What really grips my Sh1Te, is that there are actually photos of the damaged Wokka (ZA704) in Oman on the Internet, had the lazy reporter actually been assed to do their job correctly. No an engine wasn’t ripped off, but the rear rotor and pylon was. Argie CH-47C (AE-520) was captured U/S at Stanley, 18 Sqn tried to get it airworthy but couldn’t, it was stripped for spares, then the army nicked bits off it. Couldn’t get it into service back in the UK as the HC Mk 1 Chinny’s are CH-47D’s.

Full Story (and photos) Here

Took me 50 seconds to find.

One of the problem factors I have heard discussed in operating light gyroplanes is that of them generating pilot over-confidence.
Like any aircraft they will bite if inadverently flown outside of their limits.

A few months back I was chatting with some fellow workers, including one who is a Rock Ape about unusual things we had seen during deployment’s from our unit. The Rock ( RAF Regiment, for those who don’t know RAF Speak) told us of how he was on detachment to an Army Camp, located on an ex RAF Station a few years back, when he was volunteered, to support an old boy’s reunion on the camp, by the fact that he was the only serving RAF Serviceman there at the time. Now this guy’s only real interest in aircraft has been in shooting them down (as a Rapier SAM operator), and the one which is bringing him back from hot and dusty places. So except for the prospect of some free beer, he was not looking forward to it. Anyhow, he gets chatting to the old boy’s and finds out one of them is a quite famous pilot, who is still flying on a US pilots Licence, due to his UK one getting revoked and the guy is going to give the old boy’s a bit of a display, before he flys home in his autogyro (at this point, I told the rest who the old boy was, seeing that I’ve met him once as well). Anyhow, the rock them goes on to tell us how he then saw Wg Cdr Ken Wallis embed his autogyro into some goal posts on the football field (found a report about it here).

Seem’s they can catch out even the most experienced pilot.

In 40 odd years of RAF Chipmunk operations, I cannot recall there being a mid-air collision. It may be that the visibility from the long, narrow glasshouse is more effective than is the case with side-by-side seating, where a large portion of the sky is blotted out by the bonedome of the passenger.

It is not realistic to assume that a cadet can make an effective contribution to look-out.

Had a look at the Military Air Accident Summaries for all UAS/AEF/VGS aircraft losses from 1980 to 2007 and the only mid air was 2 Viking gliders (tandam seaters) at Sealand (soaring in the same thermal). I’ve no idea what the Bulldog and Chippy losses were before that date.

Well I remember it, along with the other DC-10 accidents up to that date which did give the aircraft a bad rep in the UK media. As far as I remember, it wasn’t just the use of a forklift to raise the engine on to the pylon, but also the excessive use of hammers to get the pins in, leading to metal fatiuge which was the cause of this disaster.

On a lighter note, anybody remember the BOAC VC-10 film that was shown as a test transmission during the day on BBC2 in the late 60’s to early 70’s and has anybody got a copy of it??

Finnish Air Force was founded after the first aeroplane was donated to it and flown to Finland. In his the Order of the Day No. 20 (12 March 1918) Commander-in-Chief Mannerheim appointed Swedish officer John Allan Hygerth to “the Chief of Aviation Department” and subjected him and the department directly to the Chief of General Staff. In special cases part of the department could be subjected to front commanders. [1]

Note bold text….

Hardly independant of other services.

RAF on the other hand on the 1st April 1918 subject to CHIEF OF THE AIR STAFF and AIR MINISTRY, not Chief of the General Staff and War Office.

Somebody, somewhere, must have a pic of a Phantom doing an airborne refuel from Fat Albert near RAF Stanley. The C-130 would stream the hose out the back end. It went out through some vast chunk of cast-iron that ensured it wound out properly, and wound back in properly. This chunk of cast-iron (or whatever) moved from side-to-side as the hose paid out – or was reeled back in. When the hose was out and the Phantom was having a drink, anybody from the Station staff – along for the Air Experience flight – could photograph the Phantom through the gaps in the paying-out/retrieve gear (sorry, I don’t know what it’s called – I’m just a Met Man). Whenever the Phantom Jock saw somebody aiming a camera at him out the back of the Herc he would just move the throttles a bit back – or forward! This resulted in the hose either paying out, or reeling in. In either case the cast iron block started moving from side-to-side. The photographer had to leap smartly out of the way. There were, consequently, mutual signals of a two-finger nature between photographer and Phantom Jock!
I had some good shots of this, but lost them in some domestic upheaval. Would like to be reminded of some good (but occasionally ‘hairy’) days.
TIA
Resmoroh

Yes, indeed you had to hug the hose on the port side, with the camera the starboard side of the hose to get a good photo (If not, the hose took up a lot of the photo). Taken in late Jan 1989.

Check this site out.

http://home.att.net/~jbaugher/1942_5.html

42-102940 to RAF as Fortress III HB789
42-102941 to RAF as Fortress III HB790

Both SOC Mar 11, 1947.

They may have had the same Code letter, at different times.