Jeff Hawke

Hi I have been searching for a number of years for a copy of B-25 Mitchell’s fly in IMC.
I would be very gratefull if anyone could make a copy for me. I can remember watching as a boy and would love to watch again. One of my favourite Aircraft plus the music.

Best regards JB

James,

If you send me a pm I have a VHS copy of that film you can have.

John and I had many flights together in the mid 70’s. mostly on jet’s.
I remember one time we were conducting a range test with a Meteor that was destined for the USA, we had a full set of drop tanks on the a/c and needed a ‘flow’ test, a nice quiet place for that was over the North Sea.

We went onto the belly tank, used the fuel in that, changed controls for wing drop tanks with…… no result, went for main tanks …..no result.some ‘o-dear banter’ between us, back onto the belly tank, found some unused ‘fumes’ still there, then kind of staggered and glided into Southend airport landing down wind, dead empty, they afforded us 100 galls of Avtur, we took off and landed back at Biggin Hill in the pitch dark! Oh, and by the way, we were also non radio at the time.

Yep ! Thats just one happy memory of John Hawke…….

He was the Kinda guy that just ‘Got the Job Done’

Good on yer John…where ever your flying………

First. Hi to everyone!
Looking around the facilities and came across this thread.I might be able to contribute here.
I met a Flt Lt Jeff Hawke, many,many moons ago as a cadet at RAF Wattisham. Must be the same person. I’ve never forgotten him. In any event I can only regurgitate – and insert a serious memory warning!
Squadrons on hand were 74, 56 et al Wattisham 62/3 Lightning and Javelin?) and Jeff was, I’m almost certain, on charge as a Qualified Weapons Instructor Lightnings – and for his sins (I’m sure! – OC Cadets on my camp!
Like many of my ilk I went on many camps but never did we get put through the hoops as we did at Wattisham – a great programme even to the point of being sat in the Lightning grnd sim. Excellent stuff. Ever eager to mess up of course I got into trouble on this one. Having read ‘Flying Review’ I was well up to speed on how the RAF’s current and finest fighter system locked onto and tracked enemy A/C – I had it off pat – and jolly well proceeded to tell the Instructor.. Jeff looked Very,very worried indeed until I confessed the source…We all departed the sim shed pronto. We got the feeling the visit may have been ex curricular..Anyway..
At the time he was also restoring a beautiful Me 109 in the corner of one of the hangars, complete with an original DBenz engine -something he proceeded to show us around with great pride and energy. I believe it was never granted a UK permit – due lack of spare engine and in the end went to Germany?
He then took us flying in the station Chipmunk of course..The other hacks – a Meteor and Hunter were off limits, more the pity.
Flight Experience Flight – Geeez. He threw that thing around and around to the point one thought never to be straight again. In my case we did endless,endless loops of every variety. He then handed over and I tried. Kept dropping a wing over the top and asked why and how etc. Wrong! Even more manic manoeuvres to explain and demonstrate followed. Now here’s the thing. Eventually he said we were going down – he wasnt feeling terribly well.. Score one to me I think… Oddly, I had a need of his services years later and even got his number in Richmond but the need evaporated and so never got to meet him again.
A Total Aviation Person.
Must be Him! I did not know he had gone down. What a great, great shame.

Jeff hawke and Don Bullock were perhaps the most ‘flambouyant’ performers on the display circuit, and perhaps drew more attention, as they often flew the larger machines such as Fortress, Invader and Mitchell. Hawke also flew a full aerobatic routine in Beech 18 G-AYAH at one of the RIAT’s (Greenham), a machine in pretty tired condition.

Following the very public demise of the Invader (1980) the CAA instigated a review headed by Daryll Stinton to reign in the ‘bad boys’ and I think it was from this initiative that Display Authorisations were born. It has arguably been successful since no individual has subsequently established a comparable reputation for hairy flying as the two gentlemen mentioned above. Most observers ‘in the know’ believed they were living on borrowed time. They were.

I saw Geoff fly many impressive displays but there was always something that made me have doubts about the state of his aeroplanes and a little part of me was always concerned that it just might end in tears although thankfully it never did. He was certainly a character but I don’t know how he would have fitted into the regulation of modern airshows.

Questions here and on PPRuNE have asked about “Jeff” Hawkes RAF service.

I joined the RAF with John Hawke, whom we immediately nick-named ‘Corny’ due to his previous domicile in the Duchy, I don’t think “Jeff ” had even been invented in those days, and he is still ‘Corny’ to me and a few old chums that have recently been re-united as a result of a 50 yr. reunion of Canadian trained pilots from the 50’s, and we have started to discuss his exploits again via the magic of e-mail.

We were selected from basic training at Kirton Lindsey to be sent to Canada, to start our flying training in Jan. 1956 at RCAF Centralia, our ab initio trainer being the North American Harvard Mk II B, and from there we converted to the T-33 Silver Star, F-80 “T-Bird” two seater at RCAF MacDonald, previously a gunnery training station just north of Portage la Prairie, west of Winnipeg.

Whilst flying a solo training flight in the T-33, Corny experienced an electric elevator trim runaway full nose up just as he crossed the threshold and commenced the flare. I would have been dead a few seconds later, but he applied full power and threw the aircraft into a 90 deg. banked turn, and continued to circle whilst he wrestled with the circuit breaker and alternate trim procedure and then continued to land, such was his extraordinary handling prowess even at that stage.

Following award of our RAF Wings, we returned to UK, and most of us being National Service pilots completed our commitment and left flying, tho’ I joined the airlines and enjoyed a 40 yr. flying career, Corny was by then, if not initially, on a Permanent Commission and went on to RAF Worksop to a squadron OCU on Meteors.

I only had little contact after that, so I can’t answer questions about his subsequent RAF flying, or departure from the Service – or whose hand initiated the parting – but my next contact was meeting him again at Prestwick, I was about to depart with all the, then, modern navigation tools of a 4 – eng Bristol Britannia and he was about to take-off in a single-engined 1936 Messerschmitt 108 ( trainer 109 ) across the North Atlantic in December ! I offered to keep a listening watch on all the distress frequencies.

He had been held up at Prestwick due to a failed gasket on the CSU, and had to wait for the only spare that could be located being delivered to him from some obscure factory in France.

He was in fact leading a flight of 2 108’s, ( the Daily Mail of that day said that his navigator was his wife, but it wasn’t the wife to whom I had seen him get married to, not many years earlier, but I didn’t ask questions !) and I subsequently got a postcard from him to say that he had made it, but the other one had been lost, ditching 40 miles East of Goose Bay. You can use your own chart to work out how many miles there are between G.B. and the coast. The crew both survived. I believe that was the start of his involvement with the film industry, for it was for a Hollywood producer that he was delivering the aircraft.

My next contact was via an article in Newsweek, documenting his interception and arrest by the US Air Force for attempting to photograph the White House from ( I think) a B-25. The story was that he had been given funds by the CIA to make B-25’s (?) airworthy from various locations given to him, then fly them to Portugal for use against the rebel forces in Angola, the U.S. gov’t wishing to distance themselves from this activity. Corny claimed that he was a CIA agent, and had been given the name Sparrow ( as in Sparrowhawk I guess ) but he squawked this to his interrogators to no avail and the CIA denied all knowledge of him.

The reasons for his release now escape me, and I think were not actually documented by Newsweek anyway, but a mysterious “Count” was mentioned, and having been disowned by the CIA, they couldn’t then claim their aeroplane back, which is how he got to own the “Psychadelic Monster” that has been mentioned, and which he undoubtedly leased to Harry Saltzman, director of the Battle of Britain film.

Corny rang me during the time he was based Bovingdon flying for that film, and offered me a ride, unfortunately I couldn’t make a date to take him up on the offer.

That was the last time I spoke to him, and like everyone else am now curious as to what he was doing over the Adriatic flying an Aztec with an anti-dazzle paint scheme, but in view of his previous activites one does wonder ! A simple heart attack, as suggested by one of our colleagues, just isn’t rightfor Corny, tho’ I gather he was somewhat overweight ?

Hanover street and Bill Muszala

Hi to all,
I worked with Bill Muszala all last year and he is the owner of ATW aviation at Marana (tuscon) airport AZ.

mike pannell
ex Hastings Sussex

…and looking very nice too PaulC. 😉

Interesting thread this as I have been doing a painting of the psychadelic monster, not finished yet but you get the idea

PaulC

www.paulcouper.co.uk

If interested, try search for other J H threads (for new members) eg :

http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=38704&highlight=jeff+hawke

Hi TJ Johansen. I’m new to this website/forum. I hope that you can help me in my long quest to find,purchase a copy of documentary B-25 Mitchell’s do fly in imc.
I have been searching for long time. I would be very gratefull if you could help.

Best regards JB

For the benefit of the uneducated – WTF is “B-25 Mitchell’s fly in IMC”? :confused:

It was a tv programme anbout how he brought the bunch of B25s across the Atlantic for the filming.

And if I remember corrrectly, the Aztec crash had certain unexplained aspects to it like many of his other adventures. I see to remember the route in particular had many question marks as to what exactly he was doing…

Funny to think that we are now further from 1975 (31 years) that it was then from the end of the war (30 years). Tempus fugit…..

I remember Jeff from his Ju 52 air displays…. one of the highlights for me though was meeting the guy. We were reurning from California and there he was large as life and I do mean large! at the baggage carousel at Heathrow. A very pleasant fellow who was happy to talk until we got our bags. In contrast on the way over I tried to talk to that humourless git Loudon Wainwright III…
Can’t recall much of the chat except that he had been sorting out the planes for Empire of the Sun.

I saw the Mitchells Fly in IMC on TV ages ago. Great doc but almost unbelievable that they made it. And all for such a soppy film.

Jeff Hawke flying the B-17 at Barton in1979

Dad was crew chief on this flight and said this was Don Bullock flying at Barton. Dad said Jeff Hawke didn’t fly the B17 post 1975.

Hi I have been searching for a number of years for a copy of B-25 Mitchell’s fly in IMC.

For the benefit of the uneducated – WTF is “B-25 Mitchell’s fly in IMC”? :confused:

Welcome James, we had a forum member who was good enough to produce some DVD copies of this film, so you may be able to get your hand on one of those.

If you use the search facility here, there are a number of great threads about Hanover Street, with on-set shots from Bovingdon and Little Rissington.

Hi I have been searching for a number of years for a copy of B-25 Mitchell’s fly in IMC.
I would be very gratefull if anyone could make a copy for me. I can remember watching as a boy and would love to watch again. One of my favourite Aircraft plus the music.

Best regards JB

He was a character….and thank god for that….we need as many as we can get….

Mark

I remember a shorter, less detailed version in Flypast at the same time. What is kinda strange in the story is the fact that he wasn’t reported missing. That the a/c owner did not do so is one thing, he could be a partner in the deal. But after six weeks his wife has still not suspected anything wrong. :confused: I remember when reading about his demise, and the location that my first thought went towards; “Hmmm. With his prior history he was very likely involved with gun running, and got knocked off!”. And I have to admit that I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case! Is there any accident report dealing with that crash?

T J

Thanks mmitch – even with H24 reading here I don’t think I could catch up on all that has gone before in this Forum !
At least this thread will set the record straight (assuming P***t got it right) and yes I too remember the flashes of the “gas gun” in the back of the Ju !
Incidentally, another of Jeffs exploits early 1968 was taking 3 ex USN Daks from Italy back to the US (Military marks painted out and N reg roughly painted on). I caught up with him at Luton early one morning and he only had 5 pilots – I couldn’t get away from my job to go with him, it’s one of those hindsight moments when one thinks why the ********* didn’t I just go ??? He went solo, I only hope there was a working autopilot.