FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1951
1951 - 1076.PDF
FLIGHT, 8 June 1951 ERCISE OMBRELLE Part II. With R.A.F. Units in Holland and Germany: The Closing Phase "-— Illustrated by "Flight" photographs J " By H. F. KING, M.B.E. T^TiE first part of our account of Ombrelle—the Conti-nental air exercise, in which some 500 fighters, bombersand military transports of six N.A.T.O. powers partici- pated between May 23rd and 25th—embodied a report of happenings at the Netherlands airfields of Soesterburg and Volkel. From Volkel we returned to Paris for the night, but relatively bright, and all too early, next morning (May 24th) were driving out to Le Bourget to board our R.A.F. Valetta for Eindhoven. Two sights we well remember: a single contrail hanging high over the city, and a Convair and a Viking on the Le Bourget tarmac displaying, as in admonish- ment, the names Vintner and Pieter de Hooch. In circuiting Eindhoven we could see an extensive R.A.F. field hospital, the tents neatly laid out, with large red crosses to proclaim their function. The runway still bore the scars of last-war bombing. On the tarmac stood a handsome Dakota which, we learned on landing, had brought in Air Marshal Sir Thomas Williams, C.-in-C. British Air Forces of Occupation, Germany. At that time the Air Marshal was inspecting (in a locality which it is not permissible to dis- close), the Group Headquarters and Operations Centre controlling the two wings of Vampire 5s operating from Soesterburg and Volkel. In the area were two Light Anti- Aircraft Wings of the R.A.F. Regiment and one of the Regiment's Ground-Defence formations. At Eindhoven we heard more about the high standard of mobility demonstrated by R.A.F. formations during the exercise. From Germany, some 650 vehicles and 2,000 men had been transferred in 15 hours or so, which was especially gratifying as many of the drivers were graded Class B, and rarely drove more than a few miles out of camp. Technical difficulties had been few, though there was one bad accident in which civilians were involved. The Dutch police were helpfulness itself, providing as many men as were needed to lead and shepherd the convoys; and, of course, the Dutch station commanders in the area were most anxious to give every possible aid. An advance party had led the mass migration, the main body remaining in Germany until the Having arrived from England by Valetta in torrential rain, visiting M.P.s ore sustained with operational mugs of tea in the temporary officers' mess at Volkel. Vampires had got away; for the return, the procedure was to be reversed. The British forces in Holland were under the command of A. Cdre. the Earl of Bandon, who, notwithstanding an influx of signals and other preoccupations, welcomed us personally and answered our questions with admirable forbearance. During the previous day (May 23rd) the Vampires under his command had flown 98 sorties and made 16 interceptions. They claimed 18 e/a. destroyed and 10 damaged. The Air Commodore confirmed that, during the early stages of the exercise, low-flying Vampires from B.A.F.O. were tackled by "Jim Crow" patrols and that the Vampires which (as we reported last week) intercepted three B-50S near Arnhem, were attacked in error by Dutch Meteors. A point worth mentioning is that although we had been assured at Soester- burg (the base of the intercepting Vampires) that the B-50S were escorted by F-84 Thunderjets, Group Operations avowed that the fighters were F-80 Shooting Stars, which seems improbable, for F-8os are no longer operational in Europe. This contradiction does, however, serve as a reminder that positive identification at high altitudes is a tricky business, especially so with many similar types of jet fighter now in operation. It was heartening to learn that during May 23rd radar in the sector had been 100 per cent serviceable and that Hundred-gallon drop-tanks for Vampire 5s (seen in the heading picture topping-up from a Dutch refueller) lie ready should the course of the exercise require them to be installed. Behind them armourers ply their trade. Below is a sight rarely seen in these days—an R.A.F. field hospital.
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
