gsa

No it wasn't. The 3 Gazelles at Castle Ashby were 1 from the Sharks at Culdrose (Lt Andy Berriman, CPO C Hunter) 1 from CFS Shawbury (Flt J Allen, Alm H Jones) and XX409 from the Army Air Corps ( Capt John Cowie and Sgt J Snaddon.)

CharlieOneSix

YB was actually an H1, the others were G2's, and after it was written off in an accident was restored as OO-SHW and is in the Helicopter Museum in Weston-Super-Mare. The D-1 I flew in '69 (G-ASJW - the Air Britain photo of it in December 1969 at Plymouth Roborough matches my logbook)) was a pig if the irreversibles were not set up perfectly and the feedback forces in the cyclic could be horrendous if you moved the cyclic sharply - much as I expect you felt in avoiding the low flying jet.

I came close to stoofing JW in on one occasion because of the feedback forces experienced when mishandling the cyclic in a steep turn and sadly John Zwozny (ex-RN) was killed in JW in 1971 due to the irreversibles not being set up right. He pulled up at the end of a spray run and never came out of the manoeuvre.

Dennis Kenyon

Having participated in the 1986 WHC 'freestyle' section at Cranfield, I was fortunate to spend the evening with the German team and also meet that nice Navy guy, Andy Berryman who I seem to recall putting on a fine Gazelle display for the fourth place. Charlie Zimmerman (B105) had held the WHC freestyle event for the previous two championships, but for the 1986 event was pipped by Herman Fuchs who also displayed the B105. Zimmerman later told me over a pint (litre or two!) that his wife explained that for the last few years she had been sleeping with a world champion but as he had only made second place ... she was now sleeping with a new man! Quaint sense of humour or what! 1986 was the event when I lost the tail rotor half way though my display routine and as a consolation prize, the German team presented me with a signed wall tile plaque. It still stands in the hall. Keep 'them' stories coming please. Dennis K

Savoia

GSA: British Open Helicopter Championships then perhaps, would that have been held alongside the WHC? Either way, Roger Savage had posted on his site that he won a competition in the Gazelle showcased on the previous page in the 'late 80's' at Castle Ashby.

It must have been quite disconcerting .. bang in the middle of a display too! I think from past posts you mentioned you got her down safe .. did you use a run-on landing technique to land her? Either way, well done!

More Cadbury ..

Geoffers mentioned in his list of JetRangers flown that he had encountered the celebrated G-CHOC and I am waiting to hear whether he had any dealings with the man himself!

Earlier in the thread when we were discussing Cadbury PPRuNer MrChopper informed us that 'The Cad' had at one time kept an Ecureuil in his stable .. G-JANY .. a new shot of her (for the thread at least) appearing below:


Peter Cadbury's AS350B Ecureuil G-JANY at Manchester International Airport on 2nd September 1981

More JANY on page 8.

Dennis Kenyon

Not sure if I should be writing this .. but facts is facts! G-JANY was for the lovely lady Jane, formerly Jane Mead ... unhappily the former wife of a good friend and Enstrom customer, Humphrey Mead.

Many years earlier I met the great man Peter of G-CHOC ... a genuine lovely guy who would chat to all. He became the buyer of my Piper 180 Archer at the time. He also used to land an Aztec at his Berkshire strip which needed more than a touch of care. DRK.

Dennis Kenyon

And yes ... I did manage a non-damaging 60 knot run-on landing. As I have said elsewhere, the problem occurred at high power when the up-going T/R blade intercepted the left hand T/R control cable. In my case the loose end wrapped itself around the T/R transmission which then seized.The Enstrom factory had experienced a few similar failures on crop spraying ops. The fix was to move the cable outlet point closer to the tail cone centre line increasing blade clearance and also increasing the tension on the T/R control turnbuckles plus a pilot pre-flight check for oil-softened blade flapping stops.

I completed a further 13 years of trouble free displays but suffered the same failure again at the 1999 Biggin Hill Air Fare. My fault for not checking ... as the local engineers didn't know about the 'Kenyon Hole' modification or the flapping stops. But with a fair number of T/R failure practices behind me, I again managed a non-damaging landing. Now approaching 1400 public displays with no further problems. Keep the nostalgia flowing guys. Dennis K.

Savoia

Bravo Denissimo!

On the latest page of the Wessex Thread there is a photo of a MkV Wessex departing Battersea while overflying a Hughes 300 which is quite literally stuck in the mud.

As mentioned in the photograph's caption, this craft was G-AXXD which served with Twyford Moors Helicopters from 1970 to 1981.

PPRuNer PA News has offered some excellent commentary on this incident and which warrants a further look at this little craft (below):


Twyford Moors Hughes 300 (269B) 'somewhere' on 29th April 1971 (Photo: Keith Harper)

The hangar behind 'XD' says 'Glos Air' who, if I remember correctly, were based at Bournemouth's Hurn airport and who I think used to look after some of the late Spencer Flack's aircraft (he of G-FURY, G-FIRE and G-HUNT) but I don't know for certain whether this image was taken at Hurn or elsewhere? Tywfords were evidently based at Southampton.

Another Hughes 300 which was 'floating' about at the same time was G-BBIP. This was a 269C which was owned by Point-to-Point Helicopters of Watford between 1973 and 1978 and seen (below) at an undisclosed location wearing police markings; presumably for police trials or even a small police contract:


Point-to-Point Helicopters Hughes 300 at an undisclosed location (no date available)

One notices that this craft wears the BHAB logo as (so I think) did the UK's first civilian Gazelle.

TRC

I worked at Battersea at the time and was there on the day it happened.

I can write an account of all the bizarre events if you like, it was full of drama and hilarity - but not necessarily at the same time.

egbjdh

Hi - the image of G-AXXD is from my Flickr and was taken at Gloucester/Staverton by a colleague in 1971. Glos Air were based at Gloucester at that time prior to moving to Hurn some years later.
Dave
Gloucestershire Airport - A View from the Cafe

Savoia

TRC, are you compos mentis the morning?

Asking that question on this thread !!



C'mon then .. fire away and let's have the details .. that's what this thread is all about!

TRC

OK, when I get a minute..

Savoia

Well, in preparation for TRC's regalement (at some point in the near future) of the Twyford Moors 'ditching' on 17th August 1973 at Battersea .. let's re-set the scene with a copy of the snap from the Wessex Thread:


A 'White Top' Wessex (aka Green Parrot or Admiral's Barge), used for liaison duties by senior Royal Navy types and most probably a Mk V, departs Battersea Heliport in London on 17th August 1973 and overflys a 'parked' Hughes 300 (G-AXXD) belonging to Twyford Moors Helicopters

Savoia

EGBJDH: I post literally hundreds of photos each year on PPRuNe alone and maintain a pretty high ratio of 'permissions to post' (around 80%+ I'd say) but .. it is sometimes difficult to contact those who are hosting photos on various sites so, my apologies for re-posting without your consent. I've still not figured-out (for example) how to contact Flickr and Picasa photo-hosting account holders as there seems to be no provision for doing so?

I hope however that I have your colleagues name correct in the photo credit?

Thank you for confirming the airport location .. makes sense 'Glos Air'!

CharlieOneSix

I was surprised by the apparent conflict between the photo above of G-AXXD as a Hughes 269B and G-AXXD as a Bell 206 in the photo on Page 64 #1279 on this thread http://www.pprune.org/rotorheads/419...ml#post6990118 but it seems the Bell 206 registration in the post has been misreported in the text, it should be G-AXXO. Shame, I thought I had stumbled on a mystery there....

Savoia

C16: Yes I understand. If you look at the photo of AXXO in the post you mention (#1279 on page 64) you will see how easy it was for 'Yoyo' to read her registration as 'XD'.

On the following page in post #1282 I do mention (by way of subtle correction) that the craft was 'AXXO' and which, up until that point, we had been searching for in order to help complete our collection of 'A' reg British JetRangers.

Not to be confused of course with Stuart Smith's G-AXGO (also seen on pages 64-55) which was later bought by Charles Hughesdon and which, to connect everything together, also ended-up in the drink!

CharlieOneSix

Now I fully admit that my memory isn't 100% nowadays but I can recall John Evans struggling on several occasions to get the 269 airborne out of Battersea and my battered memory recalls flying into Battersea on the day of G-AXXD's arrival in the Thames mud.

The trouble is that on the reported day of the ditching in post #1709 above - August 17 1973 - my logbook shows I was flying overseas so I couldn't have been there. However on August 17 1974 my logbook shows I flew into Battersea during the afternoon.

I also recall a forced landing of the 269 into a field east of the heliport about a week before the Battersea incident and seem to think all these events were not long after Twyford Moors got the contract. So, 1973 or 1974? Hopefully I have not gone totally doolally!

The perceived difference in the year might explain heli1's post on the Wessex thread that there is no record of Ted Heath signing the visitors' book on the 1973 date.

I await TRC's recollection of events - he may remember the year.

Plank Cap

Now there's a name from the past.......... I flew in her as a 12 year old lad after my father caved in under pressure. Always fascinated by helicopters and this was my first experience of one in the air. Denham, 1977 and Point to Point indeed. Dad forked out for a 15 minute jolly around the local countryside, and as I stepped out in stepped the late great Raymond Baxter, en route to an engagement somewhere no doubt......

Little did Dad know that short flight was to set in motion a career of 15000 hours (so far.....).

To hover is divine......

espresso drinker

Not wanting to give my whereabouts away, but I'm sat here watching a piece of UK rotorcraft history being moved into a nearby 'shed'. Westland 30, G-BKKI, Serial Number 003.

I think that they are getting it flightworthy to send up to the north sea.

Sorry, no photo's, official secrets act and all that. Probably get shot for posting this.

I'm sure that someone can educate me why this aircraft was never a commerical success.

Savoia

ED: I've offered my view on that question on the Westland 30 Thread in post #76.

espresso drinker

Sorry, no need to educate me. Just found the Westland 30 thread.