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Aviation History
1963
1963 - 1822.PDF
On Tech 8. J. W. Wicks, who (as recorded on this page last week) was recently awarded a MM for gallantry when a fire occurred in a Valiant at Palisadoes Middleton Closure RAF UNITS AT MTDDLETON ST GEORGE, near Darlington, Co Durham, where Fighter Command's Lightning Conversion Unit is at present based, are being withdrawn in the interests of economy, the run-down taking place in the second quarter of next year. The station's personnel, 75 officers and 600 other ranks, are to be transferred in stages to RAF Coltishall, Norfolk. There is a possibility that Middleton St George will become a civil airport serving Tees-side, the North Riding and South Durham. Everything Except Champagne THE FLEET AIR ARM BALL, organized by the Fleet Air Arm Officers' Association, is being held this year on Friday, November 8, at the Hurlingham Club, Ranelagh Gardens, London SW6, and, in the words of the organizers, "promises to be the very best, both as an immense reunion and as a glittering occasion." Tickets (£3 3s each) are obtainable from The Secretary, Fleet Air Arm Association, 94 Piccadilly, London Wl. The price includes supper and all drinks except champagne. Noises On ONE OF THE STORIES told by Marshal of the RAF Lord Douglas of Kirtleside in his recently published book Years of Combat, which is reviewed elsewhere—page 621—in this issue, concerns the time when he was flying as an observer in the spring of 1^15, before he became a pilot, during the Battle of Neuve Chapelle. "Most of the tying that I did during that battle [he writes] was with Hereward de Havilland, observing the results of the artillery bar rages 'in which,' to quote from Maurice Eanng, 'more shells were fired than during the whole of the South African War.' On one occasion de Havilland and I were quite happily at work out over the enemy lines watching with satisfaction the result of our barrage when suddenly he throttled back the engine. In the silence that followed we could both hear a series of curious rumbling FLIGHT International, 10 October 1963 noises which neither of us could at first understand. Then suddenly it dawned upon us that these noises were being caused by the shells, our own shells, as they hurtled past us, too rapidly to be seen, on their way to their targets. We were obviously sitting right in their path, so we wasted no time in getting out of that area." AEW Trophy TO COMMEMORATE the first exchange of airborne early warning crews between the Royal Navy and US Navy, three Fleet Air Arm Officers—Lt Cdr John Barbour and Lts Ronald Coventry and Michael Howitt—-have presented a trophy for com petition every six months among USN enlisted men trained by the AEW squadron to which they were attached at the USN air station at Norfolk, Va. One of the purposes of the award—to be known as the Tracer Trophy—is to recognize the role played by the enlisted controllers in AEW aircraft, all volunteers, who carry out airborne duties in addition to their normal ground work. Welsh UAS THE UNIVERSITY AIR SQUADRON FOR WALES which has been formed at RAF St Athan (Flight International last week, page 561), and for which recruiting will start in the autumn, is commanded by Sqn Ldr R. B. Gubbins, who is ex-Cranwell and formerly commanded Liverpool UAS. The new squadron, with an initial intake of 20 cadets (to be increased to 40 during the first three years of operations), will draw its members from the four Welsh university colleges— at Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff and Swan sea. It is being equipped with Chipmunk T.lOs and most of its flying will be done from St Athan, although it is expected that Bangor pupils will fly from RAF Valley, Anglesey. Formation of a Welsh UAS brings the number of university air squadrons in the United Kingdom to 18. The last to be formed was Hull University Air Squadron, in 1950. 630a Off to Antarctica TWO WESTLAND WHIRLWIND MK Is are aboard the RN ice patrol ship HMS Protector, which leaves Portsmouth for the Antarctic next Monday, October 14. OC helicopter flight is Lt J. J. Leeson; senior observer, Lt D. S. Dobson; second pilot, Lt A. Mathias; junior observer, Lt J. P. Barr. The ship's first Iieutenent, Lt Cdr J. G. Crosse, is also a helicopter pilot. Aeromedical via Alaska FIRST ARCTIC ROUTE RAF aeromedical flight, from Honolulu to the United Kingdom via Alaska, was made last week by a Britannia of Transport Command which arrived at Lyneham on October 4 after flying 8,710 miles from Honolulu with stops at Elmendorf, Alaska, and Gander, Newfoundland. The patient on board the aircraft, Procyon of 511 Sqn, was Fg Off Anthony Northmore, a pilot of 48 Sqn, who broke his neck in a diving accident. He was taken by RAF helicopter from Lyne ham to the National Spinal Injuries Centre, Stoke Mandeville, Bucks. Hertfordshire Ceremony THE EARL OF VERULAM, who is honorary air commodore of No 1 (County of Hertford) Maritime Headquarters Unit, RAuxAF, officially opened the unit's head quarters at Valency House, Sandy Lane, Northwood, Middx, on Saturday, Sept ember 28, on his first visit since his appoint ment (this page, June 20). Before the ceremony he inspected a parade of 122 volun teer airmen and airwomen, then toured the headquarters accompanied by the unit's commanding officer, Sqn Ldr F. E. Wood; AVM F. W. Long, RAF (Ret), vice-chairman (air) of the Herts Territorial Association; and Gp Capt the Hon P. B. R. Vanneck, Inspector of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, THREE CHIPMUNKS OF SOUTHAMPTON UAS took part during the September 28 weekend in a large-scale inter-regional fire service exercise code-named "Dockside." They were employed in radioing information back to base. A Royal Navy Wessex landing on HMS "Devonshire" during recent trials in the Mediterranean ». ' '"*.» *"
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