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Aviation History
1951
1951 - 0742.PDF
FLIGHT* \ 20 April 1951 465 Naval aircrew are instructed in army support requirements by means of terrain-models in the CBAL section of the Training Air Group. rons, one of Sea Hornet 21s, and the other of Firefly 6s. Pilots ofboth these squadrons have recently been averaging something over 30 hours' night-flying per month. Although a flying training unit only in a second-order sense, the Deck Landing Control Officers' School at Yeovilton does so important and unique a job that its work deserves mention in some detail. In order for a batsman to qualify for the ultimate responsi- bility of bringing pilots in to land on a carrier deck, it is absolute essential that he should himself be a pilot with above-average qualities in deck landing. The intake for the DLCO course is, therefore, derived from above-average pilots at the recommenda- tion of their commanders (air), air group commanders, or squadron C.O.s. The course lasts for eight weeks, which includes six weeks ashore and two weeks afloat in a training carrier, and each course consists of six pupil DLCOs, each of whom, in order to qualify as a batsman, has to bat a minimum of 300 ADDLs (airfield dummy deck landings) and, in addition, has to fly over 100 ADDLs for his five colleagues. Embarked, he bats a minimum of 75 to a maximum of 100 deck landings plus flying a minimum of eight deck landings himself. Necessarily, in order thoroughly to teach the pupil batsman his job, it is essential that he has the assistance of expert deck-landing pilots. These are found in the School squadron who, because their working life consists of take-off, circuit and land-on repetition, arc known as the "Clockwork Mice". Each clockwork mouse has to be a pilot capable of doing ADDLs and actual deck landings without the aid of a batsman, so as to be able to accept incorrect batting signals, and so show the pupil batsman his mistakes. It is not enough to do perfect deck landings irrespective of signals, for this would not show the batsman's mistakes. The clockwork mouse must, in fact, be capable of flying badly perfectly. The pupil DLCO first does about 20 ADDLs to show the instructors that he is familiar with the system. Thereafter, he bats for the mice, who give hipn about 50 perfect ADDLs in order to impress on his mind's eye the perfect approach. Then they start making bad approaches and accept his signals and so by a process of illustration and instruction, the efficient deck landing control officer is made. Another specialist flying unit which must be mentioned is the Service Trials Unit which is based at Ford (H.M.S. Peregrine). The main task of the squadron is to undertake intensive deck landing and catapult trials of new aircraft following on the trials carried out at Boscombe and Farnborough. As well as testing aircraft, the S.T.U. also conducts trials on specialist items of equipment, and in addition provides the aircraft (and pilots) for wire- and barrier-pulling and catapult trials of carriers. Safety equipment developed both at the Safety Equipment School and the Air Medical School at Gosport, is also tested by the squadron. The permanent aircraft complement of the S.T.U. is four Sea Hornet 22s; two Sea Vampire 20s; two Avenger 3s; a Sea Fury 10 and 11; a Firefly 4 and 5; two Firebrand 5s; and one Sea Meteor 3. The latter is very much a non-standard aircraft in that it is a Meteor 3 equipped with an arrester hook, Derwent 5 engines but Some of the Sea Vampire 20s and the two Meteor 7s used by the Jet Evaluation and Training Squadron of the NAFS at Culdrose. These Sea Hornet 21s belong to the recently-formed 7th Carrier Air Group which is specializing in all-weather operations. Glow-worm flares and flash-bomb strikes on th aircraft at Treligga ranges make a very in Cut The clockwork mouse mascot of the D.I.CO
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