mjrYeah, I can still see the look on the bar managers face at the Tavern in Walton 😀 😀 :diablo: And the infamous words of wisdom from Dan at the Plough in Bruntingthorpe…”Don’t you guys ever wash!!”
N,
did you manage to get your servicing gun last week?
MJR
mjrgood excuse for a barbacue hey? egg and bacon a la jet pipe
mjr
mjranti det run andy, or fast taxi? would be up in a shot, but got a messy job to do on sat, fueldraulic tests and tank pressurisation tests. Did port wing last week, all went without a hitch, but still went home stinking on jet A. Eau de Avtur! why oh why didnt we buy a nice simple twin seat hunter…………erm well we did, but it wasnt quite as alluring as a Lightning…. DOHHH!!
mjr
mjrmore investors? perhaps a share scheme, like lpg. hangar it for winter months only, for deep maintenace, start of december through to april, outside for the summer months? cuts the cost significantly. Temporary shelter for big jobs?
mjr
mjrwhoops serials jumbled up. ZF592, should be ZF587. ZF592 was saved in its entirety apart from the wings, they were rotten, and scrapped. the fuselage ended up in Norwich somwhere.
MJR
mjrYep, i spied a Canberra plus maybe six Lightnings ?
Maybe one day, somebody will step up to the mike and give the full low down on how, where, which, what, when etc….
I seem to recall that one was cut in half, but one enterprising cockpit collector managed to join it up again.
Where-o-where are the BAC Lightnings experts when you need one ? :rolleyes:
.
6 went to Luxembourg for filming I cant remember all serials, since only 4 returned.
ZF579. 53-671. 2 SQ returned. Airframe and nose reunited at GAM restoration to ground run.
ZF582 53-674 2SQ returned nose section, bournmouth. wings at GAM, fuselage with LINCAIR
ZF592 53-684 returned. nose section @ Headcorn, cut. Most parts at GAM, fuselage scrapped @MSL
ZF583? 53- 675 returned. scrappped MSL, Fuselage scrapped at MSL.
MSL sold all 6 to the Carousel film company, on a buy back deal, on the understanding that the majority were to be returned unharmed, only 2 were to be hacked about. They did however experiment with the nose sections to perfect a look. ZF579 and ZF582 were pretty much unmolested,as agreed, apart from having the external duct wiring chopped off, which was not part of the deal. Neither were used in the film. Zf592 was not so fortunate, having been selected as one of those to be heavily modified. It was cut vertically for use as the main cokpit section for motion shots on a motion gimble. Another was cut horizontally and was beyond saving (zf583 I think), Keith subsequently squashed it upon its return. The last two, used in the film no one really knows. The wiring ducts were cut, but the skins were not, all the original instruments removed, and the bullets were removed,the canopy hydraulics re-instated. Rumours are that Both went to Japan, which wouldn’t surprise me, since there was a Japanese ebayer buying up Lightning cockpit instruments some while back.
ZF592 was stitched back together at Headcourn and doesnt look too bad.
Thats about it. would be nice to see what the last 2 look like now though.
MJR
mjrAbingdon now belongs to the army renamed Dalton Barracks. Fond memories of the AEF Experience though. IIRC John was actually called Paul Young anyone know what became of him?
Martin
Topgun reject,
thanks for the update.as far as paul Young goes, I was told stories whilst I was at TTTE Cottismore in 88, that he went on to become a Navigator and was killed ejecting from the back seat of a tornado Gr1a that ran into trouble. I have no idea if the story was true though, or if I have it entirely correct, but I seem to remember being told that. Anyone able to validate?
MJR
mjrI flew ‘652 from Cambridge, but I do remember the Nimrod AEW3, all looking very grubby in their PFX (I think it’s called PFX 😮 ) protective spray. Only saw them at the airshows they put on back in Abingdon’s RAF days. Think they all ended up under the cutters torch didn’t they?
You certainly reminded me of the parachute pack though, dare not stand up for fear of crushing ya knackers! 😮 😀
yes, shame, they did get crushed in the end, I think one or two were moved in with th vc10’s in the fire training ground just over the fence behind the terminal building. Those chutes were a menace on the old knackers! very uncomfortable, I’m sure the stores fitter used to take please in yanking them straps up extra tight! :diablo: a bit of a wake up call, after falling asleep during the “jump john” safety briefings and video, prior to kit fitting. I seem to remeber the young lad in the videos being called John. I also remeber the briefing rooms being covered in posters of cartoons featuring chipmunks, with dozy plonkers walking into the props, and claret spraying all over the place. I cant remember for the life of me exactly what the warning slogan was though, something like “VIGILANCE SAVES LIVES AND FOD KILLS”, presumably, the fod was the silly sod walking into the prop 😀
What became of Abingdon, after its wind down?, anyone have any piccies of Abingdon, during RAF days?
MJR
mjrFantastic stuff thanks for that paulO. Nice to see she’s still flying. 🙂
mjr, that’s a coincidence! Strange that, they must have shifted them around the AEF’s. I no longer have my log book so can’t refer to the exact dates, but it probably would’ve been 1985. Hope you found your way back to the correct airfield! 😀
yeah, great to see it’s still flying, I think the raf rotated the air frames round for even fatigue etc, hence the different aef’s.
yes found my way back in the end, thanks to a local railway line, but I dont think my Wing Co pilot was very impressed with me! 😀
Good old Abingdon, many fond memories, do you remember all the Nimrods parked up at Abingdon? just the other side of the apron, in front of the terminal building. I always remember being impressed by them every time I hobbled out with the chute on to the apron, for a waiting Chippy.
MJR
mjrThe same old numbers pop up throughout my Aef log book, between 86 and 89 at bingdon ;
WB 586 6 aef
WK589 6AEF
WB652 6 AEF
WP870 10 aef
MJR
mjrHi everyone,
I am currently repainting a Chippy for FS2004, and am looking for photos of WB652 “V” which served on 5 AEF at Cambridge. Why WB652? This was the first aircraft I ever flew in as a 14 year old ATC cadet, and the first I ever took control of, so it’s a bit special to me. I’m sure many who were in the ATC in the mid 1980’s will have that same sentiment!
Sady I didn’t have a camera at the time, so has anyone got any pics of this aircraft that may help in my project? Even pics of other 5 AEF Chipmunks would be helpful providing they were taken in the mid 1980’s, just need to know where the code letters went.
I see WB652 now based at Kemble as G-CHPY, sadly no pics on GINFO though. 🙁
Thanks
Justyn
Just checked my log book, and amazingly I also flew in wb 652 27/7/86 6 aef abingdon 31 minutes, nav ex. I remember the flight well, casue I got lost, ! 😀
MJR
mjrHas no one on here heard of ACF-50? :confused:
peter A superb product, but as Blue Max mentions, I’m sure it is not available in Canada. If you can get your hands on it though, it is far superior to any of the other products mentioned, since it penetrates the entire depth of the corrosion easily and removes the electrolyte that drives the corrosion, wd40, wax oil and the like are effective, they do inhibit (wd40 not particularly effectively though) the electrolytic process but are difficult to get to penetrate the entire depth of the corrossion, since one is wax based and the other not very powerful, hence why you have to soak in hot agent, to encourage.
ACF 50, like the others though, will need to be re-applied every year or so. ring the guys at Light Aero, they ship all over the world, and one can of acf-50 will last for years. Its clean and easy to spray on.
mjrPeter,
Im struggling to find any reference to Hammeite underbody seal, or wax oil in Canada. They sell the stuff in South America, yet not in Canada, bizzare. There is another product nearly as good, called Dinitrol,which is very similar to wax oil, that is available in Canada from any good auto part stockist. Check out the link below, the dinitrol 1000 aerosol is fairly good. This will slow it up, but really to stop this corrosion all together, will mean some destructive measures.
Country:
CANADA
Company:
V H ASKO
Adress:
45, Stinson Boulevard
ST LAURENT, Quebec
H4N 2E1
Tel:
+1 514 336 4258
Fax:
+1 514 745 0187
Contact:
V Oghli
Email:
[email]vhaskoinc@aol.com[/email]
mjrHi peter,
I think so Its just called wax oil, readily available for the motor industry, made by hammerite I think. Ill have a trawl round in a minute and find a link.
MJR
mjrhmm, a real tough one,
there is a good possibility that this piece of stringer may contain magnesium, the layered type of corrosion looks typical for it. I think which ever way you choose to go, there is going to have to be compromise.
Your problem is that its rotting from inside out, and it really needs treating from the back ( the unpainted portion). The trouble is you have major delamination. The only way to deal with delamination is to remove it entirely, clearly not an option here, as it will ruin the piece. What ever you use to treat the corrosion, is going to soak in and dissolve away the oxidised flaky parts, including coca cola. To stop this type of corrosion, oxidisation and oxygen have to be removed, and the surface sealed, very difficult when the material has blown and delaminated. You cant use anything powerful, so all previous suggestions are out of the window. My solution would be to drop the whole piece in hot wax oil for 20 minutes, alowing it to soak right through. It won’t dessolve any corrosion, cure it for good, remove any material, or discolour the paint, but it will slow it to very minor progress, and stop new corrosion taking hold of clean areas.
MJR
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