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Aviation History
1969
1969 - 2505.PDF
FLIGHT International, 24 July 1969 149 British Army "8/ue Eagles" helicopter dis play team, mounted on Bell 410 Sioux, at right. A feature on Army aviation appears on pages 143-147 of this issue. Below, Royal Navy armed helicopter: Nord-Aviation AS.12 being prepared for a firing trial from a Wasp as an anti-fast patrol boat weapon system mitted themselves only to one phase at a time. There were also provisions for withdrawal from a phase if certain con ditions were not met, and provisions for consultation betwen participating coun tries if there was a change in exchange rates. He told Mr Tarn Dalyell (Lab, West Lothian) that it was not customary to give an estimate of the costs of such aircraft. Gp Capt Hedley Cliff A FAMOUS RESCUE INCIDENT of the Second World War has been recalled by the death recently in Guernsey, CI, of Gp Capt W, H. Cliff, DSO, RAF(Ret), at the age of 55. In February 1942, as a squadron leader commanding 42 Sqn, he flew a Beaufort from Sumburgh in the Shet- lands on a sweep against enemy shipping. On the return flight the aircraft went into an uncontrollable dive and hit the sea. The crew survived the impact and got into their dinghy, where they were joined by one of the two pigeons carried in the aircraft. They put a note on its leg, but as it was wet and darkness was coming on, the bird refused to fly. Meanwhile, unknown to the crew, the other pigeon carried in the aircraft, Winkie, had arrived back at base. He carried no message, but through deduc tion that he had spent the night on a tanker (since he had oil on his feathers) and that such a vessel had in fact been passing off the north-east coast, the area . of search for the missing Beaufort was adjusted and the crew were located in WffiMH their dinghy by a Hudson of 320 Sqn, which sent a message to base then dropped a Thornaby bag. Three hours later, Sqn Ldr Cliff and his crew were picked up by a high-speed launch and brought to safety. NATO Tigers Meet NINE FIGHTER SQUADRONS with Tigers as emblems are meeting at RAF Wood- bridge, near Ipswich, Suffolk, from August 4 to 8 in the eighth gathering of the "NATO Tigers" association, started in 1961. Basic objective of these meet ings is "to promote NATO solidarity at working level." Taking part in this "con vocation of free world tactical aircrew and support personnel" are the USAF 79th Tactical Fighter Sqn, flying F-lOOs and based at Woodbridge; 1/12 Sqn, French Air Force (Super Mysteres); 21st Sqn Italian Air Force (F-104s); 31st Sqn, Belgian Air Force (F-104&); 431st Sqn and AG52, German Air Force (G.91s and RF-104s respectively); 439 Sqn, RCAF (F-104s); 53rd Tactical Fighter Sqn, USAF (F-4Cs); and 74 Sqn, RAF (Lightnings). The Eighth Passenger GRADUALLY THE OFFENSIVE waged daily by Bomber Command against Germany from 1939 to 1945 has become more a matter for historians and students of strategy than for personal chroniclers. Typical of the former was a Canadian ex-navigator whose long article analysing the reasons which led to an "area bombing" policy was summarised in Flight for July 3 (page 34). But now a personal recollection of a bomber crew has appeared which revives poignantly the feelings which aircrew had on operations. Miles Tripp's The Eighth Passenger (Heinemann, London; 45s net) has two perspectives: one is the period from summer 1944 to spring 1945, during which the crew of which he was bomb- aimer did 40 operations on Lancasters and experienced the whole gamut of human emotions (the "eighth passenger" of the title is fear, always travelling with the seven aircrew). The other perspective is the present, when, nearly 25 years later, Mr Tripp locates his former fellow airmen and tries to discover their reac tions to the historic offensive of which they were part. Typical of their memories were: "The time I saw two Lancasters behind us being blown up by bombs dropped from aircraft above them"; or, "it was so near the end of the war, bombing Dresden didn't make any difference"; or, "remember the fighters milling around to port ahead of us? They turned out to be 109s and 190s and they really got into the stream that day." This was the daily diet of Bomber Com mand, in the execution of high policy. Mr Tripp's book is well worth reading by those who wish to recall those days, and by those of a later generation who would like to know what they really meant. H.w. Yugoslav Air Force Caravelle 6N, for Presi dent Tito's personal use, leaving the new 54,000 sq ft hangar at Castle Donington Airport. A photograph of the interior of this aircraft was published in "Flight" last week
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