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- #401
Smokey Stover
Banned
Manila 1945
My WW2 photos/Vids album
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- #402
Smokey Stover
Banned
In 1939 Italy developed the medium M11/39 as a stopgap measure until the new medium M13/40 was ready: And even when it was ready it was obsolete compared to other tanks of the day. No wonder the Italians turned it in so fast. How would you like to go to war in this....
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- #403
Smokey Stover
Banned
PO C E Benn of 182 Squadron RAF kneels beside the damaged wing after landing his tiffy.....
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- #404
Smokey Stover
Banned
Fairey Gordon lll [RAF@100]
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- #405
Smokey Stover
Banned
The last resort....
48 Gloster Gladiators were sent to Malta in a futile attempt to stop the Italian and German aircraft that were pounding the island. Within two weeks the squadron was down to just 3 aircraft. Nicknamed Hope, Faith & Charity. Hope & Charity were shotdown/destroyed on the ground. But Faith survived the ordeal and was taken off Malta back to England to be used as a propaganda tool. This pic shows Faith in 1940 (At combat readiness) and with a Bristol Blenheim engine and 3 bladed rotol prop custom fitted in the field for better climbing performance.
48 Gloster Gladiators were sent to Malta in a futile attempt to stop the Italian and German aircraft that were pounding the island. Within two weeks the squadron was down to just 3 aircraft. Nicknamed Hope, Faith & Charity. Hope & Charity were shotdown/destroyed on the ground. But Faith survived the ordeal and was taken off Malta back to England to be used as a propaganda tool. This pic shows Faith in 1940 (At combat readiness) and with a Bristol Blenheim engine and 3 bladed rotol prop custom fitted in the field for better climbing performance.
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- #406
Smokey Stover
Banned
Never seen this pic before....
Bf 110 A-O Im guessing because of the designation number A-0 that possibly a prototype?Or at least the first production model 110
Bf 110 A-O Im guessing because of the designation number A-0 that possibly a prototype?Or at least the first production model 110
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- #407
Smokey Stover
Banned
Focke Wulf Fw-57
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- #408
Smokey Stover
Banned
Bristol Beaufort Mk ll
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- #409
Smokey Stover
Banned
Fokker D.XXl
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- #410
Smokey Stover
Banned
Seafire HMS Victorious 1942
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- #411
Smokey Stover
Banned
Ju -87 G2
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- #412
Smokey Stover
Banned
Rafting a P-38. Now i've seen it all...
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- #413
Smokey Stover
Banned
Tiffy in the mud...
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- #414
Smokey Stover
Banned
Bf 109-E7 I wonder how long he managed to stay on for......
Crimea_River
Marshal
Bf 109-E7 I wonder how long he managed to stay on for......
This was a common practice in many air forces for tail draggers. The guy on the wing is spotting for the pilot during taxiing because the pilot can't see what's in front of him past the nose. It's not grandstanding and not "
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- #416
Smokey Stover
Banned
Thanks for that. I think next time i will add the word "joke" in brackets and big bold letters. I'll admit my s.o.h is a little dry at times but it's not like i thought he was there for fun. I understand what your saying, but it just seems rather odd. Not to mention a little, well impractical. I mean for one if he's there to aid in taxi and take off how and when does he leave the wing? And even if he's only helping as a taxi/direction aid, that doesnt really make sense either. Pilots would often zig zag/use the rudder to combat lack of vision from the high engine angle. And it's not like the 109 suffered worse vision compared to some aircraft. Not only that, the pilot is taking off from a field/grass runway. He must have been incredibly inexperienced to need a guy perched on his wing like that. Maybe there was a severe crosswind. That quite frankly would make more sense. Maybe it was a test run and the pilot was a trainee. But there's no way he was about to take off like that, it's just not logical or safe. Especially as the 109 had a tendency to roll over and crash back down on the runway upside down. Many trainee pilots were killed that way. But that was a control problem not a visual one.
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Airframes
Benevolens Magister
As Andy mentioned, it was common practice, particularly on rough terrain and / or in dusty conditions, where straying off the 'safe' areas due to lack of visibility could be damaging.
In these sort of conditions 'fishtailing' the aircraft was not a good idea, hence the ground crew member acting as a guide.
As to when the ground crew chap got off, that would depend on the particular airfield and route to the runway area.
As an example, I did exactly this, sitting on the wing of Spitfire XIV 'G-FIRE', to guide Pete Thorn down a temporary grass taxi way, in a straight line, avoiding the known troughs or ridges, for around 800 yards, which also had the advantage of minimising temperature build-up in the radiators, as Pete was able to taxy at a decent rate.
I also had to guide a Fokker DR.1 along the same taxi way, 'wing walking' it (which also involved helping to turn the aircraft), to prevent it dipping into any of the undulations, and possibly experiencing a prop strike because of it - and I had a sore head afterwards, as the center main plane kept banging on top of my head !
In these sort of conditions 'fishtailing' the aircraft was not a good idea, hence the ground crew member acting as a guide.
As to when the ground crew chap got off, that would depend on the particular airfield and route to the runway area.
As an example, I did exactly this, sitting on the wing of Spitfire XIV 'G-FIRE', to guide Pete Thorn down a temporary grass taxi way, in a straight line, avoiding the known troughs or ridges, for around 800 yards, which also had the advantage of minimising temperature build-up in the radiators, as Pete was able to taxy at a decent rate.
I also had to guide a Fokker DR.1 along the same taxi way, 'wing walking' it (which also involved helping to turn the aircraft), to prevent it dipping into any of the undulations, and possibly experiencing a prop strike because of it - and I had a sore head afterwards, as the center main plane kept banging on top of my head !
suppose you were joking with this post as well
Seeing as it is a well known scouse soap actress not Flt. Lt. Juliette Fleming ?
