Whilst sorting through my old photo’s I came across these three pictures, I seem to recall that they were given to me by a friend of my late fathers who served on the ‘Ark’.
They are stamped on the reverse “HMS Ark Royal photographic section” but the dates are unreadable, shame about the effect on the Gannet shot,
enjoy.
By: kodak - 8th January 2009 at 10:01
I too love the old “real” carrier stuff. Gannets received lo-viz roundels in 72, the Buccs got them in ’75 IIRC, at the same time the Phantoms received the squared off fin tip RWR fitment. Find it quite odd that the Phantoms never did go “lo-viz” indeed, they went even more colourful with the aforementioned silver jubilee nose band in ’77 that was changed slightly in ’78 with 892’s badge replacing the silver jubilee crown motif.
I’m sure you will all enjoy these…
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5lpja_ark-royal-traps_tech
By: Lima1 - 8th January 2009 at 02:00
Great photos, you can just about see the silver jubilee markings on the nose of the Phantom putting it around 1977 / 78. I would guess the Buccaneer is 1975 – 78. I am not sure about the Gannet.
By: bms44 - 7th January 2009 at 21:47
70’s Ark Royal air group
Thanks for sharing them Sage : agree the Gannet has been mucked about a bit -I tried fiddling about with computer photo effects to try to get it back to from that negative- looking image to render something like a proper print, but without success. (Had fun trying though! 😉
If you really want to pinpoint closer dates for these aircraft that shouldn’t be a problem, and it’s always good to see photos of that era, I was (and still am) a great fan of our larger carriers of the fixed-wing era particularly.Please don’t be afraid to post any more that might turn up.(Even if it’s only for me and a mate!) Regards, Brian S.
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January 3, 2009 at 10:04 pm