Wanna Fight?

http://img55.photobucket.com/albums/...y/170aaa47.jpg

(Crown Copyright)

That picture above must have been touched up by some clever software.... They've airbrushed out the kitchen-sink!!!

:D :D

...and for ten points where is the picture taken?

Bit of a guess... is it Torquay Chris? Or is my geography Fawlty...

I wonder if they knew they had a BL755 missing??:\

If it is Torquay, they are positioning for a second attack!

victor two, a US Navy F-4 did manage to get airborne with its wings folded, the jet in question was a VF-14 F-4B coded '112/AB'. The crew was Greg Schwalber and Bill Wood, apparently "unusual handling characteristics" drew their attention to the fact and after dumping all stores they made a safe shore landing!

Regards, RP

I seem to recall an F4 out of CY which lost a wing outboard of the fold mechanism. They flew it around for a while and even slowed for a slow speed handling check to see if it might be possible to land it. Then the duty pilot in the tower suggested they see how it handled with the flaps down - which, being naive types, they did.

Loss of hydraulics was swiftly followed by a double ejection.......

Don't know about the F4 getting airborne with wings folded, but it happened several times in the Crusader. One pilot unloaded the aircraft and locked them down in the air, a second flew an abbreviated circuit and landed - wheels up. Obviously not his day.

Realise that I'm showing myself as a youngster, but my abiding memory of the Phantom is of being a spacey visiting Wildenwrath in the late 80s. Having been up all night waiting for the flight over from the UK and arriving, after a while (I'm sure it was Bruggen we flew into in those days), at Wildenwrath and having got my head down. We were all awoken by the most tremendous noise just behind us as the morning pair lifted into the sky at about 0830 local! Fantastic sight!

Thanks Rhino
 

Rhino,

Thanks for the info on that navy F4. Talk about pioneering the use of the world's meatiest winglets! Love the Rhino title too. I had an ex flatmate (female) that my mates called the " White Rhino". Ended up changing the locks on her after she accused me of stealing her cat's food. I digress.

Thanks again for the info.

cheers

Vic

Chris K.
Scarborough, 41Sqn jet, its obvious really, yer just turn the pic over & its written on the back.:)

This one is Bruggen...

http://img55.photobucket.com/albums/...ireBruggen.jpg
Crown Copyright

Re the FGR2 launching without the outter wing locked. Didn't the SSKC (it was that long ago) make a flight safety film out of the story with the actor who used to play Mr Bronson in Grange Hill as the chief?

Yes, and Trevor 'Eddy Shoestring' Eve as one of our Knights of the Air, think it was shot on 41 Squadron, still available via SSVC at Chalfont I think

BTW Wasn't there a FS film about Harriers with Richard O'Sullivan?

Regards

-Nick

..you get the ten points Gainsey!

Have the mooning from an F-4 snaps ever appeared on PP?

I remember the wing fold doings now. The FGR2 was in the main down to brute force ie two hairy ****** riggers would push the wing up to one very sticky footed rigger who would be leaning way out past a safe angle waiting to grab the tip and lift the whole thing past vertical. You have to appreciate that this operation, in fact the whole F4 thing, pre-dated the H&S at work Act. Lowering was the reverse, the most important aspect was to make sure that the sticky footed rigger's reach coincided with the hairy ****** riggers reach otherwise the wing would crash down with a horrendous thump (once "thumped down" on the Chief's head, but that's another story). To lock down you used a speedy to wind the mechanism over then "Excalibur" to wind in the little day-glo plug.

The matelots, and their FG1, didn't have the necessary ooomph and strength of wrist and instead relied on hydraulics.:p

My favourite F4 story
 

In early 1974, I was the pilot of one of a pair of aircraft (not F4s) going on detachment to Tengah, Singapore. The old Tengah, with Singapore AF Hunters, RAAF Mirages, and RNZAF Bristol Freighters!
At Masira, in the Gulf, we met up with a formation of 4 aircraft also travelling to Tengah, a Nimrod and two Victor tankers supporting an F4 Phantom. We all arrived in Tengah on the same day. Later, during conversation over a pint in the ‘Swill’, we found out that the Phantom was from Boscombe Down, and it was there to carry out paint trials at high speed, for the Concorde.
After a couple of days, the Phantom appeared on the Flight Line but minus the normal pointed underwing tanks that it had flown in with. In their place were two specially prepared underwing tanks, that instead of having the pointed fronts, had chisel shaped upper and lower frontal surfaces, with about 6 facets, each at a slight angle to the other. These modified tanks were painted white, with Concorde paint, but because they were modified, they could not carry fuel.
The pilot of the Phantom was Commander in the Fleet Air Arm, going slightly grey, and the navigator was a youngish RAF Flight Lieutenant. For a few days they flew up over Malasia, but with only internal fuel, their sortie lengths were limited. After a couple of days, they came to our detachment and asked if we could help. It seemed that they really wanted to fly these tanks through quite heavy rain, and at quite a speed.
The next morning, my navigator and I were off the west coast of Malasia, when we saw a really big cumulous formation (it really was abig b****r), so, as arranged, we called up Singapore Flight Watch on the HF. They advised us that the Phantom would be getting airborne shortly, and could we keep an eye on the Cu and update the crew as they approached us. This we did.
After a short time the Phantom crew radioed us to say they were at FL410 and about to enter the Cu. We could almost hear the 'banzai' as the phantom pitched in and accelerated. After a minute or so we heard a faint voice calling to say they were recovering to Tengah, and could we follow them.
The Phantom landed at Tengah before us, but we parked on the pan adjacent to it. When we looked at it, we thought it looked a little ragged.
The front of both underwing tanks had split open, assuming the look of a pair of large forward facing white daffodils, and the perspex radome was missing from the front of the fuselage, so was most of the radar. The front of the fuselage was very plate shaped.
My nav and adjourned to the Swill, where we met up with the Phantom crew. The Commander had a gin in his hand and was admiring the aviation cartoons on the ceiling of the bar; the Flight Lieutenant was drinking a Tiger beer, but about a quarter of it had been spilt due to his rather shaky hand. He also had rather a glazed expression on his face. The Commander said that today’s sortie was a bit of a setback, but not to worry, they had some spare modified tanks, and had signalled Boscombe to send out a 'tin' nose for the Phantom. A little more beer was spilt.
The ‘tin nose’ duly arrived on the next VC10, and was fitted, along with some new ‘modified’ tanks. After a couple of days, the F4 was airborne again, following directions for another big Cu. The result was predictably similar. By now, we thought the pilot was definitely greyer, and we thought the navigator must be getting very thirsty, as most of his beer was going on the floor. Also his eyes were getting rather large and staring. They did a few more sorties, until they ran out of modified tanks, and then gave up. The entourage duly disappeared off to the west.

What about a WIWOL thread?..........

...............just a thought..........:D

Maple 01

Yup correct on the Richard O'Sullivan vid. If I remember correctly, it was the missed call, no breakfast taxi onto the runway when not cleared sketch.

Remember Safety Catch (I think) too?:D

Here's a question for all the ex-FGR2 aircrew:

What was the significance of circuit breakers C2, G2 & L2?

Couldn't stay out of this one any longer. Oh the nostalgia! The "Raspberry Ripple" (Alcock and Browne), the Wildenrath barrier engagement and the hi fi story, Fox 2 on the Jaguar. Been there seen them all. Keep the stories coming and this has to make sticky!!!

Does anyone remember Greg Mackinnon from phantom days? Would love to hear any stories.

Greg was a man, no less.

His sad demise from a heart attack was a sad loss to us all.

Box Office see your PM

Flt Lt :mad:

I bet he was still combing his hair as he filled in the F700 - liked combing his hair did Flt Lt :mad:

David Lean could have made a film about him....:E

C2, G2, L2....
Darn it I've lurked for years but soddim you finally got me to log-on......sad thing is I don't know the answer but I do remember the question........
Not anything to do with "fagsart" is it?
wiggy

wiggy? Not wiggy B*n**t, the ex-56(F) QWIN, perchance?

C2 G2 L2 - Stab Aug CBs?

Rhino
 

I see the US Navy is using the 'Rhino' name for its F/A-18E/F Super Hornets so as not to mix them up with their older Hornet cousins.:suspect: :=

BEagle
Sorry, not that Wiggy......

Wiggy,

Are you the 892 Wiggy who having been fired of the cat in his mighty Toom had an engine failure and had to stay in the aircraft as the carrier went over the top? Understand this particular wiggy got back to his cabin to find his so-called mates trying on his uniforms! Enough to make anybody's hair fall out!!

Beagle

Good try - seem to remember that those were the three cct bkrs the Nav had to pull if one got a BLC caption with flaps up. That stopped the hot bleed air for the blown flaps in the FGR2 from cooking the parts that were meant to stay cool.

Used to carry a tool when I flew in the back of a two-sticker in case they needed extracting.

Wiggy

Reckon I must have known you when you could have answered that question.

As far as I recall, no-one had to wait as the ship went over the top in the F4, although it certainly happened with the Vixen. It would only apply to a launch off the bow cat which was axial. (The waist was angled at about 8 degrees.)
I remember Jock Gunning, the Senior P, having an engine failure after accepting the launch and then jumping out shortly thereafter. About a 13 sec flight! Two years later, another SP had an engine problem shortly after the end of the cat stroke at night. He pressed the clear-wing button and was able to fly away OK and subsequently recover.
I believe that Wiggy is now running a hotel in South Wales after a good innings with Cathay.

Wasn't RN Wiggy's problem caused by a low level inverted incident in a Hunter, pre 899NAS Vixens? Seem to recall you couldn't tell whether he had his bone dome on or not when he was on the flight deck :)

Also the story of his two wigs (hairpieces), one for uniform (short back & sides), the other for runs ashore. When accosted by one senior officer and told to "get your haircut", promptly removed hat, then offending run ashore wig, and went on his way rejoicing....:ok:

You're quite right John. He hit leader's slipstream at low level in a Hunter GA11 and got a close up inverted view of a Scottish hill. I believe the hair loss started about 3 months later

C2 G2 L2 - Stab Aug CBs?

Booster pump circuit breakers to stop reverse fuel transfer!!! The Groundschool chaps would have been proud!

:8

Identity of Wiggy still not established, though I'd like to suggest that he may have been the pilot who jettisoned a burning FGR2 whilst on 23 Sqn circa late 1980/early 81?

I have some nice piccies, including possibly the lowest F4 ever seen, if someone can explain how to include them in a post.

Would love to see the photographic results of flypasts at Mt Alice and Saunders Island too (just in case I was visible flying past in the background!). I've got a couple of shots of the late Mark Hanna visiting the latter whilst I was there on R&R. Unfortunately, they're on 35mm slide (must get them scanned).

For those 'just visiting', you might be interested to know that the FGR2 Flight Reference Cards show that a time to 30,000 ft could be achieved in a time of 1.1 minutes, covering 11 nm whilst burning 2730 lbs of fuel.

As for speed, whilst flying against the 'Aggressors' at Alconbury in 1981 I was one of a pair of FGR2s fighting a pair of F-5s and a mixed pair (one of each). My wingman and I (Stu T+9, who I bumped into at LGW earlier this year) decided that we would plunge headlong towards the centre of the ACMI range (to, according to the brief, receive our weapons) at Mach 1 point something, then turn round and rush back through again, shooting at anything we could whilst going b+lls out for home, at base height). As we started our second run through at M1.2 ish and at about 30,000 ft, I was only really watching the Mach meter, though I should have transferred my attention at some stage to KCAS (well, I'm no QFI!). Peak Mach No reached was M1.55 at 7,000 ft! I'll let a QFI work out the actual airspeed (OAT about -15C, QNH about 1000) but it was certainly a good deal higher than the 750 KCAS limit (though I seem to remember an 815 KCAS limit at about 13,000 ft). F-5 pilot tried to roll in behind me for Fox 2 shot but out of range (!) - said in debrief he'd never seen anything going so fast. Also saw M1.6 in level accel with drop tanks (had to throttle back to hold limit of 1.6), but never reached Mach 2.0 (waste of fuel really). Used to particularly enjoy Bucc affil over the sea and always tried to hang on to enough fuel to overtake one after shooting it. It was great to sail past a Bucc goin b+alls out at 620 kts, with 100 kts+ overtake.

Oh, and the scrambles from Wattisham for base defence against an inbound attack - most of the time spent in burner, not above about 2,000 ft and landing after about 15 mins. Ah, those were the days

Meadowbank,

Various info about posting pics on this thread or PM me if you need any help/advice.

Key is to keep the pics nice and small (approx 640 x 480 pixels, and 72dpi).

Cheers

Treadders

Treadders

I concur with the size of picture but dpi is immaterial (sp?). But please keep the file size below about 80kb it makes them easier to download on dial up.

Most of the one s I post are 700pix wide by whatever the depth works out at and 50 - 70 kb.

Back to the thread.........

Bob Prest
 

Bob Prest.
Made a name for himself as a highly capable F4 pilot in the RAF. I often heard him referred to as a “natural” pilot, whatever that means. He also made a name for himself with his book. The powers that be only found out about it at the last minute but, fortunately, did not ban it and allowed it to be published after a rewrite to avoid any embarrassment to the innocent.
He then flew Jaguars for a Middle East air force where he was known as BCP. He had many claims to fame whilst there. The most famous, I suppose, when he ejected from the back seat, in an incipient spin, below 100 feet. The front seat pilot ejected even later and survived. Good old Martin Baker. There was a 40 knot wind blowing and Bob was dragged for over a kilometre across the stony desert. He was lucky to get out of that scrape.
He then became an airline captain with a major Middle East airline and is the only person I have heard of to go straight into the left seat of a big jet having never sat in the right hand seat of any other aircraft, ever. But that is another story.
He is starting a new job with a cargo outfit further east flying 744s.
Bob, perhaps you will blow the dust off your typewriter and give in to public demand.
Another person who should put pen to paper is R*ck Le*. I wish I had the film rights to his life story.

Meadowbank,

I must have been on the same squadron as you, as I remember T+9 at Alconbury, and what a great time we all had fighting the aggressors. Great outfit (us and them). You'll remember Mac McCready, Nick Morgan, Willy Felger, Keith McRobb, etc I expect. Where we as good as we like to remember?;)

meadowbank

I seem to remember it being quite easy (in my Bucc) to prevent F4's getting off a Fox 1 0r 2 at low level? Good sport though.

Smartman,

As I recall, the Fox 1 was incidental to the fun we had.:cool: