Plane Tales

As part of the 75th anniversary of the D Day invasion of Nazi held Europe in 1944, Douglas DC3s, C47s and Dakotas came from around the world to reenact the Airborne troops parachute drops that first put Allied boots on the ground.  In this interview I chat to Nick Comacho, a pilot of the C47, Betsy’s Biscuit Bomber, that had flown over from the States to Duxford in England to take part.

Refuelling the C47 prior to a flight from Duxford.

The weather at Duxford was a trifle damp at times.

The reenactment parachutists gear up prior to getting airborne.

Betsy’s Biscuit Bomber fires up.

A wonderful array of vintage aircraft… quite a sight to see.

I take another dip into my flying log book, RAF Form 414. We catch up with the young ‘Old Pilot’ as he joins his first operational squadron, No 43(F) Sqn, The Fighting Cocks!  I was faced with a further 6 months of training to become a fully Combat Ready fighter pilot.  Relying on my faltering memory I said that the jamming Canberras were on 100 Sqn… they were, of course, actually from No 360 Squadron!

The F4 Phantoms of The Fighting Cocks.

Air to Air refuelling.

The Q shed at RAF Leuchars.

My flying suit badges including the treasured Squadron patch that was only worn by combat ready aircrew.

The Falkland islands, a British Sovereign Territory, had been invaded by Argentinian military forces and in response the UK assembled a task force to sail the 8,000 miles required to dispatch the invaders and free the British residents there.  Amongst the RAF Harrier pilots onboard HMS Hermes was Flt Lt Dave Morgan who took part in the first Harrier attack on the airfield at Stanley, the capital of the Falklands.  This is the story of this mission.

Argentinian soldiers occupy Stanley.

The route of the British Task Force.

Royal Navy Sea Harriers.

RAF Harriers at Stanley airfield after the successful recapture of the Falklands.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Malvinas.talam, Stephen L. Batiz USN, USN Defense Imagery, Department of History United States Military Academy and Pete Butt.

Two of the most weird looking aircraft ever devised were actually immensely valuable in the development of the Hawker Harrier Jump Jet and in the training of astronauts!  This is the story of two flying bedsteads!

The NASA Lunar Landing Research Vehicle.

The original flying bedstead, more properly known as the Rolls-Royce Thrust Measuring Rig.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Disney, User:Geni and NASA.

Lt David Steeves was living the dream.  He was a USAF fighter pilot and instructor flying the T33A shooting star when his jet failed him as he flew over the Sierra’s mountain range.  He ejected and then survived a traumatic fight for survival amongst the rugged terrain… he ought to have been hailed a hero.  Enter the newspaper man Clay Blair and David Steeves life abruptly turned into a nightmare!

DAYTON, Ohio — Lockheed T-33A Shooting Star at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.

Mt Whitney of the Sierra Nevada mountain range.

The Sierra Nevadas.

David Steeves on the day of his rescue.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to the US Gov, USAF, Cullen328, Jeffrey Pang and Alejandro Pena.

The weird and wacky names that aircraft have don’t usually include those of insects, particularly parasitic ones but there is no accounting for taste!  From Gnats to Fleas, June Bugs to Crickets, aviation has them all and in this tale we find out about many of them.

The dainty but impressive Folland Gnat which was only slightly larger than the single seat version, the Midge.

The BE2, one of which was unsuccessfully launched from beneath a blimp.

The parasitic Sparrowhawk fighter suspended under the Airship USS Macron.

Another parasite, an F-84 is launched from underneath a modified B-36 Peacemaker.

Two parasites at once… the unlikely combination of a pair of F-84s being towed by the wingtips of a B-29.

The tiny Starr Bumblebee II which was, at the time, the world’s smallest piloted aircraft.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Nick-D, H M Benner, the Royal Navy, Afcrna and the USAF.

Military pilots aren’t the only ones in danger whilst cruising the upper reaches of the atmosphere.  Passenger jets can be equally vulnerable with tragic results.  These are the stories of two aircraft that sadly flew on to their destruction, with nobody controlling, carrying their unfortunate passengers to their death.

Payne Stewart.

The accident Learjet.

The Learjet’s flight path.

A Helios B737.

The flight path of Helios Flight 522.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Alan Lebeda, Supergolfdude, NTSB and AAIASB.

Military fighter aircraft that fly themselves around without their pilot on board is unusual, to say the least.  Sadly this is often a situation that has tragic consequences.  This tale is of three such events; happily one has safe outcome for the pilot… the others were not so lucky.

An early Harrier prototype, the P1127.

The Sea Harrier.

A 75 Sqn F/A-18 in the foreground during a Red Flag exercise in the US.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Alan Wilson, Billy Bunting MOD, USMC and USAF.

So feared were these pilots, flying almost silently over the German positions at night to attack any movement or light, that the Nazis called them Night Witches.  With just the wind whistling through the wires of their old Po-2 biplanes, again and again the brave young women of the Soviet Air Force flew with such skill that many were made Heroes of the Soviet Union.

Senior Lieutenant Irina Sebrova who flew 1,008 missions.

The wood-and-canvas Polikarpov Po-2 biplane.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Douzeff.  Other images from public domain.

Recorded on the anniversary of the world’s worst air accident.  A enormous loss of life that highlights the vital importance of standard radio procedures and the pressures of command.  A word that still puts an icy hand around my heart when I hear it… Tenerife.

The KLM 747.

The Pan Am 747.

Images under Creative Commons licence with thanks to Dutch National Archives, clipperarctic and Michel Gilliand.