PPRuNe Forums - Bristow Photos

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Hi Tony,
Think your memory is failing, so young too! It was a condom but not from the Zoo bar, it was the Bristow Bar in the Sheikh Rashid building.

You're right Tipcap. I was the temporary CE at Paull three months to introduce the Wessex whilst the CE was being trained up. Having just returned from two years in Port Harcourt the February weather in Yorkshire was hard to stand. Stumpy distinguished himself during this time by buying two billy goats from a local farmer. Never did find out what happened to them!

Rogleale

Hi Roger,
Nice to see you on here, all's well I hope.
I thought the zoo and the Bristow bar were one and the same, anyway it was priceless when Martin realised it was his own car!!
So was the saga of trying to get and fit the new windscreen.
I've just had my 1976 VW Camper fully restored.........its better than new!
Keep in touch,
Tony

I have found a few pics of BHL ops in various places to post. Not many because unfortunately many more are being hoarded by my ex!
The first one is not one of mine and I don't know who took it but it shows ME talking to one of our locals. Das 1969

http://i423.photobucket.com/albums/p...e/Das-1969.jpg

FE Loaded For Ferry UK Lavan - Nov 1974

http://i423.photobucket.com/albums/p...e/_RNL0832.jpg

Oh Dear!

Offshore Dubai - 1977. I can't remember why but I think that it was a turbine failure.

http://i423.photobucket.com/albums/p...e/_RNL0831.jpg

One Of Those Days
During my very brief stay at Gulf Helicopters

http://i423.photobucket.com/albums/p...e/_RNL0833.jpg

A Little Nostalgia -Twyford Moors Helicopters 1973
http://i423.photobucket.com/albums/p...gleale/TMH.jpg

Abu Dhabi 1975

http://i423.photobucket.com/albums/p...bu-Dhabi-1.jpg

Abu Dhabi Morning Start
My friend Phil supervising. Not only a friend but a good engineer, and later a very dependable deputy CE.

http://i423.photobucket.com/albums/p...bu-Dhabi-2.jpg

Hi Roger

Private message sent

Stacey

This got a few smiles in 1971

Update HM Coastguard SAR Unit 1971 to 1974

As the former chief engineer of the unit throughout its entirety, I can update/correct on a previous posting. We positioned at Manston from Redhill in May 1971 for a work up period prior to start of contract on 1 June 1971. Our 'patch' was Beachy Head to Clacton, overlaps being with RAF Coltishall and RAF Thorney Island. The trial period was successful and extensions were granted until, for political reasons (change of Government from Tory to Labour), came to an end on 30 Sep 1974. There were quite a number of hurdles to overcome. One major one was that the RAF was not particularly supportive of a civilian SAR unit (station C.O. to be precise) & would not give us priority for fuel, even though we were SAR, so BHL bought a 2nd hand bowser that we refuelled from and that, in turn was refuelled by the station bowser. The caption under the Wreck Shield photo was written by me. Award was for the most meritorious rescue in 1972, rescuing 3 fishermen under a capsized dinghy. We successfully trialled the first thermal imaging for offshore SAR. Our serviceability averaged 96%, vastly better than the RAF's 75% before us. A new ops room was built to our specification. Average take off time was 72 seconds after the scramble klaxon sounded. The a/c itself and its SAR equipment level differed considerably from its RAF/Navy counterparts to provide improved survivability for casualties and crew alike. Engineering crew comprised 4. The RAF returned with 2 Wessex Sep '74 with 25 technicians. At least 4 of the personnel shown in 2 of the photos have passed away. That's not surprising given that it's over 40 years ago. An irony is that the withdrawal of 22 Squadron's a/c in in 1969 was to go to Libya where a certain Col Gadaffi was staging a military coup. Manston set the bench mark for civilian SAR (we were all ex military anyway) and paved the way for BHL's expansion into a national service on behalf of the MCA.

Dave,

Looks like a new S-61T Triton in use by the DoS?

Cheers

Not quite a Triton upgrade.
New blades but avionics mainly back to basics.
All the Bristow SAR avionics and EHSIs are no more.
She has seen a few transformations over the years and travelled a bit!

61751 G-BDIJ,9M-AYF,G-BDIJ,N436LC,N751AW

Born 1975 and that makes 39 years old. A lot younger than many of us that flew, modified and maintained her.

Dave,
Where is she working now?
I miss those old birds!

Where is she working now??
Unfortunately with all this heightened tension in the region I am not at liberty to say.....

The very good old days of the S61N, flew as a passenger on theS61N from 1977 till 1988, off shore Terengganu, namely on 9M- AVO, AVP, AVQ,AWN(BBHN),then came AYF, AYT. Ten years off shore flying only one Engine failure due to free wheel slip. The bird that took us to work and brought us home safely. I will never
forget the S61N and Bristow Helicopters. A real work horse.

I remember talking to a Sikorsky rep. when the 61 was still the mainstay of the North Sea fleet, and all the operators wanted new blades and engines. Sikorsky said OK they will do it, if the operators would put some money up front, but none would.

Looking at the background looks like Akrotiri to me.

Looks like it to me as well.

Jim (Sharkey) Ward

I was informed by Jean Dennel yesterday the sad news that Jim Ward died last week of lung cancer.

RIP Jim You were a good friend to me for more than forty years.