Where is your spiritual RAF home?

[auchtermuchty]

Edited by Wobbly: Even though you could actually see one of the persons mentioned together with his name, present rank and his present station in the RAF News a few months back.....which by the way you can buy at any WH Smiths. I apologise to auchtermuchty for my lack of professionalism over something 21 years ago

And no reporting me for mentioning and reading RAF News either

Now thats just not fair!!!!

I was merely pointing out that one of the Mods had asked we refrain from naming names - just because you are the almighty creator, not to mention your anecdote is older than some posting here, doesnt mean you can step outside the rules. Thats far too american to be sanctioned here!

Do I get a mods job now and does that mean I have to start snogging blokes?DT_Xtremez_28:

 

[Statto]

Swinderby - 4th Aug 87 for 6 weeks which didnt seem to bad at the time. Then Statty trg at Hereford. Oh the luxury of carpets instead of that nice polished lino.

Guess my spiritual home would be around halfway along the monorail from ISK to ISL.

 

[Canberraman]

Three spiritual homes.

Three spiritual homes.

Bridgenorth was my first, I was an ex brown job, so discipline, shouting and what little buillying there was,was like water running off a duck back. I literally loved my square bashing days, was I actually a drill-pig?
Next was my treasured memories from RAF Melksham, 12 S of TT. I got on well on the Elec/mech/Air course. After this I was posted to RAF Binbrook, working on Avro Lincolns. (That dates me!) and ended up delving into the elecrical mysteries of the Canberra.
In 1953, I was sent back to RAF Melksham for the Elec/Fit course. In my absense there was new addition to the discip staff by the name of Sgt Gapp, it was rumoured that he ended the war as a warrant officer and after the war, wartime promotions had to substanciated by passing the appropriate education level, our Sgt Gapp scraped through as Sgt only! An example of his brain power, was when he got the new entry in his office, he asked if any of us had motor bikes on camp, three of us admitted to this. His remark then was a howler, he admitted to not liking motor cyclists because there a lot of fatal deaths in the neigbouhood. Later in the course we came to the electronics stage, where, in the thermionic valve, we were told, was a useless cloud of electrons known as the space charge and didn't serve any purpose. Our dear Sgt Gapp became known to all and sundry, as Space Charge Gapp, even the officers picked it up! Those three camps will remain, my spiritual homes.

Ken Sgt

 

[dodgyoldsprog]

Boy Entrants 20th entry RAF Cosford 1953 as air/mech.
Eighteen months of hell, I can now say in retrospect ,we were too young and ignorant of life to know better,we had bloody awful food, dentists that pulled your teeth out ,and psychotic D.I's glad to pass out and leave the place , had some good mates though. The real RAF at RAF North Weald on 111sqdn was a piece of cake after that. I then was posted to RAF Melksham for electrical fitters course (air) met W/O. Webber of haircut fame . Luckily I had brought my hair clippers and scissors, so made a small fortune every month prior to C.O's parade time...Peed it against the wall in surounding pubs in Wiltshire. Squadron moved to Wattisham via North Luffenham then overseas posting to Malaya 1959 RAF K.L. then RAF Seletar with 209 sqdn, ferried troops p & down Malaya. Back to Wattisham stn flt till demob 1965

 

[jack brew]

Boy Entrants 20th entry RAF Cosford 1953
we had bloody awful food, dentists that pulled your teeth out ,and psychotic D.I's glad to pass out and leave the place , had some good mates though.

Another new "old" member! (Forgive the use of the word old!)

Please introduce yourself on the Introductions thread, and as you joined when men were men, please share some stories

 

[PSF Angel]

8 Flt at Halton. August 1996.

 

[Bunker Monkey]

Old but not Bald (yet)!

Old but not Bald (yet)!

3 Sqn, RAF Swinderby Sep 86 , Sgt 'Grave Danger' Grainger was the Senior Drill Instuctor.
Had my 18th there DT_Xtremez_19:

 

[Pistonbroke]

Bloody hell! Nov 73 Cpl Capon & Sgt *********. 16 FLT and got the nackers frozen on the airfield doing an exercise. Water bowser froze up and 3 of the flt got hypothermia. Apart from that, doze were the days!

 

[DHI]

Old and Going bald!

Old and Going bald!

Swinders 79, Oct 23 - Dec 5th, 2 flt 1 sqn. Eazee life....I woz teaboy, spent exercise in the gym on nights. First lot to do MFT at North Luffers, remember Paddy pinching all the maps out of the wagons prior to the exercise, had to be called off!

Marham holding for FLMs cse, (129). CSF and VASS good times, run O the camp too.

Good times....

 

[busbyboy]

8 Flt at Halton. August 1996.

You are but a spring chicken methinks. How did you get to SHAPE in just 7 years, must have been a member of the Mafiosi - oh yeah, you were!
Hope life is treating you well at big bad BZN.

330 Entry Admin App Hereford 1972 - the last but unsurpassed.

And, I just got my VL after 3.5 months - could have written it in my sleep - in fact I probably did.

Spiritual Home - definitely Rheindahlen, now there was a place and a half. The Queensway Club, the Marly, Street of a Thousand Bars (well a few dozen anyway), Roermond, Cologne, Dusseldorf etc etc. Got up to a few things there...

 

[tommo9999]

You are but a spring chicken methinks. How did you get to SHAPE in just 7 years, must have been a member of the Mafiosi - oh yeah, you were!
Hope life is treating you well at big bad BZN.

330 Entry Admin App Hereford 1972 - the last but unsurpassed.

And, I just got my VL after 3.5 months - could have written it in my sleep - in fact I probably did.

Spiritual Home - definitely Rheindahlen, now there was a place and a half. The Queensway Club, the Marly, Street of a Thousand Bars (well a few dozen anyway), Roermond, Cologne, Dusseldorf etc etc. Got up to a few things there...

You are so old, the Queensway is now the Youth Club!! For real.

 

[supersquip]

Swinderby Feb-Apr 90 15 FLT Old school those where the days buffing the floors at stupid o-clock am 4 hours sleep a night
MFT at Lufneham throwing up over my flight comander after Thor run !!! pity really she was really fit
Then renlisting and having to do RTS at Halton deep joy

 

[Mad Pierre]

Swinderby 47MP80 I believe they called it, March - April 81.

No5 Flt motto 'we like pain' we had to strip the paint off everything and polish it, even the frickin toothpaste tube. All that bull for the pass out was totally wasted when that IRA bloke went to hell to eat all the sandwiches, they shut the blocks to our Mums and Dads in case one of them bought an IED to the parade. I was up all night polishing those stairs too. DT_Xtremez_31:

Spiritual home, again as a TG3 has to be Locking.

 

[veryretiredscribbly]

Hi all,
been away a while on GG etc.. been catching up on some of the threads,

Hereford for me, (YTS) Nov 90 can't remember much about it other than the feckrin cold, cretin hill and red mud turning white daps a nasty shade of mingin. (oh and £17 ish quid a week) cnuts!

Did you constantly get screamed at by the station guard force for leaving the block front door open?

I was one of them ;-)
Doing a stint b4 i went to my real unit.

 

[veryretiredscribbly]

Swinderby Apr 90......in the words of Phil Tuffnel.....Happy Days!!!!DT_Xtremez_28:

Ditto, likewise Swindercutlet April 90.
17th apr onwards ;-)
I'm a "total tourist" having been on all 3 squadrons! Failed the range twice. Was told to "get stuffed, you've passed" third time round by the Stn Rgt Officer ;-)
We still did MFT at 'Nam back then! In tents, in a hanger, how bizarre.

Anyone remember the rubberised horsehair mats in weapon training classes? Ooh they made your elbows bleed right nice!

A frigging men to that one! I went through the range 3 times so had to do weapon training 3 times as well. We had to do a TOETS demo for then Minister Of Defence, Archie Hamilton. I only got picked cuz I knew it all inside out as a double backflighter.

And Hereford for trade training back when we were still P & A Clerks. (so called super clerks, grin)
I can remember going back there for SAMA training just before it closed and scaring civvy instructor Mr Knight that I was still in the mob 3 yrs later.

The best times going to the sticky carpet, going in pubs you were expressly banned from and the main one us data ans - watching all the PABCs/P&As and suppliers running up Credon Hill because your course had to be over 6 weeks to do it!!!!!

There's a chap talking about The Crystal Rooms (or hotel oblivion) and Credon Hill was quite a good fun thing to do at least once, 1st timers always got a mudbath. 2nd time was much more fun, you were on the giving the bath side!

 

[rogerslimprs]

Cut my teeth, and a new pair of hobnail boots, at Hereford Jan 1966.

Spiritual home has to be RAF Hospital Ely - fabulous.

 

[Bob75C]

75th Entry, RAF Locking 1953.
Lot of water under the bridge. IIRC Kilroy was in the next bed!

 

[Mad Pierre]

75th Entry, RAF Locking 1953.
Lot of water under the bridge. IIRC Kilroy was in the next bed!

I like you.
You make me seem very young. DT_Xtremez_31:

 

[docbombhead]

Swinderby Dec 90 10Flt. Remember standing outside the range marking the ground where people landed, after the rocks THREW them off the range for messing up their drills on the live weapon shoot with the good old SLR !!

 

[radrob]

Sep 1986 at good ol` Swinderby then off to Halton for three years of goat abuse. Anyone remember Crowborough?
River marches, Heartbreak Hill and egg banjos after your trench was dug.

4am that f***ers asleep--STAND TOOOOOO!!!!::/: