lamp

Hi Flyer

Your cockpit lamp (Mk1A Dome) has been used in a whole host of aircraft throughout the postwar years also, in fact they were still “airworthy” in the Canberra PR9’s retired in 2006. They tended to be used in equipment bays and hatches (ie battery bay and rear fuselage on Canberras of most marks), and were used on the ceiling of the rear crew quarters of B and TT mark Canberra’s to provide general illumination in that area.

I can provide the necessary bulb if you ever fancy powering the old thing up 😉

Trade training is now taught at Cosford, I’m not sure though at which level at which trainees pass out now.

john

When I left Cosford in 1997(ish) trainee entrants left with a City and Guilds in Basic Engineering (specific to your trade) at the rank of Leading Aircraftsman (LAC), with an NVQ level being attainable on return to Cosford for your “fitters” course after about 2 years on the job and completion of your TATS (Trade Ability Tests ). On leaving Cosford the second time you would have reached the rank of Junior Technician (having made SAC on completion of aformentioned TATS) This was however changed slightly later so that the JT rank was replaced with the less popular SAC Tech rank, which as far as we could see meant the same job and responsibilty as the JT’s but conveniently on less money and with no new shoulder flash making you indestinguishable from your lesser trained SAC colleagues (three bladed prop as oppsoed to 4 blades for JT)

Not sure if this is still the way it goes, but either way, I believe you still leave your initial trade training with a C&G in Basic Engineering.

Hope this helps – and for what it’s worth, I felt like I came away with the best training available to me in terms of skilled gained, even if on paper the C&G qualification didn’t look all that impressive.

A big thankyou for all of your advise, i will try the hinge release – i have a nasty feeling its seized too though 😡

Ahhh, I had misunderstood slightly, thought the door was off with the pins stuck down having already used the emergency release :rolleyes:…anyway, whilst the 4 and 1 quarter turn handle above the door should release it (if not siezed too), it is possible for the door seal to have semi-permanently attached itself to the door and it can put up one hell of a fight. You may need to prize it all the way around the door frame, then give it the necessary swift kick towards the top. Make sure you have someone ready to catch it outside, as they are heavy and the outer lip can bend if it hits the deck when you kick it.

I can sort diagrams if they would be of help 😀

door grief

Sadly (though not for me) being on the last Canberra Squadron, if we had door troubles we just changed the door as opposed to the lock, so I never had the need to dismantle one! Some tickling with a hammer and wooden block on the pins should relieve them with the rods disconnected (you have that luxury unlike many!) then after that, stick the rods back on, operate the mechanism with a handle and you should see some progress.

chippy Voltage Regulator on Ebay

Hi Chaps

Dunno if you’ve spotted this – of any help?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/RAF-DH-Chipmunk-Spitfire-Aircraft-Engine-start-panel_W0QQitemZ130250649387QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item130250649387&_trkparms=72%3A985%7C39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

Timbo

Jags at Cosford

From my days on the AFTS (Airframe Training Squadron) at Cosford as a trainee rigger I can confirm that the AFTS hangar at least was full of ground instructional Jaguar airframes which we used for hydraulic rig testing and panel replacement procedures. Mechanically they were in quite good order, being jacked up and having the gear retracted most days throughout the many courses running, though the panelwork was somewhat “war” weary from having ham-fisted baby riggers sprawling over them with RAF issue GS screwdrivers that didn’t quite fit the fastner heads any more.

The sooties on the other hand had some runners on the airside part of the school along with the JP’s on the Flight Line School which were used for ground running tests and demo’s, and for trainee liney’s to crawl into the intakes and down the nacelle to check the turbine blades for FOD damage. Invariably the instructor would send the largest member of the course down the soothole, just to watch him get stuck and need hauling out by the feet. Happy days!

This was all a bit of a while back (late 90’s) so things may well have changed, but thought I’d share anyway because I can 😀

TT18

Not TT.18 chaps, see image of WK126’s office (albeit missing a couple of components, working on that bit!)