Six Chinooks over Worthing
 

On the afternoon of 5th April (yesterday as I write) at 13.40 I heard and then saw a flight of six Chinooks travelling west along the coast at quite low altitude. I have never before seen them here in larger numbers than pairs and usually singly. I assume that it was a repositioning flight but from and to where I have no idea.

They were US Army CH-47's en-route to Ireland via Lydd and Cardiff as EASY30 Flight .

Apparently on their way to Ireland presumably for Bidens's visit.

They just left Cardiff enroute to Ireland, but after about 20 miles up into Wales they turned back to Cardiff.
Anyone hear if they had a problem?

One of them had to make an emergency landing in a field, another one landed next to it and the other 4 returned to Cardiff.

Where did this flight originate? I doubt that the USAF has a base at Lydd. FWIW, as a schoolboy in (I think) 1966 I crossed the channel in a Bristol Superfreighter from Lydd.

I may be wrong, but I suspect they are a detachment from the CH-47Fs of 1-214th AVN based at Ansbach, Germany.

Must have been something to hear six of them wow.

I used to live just south of the Bagshot mast and one day, fourteen Huey Cobras came from the direction of Wokingham and turned left onto the M3; now that was something to hear!

Was it like this ? ;-)

I recall the 1979 Greenham Common IAT coincided with 16 US Army AH-1s plus several UH-1s and CH-47s on detachment. Also remember seeing 4 AH-1s and a CH-47s passing over Purley once... must have been circa '76...
edit: a bunch of OH-58s at Greenham as well!

Anyone here remember the massed helicopter approaches at Army Air way back in the 1980's?
Now that WAS something to see and hear!

Bob, indeed. Loved the way they all sneaked off and hid...

Not forgetting the Attack on Yeovilton at the end of the Air Days in the 60s and 70s.
Many Sea Vixens, Buccaneers and Phantoms followed by an assault by the Royal Marines in lots of Wessex.
I remember one where a Sea Vixen punched through a perfect smoke ring from one of the "bombs".

While mentioning large flights of helicopters I'm surprised no one mentioned the 80+ French Army helicopters [Pumas and Gazelles] that flew into the UK landing at Netheravon in 2001 for an exercise.

Some photos [not mine] can be viewed here: