Avro 696 Shackleton

My dad , Master Pilot GH Richardson flew Shackletons at Christmas Island in 1958 .

Does anyone remember him please .

reply

She was capable of flying with NO engines running. Until our brilliant young Pilot ( NOT the Captain - who was a Navigator) screamed out 'We've got no F'''ing Petrol'. If you have any further interest in this escapade, then simply ask.

reply

Strange to say, whilst stationed in Malta with 38 Sqdn Mk11 Shackletons, we were hit with the 'wing spar scare'. Somewhere between 1958 and 1959. I remember ferrying one aircraft back to the UK, to have those bolt holes reamed, to accept the next size bolts!

Sure, in later years, flying the Mk111's and taking off much heavier than stated, with the Vipers adding their thrust to getting the show on the road. This must have degraded the chances of a Mk111 ever becomming an AEW platform.
I still preferred the Mk11 because the pilot had the chance to exhibit how good he really was. Our landing in Malta, filmed by the Officer Commanding, after refusing us permission to jettison (over the sea) our wing hatches, and delayed until he had his Cine Camera established along the runway.
Our Extentable Radar Scanner, had jammed in the 'Attack Position' and distorted the geometry, preventing retraction.
Essentially, 13 feet of Radar Cupola, that didn't want to return to Mama.

Our Captain? A WW11 Lancaster veteren, probably awarded his commission after the war ended. This guy flew by instinct and skill.I believe we stopped in less than 300 metres.
No fire, no sparks, the asbestos clad personnel outside, must have thought we were lunatics!
Internally, the majority of the crew had assisted in trying to save the Radar Equipment ( very expensive and in short supply). The Hydraulic Jacks were the Villains of the Peace. Internally, the airframe was awash with Hydraulic Fluid. As the aircrew attempted a 'controlled evacuation' - they simply found it impossible to stand on their feet! Some personnel, unable to prevent their sliding into the Shackletons Toilet Facilities. I will not continue further, with this exposition. Our Pilot landed an aircraft, that must have looked like a Pteradactyl, better than the civilian airlines were achieving.
The craft 'bar-steward' had his Sick Bay Staff, ply us with free Beer, for three hours, before allowing us back to our quarters. No record exists of this perfect landing. What a great shame.

reply

Worked in ASF Changi 1962 to 1964 on Shacks and Hastings...Inst. Mech.

reply

I worked on Shackletons at Kinloss (MOTU and 206 Sqn), Khormaksar, Aden (37 Sqn) and Ballykelly (Handling and Rectification Flight between 1965 and 1970. It will always be my favourite aircraft.

reply

Happy memories of first ATC camp at RAF Kinloss 120 201 206 Squadrons Mk3's. Wonderful aircraft, the smell of leather and oil and a few other things. Climbing over the main spar, amazing to think they were descendants of the Lancaster made me think of the Dambusters. Never got to fly in one as when the aircraft was readied and we got kitted up the damn thing went u /s c'est la vie. Stupidest thing Cameron has ever done was to scrap the Nimrods and close Kinloss the best all round weather base, and now we need them and the base, with all the scare mongering over Russia again.

reply

There is at least one still operational here in South Africa

reply

I also spent three happy years on this great aircraft as a WOP great times....Thanks Shack.

reply

As an Air Radio Fitter assigned to 131 MU Aden from 1964 to 1966, I was occasionally called upon to do work on 37 Squadron's Shackletons. When a 37 Squadron Shackleton was detailed to participate in an exercise in the Far East, I was assigned from 131 MU Sonics Bay to ensure the Sonabuoys were kept in fine fettle. You can imagine how crestfallen I felt while at Changi Singapore when a rather vexed aircraft captain summoned me to his office to inform me that all six Sonabuoys they dropped that day had failed to detect anything at all, when they knew from intelligence that a
submarine was nearby. Having told me that he would ensure an adverse report was recorded, I spent a restless night worried sick, what I could possibly have done wrong.
The following day, to my great relief, he approached with a huge grin and slapped me on the back saying, "Don't
look so worried Corporal, it wasn't your fault, Nav re-checked the coastal charts last night and found the sea
depth was only 30 feet in that area".
Now the hydrophone detector extended below surface on a 60 ft cable before it rotated to sweep for submarines, so little wonder their monitor said no rotation, each hydrophone having been embedded in mud! The crew had a good laugh and from then on it was a great trip and the captain invited me to fly the plane for an hour on the last leg back to Aden. They turned out to be a real friendly crew and that was the nicest apology I ever had!

reply

I was stationed at HMS Sea Eagle in Derry as an RAF radio operator. I was able to get flights as passenger /crew on Shackleton MKII's out of Ballykelly. I'm looking for pictures MKII's out of Ballykelly.
Many enjoyable and interesting flying were accumalated, in 1953. I was even issued my own flying log, clocking up 86hrs.

I hope someone has a picture or two that they are willing to share.

Tony

reply

More to my Shackleton experience. On several of my gash flights we would be practice bombing, going round and round up and down over the med. In the nose a few feet above the water and passing ships looking up at passengers on deck waving down at us, It seemed like speeding along in a speed boat.
Some times I would sit up in the mid gun turret, all a great experience.
One night flight we had an emergency. One engine cut out on a turn and we fell about 3oo ft. We had to return to base and on the way another engine cut out or had to be stopped and we landed on two engines.
At times we could make a rough landing by leapfrogging down the runway and if it becme too bad we would take off again in mid leap and go around. I have also seen this happen from my tender on the crash lines. Very spectacular and amazing the power of those Griffin engines.
My longest flight in a Shack. Was sixteen hours on a visit to Gib from St Eval, Cornwall. We flew down the West African coast training on the way. That was a bit of a drag.
I have a flight simulator now for the past ten years and was lucky enough to come across a South African firm who was selling the Shackleton A /C. I have it in my hanger of my 2004 flight sim and fly it often with the sound turned up. It is very realistic, I love the sound of the Griffins and contra rotating prop noise.
I consider myself very fortunate to have been associated with the Shackleton.

reply

I was an Aero Fireman stationed at Gib from 53 till 57 and spent a lot of my time off duty pestering 224 Sqd to take me flying and especialy on test flights. What a thrill sat on the seat in the nose of a MK1 when doing the stall test.
The engineer would be calling out "she's going, going,going, gone and with that, I am clinging to the arm of the seat to keep seated and that engineer is still leaning against the post as if nothing was happening.Then as the testing progressed, look out one side and see two engines props feathered and on the other side only one engine running.
What great days they were. Even honking on my knees at the bogs in the tail never put me off. Looking back now, I am pretty certain I was set up when I found myself pressed against the ceiling above the toilet and when the plane stopped falling I came down on my knees and thought I had busted them. Bastards.
Still went back for more though.
Thanks fellows if you can remember me.

reply

A real aeroplane fully manual,you needed hairy wrists to manoeuver the machine, but the satisfaction when you got it right with a three point landing after 14 or 16 hours cannot be matched by todays video game equipped devices!

reply