Plane Tales

Delving into my log book yet again I recall thatI had flown a couple of supernumerary trips to John F Kennedy airport in New York, sitting in the back of the cockpit watching how it was done but now it was my turn to clamber into the hot seat to start my line training with Virgin Atlantic.  I was also flying with the Chief Pilot so absolutely no pressure!   Compared with the Airbus A340, the old Boeings were beginning to look a bit like dinosaurs!   The confusion of aircraft flying over the Atlantic only really became apparent when they were all leaving contrails!   With the early MCDUs it was possible to outpace the processor that was trying to keep pace with your key presses.   Despite the plethora of satellites whizzing around the world, the world of aviation still often relied on old fashioned HF radios for communication.   The data we used to plot our position on maps came from the same source as that that guided the aircraft!   I was surprised to see that this famous airport still regularly

From the French word saboter, sabotage refers to the act of bungling, botching or wrecking something, particularly for political or military aims.  It is derived from the French word for a wooden shoe, a sabot and likely refers to clumsy work carried out by those peasants who clattered about in such simple footwear. The world of aviation escaped known acts of sabotage until 1933 when a sleek and streamlined Boeing 247 of United Air Lines Flight 23 taxied to the departure gate at Newark Airport to allow it’s passengers to embark.  At a time when most airlines were flying flimsy wood and cloth biplanes that looked like old World War One bombers, and indeed many were, Boeing were ahead of the game. The Boeing 247   An early 247 with the forward sloping windshield flying for the Royal Air Force   Passengers embarking on a United 247 NC13345 which later crashed into a hill in dense fog and burned.     J Edgar Hoover's letter closing down the sabotage investigation   Images under Creative Commons licen

I’m sorry dear listener but the logbook stories continue unabated with the next instalment. I had been inducted into Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd and, after completing the type rating technical exam we were dispatched to the heart of Airbussery, Toulouse in France, to undergo their simulator training course.  There were about 10 of us but, other than our sim partner, we didn’t have a lot of time to get to know each other with our busy month long schedule.I’d been paired up with a 340 pilot from the Northern Isles of Scotland and was all set to pick his brains on the subject until I discovered he had been flying the SAAB 340, a little Swedish twin engined turboprop. Lufthansa A340   The World Ranger livery   When your instructor says, "Bof!"   Breakfast, lunch and sometimes dinner! Cordes   Pool drill with the Cabin Crew   The Queen opens Queen's Building       Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to MarcelX42, Airbus, HM Gov, Heathrow Airport, Cordes tourist board, Nick Anderson

I’m sorry dear listener but the logbook stories continue unabated with the next instalment. I had been inducted into Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd and, after completing the type rating technical exam we were dispatched to the heart of Airbussery, Toulouse in France, to undergo their simulator training course. There were about 10 of us but, other than our sim partner, we didn’t have a lot of time to get to know each other with our busy month long schedule.   The SAAB 340... a little smaller than the A340!   Lufthansa A340, the A340 launch customer.   The World Ranger paintwork   A340 Sim   Cordes, France   Door training   Pool training   First time in the Black Pyjamas for real!   Taking G-VSKY into the air for the first time   Circuits at Manston   Job done! Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Ronnie Robertson, MarcelX42, Simaero, Clément Gruin and Nick Anderson.

In earlier decades, the early demise of pilots was mainly based on empirical evidence and based on the well publicised news of an ex colleague’s early death. However, in 1992, the time when I was putting in my papers to leave the RAF to pursue a life as an airline pilot, the Flight Safety Foundation published a study which seemed to confirm that pilots died at a younger age than the general population. The oft quoted statistics that a retiring pilot would only have 5 years to enjoy their pensions was quoted... BUT WAS IT TRUE!   Early pilot death has been assigned to the myth that, as a work group we are prone to a tragically short retirement down to ‘flight line talk’ and that each time an airline pilot dies shortly after retiring the hypothesis of early death is reborn and reinforced in this weak minded group of grounded gossipers! (I said that last bit)   The 1992 study which expressed mortality data as percentages is now considered an “interesting” method and apparently, dare I say it, “inappropriate”

So the logbook tales continue. I am out of the RAF and seeking an airline job but in the downturn there are few available. In the meantime I am working for British Aerospace flying Tornado F3s on trials flights. I had also been given the chance to deliver a Hawk 100 series trainer to the Royal Malaysian Air Force. I left you at Bangkok having turned a brand new aircraft into a blow torch and nearly cooking an inquisitive guard.   Flying the last leg to RMAS Butterworth   We complete our 7,000 NM to Malaysia   Chasing the towed decoy trials   Some of Hoppy's aircraft had parted company   We soon passed 600 knots and slipped through the sound barrier without a ripple   I went off to a little commercial uniform shop to pick up my first of the 4 different Virgin Atlantic uniforms I would wear over the next 25 years.   The Flight Crew Operating Manuals, from which they picked facts at random to put into the question paper.   Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Mid Journey AI and Ni

Colin will be visiting California in a few weeks and will speak at the Voices of Valor Gala Dinner, A Tribute to the Greatest Generation, to be held at the Palm Springs Air Museum California Gala Dinner on the 8th of February 2025. https://palmspringsairmuseum.org/gala/   Colin Bell telling us his story   The cockpit of a Mosquito   The Canadian Mosquito factory at Downsview, near Toronto, Ontario   RAF bomber crews eating their traditional breakfast after a mission   One of Chilon of Sparta's famous quotes   Colin beside a painting of his Mosquito   Female German Army personnel and an AA gun battery   The dreaded white light indicating the presence of a Luftwaffe Me262 night fighter   Colin standing by an Me262 jet fighter showing us what he thought of being chased by one   The book of their exploits written by Colin's navigator's son   Images shown under a Creative Commons licence with thanks to Fotoafdrukken Koninklijke Luchtmacht, the Royal Air Force, the IWM and images in the Public

This Tale is a continuation of the interview of World War II pilot Flight Lieutenant Colin Bell DFC. At the age of 103, Colin recalls with perfect clarity what it was like to fly his De Havilland DH 98 Mosquito bomber into action as part of a Pathfinder Squadron. This Tale is the second part of the interview with Colin, the opportunity for which I have to thank my old friend Bob Judson. Having had a high ranking career in the RAF, Bob is now a consultant in the field of psychological, life and executive coaching and has a podcast, Leading 4 Life, which explores leadership in the stories of his own life and those told by his many illustrious guests, such as Colin. Bob was kind enough to allow me to share in this opportunity to interview Colin. If you want to take advantage of Bob’s services or listen to his free podcast then check out his website, here: https://www.leading4life.co.uk/ and his great podcast here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2227500   The Nissen Hut was wartime emergency accommodation with a si

You are sitting in your airliner and the handsome, pretty or in a non-binary sense cute, elegant, lovely or in a non exclusive way charming, fine, interesting or personable flight attendant is standing in front of you to demonstrate the safety features of your aircraft. Hopefully if you enjoy the airline pilot guy enough to be listening to this you might have more than just a passing interest in what safety equipment there is onboard the average big, well equipped, airliner. Most airlines show the gender-specific pronouns that are typically used to refer to people in the way they identify   Door Arming controls   Girt Bar system that can be found on older style aircraft   Steph beside 'her' emergency exit   Slide use in theory and in practice   Disobeying safety instructions can lead to increased danger and possible loss of life   The early days of air travel   Jack Grant, an Australian, who invented the modern inflatable slide and won the Cumberland trophy     Aircraft safety equipment Ha

It is rare to have the opportunity to meet one of the brave young men who flew and fought in the Second World War so I was delighted to be able to talk to Flight Lieutenant Colin Bell DFC. At the age of 103, Colin recalls with perfect clarity what it was like to fly his De Havilland DH 98 Mosquito bomber into action as part of a Pathfinder Squadron.  This Tale is just the first part of the interview with Colin, the opportunity for which I have to thank my old friend Bob Judson.  Having had a high ranking career in the RAF, Bob is now a consultant in the field of psychological, life and executive coaching and has a podcast, Leading 4 Life, which explores leadership in the stories of his own life and those told by his many illustrious guests, such as Colin.  Bob was kind enough to allow me to share in this opportunity to interview Colin.  If you want to take advantage of Bob's services or listen to his free podcast then check out his website, here: https://www.leading4life.co.uk/ and his great podcast here: htt

I’m moving things on a bit in my logbook tales as it seems to be taking forever to get to the end so here’s the next one. I’d found a temporary job with the aircraft manufacturer British Aerospace flying Tornados and Hawks but now I was getting invitations to interview for jobs with a number of airlines. After months of drought, the flood gates seem to have opened and after wishing for just one offer I now had the opportunity to chose who I would go to. First, however, I needed to get through the interviews.   A Monarch A300   A Cathay Pacific Tristar   Virgin Megastores worldwide   RB's Manor House and the album cover for Tubular Bells   Richard Branson starts his own airline, Virgin Atlantic   Northwest Airlines put in a substantial order for Airbus A340s which were then flown by Virgin Atlantic   The BAe Hawk delivery team   One of the RMAS Hawk 108s   In formation and we're off to Malaysia   First stop Nice   Then on to Tanagra   Luxor   Dubai   Mumbai   A little 'hot start'

My logbook tales continue and after 5 months without an income the bucket of shekels I had to keep us afloat was starting to run dry... I could see glimpses of the bottom. Luckily the mortgage on our modest 2 up, 2 down, 250 year old, Scottish stone, terraced cottage at Leuchars wasn’t excessive and we had pared our living expenses down to the bone.  The sniff of some flying work for British Aerospace down at their factory at Warton, however, was very, very welcome.   RAF Warton during construction in 1938   The TSR2 and Panavia Tornado, both built at Warton   The Eurofighter Typhoon, soon to begin construction at Warton   The F3 Tornado in weather   The BAe Hawk   The Joint Tactical Information Display System   An F3 Tornado with a towed decoy   A Monarch Airways Airbus A300   Images shown under a Creative Commons licence with thanks to the RAF, the MOD, British Aerospace, British Aircraft Corporation, the USAF, the USN,  DoD and Monarch Airways.

Stories from my logbook continue with the last few weeks of my service career, which were a blur of form signing, return of equipment, formal dinners, informal parties, speeches and gifts, all accompanied by feelings of regret and excitement at to what my future held. I flew my last flight in an F3 leading a 3 ship out over the Scottish highlands and then, after everyone had landed, I beat up the squadron low and fast. I then planned to do a low, slow pass with a full burner pull-up into the vertical...   My full burner climb ended ignominiously when one reheat failed to light!   The mecca of all things truckie! Brize Norton.   The horrors of learning Morse Code!   The Campaign Against Aviation   The PA34 of British Aerospace which I flew at Prestwick   Finally, the proud holder of an ATPL   At last, the sniff of a job!   Images shown under creative commons licence with thanks to the MOD, the RAF, the CAA, Chris Lofting and BAe Systems.

Log book stories still abound but I’m now on the last volume of my small collection of RAF Form 414s.  Unbeknown to me back then, my time in the Air Force was fast coming to a close. When I was offered the job on the Tornado it was on the understanding that I would serve an additional year to amortise the cost of training and I was now in coming up to the completion of my term of service, 19 years or aged 38 which ever was longer.  If I signed on again it would be to age 55.  What's more, I needed to make up my mind as the RAF wanted 18 months of notice of my decision… would I stay or leave.   The F3 Tornado   He used a mixture of chicken entrails, throwing bones and gazing into his crystal balls to tell me my fortune   With their glory days behind them the young guns often treated Specialist Aircrew with scant respect and as their skills grew tired and their experience became tarnished with age they sometimes had little to offer but old war stories   The KC135 equipped for probe and drogue refuelling

In the words of it’s benefactor, “It has been described as the most exclusive Club in the world, but the entrance fee is something most men would not care to pay and the conditions of membership are arduous in the extreme.” Other clubs that sprang up during the World Wars are more a measure of the bravado, luck or good fortune of its members to make use of an aircraft’s emergency survival equipment but the club I will tell you about today is one that honoured the grim stubbornness of its members to overcome the pain and disfigurement of their injuries with stoical good (if rather dark) humour.  The Guinea Pig Club. The badge of the Guinea Pig Club   McIndoe   McIndoe and his patients   Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to the RAF, East Grinstead museum, the Library of Congress, the RCAF, the IWM, the RAF Benevolent fund and the Queen Victoria hospital.

My logbook tales continue with my tour on Tremblers flying the F3 Tornado which had got off to a difficult start when our compliment of brand new aircraft were shipped off to other squadrons and, in return, we received the dregs of the RAF’s Tornado ADVs.  They certainly weren’t in the best of condition and I began to think I was fated when I was forced to divert following a generator failure and X-drive clutch failure on an air test but then I was looking forward to leading a detachment down to Coningsby to fight F-16s over the North Sea in the Air Combat Manoeuvring range for a week.   The British Aerospace North Sea ACMI served UK and European Air Forces   Tremblers formate on the RAF's new E3D Airborne Early Warning aircraft.   An F3 Tornado fires an AIM 9 Sidewinder missile   A piper plays at sunset   A 100 Squadron Hawk trainer   An F3 on approach   The K2 Victor Air to Air Refuelling tanker trailing all 3 hoses   Italian firemen hose down a Tornado canopy as it was too hot to close prope

It’s the summer of 1971 and Helen Reddy is singing about hiking down to the canyon store to buy a bottle wine and having such a good time.  I have no doubt that the nine prominent Salt Lake members of the Fishy Trout and Drinking Society returning from their deep sea fishing trip were feeling equally relaxed as they boarded their flight back home from Los Angeles. They were getting onto a Hughes Airwest DC-9, Flight 706, the forerunner of Capt Jeff’s beloved Mad Dog and Angry Puppy, belonging to a new regional airline purchased and renamed by Howard Hughes.  A little before them, a U.S. Marine Corps F-4B Phantom II, Bureau Number 151 458, departed Mountain Home Air Force Base in southwest Idaho, bound for Naval Air Station Fallon in Nevada.... and so the story starts! A Hughes Airwest DC-9   A U.S. Marine Corps F-4J Phantom II,   An ANA B-727   A JAF Japanese built F-86F Sabre   The B-727 and F86 tracks   The flight paths of the DC-9 and the Marine F-4   The F4's position as would be seen from t

The numeric version of three previous Tales covering the A to Z of Aviation.  Now we look at what numbers might mean to pilots?   Babylonian numeric text   The Japanese Zero fighter   A 'tongue in cheek' three engined Airbus   The twin hulled S55 flying boat   The North American F-82   Flying in Vic   The Piaggio Avanti EVO   The Old Course with RAF Leuchars in the background   The 10 ton Grand Slam bomb   The Seven Seas appeal of the DC-7C   The NASA B-52 "Balls 8"   Red 10   Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin, Kogo, Arpingstone, images from the Public Domain, the USAF, the RAF, Scott Cormie, Swissair and Delta, NASA,

As you may recall I was undergoing the training course for the Tornado F3 Air Defence Variant having completed four previous flying tours.  Now being a senior officer it made the job of working as a student again a little more bearable. The Old Pilot's logbook tales continue: An RAF Tornado Air Defence Variant   67° wing sweep   Ait to Air refuelling from the wing stations of an RAF VC10     We watched in horror as a motley collection of hanger queens and scruffy excuses for aeroplanes were delivered, bent and leaking, onto our aprons   Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to the Royal Air Force, the MOD, Adrian Pingstone, Chris Lofting, J Thomas and Pràban na Linne Ltd.

Form 414, my RAF Logbook continues with me leaving Australia and the Hornet unhappily in my rear vision mirror as I was heading back to Blighty and a cold winter in Lincolnshire.  No 229 Operational Conversion Unit was the training unit that would give me my first taste of the Mighty Fin, the Swing Wing Super Jet, Mother Riley’s Cardboard Aeroplane otherwise known as the Air Defence Variant of the Tornado.   Not just a British aircraft, the Tornado was a project involving Germany and Italy as well.   A cutaway of the ADV Tornado   Just some of the multitude of limitations that Tornado pilots were required to memorise   The Tornado cockpit showing the wing sweep lever   The Mighty Fins of 43 and 111 Squadrons   The RB199 lacked sufficient thrust to allow the F3 to perform adequately at medium and high level but it did have a way of going backwards!   Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Surruno, Panavia, BAe, the RAF Museum, Mike Freer, Kevan Dickin, Chris Lofting and the RAF.