Isn’t that what some councils are doing? Thought I heard that Birmingham council had layed off a load of staff to outsource its phone/payments work to India?

Re the first vid, it’s not just the height, and the apparent flippency of the climber, but that must take some real stamina to climb that height on rungs.

1. St,Mawgan in MR2 WL795, incomplete
2. Duxford in MR3 XF708,
3. Newark in MR3 WR977
4. Gatwick in MR3 WR982 under restoration
5. Gatwick in MR3 WR974 under restoration
6. Long Marston in MR3 WR985 ???
7. RAF Museum Stafford Stored

WR977 only has the internal mechs, no cannons fitted.
WR985, someone reported here a while back that the bare mounting gear is fitted but that is about it.
Would say that XF708 is the most complete installation to date.

SAAF Shackleton Mk.3 1721 at Swartkop still has the cannons ftted, and the others survivors still seem to retain the cannon nose fairings suggesting that the internal mechanisms are in place.

As Strangelove says AEW.2s didn’t have the guns fitted (hence WL795 has an incomplete internal installation).
As an aside it would be great to know the last time the guns were fired, in training or actual, 204 sqn still had them fitted ’70/’71 thinking Radfan for the real use?

…god knows how I’m going to afford them though as my “stratospheric” public purse salary is uncomfortably close to Pagens.

I was thinking of you when I wrote my bit!:D
Have to say though that my position is far more precarious.

Seen that before, it genuinely causes an odd feeling within me!:eek:

What was that you said about dismissive remarks? :diablo:

Do you have a source for this rise, given that the overall cost of public sector pensions is slowly but steadily falling according to the Hutton Report?

That was’nt a dismissive remark, trust me.

My source was the BBC news.

Comparison’s of other’s salaries are not very helpful either – everybody has diffferent circumstances, spending patterns, lifestyles, responsibilites etc.

I hate dismissive remarks like that.
Most people have the same aspirations, most want a secure life, a home, family, and maybe the odd holiday etc.
My comparisons with different sectors isn’t to say that one group should be paid the same as every other – I know they shouldn’t, but to point out that if these strikers that are on reasonable pay and conditions think they have the unfaltering backing from most of us then they are wrong.
I noticed some comparisons wth the miners strike in the media, that was different they were fighting for their jobs, livelihoods, and indeed a whole industry and the towns it kept going.
I can’t sympathise at all with a group of people comfortably off moaning about having a reduction in government input to their pensions – which incidently has risen in percentage unawares to most of us over a period of years.

Precisely, and I work for the MoD through a contractor, forgot to mention I have to travel 50 miles a day aswel.
That is my choice though and I love my work (and I certainly wouldn’t say I should be on near what teachers deserve), but some of these public sector workers really must try understanding the reality of what some others have to go through.
Imagine what it is like for the workers at lower levels, the slaughterhouse workers, cabbage pickers, office cleaners etc.

I hate to say this, and I don’t like his presentation style, but tornado64 is right in a lot of what he says here.