A Royal Navy Cold War Buccaneer Pilot
A Royal Navy Cold War Buccaneer Pilot

Author: Steve Kershaw

Publisher: Air World

Published: 2023-06-30

Total Pages: 304

ISBN-13: 1399040146

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This is a vivid and powerful story of life on board the last of our great Second World War-era aircraft carriers, modernized to serve beyond their time. It is a story of the Cold War which conveys the trials and tribulations of flying one of the best-loved military aircraft in history. Steve Kershaw joined the Royal Navy in 1963. He began flying training in 1968 and progressed to the Blackburn Buccaneer – a world-class naval strike jet that was designed to fly very fast at ultra-low altitudes. In 1970, Steve joined 800 Naval Air Squadron, which embarked on HMS Eagle on its epic final cruise. The voyage to the Far East was far from trouble-free – an aircraft crashed into the sea, there was a devastating explosion on board the carrier, and then two sailors were arrested for murder in Auckland. New year 1972 saw HMS Eagle decommissioned and 800 NAS disbanded. Steve was transferred to 845 Naval Air Squadron, on which he flew Wessex helicopters. Embarked on HMS Hermes, the squadron supported Royal Marines Commandos during their deployment to the mountains of Norway under NATO plans for a European war. During this time, helicopters were strangely sabotaged on board and one of them crashed into a fjord at night. By 1974, HMS Ark Royal was the last remaining Royal Navy fixed-wing aircraft carrier to which Steve returned to fly Buccaneers on 809 Squadron. It was in this period that he participated in a NATO exercise in Norway and a Mediterranean cruise. On return, the squadron prepared for a bombing competition between the RAF and Royal Navy Buccaneers. As part of this, Steve flew a low-level sortie off the Lincolnshire coast. The light was fading, and he was struggling to see the target ahead. He failed to see they were losing height. The aircraft hit the sea. Steve and his observer, David, were ejected into the water. In this book, Steve’s story is revealed by his son, Simon, through the words of his father, drawn from a mass of letters sent by him, and the recollections of those who served alongside him.

A Royal Navy Cold War Buccaneer Pilot
A Royal Navy Cold War Buccaneer Pilot

Author: Steve Kershaw

Publisher: Air World

Published: 2023-06-30

Total Pages: 234

ISBN-13: 1399040162

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This is a vivid and powerful story of life on board the last of our great Second World War-era aircraft carriers, modernized to serve beyond their time. It is a story of the Cold War which conveys the trials and tribulations of flying one of the best-loved military aircraft in history. Steve Kershaw joined the Royal Navy in 1963. He began flying training in 1968 and progressed to the Blackburn Buccaneer – a world-class naval strike jet that was designed to fly very fast at ultra-low altitudes. In 1970, Steve joined 800 Naval Air Squadron, which embarked on HMS Eagle on its epic final cruise. The voyage to the Far East was far from trouble-free – an aircraft crashed into the sea, there was a devastating explosion on board the carrier, and then two sailors were arrested for murder in Auckland. New year 1972 saw HMS Eagle decommissioned and 800 NAS disbanded. Steve was transferred to 845 Naval Air Squadron, on which he flew Wessex helicopters. Embarked on HMS Hermes, the squadron supported Royal Marines Commandos during their deployment to the mountains of Norway under NATO plans for a European war. During this time, helicopters were strangely sabotaged on board and one of them crashed into a fjord at night. By 1974, HMS Ark Royal was the last remaining Royal Navy fixed-wing aircraft carrier to which Steve returned to fly Buccaneers on 809 Squadron. It was in this period that he participated in a NATO exercise in Norway and a Mediterranean cruise. On return, the squadron prepared for a bombing competition between the RAF and Royal Navy Buccaneers. As part of this, Steve flew a low-level sortie off the Lincolnshire coast. The light was fading, and he was struggling to see the target ahead. He failed to see they were losing height. The aircraft hit the sea. Steve and his observer, David, were ejected into the water. In this book, Steve’s story is revealed by his son, Simon, through the words of his father, drawn from a mass of letters sent by him, and the recollections of those who served alongside him.

Adventures of a Cold War Fast-Jet Navigator
Adventures of a Cold War Fast-Jet Navigator

Author: David Herriot

Publisher: Pen and Sword

Published: 2017-10-30

Total Pages: 359

ISBN-13: 152670661X

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An RAF navigator’s lively, candid memoir of flying low and living fast during the Cold War years. David Herriot served almost forty years in the Royal Air Force as a navigator, first on the Buccaneer S2 and subsequently on the Tornado GR1. This volume recounts his early career operating the Buccaneer on three operational flying tours, plus a tour as an instructor on the Operational Conversion Unit. With almost 2500 hours on an aircraft that was operated at high speed, in all weathers and at ultra-low level, his task in the rear seat was a demanding one. But Herriot was more than just the guy in the back of a Buccaneer; he was, quite routinely, and often to the exasperation of his seniors, the life and soul of any party that was taking place either at home base or when overseas defending the flanks of NATO. This is an epic adventure for the aviation enthusiast, particularly those with affection for the Blackburn Buccaneer, and it provides a great deal more than the usual introduction to a specific aircraft type and the people who flew it. Here you’ll find an absolute insight into life on a fast-jet squadron, at work and mischievous play during the Cold War—and you’ll also be introduced to some of the modern RAF’s greatest characters.

Warship 2024
Warship 2024

Author:

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2024-05-09

Total Pages: 450

ISBN-13: 147286333X

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The 2024 edition of Warship, the celebrated annual publication featuring original research on the history, development, and service of the world's warships. For over 45 years, Warship has been the leading annual resource on the design, development, and deployment of the world's combat ships. Featuring a broad range of articles from a select panel of distinguished international contributors, this latest volume combines original research, new book reviews, warship notes, an image gallery, and much more, maintaining the impressive standards of scholarship and research with which Warship has become synonymous. Detailed and accurate information is the hallmark of all the articles, which are fully supported by plans, data tables, and stunning photographs. This year's Warship includes features on Imperial Japan's Matsu and Tachibana destroyer classes, the Italian CRDA midget submarines, France's 1960s missile frigates Suffren and Duquesne, and Germany's sailing raider of World War I, Seeadler.

Flying the Buccaneer
Flying the Buccaneer

Author: Peter Caygill

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2008-01-01

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 1844156699

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Beskriver udviklingen og anvendelsen af det britiske hangarskibsbaserede jagerfly fra 1960erne, Blackburn Buccaneer, med fokus på flyets flyveegenskaber.

Cold War Test Pilot
Cold War Test Pilot

Author: Ron Burrows

Publisher: Air World

Published: 2022-01-30

Total Pages: 265

ISBN-13: 1399090712

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A chief test pilot recounts his hair-raising experiences with the RAF in this detailed and often-witty memoir. Includes photos. The Falkland Islands had been invaded and a Task Force was already steaming south at full speed. On board the carriers were the Harriers that would provide essential aerial cover for the British troops and ships sent to recapture the islands. They would be entering particularly hostile territory, and the type’s capabilities urgently needed to be expanded and proved. This was a job that Ron Burrows and the test pilots of his elite Fighter Test Squadron at Boscombe Down were ready to take on. From the 1960s to the 1990s, Ron test-flew all the RAF’s fast-jets—in the process of which he survived two crash landings and two emergency ejections, as well as numerous other close shaves. A master of his craft, he rose to become the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment’s chief test pilot, and this is his remarkable story. With four test-flying tours under his belt and close-air-support missions flying Hunters in the Aden Emergency, Ron’s experiences extended throughout the critical final decades of the Cold War. A graduate of the US Navy’s test pilot school, he has flown an unusually broad range of US and UK aircraft from fast-jets to heavy multi-engine aircraft. With his unrivaled knowledge and expertise, he is able to explain the methods, techniques, and demands of his profession, with many examples of what can and often does go wrong in aircraft development and testing. His descriptions of his near misses and catastrophic accidents are written with color and candor. But he also tries to inform the reader about the skills required to fly and test fast-jets and about the development of cockpit displays and design, highlighting some of the issues and problems encountered in development and in operation. “If it can go wrong, it will go wrong” could be the subtitle of this frank and witty account which flies along with the speed of one of those fast-jets.

Confessions of a Phantom Pilot
Confessions of a Phantom Pilot

Author: Tug Wilson

Publisher: Fonthill Media

Published: 2021-12-02

Total Pages: 344

ISBN-13:

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‘The Confessions of a Phantom Pilot’ is the true story of a young RAF pilot who gets his dream to fly the old dirty workhorse fighter of the Cold War. From the first flight where he thought the jet was trying to kill him, through to his final trip of leading eight aeroplanes on a front line fighter squadron, you will relive his thoughts, feelings and anxieties as he stumbles his way through each flight relying on a bit of skill and a lot of blind luck. In essence, it is a love letter to the Phantom from a star-struck boy who felt like he was way out of his depth at the beginning of their affair. You will share stories of the outrageous drinking culture that was a major part of Cold War front-line operations, and marvel at how he didn’t do himself some serious damage either in or out of the cockpit. This is how it feels to be a front-line fighter pilot – the triumphs and the disasters are all laid out here in a completely open and honest way as the author looks back with a certain sense of nostalgia and mild embarrassment. What a blast though!

Fighters Over the Fleet
Fighters Over the Fleet

Author: Norman Friedman

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2016-10-30

Total Pages: 1247

ISBN-13: 1848324065

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A tactical and technical history of the development of British, American, and Japanese naval air defense from the 1920s to the 1980s. This is an account of the evolution of naval fighters for fleet air defense and the parallel evolution of the ships operating and controlling them, concentrating on the three main exponents of carrier warfare: the British Royal Navy, the U.S. Navy, and the Imperial Japanese Navy. It describes the earliest efforts from the 1920s, but it was not until radar allowed the direction of fighters that organized air defense became possible. Thus, major naval-air battles of the Second World War like Midway, the Pedestal convoy, the Philippine Sea, and Okinawa are portrayed as tests of the new technology. This was ultimately found wanting by the Kamikaze campaigns, leading to postwar moves towards computer control and new kinds of fighters. After 1945 the threats of nuclear weapons and standoff missiles compounded the difficulties of naval air defense. The second half of the book covers R.N. and U.S.N. attempts to solve these problems, looking at the American experience in Vietnam and British operations in the Falklands War. It concludes with the ultimate U.S. development of techniques and technology to fight the Outer Air Battle in the 1980s, which in turn point to the current state of carrier fighters and the supporting technology. Based largely on documentary sources, some previously unused, this book will appeal to both the naval and aviation communities. “Fighters Over the Fleet provides more information about fleet air defense than any other work currently available. It is recommended for specialist as well aviation-minded readers.” —Naval Historical Foundation

Buccaneer Boys 2
Buccaneer Boys 2

Author: Graham Pitchfork

Publisher: Grub Street Publishing

Published: 2021-09-30

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 1911667645

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Following the critically acclaimed publication eight years ago of Buccaneer Boys, long-serving Buccaneer navigator Air Commodore Graham Pitchfork has now followed up the great success of the book with more true tales from those who flew the last all-British bomber. Thirty Buccaneer ‘Boys’, drawn from the Fleet Air Arm, the Royal Air Force and the South African Air Force, outline their experiences in the maritime role, operations overland, including the first Gulf War, and operations by the South Africans in the Border Wars. In addition to the aircrew, air engineer officers and ground crew have also contributed. The reader is left in no doubt that the ‘Buccaneer Boys’ knew how to work hard and to play hard. The skill, professionalism and excitement of operating and servicing this iconic British aircraft shines throughout every page. This book is lavishly illustrated with 100 black and white photographs and two-color plate sections of 40 photographs, many never previously published.

Front-Line and Experimental Flying with the Fleet Air Arm
Front-Line and Experimental Flying with the Fleet Air Arm

Author: Geoffrey Higgs

Publisher: Pen and Sword Aviation

Published: 2010

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781848842625

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The spectacle of Alan Cobham's Flying Circus and the Fleet at anchor in Weymouth inspired the author's lifelong passion for airplanes, flying, and the Royal Navy. He describes the ten day flight from Croydon to Rangoon across Europe, the Middle East, Pakistan, and India to deliver a Percival Provost trainer to the Burmese Air Force.