Dunkeswell 80
 

Arriving at Dunkeswell this morning from Historic Helicopters - my first sortie as a Wessex captain for 32 years:ok:
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....fd3e025f15.jpg
photo courtesy of Kev Wills
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....993aa8cf6b.jpg
photo courtesy of Kev Wills
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....7e97cbebf1.jpg
photo courtesy of Kev Wills

Did they have to blindfold you when you were climbing in to hide the fact that it was red and grey rather than yellow!? ;)

Lovely piccies - hope you enjoyed your day!

Sounds like a grand day out.
Also, big tip of the cap to Kevin Wills for the pictures.

I'll get my yellow fix flying the Sea King back on Sunday:ok:

Unfortunately the organisers have cancelled tomorrow due to the weather forecast but it should be up and running on Sunday.

Kev is an outstanding photographer, especially of aviation:ok:

Enjoy!

Kudos and thanks to you and the rest of the team for keeping these grand old ladies going!!! :ok:

C`mon Crab,you should know that flying a Navy SAR WX,you always fly with the windows open,irrespective of the weather,sleeves rolled up,cut-off gloves,a tattoo on the right arm,and wearing a `big` watch, `Sqdn patches` all over your flying suit,and preferably a `full-set`.....there just maybe a camera crew around....!

It's all down to the outstanding engineering team at Historic Helicopters- I just pitch up, get in and fly them:) It's a great privilege :ok:

And then write myself up for a medal........:E

Fantastic, thanks for these images and story.

Great pictures, great experience I'm sure.

Sycamore, I’m sure that only happens when Crab is on a real film set when it’s “lights, camera action!”

Great pics, Crab-did you originally check out in the radial powered version?

NAVY? Crab…You turncoat!

;)

JD,wouldn`t fit with the `image` John......`we` didn`t have any H-34/S58,Only the radial S-55 variants....anyway,Crab is too `young` to have savoured the delights of `big,round,noisy,oily,temperamental` real-men`s engines....!:cool:

Too right - Gnomes are all I know - roller, ball, roller, roller, ball - bearings in the gnome engine for those of a certain age:)

Shy - working hard to get a proper one one board:ok:

The fact that 2 of the Sea Kings are ex- 22Sqn is a big win for me

Ah yes! I remember well the delights of the Leonides Major - and the sprag clutch! And it’s rather unnerving habit of continuing to “chunter on” after the mags were switched off.

swing the lamp!

Mog

“22 rescue you”

Great pics, BTW!

Those ARE good pictures

the caption to the first one is "maybe my wallet's down there . . ."

Very nice, crab@ ... but all that modern stuff is no substitute for the 'real' machines. .... :p

https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....306564e9a1.jpg

My dad, ex Chief Tech Bill Marshall knows exactly what you mean regarding the roller ball bearings in the gnome engines!
He ran the engine bay at RAF Finningley 1980 till he retired in 1990, he’s 94 & still with us for any that knew him.

regards Trevor 👍

A great day on Sunday at Dunkerswell, right up to the point when the Sea King wouldn't start due to battery issues.

Many thanks to the hard work and inventiveness from the guys and girls at Fly Moore who came up with a solution to get the old girl going again:ok:

Cornish Jack, the difference between the Wessex and the Whirlwind was that you could winch the casualty up to the Wessex rather than winching the Whirlwind down to the casualty:)

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....1c1a988370.jpg
And no, we didn't jump start it with a Porsche:)

Cornish Jack, the difference between the Wessex and the Whirlwind was that you could winch the casualty up to the Wessex rather than winching the Whirlwind down to the casualtyhttps://www.pprune.org/images/smilies/smile.gif

That differentiation was between the Whirly and my first (S&R) mount ...
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune....ed9cfceecf.jpg
... pulling 44" over Aden harbour with a five gallon drum on the hook and winching the aircraft down !! :eek:
Two further comments ...
Super pics ... and jealousy and envy are terrible afflictions ! :O

Along with: "27 - 710 - 26750!"

and:

"Stb SSL fully fwd, Port SSL fully back, both turbines running (or both stopped); No 1 needle below 180, Main Drive going IN!"

crab@, I envy you!

'it will be a crewman's 13,600 on lift Captain'

'Then it'll be a pilot's 3.2 to get over the fence':)

Crab,ref #23,surely you carried your `fashion hairdrier` with you to give No1 a blow..!
Better still,use battery of WX,and start No 1 in `manual`......

It was a manual start for #1 but the battery voltage was low (couldn't get the Ng high enough to prevent a hot start) and the DC power pack wouldn't connect due to a faulty relay - hot wiring the aircraft to another battery, getting the engine started and the gennies on line before reconnecting the aircraft battery was the solution.

Improvise, adapt and overcome - :ok:

And I'd left my hairdryer in my hairdressers car:)

​​​​​​​slk…..?

Should have said I had a 28v Nato LION start pack with me

Boxster S

Thanks Hughes but so did we - the relay on the aircraft wasn't allowing the power through to the starter. it worked with the Wessex but not with the Sea King - a problem for the greenies to sort out.

Crab, sorry didnt see your later posts !

not so much hairdresser, as my 81 year old father’s car.

Can see you`ve never been an SH pilot....spectacles,tes%^&les,wallet,watch,bodge tape,hammer.....

I have all of the above, although when I get the results of my
last biopsy later this week, I may lose some elements! Mind you, until then, I find my SL63 keeps me happy.

Clearly a man of impeccable tastes:ok:

​​​​​​​Sycamore - the last 3 were what we had SH crewmen for.........

IIRC from Mk2 days, you have to have 24v on the third pin of the DC external power connector in order to get the socket to accept external power. It works the other way round too, so where you could run a drum fuel pump just by plugging it into a Wx, because the external pins are always live, you needed a battery to energise the third pin to get the SK to provide the power.

N

Additional requireditems for a while for Whirly ops ... one 'chippy's' marking out pencil and the Ops room oven. !...
... crap ignitor plugs which allowed one start only, then required heavy application of 'chippy's pencil lead followed by 10 minutes in the oven to allow one further start !! Ingenuity at its best ! :ok: