GPWdriver

Tony A quick internet search reveals that this system was proposed by BAe and I have seen a photo of a twin stick Harrier under the rig. MoD dropped the project and BAe didn't go any further with it. Reminds me of the 1940's concept for rotary launching fighters from a giant rotating arm.... Bob

Operation Glimmer - Stirlings 214 Sqn, window dropping Boulougne. Operation Titanic - Halifaxes, Stirlings and Hudsons dropping "Ruperts" i.e. dummy parachutists and SAS teams to spread mayhem. It worked. RAF Stirlings, USAAF Fortresses and Liberators provide Mandrel screening to the invasion force. 101 Squadron from "Mudford" Magna use their ABC equipment to disrupt enemy broadcasts. Nowadays we could do all of this by starting an internet rumour and watching the panic spread.........:-D

Don't forget that on 11 October 1956, Valiant WZ366 dropped Britain's first atomic bomb at Maralinga, Australia. XD818 always overshadows the orginal A bomb drop. I knew the co pilot of WZ366 for several years. After dropping, the procedure was to do a 180 and run away. The crew were warned about the shock wave from the blast and having felt it shake the aircraft, they all started relaxing. What the boffins forgot to tell them was that another shock wave was reflected from the ground back into the atmosphere............cue a second shake.:-D Practice drops of inert Blue Danube weapons were made on the Jurby ranges, some dropping visually. Allegedly, one of these visual drops caused a stir when the bomb appeared to be formating beneath the Valiant! this was caused by the nature of the airflow around the bomb bay.

My MOT station won't test the handbrake on the rolling road as it may snap the rear halfshafts. My tester has experience with early Landrovers which apparently had this design feature. Last time we did a brake check, we went on the rolling road and tested the service brakes and had a jolly in the car park with a "G" meter. The phrase was "I can feel them working.":-D Most pragmatic testers realise that the jeep is not an everyday vehicle and treat it as it should be. My advice would be to use an MOT shop who either do a lot of agricultural 4x4 or have an HGV testing facility. Gross generalisation, but in my opinion, these testers see a wider variety of vehicles and are very pragmatic whilst also staying legal. Gazza, if you are in or near to Cambridgeshire PM me and I can let you know who I use.

I do hope this will be EU OPS-1 compliant with liferafts, oxygen masks and door slides................:-D Dakman where art thou?? Give me a C46 Commando - twice the load lifter and pressurised for comfort. Just what one needs before taking to the door over Europe:shake:

I'd like a section on RAF Pinnaces between May 1931 and October 1932 only. After that time, the RAF bought any old Pinnace....... As for the Army - floaty things - think "Brown Jobs". Hoist the Gin Pennant!!

Okay latest update from the sun swept fens of Cambridgeshire. I decided to disc sand the frame to get rid of the flaky paint and rusty bits. So far so good. I was given a few 3M Roloc discs by a mate and I am pretty impressed. Found more of the sacred "F" marks and underneath the British Bronze Green is US Olive Drab. For some reason, a previous owner has welded shut the "jigging" holes in the rear frame. This is a Ford thing and allowed Henry to make Jeeps at a a cracking rate. The rear cross member was originally painted all white over the OD. Presumably, this helps in the blackout?? No piccys at the mo' because it was very dusty dirty work out there today.

If you say so dear.......:hug: What is the wheel in the middle for? Is it for going over rough ground or for steering a ship?

My grille doesn't have the dip either.

Chaps and chapesses, I can go one better. This afternoon, as I was chewing the cud with the window cleaner, we heard a mighty roar...... Turning towards us was the Vulcan, on final approach to Cambridge Airport.:banana: What was strange was that although over 15 years had passed since I last saw her, it all felt very normal. But what a beast........... All hail the V force.:yay: Bob

Very nice, well done Steve!!

Overflowing fuel is a problem for any aircraft that has been fully tanked. As Adam says, if the aircraft were fuelled during the night or when the outside temperature was low, the subsequent rise in air temp would cause expansion and overflow. Speedbird 747's at Gatwick used to taxi out dribbling fuel from the wingtip vents. We always wondered what the PAX must have made of it. Used to leave a lovely trail on the taxiway. The Victor had two ram air turbines dorsally mounted. If memory is correct, they used to deploy when engine power went below 80%. I can imagine the fun as the AEO tried to get all the electrics back online. Then to find out that the Artouste APU wasn't working as well.... If you can't take a joke......

Sorry Catweazle How could I ignore you! What happened to this forum was far more serious than Heathrow. I'd like to shake the web host firmly by the throat.

Snapper, Exactly how are the cockpits different? Experience tells me that there isn't a lot of room in a Harrier cockpit. You can adjust seat height and that is about it. As for the names, they often appear to be stencilled on. When you get up close to planes you will be amazed at how scabby they can appear, with bits painted over or peeling off. For in theatre ops, the aircraft used to be painted in a kind of alkali based distemper. I agree with Jessie, but matching curtains are soooooooooo last season.

Thanks for the encouragement Rik. The chassis holes are a GPW thing. Apparently, they make the frame "lighter". Yeah right. More like Henry was trying to save money. Will post more as time goes by.

Having lost my previous masterpiece regarding this rebuild, I will try again. Quick update. I have stripped the vehicle down to just a rolling chassis. Next step is to rub down the frame and repaint. The great server crash of 2008 didn't really affect the project as I had just applied for another job and was busy swotting for it. Now that the results of that are known, I can get on with my Jeep. For those of you that have such things lying around, I am looking for some Ford parts to replace Willys stuff on the vehicle. Cast your eye over the wanted list and see if you can help..... 1 front left spring (8 leaf). Ford Tub. Any condition considered. Free is my favourite word. Ford Axles front and rear (working condition or requiring minor rebuild) can exchange Willys axles currently on vehicle. Basically, if you have it, I am willing to swap or exchange valuable consideration. Hopefully, I will be able to get back into the garage tomorrow and undo more bolts on things that I have no idea about. This really is the fun part of MV ownership. Just a little teaser to start the thread again. Spanners away!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Victors were not scrapped after the airbridge finished. Although the operation had taken its toll on the airframes, Victors would continue to serve until October 1993. Not bad considering most had been delivered in 1960-62. 57 disbanded and its aircraft were pooled into 55 Sqn. Victors participated in Op. Granby and had a 100% mission success rate I believe. As with most RAF aircraft, the Victor did things that it was never designed to do and did it well. 31 years of operational service by the B2/K2 fleet is pretty good going and very good value for the taxpayer.

Well done to the Vulcan team. A superb achievement and at least some people still value the tremendous heritage of this country. As a kid in the 70's, if a Vulcan came over everyone stopped and looked. I was lucky that in my corner of Leicestershire, Vulcans, Hunters, Argosies, Britannias and GR1 Harriers were the order of the day. I still remember the day that Dad phoned Wittering to complain about two Harriers that had gone "head to head" over the town. Mum was convinced we would all be in a Gulag by teatime........ But Vulcans.....aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh. Although to be fair, the Handley Page Victor was a markedly superior aircraft. 35,000lb of free fall iron versus 21,000lb on the Vulcan (alternatively, 1 bucket of sunshine each - if you are playing for real). The Victor could also go supersonic in a shallow dive. I believe the Victor is still the largest all British aircraft to have broken the sound barrier. Bob

Nice on Rob. The Langham's strike again. The Ju88 is HM509 of 1426 Enemy Aircraft Flight at Duxford then Collyweston. It is a Ju88A-5 I believe, that landed at Chivenor in Devon. Possibly a nav error like the FW190 that landed at Pembrey, having mistaken the Bristol Channel for the "Scheisse Kanal". The Fw190 could be one of a number operated by the RAF at various times. Bob L (the other one).

Last one is a Dornier Do 31, I think. It would appear to be the hover test rig, note the ejection seat symbol next to the canopy and the lattice work tail. Thanks Wiki...... Bob

I'm in. Lets get cracking! I need a good tussle with Catweazle to get me going every morning. Bob

Heli is a Lockheed XH-51. Don't know what the other beastie is.

Beautifully written Dakman. I learned a valuable lesson about Daks once. Never let them fly the LAM SID out of Gatwick during peak hours. Not unless you want to wait half an hour before launching the next departure. Did you end up flying for Jersey? Bob

Thanks for the welcome chaps. Sell the Jeep - I'd rather pawn the kids. If I had a big house with a field, then you would find a Matador parked in it, along with an Antar. Bodge, I could descend to the clubhouse floor by sniffing the barmaid's apron...... My Jeep will be in British markings when I have finished taking-it-apart-to-put-it-back together-again. Does this count? I have security marked all the parts of my Jeep with a script"F". If you see any of these on Ebay, please buy them and post them to me. :whistle: Bob

No problem Lee, My namesake and I met by chance last year - turns out our fathers are cousins! Rob L, if you see this, you are on too many WW2 forums, get back to your studies!! Freakydeaky stuff.... Bob L (the other one)