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Aviation History
1959
1959 - 0891.PDF
448 FLIGHT, 27 March 1959 SERVICE AVIATION . . . past with fixed bayonets (a privilegegranted by the freedom charter) and a fly- past by nine Hastings aircraft of TransportCommand. Colerne has been a Transport Com-mand base since January 1957, its first air- craft being those of No. 24 (Common-wealth) Sqn., followed by those of No. 511 (now 36) Sqn. It is also the home of No.49 M.U., which since 1946 has carried out special modification and re-equipmentwork on aircraft of both Bomber and Transport Commands. R.C.N. Helicopter Expert A PIONEER in the use of helicopters•**• by the Royal Canadian Navy, whose first helicopter flight he commanded, Cdr.John D. Lowe assumed a new appoint- ment early this month when he becamecaptain of the destroyer escort H.M.C.S. Sioux. He qualified as a pilot with the Royal Light aircraft on active service in three differ- ent parts of the world are (at right) the first of eight Cessna 180s ordered by the R.A.A.F. from the United States for the A.O.P. Flight at Canberra taking to the air at Bankstown Aerodrome, near Sydney, for final flight tests; below left, an Auster 9 of No. 656 Light Air- craft Sqn., A.A.C. (whose work was described on this page, March 6), dropping supplies in Malaya; and a Cessna 180 of the Kenya Police Air Wing, which is referred to in a news-item above, seen (below right) in its hangar at Wilson Airport, Nairobi Air Chief Marshal Sir Walter L. Dawson, Air Member tor Supply and Organization, present- ing the Casson Cup—awarded to the best all- rounder on the squadron—to Acting P/O. J. H. Piercy at the recent annual dinner of Leeds University Air Squadron Navy after having served a/ sea during thewar in the North Atlantic and English Channel, then flew with No. 825 Sqn. fromH.M.C.S. Warrior, Canada's first aircraft carrier. In March 1951 he went to theU.S. Naval Air Station at Pensacola, Florida, for helicopter training and it wason his return to Canada after this course that he commanded the first R.C.N. heli-copter flight. Among his recent appoint- ments have been those of Deputy Directorof Naval Aviation (1956) and Commander (Air) at H.M.C.S. Shearwater (1957). Over the Beat SINCE the Mau-Mau emergency theKenya Police Air Wing has continued to do sterling work under different, thoughstill sometimes difficult, conditions. Its aircraft strength has been reduced from 15(a mixture, of Tri-Pacers and Cessna 180s) to eight, all of them Cessna 180s, one ofwhich is seen in the illustration on this page. With headquarters at Wilson Air-port (Nairobi West), and another base at Nyeri, the Wing is commanded by W/CA. N. Francombe and has eight other pilots. The rest of its personnel consistsof a staff officer, radio operator and secre- tary; and the organization manages toachieve about 750,000 passenger-miles a year, yet its annual cost to the KenyaGovernment is only about £37,000. Much of the wing's activity is concerned withpolice communications all over Kenya; but it also transports Government servantsand the Governor and G.O.C. often use the Cessnas for their travels about thecountry. The aircraft are also employed for casualty evacuation in remote areas, forsupply-dropping, and in the campaign against highly organized game-poachingin the Reserved areas. This last role neces- sitates good air-to-ground radio communi-cation, which exists through a very effi- cient V.H.F. , set-up (derived from theemergency) whereby every police station has its own link with headquarters inNairobi. A police pilot is always within call of two or three stations and therepeater system is so complete that W/C. Francombe can sit at his desk at WilsonAirport and talk to any of his pilots up to 200 miles away. R.A.F. Postings AMONG Royal Air Force appointments**• recently announced by "Air Ministry are the following: — Transport Command: W/C. H. S. Maurice-Jones to H.Q. for administrative staff duties, March 16.Flying Training Command: Wing Com- manders V. E. M. Harding to H.Q. foradministrative staff duties, March 16; and A. J. D. Maclachlan to the R.A.F. College,Cranwell, as Deputy President of the R.A.F. Selection Board, March 16. Technical Training Command: G/C. A. W.Caswell to No. 2 School of Technical Train- ing, Cosford, Salop, to command, March 16;Wing Commanders G. J. Spence to H.Q. for administrative staff duties, March 16, andG. A. H. Wright to the Radio Engineering Unit, R.A.F. Henlow, Beds, as SeniorTechnical Officer, March 16. Miscellaneous: W/C. P. G. K. Williamsonto H.Q. Allied Forces Southern Europe, for organization and training duties, March 16. Ambala Reunion A REUNION of No. 1 S.F.T.S. (1)**• Ambala will be held at the Chevrons Club, 3 Dorset Square, London, N.W.I,on Saturday, April 4. This is the twelfth to be organized, and details may beobtained from Stan Booth, 28 Dene Road, New Southgate, London, N.ll. IN BRIEF First deliveries of Sidewinder for theR.A.A.F. were made early this month. They are to be fitted to Sabres of Nos. 3 and77 Squadrons in Malaya. * * * The R.A.F. won the Services' cross-countrychampionship for the eighth successive year, and for the eighteenth time, at Henlow onMarch 13. They scored 31 points (having five in the first seven men home) against 49 bythe Army and 107 by the Royal Navy.
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