RAF 75th Anniversary

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ian16th
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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#21 Post by ian16th » Fri Mar 08, 2019 8:54 pm

All this name dropping.

I feel quite out of things, I'm limited to 3 short journeys in lifts.

In the Mararani, Durban when it was still a 5* hotel, wife and I shared a lift with Imran Khan. He was then known for his cricket, not politics.
Once in the Holiday Inn, Brussels Airport, Stan Smith the former Wimbledon champion.

And the classic, at the Holiday Inn, Birmingham, wife, son & I were squashed in the lift with most of the cast of Crossroads!
Cynicism improves with age

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#22 Post by Fox3WheresMyBanana » Fri Mar 08, 2019 8:55 pm

As I said, there was a complex briefing on how each round would be served, what the tray of drinks should contain, and all whilst I was circulating apparently naturally, with drinks being taken by other guests who were not in on the scheme. The first two were full strength, and there were successive dilutions after that. Her staff knew her well, even down to her habit of ignoring the tray if it only had one G&T on it (as she assumed that would be diluted), and sometimes taking not the nearest glass. I dimly recall some of the details, such that she had a habit of choosing the furthest drink on I think the third round (so in fact a full strength was the one nearest), and one of the rounds it being unpredictable which she would choose, so one ensured they were ALL diluted for that round. And if some other guest took one of those, you replenished and circulated back to them with a proper one immediately after she'd turned away. It was quite apparent by the fifth that she was aware she was drinking diluted ones, and I got very questioning stares each time, but she was unable to figure out how it was being done. It seemed to be a regular game with her staff. For reasons which will be obvious to those who know her history, she always insisted on a pilot serving the drinks.

I should add perhaps that I never volunteered for these things.

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#23 Post by Alisoncc » Sat Mar 09, 2019 3:25 am

Once I had finished with RAF Locking never got selected to do any marching around sessions. I was one of the scruffy lot employed to keep the aeroplanes flying. The better we were at doing that the decreased probability of being volunteered to play soldiers. If they had some big event over a weekend at Finningley, and we weren't needed, they would give us a 48 hr pass and a train chitty to somewhere far away. Vulcan lineys were a breed apart.

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#24 Post by Sisemen » Sat Mar 09, 2019 5:41 am

I remember getting the shock of my life on my first tour at Finningley (65-67) when the Stn Cdr decided to hold a parade on a freezing Saturday morning for no good reason other than he liked parades! As I had recently left Boy Entrant training I thought that I’d left all that stuff behind at Hereford. I certainly remember a great deal of gnashing of teeth from the guys, the NCOs and the officers joed for the parade.

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#25 Post by Fox3WheresMyBanana » Sat Mar 09, 2019 8:17 am

The following interchange was related to me by a Cavalry subaltern about the CO's inspection of the mess hall
Colonel:"Food good, Sar'nt Major?"
RSM:"Yessah!"
Colonel:"Men happy, Sar'nt Major?"
RSM:"Yessah!"
Colonel:"Can't have that..dick them about a bit"
RSM:"Parade practice at 0530 Sah?"
Colonel:"Carry on, Sar'nt Major"
RSM:"Yessah!"

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#26 Post by Alisoncc » Sat Mar 09, 2019 8:27 am

Sisemen wrote:
Sat Mar 09, 2019 5:41 am
I remember getting the shock of my life on my first tour at Finningley (65-67) when the Stn Cdr decided to hold a parade on a freezing Saturday morning
Sise, bet there weren't any lineys from the OCU on parade. We were a bolshoi lot. If requested to participate we would most probably have turned up in trogg boots, seamens off-white socks soaked in hydraulic fluid, torn greasy anoraks and smelly greasy-wool sweaters. Our normal working outfits. In November '65 I complained about being cold. So in December they shipped me off to RAF Sharjah to get warm. Nice people.

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#27 Post by Ex-Ascot » Sat Mar 09, 2019 9:21 am

Boac wrote:
Fri Mar 08, 2019 7:39 pm
He must have done a thousand of 'em.
- well, not quite! The secret of my success, I can disclose, was to hang on to the leader who got there on time. :))
The nav always got us on doors time to the second. You small fast jet guys only had to be overhead on time not on a red carpet. The last bit was the trickiest.

Fox I assure you that whenever we flew HRH PM the pilots didn't serve the drinks. Always had to be a packet of fags on the table. A very difficult lady to please. For a single principle pax on a night flight the cabin crew would make up a bed starboard in the lounge area. One one occasion HRH decided that she wanted it port, then changed her mind back to starboard. :-o
'Yes, Madam, I am drunk, but in the morning I shall be sober and you will still be ugly.' Sir Winston Churchill.

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#28 Post by Pontius Navigator » Sat Mar 09, 2019 4:26 pm

Ec-Ascot, flow control refused us landing at Tengah as a shiney one was due. OC Ops over ruled as the Vs were always late.

Game on.

We duly arrived from Darwin on time as the shiney one slipped in and ATC ordered us to go round. At 5 miles the skipper said he could see the 10 on, could we continue. We did. As we were told to overshoot he saw the 10 turn off, requested land and was cleared.

We legged it up the taxiway and turned on to chocks, I had the door open and was on the ground to the second and the 10 hadn't even cracked the door.

Sadly we were too long putting our jet to bed and missed our flight home in the 10. We had to stay down town for a week till the next flight as the mess was full.

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#29 Post by G-CPTN » Sat Mar 09, 2019 5:32 pm

Pontius Navigator wrote:
Sat Mar 09, 2019 4:26 pm
We had to stay down town for a week till the next flight as the mess was full.
What a bummer!

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#30 Post by 4mastacker » Sat Mar 09, 2019 8:31 pm

Ex-Ascot wrote:
Sat Mar 09, 2019 9:21 am
...................HRH PM ....... A very difficult lady to please. ............
As was confirmed when she "honoured" Scampton with a visit. The day went from bad to worse - started off with her not being impressed with the Guard of Honour, not being happy with this, that, anything and appeared bored throughout. As is usual with such visits , there was a posh lunch in the Officers Mess whilst us SNCOs ate our sarnies in our sqn tea bar. OC Supply had be voluntold to attend the lunch and it was costing him an arm and a leg.

He came back earlier than expected from the lunch; he was literally spitting feathers. After the "What's up boss?' he told us that halfway through the first course, HRH had put down her knife and fork and lit up a fag, thus signifying the end of the meal. Everyone had to stop eating, the main course and dessert and whatever else was on the menu went in the bin but the cost still went on the mess bills of those attending.

It didn't stop there, when a four-ship scramble was staged for her, she turned to the staish and said "Am I meant to be impressed?" A 35 Sqn pilot, who was tasked to fly a desk in the alternate ops during a subsequent exercise, told us about that comment, whilst there was some general chat about 'the visit' in between air raids. Her comment had been passed to the crews whilst they were still airborne, and it did not go down well.
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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#31 Post by Ex-Ascot » Sun Mar 10, 2019 6:09 am

Pontius Navigator wrote:
Sat Mar 09, 2019 4:26 pm
Ec-Ascot, flow control refused us landing at Tengah as a shiney one was due. OC Ops over ruled as the Vs were always late.

Game on.

We duly arrived from Darwin on time as the shiney one slipped in and ATC ordered us to go round. At 5 miles the skipper said he could see the 10 on, could we continue. We did. As we were told to overshoot he saw the 10 turn off, requested land and was cleared.

We legged it up the taxiway and turned on to chocks, I had the door open and was on the ground to the second and the 10 hadn't even cracked the door.

Sadly we were too long putting our jet to bed and missed our flight home in the 10. We had to stay down town for a week till the next flight as the mess was full.
I was of course referring to Royal and VIP doors open times. The Air Attaches would set their watches by us. Schedule flights we tried to arrive early if we could. If we were late no grief.
'Yes, Madam, I am drunk, but in the morning I shall be sober and you will still be ugly.' Sir Winston Churchill.

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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#32 Post by G-CPTN » Mon Jul 06, 2020 9:58 pm


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Re: RAF 75th Anniversary

#33 Post by 4mastacker » Tue Jul 07, 2020 2:27 pm

Remember the 75th very well. It absolutely hosed it down on the big day - the only person to stay dry was HMtQ who was sheltered by an umbrella carried by one of my young SACs. He got pissed wet through but stuck at his job and earned a CinC's commendation for his efforts.
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