A10's above my village

[Enigma]

Since last November I noticed a few times 2 or 4 A10's doing dogfights above our village.

Here a vid of 1 flying over with its distinctive high whistle sound.

Its a bit shaky, I zoomed in and the camera has only a display making centering a moving object very difficult.

 

Edited June 3, 2011 by Enigma
Video added.

[Tony B]

So who have you been upsetting this time?

[Rick W]

We used to have A10's flying over us all the time years ago, sadly no more.

[Enigma]

So who have you been upsetting this time?

 

 

You got that all wrong, they are my personal protection...

[AlienFTM]

I have two particular memories of A10s that might amuse people.

 

1. Whilst on a divisional exercise in the spring / summer of 1982, B Squadron 15th/19th Hussars was tasked to lay on a demo of how to run a reserve demolition. (Hostilities becoming likely, bridge crossings and other choke points are designated as either primary or reserve demolitions. At the onset of hostilities, all primary demolitions are blown. Reserve demolitions are prepared and protected until they are no longer needed by us or in danger of falling to them.) Reserve demolitions, by their nature, tended to be situated between the FEBA (Forward Edge of the Battle Area) where the armour and infantry were sat waiting, and the FLOT (Forward Leading-edge of Own Troops) where the recce screen sat waiting and probing for contact. 15/19H was a recce battlegroup, so reserve demolitions were the nature of business as usual.

 

The demo was on a bridge over a stream (the West Germans didn't like it if we set up demolitions on real bridges, like autobahns over rivers, but a bridge was a bridge and for the purpose of the demonstration, a bridge over a stream worked perfectly well).

 

I was stood on the hillside behind the demolition and overlooking it, stood next to OC B Sqn, who gave a running commentary over a loudspeaker. He described the half-troop of CVR(T)s on the far bank giving close support (infantry might be attached to the BG and they might also be called on to protect the demolition). The other half-troop would be a bound ahead in OPs watching for incoming Orange forces. They would withdraw ahead of the enemy and alert the demolition commander (typically the troop leader) that his time was nigh. Troopy would alert the attached engineers that their time to use the bang button was close. The screening half-troop withdraws across the demolition, in theory the last Blue forces and the demolition commander initiates the demolition, they all wave bye-bye to the BMPs and T64s screaching to a halt on the far bank and PUFO*.

 

"Then," said the squadron leader, "we can call in air assets and bring them down on the swarm of enemy vehicles ground to a halt like ants whose path has just been stood on."

 

And at that second an A10 passed about six feet over our heads. I caught my beret before it disappeared in the general direction of the FEBA: many didn't. The crest was not so high, but the A10 pilot still managed to get low enough that I could feel the hot exhaust, look over the engines and see the back of his helmet. Best flying I ever saw from an American.

 

2. My father in law lives at the end of the runway at RAF Alconbury. One day about 1988-9 we were visiting. He and I went out in his car. As he reversed out of the drive, I saw two A10s take off in a remarkably tight pattern. I even made the compliment out loud to father in law.

 

Father in law was a volunteer chemical hazard advisor to the Fire Brigade and as such, he had a Home Office radio fitted so that he could be in contact at all times and advise and attend incidents. When he was in the car, the Cambridgeshire Fire & Rescue Ops Net was on.

 

By the time we had driven through the village and were heading for the airbase, I could see the A10s coming round and making to land. As we drove down the Huntingdon Road, the Ops Net sprang into life. It seemed that one of the A10s had developed a problem and went straight round and aborted. Just to make life awkward, its brakes had failed and it had fallen off the end of the runway. Just for good measure, it was fully bombed up. Fire service attended (chemical advisor not required cos there were no "interesting" bombs on board).

 

That evening, we had fish and chips from a shop in Huntingdon. Big queue (there had been a power cut and everybody had the same idea). Telly was on behind the counter. We were all stood there watching a local news report from RAF Alconbury where an A10 had fallen off the runway, having a good laugh. Just then the door opened, everyone turned and in walked two US airmen in combats, to see their base on the news and everybody laughing. They went very red and kept themselves very quiet at least until I'd been served and left.

 

_____

 

* PUFO: Pack Up and F-f-flit Off

[Enigma]

Those poor flyboys must have been soo embarreassed hearing the laughter !!

 

:-D