Australia and New Zealand launch military evacuation flights from New Caledonia
The Australian military has launched evacuation flights to repatriate civilians stranded in New Caledonia amid civil unrest.
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) transports evacuated more than 100 tourists from Australia and elsewhere on 21 May, according to Canberra. Photos released by the RAAF show armed military personnel helping holiday-attired visitors in the island’s capital Noumea board a Lockheed Martin C-130J cargo aircraft with tail number A97-450. Flight tracking data shows a C-130 bearing that registration arrived in Noumea at 15:14 local time on 21 May. Less than 2h later, at 16:48, the same craft departed Noumea Magenta airport for Brisbane.
A separate C-130 from the Royal New Zealand Air Force was also dispatched (more on the RNZAF evacuations later in this issue).
The overseas French territory erupted into violence and unrest on 13 May over a law passed in Paris that would expand voting rights for non-indigenous residents of the South Pacific island. At least six people have since been reported dead, with more than 1,000 French gendarmes deployed to restore order. Local authorities say commercial flight cancellations have stranded an estimated 3,200 people in New Caledonia, although some of those were from flights attempting to enter the territory.
ABC reports that more than 300 Australian visitors have been stranded in the capital Noumea since rioting began. The Australian Defence Force (ADF) launched two evacuation flights as part of Canberra’s assisted departure response, the department says. “Defence conducted a number of ADF flights to assist with the repatriation of Australian nationals, permanent visa holders and approved foreign nationals wishing to return to Australia from New Caledonia,” the ADF says, noting the flights were requested by Australia’s diplomatic service.
French authorities are reportedly coordinating additional flights, including for individuals located outside the Noumea region. Canberra says it “stands ready” to send additional evacuation aircraft if Paris grants approval. The office of President Emmanuel Macron said on 21 May that the French leader will visit the island in the coming days in an attempt to defuse the situation.
In addition to tourism, New Caledonia is a major mining hub and is one the world’s top producers of nickel.
FlightGlobal
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) transports evacuated more than 100 tourists from Australia and elsewhere on 21 May, according to Canberra. Photos released by the RAAF show armed military personnel helping holiday-attired visitors in the island’s capital Noumea board a Lockheed Martin C-130J cargo aircraft with tail number A97-450. Flight tracking data shows a C-130 bearing that registration arrived in Noumea at 15:14 local time on 21 May. Less than 2h later, at 16:48, the same craft departed Noumea Magenta airport for Brisbane.
A separate C-130 from the Royal New Zealand Air Force was also dispatched (more on the RNZAF evacuations later in this issue).
The overseas French territory erupted into violence and unrest on 13 May over a law passed in Paris that would expand voting rights for non-indigenous residents of the South Pacific island. At least six people have since been reported dead, with more than 1,000 French gendarmes deployed to restore order. Local authorities say commercial flight cancellations have stranded an estimated 3,200 people in New Caledonia, although some of those were from flights attempting to enter the territory.
ABC reports that more than 300 Australian visitors have been stranded in the capital Noumea since rioting began. The Australian Defence Force (ADF) launched two evacuation flights as part of Canberra’s assisted departure response, the department says. “Defence conducted a number of ADF flights to assist with the repatriation of Australian nationals, permanent visa holders and approved foreign nationals wishing to return to Australia from New Caledonia,” the ADF says, noting the flights were requested by Australia’s diplomatic service.
French authorities are reportedly coordinating additional flights, including for individuals located outside the Noumea region. Canberra says it “stands ready” to send additional evacuation aircraft if Paris grants approval. The office of President Emmanuel Macron said on 21 May that the French leader will visit the island in the coming days in an attempt to defuse the situation.
In addition to tourism, New Caledonia is a major mining hub and is one the world’s top producers of nickel.
FlightGlobal
Andy Kay, Bowling Green, KY
Subject: Re: UKMAMS OBA OBB #043024
Hi Tony,
Great newsletter. Sorry I am late with this but hopefully you can squeeze in it next time as part of the 'visiting aircraft' article. Northolt was probably the epicenter of weird and wonderful visiting aircraft; Dutch, German French, you name it we probably saw it. Probably most of them were carrying diplomatic pouches headed for the various embassies in London and leaving with all sorts of souvenirs - we weren't allowed to touch anything that came off most of them. I always regret not taking more photos when I was there, but we didn't have a camera with unlimited space for pictures in our back pockets back then!
The most memorable visitor that I remember was an Indian Navy Super Constellation that used to pop in every now and then, and would leave full of household goods and (as I recall) boxes of ammunition. The thing used to be so overloaded that when it took off everybody would hold their breath as it struggled to get airborne and depart over the top of the married quarter patch on the other side of the West End Road.
The best visitors though were the Royal Navy Sea Herons which always carried a WREN on board (as cabin crew I assume), and this was also in the day of the female sailors wearing black stockings as part of their uniforms, there was no shortage of movers meeting those when they arrived, all volunteering to assist with whatever was needed.
Best regards,
Andy
Subject: Re: UKMAMS OBA OBB #043024
Hi Tony,
Great newsletter. Sorry I am late with this but hopefully you can squeeze in it next time as part of the 'visiting aircraft' article. Northolt was probably the epicenter of weird and wonderful visiting aircraft; Dutch, German French, you name it we probably saw it. Probably most of them were carrying diplomatic pouches headed for the various embassies in London and leaving with all sorts of souvenirs - we weren't allowed to touch anything that came off most of them. I always regret not taking more photos when I was there, but we didn't have a camera with unlimited space for pictures in our back pockets back then!
The most memorable visitor that I remember was an Indian Navy Super Constellation that used to pop in every now and then, and would leave full of household goods and (as I recall) boxes of ammunition. The thing used to be so overloaded that when it took off everybody would hold their breath as it struggled to get airborne and depart over the top of the married quarter patch on the other side of the West End Road.
The best visitors though were the Royal Navy Sea Herons which always carried a WREN on board (as cabin crew I assume), and this was also in the day of the female sailors wearing black stockings as part of their uniforms, there was no shortage of movers meeting those when they arrived, all volunteering to assist with whatever was needed.
Best regards,
Andy
A pair of Royal Navy Sea Herons - and a pair of black-stockinged WRENs
From: Barry Tappenden, Shortstown, Beds
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Good afternoon Tony,
Lots of memorable exercises, but one that stands out was our trip to South Vietnam during the hostilities. Our task was "Save the Children" taking vital supplies all over South Vietman. We were taken by the "beautiful" Beverley, the only beast to land in some of the most remote airfields. Some of the sights that beheld us were unbelievable, some areas we landed in where just like a film set with so many "John Wayne's" all with pearl handled revolvers. We watched the B52's bomb relentless areas of jungles and then be followed up with a dusting of "weed killer". Every time we departed Saigon the Air Traffic Controllers would send the aircraft captain the same message over and over again "RAF Beverley, your undercarriage hasn't retracted".
A few days before we left we were invited to the British Consulate for a farewell thank you drink. A massive, impressive building with marble floors. Everyone on their best behaviour trying not to draw attention to ourselves, guess what - I dropped a very expensive crystal glass on the marble floor; the sound was incredible and the glass covered the floor in a thousand or more pieces. Before I could react a very beautiful female Attache grabbed my elbow and told me not to react and allow the steward to clean it up. How the other half lives!
Best regards
Barry
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Good afternoon Tony,
Lots of memorable exercises, but one that stands out was our trip to South Vietnam during the hostilities. Our task was "Save the Children" taking vital supplies all over South Vietman. We were taken by the "beautiful" Beverley, the only beast to land in some of the most remote airfields. Some of the sights that beheld us were unbelievable, some areas we landed in where just like a film set with so many "John Wayne's" all with pearl handled revolvers. We watched the B52's bomb relentless areas of jungles and then be followed up with a dusting of "weed killer". Every time we departed Saigon the Air Traffic Controllers would send the aircraft captain the same message over and over again "RAF Beverley, your undercarriage hasn't retracted".
A few days before we left we were invited to the British Consulate for a farewell thank you drink. A massive, impressive building with marble floors. Everyone on their best behaviour trying not to draw attention to ourselves, guess what - I dropped a very expensive crystal glass on the marble floor; the sound was incredible and the glass covered the floor in a thousand or more pieces. Before I could react a very beautiful female Attache grabbed my elbow and told me not to react and allow the steward to clean it up. How the other half lives!
Best regards
Barry
26 August 1967 - Dalat, South Vietnam - Blackburn Beverley XB264
500 Cuddly Giraffes Take to the Skies
For the second time Royal Air Force Brize Norton has helped raise money for Great Ormond Street Hospital by sending hundreds of cuddly toy giraffes on an air-to-air refuelling mission onboard an RAF Voyager.
Last year, the Giraffes on Tour team raised £4000 by flying 291 giraffes onboard a Voyager, with each toy sponsored for the flight. This year the team upped the passenger capacity to 500 giraffes, flying them on an evening air-to-air refuelling mission. The giraffes are now being sold on the 'Giraffes on Tour' website, with proceeds going to Great Ormond Street. Since the flight sales of giraffes and other merchandise have exceeded £10,000.
Flight Lieutenant Mark Scott, 10 Squadron Voyager pilot said: “The charity’s fundraising for Great Ormond Street Hospital has been close to my heart for several years, and it’s an honour for me to use a “normal” day at work to help them do something extraordinary.
"After our successful night air-to-air refuelling training with an Atlas A400M we brought the giraffes safely back to RAF Brize Norton, ready for their next adventures as they get sold to the public, raising even more money. They were all so well behaved during the flight, and I think they enjoyed their night out with the RAF!”
Giraffes On Tour has seen several cuddly giraffes fly in RAF aircraft over the years raising money in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital, in memory of Louise Conway who sadly lost her battle with Leukaemia in 2013.
Giraffes on Tour founder Ian Conway said: “When landing at 2am after spending 24 hours of excitement about the amazing opportunity the RAF has given us, I was hit the enormity and reality of what this incredible adventure means to so many children and their families at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. Our 500 giraffes all had the most amazing time and we do hope that they can find new homes! We at 'Giraffes on Tour' cannot thank the RAF enough!”
raf.mod.uk
Flight Lieutenant Mark Scott, 10 Squadron Voyager pilot said: “The charity’s fundraising for Great Ormond Street Hospital has been close to my heart for several years, and it’s an honour for me to use a “normal” day at work to help them do something extraordinary.
"After our successful night air-to-air refuelling training with an Atlas A400M we brought the giraffes safely back to RAF Brize Norton, ready for their next adventures as they get sold to the public, raising even more money. They were all so well behaved during the flight, and I think they enjoyed their night out with the RAF!”
Giraffes On Tour has seen several cuddly giraffes fly in RAF aircraft over the years raising money in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital, in memory of Louise Conway who sadly lost her battle with Leukaemia in 2013.
Giraffes on Tour founder Ian Conway said: “When landing at 2am after spending 24 hours of excitement about the amazing opportunity the RAF has given us, I was hit the enormity and reality of what this incredible adventure means to so many children and their families at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. Our 500 giraffes all had the most amazing time and we do hope that they can find new homes! We at 'Giraffes on Tour' cannot thank the RAF enough!”
raf.mod.uk
From: Stephen Davey, Tadcaster, North Yorks
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Tony,
The first exercise I was deployed on probably wouldn't be classed as memorable, but it's still worth a mention. In May 1977, I was deployed with members of the Mobility Flight attached to No. 1 (F) Sqdn at RAF Wittering, to RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire for an exercise precursor to going to Norway. We were under canvas on the far side of the airfield and it rained all week and I mean it absolutely heaved it down! That put me off camping for life and I never did get that trip to Norway.
The second exercise was whilst I was at RAF Binbrook; it was certainly more memorable and it took place in July/August 1980 with 5 Sqdn APC (Armament Practice Camp). As a Corporal Supplier I was responsible for the FAP ( Flyaway Pack). Well, 5 weeks at RAF Akrotiri under the Cyprus sun with all the KEO beer and brandy you could drink and BBQ's every night it was more like a holiday than actual work and the complete opposite to what I had ensured at Leeming!
Happy day's indeed.
All the best, Steve
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Tony,
The first exercise I was deployed on probably wouldn't be classed as memorable, but it's still worth a mention. In May 1977, I was deployed with members of the Mobility Flight attached to No. 1 (F) Sqdn at RAF Wittering, to RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire for an exercise precursor to going to Norway. We were under canvas on the far side of the airfield and it rained all week and I mean it absolutely heaved it down! That put me off camping for life and I never did get that trip to Norway.
The second exercise was whilst I was at RAF Binbrook; it was certainly more memorable and it took place in July/August 1980 with 5 Sqdn APC (Armament Practice Camp). As a Corporal Supplier I was responsible for the FAP ( Flyaway Pack). Well, 5 weeks at RAF Akrotiri under the Cyprus sun with all the KEO beer and brandy you could drink and BBQ's every night it was more like a holiday than actual work and the complete opposite to what I had ensured at Leeming!
Happy day's indeed.
All the best, Steve
From: Peter Clayton, Wroughton, Wilts
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
One of my memorable exercises involved 2 flights on C130's from Lyneham to Tromso. 'A' Team was tasked to deploy 'Exercise Atlas Express' from Lyneham to Tromso on March 1st 1976. When we landed at Tromso, there was snow everywhere, not really surprising for the Arctic Circle and thankfully we had prepped the Land Rover with studded tyres. They certainly came in handy on the roads into town that were covered in ice. We handled 6 C130's over the next 2 days and returned to Lyneham on 3rd March.
Two weeks later I was tasked with another UKMAMS Team to do the recovery of 'Atlas Express' from Tromso. During the team briefing I suggested that we fit studded tyres to the Land Rover again having told the team about the snow and ice 2 weeks earlier. It was agreed that we would go with my suggestion and we departed Lyneham on 14th March 1976. We landed at Tromso at 1550 hrs and when the ramp was lowered there was not a flake of snow anywhere! You can imagine the comments coming my way. Anyway, we made our way into town on the nice tarmac roads with some strange noises coming from the tyres; I was mortified and wished I had kept my mouth shut during the team brief.
On waking up the next morning in the hotel, I threw the curtains open to be greeted with a complete whiteout; it had snowed heavily overnight. I have to admit there was a smug look on my face at breakfast that morning. My log book shows that we returned to Lyneham on 18th March having handled 14 C130's over 4 days.
Thanks for reading.
Peter Clayton
UKMAMS 1975 - 78
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
One of my memorable exercises involved 2 flights on C130's from Lyneham to Tromso. 'A' Team was tasked to deploy 'Exercise Atlas Express' from Lyneham to Tromso on March 1st 1976. When we landed at Tromso, there was snow everywhere, not really surprising for the Arctic Circle and thankfully we had prepped the Land Rover with studded tyres. They certainly came in handy on the roads into town that were covered in ice. We handled 6 C130's over the next 2 days and returned to Lyneham on 3rd March.
Two weeks later I was tasked with another UKMAMS Team to do the recovery of 'Atlas Express' from Tromso. During the team briefing I suggested that we fit studded tyres to the Land Rover again having told the team about the snow and ice 2 weeks earlier. It was agreed that we would go with my suggestion and we departed Lyneham on 14th March 1976. We landed at Tromso at 1550 hrs and when the ramp was lowered there was not a flake of snow anywhere! You can imagine the comments coming my way. Anyway, we made our way into town on the nice tarmac roads with some strange noises coming from the tyres; I was mortified and wished I had kept my mouth shut during the team brief.
On waking up the next morning in the hotel, I threw the curtains open to be greeted with a complete whiteout; it had snowed heavily overnight. I have to admit there was a smug look on my face at breakfast that morning. My log book shows that we returned to Lyneham on 18th March having handled 14 C130's over 4 days.
Thanks for reading.
Peter Clayton
UKMAMS 1975 - 78
The UK has yet to find buyers for the retired C-130J Super Hercules aircraft
The Royal Air Force (RAF) of the United Kingdom continues to search for buyers for its C-130J Super Hercules aircraft, which were retired from active service in June 2023, marked by a farewell flight. In total, there are about 14 units for sale, including one aircraft in the C-130J (C5) version and thirteen in the C-130J-30 variant with extended fuselage (C4).
The Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA) of the British Ministry of Defence stated that there are several potential destinations on the list but none have made progress: “The Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA) is managing the sales program on behalf of the Ministry of Defence and continues to actively seek sales with several potential buyers.”
It is worth noting, among the mentioned potential destinations, the interest of the Greek Air Force in acquiring some of the C-130J Super Hercules aircraft retired by the RAF. Reports from the specialized media Janes dated at the end of 2022 indicated initial contacts between the Greek Ministry of National Defence and the UK-based company Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, which was selected as the main contractor to provide technical support for the future users of the platform.
The process of divesting C-130J aircraft by the United Kingdom began earlier than planned in the initial plans, responding at the time to a defense funding crisis that necessitated a restructuring of the armed forces as a whole. To address the loss of capabilities associated with the Super Hercules, such as the deployment of airborne forces, the RAF began using its new A400M aircraft manufactured by Airbus, of which it has about 22 units.
It is useful to recall that the RAF’s C-130Js were acquired in 1993, purchased as replacements for the old Hercules C.Mk 1 units, also known as the “Legacy” fleet. At the time of undertaking this operation (in December of that year), the J version of the Super Hercules was the most modern on the market, of which 10 units were incorporated. An additional 15 aircraft in the C-130J-30 version with extended fuselage were also purchased at that time. In nearly 20 years of service, the RAF’s Super Hercules flew many more flight hours than initially projected; however, their retirement, as mentioned, also came accelerated, a full 10 years earlier.
zona-militar.com
The Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA) of the British Ministry of Defence stated that there are several potential destinations on the list but none have made progress: “The Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA) is managing the sales program on behalf of the Ministry of Defence and continues to actively seek sales with several potential buyers.”
It is worth noting, among the mentioned potential destinations, the interest of the Greek Air Force in acquiring some of the C-130J Super Hercules aircraft retired by the RAF. Reports from the specialized media Janes dated at the end of 2022 indicated initial contacts between the Greek Ministry of National Defence and the UK-based company Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, which was selected as the main contractor to provide technical support for the future users of the platform.
The process of divesting C-130J aircraft by the United Kingdom began earlier than planned in the initial plans, responding at the time to a defense funding crisis that necessitated a restructuring of the armed forces as a whole. To address the loss of capabilities associated with the Super Hercules, such as the deployment of airborne forces, the RAF began using its new A400M aircraft manufactured by Airbus, of which it has about 22 units.
It is useful to recall that the RAF’s C-130Js were acquired in 1993, purchased as replacements for the old Hercules C.Mk 1 units, also known as the “Legacy” fleet. At the time of undertaking this operation (in December of that year), the J version of the Super Hercules was the most modern on the market, of which 10 units were incorporated. An additional 15 aircraft in the C-130J-30 version with extended fuselage were also purchased at that time. In nearly 20 years of service, the RAF’s Super Hercules flew many more flight hours than initially projected; however, their retirement, as mentioned, also came accelerated, a full 10 years earlier.
zona-militar.com
From: David Powell, Princes Risborough, Bucks
Subject: Memorable Exercises - My Last Exercise
Hi Tony,
You asked for stories involving exercises. However, given that most, if not all, of my repeatable exercise-related tales have already appeared in past issues of these Briefs, you may be interested in what turned out to be, not just my very last exercise, but I like to think my first very own complete with a mini-multi-national air force exercise! This was Exercise Ample Train 92/2 in September 1992.
First, a bit of musical office chairs history to explain how I came to be involved. Back in 15 December 1971, I signed my last trim sheet before jumping on to the very last aircraft, Belfast XR370 "Ajax" on the very last flight out of what had been RAF Sharjah. Gulf MAMF was my last real movements appointment, although later on, I did get a (subsequently cancelled) drafting to be a SAMO. However, compared with some colleagues, I still went on to have a fascinating career, mainly involving an aspect of operational logistics. This ended up in a Wing Commander post in the MoD’s RAF Logistics Operations Branch in December 1989, just in time for the first Gulf War. This post involved logistics in the widest sense, excluding movements (covered by my colleagues in Mov Ops). However, to my surprise, it did include 1st Line Engineering operational support. In addition to a couple of RAF Equipment/Supply specialist Squadron Leaders, the team included two RAF Engineer Squadron Leaders for the engineering aspects.
I also inherited a NATO role as Chairman of a NATO Working Group promoting interoperability, particular for front-line aircraft operational turnarounds, refuelling and rearming while a visiting El Capitano was briefing on where was he as well as planning his next sortie.
Subject: Memorable Exercises - My Last Exercise
Hi Tony,
You asked for stories involving exercises. However, given that most, if not all, of my repeatable exercise-related tales have already appeared in past issues of these Briefs, you may be interested in what turned out to be, not just my very last exercise, but I like to think my first very own complete with a mini-multi-national air force exercise! This was Exercise Ample Train 92/2 in September 1992.
First, a bit of musical office chairs history to explain how I came to be involved. Back in 15 December 1971, I signed my last trim sheet before jumping on to the very last aircraft, Belfast XR370 "Ajax" on the very last flight out of what had been RAF Sharjah. Gulf MAMF was my last real movements appointment, although later on, I did get a (subsequently cancelled) drafting to be a SAMO. However, compared with some colleagues, I still went on to have a fascinating career, mainly involving an aspect of operational logistics. This ended up in a Wing Commander post in the MoD’s RAF Logistics Operations Branch in December 1989, just in time for the first Gulf War. This post involved logistics in the widest sense, excluding movements (covered by my colleagues in Mov Ops). However, to my surprise, it did include 1st Line Engineering operational support. In addition to a couple of RAF Equipment/Supply specialist Squadron Leaders, the team included two RAF Engineer Squadron Leaders for the engineering aspects.
I also inherited a NATO role as Chairman of a NATO Working Group promoting interoperability, particular for front-line aircraft operational turnarounds, refuelling and rearming while a visiting El Capitano was briefing on where was he as well as planning his next sortie.
One element of this engineering related work was the series of Ample Train (initially Ample Gain until 1989) Exercises held once or twice a year to enable ground crews to acquire experience in international aircraft cross-servicing. This meant that aircraft from any of the member countries participating in the NATO aircraft cross-servicing programme could get a first-line turnaround, refuel rearm and continue their missions. The last of these exercises was organized in 2005, and ours was Ample Train 1992/2, held at the Italian Air Force base at Gioia del Colle (GDC), about an hour’s drive south of Bari in Southern Italy. Excuse the vague details, but they are still probably classified somewhere. Anyway, for our exercise we had 7 or 8 nations/air forces providing, some 2 dozen bomber, recce, and air defence aircraft ranging from nippy little IAF 104s to great big USAF F111s, with quite a few Tornados and F-16s in different markings.
The basic outline was fly-in on the Tuesday, setup detachments on the Wednesday; live operations Thursday to Saturday morning, except for the French Jaguars; they went home on the Friday. The rest of the weekend was R&R for the visitors, and then another couple of days on Monday (including the revived French!) and Tuesday. Meanwhile, prior to prepping the first launches on Thursday, various technical types, usually some of the more senior ground crew, would be swapped around the various detachments.
The air operations were pretty impressive. The multi-national bomber force would launch at about 10:00 and stooge around the Adriatic for a bit to exercise the various air and ground controllers including the odd AWACS which came into join the multinational fun. Then they would be joined by the recce aircraft. When the appropriate air defence assets had identified and confirmed a threat to GDC, after coffee at about half eleven, the air defence aircraft would launch. At around midday the bombers would attack, closely followed by the recce aircraft and then the returning air defenders.
Then, the purpose of my exercise would really come into play. All the aircraft had to be turned round, refuelled and rearmed with (drill) weapons and ammunition, ready for the afternoon’s repeat performance. At the end of the day, there would be an opportunity to switch personnel for the next day’s preparations and repeat twice daily performance.
A couple of things stood out for me. Most of the flying was in 4-ship formations for the ground attack bombers and pairs for the others, and these were invariably flown in very successful multi-national formations. Much of the success of the air operations I put down to the relatively low-key image of this engineer’s benefit week. So, no real interest or smarty point scoring involving senior management and headquarters staff. Instead, the various detachment ops guys just got on with pragmatically devising detailed air procedures and tactics etc., while on the ground the interoperability procedures had a good work-out.
So, what did I have to do? Not a lot, except the other abiding memory of putting on the ear defenders for the twice daily highlight of going along to the nearby runway threshold. With the emphasis on ‘near’ to watch and listen to my own multi-national air force returning to Gioia del Colle. Something, the recruiting officer had never suggested!
Stay safe
David Powell F Team UKMAMS RAF Abingdon 1967-69
The air operations were pretty impressive. The multi-national bomber force would launch at about 10:00 and stooge around the Adriatic for a bit to exercise the various air and ground controllers including the odd AWACS which came into join the multinational fun. Then they would be joined by the recce aircraft. When the appropriate air defence assets had identified and confirmed a threat to GDC, after coffee at about half eleven, the air defence aircraft would launch. At around midday the bombers would attack, closely followed by the recce aircraft and then the returning air defenders.
Then, the purpose of my exercise would really come into play. All the aircraft had to be turned round, refuelled and rearmed with (drill) weapons and ammunition, ready for the afternoon’s repeat performance. At the end of the day, there would be an opportunity to switch personnel for the next day’s preparations and repeat twice daily performance.
A couple of things stood out for me. Most of the flying was in 4-ship formations for the ground attack bombers and pairs for the others, and these were invariably flown in very successful multi-national formations. Much of the success of the air operations I put down to the relatively low-key image of this engineer’s benefit week. So, no real interest or smarty point scoring involving senior management and headquarters staff. Instead, the various detachment ops guys just got on with pragmatically devising detailed air procedures and tactics etc., while on the ground the interoperability procedures had a good work-out.
So, what did I have to do? Not a lot, except the other abiding memory of putting on the ear defenders for the twice daily highlight of going along to the nearby runway threshold. With the emphasis on ‘near’ to watch and listen to my own multi-national air force returning to Gioia del Colle. Something, the recruiting officer had never suggested!
Stay safe
David Powell F Team UKMAMS RAF Abingdon 1967-69
New members who have joined us recently:
Welcome to the OBA!
Martin Fox, Cranwell, Notts
Richard Gunn, York
Paul Geter, Thatcham, Berks
Robert Gregory, Manchester
Timothy Greenhalgh, Wanganui
RNZAF Evacuations from Noumea
24 May 2004 - A third Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) flight has brought approximately 50 passengers from New Caledonia to Auckland, following recent unrest in New Caledonia.
The RNZAF C-130H (NZ) Hercules flew to New Caledonia this morning, arriving back into Auckland this afternoon. The first flight on Tuesday, saw 48 passengers returned to New Zealand on our Hercules aircraft following approval by French authorities for assisted departure flights.
In the early hours of yesterday morning, a further 50 passengers were repatriated back to Auckland on an RNZAF Boeing 757. These passengers had travelled from Noumea to Brisbane on a French-operated flight, before boarding the RNZAF Boeing bound for Auckland. With approximately 50 passengers on board the Hercules today, this brings the number of passengers returning to New Zealand so far on RNZAF flights to around 150.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is aware of around 160 New Zealanders remaining in New Caledonia who wish to depart. Officials are continuing to work on arrangements for further flights.
rnzdf.mil.nz
The RNZAF C-130H (NZ) Hercules flew to New Caledonia this morning, arriving back into Auckland this afternoon. The first flight on Tuesday, saw 48 passengers returned to New Zealand on our Hercules aircraft following approval by French authorities for assisted departure flights.
In the early hours of yesterday morning, a further 50 passengers were repatriated back to Auckland on an RNZAF Boeing 757. These passengers had travelled from Noumea to Brisbane on a French-operated flight, before boarding the RNZAF Boeing bound for Auckland. With approximately 50 passengers on board the Hercules today, this brings the number of passengers returning to New Zealand so far on RNZAF flights to around 150.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is aware of around 160 New Zealanders remaining in New Caledonia who wish to depart. Officials are continuing to work on arrangements for further flights.
rnzdf.mil.nz
From: George Graves, Carlisle, Cumbria
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
Whilst in Singapore on FEAF MAMS, I was involved in several exercises, but when you mentioned your jungle survival course it brought to mind the one that I did.
Our O/C at the time decided that all MAMS personnel should attend a jungle survival course which was held every month for the air crew, so he managed to arrange that two MAMS personnel would attend per course. The first two to attend were Flight Lieutenant Robin Mitchell and myself. We spent one day in the classroom and then went into the Malaysian jungle for 3 days and 2 nights. What an experience that was, hardly any sleep in that time as at nighttime the noises of insects and animals kept us awake.
During the day we had tasks like building a bed, making a water carrier, making a fire (no matches) and all we had was a machete. When I returned I think I must have had a 100 baths and a 1000 showers to get rid of the jungle; at least I got the certificate.
Some weeks later, our O/C, Squadron Leader King, was posted out and the new O/C came in and to the delight of the rest of the personnel said we MAMS don't need to do that course - the lucky lot!
Cheers,
George
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
Whilst in Singapore on FEAF MAMS, I was involved in several exercises, but when you mentioned your jungle survival course it brought to mind the one that I did.
Our O/C at the time decided that all MAMS personnel should attend a jungle survival course which was held every month for the air crew, so he managed to arrange that two MAMS personnel would attend per course. The first two to attend were Flight Lieutenant Robin Mitchell and myself. We spent one day in the classroom and then went into the Malaysian jungle for 3 days and 2 nights. What an experience that was, hardly any sleep in that time as at nighttime the noises of insects and animals kept us awake.
During the day we had tasks like building a bed, making a water carrier, making a fire (no matches) and all we had was a machete. When I returned I think I must have had a 100 baths and a 1000 showers to get rid of the jungle; at least I got the certificate.
Some weeks later, our O/C, Squadron Leader King, was posted out and the new O/C came in and to the delight of the rest of the personnel said we MAMS don't need to do that course - the lucky lot!
Cheers,
George
From: Paul “Taff” Kelly, Lyneham, Wilts
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Good Morning, Tony,
Back in the day (August 2001) UKMAMS deployed to Oman for Exercise Saif Sareea II. Thrumrait Air Base became a tent city and temperatures reached 45ºC every day. On 11 September the exercise proper commenced. After a briefing from the RAF Detachment Commander, we all became an operational detachment.
Armed guards were deployed at vehicle entry points and all security elements were on high alert. MAMS operated on a 24hr shift basis throughout next 10 weeks. Night movements were the norm and engines running turn-arounds were standard. All movers worked through shifts, but due to the intense workload tiredness crept in and injuries and illness occurred. Eventually, an operational decision was made for all MAMS personnel to stand-down for 24 hours. Just prior to Xmas, we were relieved and a change-over took place; we returned to the UK.
Sgt Taff Kelly
(ex-MAMS)
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Good Morning, Tony,
Back in the day (August 2001) UKMAMS deployed to Oman for Exercise Saif Sareea II. Thrumrait Air Base became a tent city and temperatures reached 45ºC every day. On 11 September the exercise proper commenced. After a briefing from the RAF Detachment Commander, we all became an operational detachment.
Armed guards were deployed at vehicle entry points and all security elements were on high alert. MAMS operated on a 24hr shift basis throughout next 10 weeks. Night movements were the norm and engines running turn-arounds were standard. All movers worked through shifts, but due to the intense workload tiredness crept in and injuries and illness occurred. Eventually, an operational decision was made for all MAMS personnel to stand-down for 24 hours. Just prior to Xmas, we were relieved and a change-over took place; we returned to the UK.
Sgt Taff Kelly
(ex-MAMS)
RAF Atlas Supports Exercise Astral Knight
A Royal Air Force A400M Atlas aircraft has transported personnel and equipment to Poznań, Poland, as they support the 2024 iteration of Exercise Astral Knight.
Ex Astral Knight is a multinational Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD) exercise that is focused on interoperability and theater wide security capabilities. With 5000 personnel from six nations, Astral Knight is the capstone IAMD exercise with the UK contingent working alongside their US, Lithuanian, Greek, Danish and Polish counterparts as we continue to strengthen our links with the Baltic states.
To kick-start the exercise an A400M, operated by LXX Squadron as part of the Air Mobility Force, flew from RAF Brize Norton. The first stop was Constanta in Romania, where exercising personnel and equipment were collected before being flown to Poznań. Flight Lieutenant Manson, LXX Squadron Captain, said, “The A400M’s versatility makes it perfect for routes like this. It can take an awful lot of personnel, and an awful lot of freight, over long distances, quickly.”
The A400M once again proved that it is driving the RAF’s Air Mobility Force into the 21st century.
raf.mod.uk
Ex Astral Knight is a multinational Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD) exercise that is focused on interoperability and theater wide security capabilities. With 5000 personnel from six nations, Astral Knight is the capstone IAMD exercise with the UK contingent working alongside their US, Lithuanian, Greek, Danish and Polish counterparts as we continue to strengthen our links with the Baltic states.
To kick-start the exercise an A400M, operated by LXX Squadron as part of the Air Mobility Force, flew from RAF Brize Norton. The first stop was Constanta in Romania, where exercising personnel and equipment were collected before being flown to Poznań. Flight Lieutenant Manson, LXX Squadron Captain, said, “The A400M’s versatility makes it perfect for routes like this. It can take an awful lot of personnel, and an awful lot of freight, over long distances, quickly.”
The A400M once again proved that it is driving the RAF’s Air Mobility Force into the 21st century.
raf.mod.uk
From: Ian Berry, Eastleaze, Swindon, Wilts
Subject: Exercise Ruby Signet
Hi Tony,
Subject: Exercise Ruby Signet
Hi Tony,
Exercise Ruby Signet
(Originally published in a newsletter catering to civilian aero enthusiasts)
(Originally published in a newsletter catering to civilian aero enthusiasts)
In 1948, 16 Parachute Brigade was formed. It consisted of three battalions of infantry and all the supporting arms including artillery, signals, engineers, medics, logistics and more. All were of course trained parachutists. This brigade remained in existence until 1977. In the early 1970s to support 16 Para Bde, the RAF provided up to 36 x C130 Hercules to provide airlift and aerial delivery when required. This commitment in turn was known as JATFOR, the Joint Air Transport Force.
One of the biggest UK airborne exercises planned since WW2 was to be held in the Zealand area of Denmark in October 1972. It was called Exercise Ruby Signet. The plan was that in the first wave over 2,200 troops would be parachuted into the area. This would be followed by a second wave delivering vehicles, artillery and stores to support the troops. For those unfamiliar with method of delivery of vehicles and stores by C130 Hercules the former are secured to what are called MSP (Medium Stressed Platforms) or HSPs (Heavy Stressed Platforms). These platforms are “dragged” out of the back of the C130 by the use of a drogue chute and then several large parachutes deploy to slowly deliver the MSP/HSP to the ground. Shortly before impact the floor of the platform drops and a large inflatable bag is inflated to cushion the landing. The use of other devices to cushion the landing can be used too, including the copious use of honeycombed cardboard.
One of the biggest UK airborne exercises planned since WW2 was to be held in the Zealand area of Denmark in October 1972. It was called Exercise Ruby Signet. The plan was that in the first wave over 2,200 troops would be parachuted into the area. This would be followed by a second wave delivering vehicles, artillery and stores to support the troops. For those unfamiliar with method of delivery of vehicles and stores by C130 Hercules the former are secured to what are called MSP (Medium Stressed Platforms) or HSPs (Heavy Stressed Platforms). These platforms are “dragged” out of the back of the C130 by the use of a drogue chute and then several large parachutes deploy to slowly deliver the MSP/HSP to the ground. Shortly before impact the floor of the platform drops and a large inflatable bag is inflated to cushion the landing. The use of other devices to cushion the landing can be used too, including the copious use of honeycombed cardboard.
MSP rigged with Landrover and trailer combination
25K Condec - fully airportable in a C130 Hercules
The delivery of smaller stores, such as ammunition, water and equipment is usually accomplished using one ton containers. These are usually wooden NATO pallets placed on top of plywood bases, all secured together, cushioning material applied and a parachute place on top. All containers are located within the C130 on roller conveyor and this is how the platforms and containers are despatched from the aircraft. (I am NOT an Air Despatcher/”Box Kicker” so please forgive me for any inaccuracies).
It also goes without saying that for safety’s sake parachutists and platforms are not dropped at the same time or on the same DZ (Drop Zone). This was the first and really only time I was ever involved with MSP/HSP platforms. My Squadron based at RAF Abingdon, UKMAMS, consisted of 12 teams of six men. Each team had an array of equipment it could use in the support of its duties to handle the RAF Air Transport Fleet. We also had a selection of specialised handling equipment and to support and maintain these we also had 10 Engineers on the squadron, all of the ground equipment trades (mechanical & electrical).
As the intention of JATFOR was to deliver 16 Para Bde en masse the aircraft would arrive pretty fast in 6 waves of 6 aircraft. As a contingency in case of weather or other unforeseen reason why the drop could not take place, 4 x 6 man teams and 4 Engineers were deployed to Vaerlose Air Base, Royal Danish Air Force. The task then being to quickly offload the Paras and break down and deploy the equipment rigged on the platforms. Vaerlose is some 10 miles outside of Copenhagen. At that time the RDAF operated C47 Dakotas and C130 Hercules from the base.
Our part in Exercise Ruby Signet was due to begin on the 14th October 1972 when two C130 Hercules would arrive at Abingdon from Lyneham and collect the teams, one 25k Condec Aircraft Loader and other supporting equipment. Five days prior to this my team (Echo) were tasked to fly to Bardufoss in North Norway taking one of our engineers with us and repair another 25k Condec we had abandoned there after a recently finished NATO Exercise, Strong Express. Once repaired, we would then redeploy the Condec to Vaerlose. Fortunately on arrival at Bardufoss, an old WW2 Luftwaffe base, the Condec had been placed inside the “Rock Hangar”. This was a hangar literally carved into the granite walls of a mountain.
Repairing the Condec proved to be quite a struggle but our engineer succeeded and we eventually were able to load the vehicle on the C130 and we flew down to Vaerlose to leave it there for the soon to start exercise. A bonus was that we managed a night stop downtown in Copenhagen. We got back to Abingdon via Lyneham on the 12th October. Two days later on the 14th we returned to Vaerlose, this time we were all accommodated in RDAF barracks! I think we had a 36hr window to sort out all our equipment, prepare both Condecs for ground use and then wait and see if the drop happened or not.
It also goes without saying that for safety’s sake parachutists and platforms are not dropped at the same time or on the same DZ (Drop Zone). This was the first and really only time I was ever involved with MSP/HSP platforms. My Squadron based at RAF Abingdon, UKMAMS, consisted of 12 teams of six men. Each team had an array of equipment it could use in the support of its duties to handle the RAF Air Transport Fleet. We also had a selection of specialised handling equipment and to support and maintain these we also had 10 Engineers on the squadron, all of the ground equipment trades (mechanical & electrical).
As the intention of JATFOR was to deliver 16 Para Bde en masse the aircraft would arrive pretty fast in 6 waves of 6 aircraft. As a contingency in case of weather or other unforeseen reason why the drop could not take place, 4 x 6 man teams and 4 Engineers were deployed to Vaerlose Air Base, Royal Danish Air Force. The task then being to quickly offload the Paras and break down and deploy the equipment rigged on the platforms. Vaerlose is some 10 miles outside of Copenhagen. At that time the RDAF operated C47 Dakotas and C130 Hercules from the base.
Our part in Exercise Ruby Signet was due to begin on the 14th October 1972 when two C130 Hercules would arrive at Abingdon from Lyneham and collect the teams, one 25k Condec Aircraft Loader and other supporting equipment. Five days prior to this my team (Echo) were tasked to fly to Bardufoss in North Norway taking one of our engineers with us and repair another 25k Condec we had abandoned there after a recently finished NATO Exercise, Strong Express. Once repaired, we would then redeploy the Condec to Vaerlose. Fortunately on arrival at Bardufoss, an old WW2 Luftwaffe base, the Condec had been placed inside the “Rock Hangar”. This was a hangar literally carved into the granite walls of a mountain.
Repairing the Condec proved to be quite a struggle but our engineer succeeded and we eventually were able to load the vehicle on the C130 and we flew down to Vaerlose to leave it there for the soon to start exercise. A bonus was that we managed a night stop downtown in Copenhagen. We got back to Abingdon via Lyneham on the 12th October. Two days later on the 14th we returned to Vaerlose, this time we were all accommodated in RDAF barracks! I think we had a 36hr window to sort out all our equipment, prepare both Condecs for ground use and then wait and see if the drop happened or not.
Mass startup at RAF Lyneham, October 1972
Mass taxy - 36 C130's start to move
The whole drop was a success and all aircraft succeeded in dropping the parachutists. Fortunately there were no fatalities and just some minor injuries. Unfortunately as the DZ was some distance away we were unable to witness the mass formation. The second wave returned to drop the platforms and containers with just three incidents. One MSP with a Landrover & trailer combination ended up in the middle of a wood and a path had to be cut out for it.
Mass para drop on the Zealand drop zone
A second MSP containing a Massey Ferguson RTFL (Rough Terrain Forklift) landed in a lake. The story is that once recovered it started first time. The final incident resulted in a MALDROP (Drop Malfunction) when the parachutes failed on a MSP carrying a Ferret Armoured Car. I saw this vehicle when it was sent back to UK for investigation and it was now some 9 feet wide and only 3 feet high!
A Ferret Armoured Car
Impressive look over the drop zone
Back at RAF Abingdon our Crew Room was packed with souvenirs and “steals” from around the world. One of our Sgts thought that the mangled 0.30 Browning Machine Gun which appeared with the mangled armoured car would look good on our Crew Room wall and so was promptly purloined and hidden. It was some weeks later back at Abingdon that the Army SIB caught up with him and a one sided interview took place!
As the war games continued elsewhere we were pretty busy for the next 48hrs recovering many bent and battered platforms which had been recovered from the DZ. Most were stacked two high but it proved an arduous task as we struggled to place them on roller and persuade the opened trap doors underneath to close again! The Condec transfer loaders we had brought with us were a Godsend and helped us achieve the task.
Four days into the exercise and things had settled down for us. We did handle the odd C130 resupply or aero med and one or two VIP visitors as well.
As the war games continued elsewhere we were pretty busy for the next 48hrs recovering many bent and battered platforms which had been recovered from the DZ. Most were stacked two high but it proved an arduous task as we struggled to place them on roller and persuade the opened trap doors underneath to close again! The Condec transfer loaders we had brought with us were a Godsend and helped us achieve the task.
Four days into the exercise and things had settled down for us. We did handle the odd C130 resupply or aero med and one or two VIP visitors as well.
Entrance to the Carlsberg brewery in Copenhagen
A Ferret Armoured Car rigged for air drop
On one of our quiet days the Danes had arranged a visit to the Carlsberg Brewery in Copenhagen for us. This was quite a hilarious day as you have now introduced some 30 well travelled, thirsty airmen into an environment of alcohol. We asked if we could cut out the mandatory six storey brewery tour and go straight to the Hospitality Room but the staff wouldn’t entertain it. When we finally did enter the room the scene was similar to a comedy sketch as at the far end and still vacating were a gang of French sailors and the staff were busy changing the French Tricolours for Union Jacks on the table and clearing away the empties.
Once the “frogs” had left and the exit doors slammed shut they began passing out bottles of different brews. They couldn’t comprehend how the bottle count was always wrong not realising the odd bottle was put under the table straight between our feet. There was also a plea that one of the French sailors had lost his hat and had we seen it? Days later it appeared on our crew room wall in Abingdon. To this day the entrance to the Carlsberg brewery in Copenhagen has two pillars each with an elephant on the top. Their strongest brew was and still is elephant brew. As a memento we were all given an elephant lapel badge. Eventually the visit ended and some decided to return straight to the base and others chose to get some culture in a street called the Ostergade.
Once the “frogs” had left and the exit doors slammed shut they began passing out bottles of different brews. They couldn’t comprehend how the bottle count was always wrong not realising the odd bottle was put under the table straight between our feet. There was also a plea that one of the French sailors had lost his hat and had we seen it? Days later it appeared on our crew room wall in Abingdon. To this day the entrance to the Carlsberg brewery in Copenhagen has two pillars each with an elephant on the top. Their strongest brew was and still is elephant brew. As a memento we were all given an elephant lapel badge. Eventually the visit ended and some decided to return straight to the base and others chose to get some culture in a street called the Ostergade.
The collectible elephant badge
MSP with Landrover and trailer combination vacating C130
The planned recovery of 16 Para Bde was planned over three days starting on the 21st October. Units would recover from the exercise area in a certain time and then report to a holding area, MCCP (Movements Control Check Point) on the outskirts of Vaerlose which was manned by “Army Movers” of the RCT (Royal Corps of Transport). Recognised by everyone else in the UK Army as “The men with clipboards!” Here they would be documented and allocated a “Chalk Number”, the vehicles too would be washed, prepared for air transport and weighed.
The recovery plot was that we would be using Britannia aircraft to recover the troops and C130 Hercules and Belfast C1 Freighters for the equipment. A rough total of 56 aircraft were tasked for the recovery. An aircraft would arrive every 45 mins and usually they were on 90-minute turnrounds although the Belfast’s were usually longer. To boost our (MAMS) manpower another two teams would arrive on the first recovery aircraft. We had already decided whilst planning the recovery which teams would handle which aircraft and the team strength could vary between 3, 4 or 6 personnel. One of the key words we always use is flexibility. This is needed moreso in these situations as delays in arrival of the aircraft or load and loading problems could occur and so an alternative plan if this was to happen was always thought through.
As the exercise strength wound down we also did not need the amount of communications initially required which was provided by 38 Group Tactical Communications Wing (TCW) and so 2 x C130 Hercules were used to recover their personnel and equipment back to RAF Benson. In total, over 1,500,000 lbs of equipment was recovered by air from Denmark back to UK.
It was a very long and tiring day but with such a heavy workload and constant buzz of aircraft you do get an adrenaline rush. The final few aircraft out of Vaerlose were used to recover the “Clip board men” and their vehicles as well as our own 25k Condecs and handling equipment. Because of these vehicles being unable to operate or be driven on public roads all our recovery aircraft flew straight back to Abingdon. My logbook shows that I recovered on C130 XV291, a 2hr 15 min flight and landing at Abingdon at 23.45Z in the evening. I do recall that just after midnight in our hangar I cracked open a bottle of Carlsberg as it was my birthday!
The recovery plot was that we would be using Britannia aircraft to recover the troops and C130 Hercules and Belfast C1 Freighters for the equipment. A rough total of 56 aircraft were tasked for the recovery. An aircraft would arrive every 45 mins and usually they were on 90-minute turnrounds although the Belfast’s were usually longer. To boost our (MAMS) manpower another two teams would arrive on the first recovery aircraft. We had already decided whilst planning the recovery which teams would handle which aircraft and the team strength could vary between 3, 4 or 6 personnel. One of the key words we always use is flexibility. This is needed moreso in these situations as delays in arrival of the aircraft or load and loading problems could occur and so an alternative plan if this was to happen was always thought through.
As the exercise strength wound down we also did not need the amount of communications initially required which was provided by 38 Group Tactical Communications Wing (TCW) and so 2 x C130 Hercules were used to recover their personnel and equipment back to RAF Benson. In total, over 1,500,000 lbs of equipment was recovered by air from Denmark back to UK.
It was a very long and tiring day but with such a heavy workload and constant buzz of aircraft you do get an adrenaline rush. The final few aircraft out of Vaerlose were used to recover the “Clip board men” and their vehicles as well as our own 25k Condecs and handling equipment. Because of these vehicles being unable to operate or be driven on public roads all our recovery aircraft flew straight back to Abingdon. My logbook shows that I recovered on C130 XV291, a 2hr 15 min flight and landing at Abingdon at 23.45Z in the evening. I do recall that just after midnight in our hangar I cracked open a bottle of Carlsberg as it was my birthday!
Intact landing - but no road!
Inside Billion Dollar Super Advanced Airbus A400M Factory Assembly Line
From: Tony Gale, Gatineau, QC
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Exercise Bersatu Padu
(Comprising 3 articles and a photo pictorial)
(Comprising 3 articles and a photo pictorial)
Overview by Anon
Every year, the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) is involved in numerous military exercises with other armed forces. These exercises give the SAF the opportunity to evaluate her fighting capabilities and learn from its counterparts. It was thirty six years ago that the SAF took part in its first ever large-scale multi-lateral exercise. This was Exercise Bersatu Padu, held from April to June 1970.
In June 1968, during the Five Power Ministerial Meeting in Kuala Lumpur (involving Singapore, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand), it was agreed that a military exercise involving all five countries would be held in West Malaysia. In view of the eventual British pullout from Singapore in 1971, this exercise would demonstrate the concept of military support for Malaysia and Singapore in the event of an attack by foreign forces on their territories. The exercise was to be called Bersatu Padu, meaning “Solid Unity” in Malay and bring together 25,000 soldiers, 200 aircraft and 50 ships.
In 1970, the SAF was still a fledgling force. It had started out after Singapore’s independence with only two infantry battalions – 1 SIR and 2 SIR. Its navy and air force was still in its infancy, with much of its equipment only purchased in recent years. With National Service being introduced in 1967, it started to grow rapidly, with national servicemen making up the bulk of its fighting men. Exercise Bersatu Padu was to be a big test for the SAF – would its men rise to the occasion and prove that the SAF had the makings of a credible fighting force? It was also an opportunity to evaluate the capabilities of its men, the effectiveness of training and learn from its experienced counterparts.
5 SIR was chosen to take part in this exercise. It consisted of 900 men, made up mostly of national servicemen, with the senior commanders and non-commissioned officers being regulars . Training for Bersatu Padu took place in late 1969, when the Commanding Officer and company commanders attended a six-week Jungle Warfare Course in Johore. This was followed by a series of training exercises, including heliborne assault training, for the other officers and men. All these were done to prepare the battalion for the tough challenge ahead.
The scenario for Exercise Bersatu Padu was this: Ganasia, a fictitious country between Thailand and Malaysia, had begun infiltrating into Trengganu and managed to control a swathe of territory in the West Malaysian State. The aim of the five powers was to stop the growing aggression of the Ganasians and to regain the lost territory. The exercise began on 5 April 1970 with the deployment of the participating ANZUK(1), Malaysian and Singaporean troops. A six-week training phase was then conducted, with 5 SIR receiving jungle training in Kota Tinggi, Johore. 5 SIR, along with some British units(2), formed the 19th Brigade. An exercise, Spring Handicap, was held at the end of the training phase where 5 SIR successfully attacked and captured a 400m high enemy-held hill.
In June 1968, during the Five Power Ministerial Meeting in Kuala Lumpur (involving Singapore, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand), it was agreed that a military exercise involving all five countries would be held in West Malaysia. In view of the eventual British pullout from Singapore in 1971, this exercise would demonstrate the concept of military support for Malaysia and Singapore in the event of an attack by foreign forces on their territories. The exercise was to be called Bersatu Padu, meaning “Solid Unity” in Malay and bring together 25,000 soldiers, 200 aircraft and 50 ships.
In 1970, the SAF was still a fledgling force. It had started out after Singapore’s independence with only two infantry battalions – 1 SIR and 2 SIR. Its navy and air force was still in its infancy, with much of its equipment only purchased in recent years. With National Service being introduced in 1967, it started to grow rapidly, with national servicemen making up the bulk of its fighting men. Exercise Bersatu Padu was to be a big test for the SAF – would its men rise to the occasion and prove that the SAF had the makings of a credible fighting force? It was also an opportunity to evaluate the capabilities of its men, the effectiveness of training and learn from its experienced counterparts.
5 SIR was chosen to take part in this exercise. It consisted of 900 men, made up mostly of national servicemen, with the senior commanders and non-commissioned officers being regulars . Training for Bersatu Padu took place in late 1969, when the Commanding Officer and company commanders attended a six-week Jungle Warfare Course in Johore. This was followed by a series of training exercises, including heliborne assault training, for the other officers and men. All these were done to prepare the battalion for the tough challenge ahead.
The scenario for Exercise Bersatu Padu was this: Ganasia, a fictitious country between Thailand and Malaysia, had begun infiltrating into Trengganu and managed to control a swathe of territory in the West Malaysian State. The aim of the five powers was to stop the growing aggression of the Ganasians and to regain the lost territory. The exercise began on 5 April 1970 with the deployment of the participating ANZUK(1), Malaysian and Singaporean troops. A six-week training phase was then conducted, with 5 SIR receiving jungle training in Kota Tinggi, Johore. 5 SIR, along with some British units(2), formed the 19th Brigade. An exercise, Spring Handicap, was held at the end of the training phase where 5 SIR successfully attacked and captured a 400m high enemy-held hill.
The main exercise in Bersatu Padu was Exercise Granada. This exercise called for the capture of Penerak Airfield, followed by operations against enemy bases by the 4th Brigade (consisting of Malaysian and ANZ(3) troops) and 19th Brigade. On 13 June, Penerak Airfield was successfully captured and the airlifting of 19th Brigade took place. By 20 June, four enemy bases had been taken over by 19th Brigade. On 28 June, 5 SIR took part in the final assault on the enemy stronghold, where the role of Ganasian defenders was played by the British Royal Marine Commandos. The assault was a success, with equal losses on both sides (the British unit had 102 “killed in action” while 5 SIR had 105 “killed/wounded in action”). This was a remarkable achievement for 5 SIR, for it had come up evens against a more experienced unit (the Marine Commandos were to have a distinguished stint in the Falklands War later on). There were also air and sea exercises held in Butterworth and the South China Sea but Singapore’s involvement was minimal and provided mainly administrative support.
The successes of 5 SIR in Bersatu Padu meant that the SAF had passed its first test with flying colours. What made it more remarkable was that 5 SIR was a young national service battalion, made up of young men with no experience in warfare. It had shown that if led by the right people and trained the right way, an armed forces based on the principle of citizen soldiery can hold its own against any other military force.
The successes of 5 SIR in Bersatu Padu meant that the SAF had passed its first test with flying colours. What made it more remarkable was that 5 SIR was a young national service battalion, made up of young men with no experience in warfare. It had shown that if led by the right people and trained the right way, an armed forces based on the principle of citizen soldiery can hold its own against any other military force.
The RAF Can Deliver The Goods
(by John Haslam, CPRO HQ Air Support Command)
(by John Haslam, CPRO HQ Air Support Command)
Hercules from Air Support Command and Far East Air Force are unloaded by UKMAMS teams at Penerak, as a Bristol Freighter of No. 41 Squadron RNZAF takes off.
Whatever conclusions may be reached when the final reports are written on Exercise Bersatu Padu, one thing is certain - that the Royal Air Force has proved to the satisfaction of all participants and critical observers, that it can deliver the goods effectively and efficiently.
Air Support Command's strategic lift was, of course, only part of the Bersatu Padu story which involved 25,000 men, five navies and four air forces, jungle training, and an intensive tactical phase entitled "Exercise Granada." The strategic lift itself was split into two, the first spread over 10 days in April 1970, lifting more than 2,300 troops, 200 fully laden vehicles, 170 fully laden trailers, 20 helicopters, a dozen howitzers and some 90,000 lbs of cargo.
Air Support Command's strategic lift was, of course, only part of the Bersatu Padu story which involved 25,000 men, five navies and four air forces, jungle training, and an intensive tactical phase entitled "Exercise Granada." The strategic lift itself was split into two, the first spread over 10 days in April 1970, lifting more than 2,300 troops, 200 fully laden vehicles, 170 fully laden trailers, 20 helicopters, a dozen howitzers and some 90,000 lbs of cargo.
Normal airfield service facilities required for the operation of exercise aircraft in peacetime moved into Penerak from nearby Dungun during the night. First men to arrive at Penerak from Changi were members of ASC's UK Mobile Air Movements Squadron from RAF Abingdon and they rapidly offloaded their essential equipment to erect temporary air movements and load control facilities.
The second part of the airlift was between 14th May and 3rd June when Air Support Command carried another 1,300 exercise passengers and 250,000 lbs of cargo in support of the RAF's deployment of combat aircraft to the Far East.
The second part of the airlift was between 14th May and 3rd June when Air Support Command carried another 1,300 exercise passengers and 250,000 lbs of cargo in support of the RAF's deployment of combat aircraft to the Far East.
In less than 4 1/2 days, little Penerak received a total of 133 aircraft, carrying 2,800 passengers, 285,000 lbs of freight and 323 vehicles ranging from motor cycles to tractors. The sorties were flown by a combined transport force of Hercules of Nos. 47 and 30 Squadrons from No. 38 Group's base at Fairford; Hercules from Far East Air Force's No. 48 Squadron; Bristol Freighters of the RNZAF's No. 41 Squadron, and two RNZAF Hercules detached for the exercise.
Photo at right: Squadron Leader Mike Slade (d), OC UKMAMS briefs Air Chief Marshal Sir Brian Burnett, Commander-in-Chief Far East, in the Mobile Air Movements tent at Penerak.
On Sir Brian's right is Group Captain A.T. Talbot- Williams, Station Commander, RAF Odiham who was in command at Penerak.
Looking on is Flight Lieutenant Jim Stewart (d), Ops Officer, UKMAMS.
On Sir Brian's right is Group Captain A.T. Talbot- Williams, Station Commander, RAF Odiham who was in command at Penerak.
Looking on is Flight Lieutenant Jim Stewart (d), Ops Officer, UKMAMS.
The tactical exercise finished at the end of June, but for Air Support Command the work carried on, with an enormous recovery airlift to return to the UK the men, helicopters, vehicles, guns and a myriad other items which it had delivered to the Far East in April and May.
Exercise Bersatu Padu - the rest of the story
(From the book "UKMAMS, Moving in Mysterious Ways" by Jerry Porter)
The teams were deployed in large numbers in early June 1970 to Malaya to take part in a five nation exercise somewhat optimistically named Bersatu Padu. As nearly everyone will be aware "Bersatu padu" is Malay for "complete unity." This is a phrase that was to prove very fitting under the circumstances. The execution of the exercise was made possible by the then Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), who also being the First Lord of the Admiralty saw the need for a joint exercise involving mainly Army and Airforce personnel. Having acceded to the post, the CDS took it upon himself to acquaint himself with the plans for, among other things, the rapid reinforcement of Malaya. The plan was obviously an ambitious one, which led to his questioning the success of its last trial. His staff officers, not given over to distorting the truth, (although sorely tempted) confessed that the plan had never failed In fact it had never been tried. A foolish answer under the circumstances, as the summer holiday season was looming large on the horizon, albeit slightly smaller and soon to be eclipsed by the exercise.
(From the book "UKMAMS, Moving in Mysterious Ways" by Jerry Porter)
The teams were deployed in large numbers in early June 1970 to Malaya to take part in a five nation exercise somewhat optimistically named Bersatu Padu. As nearly everyone will be aware "Bersatu padu" is Malay for "complete unity." This is a phrase that was to prove very fitting under the circumstances. The execution of the exercise was made possible by the then Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), who also being the First Lord of the Admiralty saw the need for a joint exercise involving mainly Army and Airforce personnel. Having acceded to the post, the CDS took it upon himself to acquaint himself with the plans for, among other things, the rapid reinforcement of Malaya. The plan was obviously an ambitious one, which led to his questioning the success of its last trial. His staff officers, not given over to distorting the truth, (although sorely tempted) confessed that the plan had never failed In fact it had never been tried. A foolish answer under the circumstances, as the summer holiday season was looming large on the horizon, albeit slightly smaller and soon to be eclipsed by the exercise.
Having got wind of the forthcoming entertainment, UKMAMS, on the understanding that forewarned is forearmed to those that heed the warning, immediately despatched ground handling aids to Malaya by boat. The equipment was sent to RAF Changi to await its operators as the defence staff made their final preparations before announcing the exercise. Shortly after the exercise was made public knowledge the night of departure for the UKMAMS teams was set for 31st May. The teams were undoubtedly going to be away for some considerable time, and were concerned that the local bars would suffer a sharp decline in profits in their absence. In preparation for the coming task and in a display of selfless generosity UKMAMS ensured in that single night prior to departure that the mess bar profits were fully taken care of until their return.
In the very early hours of 1st June (or by the Commanding Officer's Malayan calendar watch 62nd April) the whole team reeled and staggered into a VC10 headed for the Far East. The first stop on the way was RAF Muharraq, a small British concern in Bahrain. On landing the teams were all shocked out of their self-induced comas by the outside air as it entered the aircraft. Generously described as "hot breath of a stagnant camel" it was in reality little different to the breath from the team members. True to the policy of "When in Rome" etc., the teams decided to try the old Arab remedy "The hair of the camel", and departed for the transit lounge in order to reassure their livers with rum and cola. The stop was only to last two hours before getting airborne for the final leg to RAF Changi. Policy prohibits the consumption of alcohol on RAF aircraft although only a loadmaster of above average perception (a rare occurrence) would have noticed that the coke cans carried onto the aircraft by the passengers had in fact all been opened - obviously a precaution against sudden depressurization.
After an eight hour flight the teams arrived at RAF Changi. The air was now more reminiscent of a putrefying camel, and was at a temperature that could only accelerate the process. The teams were allowed two weeks to acclimatize, but any thoughts of a gentle lead-in were soon to be thwarted. The boss, known to his wife as Squadron Leader Slade, informed the team's leader, Flight Lieutenant Jim Stewart, that he would be briefing within the hour, leaving the new arrivals little time to sober up from the effects of the pressure proof coke. The briefing included the wonderful news that UKMAMS were to be allowed to participate in cricket matches and sports days, and, if they were really good boys, a jungle survival course. Attractive as these diversions were, the entertainment appeared to the teams to be part of a deliberate ploy to keep UKMAMS personnel away from the less principled, if more appealing, attractions of downtown Singapore. Protest was useless, and the UKMAMS contingent, now amalgamated with the resident Far East MAMS, were divided into two halves and the first lucky customers were driven off into the jungle. The purpose of the exercise was never fully explained to the participants and its goal was probably never achieved by them. However they all shared the same terrible conviction that at some stage they were expected by the staff to find and eat some of the local fauna and flora. Sadly, as an exercise in learning, the course was not a complete success. The edible varieties of the indigenous population of the jungle made themselves scarce whilst the unfed "survivors" contented themselves with hacking paths through the primary vegetation because that's what they do in Tarzan films and no one had bothered to brief them differently. The second half of the party were destined never to get into the jungle in order to miss seeing the things they had omitted to learn about during the jungle lectures. This came about as the result of a bureaucratic storm which blew up larger than a NAAFI pie on its sell by date and was alleged to involve a lack of individuals assessed officially as medically unfit for jungle training. Needless to say the teams were devastated, and yet, in a display of typical British stiff upper lip, they kept a brave face and weathered the disappointment. In an inspired episode of medical brilliance MAMS were spared the remote possibility of falling ill in the jungle, and were released to the brothels and bars of Bugis Street in Singapore City where disease is, of course, practically unheard of.
In the very early hours of 1st June (or by the Commanding Officer's Malayan calendar watch 62nd April) the whole team reeled and staggered into a VC10 headed for the Far East. The first stop on the way was RAF Muharraq, a small British concern in Bahrain. On landing the teams were all shocked out of their self-induced comas by the outside air as it entered the aircraft. Generously described as "hot breath of a stagnant camel" it was in reality little different to the breath from the team members. True to the policy of "When in Rome" etc., the teams decided to try the old Arab remedy "The hair of the camel", and departed for the transit lounge in order to reassure their livers with rum and cola. The stop was only to last two hours before getting airborne for the final leg to RAF Changi. Policy prohibits the consumption of alcohol on RAF aircraft although only a loadmaster of above average perception (a rare occurrence) would have noticed that the coke cans carried onto the aircraft by the passengers had in fact all been opened - obviously a precaution against sudden depressurization.
After an eight hour flight the teams arrived at RAF Changi. The air was now more reminiscent of a putrefying camel, and was at a temperature that could only accelerate the process. The teams were allowed two weeks to acclimatize, but any thoughts of a gentle lead-in were soon to be thwarted. The boss, known to his wife as Squadron Leader Slade, informed the team's leader, Flight Lieutenant Jim Stewart, that he would be briefing within the hour, leaving the new arrivals little time to sober up from the effects of the pressure proof coke. The briefing included the wonderful news that UKMAMS were to be allowed to participate in cricket matches and sports days, and, if they were really good boys, a jungle survival course. Attractive as these diversions were, the entertainment appeared to the teams to be part of a deliberate ploy to keep UKMAMS personnel away from the less principled, if more appealing, attractions of downtown Singapore. Protest was useless, and the UKMAMS contingent, now amalgamated with the resident Far East MAMS, were divided into two halves and the first lucky customers were driven off into the jungle. The purpose of the exercise was never fully explained to the participants and its goal was probably never achieved by them. However they all shared the same terrible conviction that at some stage they were expected by the staff to find and eat some of the local fauna and flora. Sadly, as an exercise in learning, the course was not a complete success. The edible varieties of the indigenous population of the jungle made themselves scarce whilst the unfed "survivors" contented themselves with hacking paths through the primary vegetation because that's what they do in Tarzan films and no one had bothered to brief them differently. The second half of the party were destined never to get into the jungle in order to miss seeing the things they had omitted to learn about during the jungle lectures. This came about as the result of a bureaucratic storm which blew up larger than a NAAFI pie on its sell by date and was alleged to involve a lack of individuals assessed officially as medically unfit for jungle training. Needless to say the teams were devastated, and yet, in a display of typical British stiff upper lip, they kept a brave face and weathered the disappointment. In an inspired episode of medical brilliance MAMS were spared the remote possibility of falling ill in the jungle, and were released to the brothels and bars of Bugis Street in Singapore City where disease is, of course, practically unheard of.
After a seemingly endless round of sports fixtures, the attraction of playing cricket began to pall. In contrast the fleshpots of Singapore were becoming more attractive, very much in the way that a less than glamorous woman (or "battle pig" to the more chauvinistic and earthy elements of society) gradually improves aesthetically as the eye of the beholder becomes progressively more inebriated. To counter this deteriorating situation the boss, Flt Lt Stewart, under pressure from the Sqn Ldr, decided to start the exercise early. It was apparent that the large forklift that the UKMAMS detachment had pre-positioned and now so proudly looked after would be most advantageously employed in the exercise area. This was to be Penerak, where the airhead would be set up, and where ultimately the forward teams would be sent in order to offload the exercise aircraft. To transport this beast to the forward airhead the boss had arranged for space to be available on the Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Sir Galahad. It took some persuasion of the Army movers that the forklift was indeed as critical to the airlift as UKMAMS stated (the army brain is like a computer in this respect as information has to be punched in). Luckily, after much discussion and many threats the Army relented and allowed space for the forklift and its designated driver which was subsequently loaded and sent round the coast to the nearest bit of land to the Airhead.
The Sir Galahad duly arrived as close to Penerak as it was able to go, and dropped anchor about four hundred yards off the beach. The forklift was then driven onto a float and powered to the shore with the aid of an outboard motor. Once ashore the driver of the forklift, Sgt Dave Barton, after a brief consultation of the map, set off into the jungle in the direction of the Airhead. The map was not as detailed as it might have been, but then the Letts Pocket Diary with the map of the world in the back was never intended for accurate jungle navigation. Despite the lack of assistance, Dave Barton made swift progress following a well trodden track and a map of the London Underground. To any locals within sight and sound of the path, Dave Barton must have seemed like something from Malayan folklore. Sitting astride a huge beast with its deep diesel roar, blazing headlights and waving forks, he must have appeared as a latter day dragon tamer as he crunched through the jungle. The sound of aircraft overhead convinced our driver that not only was he headed in the right direction, but he was late for the start of the exercise. Dave put his foot to the floor at the same moment that two exercise umpires chose to spring from the undergrowth into the path of the oncoming vehicle. Road safety lectures will no doubt confirm that such actions are often the result of poor kerb drill training and an unhappy childhood, and all too frequently end in nasty accidents.
Picking themselves up from the track, the umpires enquired as to the reason for the puzzling presence of a forklift in the jungle. Following a lengthy explanation as to the role of UKMAMS in the exercise, and the role of a forklift in UKMAMS, the driver was politely informed that a bridge for which he was headed, and vital to his continued journey, had in fact been blown up, and that he would, in due course, be advised as to when he could proceed. A bitter disappointment that, after Herculean efforts to get the vehicle to the airhead in time for the start of the exercise, Sgt D Barton was obliged to sit in the jungle just a monkey's throw from his destination with the sound of the airlift ringing in his ears, and his forklift truck for company. In the event, the absence of the forks proved costly, as, forced into less than recommended practices, the MAMS teams at the airhead managed to put a hole in the ramp of one aircraft, which was retired from the exercise for more genuine reasons than the bridge.
Once started, the airlift into Penerak continued without a break. Whilst all new arrivals were setting up camp, the newly arrived MAMS teams had to push on regardless unloading more and more troops and equipment with no chance to secure their own domestic comfort. Fortunately the new teams were able to rely on the advance party who had already arranged some basic home comforts and food. As the Army began to build up in strength in the area, so the senior officers began to put in an appearance, confident that their men had sufficient time to arrange their tents and catering. Now all battles must be fought with all participants correctly dressed as per the local commander's orders.
The Sir Galahad duly arrived as close to Penerak as it was able to go, and dropped anchor about four hundred yards off the beach. The forklift was then driven onto a float and powered to the shore with the aid of an outboard motor. Once ashore the driver of the forklift, Sgt Dave Barton, after a brief consultation of the map, set off into the jungle in the direction of the Airhead. The map was not as detailed as it might have been, but then the Letts Pocket Diary with the map of the world in the back was never intended for accurate jungle navigation. Despite the lack of assistance, Dave Barton made swift progress following a well trodden track and a map of the London Underground. To any locals within sight and sound of the path, Dave Barton must have seemed like something from Malayan folklore. Sitting astride a huge beast with its deep diesel roar, blazing headlights and waving forks, he must have appeared as a latter day dragon tamer as he crunched through the jungle. The sound of aircraft overhead convinced our driver that not only was he headed in the right direction, but he was late for the start of the exercise. Dave put his foot to the floor at the same moment that two exercise umpires chose to spring from the undergrowth into the path of the oncoming vehicle. Road safety lectures will no doubt confirm that such actions are often the result of poor kerb drill training and an unhappy childhood, and all too frequently end in nasty accidents.
Picking themselves up from the track, the umpires enquired as to the reason for the puzzling presence of a forklift in the jungle. Following a lengthy explanation as to the role of UKMAMS in the exercise, and the role of a forklift in UKMAMS, the driver was politely informed that a bridge for which he was headed, and vital to his continued journey, had in fact been blown up, and that he would, in due course, be advised as to when he could proceed. A bitter disappointment that, after Herculean efforts to get the vehicle to the airhead in time for the start of the exercise, Sgt D Barton was obliged to sit in the jungle just a monkey's throw from his destination with the sound of the airlift ringing in his ears, and his forklift truck for company. In the event, the absence of the forks proved costly, as, forced into less than recommended practices, the MAMS teams at the airhead managed to put a hole in the ramp of one aircraft, which was retired from the exercise for more genuine reasons than the bridge.
Once started, the airlift into Penerak continued without a break. Whilst all new arrivals were setting up camp, the newly arrived MAMS teams had to push on regardless unloading more and more troops and equipment with no chance to secure their own domestic comfort. Fortunately the new teams were able to rely on the advance party who had already arranged some basic home comforts and food. As the Army began to build up in strength in the area, so the senior officers began to put in an appearance, confident that their men had sufficient time to arrange their tents and catering. Now all battles must be fought with all participants correctly dressed as per the local commander's orders.
As a tribute to flexibility in adverse conditions, a local order was issued that prohibited the removal of any of the issued Jungle Green uniform. The uniform was specially designed not only to conserve heat, but to turn black and smell when drenched with sweat, and if there is one factor common to all MAMS tasks it is the unsolicited appearance of sweat. In colourful contradiction to local orders, the MAMS teams quickly turned from green to black and then grey as dust from the landing strip, blown by the aircraft, plastered them during offloads. To maintain a steady supply of dust, the aircraft kept engines running during the whole procedure. Another reason for leaving the engines running during offloads was to allow the aircraft to make a swift exit from the airstrip once unloaded. An expeditious turnaround and departure is, of course, necessary to avoid the aircraft engines ingesting too much dust, which of course would hinder their ability to generate the stuff. After fourteen hours of uninterrupted labour (so much for Tory policies) the MAMS qualified for their first meal of the day. A slice of mashed potato and a dollop of corned beef received a rousing reception from the hungry movers. Acting with considerable restraint, the MAMS teams asked, with commendable politeness why the food was more akin to "copulating excrement" (the actual phrase in its translation from Malay) than anything remotely edible. Not receiving a completely satisfactory answer, but a mumbled explanation that the NAAFI were involved and had made an error of judgment, the MAMS team decided to become self catering.
The plan required the use of a helicopter and a supplier of the goods required. There was no shortage of aircraft in the area, and with e the promise of an outlet for the pilots souvenirs on the recovery airlift (tantamount to offering unlimited baggage allowance), UKMAMS managed the successful hijacking of one of the exercise communications helicopters which regularly flew to RAF Changi and its inherent facilities. The provision of a suitable shopping list and a handful of cash to pay for the goods presented little problem. Normally on deals of this nature, the pilot agrees to help and receives a crate of beer in compensation for his trouble. To their great credit, the helicopter crew flew the mission free of charge, freeing the total sum collected for the purchase of beer which was, incidentally, also heavily rationed and virtually unobtainable at Penerak - Hooray for the NAAFI, the serviceman's friend.
The first UKMAMS "relief flight" arrived outside the ops tent during a daily flight safety briefing on the problems of rotor downwash in a jungle encampment. The MAMS team offloaded the engines running helicopter with remarkable swiftness. The military commanders of the airhead were curious but unable to determine the nature of the load being squirreled away into the jungle as they were otherwise engaged in trying to retrieve the ops tent, maps, tables and flight safety posters telling its audience to "BEWARE DOWN WASH". With this most important mission complete, the teams were once again able to get back to the task of handling the airlift. During the melee that was the average working day, one member of Foxtrot team, or F Troop as they were known, was dispatched to help the local supplier organize his stores. It was to prove a not too unproductive episode in the exercise from the movers point of view. The supplier found, by chance, that he had a spare refrigerator, and, by lucky coincidence, an electrician to wire it into the camp supply.
By now the UKMAMS detachment were receiving their rations direct from the NAAFI stores at Changi at no cost, as they were not using the camp caterers. With this extra food airlifted in daily, coupled with an electric frying pan brought out by Flt Sgt Don Wickham, it came to pass, that by day three, UKMAMS were the envy of the whole camp. A full English breakfast, cold meats and salad for lunch, followed by a gourmet evening meal, complete with cold beer, did a lot to raise the spirits of the movements population. It was also of benefit to the rest of the camp, for without the hungry mouths of UKMAMS to feed, more corned beef, mashed potato and lukewarm stewed tea was available for their consumption.
The plan required the use of a helicopter and a supplier of the goods required. There was no shortage of aircraft in the area, and with e the promise of an outlet for the pilots souvenirs on the recovery airlift (tantamount to offering unlimited baggage allowance), UKMAMS managed the successful hijacking of one of the exercise communications helicopters which regularly flew to RAF Changi and its inherent facilities. The provision of a suitable shopping list and a handful of cash to pay for the goods presented little problem. Normally on deals of this nature, the pilot agrees to help and receives a crate of beer in compensation for his trouble. To their great credit, the helicopter crew flew the mission free of charge, freeing the total sum collected for the purchase of beer which was, incidentally, also heavily rationed and virtually unobtainable at Penerak - Hooray for the NAAFI, the serviceman's friend.
The first UKMAMS "relief flight" arrived outside the ops tent during a daily flight safety briefing on the problems of rotor downwash in a jungle encampment. The MAMS team offloaded the engines running helicopter with remarkable swiftness. The military commanders of the airhead were curious but unable to determine the nature of the load being squirreled away into the jungle as they were otherwise engaged in trying to retrieve the ops tent, maps, tables and flight safety posters telling its audience to "BEWARE DOWN WASH". With this most important mission complete, the teams were once again able to get back to the task of handling the airlift. During the melee that was the average working day, one member of Foxtrot team, or F Troop as they were known, was dispatched to help the local supplier organize his stores. It was to prove a not too unproductive episode in the exercise from the movers point of view. The supplier found, by chance, that he had a spare refrigerator, and, by lucky coincidence, an electrician to wire it into the camp supply.
By now the UKMAMS detachment were receiving their rations direct from the NAAFI stores at Changi at no cost, as they were not using the camp caterers. With this extra food airlifted in daily, coupled with an electric frying pan brought out by Flt Sgt Don Wickham, it came to pass, that by day three, UKMAMS were the envy of the whole camp. A full English breakfast, cold meats and salad for lunch, followed by a gourmet evening meal, complete with cold beer, did a lot to raise the spirits of the movements population. It was also of benefit to the rest of the camp, for without the hungry mouths of UKMAMS to feed, more corned beef, mashed potato and lukewarm stewed tea was available for their consumption.
One small cloud that remained on the horizon was the fact that the camps petrol driven generator was hard pushed to keep up with the fluctuating electricity demand of the frying pan. At MAMS feeding times the camp lights would dim and the generator would cough and splutter. The camp electrician, himself coughing and spluttering, would stagger from his tent and turn up the throttle to increase the power output. At this point in the proceedings, the generator, freed from the demands of trying to provide power for the frying pan, would increase its rpm and race towards its own destruction. No doubt the generator would have exploded save for the dedicated electrician who, having settled down, was once again obliged to stumble across to the machine and close the throttle, before everything else in the camp blew their fuses. This whole scenario was repeated many times a day for the whole exercise without the electrician ever suspecting the root cause. It was on the last day of the exercise that he eventually found out why this was happening. As he gathered up his cable ready for the camp to be closed, he happened across the unauthorized frying pan connection in the wire. He should, by rights, have been pleased to have reached the bottom of the mystery. His mood remained suspiciously dark and he became less than effusive in his praise of UKMAMS (leading to the suspicion that he was a closet communist).
As the exercise progressed, it became increasingly apparent that the exercise planners (determined that the absence of an enemy should not spoil a perfectly good war), were taking the whole fictitious military scenario terribly seriously. Equally obvious was the fact that the MAMS teams were not. During one particularly harrowing "air attack" carried out with relentless, if imaginary, efficiency, the airstrip was cratered, making landings impossible. A single (and this time real) Hercules circled the airstrip while an Army working party, wielding imaginary shovels, in a mime that Marcel Marceau would have admired, drove around the airfield in a real three ton truck filling in imaginary craters. There was to be no slacking in this charade as a very real RSM stalked, yelling among his arm waving protégés, extolling them to greater efforts. The whole airstrip was "repaired" shortly before the Hercules ran our of fuel and crashed into the jungle.
With these, and one or two other diversions, the hard working days continued, with the teams given to increasingly boisterous evening entertainment. The beer stocks remained high and a MAMS run speakeasy started to flourish, ensuring continued financial support for the import of stocks and subsidized drinking for the movers. It was shortly after a particularly rousing evening that a complaint was received from the hierarchy, whose sense of humour had been dulled by weeks of corned beef and mashed potato. The boss, Jim Stewart, was brought in to administer the fatherly debriefing it was felt MAMS deserved. After a lengthy chat he was eventually persuaded that MAMS was not involved in an illicit booze running when a regular customer appeared in the tent door requesting his daily supply. Jim was one of nature's gentlemen, and a fine officer who, without turning a hair, bid all a goodnight before disappearing into the darkness. Point taken however, and thereafter movers drank and conducted themselves a lot more quietly.
Despite the regular comforts that MAMS had acquired, the work was still hard and quite often dirty. Sadly the laundry service in the jungle proved inadequate for the teams needs, and, once again, a local solution was found to the problem. The cooks were approached for the loan of a large cooking pot which, owing to the shortage of food was unlikely to be employed in its primary role. Team members Taff Eynon, Tony Gale and Jerry Freezer built a large wood fire and erected a cauldron stand above the flames. Washing was boiled up in the pot until vaguely clean and then hung out on a makeshift washing line outside the MAMS tent. It was during such a laundry session one day that the planners sprung another "air attack". The plumes of black smoke rising from the MAMS fire to high above the airstrip stimulated the rumour that real bombs were being used, and that the movers had received a direct hit. Senior staff, unimpressed with this contribution of visual realism to the proceedings, came to make their feelings known to the occupants of the MAMS tent, and to check that some catastrophe had not befallen the camp. This proved to be a mistake as they were further pushed into an apoplectic fit by the sight of numerous undergarments, compromising the camouflage of the site, as they fluttered conspicuously in the breeze.
As the exercise progressed, it became increasingly apparent that the exercise planners (determined that the absence of an enemy should not spoil a perfectly good war), were taking the whole fictitious military scenario terribly seriously. Equally obvious was the fact that the MAMS teams were not. During one particularly harrowing "air attack" carried out with relentless, if imaginary, efficiency, the airstrip was cratered, making landings impossible. A single (and this time real) Hercules circled the airstrip while an Army working party, wielding imaginary shovels, in a mime that Marcel Marceau would have admired, drove around the airfield in a real three ton truck filling in imaginary craters. There was to be no slacking in this charade as a very real RSM stalked, yelling among his arm waving protégés, extolling them to greater efforts. The whole airstrip was "repaired" shortly before the Hercules ran our of fuel and crashed into the jungle.
With these, and one or two other diversions, the hard working days continued, with the teams given to increasingly boisterous evening entertainment. The beer stocks remained high and a MAMS run speakeasy started to flourish, ensuring continued financial support for the import of stocks and subsidized drinking for the movers. It was shortly after a particularly rousing evening that a complaint was received from the hierarchy, whose sense of humour had been dulled by weeks of corned beef and mashed potato. The boss, Jim Stewart, was brought in to administer the fatherly debriefing it was felt MAMS deserved. After a lengthy chat he was eventually persuaded that MAMS was not involved in an illicit booze running when a regular customer appeared in the tent door requesting his daily supply. Jim was one of nature's gentlemen, and a fine officer who, without turning a hair, bid all a goodnight before disappearing into the darkness. Point taken however, and thereafter movers drank and conducted themselves a lot more quietly.
Despite the regular comforts that MAMS had acquired, the work was still hard and quite often dirty. Sadly the laundry service in the jungle proved inadequate for the teams needs, and, once again, a local solution was found to the problem. The cooks were approached for the loan of a large cooking pot which, owing to the shortage of food was unlikely to be employed in its primary role. Team members Taff Eynon, Tony Gale and Jerry Freezer built a large wood fire and erected a cauldron stand above the flames. Washing was boiled up in the pot until vaguely clean and then hung out on a makeshift washing line outside the MAMS tent. It was during such a laundry session one day that the planners sprung another "air attack". The plumes of black smoke rising from the MAMS fire to high above the airstrip stimulated the rumour that real bombs were being used, and that the movers had received a direct hit. Senior staff, unimpressed with this contribution of visual realism to the proceedings, came to make their feelings known to the occupants of the MAMS tent, and to check that some catastrophe had not befallen the camp. This proved to be a mistake as they were further pushed into an apoplectic fit by the sight of numerous undergarments, compromising the camouflage of the site, as they fluttered conspicuously in the breeze.
UKMAMS has always prided itself on the collection of unusual souvenirs of a type not normally found in the shops, and it was during an evenings relaxation, towards the end of the exercise, that the subject of souvenirs was brought up. As a result of these high level talks, the forklift truck was sent with a supply of cargo chains to a large milestone set into the roadside verge. Under the cover of darkness, the two ton, ten foot tall stone was gradually lifted from the earth and carried back to the airhead. The cavity in the road represented a real hazard to the local traffic, and, to help reduce the chance of an accident, the hole was filled with a conveniently large branch taken from a nearby tree. Locals going to work the next day were flung into a superstitious panic to witness the miraculous transformation of the milestone into a tree, and for weeks no one dared venture out after dark. This incident not only set Malayan education back fifty years and spawned a return to the practice and belief of voodoo, but also served indirectly to place black cockerels and white hens on the endangered species list.
During quieter period of the exercise, the team members were able to transit back to Changi on the aircraft moving the troops. In this way the MAMS detachment were able to smuggle back their souvenirs as well as keep up stocks of provisions through regular shopping expeditions.
On the 3rd of July the last of the MAMS detachment were flown from Penerak back to Changi. They were to remain in Singapore for a further six days where they attempted to rejoin civilization before being flown back to Brize Norton and home to Abingdon.
In a strange twist of fate a milestone bearing foreign inscriptions appeared outside the UKMAMS crewroom at RAF Abingdon and now sits outside UKMAMS Headquarters at RAF Lyneham [now at Brize Norton] - a finger of stone pointing accusingly at UKMAMS - the Malayan Gods are not to be denied.
During quieter period of the exercise, the team members were able to transit back to Changi on the aircraft moving the troops. In this way the MAMS detachment were able to smuggle back their souvenirs as well as keep up stocks of provisions through regular shopping expeditions.
On the 3rd of July the last of the MAMS detachment were flown from Penerak back to Changi. They were to remain in Singapore for a further six days where they attempted to rejoin civilization before being flown back to Brize Norton and home to Abingdon.
In a strange twist of fate a milestone bearing foreign inscriptions appeared outside the UKMAMS crewroom at RAF Abingdon and now sits outside UKMAMS Headquarters at RAF Lyneham [now at Brize Norton] - a finger of stone pointing accusingly at UKMAMS - the Malayan Gods are not to be denied.
A Photo Pictorial (By Tony Gale)
Tony Gale "acclimatising" in Singapore prior to going up-country
A C-130 and a nice day-glo sign announcing our HQ to the enemy
XV198 heading back to Singapore for another load (I was showered with prop-washed gravel taking this shot!)
Tony of the jungle. The Browning 9mm pistol had no blank bullets, so when the "enemy" attacked us (firing very noisy blanks) all we could do is point our pistols at them and shout "BANG!"
Curious onlookers (possibly enemy spies?)
Westland Wessex of 72 Squadron taking off for jungle operations
Foxtrot Team Leader Roger Woods communing with nature
Our home-away-from-home for many weeks
An Albert from Oz joining in the fun
John Cooper and Roger Woods discussing
load strategies with a helicopter crewman
load strategies with a helicopter crewman
An Albert from Kiwiland heading back to Changi
OK - we've had enough - time to go home
From: David Powell, Princes Risborough, Bucks
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hello again Tony,
Re: Bersatu Padu - I presume that you did know about the international faux pas over the exercise name? Bersatu Padu are two Malaysian words for Complete and Unity. However, they mean complete unity in a sexual sense, i.e. a complete... well you can work it out! This is why your very polite Malaysian hosts always referred to the exercise in English.
May a complete Bersatu Padu not be with you!
David
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hello again Tony,
Re: Bersatu Padu - I presume that you did know about the international faux pas over the exercise name? Bersatu Padu are two Malaysian words for Complete and Unity. However, they mean complete unity in a sexual sense, i.e. a complete... well you can work it out! This is why your very polite Malaysian hosts always referred to the exercise in English.
May a complete Bersatu Padu not be with you!
David
NZDF successful in transport of aid to communities in Papua New Guinea
15 May, 2024 - NZDF personnel and a Royal New Zealand Air Force C-130H (NZ) Hercules deployed last week to Papua New Guinea, after the Government of Papua New Guinea asked for help getting supplies from the capital to affected communities. News agencies reporting on the March 24 earthquake in East Sepik say it caused several fatalities and destroyed more than 1,000 homes. At the time villages in the vicinity of the Sepik River were battling widespread flooding.
The NZDF team worked with counterparts in Papua New Guinea to deliver the humanitarian assistance and disaster relief stores. Over six flights to five different airfields, 31 tonnes of supplies were delivered for onward distribution by road to 10 provinces in Papua New Guinea. The relief supplies included tents, tarpaulins, blankets, sleeping bags, jerry cans, kitchen sets and generators. The Hercules and personnel, operating out of RNZAF Base Auckland, returned to New Zealand on Monday.
nzdf.mil.nz
Update - Friday 30 May 2024 - an RNZAF Hercules departed Auckland today bringing relief supplies to PNG following last Friday's landslide that buried over 2,000 people
The NZDF team worked with counterparts in Papua New Guinea to deliver the humanitarian assistance and disaster relief stores. Over six flights to five different airfields, 31 tonnes of supplies were delivered for onward distribution by road to 10 provinces in Papua New Guinea. The relief supplies included tents, tarpaulins, blankets, sleeping bags, jerry cans, kitchen sets and generators. The Hercules and personnel, operating out of RNZAF Base Auckland, returned to New Zealand on Monday.
nzdf.mil.nz
Update - Friday 30 May 2024 - an RNZAF Hercules departed Auckland today bringing relief supplies to PNG following last Friday's landslide that buried over 2,000 people
From: Harold Jones, Neston, Cheshire
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
I suppose that one of the memorable exercises must be Exercise Cold Stream in November 1971. J Team were tasked on a Belfast to Pisa on the 1st November to support the exercise.
The exercise was a large-scale joint UK/Italian with 9 Hercules and 1 Andover involved. The Hercules were taking part in an early morning para drops at Cagliari, Sardinia. Hercules XV216 crashed into the sea shortly after take off with the loss of all 52 on board.
We were not involved with the actual passenger loading, so no passenger manifest or trim sheet was available.
The exercise was halted for several days until the 16th when we carried out a stream assault dropping a single parachutist at Elmas. It was a very eerie experience sat in the aircraft as it enacted the para assault. The remainder of our time was very subdued, with a Comet bringing the relatives of the lost crew members out for a short service.
We returned on the 22nd November by Hercules to Lyneham. Yes, this was a very memorable exercise.
Harold Jones
UKMAMS J Team
I performed a search on the Interweb regarding the lost Hercules and found the following report from The Aviation Safety Network:
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
I suppose that one of the memorable exercises must be Exercise Cold Stream in November 1971. J Team were tasked on a Belfast to Pisa on the 1st November to support the exercise.
The exercise was a large-scale joint UK/Italian with 9 Hercules and 1 Andover involved. The Hercules were taking part in an early morning para drops at Cagliari, Sardinia. Hercules XV216 crashed into the sea shortly after take off with the loss of all 52 on board.
We were not involved with the actual passenger loading, so no passenger manifest or trim sheet was available.
The exercise was halted for several days until the 16th when we carried out a stream assault dropping a single parachutist at Elmas. It was a very eerie experience sat in the aircraft as it enacted the para assault. The remainder of our time was very subdued, with a Comet bringing the relatives of the lost crew members out for a short service.
We returned on the 22nd November by Hercules to Lyneham. Yes, this was a very memorable exercise.
Harold Jones
UKMAMS J Team
I performed a search on the Interweb regarding the lost Hercules and found the following report from The Aviation Safety Network:
Narrative:
Ten RAF transport aircraft were engaged in the "Cold Stream" exercise at Pisa, Italy in November 1971. The aircraft were flying missions carrying Italian paratroopers.
Lockheed Hercules XV216, "Chalk 4", contacted the surface of the sea and crashed, shortly after takeoff from Pisa Airport (PSA). The airplane was number three in a wave of nine Hercules planes bound for the Villacidro Dropzone, Sardinia.
It came down about 19 km from the runway end and 7 km off shore.
Aviation Safety Network
Ten RAF transport aircraft were engaged in the "Cold Stream" exercise at Pisa, Italy in November 1971. The aircraft were flying missions carrying Italian paratroopers.
Lockheed Hercules XV216, "Chalk 4", contacted the surface of the sea and crashed, shortly after takeoff from Pisa Airport (PSA). The airplane was number three in a wave of nine Hercules planes bound for the Villacidro Dropzone, Sardinia.
It came down about 19 km from the runway end and 7 km off shore.
Aviation Safety Network
British heavy lift aircraft spearhead major NATO exercise
Royal Air Force heavy lift aircraft have delivered a Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) to the British Army during a major NATO exercise in Estonia. This operation is part of Exercise Swift Response, which is integrated into Steadfast Defender 24 – NATO’s largest exercise since the Cold War.
Exercise Swift Response included high and medium-level paratrooper drops, with additional air support provided by RAF Chinooks, British Army Apaches and Wildcats, and various NATO aircraft, including those from the United States Air Force.
“The UK’s contribution to this major NATO exercise shows that we are taking a very real threat seriously through a necessary presence to deter Russia,” said His Majesty’s Ambassador to Estonia, Mr Ross Allen, in a press release. Mr Allen also commended the RAF’s versatility and capability. “This week the RAF have proved their versatility and ability to work closely with the Army alongside our allies in a battlefield scenario. I was delighted to fly in the Atlas myself and witness first-hand this extremely capable aircraft and highly professional crew who can switch between several roles in operations and exercises across the globe.”
Emphasising Estonia’s safety and strategic importance, Mr Allen added, “I would like to emphasise that Estonia is a very safe country that is part of the EU and NATO, where I live with my family and one that people should not be deterred from visiting. It is a popular tourist destination and a good place to do business, which is why the reassurances that exercises such as Swift Response provide are important. The RAF and United Kingdom are committed to NATO who in turn is committed to Estonia’s defence and values in an international order based on rules and mutual respect.”
The Atlas crews, known for their efficiency in moving people and equipment, tested a Rapid Air Land (RAL) operation where vital equipment is swiftly moved across the battlefield. At Kiltsi airstrip, VIPs, including the UK Ambassador and Estonian Defence Minister, witnessed an Atlas deploying an MLRS overseas for the first time. The week concluded with a paratrooper drop of the 16 Air Assault Brigade over the island of Saaremaa.
ukdefencejournal.org.uk
Exercise Swift Response included high and medium-level paratrooper drops, with additional air support provided by RAF Chinooks, British Army Apaches and Wildcats, and various NATO aircraft, including those from the United States Air Force.
“The UK’s contribution to this major NATO exercise shows that we are taking a very real threat seriously through a necessary presence to deter Russia,” said His Majesty’s Ambassador to Estonia, Mr Ross Allen, in a press release. Mr Allen also commended the RAF’s versatility and capability. “This week the RAF have proved their versatility and ability to work closely with the Army alongside our allies in a battlefield scenario. I was delighted to fly in the Atlas myself and witness first-hand this extremely capable aircraft and highly professional crew who can switch between several roles in operations and exercises across the globe.”
Emphasising Estonia’s safety and strategic importance, Mr Allen added, “I would like to emphasise that Estonia is a very safe country that is part of the EU and NATO, where I live with my family and one that people should not be deterred from visiting. It is a popular tourist destination and a good place to do business, which is why the reassurances that exercises such as Swift Response provide are important. The RAF and United Kingdom are committed to NATO who in turn is committed to Estonia’s defence and values in an international order based on rules and mutual respect.”
The Atlas crews, known for their efficiency in moving people and equipment, tested a Rapid Air Land (RAL) operation where vital equipment is swiftly moved across the battlefield. At Kiltsi airstrip, VIPs, including the UK Ambassador and Estonian Defence Minister, witnessed an Atlas deploying an MLRS overseas for the first time. The week concluded with a paratrooper drop of the 16 Air Assault Brigade over the island of Saaremaa.
ukdefencejournal.org.uk
From: Colin Eyre, Bridgend, Glamorgan
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
There were so many exercises that we all took part in, not all of them very memorable, and I can’t match the fun you had on Bersatu Padu as E team (UKMAMS finest) only took part in the initial stages in Changi. There were however two that I well remember:
1971 Hellenic Express. Mikra (Thessaloniki) Greece. This was the joint USAF, GAF and UK air forces exercise. Along with our C130 we got to see the C5A and C141. The exercise took place over four weeks in September. Our accommodation was a hotel up in the hills. Work aside there was an excursion to see Mount Olympus and another to see the monasteries at Mount Athos. On return my wife thought I had been on a Thomas Cook holiday.
1973 Alexandra Express. Same destination. Again it was over four weeks in June and July. The only real difference was our hotel was now near the beach. This was my swan song and again my wife did not believe it when I told her how hard we had had to work in the blazing heat!
C'est la vie
Colin
Subject: Memorable Exercises
Hi Tony,
There were so many exercises that we all took part in, not all of them very memorable, and I can’t match the fun you had on Bersatu Padu as E team (UKMAMS finest) only took part in the initial stages in Changi. There were however two that I well remember:
1971 Hellenic Express. Mikra (Thessaloniki) Greece. This was the joint USAF, GAF and UK air forces exercise. Along with our C130 we got to see the C5A and C141. The exercise took place over four weeks in September. Our accommodation was a hotel up in the hills. Work aside there was an excursion to see Mount Olympus and another to see the monasteries at Mount Athos. On return my wife thought I had been on a Thomas Cook holiday.
1973 Alexandra Express. Same destination. Again it was over four weeks in June and July. The only real difference was our hotel was now near the beach. This was my swan song and again my wife did not believe it when I told her how hard we had had to work in the blazing heat!
C'est la vie
Colin
From: Syd Avery, Alicante
Subject: Memorable Exercises
G’Day, Each,
Memorable Exercises - No, not star jumps or squat thrusts!
54 years ago, on February 22, G Team on exercise Arctic Express trundled by Belfast to Conningsby and thence further North. We proceeded some 300 kms. north of the Arctic Circle to a Norwegian island by name of Andoya, and a small fishing (remember fishing) town by name of Andenes, quite close to where Norway turns right at the top. So long ago, but memorable for a few reasons.
February = cold. Our accomodation was in TENTS. Double green grubs, and the tent had a fireplace. Said fire was to be replenished throughout the night by the duty “Snowdrop” (RAF Policeman - known as 'Snowdrop' because of the white cover on his service cap). Said individual either forgot, or more likely fell asleep in the warmth of the Operations building. Result on awakening, no fire, the side of the face outside the grubs slightly cool to the touch. That night and for the rest of the exercise, we were in permanent accomodation on the main base.
With being on the main base, we had transport, a car. Driving too cautiously on packed snow/ice for some, chauffeur Syd was egged on to go faster. Being outvoted he did and the result, skid off road and car partialy covered in snow. Fortunately, a truck load of Norwegian conscripts stopped to help. We declined a pull out by chains so as not to damage the car, their SNCO grunted in the local lingo, some dozen or so big brawny boys jumped from the truck and with some Norwegian equivalent of “TWO-SIX” lifted the car back onto the road. Appreciation shown by a donation of a few bottles of whisky and a few hundred ciggies (DF of course).
A RHAG (Rotary Hydraulic Arrester Gear) was deployed on the exercise, assembled by the Royal Engineers. It was a “WOW” experience watching a Phantom “take the RHAG” from close up. Such weight and speed being brought to a stop in a short distance.
Having a meal in a local restaurant, beautiful fresh fish (remember we were in a fishing village), someone enquired in all seriousness, “Do you think this fish is local?”
Day of departure, March 14, we had to dig the Argosy out of a snow drift with the weather forecast predicting “snowstorms and blizzards later in the day". That gave us the impetus to dig harder; MAMS, flight crew, techies and pax. We managed it, and after we left, the airfield was closed for several days because of the very snowy weather. It was fun!
We’ll leave it at that, won’t go to the boiled egg in Mashad! Everybody, go well and look after each other and stay safe.
Best regards,
Syd
Subject: Memorable Exercises
G’Day, Each,
Memorable Exercises - No, not star jumps or squat thrusts!
54 years ago, on February 22, G Team on exercise Arctic Express trundled by Belfast to Conningsby and thence further North. We proceeded some 300 kms. north of the Arctic Circle to a Norwegian island by name of Andoya, and a small fishing (remember fishing) town by name of Andenes, quite close to where Norway turns right at the top. So long ago, but memorable for a few reasons.
February = cold. Our accomodation was in TENTS. Double green grubs, and the tent had a fireplace. Said fire was to be replenished throughout the night by the duty “Snowdrop” (RAF Policeman - known as 'Snowdrop' because of the white cover on his service cap). Said individual either forgot, or more likely fell asleep in the warmth of the Operations building. Result on awakening, no fire, the side of the face outside the grubs slightly cool to the touch. That night and for the rest of the exercise, we were in permanent accomodation on the main base.
With being on the main base, we had transport, a car. Driving too cautiously on packed snow/ice for some, chauffeur Syd was egged on to go faster. Being outvoted he did and the result, skid off road and car partialy covered in snow. Fortunately, a truck load of Norwegian conscripts stopped to help. We declined a pull out by chains so as not to damage the car, their SNCO grunted in the local lingo, some dozen or so big brawny boys jumped from the truck and with some Norwegian equivalent of “TWO-SIX” lifted the car back onto the road. Appreciation shown by a donation of a few bottles of whisky and a few hundred ciggies (DF of course).
A RHAG (Rotary Hydraulic Arrester Gear) was deployed on the exercise, assembled by the Royal Engineers. It was a “WOW” experience watching a Phantom “take the RHAG” from close up. Such weight and speed being brought to a stop in a short distance.
Having a meal in a local restaurant, beautiful fresh fish (remember we were in a fishing village), someone enquired in all seriousness, “Do you think this fish is local?”
Day of departure, March 14, we had to dig the Argosy out of a snow drift with the weather forecast predicting “snowstorms and blizzards later in the day". That gave us the impetus to dig harder; MAMS, flight crew, techies and pax. We managed it, and after we left, the airfield was closed for several days because of the very snowy weather. It was fun!
We’ll leave it at that, won’t go to the boiled egg in Mashad! Everybody, go well and look after each other and stay safe.
Best regards,
Syd
Confessions of a C-130 Hercules Pilot
By Thomas Newdick - thewarzone.com
By Thomas Newdick - thewarzone.com
From Air Loadmaster to Captain, few aviators know their way around the U.K. C-130 Hercules fleet as well as Scott Bateman.
The C-130 Hercules is almost certainly the best-known military transport aircraft in the world, and, with its unrivaled production record, it’s outlived many of the far more glamorous fighters and other combat jets with which it might be (less than fairly) compared. Despite many epic missions flown during its long service career and some remarkable attributes of its own, we don’t so often get to hear from those who have flown it.
One such pilot, former Aircraft Captain Scott Bateman MBE, learned his way around the legendary Hercules during an 18-year career with the U.K. Royal Air Force. After joining the service in 1990, the first part of his career saw him as an Air Loadmaster on the Hercules.
In 1997, he was selected to train as a pilot, giving him a very different perspective on the C-130. In the process, he experienced the transition from the old C-130K (broadly equivalent to the U.S. Air Force’s C-130E) to the current state-of-the-art C-130J.
One such pilot, former Aircraft Captain Scott Bateman MBE, learned his way around the legendary Hercules during an 18-year career with the U.K. Royal Air Force. After joining the service in 1990, the first part of his career saw him as an Air Loadmaster on the Hercules.
In 1997, he was selected to train as a pilot, giving him a very different perspective on the C-130. In the process, he experienced the transition from the old C-130K (broadly equivalent to the U.S. Air Force’s C-130E) to the current state-of-the-art C-130J.
Scott had left the Royal Air Force before the controversial decision was made to withdraw the Hercules fleet. After 56 years of service, the last of the RAF's C-130Js were retired on June 30, 2023, leaving some big questions about the ability of their successor, the Airbus A400M Atlas, to take on the whole of the diverse mission set. More on that later.
Scott’s first book "Hercules" is published today and he recently sat down for a virtual interview with TWZ to reflect on his relationship with the aircraft. "I’d never really seen a Hercules before I got posted to one. I’d kind of seen them around the periphery but I’d never been inside one before I got posted (to RAF Lyneham, in England, the former U.K. Hercules ‘master base’) as an air loadmaster. I’d been in a trainer, a mockup which they had at RAF Finningley. Really, the first time I arrived at Lyneham was the first time I’d really seen one, and here’s this aeroplane the size of a Boeing 737 and I’m going to be in charge of everything that’s behind the flight deck as a loadmaster. And you just think, ‘Oh my god, this is enormous.’ And you compare it to the C-17 and the A400M Atlas now, and it’s not that big, but at the time, this was a big, big aeroplane for me, and a massive leap.
The other thing that strikes anyone who’s flown in a Hercules is noise. It is the noisiest aeroplane ever. It’s designed to carry freight, it’s not designed to carry people, so the creature comforts are few and far between. And that includes toilets. The toilet is a little honey bucket that sits six feet in the air and if you need to use it, it comes down. It’s not the most glamorous of aeroplanes to fly as a passenger.
Scott’s first book "Hercules" is published today and he recently sat down for a virtual interview with TWZ to reflect on his relationship with the aircraft. "I’d never really seen a Hercules before I got posted to one. I’d kind of seen them around the periphery but I’d never been inside one before I got posted (to RAF Lyneham, in England, the former U.K. Hercules ‘master base’) as an air loadmaster. I’d been in a trainer, a mockup which they had at RAF Finningley. Really, the first time I arrived at Lyneham was the first time I’d really seen one, and here’s this aeroplane the size of a Boeing 737 and I’m going to be in charge of everything that’s behind the flight deck as a loadmaster. And you just think, ‘Oh my god, this is enormous.’ And you compare it to the C-17 and the A400M Atlas now, and it’s not that big, but at the time, this was a big, big aeroplane for me, and a massive leap.
The other thing that strikes anyone who’s flown in a Hercules is noise. It is the noisiest aeroplane ever. It’s designed to carry freight, it’s not designed to carry people, so the creature comforts are few and far between. And that includes toilets. The toilet is a little honey bucket that sits six feet in the air and if you need to use it, it comes down. It’s not the most glamorous of aeroplanes to fly as a passenger.
Scott Bateman
The Best View in the Air Force
I think the one thing that the C-130 has that no other aeroplane in the inventory has, and I include the C-17 and A400M, is the view out the flight deck — the view out the flight deck is amazing.
You’ve got so many windows: windows behind you, windows above you for when you’re taking it into tight steep turns. You can look through the brow windows and also you can look down, through the two windows which are below your eye level.
I don’t think I’ve ever been in an aeroplane — until I flew the Airbus A350 — with such a good view out of the flight deck. On all the others, looking out of the windows on the flight deck is kind of an afterthought. With this aeroplane, tactical awareness out of the window was a big thing. So big windows, lots of light. It was a real joy to fly in that respect.
You’ve got so many windows: windows behind you, windows above you for when you’re taking it into tight steep turns. You can look through the brow windows and also you can look down, through the two windows which are below your eye level.
I don’t think I’ve ever been in an aeroplane — until I flew the Airbus A350 — with such a good view out of the flight deck. On all the others, looking out of the windows on the flight deck is kind of an afterthought. With this aeroplane, tactical awareness out of the window was a big thing. So big windows, lots of light. It was a real joy to fly in that respect.
If we look at the K-model, or the E-model as the Americans would refer to it, it was built with late 1960s technology, and it didn’t really change at all. In terms of technology, when I first started out, the Hercules didn’t even have GPS. We were using Doppler and Decca and LORAN C [a radio navigation system using low-frequency signals]. And you know, people look at you and say ‘LORAN C? That was used for submarines, but we used it for aeroplanes as well. There would be someone with an oscilloscope back here, the navigator trying to figure out where you were. We actually had a periscope that we could put up, with a sextant to take star shots to find out where we were when we were out over the Atlantic.
Every airliner back in the 1980s had got rid of their navigators, got rid of their flight engineers, and moved onto glass cockpits and integrated avionics. The military have never really done that with the C-130 and I think when the J came out in the 2000s it was a chance for them to leap two or three generations of avionics and integration. It really is like comparing a 1970s Ford Fiesta to a Tesla in many respects, in terms of the leap in technology going from steam dials to glass panels, to head-up displays, to the integration of your flight management computer where the pilots can manipulate all this information. There is now a lot of automation: you put the data in and you follow the 'pink string' [a route line shown on the cockpit displays] whereas back in the day, we were literally using a map and the Mk 1 eyeball and a navigator using Doppler in the back. All those things are gone but gone for the right reasons. The C-130J also brought full integration of night-vision goggles from the outset, which was an afterthought on the E or the K models, and which really makes it a super-capable platform. If you look at most head-up displays, they’re quite small. The one introduced in the C-130J is enormous and I think that really was one of the great things — it put all this stuff in front of you. Being able to get rid of the navigator and the flight engineer was a blow to the socializing, but actually, it made it a better aeroplane.
Every airliner back in the 1980s had got rid of their navigators, got rid of their flight engineers, and moved onto glass cockpits and integrated avionics. The military have never really done that with the C-130 and I think when the J came out in the 2000s it was a chance for them to leap two or three generations of avionics and integration. It really is like comparing a 1970s Ford Fiesta to a Tesla in many respects, in terms of the leap in technology going from steam dials to glass panels, to head-up displays, to the integration of your flight management computer where the pilots can manipulate all this information. There is now a lot of automation: you put the data in and you follow the 'pink string' [a route line shown on the cockpit displays] whereas back in the day, we were literally using a map and the Mk 1 eyeball and a navigator using Doppler in the back. All those things are gone but gone for the right reasons. The C-130J also brought full integration of night-vision goggles from the outset, which was an afterthought on the E or the K models, and which really makes it a super-capable platform. If you look at most head-up displays, they’re quite small. The one introduced in the C-130J is enormous and I think that really was one of the great things — it put all this stuff in front of you. Being able to get rid of the navigator and the flight engineer was a blow to the socializing, but actually, it made it a better aeroplane.
More than just a Super Hercules - The shape of the J-model is the same stalwart shape of the legacy Hercules because the shape worked and the wing worked. What didn’t work was the engines: engine technology had leaped forward four or five generations.
It’s like apples and oranges, they look a little bit similar from the outside but actually at the heart the C-130J is so different that it makes it almost a different aeroplane. They called it the Super Hercules but actually, it wasn’t really a Hercules, it was a clean-sheet design for something much better, with FADEC-controlled engines, which were a massive improvement.
On the E-model or the K-model, you could easily over-torque or overtemperature the engines. You just can’t do that on the J. You just ram the thrust levers to the end, and you let the FADEC sort it out. I can guarantee, you did that in the K-model and the flight engineer would hit you across the head with his ruler so hard that you would never touch the thrust levers again.
The hardest missions, high and low - Two different types of missions spring to mind in terms of the very different challenges they presented, for different reasons.
It’s like apples and oranges, they look a little bit similar from the outside but actually at the heart the C-130J is so different that it makes it almost a different aeroplane. They called it the Super Hercules but actually, it wasn’t really a Hercules, it was a clean-sheet design for something much better, with FADEC-controlled engines, which were a massive improvement.
On the E-model or the K-model, you could easily over-torque or overtemperature the engines. You just can’t do that on the J. You just ram the thrust levers to the end, and you let the FADEC sort it out. I can guarantee, you did that in the K-model and the flight engineer would hit you across the head with his ruler so hard that you would never touch the thrust levers again.
The hardest missions, high and low - Two different types of missions spring to mind in terms of the very different challenges they presented, for different reasons.
The first one is HALO [high-altitude, low-opening parachute] drops. High-altitude parachuting is a very niche skill, only a few crews held the qualifications to be able to do those flights. And the process of getting people to that altitude to be able to open the doors and allow them to jump out is exceptionally complex. It’s done with great care and safety because you’re dealing with humans.
For me, dropping HALO troops is a really complex function. It’s not just climb up to an altitude and they jump out and that’s it. There’s a lot that goes into getting to that altitude and that point where you can open the door, and someone can jump out. Not that I would want to jump out from that altitude — or any altitude!
For me, dropping HALO troops is a really complex function. It’s not just climb up to an altitude and they jump out and that’s it. There’s a lot that goes into getting to that altitude and that point where you can open the door, and someone can jump out. Not that I would want to jump out from that altitude — or any altitude!
The other really challenging mission, I think, is dropping heavy loads. So things like what they call the Medium Stress Platform [MSP]. You’re looking at something near 20 tons. Two platforms, 10 tons each, going out in probably under two seconds. This is complex to rig for the loadmaster, so the loadmaster takes hours and hours to rig this load to make it work. In terms of the space, there are roughly three inches around this load within the airframe and, when it leaves, and it goes from zero to 150 miles an hour in about three feet.
Basically, a massive parachute deploys out the back of the aeroplane, the load stands still, and you fly off, in essence. The load has a cable inside that basically holds on until it gives way and that means that the load has enough impetus to go straight out and won’t tip over and take your tail off. So you’re a heavy aeroplane, at exceptionally low level, at exceptionally high weight, and trying to maneuver to get this load in the right place. Those kind of heavy loads that are complex are the most challenging to fly accurately and it takes masses of capacity to fly those accurately. And that’s why you see now, big heavy loads like boats, for example, aren’t dropped from the A400M.
Basically, a massive parachute deploys out the back of the aeroplane, the load stands still, and you fly off, in essence. The load has a cable inside that basically holds on until it gives way and that means that the load has enough impetus to go straight out and won’t tip over and take your tail off. So you’re a heavy aeroplane, at exceptionally low level, at exceptionally high weight, and trying to maneuver to get this load in the right place. Those kind of heavy loads that are complex are the most challenging to fly accurately and it takes masses of capacity to fly those accurately. And that’s why you see now, big heavy loads like boats, for example, aren’t dropped from the A400M.
When the RAF first got the C-130, it had no self-defense measures to speak of - When we bought the aeroplane back in the late 1960s and it was delivered in the early 1970s, it was never envisaged that this would be a ‘tip of the spear’ asset. This would never be a tactical aeroplane. It was always going to be the ‘removals van,’ and it was always going to move stuff from the base to the front-line-ish, but never go across the front line.
The Falklands changed that initially. You had fighters that were challenging Hercules. We also needed an air-to-air refueling capability which was literally designed from stuff they found in a scrapyard. In 1982, a number of C-130K Hercules were converted to single-point tankers to support the Falklands airbridge from Ascension Island and air defense operations from Mount Pleasant airfield.
The Falklands changed that initially. You had fighters that were challenging Hercules. We also needed an air-to-air refueling capability which was literally designed from stuff they found in a scrapyard. In 1982, a number of C-130K Hercules were converted to single-point tankers to support the Falklands airbridge from Ascension Island and air defense operations from Mount Pleasant airfield.
C130K Hercules refuelling a Nimrod MR2
If the first step change was the Falklands, then the next step change was the beginning of the 1991 Gulf War. The first night, they went in with no defensive aids. When we were first going in there on that first night, we had pilots who didn’t even have flak jackets. The aeroplane wasn’t armored in any way, shape, or form from small arms fire. We had crew members sitting on chains which they put in the seat bottoms to give them some protection if somebody was shooting from below. Not sure if that would have worked, but in their mind a steel chain wrapped there was going to give them more protection than not. I think after that initial experience in the Gulf where people went ‘Hang on a minute, the Brits have got nothing, this is quite embarrassing,’ I think that was the second step change. Then we saw real investment in the platforms — particularly what they called 'the mini fleet.'
The mini fleet, which was six aircraft, was hugely invested in. They had an enhanced vision system — a linked infrared vision system, we ended up with MX-15 turrets, and we had proper armored flight decks, which was fantastic. And then we started to go from having the infrared countermeasures that we had for beating the surface-to-air missile threat in Northern Ireland — which were nothing more than a big infrared lamp if I’m being honest — to seeing things DIRCM and LAIRCM becoming available on the aircraft.
The mini fleet, which was six aircraft, was hugely invested in. They had an enhanced vision system — a linked infrared vision system, we ended up with MX-15 turrets, and we had proper armored flight decks, which was fantastic. And then we started to go from having the infrared countermeasures that we had for beating the surface-to-air missile threat in Northern Ireland — which were nothing more than a big infrared lamp if I’m being honest — to seeing things DIRCM and LAIRCM becoming available on the aircraft.
DIRCM for us was the biggest leap forward really, linking that in with MAWS [missile approach warning system], it was really, really great. But we didn’t see ESF [Explosive Suppression Foam] come in. And actually, that’s a theme throughout my book. ESF was really never thought of as being required for the aeroplane because it was never going into that threat environment. But sadly it did, and we lost an aircraft, in Iraq, in part perhaps because ESF wasn’t fitted. I’m not saying the aircraft wouldn’t have been downed, but there’s a school of thought, and I subscribe to that, that ESF perhaps would have prevented that accident.
Going to war in the Herk - Actually, I think every time I got behind the column, some people would say that was the scariest mission for them! But I think Afghanistan was really the scariest for me. Every day you faced a threat. I was there very early in the conflict, way before the likes of Camp Bastion [the largest postwar operational British military base] were even thought of, never mind built. There was only one aeroplane in theater at the time and we were working quite hard both day and night. Flying in daylight in Afghanistan in a Hercules came with a unique set of threats, not only from an environmental viewpoint…
Going to war in the Herk - Actually, I think every time I got behind the column, some people would say that was the scariest mission for them! But I think Afghanistan was really the scariest for me. Every day you faced a threat. I was there very early in the conflict, way before the likes of Camp Bastion [the largest postwar operational British military base] were even thought of, never mind built. There was only one aeroplane in theater at the time and we were working quite hard both day and night. Flying in daylight in Afghanistan in a Hercules came with a unique set of threats, not only from an environmental viewpoint…
The threat from proper surface-to-air missiles was greater in Iraq, but for daylight missions in Afghanistan, RPGs and small arms were a really serious threat and most of the airfields we were going to were not protected. So they didn’t have a protection zone around them. These airfields are, in some cases quite rudimentary. So you’re arriving, picking some people up, and taking them somewhere else because they can’t drive there because it’s so dangerous.
Flying in the daylight in Afghanistan was the most challenging, and people took potshots at you and you’d see the occasional RPG, but touch wood, we were very fortunate and didn’t get anywhere near any hits.
Flying in the daylight in Afghanistan was the most challenging, and people took potshots at you and you’d see the occasional RPG, but touch wood, we were very fortunate and didn’t get anywhere near any hits.
The mystique of 47 Squadron — just don’t call it Special Forces.
47 Squadron seems to have this legend that goes around, but we’re just humans. The final iteration of the squadron started off back in the 1970s having a small group within it. That group got bigger and bigger and eventually, by the late 2000s, the entire squadron was dedicated to supporting specialist troops. And the squadron had two tiers within it. A tier one support and a tier two support. I was never tier one, I was in the other part, what they called the main squadron.
I hate to use the word elite, but its role was seen as elite. We aircrews were not elite in any way shape or form. But the role was certainly a niche role, that parts of the squadron fulfilled. And I think globally, because of that, like 7 Squadron in the Chinook world, it has a bit of mystique around it which people are always willing to fuel. Because why wouldn’t you feel that mystique? But the squadron had humble beginnings back in Khartoum in 1917-18. That is where it did its first missions as a squadron.
47 Squadron seems to have this legend that goes around, but we’re just humans. The final iteration of the squadron started off back in the 1970s having a small group within it. That group got bigger and bigger and eventually, by the late 2000s, the entire squadron was dedicated to supporting specialist troops. And the squadron had two tiers within it. A tier one support and a tier two support. I was never tier one, I was in the other part, what they called the main squadron.
I hate to use the word elite, but its role was seen as elite. We aircrews were not elite in any way shape or form. But the role was certainly a niche role, that parts of the squadron fulfilled. And I think globally, because of that, like 7 Squadron in the Chinook world, it has a bit of mystique around it which people are always willing to fuel. Because why wouldn’t you feel that mystique? But the squadron had humble beginnings back in Khartoum in 1917-18. That is where it did its first missions as a squadron.
If you wear the flag, you’re in the gang - The squadron is unique in the Royal Air Force in that it is the only squadron to have ever fought under its own flag. So if you see 47 Squadron members, they will wear a tricolor flag which is red, blue, and yellow, which they’re allowed to wear instead of the Union Jack.
This is because the squadron, back in the days of the Russian Revolution, was officially disbanded and became something called A Flight, which fought in the Revolution on behalf of the U.K. The squadron commander was even appointed as the first governor of Crimea, which is bizarre if you look at where we are politically now.
After being rebadged as 47 Squadron, the crown essentially gave them the right to retain the flag, which actually adds to that mystique around it: if you wear the flag you’ve been in the gang.
This is because the squadron, back in the days of the Russian Revolution, was officially disbanded and became something called A Flight, which fought in the Revolution on behalf of the U.K. The squadron commander was even appointed as the first governor of Crimea, which is bizarre if you look at where we are politically now.
After being rebadged as 47 Squadron, the crown essentially gave them the right to retain the flag, which actually adds to that mystique around it: if you wear the flag you’ve been in the gang.
Pilots from 47 Squadron ready their C-130J Hercules
You wouldn’t get that in an office - I have, even now, absolute trust in the people that I worked with. We still see each other today, even though I’ve been out of the Royal Air Force for 16-17 years now. On a daily basis, I will text buddies who I was in there with. It makes bonds for life.
Joshua Shani: My Hercules hero - Lt. Col. Joshua Shani, Israeli Air Force, was the lead pilot of the Entebbe Raid, in July 1976. This was by far the largest and most audacious raid that anyone has ever done in a Hercules.
Shani led a formation of four C-130s and he was 29 years old when he did that. The raiders saved every hostage that was at the airport. Only one of the special forces troops was killed — Yonatan Netanyahu, Benjamin’s brother.
Entebbe is, for me, the most audacious raid ever. Nothing anyone else has done really gets anywhere near that.
Joshua Shani: My Hercules hero - Lt. Col. Joshua Shani, Israeli Air Force, was the lead pilot of the Entebbe Raid, in July 1976. This was by far the largest and most audacious raid that anyone has ever done in a Hercules.
Shani led a formation of four C-130s and he was 29 years old when he did that. The raiders saved every hostage that was at the airport. Only one of the special forces troops was killed — Yonatan Netanyahu, Benjamin’s brother.
Entebbe is, for me, the most audacious raid ever. Nothing anyone else has done really gets anywhere near that.
Scott (right) on the flight deck during his first tour on 47 Squadron
The A400M: Good, but not quite a Hercules replacement - The A400M, from its outset, was never designed to be a Hercules replacement. Lockheed Martin was a key partner when the A400M was being designed, but that kind of slips people’s minds, that Lockheed was part of that coalition. And the A400M was marketed as a gap-filler between the C-130 and the Transall at one end, and the C-17 at the other end — there was nothing else in that mid-market air transporter range. And the A400M had the ability to be a tactical aeroplane and a strategic airlifter. There was just nothing else in that group, once the C-141 was gone.
So this was a new, clean-sheet idea and for that it’s amazing.
So this was a new, clean-sheet idea and for that it’s amazing.
A unique camaraderie - Other communities within the RAF probably look upon Hercules guys and girls as dirty, smelly, propeller types! But I think that every squadron is a community. Whether you’re on a fast-jet squadron or a helicopter squadron, that is your family and I think if you are deployed with the same people all of the time, you get to know those people really well.
The Hercules has such a big crew — sometimes you could be going away with seven or eight people as a crew, with the ground support staff, ground engineers — you could be living with these people for months. I think that helps to gel the squadron into lots of little groups, and then you’ll mix that group with this group, so not only do you work with these people, you live with these people. You understand their fears, their loves, their joys, all of these things, and I don’t think that anyone who’s not been in that environment would understand that camaraderie.
The Hercules has such a big crew — sometimes you could be going away with seven or eight people as a crew, with the ground support staff, ground engineers — you could be living with these people for months. I think that helps to gel the squadron into lots of little groups, and then you’ll mix that group with this group, so not only do you work with these people, you live with these people. You understand their fears, their loves, their joys, all of these things, and I don’t think that anyone who’s not been in that environment would understand that camaraderie.
What it’s metamorphosized into, for some reason, and I imagine that’s related to politics and cost, is that this is going to be a replacement for the C-130. If we look at other countries that have kind of followed that, for example, Germany, the Luftwaffe thought they’d replace their Transalls with the A400M, but they’ve decided that now they’re going to have C-130Js too.
Because the A400M just isn’t a direct replacement. It is a tactical air transporter that has turboprops but otherwise, it’s in a completely different category. It can go further, faster, and carry more. And that's the RAF’s mantra and I get that, but the thing it can’t do is some of the niche capabilities that the C-130 can. It can’t stop as quickly on rough surfaces. It’s only recently been cleared to land on sand. Paratrooping from it is a challenge. Although they can do side-door paratrooping it is challenging because of the airflow coming off of the aircraft. As for some of the more niche loads like dropping boats, well, the U.K. Ministry of Defense is currently tendering for a capability to do that, because the A400M can’t do that currently.
There are some capabilities that will come, I have no doubt that they will come, in time. But what the Royal Air Force particularly has done, they’ve retired this capability before the next one is ready to take over. The A400M will get there, it’s just not there yet, which is a sad thing.
The only C-130 replacement… is another C-130. I think the United Kingdom will buy more Hercules. Honesty, I think we’ll get to that point.
I don't think we’ll ever go back to a large fleet of C-130s, but I think we’ll do perhaps what the Germans have done and buy a small fleet, a mini fleet for niche capabilities. The kind of stuff that the A400M is unlikely without significant investment to be able to do. It’s stuff it was never designed for, to be honest. Trying to push that onto an airframe that was never designed for that is just folly, and you’ll end up spending a lot of money and not actually getting anything.
This year the Hercules celebrates 70 years of continuous production, a world record for any military aeroplane. I think that the C-130J will expand into other roles. The J-model, and particularly the Special Forces MC-130J Commando II, is in big demand, huge demand. I think we’ll see more of those come off the line for USAF. I also think we’ll see more European operators going back to it. The only real competition at the moment is the Embraer KC-390 in that market niche and I think that really hasn’t got much legs beyond some smaller countries. I think 50 years from now, we’ll still see Hercules coming off the line.
So, you’ve been selected as a C-130 pilot - My advice for Hercules pilots? Learn to love sausage rolls and drink more tea.
There was a real generational shift from the K-model, on which all we did was drink tea and eat sausage rolls.
The J-model, when we moved away from Gen X into Gen Z, it was all about drinking water and going on the Peloton.
But seriously, I think if you’ve got the chance to fly a Hercules now, just enjoy it. It’s the most forgiving and beautiful aeroplane to fly.
Enjoy your time because it will be too short.
Because the A400M just isn’t a direct replacement. It is a tactical air transporter that has turboprops but otherwise, it’s in a completely different category. It can go further, faster, and carry more. And that's the RAF’s mantra and I get that, but the thing it can’t do is some of the niche capabilities that the C-130 can. It can’t stop as quickly on rough surfaces. It’s only recently been cleared to land on sand. Paratrooping from it is a challenge. Although they can do side-door paratrooping it is challenging because of the airflow coming off of the aircraft. As for some of the more niche loads like dropping boats, well, the U.K. Ministry of Defense is currently tendering for a capability to do that, because the A400M can’t do that currently.
There are some capabilities that will come, I have no doubt that they will come, in time. But what the Royal Air Force particularly has done, they’ve retired this capability before the next one is ready to take over. The A400M will get there, it’s just not there yet, which is a sad thing.
The only C-130 replacement… is another C-130. I think the United Kingdom will buy more Hercules. Honesty, I think we’ll get to that point.
I don't think we’ll ever go back to a large fleet of C-130s, but I think we’ll do perhaps what the Germans have done and buy a small fleet, a mini fleet for niche capabilities. The kind of stuff that the A400M is unlikely without significant investment to be able to do. It’s stuff it was never designed for, to be honest. Trying to push that onto an airframe that was never designed for that is just folly, and you’ll end up spending a lot of money and not actually getting anything.
This year the Hercules celebrates 70 years of continuous production, a world record for any military aeroplane. I think that the C-130J will expand into other roles. The J-model, and particularly the Special Forces MC-130J Commando II, is in big demand, huge demand. I think we’ll see more of those come off the line for USAF. I also think we’ll see more European operators going back to it. The only real competition at the moment is the Embraer KC-390 in that market niche and I think that really hasn’t got much legs beyond some smaller countries. I think 50 years from now, we’ll still see Hercules coming off the line.
So, you’ve been selected as a C-130 pilot - My advice for Hercules pilots? Learn to love sausage rolls and drink more tea.
There was a real generational shift from the K-model, on which all we did was drink tea and eat sausage rolls.
The J-model, when we moved away from Gen X into Gen Z, it was all about drinking water and going on the Peloton.
But seriously, I think if you’ve got the chance to fly a Hercules now, just enjoy it. It’s the most forgiving and beautiful aeroplane to fly.
Enjoy your time because it will be too short.
Scott Bateman’s book, Hercules, is published on May 23, 2024, by Penguin.
Last remaining Blackburn Beverley saved from scrapheap and given new home
Blackburn Beverley XB259 'Big Bev' is being transported to her new home in pieces
The last remaining Blackburn Beverley in the world has been saved from the scrapheap and is being transferred to her new home in Cumbria. RAF transport aircraft XB259, affectionately known as Big Bev, is being taken apart for the journey to the Solway Aviation Museum near Carlisle Lake District Airport.
Big Bev, who had been sitting at Fort Paull in Hull, is the first production Beverley to have been built and is the last of the original 49 that were ever made. Big Bev was sold at auction in September 2020 and then partly dismantled. She was acquired by the Solway Aviation Museum earlier this year following a JustGiving appeal. It had been feared she might be scrapped should she fail to find a buyer, but the museum was able to save the historic aircraft after receiving more than £70,000 in donations to cover the cost of further dismantling work then transporting Big Bev to Cumbria.
Chairman Dougie Kerr told Forces News the museum was hoping to raise a total of £100,000, which would let staff carry out restoration work, repaint the aircraft and put her on permanent display – a project that could take around two years. Mr Kerr said the aircraft is in fairly complete condition and will be repainted in silver with an orange nose rather than the overseas scheme of light stone and dark earth that she currently wears. When complete, visitors will be able to go inside the transport aircraft to get a better idea of her huge size and carrying capacity. The Blackburn Beverley was a large transport aircraft, being designed for carrying large and bulky payloads and landing on rough or damaged runways, and even fields or dirt strips.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Freer, who served in Singapore and Malaysia in the 1960s, recognised the capability offered by this ungainly looking aircraft, describing it as "like something out of the Ark, but it was a superb supply dropper".
Anyone who would like to support Solway Aviation Museum's preservation effort can donate via its JustGiving page.
forces.net
Big Bev, who had been sitting at Fort Paull in Hull, is the first production Beverley to have been built and is the last of the original 49 that were ever made. Big Bev was sold at auction in September 2020 and then partly dismantled. She was acquired by the Solway Aviation Museum earlier this year following a JustGiving appeal. It had been feared she might be scrapped should she fail to find a buyer, but the museum was able to save the historic aircraft after receiving more than £70,000 in donations to cover the cost of further dismantling work then transporting Big Bev to Cumbria.
Chairman Dougie Kerr told Forces News the museum was hoping to raise a total of £100,000, which would let staff carry out restoration work, repaint the aircraft and put her on permanent display – a project that could take around two years. Mr Kerr said the aircraft is in fairly complete condition and will be repainted in silver with an orange nose rather than the overseas scheme of light stone and dark earth that she currently wears. When complete, visitors will be able to go inside the transport aircraft to get a better idea of her huge size and carrying capacity. The Blackburn Beverley was a large transport aircraft, being designed for carrying large and bulky payloads and landing on rough or damaged runways, and even fields or dirt strips.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Freer, who served in Singapore and Malaysia in the 1960s, recognised the capability offered by this ungainly looking aircraft, describing it as "like something out of the Ark, but it was a superb supply dropper".
Anyone who would like to support Solway Aviation Museum's preservation effort can donate via its JustGiving page.
forces.net
From: Tony Halmshaw
Subject: My Father
Dear Sir/Madam
My name is Anthony Halmshaw and my Father, Alan Halmshaw, served with the RAF for 22 years. I know he was in Movements squadrons. Is there any way I would be able to find former members of his squadrons through yourselves?
Service number Y4277564 - October 1964 to October 1986 - his postings included Hendon, Gutersloh and Akrotiri.
I regret to inform you my father passed away peacefully this morning, Sunday 26th May. If anyone is able to get any information on people he served with it would mean a lot to my family to be able to speak to them.
Kind regards
Tony Halmshaw
07939 154701
Tonyhalmshaw@gmail.com
Subject: My Father
Dear Sir/Madam
My name is Anthony Halmshaw and my Father, Alan Halmshaw, served with the RAF for 22 years. I know he was in Movements squadrons. Is there any way I would be able to find former members of his squadrons through yourselves?
Service number Y4277564 - October 1964 to October 1986 - his postings included Hendon, Gutersloh and Akrotiri.
I regret to inform you my father passed away peacefully this morning, Sunday 26th May. If anyone is able to get any information on people he served with it would mean a lot to my family to be able to speak to them.
Kind regards
Tony Halmshaw
07939 154701
Tonyhalmshaw@gmail.com
This Newsletter is Dedicated
to the Memories of:
Wiff Burns (RCAF)
Alan Halmshaw (RAF)
Pippa Roberts (RCAF)
Bernie Desmond (RAAF)
All aboard Hercules XV216 (RAF and Italian Army)
to the Memories of:
Wiff Burns (RCAF)
Alan Halmshaw (RAF)
Pippa Roberts (RCAF)
Bernie Desmond (RAAF)
All aboard Hercules XV216 (RAF and Italian Army)
Tony Gale
ukmamsoba@gmail.com
ukmamsoba@gmail.com