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A prowl around Ox and Wilts 1975.


Paul J

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Only once whil, we toured all these and other bases, was I and my colleagues 'spoken to by US security from inside the fence and that was at Woodbridge. They asked what we were doing( though pretty obvious) and left us. But we thought the better of it and melted  back in to Rendlesham forest. There wasn't a lot going on as it was a Sunday but we did get to see a couple HC-130 in the grey Rescue scheme and lots of Phantoms.

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Oct/Nov

1 hour ago, rayprit said:

 

Security at Upper Heyford in the 60s was very high.  I stood at the fence photographing B47 Stratojets on the flightline through the mesh wire, when after 5 minutes, 2 american security pick ups converged on me inside the fence.  At the same time 2 security pick ups turned up alongside me on the outside of the fence.  I was placed in one of the pick ups and taken back to the guard room.  Never forget the guys name, Sgt McClusky took my camera from me, opened the back up and pulled the film out, unrolled all the film so the daylight hit it, then gave me back my camera.  He told me I was taking unauthorised photographs of the flightline...................You have to remember, although I was ignorant of it at the time, this was a SAC(Strategic Air Command) base and security was extremely high.  Its only as I grew older I began to find out just how high SACs security is and the reason for it.  After they gave me a cup of coffee I was sent on my way, well, I was only 15 at the time.......

 

I must have been Lucky raypit. That never happened to me in the late ish 60s . First time there was in 68/69 there were  six EC135s ,the one with the huge bulbous nose radomes by the fence on the main drag which is a civvie  B road BTW. Also went when the F-111s arrived. The only difference I can think of was I wasn't taking photos.

 

Late October 1973 I was in the RAF and we went for our usual weekly trip from Brize to spend some $  ! The main drag was shut, guards ,the works. Looked through the airfield fence and saw loads of F111s running up, taxiing . Couple sat on the end of the runway with a growing queue behind them . Marshallers seeing off more from dispersals. Nav lights flashing everywhere. Showed our RAF 1250 IDs. Where you  heading? NCO Club. Not tonight sir, its shut, Base Alert.

Turned round and went to a pub nearby trying to work out what we'd just seen. That was no Base Alert with the all those F-111s on the move. We Found out in the papers next day that they were on a high DEFCON ( It was only last year that information was released that it was at DEFCON 3) and about to launch over  the Yom Kippur war when we turned up and our Govt knew nothing about it ,

 

That was something to see and quite scary !

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Reading the last post above, reminds me I have just scanned a bunch of slides from 1975 at UH. Lots of F-111's flying around. Will clean up the pics and post here later this week.  By the way, I took the pics from near that railway bridge. No hassle from anyone.

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11 hours ago, Eric Mc said:

Within a year many of the RAF transport aircraft were gone - the Comets, Britannias and Belfasts were all retired by mid 1976.

 

And living in Witney around that time got a lot quieter.

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3 hours ago, Jabba said:

 

 

And living in Witney around that time got a lot quieter.

 

 

The VC10 continued. Argosys and Andovers s with 115 Sqn and the JATE Herc took up the slack. BA Concorde on crew training for a while in the late 70s .

Brize wasn't ever quiet thank goodness.....Belfasts never stopped flying in to Brize. As soon as they were sold, Heavy Lift were back with them. We were still as busy.

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