6, Knightwood Close

6, Knightwood Close Reigate, Surrey RH2 8BE 01737 221814 [email protected] [email protected]

ICARUS NEWSLETTER Spring 2013. Website http://www.icarusba.org.uk

We send our condolences to the families of the following absent friends:

John Badham Keith CarpenterKen Daniel

Ted Dunford Andy Guthrie Ken Hayes

Bob Hayward Ricky LanderJack Linstead

George Mahony David Miles Mike O’Connor Gordon Ross-Munro Gordon WoodwardChris Wythers

People News:

Angus McKibbin, who retired from 747-400 in 2001, recently returned to full time education at the University of Ulster graduating this summer with a BSc (2:1) in Transportation.

He says that the only problem he encountered was the complicated mathematics involved in whether to claim senior citizen or student discount for various events and activities! He was subsequently elected a Chartered Member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, proving that at least one organization regards the commanding of a 747-400 as a senior management position.

He goes on “I have been stretched quite a bit over the last few years - don't let anyone tell you that university is a doddle with all the coursework deadlines and computer work. However I have been ‘rewarded’ with an invitation to deliver the annual lecture of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in Northern Ireland, based on my final dissertation which involved the riveting subject of Park and Ride. During the course we also had to design an airport terminal (yes someone does actually design them) which taught me a lot”.

Well done Angus. It was good to see Mike Austin at last autumn’s function. Unfortunately he will not be able to attend the members’ meeting this April as he started an 8-month course of chemo on the 13th November 2012. As on the last occasion when he underwent treatment he has to avoid too much contact with others, where he might pick up an infection. He plans to spend as much time as possible on one of his boats. He had intended to bring his partner with him to the meeting (she is an expert on staff travel matters) so hopefully they will attend in the autumn to sort out any staff travel queries that you might have.

Get well soon Mike!

Mike Clarke sent me an amusing story about the legendary Captain Johnny Welford.

For our younger members, Welford was a “Captain Birdseye” sort of character; rotund with a short-cropped white beard and usually a blue and white hooped vest under his uniform shirt. He was a veritable Flight Managers’ nightmare and usually began his initial call to LHR 118.2 with “Tower of London”!

On the day in question John, his copilot Mike and the radio officer (this was a Viscount 700) were walking out to their aircraft across the apron at Jersey when, on an adjacent stand, a traffic girl was preventing a collection of passengers from boarding their aeroplane whilst a couple of white-overalled engineers were still rectifying a snag on board.

To Mike’s surprise, as the three of them walked past the melee, Welford asked the other two to wait and look after his briefcase as he strode into the centre of the crowd of passengers.

“Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen” said John, as the passengers formed a tight circle around his imposing figure. “I am very sorry about this short delay and we’ll soon be on our way. John described the departure routing out of Jersey with the assembled crowd hanging on his every word. “It is wonderful to have an opportunity to speak to you as we are normally far too busy. It is also good to see so many children travelling with us today so, as soon as we are safely airborne and the seat belt sign is off, I would like all you children to make your way up to the cockpit so that we can show you as much as possible up there.”

Needless to say this went down very well with the children and their parents and, as the aircraft was by now fixed, the grateful traffic girl started to board the passengers, who had all been enthralled under John’s spell.

Meanwhile John strolled back to Mike and the R/O, retrieved his briefcase, as the three of them walked off to their Viscount, parked on the next stand! Member’s Pieces:

As I had the pleasure of being taught on the Tiger Moth by Joan Hughes when I was doing a PPL, it was good to receive a piece from Richard Poad entitled “Grandma Flew Spitfires”, celebrating the intrepid pilots of the ATA who flew anything to anywhere. Retired BA pilots, led by Richard, are flying back in time at the Maidenhead Heritage Centre in Berkshire, where they are helping to teach visitors to fly a Spitfire simulator at the only exhibition dedicated to the ATA. Opened by Prince Michael of Kent in October 2011, this permanent exhibition has not only the 5-screen sim but also archives, photographs, logbooks and films relating to the Ferry Service. The record number of types in one of the logbooks is 105! Ba people involved include Les Deadman, John Holland, Ian Runnalls, Barry Whitehead Rod Brooking, John Fairie and Nick Brett. Richard says that he would be delighted to welcome Icarus members, both as visitors and as volunteers. If you fancy going contact Richard on 01628 780555 or email [email protected] Note that the location is in the middle of Maidenhead and not at White Waltham airfield. Open 1000-1600 Tues to Sat.

From Finlay Cunningham - Before pilot training in the RAF, I was a flight engineer on Sunderland Flying Boats in the Far East during the Korean War and Icarus members might be interested in this account of an air sea rescue:

At 12.30 on the 7th of December 1950 Sunderland NJ 272 departed through the south East gap of Hong Kong harbour in answer to a distress call from a sinking ship in the South China Sea. Flight Lieutenant Don Hunter’s crew were providing SAR cover while the rest of the Squadron were on detachment at Iwakuni, Japan in support of the United Nations forces. Once clear of the Lima Islands NJ272 headed south to the last known position of the sinking ship. Since I only arrived at Kai Tak a month before and not yet allocated to a crew I was standing in for sickness and leave. This SAR callout provided a break from “amending Air Publications” and trying to look busy!

The weather was good, light winds and a gentle rolling swell with high cloud cover. The only information available was that a small coastal freighter called the Joseph Shad radioed that it was sinking about one hundred miles east of Hainan Island. In fact the position given in the original distress signal turned out to be accurate. Radar reported a contact ten miles ahead and in a few minutes we were overhead the ship Joseph S at 1,000 feet. The ship was low in the water and not under way.

Circling around the ship we could see that the Joseph S was a dirty old rust bucket of about 1,000 tons with no sign of life on the deck. What made this ship different from hundreds of other similar vessels on the South China Sea was that the hull was made of crude wooden planks. Either they were part of the original construction or had been added on at a later date to keep her afloat. One of the radio operators tried to make contact with the Aldis lamp with no result. Fortunately the sea was calm with a light swell so Don decided to land for a closer inspection. After touchdown the Sunderland taxied closer to the ship and by now one or two of the crew appeared on deck to have a look at the “big white bird”.

Communication was a problem as shouting across to the ship did not produce any response from the half dozen men leaning over the rail. It seemed that they were not very interested in our arrival and showed no concern for their ship. After half an hour on the water Don decided to leave them to their fate and return to Kai Tak. Once airborne the Sunderland made a wide circuit and returned over the ship to take photographs. To our surprise there were a dozen men on deck frantically trying to lower an old battered lifeboat. When the boat settled in the water more crew members appeared from below and scrambled aboard. There was no doubt now about the crew’s intentions - it was to abandon ship.

This new situation meant Don had to land again and attempt to rescue the crew. Once again on the water he taxied to about a hundred yards from the lifeboat and, ensuring that the APU was running, cut all four engines. The Sunderland was now drifting and unable to manoeuvre, with a lifeboat full of “survivors” rowing towards it. There was no way even two engines could be kept running, with the danger of turning propellers hitting the lifeboat.

Standing up at the stern of the lifeboat was a short man wearing an oil-stained T shirt. By his accent he sounded American and seemed to be the captain. While his crew were rowing towards the Sunderland he kept shouting that he must be saved first, at the same time pointing to some ethnic differences between himself and his crew. There is nothing like a disaster at sea to bring out the best in people!

The next problem was how to get this lifeboat close to the front door on the port side. Normally a trained coxswain would approach the port side from the rear under the wing to the front door but here was a sturdy lifeboat with oars splashing and waving in all directions, manned by a crew intent on ramming our aircraft. I was standing at the top hatch ready to start the engines. The other engineer and another crewmember were in the bow with the long boat hook ready to fend off the approaching lifeboat. The only way to get them out of the lifeboat and in through the front door was to keep the bow of the lifeboat nose-on to the bow of the aircraft. Once the lifeboat was “hooked” it could be manoeuvred along the port side to the front door, where the survivors could climb over the bow of the lifeboat and in through the door.

The lifeboat was only a few yards from the nose of the Sunderland when it started to drift broadside towards the port wing float The crew had lost control of the lifeboat and were bringing the oars inboard. We were all shouting to the crew to get away from the wing float but, of course, they had no idea what we were saying. Even a gentle nudge from the lifeboat could damage the float and then we would all be survivors in the South China Sea.

Just when we thought disaster was inevitable a slight breeze weathercocked the Sunderland round so that the nose of the aircraft was again pointing at the lifeboat. The engineer was able to grab the lifeboat with the boat hook and hold it alongside the bow of the Sunderland. By keeping the lifeboat secure to the port side and allowing it to move a few feet towards the open front door all was in place for the transfer. One crewmember at the front door grabbed each survivor and pulled them on board. In a few minutes all 23 survivors were on board and the lifeboat cast adrift.

It was a great sense of relief to get all four engines running again. Hatches were closed and the horn sounded a blast to warn all below that we were about to take off. It was dark when the Sunderland approached the south east gap at the entrance to Hong Kong Harbour. The weather was fine and the lights of Hong Kong made it possible to make a visual circuit at night. The survivors were taken ashore and we never heard of them again. The Hong Kong papers reported that the ship Joseph S was owned by a Filipino gambler. I never worked out whether it was a winning or losing hand that gave him that ship!

Sadly on the 6th November 1957 Flight Lieutenant Don Hunter was killed when copilot of new Britannia G-ANCA which crashed at Downend, during a test flight from nearby Filton.

In 1964, this Boeing B-52 bomber on loan from the Air Force back to Boeing for flight test encountered heavy sheer turbulence, which broke the entire vertical tail assembly off the aircraft in flight. Fortunately it landed safely. Flights to Remember…. (or forget!):

A slight variation this time. This was the first air accident to be investigated and the report appeared in the “Official notices to Members of the Royal Aero Club of the UK” in Flight’s news sheet of June 8th 1912, only a month after the event involving a Flanders Monoplane, pictured below.

BROOKLANDS ACCIDENT

Report on the fatal accident to Mr. E. V. B. Fisher and his passenger, Mr. Victor Mason, when flying at Brooklands on Monday, May 13th, 1912, at about 6 p.m.

Brief Description of the Accident—Mr. E. V. B. Fisher flying with a passenger on a Flanders Monoplane fitted with a 60-h.p. Green engine had made two or three circuits of the Brooklands flying ground. He was making a left-hand turn when the aircraft fell to the ground, killing both the aviator and passenger. Almost immediately, after contact with the ground, the aircraft was in flames.

Report—The Special Committee sat on the following dates: Tuesday May 21st, Wednesday May 22nd and Tuesday May 28th 1912 and heard the evidence of two eye witnesses, both of whom were aviators holding certificates. The Committee also heard the evidence of the designer and manufacturer of the aircraft and of the representative of the maker of the motor.

The written reports of other witnesses and the report of Dr Eric Gardner were also considered.

From the consideration of this evidence the Committee is of opinion that the following facts are clearly established: (1) That the accident originated while the aircraft was making a left-hand turn at about 100 feet from the ground. (Evidence as to height, in the opinion of the Committee, is not conclusive.) (2) That the aircraft had turned through an angle of about 90 degrees in the horizontal plane, (3) That it then side-slipped inwards. (4) That it struck the ground head first with the tail practically vertical. (5) That from the effect produced on the engine and other parts the velocity at the moment of striking the ground was very considerable. (6) That the fire which took place originated subsequently to the fall and was the result, not the cause of the accident. (7) That there is no reason to suppose that the structural failure of any part of the aircraft was the cause of the accident. (8) That from the commencement of the flight the aircraft was flying tail down. (9) That the engine was actually running when the aircraft struck the ground. (10) That Mr. Fisher was not in any way incapacitated so far as the normal control of the aircraft was concerned by an injury to his left shoulder, sustained on April 18th 1912. (11) That the passenger did not cause the accident. (12) That Mr. Fisher was thrown, fell or jumped out of the aircraft when the latter was a considerable height from the ground, his body being found about 60 ft. in front of the spot where the aircraft struck. The passenger remained in the aircraft and his position was such that he could not readily have been thrown out. (13) Mr. Fisher was granted his Aviator's Certificate No. 77 by the Royal Aero Club on May 2nd 2012.

Opinion—The Committee is of opinion that the cause of the accident was the aviator himself, who failed sufficiently to appreciate the dangerous conditions under which he was making the turn, when the aircraft was flying tail down and in addition was not flying in a proper manner. A side-slip occurred, and Mr. Fisher lost control of the aircraft. It seems probable that his losing control was caused by his being thrown forward on to the elevating gear, thereby moving this forward involuntarily, which would have had the effect of still further turning the aircraft down. This would explain his being thrown out whilst in the air. In the opinion of the Committee it is possible that if the aviator had been suitably strapped into his seat he might have retained control of the aircraft.

Paul Jefferies sent me this interesting précis in response to my leaning upon him to give us an account of his round-the-world sail.

Here’s the first part, from the UK to the Panama Canal:-

It was so nice to see the old crowd when I attended my first Icarus meeting last winter. I was based at Gatwick with Airtours for much of my time in BA and to see Steve Wand, Shag and the others was like stepping back in time. They hadn't changed a bit!

During my last few years of flying, in what little time off I had, I had been building a 39ft steel cruising boat with the intention of setting off into the sunset when I reached the "Big Five Five".

Completing the boat took somewhat longer than expected (doesn't it always!) but the reason I hadn't seen any of the guys for so long was that in November 2005 my wife Ute and I finally set off and have been sailing round the World ever since, with only the occasional visit back to the UK. Though we have not yet crossed our outbound track, we have now "done a 360" and cracked the 40,000 mile mark.

Packing up 28 years worth of treasures and selling our house in Sussex inevitably took much longer that we had anticipated so it was with some trepidation that we set off on 6th November 2005. It was much later than we would have liked but we would soon get south and into better weather, so it was still doable.

In the event, we must have had one of the smoothest crossings of the Bay of Biscay on record and we actually had to motor for half of it. Two days after our arrival in La Coruna a French boat came in sans its mast, having been hit by a monumental storm! Later, we had to divert into Lagos in SW Portugal for a couple of days because a late Hurricane was doing unpredictable things in the Eastern Atlantic and did in fact hit Madeira and Tenerife very hard and when we reached the Marina del Atlantico in the north of Tenerife, the damage was only too plain to see with more than 30 pontoons destroyed.

After refuelling, filling the water tanks and re-stocking the lockers, we finally set off on our Atlantic crossing on Dec 16th '05. I think that the highlight of the crossing was when we were joined one morning by a 50ft Fin whale and her calf (a mere 20ft long). They stayed with us for around two hours swimming round and directly under the boat. It was a bit unnerving to begin with but, once we realised that they were just curious and meant us no harm, it was just a magical experience.

We took quite a Southerly route and for much of the crossing and the winds were quite light. "Damarri" is a heavy boat and needs a good blow to get her up to speed so our crossing was not fast and we arrived in Prickly Bay in Grenada after 26 days.

We bummed around the Caribbean for most of 2006. Much of it was a bit disappointing, being very noisy and overcrowded with charter boats. I guess our favourite island was Montserrat where, following the eruption of the volcano there and the subsequent evacuation and then resettlement of the island, the people were so wonderfully warm and welcoming despite the hardship they had suffered and shoddy treatment they had received from the UK Government.

We had heard many unsettling reports of piracy and other criminal activity against boats along the coast of Venezuela so from Montserrat we stayed well of the Venezuelan coast and sailed direct to Cartagena in Columbia. We had been told that Cartagena was “off limits” to the drug cartels and that tourists were welcome and safe in that town – so it proved to be! Cartagena has the most beautiful "old town" with history, architecture and fabulous art lurking round every corner.

From Cartagena we went straight across the Gulf of Uraba to the San Blas Islands. These islands are an autonomous region of Panama and proved to be our introduction to the world of mud huts and dugout canoes, not to mention the extensive coral reefs. We found a beautiful and secluded anchorage where we spent a few days and befriended a lovely Kuna Indian family who invited us into their home. I wish I had more space to describe all we saw but, suffice it to say that our logbook states that if the San Blas Islands aren’t paradise, they will do until we find somewhere better!

By now we were on a bit of a schedule as, when cruising in the tropics, you have to keep a very close eye on the weather, and particularly on the hurricane/cyclone seasons. This means that, in order to get across The Pacific in one season, you need to go through the Panama Canal in March and our transit was over the two days, 14/15th March ’07.

(…to be continued in the next issue) A judge was interviewing a woman regarding her pending divorce.

Judge: What are the grounds for your divorce? Woman: About 4 acres and a nice little home with a stream running by. No, I mean what is the foundation of the case. It’s made of concrete, bricks and mortar. I mean, what are your relations like? I have an aunt and uncle living nearby and so do my husband’s parents. Do you have a real grudge? No, we have a 2-car carport so have never really needed one. Please, is there any infidelity in your marriage? Yes, both my son and daughter have stereos. Ma’am, does your husband ever beat you up? Yes, about twice a week he gets up earlier than me.

Finally the judge asked Lady:

Why do you want a divorce? Oh I don’t want a divorce, my husband does. He says he can’t communicate with me!

***** F.A.O. ex-Hamble students – There is another reunion of former students and staff on May 10th at Hamble. Details, for those not already on his list, from [email protected]

We welcome to Icarus Terry Harbord who retired in 2006.

The committee look forward to welcoming you all to the Spring Meeting at

The Concorde Club, Pavilion Suite, Thursday 11th April 2013 at 1930hrs.

Should you not be able to attend this time, make a note in your diary that the next function will be on Thursday, 10th October 2013 and we’ll hope to see you then.

Best Regards,

STEVE WAND on behalf of the Icarus committee. P.S. The end of an era – LHR central area control tower demolition.

Thanks to Jim Fomes for the picture.