Where is your spiritual RAF home?

[Flybynight]

A beckoning Shropshire beacon

A beckoning Shropshire beacon

I'm old, bold and bald but I've never been near Swinderby. In a sense, my spiritual home is the Wrekin because the red nav beacon on top was visible both from Bridgnorth, where I did my square bashing, and Shawbury, where I did basic and advanced trade training, updates, exams, etc., together with serious all-ranks drinking in the local pubs (ah yes, Wrekin Ales, must look them up on the CAMRA website...).

 

[morse1001]

Yeah I went there in May 1977, I think we were number 14 flight - we had carpets in our rooms!! Aside from that little luxury it was --- well ok I suppose

I did my square bashing with 14Flt april 1976! I still remember the Air Experience flight in a belfast! But my spiritual home was Belize, I did 3 tours in TAOC

 

[Jelly tot]

Passed out at Swinderby May the something 1990, exact date slips my mind at this present time !!!! Best camp was without a frigging doubt was Laarbruch(92-95), kevs bar until stupid o'clock, beer calls every month, playing rugby and swanning off for the week for one game, popping over to the netherlands for a shoarma nearly every weekend, pool parties, big can of wobbly for 1 mark, the Mally, best mates, vat free naafi, LOA...............F@#k I could go on and on.

 

[Tinkerbell]

Swinderby, December 1989. 1 Sqn 6 flt.

Spiritual home would have to be Wittering with proper metal leaping heaps and IV(AC) @ Laarbruch as a holiday destination.

 

[BillyH]

Spiritual home

Spiritual home

St Athan (East). Best this side of Singapore, Ballykelly...

BillyH

 

[Vee2]

RAF North Luffenham.

 

[Hook]

Stalag Swinderby

Stalag Swinderby

Swinderby, 1976! Some mad recruit from Ireland ringing in bomb scares from outside the "Newcomers"club, aka the Naafi, kicked out of bed to evacuate the blocks and head out to the airfield! Sub zero temperatures, no time to get fully dressed, 200 recruits with flu, yours truly ended in Nocton Hall with a viral pneumonia, happy days!

 

[Scouser812]

Halton 8 Flt April 2007, but reflighted for shin splints to 5 flt gradding on 28/8/07Trade Training at Shawbury Sept-Nov 07, but if i had to pick a spiritual home it'd be Cottesmore, 2 and a half years and loved every second of it, gave me my 1st det with 1 F Sqn to Kandahar...shame that the bean counters are closing it down as an RAF station though.

 

[taz01]

Jelly tot...... Were you on intake 8mp90? Left swinditz on 28th May?

 

[taffmudd]

3 flight swinderby 1968 tough but good fun but best posting was akrotiri 76 to 80

 

[6A1]

Halton Jan 63. Look up the weather.

OC was S/L Peter Ayerst DFC - a genuine WW2 hero and the last of the Spitfire test pilots. Met him some years ago - in his 90s' and still telling tales - see his book Spirit of the Blue.

 

[Gord]

I still have my original brass belt buckle. None of this stay-bright crap.

Swinderby 3 Flt April 1993.

I'm getting on as well now.

Studley DT_Xtremez_28:

Feckin' rookie, try Jan' 1960 Halton.:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:

 

[Gord]

We of the 94th used to drink Newkie Brown at a pub in Tring, none of that local gnat's p!ss.:biggrin:

 

[Gord]

The only people posting on this are the ones old enough to be my Dad, I'm gonna make you all feel really old cause i was born in Feb 1987. I wasn't even talking when you all joined up.DT_Xtremez_31:

There's a good chance yer dad wasn't even a twinkle in his dad's eye when I joined up.:biggrin::biggrin::wink:

 

[triumphtek]

Dammit! saw Halton & voted, should have read ALL the options What's a smally?
204 entry was my home for 2 Years but, I still think fondly of RAF Acklington.
Posted to 6FTS there in '67, had to learn a new language!! ( was there nearly 3 Months before I figured out that "Reed Raah" was actually the nearby village of "Red Row" & "ya divn naa" means "I don't know" but some of the nicest people I have ever met!

 

[DownButNotOut]

RAF Swinderby 13th Nov 1984 for me

 

[Vushtrri]

RAF Hawkinge 11th May 1959,...my first glimpse of RAF life in No 2 WO Married Qtrs ..and it's still standing.....

 

[Bren]

Swinders Feb 79

 

[sailplane]

Holy crap joined 1962 and Linton on ouse my fav posting

 

[Barch]

Leeming.

Left there in the spring of 79 with the Jetstreams to Finningley, then after postings to Cottesmore and Honington I went back to Leeming in the new year of 86.

The first person I met was 'Willy the Bog' one of the SWOs cleaners who asked me if I had been on leave.