Tedx wrote:Staying on the military theme, I got a chance to have a look around the retired Nimrod Maritime Patrol aircraft.
For a long time, these planes flew long sorties over the North Sea hunting for Russian submarines before being retired as part of the 2010 Strategic Defence Review (you might recall arial pictures of chopped up new Nimrods on the news)
They were eventually replaced by Boeing P8 Poseidon aircraft, with a fleet of 9 aircraft flying out of RAF Lossiemouth. For many years though, we had a serious gap in North Sea Ruskki sub hunting
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawker_Siddeley_Nimrod
The plane is sited at the former RAF Kinloss (now an army barracks) and tours are given by the enthusiasts at the nearly Moravian Musuem. I'm told that this was the last one to have its 4 year service before being retired.
Overridding thought is how dated it all looks. So many circuit breakers and valves. There are actually 2 hinged portholes behind the cockpit where personnel could open the window and utilise the 'Mark 1 eyeball' - particularly useful on search and rescue missions. I've not been inside a P8 but I bet its another world of gleaming high tech electronic warfare and detection........
Normally crewed by 12 airman (including the pilot/navigator etc). Its a bit tight when you consider that the rear third behind this pic is taken up by the sonabouy stores and deployment equipment. Additional seats for another dozen or so could be added for engineers etc when the plane was sent on deployment. Now that would have been snug. Surprisingly though, the toilet facilities were bigger than most Euro haul holiday jets (they often flew for 12 hours or more)
The pointy end
Images removed sorry if it messes with the flow.
My FIL was in RAF and finished on Nimrods in the early 80s. Had been on Canberras before. He was an air ops electronics engineer or similar I think.
2 official Nimrod squadrons for air sea rescue I believe, one in Cornwall, one in Scotland. He was with the squadron based at Wyton in Cambs. Ahem.
We went with him to an air show in '95 at the US base Alconbury, commemorating 50 years since the end of the war. Had a look inside a Galaxy (think RoRo ferry!), and a Herc. Then there was a Nimrod there too, but roped off and not open to entry. FIL was like a guest of honour with current aircrew and got us an entry and tour of the inside.
