Hi.
Hello from an oldie, 81 today. Did National Service in the Royal Artillery, three months after demob I had joined the Royal Air Force. Trained as electrical fitter, joined 617 Squadron working on Avro Lincolns and then the EE Canberra. Did 6 months detachment in Malaya. I have a few tales from the RAF, see what you think.
Theres a new erk on the dispersal and I get the job of showing him round the Lincoln. It was a cold day so we took our coffee and buns into the nose out of the wind. Break over, we tidied up and before I could stop him, the lad threw his coffee dregs down what looked like a drain in the floor. It wasn't a drain, worse! there was a bang and a thud and a rubber dinghy came out of its housing and inflated. The look alike drain was the flotation switch for the dinghy in case of a ditching over the sea. The lad got 7 days CC and had to pay £5 towards the cost of restowing the dinghy.
I work with an Ex RAF chap in his 70's who worked on Radar for Vulcans, Victors etc.
Like yourself, he has many tales from the past which I always love to hear so thanks for sharing yours.
One of my favourites is about the crew that were servicing a jet were always misplacing tools. The test pilot took the jet up, flew inverted and collected all the nuts, bolts and tools out of the canopy and then handed them to the station officer on landing. Then he went round the ground crew trying to find out whose tools they were and who left all the junk in the cockpit haha.
21/08/2011, 9:57 PM
