Airborne Re-Enactor P7350

Scott snap-on leather edgeroll kit 🙂 Works great indeed with the -55 internals. Comms are standard NATO/US. Mask is a HGU-12/p. It’s the combo I used for a few military flights. The French civil Fouga I sometimes fly in has the oxygen system deleted, so I just use a small cable to go from US NATO plug to French(UK helicopter?) plug. I leave the ox hose disconnected, so no need to convert that fitting. I prefer wearing the mask instead of a boom mike for the added protection in case of a bird strike.
I will however have to change the mil earphones with 300ohm civil ones after a recent comm setup change.

I created my own helmet for when I fly the Fouga. It’s a white dual visor HGU-26 with a Scott leather edgeroll kit. The inside however is totally HGU-55 with leather earcups and TPL liner. Looks totally period correct but with modern comfort 🙂 Comms are standard mil, but I use a conversion cable from NATO to French plug.

The HGU-26 with either the early flammable edgeroll, or the late snap-on edgeroll would be great for mixing it up with HGU-55 parts! although the styro-liner isn’t swappable, the earphones and TPL liner would be fine.

So you have a converter form US NATO plug to UK / French NATO plug..

Are you flying it with an Ulmer Mask? Are your comms French military (same spec as UK military) with the UK / French NATO Plug? Impedance-wise

Which earphone speakers did you install? UK / French NATO impedance?

Interesting though, this is an aircraft and pilot specific specimen to achieve the goal of looking correct, not so good for other aircraft and other pilots… This is the difficulty of trying to get it right in modern times!

I created my own helmet for when I fly the Fouga. It’s a white dual visor HGU-26 with a Scott leather edgeroll kit. The inside however is totally HGU-55 with leather earcups and TPL liner. Looks totally period correct but with modern comfort 🙂 Comms are standard mil, but I use a conversion cable from NATO to French plug.

I love to see the correct era gear in use with aircraft. I’m a collector myself, and it’s a passion of mine to get it right. But not everyone sees it that way. My collection is mainly helmets / headgear, so this is mainly from that point of view…

It does come down to the operator, and their views on safety vs historical accuracy..

Flight gear is usually the pilot’s own stuff, for fit, comfort, and hygiene reasons. As the pilot may fly for more than one operator, it would be up to him to have a selection of gear to suit many different aircraft types.. just impractical.

If an operator was to hold gear for their aircraft, they would need a selection of sizes to suit all possible flyers. The gear would need cleaning, maintaining etc… like running a stores.

Then there is the other issue of different headset impedances depending on the installed radio-set in the aircraft. You can’t just plug an American helmet into an British aircraft and expect it to work. Just like you can’t just plug an old C-type RAF helmet into a Spitfire with a modern GA radio installation. It would look right, but wouldn’t work very well.

Oxygen is another matter. The people who operate Hunters, JP’s, Gnat’s will know about the different oxygen hose connectors. But then you also have an incompatibility of Pressure / Flow between US and UK systems, so you can’t swap masks about easily.. (even some current American masks are aircraft specific depending on flow / pressure)

The Gnat has a unique oxygen connector, the only aircraft to have it. So the operator will have a couple of P/Q masks for pilots to use in their aircraft, but then you have the hygiene issue of multiple pilots / flyers using the same mask because of the aircraft.

How many people actually care? Most pilots I’ve met couldn’t tell you what Mk of helmet they are wearing. Most see the gear as more of an inconvenience, than something to take an interest in. Quote: “a helmet is just a helmet isn’t it?”

Look at one of the pilots that run the Bruntingthorpe Lightnings, he wears a white American USAF HGU-26 helmet, with it’s visor cover missing / broken. Totally wrong for the aircraft (the USAF never operated Lightnings!), but does he know it’s American? Does he even care? How many of the public crowd know, or even care? How many people have photos of that Lightning with the wrong helmet bobbing around in the cockpit?

When we operate XS458 at Cranfield. We use a Mk3C helmet for our guests (quite correct for a Lightning) and our pilot uses a MK10 – not quite right for a lightning, but it’s his, it fits him and he’s comfortable with it.. and how many people would know… We don’t get it 100% right, and they have pedantic me on the team!!

I’m all in favour of getting it right, for personal satisfaction, but most of the time, sadly, there are a whole host of reasons not to…

The thrill of flying, and the safety of the aircraft are usually the most important things on the day… The historical accuracy of the photos is generally second.

With the price of fitting out reenactors like myself in flying gear extremely expensive either for original or replicated WW2 flight gear , firstly you NEED to find money.

Hint….. in 15years of flight gear collecting and i also run a company selling replicated flightgear, i can tell you yes rich collectors will pay but will a heritage flight in a country slashing its defence budget really listen to a wish list and demands and go out and spend money when it cant?

WW2style and type of flightgear is not possibly deemed safe for operational use in 2011. OHS plays into it.

Wearing it around on display maybe less dangerous but you then need to find safe storage for the gear….

Just checking but with the RAF and MOD cutting budgets just to keep head above water or clouds…. were do you propose they find such money for the heritage flightgear?

Mae West LPU can fetch $1600 US
C helmets size 3/4 $450 +
E and H oxygen masks $ 300-1200+

Times that basic equipment by x crws and your looking at a fair expense.

As much as i applaud the ideas, i think the RAF has to defend its operational budget firstly.

You missed the point, I’m taking about a similar one off to P7350 photo opp.

I’m sure a representative collection of flightgear could be assembled for such an event if a few kind souls lent it to them. I’d equally be suprised if the MOD hasn’t still got some NOS hidden in a corner somewhere too!!

Isn’t there a manufacturer that does modern helmets that look like period leather flying helmets – wouldn’t this be a sensible compromise?

Campbell Helmets of New Zealand; Sandy and Ivan have a hard shell helmet that looks like a W.W.II period leather helmet, and they are very popular with numerous warbird and vintage pilots.

I suspect the RAF’s BBMF have to adhere to RAF standard safety kit requirements before other things, and I suspect such dress will remain the exception rather than the rule.

On a number of occasions here in Australia Guy Bourke has flown the Temora Aviation Museum Spitfire wearing W.W.II era full flying kit – it’s not a common thing, but not unique either.

As Moocher’s pointed out the BBMF Lanc crew used to wear the helmet liners and no helmets – post-war kit but less odd to see in a Lanc than the bowling-ball sized bone domes. However unsightly, bone domes are worn for good reasons. It should remain a pilot and operator’s decision, not viewers.

Regards,

With the price of fitting out reenactors like myself in flying gear extremely expensive either for original or replicated WW2 flight gear , firstly you NEED to find money.

Hint….. in 15years of flight gear collecting and i also run a company selling replicated flightgear, i can tell you yes rich collectors will pay but will a heritage flight in a country slashing its defence budget really listen to a wish list and demands and go out and spend money when it cant?

WW2style and type of flightgear is not possibly deemed safe for operational use in 2011. OHS plays into it.

Wearing it around on display maybe less dangerous but you then need to find safe storage for the gear….

Just checking but with the RAF and MOD cutting budgets just to keep head above water or clouds…. were do you propose they find such money for the heritage flightgear?

Mae West LPU can fetch $1600 US
C helmets size 3/4 $450 +
E and H oxygen masks $ 300-1200+

Times that basic equipment by x crws and your looking at a fair expense.

As much as i applaud the ideas, i think the RAF has to defend its operational budget firstly.

Isn’t there a manufacturer that does modern helmets that look like period leather flying helmets – wouldn’t this be a sensible compromise?

Those shots caught my eye too – good to see. I would think doing a similar thing with the Lancaster would be easier (provided they have enough period kit to go round) as headgear can be changed back to standard issue ‘bonedomes’ in flight after the photo shoot is complete (unlike in a Spitfire or Hurricane!).

I applaud the present CO of the BBMF for his imaginitive changes to normal BBMF protocol, which became apparent in 2010.

New observed ‘features’ of operations include the above mentioned flying kit combined with cordite stains on P73530 (for the Dover photoshoot only?), and a ‘wing waggle’ second flypast at the Battle of Britain commemeration service. Not earth shattering changes, but ones that bring out a bit of spirit. Bravo!

‘Glad to see common sense prevail’…..I can understand the normal wearing of AEA (Aircrew Equipment Assembly) during day to day operations, including helmets. It would be hard to justify regular wearing of ‘period’ AEA in the air other than for ‘one-offs’. As for dressing up in authentic gear when on the ground, I’ll leave comments from those ‘on the job’.

I have to say I was very taken with the latet Aeroplane magazine air to air pictures of P7350 in her new clothes, more specifically with the period flying gear of her pilot.

Well done BBMF!

I recall mentioning some time ago on here, how nice it would be to see PA474 in flight with crew in similar period dress, however this was shouted down as unsafe etc etc blah blah by the arm chair HSE community experts.

Glad to see common sense prevail.

Now how about a similar one off for PA474 BBMF?

(eg a Duxford head on flightline photocall of current aircrew in front of PA474, similarly attired, beside a line up of in one to one position mirror, real ex Lanc veterans also similarly attired, then off goes the modern crew to PA474 and performs a sterling flypast. Bet there wouldn’t be a dry eye in the house.)

We used to wear period kit, for flypasts or photo shoots in my time on the flight, 1980s, in fact when i left, we were still wearing the cloth hats ha ha, good old days ….