Seeing a thread UKAR regarding Concorde visit to Benson made me think of all those days in the ’80s/early ’90s(plus some to a lesser extent more recently) spent on Spotter’s Corner and some of the aircraft seen visiting/circuit bashing at Benson
Residents at Benson then included the Andover E3s of 115 Sqn,Andovers and Wessii(and later BAe 146s) of Queens Flt,Wessii of 60 Sqn & 72 Sqn,Slingsby Sedberghs & Ventures of 612 VGS
Regular circuit bashers back then were RAF Hercules,VC 10s,Bulldogs,Shackletons and(usually on post maintenance air test from Abbo)Hawks,Hunters,Jaguars,JPs…& civvies PA28 Cherokees and PA34 Senecas from CSE at Kidlington and assorted Cessnas from Booker
Among the more notable visitors seen were the RAE Varsity(now at RAFM Cosford) and Dakota(now with BBMF),USAF F/EF-111s,A-10s,C-23s…and even a Boeing EC-135,B-52 and a TR-1(the latter doing an approach and overshoot on the disused r/way 24).
(West) German Alpha Jets,VFW614s and HansaJets were fairly frequent visitors while for a French Presidential visit in the mid-’80s we had French AF Falcons,Nord 262 and Caravelle all parked near to where the copper-chopper and Air Ambulance now operate from
115 Sqn once held a Radar Calibration Meet including Spanish AF Falcon and Italian G222(which despite being on a GCA to Benson managed to land at Chalgrove!!!!!)
Warbirds based/lodged at Benson have included ex-Strathallan,later Kermit Weeks Mosquito,ex-John Bradshaw Hawker “Baghdad” Fury and Black 6,the Me 109G now resting at RAFM Hendon(was on the Corner for the first post-restoration flight using a grass strip aligned on r/way 06/24…aircraft hit a clump of something on take-off and nearly didn’t get airborne,then while over Chalgrove was heard on the scanner to report unable to lower undercarriage.All rectified she did land safely back at Benson)…other warbirds to have been seen doing fly-bys included the BBMF on many occasions,Lindsay Waltons F4U-7 Corsair,Spencer Flacks’ all-red Spitfire(often doing practise displays),M-Bs Meteor(WL419 in those days)
Displays….for a few years late’80s/early ’90s Benson held a Charity Fete event the first of which co-incided with Brize Norton and Halton Open Days so the likes of Vulcan,Nimrod,Galaxy etc used Benson as a hold while in later years the Fete attracted the likes of (East) German An-26,a pair of Canadian Hornets and a trio of Canadian Kiowas among others
Then there were the deployments of USAF ANG C130s…eight aircraft each deployments from Georgia,Ohio,California ANGs……….
O HAPPY DAYS……….& I’m sure I’ve missed some,so come on guys,what memories(tales) of RAF Benson do you have(would love to see some photos too,but should they be on another thread on another section of this parish???)
Colin
By: TonyT - 31st March 2025 at 10:48
The OCU Wessexs putting up the fourship over Odiham ( the OCU fleet) before departing to its new base at Benson with the “bet you cannot put up four Pumas over Benson” ( the OCU fleet and not famed for their servicability) and there is a barrel on it……….
Four Pumas over Benson and back to Odiham in formation, Beer won! no one any the wiser we had borrowed the odd Puma from the squadrons to win the beer :diablo::dev2:
By: 50sqnwop/ag - 31st March 2025 at 10:48
getting treated like some new recruit by a certain group of mammals when I’m an SAC, freezing my nads off every winter walking to the gym for a shower….watching the copper chopper go off to do battle with local scrotes…looking at the merlins just sittin there:rolleyes:, watching the Pumas sit there n then moving, stumbling back to the block after an evening of coca cola in the sqn bar,and as always wondering when the elevators are gona fall off of the spitty on guard…..
By: superplum - 31st March 2025 at 10:48
Memories of Benson?
Getting b*ll*cked by the SWO one morning (0745) for driving onto camp with my battledress jacket unbuttoned!
By: PeterVerney - 31st March 2025 at 10:46
Ah well, I’ll do my bit of boasting.
Here is the last Mosquito NF36 delivered into Benson In July 1953 by Sqn Ldr Cogill and self. And we were looking forward to amonths respite from The Canal Zone.
By: Resmoroh - 31st March 2025 at 10:46
The Mobile Met Unit HQ shared a building at Benson with 6 AEF. One afternoon as I was doing Mob Met Unit “Scribbly Stuff” when this slightly mature RAFVR(T) Fg Off tapped on the window and said “Bin that rubbish. Let’s go fly an aeroplane”. And so we did. As we were getting into the Chipmunk I noticed that my “slightly mature” RAFVR(T) Fg Off was none other than Air Marshal Sir Kenneth Hayr!! He let me have “hands on”. When we landed he simply said “I can see why you’re a Met Man and not a Pilot!!!!”.
Then there were all the Nefarious Purposes Committee exercises (and Ops!) with the Tac Comms Wing! The “MMU Bloke” was, de facto, 2 i/c the TCW Nav Aids Flight (TCW were very short of Officers!). If I pitched up in the TCW hangar in uniform it was “Good morning, Sir”, but if I pitched up in civvies then it was “Oi, Met, your turn to make the coffee!”. Everybody knew the subtle differences! Good days.
And last, but by no means least, all the scurrilous stories of those In High Places re-told by the Captain of TQF – Archie Winskill !!!
The two best tours I ever did!
Resmoroh
By: wingcomandrflap - 31st March 2025 at 10:45
I remember watching the airmen practicing cerimonial pawlbearer duties – transfering a crate (coin) from a 3 tonner (VC10 cargo hold) to the station dust cart (Hearse).
When Lord Mountbatten was murdered there was a major panic – he was coming home in a Herc and they’d never practiced carrying the coffin down a ramp. I knew one of the guys quite well and he told me of the mixed emotions of the day, proud to be doing it, sad to have to do it.
As there were three bodies to be brought back from Ireland two teams from Brize were used as well.
I’m proud to say I was one of them………..very emotional.
By: Arabella-Cox - 31st March 2025 at 10:45
I remember watching the airmen practicing cerimonial pawlbearer duties – transfering a crate (coin) from a 3 tonner (VC10 cargo hold) to the station dust cart (Hearse).
When Lord Mountbatten was murdered there was a major panic – he was coming home in a Herc and they’d never practiced carrying the coffin down a ramp. I knew one of the guys quite well and he told me of the mixed emotions of the day, proud to be doing it, sad to have to do it.
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February 21, 2010 at 7:57 am