only come from someone who’s been in a cockpit. |
Originally Posted by John Nichol
(Post 11435062)
Thanks so much for this - it's always very gratifying to have those 'in the know' read the book and offer comment (2 minor facts already need correction - a date and what happened to a glove....!!)
A number of Pprune contacts helped me with background information (as they always do) so my thanks again. As many of us know.... pulling the black & yellow handle is just the start of a journey.. I've very much enjoyed your previous titles, but as an Audible user I have a question about something that I realise you probably have no control over. Some of the military conventions, abbreviations and acronyms that we are so familiar with are so mispronounced that it rather spoils the narrative. A simple example is 617 Squadron being pronounced "six hundred and seventeen", or 206 Squadron as "two hundred and six". It just sounds wrong. I guess 99.9% of listeners wouldn't know any different, but are you ever asked how these things should be pronounced? |
Originally Posted by John Nichol
(Post 11435062)
Thanks so much for this - it's always very gratifying to have those 'in the know' read the book and offer comment (2 minor facts already need correction - a date and what happened to a glove....!!)
A number of Pprune contacts helped me with background information (as they always do) so my thanks again. As many of us know.... pulling the black & yellow handle is just the start of a journey.. https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....4bc6b12f92.jpg |
Originally Posted by Video Mixdown
(Post 11435191)
Hi John
I've very much enjoyed your previous titles, but as an Audible user I have a question about something that I realise you probably have no control over. Some of the military conventions, abbreviations and acronyms that we are so familiar with are so mispronounced that it rather spoils the narrative. A simple example is 617 Squadron being pronounced "six hundred and seventeen", or 206 Squadron as "two hundred and six". It just sounds wrong. I guess 99.9% of listeners wouldn't know any different, but are you ever asked how these things should be pronounced? |
I look forward to reading this as it’s a fascinating and not that well covered topic. Thankfully, out of my course to go on to FJ, I’m the only one not to have ejected. But then John knows that as we were both on that course!
|
I wish people would stop writing books, I'm running out of places to put shelves...
|
Must have at least one😏
|
Originally Posted by MG
(Post 11435418)
I look forward to reading this as it’s a fascinating and not that well covered topic. Thankfully, out of my course to go on to FJ, I’m the only one not to have ejected. But then John knows that as we were both on that course!
I see Barndoor (ejectee number 6022) regularly & we both wear our Bremont MB1 watches with 'pride'...... & Harls was 6157. Who else took the M-B ride? I was privileged to know Jo Lancaster who was M-B ejectee number 1. I am 6089. When he ejected on a MK1 seat, it took around 30 seconds to get under the parachute: jettison canopy - pull red handle - bang out - stabilise - manually unstrap from seat - push seat away - freefall - pull personal parachute handle It was around 2.5 seconds for me on a Mk10. This is a Mk1 Seat he used. VERY primitive! https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....3cc43bb79a.jpg |
Another one on preorder....Mr South American River will be busy that day
|
As a side note, i really enjoyed his book Tornado. I didn't want to, I don't know why, preconceptions I suppose. But it was really good IMHO, parts of it really it home probably because I know some of the people written about I guess.
I will be buying this. |
Originally Posted by downsizer
(Post 11435695)
As a side note, i really enjoyed his book Tornado. I didn't want to, I don't know why, preconceptions I suppose. But it was really good IMHO, parts of it really it home probably because I know some of the people written about I guess.
I will be buying this. |
Not often I praise the DM but they published an extract of John's fantastic book - completely riveting to read! Ashley Stevenson was the boss when I was a mechanic on 3(F), a thoroughly nice, thoughtful and calm leader. I recall the accident with Kate Saunders but hadn't realised it was quite so horrific. Two exceptionally brave people.
John - you do an incredible job at putting the reader into the cockpit! I was lucky enough to get a back seat ride in a T10 and was very glad not to have to pull any handles! I will definitely be buying the book and I suspect I'll finish it quickly! |
John
book is on preorder. Do you cover any of high Mach number ejections ? I seem to recall the fastest ejection was from a mig 31? Brain seems to be failing me tonight think it is dog related |
Originally Posted by dagenham
(Post 11435723)
John
book is on preorder. Do you cover any of high Mach number ejections ? I seem to recall the fastest ejection was from a mig 31? Brain seems to be failing me tonight think it is dog related |
FUR yur ForBEARance from Aviation History Jul 2018 Vol.28, No.6
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....f39a2a61f9.jpg |
|
Originally Posted by John Nichol
(Post 11435706)
I probably shouldn't ask.... But why didn't you 'want' to enjoy TORNADO?
However since you asked....the shortest answer is, despite never having met or worked with you, I didn't think I liked you. I joined a couple years after the events referenced in the book and there was certainly a line in various crew rooms that you were a bell end, or a failure, or a big head, or various combinations of similar. Also annoyance at seeing you trotted out on the news etc, etc. These lines were, in clear hindsight, peddled by people who had never even come close to putting themselves into the danger that you and others did in '91. I'm ashamed to admit I accepted those PoVs without any critical thought or analysis and should have realised that if someone raises their head above the parapet then others will take pot shots. So I spent the last 30 years largely discounting anything you said or wrote. I like to think I don't behave like that today. Now I was gifted the book and thought, I don't want to read this pish (also I spent more time on harriers than tornado), but I took it on holiday with me last summer and I couldn't put it down. I'll admit that parts brought a tear to my eye. I thought it was really well written and thoroughly enjoyed it. I only really understood a fraction of what you and the guys went through till I read it, my career was mostly based around Iraq and Afghan with a bit of ex-Yug thrown in. Now, you may well be a bell end, I have no idea, but I suspect not! And you can certainly write a good book. And I will no longer trot out tired tropes about you until I've met you to confirm one way or the other! Hope that makes sense and doesn't offend too much! |
'Controls frozen. Going straight in!' by Justin Hardy in Aviation History Jan 2007 Volume 17 Number 3
"FEBRUARY 28, 1955, NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.-Test pilot George Smith plunged into the sea, unconscious but alive, after ejecting from a North American F-l00A Super Sabre. When he was forced to bail out, the plane was traveling at 777 mph, or Mach 1.05 - making him the first person to survive an ejection while traveling at supersonic speeds.''' ... at 37,000 feet - soon after breaking the sound barrier- the plane's nose tipped downward and the controls refused to budge. The hydraulic lock resulted in an uncontrolled dive, and Smith radioed back to the tower: "Lost hydraulic pressure. : Controls frozen. Going straight in!"... ...After he ejected, the wind slammed into him with a force of 8,000 pounds, creating a deceleration force equivalent to 40 Gs...." |
All times are GMT. The time now is 17:05. |
Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.