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IT'S NOT A TONKA!


jacksdad

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In my 22, they were always called Tonkas and always will be. Never worked on them myself (but helped out once or twice on dets), but even those who did, called them Tonkas.....

Tbh, I think it's just because it's quicker and easier to say than "Tornado".....simple as that! (Techies don't like to waste effort!)

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M.R.C.A. = Must Rebuild Canberra's Again.

Some of us wished they had !!

"Fin" = "Timothy Potter" (Spotter) speak circa 1980's, same as "Toom" (Phantom) or "Stiff" (F-104) or "KayCee" (KC-135) or "Sled" (F-100) or "Swinger" (F-111).

Never heard them called "Tonka"

"Jugs" = any underwing tanks, big or small, from at least the early 1960's although usually only associated with single seaters - never heard them called that on the Victors.

DR

Edited by sloegin57
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As an aside TWCU jets had their serial numbers (not letters) painted on the fin and ZA555 was known as the 'State Express' after the cigarettes!

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As an aside TWCU jets had their serial numbers (not letters) painted on the fin and ZA555 was known as the 'State Express' after the cigarettes!

nodnodnod But no one would actually paint that on the aircraft! :(

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This an interesting thread to follow.

I'd always heard that "Tonka" was spotter speak and made Tornado air and ground crews cringe to hear it. I did ask a pilot once at an airshow about the "Tonka" name and he told me it was a term he personally never used, he just called it Tornado.

As for calling the big tanks "Hindenburgers"; the first time I saw that term for them was in 90 or 91 in a caption going with a picture of a Tornado carrying them during Granby. I have a feeling that nickname might have been a press invention.

I had heard that "Fin" was used in a rather limited way by service people, but kind of fell out of fashion completely by the mid 80s.

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We called them The Flying Flick Knife,don't recall hearing them called Tonka tho...Harrier was called The Leaping Heap as well...

S'Funny that, I work with quite a few ex-Tonka types and they all call them Tonka's. I asked some of them today and they confirmed this.

So why are they called Tonkas? (I'd never call 'em that, but hey!)

Any reference to the eponymous, reputedly indestructible toys of the same era?

Al

I think that's where it came from originally

"Fin" = "Timothy Potter" (Spotter) speak circa 1980's, same as "Toom" (Phantom) or "Stiff" (F-104) or "KayCee" (KC-135) or "Sled" (F-100) or "Swinger" (F-111).

DR

Worked with quite a few ex-Phantom boys and they referred to them as "Tooms"

Wez

Edited by Wez
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I suspect a lot of these names are invented by people who have no connection whatever with the real thing but would dearly like one and think that if they come up with a macho, willy-waving name, it will make their own willies bigger. "Flying Flick-knife" sounds exactly like one of those.

Most aircraft are given nicknames and they are used by the people who work on them - most of the nicknames are either affectionate (such as Wokka for the Chinook) or disparaging like Tonka ('cos it was supposed to be strong and tough and all things to all men).

If it was about williy waving surely it'd be called something like the Panavia Giant Cock!

Wez

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I have to agree with all the Tonka chaps, every time I have worked with them both the aircrew, groundcrew and Flt Ops refer to them by this name. To add more fuel to the fire, I worked with a few guys from Coningsby who referred the to F3 as "the Swing-wing Dart of Death". Strange chaps.....

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Back in the old days (when Neil was first getting started, I believe), his resin parts were branded up in Hannants own Xtraparts packaging, before becoming Paragon.

The first time I recall seeing the term Hindenburger, was on a set of his/Xtraparts 48th "Hindenburger" tanks (which I still have in the stash), purchased in early 91, if memory serves. :hmmm:

As for the Tonka/Fin debate, I've seen other threads where ex-RAF personel claim to have never used the term Tonka and always referred to it as the Mighty Fin. :shrug:

Just a thought, but perhaps it's a geographical thing depending on where in the world or which base you served.

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S'Funny that, I work with quite a few ex-Tonka types and they all call them Tonka's. I asked some of them today and they confirmed this.

Worked with quite a few ex-Phantom boys and they referred to them as "Tooms"

Wez

Ditto.

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I've heard several terms for raf aircraft over the years..

Tornado (MRCA) Multi Role Compromise Aircraft

Chinook- Contra rotating death machine (12000 near misses a minute)

Puma- Permanently Unserviceable Military Aircraft

Merlin- The Plastic Pig

Got to love the RAF techie types....

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As for the Tonka/Fin debate, I've seen other threads where ex-RAF personel claim to have never used the term Tonka and always referred to it as the Mighty Fin. :shrug:

Just a thought, but perhaps it's a geographical thing depending on where in the world or which base you served.

Nope, I've worked with guys who'd worked on Tonka's at all the RAF units over several years, they all referred to it as the Tonka, never the Fin, as for the Mighty Fin - nope, still makes me want to reach for the bucket! :puke:

I have heard it referred to as the Flying Flicknife but mostly by people taking the piddle!

Wez

Edited by Wez
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I've heard several terms for raf aircraft over the years..

Tornado (MRCA) Multi Role Compromise Aircraft

Chinook- Contra rotating death machine (12000 near misses a minute)

Puma- Permanently Unserviceable Military Aircraft

Merlin- The Plastic Pig

Got to love the RAF techie types....

Some others----

Jaguar= Just Another Great Underpowered Airborne Ripoff.

Harrier= Leaping heap or Bionic Budgie.

Nimrod= Vomit Comet or Grimrod.

Hunter= Billy Bunter.

Buccaneer= Banana Bomber.

Jetstream= Wetdream.

Jet Provost=Red and White winged noise machine (constant speed variable noise!).

Then of course there are the Squadron nicknames!!

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When I was a painter in the RAF, I had a tour of duty down in the Falklands and I remember some people on the SQN and some painters referring to the Tornado's as Tonkas or the 'Mighty Fin', though being an aircraft enthusiast from an early age, I've heard them called alsorts but I call them Tornado's.

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I, and everyone I've worked with has called them tonka's, but we never call the tanks hindenburgers, we call them big jugs (which I think is better). While we're on the subject the part that everyone calls the wing glove is in fact known as a nib. Had to clear that up it's been bugging me for ages.

Have to agree with all that.

Where the hell did 'Afterburner Can or Can's' come from? It's always been Jetpipe or Reheat Pipe to me and everyone I've ever heard talk about that particular part of an aircraft's anatomy. I've only ever seen 'Cans' used on here or in the modelling press.

One guy I worked with did call Tornado's 'War Pigs'! and also constructed a Scud Missile launcher out of cardboard in the crew room while Gulf War one was on - his nickname was Psycho, so no one ever challenged him about it!

Spike, Deci Red slightly worse than the no legs later stuff we used to drink in Italy but on par with the gut rot you got at Chris Kebabs in Akrotiri

Missed the first two days of an APC after spending the first night of the Det at Chris's Kebab House. :sick:

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nodnodnod But no one would actually paint that on the aircraft! :(

No just in marker pen in the U/C bay! :) However when TWCU got its 45® Sqn status ZA545 had the first 5 in its tail number repainted smaller than the other two digits.

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Have to agree with all that.

Where the hell did 'Afterburner Can or Can's' come from? It's always been Jetpipe or Reheat Pipe to me and everyone I've ever heard talk about that particular part of an aircraft's anatomy.

American-speak adopted due to widespread use on the internet, like 'load-out' for the weapons carried by the aircraft (LIke the MOD has done in real life, with the adoption of 'warfighter' and 'kinetic')

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American-speak adopted due to widespread use on the internet, like 'load-out' for the weapons carried by the aircraft (LIke the MOD has done in real life, with the adoption of 'warfighter' and 'kinetic')

Except that the MOD spells it funny... ;)

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Ive had a good read of this thread and laughed me socks off at some of the names for other aircraft ...love the Puma one :lol:

.....heres another I heard over on ATF for the Tonka

Norfolk Landshark :lol:

Well got to admit to calling it the Fin or Fin3 ...even Mighty Fin (look at my signature !) ......but to me it will always be a Tonka .

Ive got no links to the RAF or any service ....just what Ive picked up from airshows/forums etc.

I like Big Jugs better than Hindenburgers though :bouncy:

Andy

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