Reds

Whatever you think,remember the RAF is getting smaller and they dont have lots and lots of “spare airframes”to play with.Also its you the taxpayer paying for their airtime,cant afford crashes these days!!!

Luggage

Definately hard shell type and a strap around ,old string ,nylon tow rope or similar!!Mid range not the samsonite class!No towing handle ,they break of as do wheels!!You can buy a seperate carry trolley .I used an old compressed cardboard one for years with those ratchet hinges and it was repaired twice with fibreglass tape ,had reinforced corners,wish I could find another like it,60s vintage!!!

Where to go

Cross the channel buy cheap tourist train tickets and travel as far as they allow,stay in B&B !!Just go!!

another look

OK the scout chopper is over a corsair!At Eglington.The one I climbed over an photographed is just of Ballykelly airfield!Mine was 1960 the chopper one 1972and still has engine attached and canopy so there must be two Corsair wrecks!!

found my corsair photo

These not very clear photos show the RN Corsair on the mud near Ballykelly as it was in 1960!!Every thing that could be removed had,we were so dissapointed!The wings are buried in the mud with just the tips protruding and the engine is detached from the fuselage.Wonder if its still there?

Pluto pipelines were layed from giant Drums called “Conundrums”simply towed across the channel laying as they went!

Oil Spill

Transocean,halliburton and a.n.others were all American companies.On the rig regardless of any orders if there is a “dangerous” situation then the superintendant of the rig makes the decisions,and he was American,so it comes down to safety versus profits,guess what wins.I have worked (short time only!)on a Production platform operating at 120% capacity and there were three crash stops in three weeks,so happy to get on that helicopter!!Bill Gates has shares in BP!!