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Aviation History
1963
1963 - 2105.PDF
906 FLIGHT International, 28 November 1963 The new Princess Mary's RAF Hospital at RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, opened by the Princess Royal, Air Chief Commandant of the PMRAFNS, on November 21. The building, which stands on a narrow peninsula, was photographed from a Canberra of No 6 Sqn flying in formation. The white circle beyond the hospital is its helicopter landing ground. There are 155 beds in eight wards, and two air-conditioned theatres. The CO is Gp Capt G. H. Dhenin, who will shortly be succeeded by Gp Capt G. R. Bedford. The Matron is Wg Off J. £. M. Kennedy SERVICE AVIATIO Air Force, Naval and Army Flying News Three Technical Appointments THREE SENIOR RAF TECHNICAL APPOINT MENTS were announced by the Air Ministry last week. On December 21 AVM Melvin K. D. Porter will assume the post of Director-General of Signals. AVM Porter entered the RAF as an apprentice and was awarded a cadetship to Cranwell. During the war he was Chief Signals Officer, 2nd Tactical Air Force and at Bomber Com mand. He has recently commanded RAF St Athan and been Air Officer, Wales. AVM C. M. Stewart will become Senior Technical Staff Officer at Fighter Com mand on December 23. Responsible for sig nals planning for operation Overlord, the Normandy invasion, he has lately been Chief Electronics Officer at Fighter Com mand. Air Cdre W. F. Beckwith is appointed Director-General of Ground Training on December 21, with the acting rank of air vice-marshal. He is currently at the Imperial Defence College and was previously senior RAF liaison officer at Cape Canaveral. Return from "Shiksha" THE JAVELINS OF 64 SQN which have been taking part in Exercise Shiksha with the Indian Air Force returned to Britain last week. The aircraft switched from the raiding to the interception role at dawn on Novem ber 13 and, says the Air Ministry, "there was plenty of trade day and night until the end. The rate of kills per sortie flown was very satisfactory." Weather throughout the exercise was perfect. Aircrews remarked upon the very high visibility—the Himalayas could be seen from 300 miles at 40,000ft—and the darkness of the countryside at night. Salvage Operation in Borneo AN RN HELICOPTER of 846 Sqn operating against Indonesian insurgents in Borneo featured in a remarkable salvage operation recently. The Whirlwind had roped down a Gurkha patrol on to a pinnacle hill in dense jungle close to the Indonesian frontier. Whilst hovering the helicopter lost power On the eve of joint exercises with RAF, RAAF and USAF units the Indian Air Force gave an equipment display at a Punjabi air base on November 5. Here the lAF's youngest operational pilot, 20 years-old Pit Off Shankar, strides from his Gnat fighter after taking part in the show and sank to the ground, where by sheer luck it became impaled on a tree stump and was thus stopped from rolling over a 500ft precipice. A second helicopter rescued the pilot and later roped down another patrol to guard the aircraft for the night. The next day a maintenance crew was flown in and stripped the aircraft for it to be lifted out. The following morning, after the rotor head had been removed by one of 846 Sqn's Whirlwinds, the crashed helicopter was carried from its precarious resting place, slung underneath a Belvedere of 66 Sqn. It was flown 15 miles to Engkilli, where it was repaired, the engine fault corrected and where it was in service again the following afternoon—only 72hr after the accident. HMS Albion arrived in Singapore last week with Wessex helicopters embarked at Tobruk. The helicopters are to supplement the RAF and RN Wessexes engaged in Borneo. CROSS OPERATION OF AIRCRAFT between HMS Ark Royal and USS Essex took place during CENTO exercises in the North Arabian Sea this month. Ships of all the alliance nations participated. Ark Royal undertook air strikes and air defence: Essex provided most of the airborne anti-submarine defence. HMCS "BONAVENTURE," cruising in European waters, recently recorded her 12,000th deck landing since the ship was commissioned in January 1957. The landing was made by a Tracker aircraft flown by Lt Larry Wash- brook, RCN. TACAN IS BEING INSTALLED at tWO ©ore RAAF bases, Pearce, Western Australia, and East Sale, Victoria. TACAN has been installed at, or is planned for, Laverton, Canberra, Richmond, Williamtown, Anv berley, Townsville and Darwin.
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