Leigh joined the RAAF in 1978 to train as a pilot but was scrubbed after a few months and transitioned to training as an Air Electronics Officer (AEO) at the RAAF School of Air Navigation.

He flew on the P-3C Orion and was employed in operations across the Indo-Pacific region on maritime patrol surveillance operations in the region - which included both usual surface surveillance of the region and operations alongside the US against Soviet submarines transiting the area.

He also had the opportunity to track Soviet SSBNs in the NE Pacific operating with the US Navy.

He details many incidents during his career including an “archaeological” mission, accidentally causing a diplomatic incident, as well as monitoring the splash-down and recovery of re-entry vehicles used to test the heat tiles for the Soviet Buran space shuttle.

I’m delighted to welcome Leigh Collins to our Cold War Conversation.

Episode extras including book recommendations, videos and photos here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode332/

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00:00 Intro

01:49 Early interest in aviation and the military

02:47 Aspirations in the RAAF

04:08 Failure as a pilot

06:43 Length of Orion missions

09:05 Soviet naval activity around Australia in the 1980s

16:52 RAF 617 Squadron held their annual reunion in Australia

20:42 Use of GPS on the Orion

24:23 Use of astral navigation using a Sextant

27:59 Viewing the cockpit of the Vulcan

31:10 Monitoring a Russian diesel submarine

33:13 Soviet trawlers during exercises

34:23 Exercise Silent Pearl

43:49 Soviet Buran Space shuttle test bed recoveries

52:52 Incident just out of Darwin where the crew ditched

56:50 Operation Gateway, Australia's long-standing anti-piracy operation

01:03:39 Threat of China during the cold war

01:07:53 September 1993 deployment as a submarine observer

01:12:23 Leigh worked with Sue Boyd from episode 151

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