Happy Airborne Forces Day!!! A video to show what it was like back in the day!

[tonyot]

Hiya Folks,

                 It is Airborne Forces weekend,..... unfortunately we don`t have the big booze up,.... er sorry reunion in Aldershot anymore now that the surviving units have moved to Colly,.... I thought tht I would share a video to show the process of parachuting as it was back in the 1980`s and 90`s;

 

Edited July 7, 2018 by tonyot

[Harry Lime]

Bloody noisy business! I was lucky enough to get a couple of trips in Hercs as a member of the ATC and can vouch that it is even noisier than in the video, but I still managed to get a good sleep for part of the flight despite the noise and lack of comfort from those red webbing seats. I also remember seeing a lot of the ummm, 'strongly-worded' and robust inter-unit graffiti that adorned the butts at Ash Vale ranges but the contents of that sure ain't suitable for a family show....

 

We also have a current Para in the family and when chatting with a former RM colleague, he grudgingly admitted that the Paras he'd fought alongside in the 'Stan showed some of the best soldiering he'd ever seen. Can't really get better praise than from your biggest rivals, although I'm sure the poor fella is now banned from his respective Commando reunions after that admission!

 

Enjoy your weekend to the fullest Tony, it's been more than well-earned!

 

Regards,

 

Mark.

[Des]

Thanks for posting , 45 years since my last step out into the wild blue yonder which was into the pitch black dark in the UAE but with time you tend to forget the noise and the organised chaos of it all until it was time to stand up.     We still had the post-war variety of Dennison Smock back then a bit classier than DPM and never the luxury of a Herc without the centre rows of seats.

 

Cannot find the video on You Tube but do you remember Red On ... Green On .... Go ?

[tonyot]

On 7/7/2018 at 11:56 AM, Harry Lime said:

Bloody noisy business! I was lucky enough to get a couple of trips in Hercs as a member of the ATC and can vouch that it is even noisier than in the video, but I still managed to get a good sleep for part of the flight despite the noise and lack of comfort from those red webbing seats. I also remember seeing a lot of the ummm, 'strongly-worded' and robust inter-unit graffiti that adorned the butts at Ash Vale ranges but the contents of that sure ain't suitable for a family show....

 

We also have a current Para in the family and when chatting with a former RM colleague, he grudgingly admitted that the Paras he'd fought alongside in the 'Stan showed some of the best soldiering he'd ever seen. Can't really get better praise than from your biggest rivals, although I'm sure the poor fella is now banned from his respective Commando reunions after that admission!

 

Enjoy your weekend to the fullest Tony, it's been more than well-earned!

 

Regards,

 

Mark.

Cheers Mark,..... I`ve added some of that graffitti to Ash Ranges over the years lol!! If you can sleep in a Herk filled with 90 blokes,..... you can sleep anywhere! 

As for Marine and Para rivalry,.... it is all banter and we respect each other really ,.... I have a nephew who is a current Marine and we are always taking the mickey,.... but respect the hell out of each other,..... I would have happily gone to war with either,.... having served alongside both.

I`m really jealous of your ATC service as I never got to do that,...... the drill night coincided with my Town Team training night so I couldn`t go! 

 

All the best bud,

                         Tony

[tonyot]

On 7/7/2018 at 12:22 PM, Des said:

Thanks for posting , 45 years since my last step out into the wild blue yonder which was into the pitch black dark in the UAE but with time you tend to forget the noise and the organised chaos of it all until it was time to stand up.     We still had the post-war variety of Dennison Smock back then a bit classier than DPM and never the luxury of a Herc without the centre rows of seats.

 

Cannot find the video on You Tube but do you remember Red On ... Green On .... Go ?

I`ve not seen the film but will look for it! Respect to you Des,.... I never got to wear the classy old Dennison Smock  but served with plenty who did,.... proper old school Para`s. As for the Herk in the video,.... I thought exactly the same about the lack of central seats,..... not exactly a sim 45 was it eh? They could have had a party en route to the DZ! 

I loved night jumps too but my favourite was into Arnhem in 1988,..... the fruition of a boyhood dream,......we were attached to 10 Para TA for the weekend and loved it! 

 

Respect to you again Des,

Cheers

         Tony

[Wez]

Great vid Tony, plenty of service issue 'taches too (never had one myself).

 

Interesting to see the drills and constant cross checking that goes on.

 

Sleeping on a Herc, it was the only way I could cope with flying in them!

 

Had I been on that flight line I would have been shouting at some of them to take their berets off, FOD hazard!  Mind you we in the RAF always thought you guys had them permanently nailed in place!

[Des]

5 hours ago, tonyot said:

I`ve not seen the film but will look for it!

An Arnhem commemoration would have been something else to have been on, well done.

 

Longest stick I was over on was as 13 in a Sim 22 during that final night jump , went down the Herc and out the door like a train and as we had taken recruits with us to clear up the abandoned chutes et all on the ground were able to walk off straight into the exercise without the usual carrying on while you trekked miles to dump them on the transport and back again.

 

The film was a late 60s early 70s training film to inspire or terrify recruits as the case might be.     

 

Saw it a couple of times usually to a ribald commentary from older heads present and once part of the introduction to the TA Para Course at 1PTS when it was at Abingdon , they followed it with a film of the landings during the Rhine Crossing with typical wartime commentary with no regard whatsoever for the Fallschirmjäger Feldwebel doing the course before an attachment to the Parachute Regiment. 

 

Later in the course same guy got a bit worried as an RAF Loadmaster conducted us through a foot stomping English rendition of the Engelandlied on the way to lob out over Weston-on-the-Green , muttering loudly about it being verbotten in Germany until an RM Sergeant with typical tact shouted across to ask why if was so ******* verbotten how did he know what it was.

 

Probably have to spend weeks in diversity training these days.

Edited July 8, 2018 by Des

[noelh]

Great video, old skool. Look at those 'taches.

I was looking at the faces hoping to see a familiar one. Back in my part time soldiering days in Dublin. A group of us decided to go on a static line parachute course. On the day one turned up in full Para uniform, Denison smock and all. A unique sight in a rural town. A total Walt you might think but he later went to Sandhurst and ended up as a Captain in 2 Para. So I guess not. 

Anyway we all survived the drop, just about.