Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

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TheGreenGoblin
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Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#1 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sat Nov 09, 2019 9:29 am

I watched the following two aviation related documentaries on Amazon Prime recently.

Buzz One Four is probably one of the best aviation related documentary stories I have watched. Telling a very personal and poignant story of one man's grandfather. Highly recommended.

Buzz One Four.JPG
http://www.buzzonefour.com/
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#2 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sat Nov 09, 2019 9:43 am

The other documentary was Thud Pilots

Despite the intrusive, boneheaded, jingoistic American narration, the documentary wins out when the pilots who actually flew these missions speak out and tell their personal stories. Well worth watching.

Thunderchief.JPG
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#3 Post by Slasher » Sat Nov 09, 2019 10:28 am

Gob I’m certain you’d be interested in this book:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/288 ... er-vietnam

In it Trotti described how he and his group would soften up the target defenses by strafe and strategic bombing, and had to get the hell out before the Thunderchiefs came screaming in and really blew the absolute total living sh!t out of everything. They didn’t care who was in their way.

I can’t find my copy (buried in a pile of books somewhere) but it’s a damn good read.

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#4 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sat Nov 09, 2019 10:55 am

Slasher wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2019 10:28 am
Gob I’m certain you’d be interested in this book:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/288 ... er-vietnam

In it Trotti described how he and his group would soften up the target defenses by strafe and strategic bombing, and had to get the hell out before the Thunderchiefs came screaming in and really blew the absolute total living sh!t out of everything. They didn’t care who was in their way.

I can’t find my copy (buried in a pile of books somewhere) but it’s a damn good read.
Thanks for the steer. If you think it is a good read then that is all the recommendation I need Captain Slasher. Just purchased the Kindle edition online. Let the reading commence.
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#5 Post by Slasher » Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:02 am

Gob - apart from you being an outstanding mathematicaltitian, philanthropologist, history buff and appreciator of the Fine Arts, as a pilot(?) you’ll not want to stop reading it. 📖

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#6 Post by ian16th » Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:03 am

A not so good one!


As I said to the guy who sent it to me:
Hello xxxx,

Thanks for that, I hadn't seen it.

What a load of tosh!

We only did one flight to Cape Town and it was timed from Overhead London Airport to landing at Cape Town. 11h28 was the flight time.

The date was July 9-10 1959.

The crew were:
Cape Town Flight 9-7-59.jpg
Plus a Crew Chief.

Most of the 'interior' shots of the Valiant were from impossible camera angles, so were done on a set.

At the time there were no WRAF's at Marham! The Station Master was Group Capt Burnett, not the guy in the video.

At this time, all of the 214 a/c carried the Flight Refuelling logo on the fin.

Haven't a clue what the AEO was supposed to be looking at to see the sine-wave on a scope!

I could go on and on, the air to air shots were nice, and both of XD812 and XD816 were 214 a/c.

By 1961 we were an Operational tanker Sqdn and it was usually the a/c we refuelled that got the publicity, e.g. 617 for the Vulcan to Sydney.

Or maybe my 2 remaining brain cells are failing.

Cheers

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#7 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:35 am

ian16th wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:03 am
A not so good one!


Cape Town Flight
Most interesting ian16th. Thanks for the warning but because I am such a sap for these things I am now bound to watch the video you posted. ;)))

Apropos the Valiant and Cape Town. I came across this evocative photograph recently.

Valiant in Cape Town.JPG
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#8 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:53 am

Slasher wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:02 am
Gob - apart from you being an outstanding mathematicaltitian, philanthropologist, history buff and appreciator of the Fine Arts, as a pilot(?) you’ll not want to stop reading it. 📖
I am going to steal this wondrous line and demand it is put on my gravestone as a wholly self flattering epitaph (and yes, I have been known to fly aircraft and am definitely a history buff)! ;)))

As for the rest.... =))
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#9 Post by ian16th » Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:58 am

TheGreenGoblin wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:35 am
ian16th wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:03 am
A not so good one!


Cape Town Flight
Most interesting ian16th. Thanks for the warning but because I am such a sap for these things I am now bound to watch the video you posted. ;)))

Apropos the Valiant and Cape Town. I came across this evocative photograph recently.


Valiant in Cape Town.JPG
Not a 214 Sqdn a/c, and no probe fitted, so It stopped at least once for fuel.

Any idea of the date?
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#10 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sat Nov 09, 2019 12:02 pm

ian16th wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:03 am
A not so good one!
In the same vein... inaccurate but still very watchable and enjoyable...

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#11 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Sat Nov 09, 2019 12:16 pm

ian16th wrote:
Sat Nov 09, 2019 11:58 am

Any idea of the date?
Not sure. I came across the photograph in Tony Blackman's excellent 'Valiant Boys' and there is a bit more detail here... Valiant in Cape Town but not the date.

I would guess sometime in 1961, although 543 Squadron were involved in survey work in Rhodesia in 1964 just before the spar issues grounded the aircraft permanently.

Operation Pontifex

The reason I say 1961 relates to Bill Yates description of this unfortunate crash and his loss of flying status in 1961...Bill Yates
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#12 Post by Pontius Navigator » Sat Nov 09, 2019 2:04 pm

Ian, a little canned but essentially all the elements. Good for a reminder of the contemporary kit - rear crew with no visits in the bone domes, proper shirts, Terry towel scarf, no gloves wore on the rear. Pilot's white gloves - prestige flight therefore new issue. The M-type masks, uncomfortable parachutes though I think they would have installed for most of the flight.

They should have had the sun gun out for some astro shots.

The fg off, complete with 'tache and medals also authentic.

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#13 Post by Pontius Navigator » Sat Nov 09, 2019 4:34 pm

A Conflict of Wings followed The High Flight, included some clips of Swifts. 1954 film with some still with GVI badges.

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#14 Post by TheGreenGoblin » Mon Nov 11, 2019 11:23 am

Watched this over the weekend. Highly recommended.

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#15 Post by ian16th » Mon Nov 11, 2019 11:32 am

Also getting into the nostalgia thing.

We watched No Highway In the Sky!

SM complained that she didn't understand it.
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#16 Post by Pontius Navigator » Mon Nov 11, 2019 11:43 am

The thing about these contemporary films is what Arthur Mawick describes as unwitting evidence. Especially what kit was there, how the clothing was worn etc.

In the earlier film, a Conflict of Flight, leather helmets. In High Encounter that rear crew did not have bone dome visors. Also that the Valiant used Rebecca for ranging whereas by 1964 Vulcans had Gee which was replaced with TACAN. I don't know if Vulcans had Rebecca.

One thing I noticed in High Encounter was the pilots had removed the visor covers on their bone domes. Certainly in 1965 the Vulcan standards unit had to wage a campaign to have us remove visor covers. One reason for not removing them was we took them off once airborne. In high level flight pilots also removed their bone domes until we found the Mk 2 could be worn even in the rear and shooting astro.

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#17 Post by ian16th » Mon Nov 11, 2019 12:26 pm

Pontius Navigator wrote:
Mon Nov 11, 2019 11:43 am
Also that the Valiant used Rebecca for ranging whereas by 1964 Vulcans had Gee which was replaced with TACAN. I don't know if Vulcans had Rebecca.
As far as I know, the only Rebecca used on Valiants was the trials of that were done by 214 Sqdn.
Rebecca/Eureka Mk X was a specialised system, operating around 1000 MHz, for receivers to home on to tankers.
As far as I know, it was never put into production.

The Valiant's were fitted with Gee. It was a bastardised version of Gee-H, with the Transmitter and CU552 not fitted. Maybe the complete kit had been installed before my time, because NBS wasn't ready.
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#18 Post by Pontius Navigator » Mon Nov 11, 2019 3:44 pm

Ian, the Vulcans all had Gee 3 up to Spring '64. I suspect it was partly to give them accurate high level fixing, radar silent, on the outbound legs of their war sorties. Our side UK it was no use at all.

At Suez the Valiants were tasked for visual bombing but 138 I think opted for the new radar. Now I was told they were the only ones to hit their targets. Those doing visual bombing apparently forgot to allow for stick length.

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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#19 Post by ian16th » Mon Nov 11, 2019 4:42 pm

Pontius Navigator wrote:
Mon Nov 11, 2019 3:44 pm
Ian, the Vulcans all had Gee 3 up to Spring '64. I suspect it was partly to give them accurate high level fixing, radar silent, on the outbound legs of their war sorties. Our side UK it was no use at all.

At Suez the Valiants were tasked for visual bombing but 138 I think opted for the new radar. Now I was told they were the only ones to hit their targets. Those doing visual bombing apparently forgot to allow for stick length.
I was well read on Gee.
We trained on Gee-II in Boy's training, I did a Gee-H post grad course while at Lindholme, I also worked on the Gee-H trainers in the Bombing School. Did Gee-III on my fitters course and again on my Bomber Conversion Course, I knew it so well I got lots of spare marks towards my Cpl/Tech Board.

All that course time, but it was so reliable that I hardly ever did any fault finding on it.

The Trainers at Lindholme needed calibrating regularly, but hardly ever failed. We had a Gee-H bench at Coningsby for the Canberra B2's, and occasionally we had a Transmitter come in.

At Dishforth the Beverley's had Gee III and the Hastings Gee-II, I was there for such a short time, I don't think I touched a set.

On the Valiants at Marham, it simply kept going.

I remember when we did the dry run for the none stop to Singapore trip, an 18 hour trip around the UK. I saw the a/c off, had a nights sleep and saw the a/c in!
Met the Nav and he had a tale of woe as he listed the time scale of failures, he was all ready to depend on getting his sextant operational, but his trusty Gee kept going.
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Re: Good aviation nostalgia film/documentaries

#20 Post by Pontius Navigator » Mon Nov 11, 2019 5:03 pm

Ian, lest for those that don't know, Gee was strictly UK and I think RAFG. I also think there were some war reserve transmitters but only limited range beyond the inner German border and that at high level.

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