Inside this Edition

The Official Magazine of The UKMAMS Association
Winter 2004 Issue No. 51
The Kandahar team -L to R Cpl Geordie Henderson, SAC Leon Muir, SAC Redders Redfern,
Flt Lt Si Oliver, SAC Dave Wilson (Cottesmore MSF)
Inside this Edition
Life on UKMAMS
Kandahar
DMS Andover
E-Mails Letters & Notices
Membership News
People on the Move
From the 540
Views expressed in this newsletter, unless otherwise stated, are not necessarily those
of the editor, the association committee or UKMAMS and are the personal views of the
authors. All contributions and correspondence for inclusion in “Team Brief ” should be
sent to:
The Editor, Team Brief, UKMAMS Association, PO Box 1126, Swindon, Wilts,
SN5 7WB.
E-mail: ukmamseditor@hotmail.com
Welcome to another packed edition of Team Brief, and my thanks once again to all those who
have contributed. We have more news of people from Colin, and Ian has produced some more
good stuff “From The 540”, and a fascinating article from the Lyneham Globe in 1975. “Life on
UKMAMS” has some excellent articles in, starting with Sgt Nige Malyon’s view of the Squadron
over the last few months. Nige had actually volunteered to become the deputy editor and write
the Life on UKMAMS article for every issue, but as usual with volunteers, he is now posted. Not
that he’s complaining, he’s off to be RAFLO Travis. Although he has promised to keep us up to
date with what’s happening over the west coast USA. You will see on the back page, not only
have I printed the latest in the series of Operators course photo's, but have also, because I nearly
felt guilty, started to publish the Officers course photographs. For some reason they start on
course number 117 in 1972. Does this mean before this we had no qualified Officers? Or were
courses 1-116 not good enough to have their photo's taken. I will await a response from anyone
who was around pre course 117 to let me know what happened!!! Well that’s it from me, I hope
you enjoy perusing this edition, and it only remains for me to wish everyone a very Happy
Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
Mick
The ill fated Red Arrows
far east tour 2001. This
picture was taken in
Bucharest in late October,
having just missed out on
Bangkok, Langkawi and
various other exotic
locations, a lot of which
were cancelled due to the
events on Sep 11th. I
can't name all the blokes
in 'T' shirts, but I'm the
one bottom middle. You
can see from the smiles it
wasn't all doom and
gloom, Bucharest has its
good points.
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Membership News and People on the Move
By Colin Allen
Disappointingly I have to report that our present membership stands at 370, a fall of 60 members
since the 1st June this year. If this trend were to continue then the Association’s financial reserves
could very quickly be eaten up. If we are to remain financially viable then I would ask all our
members to encourage their friends within the movements trade and their colleagues at work to
join the Association in the hope of getting our membership back up towards the 450 mark.
We are not an Association of Old Boys but a network of friends who all have something in
common. Movements!! There is no shortage of camaraderie within the Movements
Trade/Specialisation particularly amongst the Warrant Officers and SNCOs and retired and serving
Officers; just look at the attendance at the yearly Movements Warrant Officers and SNCOs Top
Table Luncheon and the Annual RAF Officers Movements Reunion. The UKMAMS Association is
open to ALL MOVERS. We do value the membership of each and every Mover no matter where
they work and there is no better way of staying in touch than through the Association.
With the drop in our membership and the resulting loss of income the Association was faced with
the problem of spending more per year than it was collecting in annual subscriptions. The problem
was compounded by the 5-year membership which we offered to members at the reduced fee of
£25. With 275 members paying a 5-year subscription the Association was effectively losing £1,375
in subscriptions over a 5-year period. With this in mind I put forward a proposal at the AGM that
the offer of the 5-year membership at the discounted rate of £25 should be discontinued. The
proposal was carried unanimously and with effect from the 1st April 2005 the UKMAMS Association
will no longer offer a 5-year membership at the discounted rate. You may if you wish renew your
membership for 5 years but it will cost you £30, as all renewals shall be on a yearly basis of £6
per year with our preferred method of payment being by annual Standing Order (STO).
In this edition we welcome 5 new members; Flt Lts Simon Oliver, and Shona Brown, Fg Off Angus
Hamilton, Flt Sgt Gary Ferguson and Mr Alexander Mabon. Simon, Angus and Gary are all
members of the Mobile Flight whilst Shona is a DAMO with Base Movements. Alex Mabon is a
retired Mover who served at Lyneham in 1957 and 1958 before being posted to El Adem 1958 to
1960 with subsequent postings to Northolt 1961/62, SABC HQFEAF 1963/65 and Masirah in 1966.
He is now 65 years of age and spends his time as an author and writer.
We also say a fond farewell to the outgoing OC UKMAMS and the Association President Wg Cdr
John Bessell. Thank you John for your support over the past two years and we wish you all the
best in the future. We welcome the new OC and President, Wg Cdr Adrian Maddox. Adrian has
enjoyed a varied career having been a RAFLO at Dulles International Airport Washington and OC
Training at the RAF Movements School.
Members who have renewed their membership this quarter include Air Cdre Andy Spinks who is
the current Director of the Defence Fuels Group. He is based down at the Defence Petroleum
Centre, Westmoors, Wimbourne, Dorset. Dave Wilkin resigned from his last job after a major
falling out with a so-called manager about customer care or rather the company’s lack of it. He
says that he really should not gloat, but shortly after he left, the company started to fall to bits.
Having invested in a digital camera and a new computer he is now spending his time lurking
around some of the smaller museums which he finds more interesting than the larger RAF
museums.
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Simon Baxter is currently working for British Bakeries which is part of the Rank Hovis McDougal
Group. He runs the customer service operation and is responsible for the call centre in Dublin, so
he spends much of his time in and out of Luton on Ryanair. When he is not in Dublin he is on the
road as the head office is in Windsor and he lives near Oundle in Northants where he is converting
an old barn. It’s been 15 years since he left the RAF and joined Gillette only to leave in 1999
before joining Johnson Wax to set up and run their European wide Customer Service and Credit
Management operation. A job, which meant more flying than he ever did with UKMAMS but at
least he had a BA Gold card but unfortunately could never find anywhere to sling his hammock.
Simon sends his regards to anyone that may remember him. My own personal memory of Simon
was his down route parties where he would fill the bath up with about 10 gallons of Harvey
Wallbanger Cocktails, a peculiar brew that always gave me a terrible hangover.
Rod Stone moved to Bracknell after accepting a new job with the United Parcel Service (UPS) at
Heathrow to work as their Project Manager to put together a contract bid for the MOD end to end
Supply Chain. Unfortunately two months into the job UPS pulled the plug on the project and
withdrew from the venture and made Rod redundant. He took the summer off and had an
operation to replace his knee that had taken a hammering from 25 years of running, skiing and
jumping out of aeroplanes. He is now working in a semi consultancy role as a Project Manager
with DML in Plymouth. He comes into regular contact with a couple of characters that many of our
members will know, Graham Maynard and Pat Rowney. They both work for KBR/Halliburton who
are DML’s parent company.
Clive Hall has moved from Swindon and is living in Highworth. He works for the Distribution
Services Group, European Logistics, Texaco Ltd in Swindon. Richard Castle is running his own
consultancy group and lives in Sutton-upon-Derwent, York.
My thanks go to Sean Culligan who lives in Nairobi and works as the Operations Manager for the
Flying Doctor Service for putting me in contact with Andy State. Andy is now a Wg Cdr (belated
congratulations) and is a Staff Officer (Air) with the British Defence Staff, British Embassy,
Washington. Andy assures me he is thoroughly enjoying life with his family in Washington. He
looks back fondly on his time on UKMAMS, probably through rose tinted glasses but the
opportunity to travel the globe and the excitement was unforgettable.
I would also like to thank Robbie James for putting me in touch with Chas Clark. Chas has
emigrated to Canada where he lives in Emsdale Ontario. Robbie James is the Secretary of the Golf
and Country Club Zurich, Switzerland. A bit of a change from being an RAF Mover. He spends 7
months in Zurich from April to October, when the course closes for winter and Robbie has 5
month leave. Not a bad halfway house between work and retirement.
Pete Cowan has moved to Spain to swell the association ranks in the ‘Costa del Sunshine’. He
joins, Terry Joint, Bruce Oram, Mike Stepney and John Furney. Derek Grayson is working in Oman
for the Sultan on the Royal Flight as a loadmaster on B747-430 aircraft. He took over from Bob
Turner who has retired and is living in Swindon. Anyone wanting to interested in making contact
with Derek can e-mail him on degat50@msn.com. Reg Tutor who joined Movements in 1967
working at Lyneham, Gan, Cyprus and Brize before retiring from the RAF in the late seventies to
work as a financial consultant is now retired, plays golf off a handicap of 10 and goes ‘home’ to
Barbados twice a year. Reg is trying to contact an old friend and ex mover, Dave McClean who
was last heard of in Germany several years ago. Anyone who can help trace Dave can contact Reg
on regtudor@hotmail.com. Pat Franks ex ‘B’ Shift/Exports UKMAMS 1983 –1989 is now living in
Inverness. He would love to hear and reminisce from anyone who remembers the wonderful years
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in the “Mucky Duck”, “White Hart”, “Cross Keys” and in particular the “Bowling Alley”. Pat can be
contacted on patfranks@lineone.net.
Jack Cross is living in Bromsgrove and would love to hear from old friends on
jackcross@ntlworld.com. Frisp (Jock) Frazer ex Brize, Wildenrath and Lyneham says a big hello to
anyone that remembers him. You can contact him on fraserhome@blueyonderco.uk .
Baz Hughes is now living in Pattaya Thailand. Baz was one of the original members of the Mobile
Air Movements Flight at Abingdon (1963-1965) before transferring to UKMAMS when the
Squadron was formed. He was then promoted to Sgt and served a further 2 years at Abingdon
with the Air Transport Development Unit. In 2003 he was told he had Asbestosis in both lungs,
was suffering from angina and only had 4 months to live. His family wanted him to go into a
nursing home in the UK but Baz refused and told them he was going on one last holiday. That
holiday was to Pattaya and he has been there ever since. He recalls that the bunch of lads at
Abingdon were the best he ever worked with and his only bad memory was the infamous
Britannia Freight Lift Platform. Regrettably Baz has decided not to renew his membership
however, I am sure you will join me in wishing him well for the future. Should anyone wish to
contact him his e-mail address is Cleddeau@yahoo.com .
Malcolm Porter is living in the Musketeer Pub in Lymington. He is still leading the Guppy Project at
Hurn Airport and is involved in moving a Yukon Aircraft from Ecuador to Montreal. He has recently
had a book published on the CL-44 and has been asked to write a second one on the exploits in
Rhodesia and Libya and in particular to show more photographs. If any of our members can help,
Mal’s e-mail address is Swingtail44@aol.com . Pete Clayton lives in Wroughton and works for
Thames Water. Pete skippers the Thames Water yacht and is a member of the CL-44 Swingtail
Association.
I am sure many of our members will have heard about the B747 MK Airlines crash in Halifax
Canada and that many of you were concerned that perhaps one of our many members who are
employed as Loadmasters with various airlines may have been on board. Thankfully none of our
members work for MK Airlines.
I have had a letter from Derek Pilkington who informs me that after three recent spells in hospital
he has been diagnosed with Prostrate Cancer. At this time he is not sure how they will treat it
although he suspects they may remove his prostrate. Our thoughts and best wishes go out to
Derek at what must be a very difficult time. Sam Heaphy our Welfare member will be keeping an
eye on things and I will let you all have an update in the next edition.
Finally, whilst I have had some success in tracing people the response from the individuals has not
been as encouraging as I had wished. However, I shall continue to twist their arms along with
those of the 60 members who didn’t renew in June. This month I need your help in tracing Keith
Parker who could be living in Melksham, Geoff Haines ex UKMAMS MT who was living in
Shakespeare Road in Wootton Bassett, Sqn Ldr Jerry Porter ex Northwood, Dougie Murray who
has moved to Spain, Stu Beange who was at DTMA Andover and Lee Butler who was living in
Reading. My e-mail address is colinanddona@ukonline.co.uk . Until the next time take care.
5
Life on UKMAMS
JUNE –SEPTEMBER 04
By Sgt Nige Malyon
Firstly I would like to apologise if this version of Life on UKMAMS is not as conventional as those
of the past, but those of you who know me know I am not a conventional type of person.
It was whilst having my annual 6000 debrief by OC MAMF that it first came to me that I should
contribute to something external from my every day tasking, how about the association I thought
(or did he mention it, I cannot accurately recall.). So after some thought I decided I would chance
my arm and contact Mick Cocker and offer my services. After a few weeks in which I thought
Mick was blatantly ignoring me I received a phone call to say yes go for it and write the Life on
UKMAMS article for the September addition.
Having just returned from a month in Baghdad I immediately began to wonder what my
colleagues on normal tasking had been up to, so into Mams Admin I trotted. Much to the
annoyance of Jackie the Typist, who on the surface pretends to dislike me I am sure underneath
quietly adores me. I requested a copy of the 540, when explaining to her what I required it for
she offered some copies of PTR’S, this I knew would help me to understand what great trips my
colleagues had been on whilst I was stuck in a tent in Baghdad.
The Squadron has been extremely busy and has undertaken a variety of Tasks, apart from the
usual Dets at Ascension, Kuwait, Baghdad and Kabul there have been some odd Tasks including
the recovery of 1 Coldstream Guards from Kingston, Jamaica (note to MAMS Ops from the
author…where’s Jamaica), the team then redeployed to Cherry point to recover 1 Royal Artillery,
this seemed like an easy Task on the transop but on arrival the team discovered enough freight
for 2 C130 loads, and a Unit who regarded it all as must go (bet you have all experienced this one
at some stage). The Sqn also assisted the French Air Force with the recovery of 1(F) Sqn from
Orlando back to Bordeaux. Another example of the UK’s commitment to the EAC( European Airlift
Centre) was the move of 46 Italian Marines and freight from Brindisi Italy to Rota in Spain.
On the sporting front things are
looking good, UKMAMS men are
currently (at the time of writing) in
first position in the Stn Cdr’s cup
following good results in the
Soccer, Unihoc and the Funday.
The men will have to keep the
effort going as 3 of the teams
chasing them are still to play their
Jokers which will double their
points for that event. The next
event is X Country in September
followed by Racquetball in October
and Bowling in November.
The Squadron’s ladies, lead by Flt
Lt Shona Brown (BOpsO) have had some equally good results and are currently lying in third
position after coming 2nd in Junes Unihoc competition. Unlike the men the ladies still have to play
6
their Joker and with both teams above them having already played theirs a gain could be made
after the next few events.
The last edition of Team Brief showed a photo of the rugby during the anniversary celebrations
without any explanation of what it was about, well I would like to highlight the reason for that
game.
It has been decided by a few on UKMAMS at Lyneham that it would be a great idea to form a
Movements Muppets Rugby Football team, this will include all Movers from any station. This would
allow all Trade Group 18 (Movs) and Qualified Supply Officers to take part in matches against
other units and civilian teams and to enter Tournaments such as the Cyprus 10’s. In addition to
the playing side of things the club will of course have its social aspect. It was decided to launch
the team at the Anniversary celebration as a chance to spread the word of the teams existence
and try and involve as many movers and ex movers as possible, so, if you are interested in
playing, or just being social please contact Cpl Geoff Wlliams at UKMAMS, SSTF, Lyneham.
Recently the team has taken part in the Binbrook Bomb competition, unfortunately the team lost
all 3 games but socially the event was a complete success.
The Sqn has seen an abundance of postings in and out in the past few months resulting a great
deal of new faces around the crewroom, the large turn around has meant that SSTF have been
busy running Mobile Courses and driving courses to provide the next generation of Muppets to be
released into the wild.
Anyway that’s all for now, hopefully next time I will have more detailed information of the Tasks
we have been involved in, (that’s if MAMS Ops give me some decent tasking) and hopefully will
include some photo’s.
TALO Training
On a fine Autumnal September morning,
the Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders
arrived at UKMAMS, to begin 2 days of
static and dynamic training for Tactical
Airland Operations (TALO). This was the
first time in 10 years that the Argyles had
undertaken such training and for just a little
bit of added pressure they would have the
task of ‘rescuing’ the AOC; AVM Maddox
during the RAF Lyneham Annual Formal
Inspection.
TALO is practiced by all members of 16
Air Assault Brigade (16 AAB), it aims to
seize, secure or reinforce an
airfield/airhead. This provides a Port of
Entry (POE) or Forward Operating Base
(FOB) for subsequent operations. The tasks
may include: Destroying/Capturing enemy
7
positions, seizing key terrain or key points such as Control Towers, Bulk Fuel Installations and landing
areas. The assault team can also act as a deception force in order to divert enemy resources from the real
target.
The first morning of training began with the UKMAMS teams preparation of the 2 aircraft loads. The
standard load used over the 2 days were 1 Weapon Mounted Installation Kit Land Rover (WMIK), 1
Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance fully Tracked (CVR(T)) with troops on the lead aircraft and 2 WMIKs
with troops on the rear aircraft. After a short delay the eagerly awaited training began at 1100 hrs.
Training began with crew briefings between the 2 Air Load Masters (ALM) and the 2 UKMAMS (5 man)
teams. A UKMAMS team consists of an Officer/SNCO team leader, 1 x JNCO 3 SACs. Before the
vehicles are loaded onto the aircraft, all drivers and crews are briefed on TALO procedures and the safety
issues regarding operating around the aircraft. Once the ALMs have completed the briefings, static training
with the vehicles can begin. This training involves going through all the sequences that lead to the vehicles
leaving the aircraft effectively and safely, at speed and maybe under fire. It was during this static phase that
word was passed by OC MAMF to the 2 UKMAMS team leaders that the AOC would be extracted from
Lyneham and flown to Benson at the end of the AFI. This meant that this was the first time for all of the
UKMAMS operating team members that an extraction of vehicles and troops would have to be practiced.
So the training continued and once everyone was satisfied with the countdown sequences and vehicle
insertion drills, the extraction was practiced. The static training went very well and it was not long before
troops were added to each frame and the Argyles had a chance to practice formations and manoeuvres on the
ground. Each time a static insertion was practiced a static extraction would also be exercised. In what
seemed like no time at all the static training was complete and the sound of engines starting meant that
dynamic training would soon begin. The Argyles completed a number of dynamic TALO assaults on RAF
Lyneham and also trained with troops only at Kievel for nighttime ops. The training as far as Major
Graham, the Argles Company Commander, was concerned was very successful.
So a day later on 8 Sept 04 the AFI
took place at RAF Lyneham with the
scenario set that the AOC would be
taken hostage by a terrorist group
played by a spare WMIK crew. The 2
TALO aircraft would conduct an
operation on the airfield and rescue
the day by extracting the AOC to RAF
Benson. This gives me an excellent
chance to describe the sequence of
events during a TALO from the team
leaders point of view on the back of
the aircraft.
Once airborne space is at a premium
the assault troops are crammed into the forward end of the aircraft behind the rear vehicle. It is an area that
quickly becomes very hot and sweaty, with low level flying it soon becomes a haven for sick bags. Due to
the timings for this operation being critical, we were soon told that the aircraft was being held in formation;
more low level flying, more sick Argyles. What seemed like an age passed then the first call came over the
aircraft PA:
“20 Minutes prepare for action” At this time the troops who were able to sleep woke up and began to put
on their equipment. All of the floor space around the vehicles is cleared and any ancillary equipment is
stowed.
“10 Minutes” The 2 members of the UKMAMS team positioned at the aft (ramp end) of the aircraft
disconnects the Air Drop System Arms (ADS) this allows the ramp to be grounded.
8
“5 Minutes” Although this is an advisory call it allows all of the UKMAMS team to get into position and
sort out their own equipment. The 5-man team is usually split so that 2 team members are at the front of the
lead vehicle which is at the aft end of the aircraft. The team leader and another team member are in the
middle of the aircraft between the 2 vehicles. The remaining team member is behind the rear vehicle which
is at the front of the aircraft. The only way of communicating with the noise levels being so high is by hand
signal. The next call comes over the PA:
“2 Minutes” The Loadmaster starts the Auxiliary pump.
The time between the 2 minute call and the vehicles leaving the aircraft, seems like the blink of an eye. This
is where all of the training pays off; the noise and vibration coupled with the natural adrenaline flow and the
potentially hazardous situation allows for a number of scenarios that could make the whole op go wrong. A
vehicle stalling or breaking down, a Quick Release Coupling (QRC) that is holding the vehicle to the floor,
refusing to unlock or a troop falling over can all jeopardise the mission. Training for all these scenarios took
place over the previous 48 hrs, the troops were more than ready and now that training is about to be put to
the test. The call:
“1 Minute, Action Stations”. Vehicle drivers start engines all UKMAMS team members give the team
leader the thumbs up for vehicle start or hand across throat for a problem. No problems, so the team leader
gives a thumb up to the loadmaster. The ALM opens the cargo door. Troops load their weapons, adrenaline
really starts to flow, heart rates rise.
Meanwhile on the ground the ‘terrorists’ have captured and are holding the AOC hostage. They have
firepower, but will the terrorists be able to provide much resistance for the assaulting force?
“15 Seconds brace, brace” Over to the pilots here, a good landing and holding on for dear life does not
seem worth it, however a heavy landing and vehicles will jump against their restraints making the QRCs
harder to un-lock. It also means bruised elbow and knees for all concerned at the rear end.
Kandahar – Op DITTANY
By
Flt Lt Si OLIVER
Foxtrot Team Leader
Imagine it. Beautiful,
sunny conditions, and a balmy
wind. A miniature version of
Camp X Ray just 200m from Load
Control. What could it be but
another UKMAMS deployment to
somewhere hot, dry, sunny, and
sandy! With the US Marine Corp
pulling their Harriers out of
Kandahar only months before the
first free elections in Afghanistan,
it was decided that a number of
Harrier GR7As would be deployed
The Team - Living the dream at Kandahar!!!
9
to the region to provide CAS and Post Target Recce on Taliban and Al Qaeda targets.
2 Teams of 5 were to be deployed, one to Kandahar and another to Baku, Azerbaijan
where the “hub” to our “spoke” was to operate from. After speaking to Dave Drake and Gary
Richards, the “handpicked” teams i.e. those that had really annoyed MAMS Ops recently, were
collected and given the brief. The conversation went something like this:
“It should be a really easy deployment. Its only 6 Harriers with a little bit of kit. Its good
accommodation and there’s a small shopping centre, Burger King, great BX etc. It should
be a good laugh. Baku is an international airport with good ACHE, handlers and support –
and the team in Baku will also be in a hotel and on rates!
As you can imagine, there was a rather large fight to be on the Baku Team, but the strongest
obviously prevailed with Flt Lt Kylie Wright, Cpl Pickles Plowman, SAC Ash Granger, and Daryll
Harris being awarded the honours. Flt Lt Si Oliver, Cpl Geordie Henderson, SAC Redders Redfern,
Leon Muir and 2 SACs from RAF Cottesmore MSF decided that they would rather have a medal
than rates (Yeah, honest guv) and were the team that would take the Harriers into Kandahar.
The sharp eyed amongst you will notice that this only makes up 8 out of the 10: well FS Gonz
Burke was still on task whilst Sgt Mark Nixon used the excuse that he was stuck in Bermuda for 21
days because there was something about “…3 bloody great hurricanes in the way.” With H Day
rapidly approaching, the only minor thing that prevented the deployment from taking place was
the fact that no-one at PJHQ had put in for the dip clears for lots of heavily armed Harriers to go
through certain countries airspace – as you can imagine it, the feeling in the crew room was one
of hurry up and wait.
H Day did finally dawn, as the team moved to Brize Norton to catch a C17 which would
route through Baku to Kandahar. We faced the perennial problem as to whether we would be
allowed to carry Leathermans or not, by the ATSY (We came to the conclusion it depends on
which ATSY shift is on). An uneventful flight followed until we reached Baku, where we had to
remain on the aircraft for 3 hours – even the pleading of Kylies team (They had civ’ aired out the
previous day) was not enough to get us off the aircraft. After closer examination we realised that
Pickles legs may have been the problem as we saw him stride about the aircraft in a pair of KD
shorts, gesticulating about how “flexible” the locals were being.
After another 4 hr flight, we finally made it to Kandahar. The team started the offload with
a small prayer that everything would
work (We were carrying a Henly after
all) prior to getting the intelligence
brief and ammunition:
“The airfield is still pretty
much surrounded by mines,
the security fence is not
completely secure and the
threat is going to get higher
as we get closer to the
elections. Oh, you will only
have four rounds a piece as
we left the Det rounds at Al
Udeid.”
17 tonnes of motor grader - one of the more interesting loads
We quickly got Load Control
up and running, and with the fridge plugged in, the kettle already cooking up the first brews and
10
compo, we were ready for action. The first IL 76 was due in 2 days, but no-one with the Harrier
det had brought a copy of the Force Equipment Table (The only copy had been taken back by OC
Eng from RAF Cottersmore a few days before our arrival). The only guide we had was a copy of
the loading list to the first AN 124 that
I had nabbed from DTMA before we
left the UK. This now led to the next
problem, namely that comms with
anywhere were highly unreliable. The
only way that was reliable in passing
any information to the team in Baku
was via text message. Well you can
imagine what the Det Cdr and OC
Police said when I told them this, but
seeing as our crystal balls weren’t
working and my ability to use the
Force was on the blink we had no
alternative.
After a day building 134 beds
(Never let anyone say that MAMS
don’t pitch in) we received our first
aircraft. The RE kit only just managed to fit on the IL76; however, the problem was with the
crew. Imagine the situation - 2 Geordies trying to communicate with 8 inebriated Azerbaijanies
who don’t speak English apart from saying “Man
United good!” and you will have some idea of the
situation. The loads didn’t get any easier as over
the next few days the only bit of kit that was
working was the Telehandler. The Atlas 2000
went down with a major hydraulic leak and
stayed that way until 2 days before we departed,
whilst the Henly did what it does best and looked
as if it had caught fire. All we heard over the
radio from ATC was:
ISO container coming off IL76
“- UK01 this is ATC, it looks like your
Forklift Truck is on fire…stand by…..
correction, it is on fire now. Do you need
fire rescue?
- ATC, roger. Nah, don’t bother, the
Henley always does this.”
After we managed to smooth things over with
ATC, things got into a routine. Normal day was
to be in work 0130Z, and handling from 1-4
aircraft per day before cease work at 1300Z. All
forms of comms were a nightmare; CCIS would
rarely work, and throughout the det, there was
only one printer that actually had printer
cartridges that worked (You guessed it). And to
top it all, Burger King was not going to be
open until after we had left! The trip back to
the tent was always accompanied by the song
What happens when the tank is only quarter full!!
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“Buttercup”, sang to the tune of ABBA’s “Waterloo” – Leon Muir the singer with lyrics provided by
Si Oliver whilst wondering what culinary delights KBR had cooked up for us.
By 27 Oct, the Harriers had all arrived, and the Det was nearly ready. The last aircraft
were arriving with bang onboard MK Airlines DC8s. With the MAMS team proceeding to the
aircraft in what looked like a demented version of the Wacky Races, on account of driving
whatever vehicles we could steal from the USAF, we managed to have the Det up and running on
time. As Geordie and Redders had re-deployed to Baku, and Sgt Mark Nixon had arrived
eventually, we checked our stats and found that we had moved over 680,000kgs of frt, mail and
weapons in under 24 days. Going home, we managed to squeeze ourselves aboard a C17 which
we had managed to bulk out at over 103,000lbs, content in the knowledge that we once again
had been first in, and when the det closes next year, we will definitely be the last out.
MOVEMENT MUPPETS RFC.
INTERESTED ????
Due to the overwhelming success of the match played at the UKMAMS 30th Anniversary this year,
we are hoping to hold such a fixture annually. Therefore any past or present Movers wishing to
join Movement Muppets RFC, please contact Cpl Geoff Williams for further details on:Military network
Lyneham civilian
Home No
95481 x 6648.
01249 896648.
.
01793 634211
12
FROM THE 540
By Ian Berry
1969 – 35 YEARS AGO…
SEPTEMBER
Stornoway – Special. Cpl Syd Avery. To airlift a LOX container from Little Rissington to Stornoway
on Argosy Task 4513.
Toronto – Exercise Canus Ranger. Flt Lt Roger Wood plus 5. Recovery of 57 Sqn (Victors) from
Toronto to Marham utilising Britannia Tasks 6404, 6611 and Hercules Task 3302.
OCTOBER
Keflavik – Special. FS Geoff Gilson plus 2. Recovery of 120 Sqn (Shackletons) personnel and
equipment from Iceland to Kinloss on Argosy Task 4543.
Rygge – Special. Fg Off RG Clarke plus 7. Recovery of personnel and equipment of 11 Sqn
(Lightnings) from Norway to Leuchars on Herc Task 3700.
NOVEMBER
Akrotiri – Exercise Ranular. Fg Off Dave Benson plus 6. Fg Off Paul Knight plus 5. Plt Off Frank
Holmes plus 5. Recovery of 1 ACC, 25 Sqn (Bloodhounds) and 16 Sqn (Hunters) from
Cyprus to Marham, Coltishall and Laarbruch.
Queensland – Special. Fg Off Brian Shorter plus 2. Delivery of 2 Scorpion CVRT’s to Australia for
trials.
DECEMBER
Scampton – Special. Sgt Merv Corke plus 2. Conduct loading trials of Type 76 radar onto Herc Task
3708.
Landivisida – Special. Fg Off Paul Steiner plus 2. Recovery of explosives from France to St Mawgan
on Argosy Task 4496.
1974 – 30 YEARS AGO…
SEPTEMBER
Honington – Exercise Northern Merger. FS Keith Boosey plus 5. Deployment of 12 Sqn
(Bucanneers) from UK to Karup.
Laarbruch – Missex. Flt Lt Gordon Townsend, Sgt Geordie Sanderson, SACs Dave Cromb and
Dave Moss plus 2. Rotation of Bloodhound missiles between West Raynham and
Germany.
13
OCTOBER
McChord AFB – Special. Fg Off Jerry Babington plus 5. Collection of 39 Mk46 Torpedoes from
Washington State for the UK.
Wittering – Taceval. Fg Offs Jeremy Hidden and Hugh Rayner, FS Terry Hoy, Sgt Ian Berry, Cpls
Steve Broadhurst and Lionel Earndon plus 6. Deployment of 1 Sqn (Harriers) on no
-notice taceval to Vandel.
NOVEMBER
Binbrook – APC. Flt Lt Don Fell, FS Terry Alfonso, Sgt Syd Avery, Cpl Gwyn Jones and SAC Ian
Bell. Deployment of 5 Sqn (Lightnings) from UK to Malta.
Honington – Op Oracle. Fg Off Ian Envis, FS Harry Stead plus 4. Rotation of weapons between UK
and Germany.
DECEMBER
Barksdale AFB – Exercise Giant Voice. Fg Off Brian Hunt plus 6. Recovery of 9 Sqn (Vulcans)
from USA to UK after bombing competition.
Akrotiri/Australia – Special. Flt Lt Pat Mackenzie plus 2. Support to Herc Task 4467 which
subsequently became the RAF contribution to the Darwin Cyclone Disaster
Relief Operation.
1979 - 25 YEARS AGO…
SEPTEMBER
Binbrook – Exercise Fleet Buoy. Fg Off Alan Brown plus 8. Deployment of 5 Sqn (Lightnings) to
Akrotiri and recovery of spares and equipment from Tehran to the UK.
Barbados – Special. Sgt Brian Connellan plus 2. Delivery of hurricane relief supplies for Dominica.
OCTOBER
Husum – Exercise Bulls Eye. Flt Lt Thompson plus 7. Recovery of 54 Sqn (Jaguars) from Germany
to Coltishall.
Cold Lake – Exercise Maple Flag. FS Chas Cormack plus 2. Deployment of 20 Sqn (Jaguars) from
Germany to Canada.
NOVEMBER
Bangkok – Special. Flt Lt Dora, Cpl Bruce Oram
plus 2. Delivery of Red Cross supplies from
Bangkok to Phnom Penh.
Nimes – Exercise Isle Doar. Fg Off Peter King, Cpl
John Purkis plus 1. Recovery of 42 Sqn
(Nimrods) from France to UK.
Bankok - Nov 1979
14
DECEMBER
Rhodesia – Operation Agila. Sqn Ldr
Macdonald, Flt Lt Mike Fulker, FS Chas
Cormack, Sgts Hugh Curran, Dixie Dean,
Trev Edwards, Brian Connellan, Cpls Keith
Smith, Chris Thistle, Barry Trudgen, SACs
Keith Jevons, Stu Whitton, Martin Turner
plus 2. Movements support to the UK
Monitoring Team during the transition from
Rhodesia to Zimbabwe.
Salisbury Airport Rhodesia in Dec 79. Left to Right: Cpl Chris Bunn (MAMS Eng), SAC
Keith Jevons and unknown offload landrovers and trailers from a VC10. Not an easy job....
Waddington – Exercise Red Flag/Giant Voice. Flt Lt Eric Howlett plus 6. Deployment of Vulcan
support personnel and equipment to Nellis and Barksdale AFB.
15
1984 – 20 YEARS AGO…
SEPTEMBER
Bardufoss – Exercise Snow Goose. FS Gordon Black, Sgt Hugh Curran plus 1. Deployment of Royal
Marines to Norway and recovery of 1 Sqn (Harriers) and 42 Sqn (Jaguars) to Wittering
and Coltishall.
Cairo – Operation Harling. Fg Off Rich Green plus 2. Recovery of RN Fleet Clearance Diving Team
to UK after operations in the Red Sea.
OCTOBER
Eglin AFB – Exercise Trial Phasta. Fg Off Morgans plus 3. Recovery of Tornado OEU from Florida
to UK. (n.b. This task initially went awry when the young Morgans took his team
by road to Elgin in Scotland… )
Kingston – Exercise Peregrine Falcon. FS Colin Allen plus 2. Recovery of elements of UKLF from
Jamaica to UK.
NOVEMBER
Operation Bushel – Initial relief Efforts
On 1st November 1984 UKMAMS
responded to the call for help from the
starving millions in Ethiopia. Within
hours of getting the go-ahead, 3 mobile
teams complete with full field
equipment, water and rations, were
ready to move on the 3 activator chalks
which would effect initial relief efforts.
Careful planning was necessary at this
stage as the said activator aircraft also
had to carry a self sufficient
detachment, including Engineering,
Operations and Catering staffs along
with their associated equipment.
Upon arriving at Addis Ababa in
the early hours of 3rd November priority
was given to establishing a tented Base Operations Camp from which the Royal Air Force task could be coordinated. This camp was to be located on a site, agreed by the 1 Group Liaison Staffs, adjacent to an
Ethiopian Airlines servicing hangar and thus offering a covered storage facility.
As a field capable unit, UKMAMS personnel quickly established the base camp and were ready to
operate within 3 hours of arrival. An initial reconnaissance sortie was mounted shortly after this, and a
Movements team was deployed to assess possible problems with loading at forward airheads. As a result of
this sortie, it was decided that due to the high winds, and exposed terrain of Assab, it was not feasible to
establish a forward UKMAMS element at Assab on a permanent basis.
At 0700 hrs on 4th November, the first effective missions were mounted. The concept of operations
was to operate two airframes into Assab to uplift grain which would then be flown to the feeding centres at
Mekele and Axum. Mobile teams of 4 men flew with each sortie, with additional personnel being deployed
to Assab airhead for load co-ordination with relief workers. At all times a UKMAMS presence was
maintained at the Addis base camp to advise on any ‘spec’ loads which may arise. Three sorties per frame
per day were achieved in this way, due largely to the quick turnrounds by loading teams, which resulted in a
16
total uplift of between 150 and 200,000
lbs of grain per day. The importance of
such figures is appreciated when it is
considered that 100 lbs of grain will
feed a family of 5 for one month.
In later weeks the Movements
task diversified, and UKMAMS
personnel began to deploy tentage,
blankets and foodstuffs into additional
airheads such as Asmara and Gonda, as
well as heavy earthmoving machinery
for improving the rough strips on
which all operations were mounted.
The efficiency of operations in
Ethiopia is evident, in that during the
first 4 weeks of the detachment, the 18
men of UKMAMS element were
responsible for moving 3,600,000 lbs
of relief supplies.
DECEMBER
Port Moresby – Exercise Instant Mercury. Fg Off Colin Waitt plus 2. Recovery of 30 Sigs Regt and
TCW from New Guinea to UK.
San Diego – Exercise Tiger Trail 5. Fg Off Towler plus 2. Route support for the delivery of F4J
Phantoms bought from the US Navy and delivery to Wattisham.
1989 – 15 YEARS AGO…
SEPTEMBER – DECEMBER
Regrettably there is very little to be gleaned from the 540 for this period which was compiled by Flt Lt
Stanford.
1994 – 10 YEARS AGO…
SEPTEMBER
Hudson Bay – Exercise Crash Crusade. FS Ray Ralph plus 2. Recovery of Cat 3 Tornado by Belfast
from Canada to Marham.
Bermuda – Special. Sgt George Quarless plus 2. Rotation of personnel from HMS Lancaster.
OCTOBER
Teeside – TALO. Flt Lt Jason Comfort plus 4. TALO training for 47 Sqn.
Nairobi/Kigali – Exercise Grand Prix/Operation Gabriel. FS Clive Bishop plus 3. Deployment of
elements of UKLF to Kenya and resupply of UN Det in Rwanda.
17
NOVEMBER
Jacksonville – AUTEC. Flt Lt Lee Matthews plus 3. Delivery of spares and equipment for the
AUTEC detachment.
Bari – Operation Grapple. FS Karl Hibbert plus 2. Delivery of equipment to Bari in support of the
RAF Det in Gioi del Colle and HMS Ark Royal in the Adriatic.
DECEMBER
Gaberone – Exercise Stonecutter. Flt Lt Ewan Mackenzie plus 3. recovery of 3Bn Para Regt from
Botswana to UK.
Gioia del Colle – Operation Deny Flight. WO Ian Berry, FS Steve Beaumont, Cpl Al Stacey.
Manning the RAF Movs detachment in Southern Italy to handle aircraft at Gioia
and Bari.
1999 – 5 YEARS AGO…
SEPTEMBER
Krakow – Exercise Artist Ulan. FS Steve Gelder, Sgt Alec Ross, SACs Davies and Williams.
Recovery of 21 SAS and 63 Sigs Regt from Poland to UK.
Riyadh – Special. FS Karl Hibbert, Cpl Steph O’Donnel and SAC Atkins. Deployment of a 105mm
Artillery Gun and ammunition to King Khaled Military City with the prospect of a potential
arms sale.
OCTOBER
Belize – Special. Flt Lt Tim Benjamin, Sgt Taff Kelly, Cpl Bell, SAC Evans. Deploy replacement
Gazelle helicopter to Belize to replace one which crashed in the jungle.
Doha – Exercise Brave Saker. Flt Lt Atkinson, Sgt Viv Neary-Phillips, Cpl Lishman, SAC Smith.
Deployment of 43 Sqn (Tornados) from UK to Persian Gulf.
NOVEMBER
Darwin – Operation Langar. Flt Lt Stoneley, Cpls Kev Skinner & Stu Walker, SAC Walker.
Detachment to Darwin. Single C130 flying to Dili, Bacau plus others on International
Force for East Timor (INTERFET) and national tasks.
Yuma – Special. FS Tim Pyne, Cpl Nixon, SAC Stubbs. Deployment of 1 PTS to Yuma and
recovery of 808 Sqn (RM) from Norfolk to Edinburgh.
DECEMBER
Oman – Exercise Lavender Hill. FS Karl Hibbert, Sgt Mick Cocker, Cpl Lishman, SAC Lewis.
Recovery of 2 SAS from Oman to UK.
Atlanta – Exercise Georgian Comfort. Fg Off Symons, FS Paddy Power, SAC Hartley. Deployment
of Joint Service Command Staff Course to USA.
18
From the LYNEHAM GLOBE - March 1975
MEET A UKMAMS TEAM
ECHO TEAM is one of 18 mobile teams on the
establishment of the United Kingdom Mobile Air
Movements Squadron, based at RAF Lyneham. Like the
other mobile teams ECHO team has taken its turn on base
as part of a shift on the station looking after routine
movements, although while they were on their 4 months
base duties movement was anything but routine. The
Cyprus emergency evacuation programme was in full swing
and their expertise in loading, off-loading and turning round
aircraft in the shortest possible time was fully exercised.
Flight Sergeant Terry Hoy
Flight Sergeant Hoy left Akrotiri Movements in
1974 and arrived on the Squadron just in time to
assist with the evacuation from Cyprus. Terry
Hoy is a Grade I football referee an, one day, we
hope to see him at Wembley!
Sergeant Ian Berry, who joined the service
straight from school in 1965, served in Aden
and El Adem where he loaded the last aircraft to
leave the base there before joining that flight as
a passenger. He is now on his second tour at
RAF
Flying Officer Jeremy Hidden
A MAMS Mobile Team consists of six men and the men
that form ECHO TEAM are:Team Leader - Flying Officer Jeremy Hidden. He joined
the RAF in 1970 at the age of 19 after spending a year with Prince Charles! - at the University of Wales. After
training as a Supply Officer his first tour of duty was as OC
Domestic Supply Flight at RAF Abingdon, He was posted
to RAF Aldergrove in Northern Ireland after he completed
the Movements Course, and, following 13 months in
Northern Ireland he joined the Squadron in March 1974.
Jeremy is a bachelor which is probably just as well as he
has been warned for a nine month tour in Gan later this
year.
Flight Sergeant Terry Hoy joined the RAF in 1952. He is
married, with four children and lives in quarters in
Chippenham. His previous postings have included
Christmas Island, Mildenhall, where he worked with the
Canadians and Americans, and a two year tour in Cyprus.
He took part in the Anguilla Operations in 1971.
19
Sergeant Ian Berry
Lyneham. Sergeant Berry has been with UKMAMS for
almost three years and considers the best job in which
he has participated was the Nicaraguan Earthquake
relief Operation in 1972.
SAC Ian Bell
After four years there, where he covered work in
various sections of the Air Movements Squadron,
he was posted to RAF Masirah in July 1973. He
joined UKMAMS at the end of his nine month
unaccompanied tour in the Gulf.
Corporal Steve Broadhurst
Corporal Steve Broadhurst started life in the RAF as
an Admin Apprentice in 1965 and became a 'mover' in
1967. His postings have included almost all the major
RAF Transport bases, and in August 1973 he took part
in the Dakar relief operation, Operation Sahel
Cascade. Early in May, 1974 he returned to
UKMAMS after a three month detachment to Dulles
International Airport in Washington D.C. He has been
on the Squadron for just over 18 months and, when he
leaves the RAF later this year, he is hoping to work for
a civil airline.
SAC Alan Webb comes from Plymouth and is
married with two young sons. He lives in quarters at
Lyneham. He joined the RAF in 1967 as an Admin
Apprentice but on completion of his basic Movements
course in 1969 was posted to RAF Brize Norton.
SAC Ian Bell joined the RAF as a Supplier in
1966 and took up his first posting as a packer at
REU Henlow. He was posted from there to Cyprus
on Air Movements duties, and then to join
UKMAMS at Abingdon in June 1972. During his
period with the Squadron he has taken part in
many interesting tasks, ranging from a two week
NATO Exercise in Istanbul, loading American and
Turkish aircraft, to a four week sojourn in New
Zealand which included six days in Antartica on
Operation Deep Freeze. On this occasion he
reached the geographic South Pole in an American
Ski Hercules. He still has two area's of the world
he would passionately like to visit - Peru and the
Caribbean.
The members of ECHO Team have plenty oif
Movements experience to call upon. All the team
are Movements Controllers, except the team leader
and he, like all Movements Officers, is an Air
Movements qualified member of the Supply
Branch.
ECHO team, in their tour of duty with UKMAMS
will travel the world carrying out movements tasks
in support of the RAF Transport Fleet and there
can be few who do not envy their opportunity to
see and experience many places in the world which
to others are only dreams!
SAC Alan Webb
20
DMS, DTMA, DLO.
By FS N Harrison, DMO, Ops & Plans, DLO Andover.
Running roughly North-South through the centre of Hampshire is the Test Valley and in the middle
of this you will find the Market Town of Andover. Up until 1977 you could find an RAF station here
but now, on the same site, is a part of the Defence Logistics Organisation (DLO). Within the
overall DLO setup is the Defence Transport Movements Agency (DTMA) and working within that
are the Duty Movements Staff (DMS).
Who they are and what do they do, you may ask! Read on and you may learn something new
about another side of being a mover in the forces today. The Duty Movements Staff, or Duty
Movements Officers (DMO’s) as they are also known, work around the clock, 365 days a year.
The DMS are a Bi-Service Organisation comprising of 3 x RAF FS, 2 x RLC SSgt’s, 2 x RAF and 3 x
Army Cpls.
Our main role in life is moving compassionate Alpha and Bravo passengers around the world by
whatever means necessary to meet the urgency of need, however, at night we become triple
hatted! At 1700hrs the Defence Passenger Reservations Centre (DPRC) closes, transferring their
phones over to us for urgent, non-compassionate passenger bookings (we set our clocks by this
event!!). Then, 1900hrs arrives and we take over the Air Freight Centre’s fax machine and all
those wonderful F1380s appear on our desk of which the AOGS, OPDEFS and OVIs get actioned
overnight.
Up until recently we were in a complex of portacabins on the South site of the camp but the
hierarchy decided that this wasn’t good enough and from the ashes of the North site appeared a
brand new 3-storey building. We now occupy a space on the 2nd floor in a huge open plan office.
Colour TV, video and DVD, en-suite bunks, our own kitchen and a small gymnasium are all part of
the modern facilities we now have to help pass the many hours spent on shift!
A normal day shift starts at 0730 with the night shift taking over at 1830. Each shift consists of
one SNCO ably supported by one JNCO, with the RAF and Army working alongside each other
doing exactly the same job. The average work pattern is 2 days, 2 nights and 4 off, however this
depends on detachments, leave and courses. One minute you can be moving a family to Germany
under the DILFOR scheme and the next a ship could be calling you from the Caribbean with an
urgent compassionate Alpha case requiring instant movement to the UK. There are many
compassionate cases from all over the world with many different situations. Each one is unique
and has to be dealt with in its own particular way – there are no set answers and it is often left to
the experience of the staff on duty to come up with practical solutions. However, one thing that is
always of the utmost importance is that the passengers and situation must be dealt with in a calm
compassionate manner befitting the situation.
Recent cases include moving a Ghurkha out of Kabul to Brunei by a Canadian C130, to a military
base in the United Arab Emirates. The RNLO from Dubai collected him and rushed him to his
connecting civilian flight, where upon arrival he was met by the ATLO and escorted to a local
flight. A move out of the Falklands included a chartered jet to Brazil, scheduled flight to London,
an internal flight to Scotland and finally a helicopter to the hospital.
The current members of the team can be seen on our station information site on MMARS, with all our
relevant contact numbers. Should anyone be thinking of putting Andover down as a posting request then
why not come and see what we do, after all we are here 24hrs a day and are in commuting distance of both
Brize and Lyneham!!!
21
E-MAILS, LETTERS AND NOTICES
The Editor, Team Brief, UKMAMS Association, PO Box 1126, Swindon, Wilts,
SN5 7WB.
E-mail: ukmamseditor@hotmail.com
Yet another large postbag from around the world…………………..
Atonement: A Response on Behalf of the Apathetic Masses
It was interesting to read Ian Berry’s correspondence (Spring 2004 Issue No. 49) and a
subsequent counter argument penned by Kev Skinner in the following edition of Team Brief.
My own missive is neither a counter to Ian Berry’s letter nor an admittance of guilt, but I feel that,
as a recent Team Leader and MOpsO, thereby being someone who sits squarely within the
demographic responsible (in the eyes of Mr Berry) for the steady decline of the social fabric of
UKMAMS, I should lend my support to his argument (but not before I admit to my own fallibility
and seek atonement for my past sins) and echo his views on the need for a medium such as
‘Team Brief’ to be sustained.
For my sins, I must admit to being a second generation ‘Interloper’ (Supplier with a ‘Movements
Annotation’); a Scale-E-Brat, I demonstrated my lack of imagination by following in my father’s
footsteps, hoping to practice the black art that is Movements. Coincidently, despite my limited
exposure to the Trade thus far, I have been fortunate enough to follow a similar path; I had spent
over 2 ½ years serving on UKMAMS, the last 15 months as MOpsO, before recently ‘lucking in’
with a posting to the RAF Movements Unit at Dulles. Thankfully, my familial ties are intact and I
do (occasionally!) talk to Dad about work and the experiences that I have enjoyed (and endured)
since passing out of the RAFMS at Brize Norton as an ab initio Movements Officer (no comments
please Mr Berry – I merely use that phrase to save on ink!). It is interesting to note how much,
and how little, has changed since his MAMS days; whilst the close-knit ‘family’ atmosphere of the
past may not be as prevalent today, it is my belief that the spirit and can-do attitude of Squadron
personnel is still very much alive – it may be, as is the case with support for the Association, that
its focus is just a little different.
Whilst I do not count myself as one of the ‘apathetic masses’ (being a fully paid up member of the
Association), I in no way profess to be a bastion of endeavour for the good of the Association and
Team Brief and I must admit to a minor lapse in judgment (yes, and I suppose a modicum of
apathy), whilst I was serving on UKMAMS, that deprived Team Brief of some much needed column
inches.
Whilst on a protracted detachment to Karachi the Movements staff produced a regular publication,
the “Karachi Times”, meant as a lighthearted take on detachment life and a grass-roots
interpretation of the (oh so wise) operational logistical planning being implemented at the time. I
had compiled the first issue, with a bumper article on the Movements detachment being the main
focus, and had prepared an abridged version that was due to be dispatched for inclusion in Team
Brief. Unfortunately, a catastrophic IT glitch destroyed all evidence of that embryonic masterpiece,
a situation compounded by my failure to produce any back-up copy. Crest-fallen, I never
mustered the enthusiasm to retrieve the scraps of that article from my cerebrum and, as a result,
my apathy deprived the Team Brief readership of some Pulitzer-winning material.
“What on earth is he rambling on about?” I hear you ask. Well, in my own way I mean to highlight
how easy it is for people ‘let the side down’, often unintentionally. I know for a fact that during my
tenures as Team Leader and MOpsO a dozen or so well-meaning colleagues (across the rank
spectrum) left articles half-written or were guilty of procrastination. These individual lapses appear
22
trivial at the time but just serve to compound Mick Cocker’s Editorial problems (I know that he has
been grey and thinning for some time, but this cannot help!).
Both Messrs Berry and Skinner make valid (and heartfelt) arguments in their respective letters. It
is true that UKMAMS has been through a prohibitively hectic period over recent years and periods
of recuperation and reconstitution have been infrequent, but I guess that many UKMAMS alumni
would counter that when wasn’t that the case. It is (only) my opinion, but I believe that the
revised structure of the Squadron, whereby the number of teams was reduced and Operators
were introduced to MAMF, did increase the burden on a reduced cadre of Officers and SNCOs (not
to be taken as a negative viewpoint, by the way!). Moreover, the introduction of C17s, with the
impact that this has had on additional SNCO tasking, makes any period of downtime all the more
valuable. That said, the very fact that UKMAMS has recently experienced the most protracted and
varied period of tasking since Op GRANBY offers huge scope for producing witty, informative and
comprehensive articles for Team Brief, the Movements Magazine and RAF News (trying not to be
too parochial Mick, sorry!). At the very least, if any junior colleagues show an inclination towards
putting pen to paper (or finger to keyboard) please encourage them to do so.
Please do not waste the opportunity, as I did, or you could find yourself, several years down the
line, penning a letter to seek atonement for you past sins or worse, as an Officer, agreeing with
Mr Berry!!
All the best to the Association team and to all on MAMS.
Kind regards,
Si Cruse
RAFLO Dulles
Dear Mick,
I read with great interest the June Issue of Team Brief & realised just how
old I am as it is now nearly 40 years since I first joined UKMAMS in 1966.
Having left Her Majesty's employ in 1992 following one of the many Defence
Reviews, I now find myself sending this email from my office in Switzerland
where I am the Secretary of Golf & Country Club Zurich. A bit of a change
from being an RAF Mover!!!
I spend 7 months as Secretary here in Zurich from April to October, when the course closes for
the Winter & have 5 months leave. Not a bad halfway house between work & retirement. I can
help Colin Allen with news of Chas Clark, who has emigrated to Canada & now lives a couple of
hours north of Toronto.
I will be speaking to him fairly soon, so will ask him to get in touch. Also for the others with
whom you have lost contact, Colin could contact the RAF Personnel Centre at Innsworth. They
have a department which has details of everyone who has retired. Whilst they will not give you
their addresses, they will contact the people concerned & ask them to contact UKMAMS. Might
be worth a try. Do give my regards to Bob Dixon, an old friend & colleague, who has done a
sterling job as Chairman & I fully understand his decision to stand down. We will all miss him & he
will be a hard act to follow. You could do something for me. I have lost contact with Bob Turner,
an old friend from UKMAMS & Cyprus MAMS, who last was living in Swindon & working
in Oman. If you have a current address & telephone number, do please let me know.
Yours most sincerely,
Robbie James
23
Hi guys,
Well done on Brief # 50.They say it
can be a small world ,this majestic
old lady is operating out of Brisbane
servicing the Pacific Basin,
predominently the Solomon Islands.
Have supped a few frothy ones with
the crew, well just the 2 pilots really
at the local watering hole, The Royal
English Hotel. Dave Duffy & Alan
Wright (?).
I believe she is ex RAF XR 368.I've
clocked up a few hours in her. The
really good thing about being tasked
around in the Belslow was you were
guaranteed a couple of night stops,
sometimes in nice & interesting places, ie Nassau en route to Belize or the not so nice places ie
Leuchars.
Hugh Curran & Pete Clayton names came up in
conversation. In my line of business, National & Intl
freight forwarding i have included this pic in my web
site, promoting heavy & out of gauge cargo. Get some
interesting calls & mail from it as well. There are more
pics/info of the ole girl at www.Airliners.net Enjoy.
Pic of Guru & good lady thrown in for good measure as
well, taken in the REH of course. Will try to keep up with
articles to you guys what you do with them is your
call, seeya.
Cheers, DC--Lima 6.
Gday Mick,
Thanks for latest team brief (June). What a lot of guff in it from that old rogue Rip Kirby - cheers.
Will keep my ramblings down to a minimum for a while to let others have space in the next issue.
But would you be interested in a future short article about life in civvy aviation compared
to RAF Movs ?
Regards to all,
Snorter.
Certainly would Rip – any correspondence/articles always gratefully received……Mick
24
Good afternoon,
I am the author of a recently published novel about life in the RAF in air movements in the
fifties and sixties. The novel follows the trail of two lads from infancy who, at the age of seventeen,
join the RAF due to National Service. They cause mayhem at Lyneham, El Adem and all
staging posts on the way to Changi. The book is not about RAF heroes however as the lads are in
constant trouble with authority (be it RAF, Navy, Army or civilian). Life in the RAF as seen by two
reluctant erks is vividly described. Rated an "excellent read and a sure fire winner" by Grampian
TV, and "a wonderful read" by BBC Radio Kent, the book has also been received well by ex RAF
personnel from the fifties and sixties.
Is there any way I can promote the book through your team magazine.
Regards
Alex Mabon (ex RAF mover now retired)
You just have Alex – I will keep my eyes open for it in the bookshops……….Mick
RETURN TO ADEN – By Pete Richards
Return to Aden is a book written by those, and for those, who served in Aden. It attempts to cover the
troubles during the sixties with first hand accounts, as well as a brief history of the country. It also deals with
the issue of exactly why servicemen were there in the first place.
My father served in Aden during 1963/4, and never managed to forget the place. After leaving the
service he embarked on his book, Return to Aden. Tragically in May 2000, at near completion of the book,
he died peacefully whilst on holiday.
The book has been written for those people who couldn’t forget about Aden either. People great and small,
who found themselves for whatever reason in Aden, and is dedicated to those who died there, caught up in
their countries affairs.
To obtain a copy at a cost of £10 + £2.95 P+P, please send a cheque to:
Mrs CE Richards
8 Acer Court
Doddington Park
Lincoln
LN6 ORE
Or contact FS Gary Richards in MAMS Ops at RAF Lyneham
Tel: 01249 897422
Hi,
The last issue of Team Brief showed a picture of an Italian Harvard being loaded into a Herc at
Deci. I was there (standing by the engine in the photo) and this is the story to that picture. At the
time the RAF News published the event and as it was ‘organised’ by an aircrew Sqn Ldr, it was
25
obvious that only aircrew were involved in the task, including loading the Herc!! Still he did buy
several crates of Becks for his ‘aircrew’ after the article was published. Actually this was the
second Harvard that we moved. This all happened in 1988, when our OC Ops Sqn arranged with
the Italians to recover the 2 aircraft and send then back to UK for the museum at Duxford. Our
Boss (Flt Lt Gavin Richardson) agreed with OC Ops and as always, ‘volunteered’ the Deci Movers
services, not only in loading the aircraft, but also recovering them from the Italian Scrap yard
(not an easy job), cleaning them, the removal of very large Hornets nests from the rear fuselage
area of both aircraft and prepping them for air. Prepping for air not only included the palletisation
of these aircraft (Tie Down Scheme as patented by Kev Holmes), but removing the wings and
flushing out the hydraulic pipes. The flushing of the pipes nearly led to a very serious accident;
no not the sight of the Flt Lt and WO covered in hydraulic fluid when they pushed in a flap rod,
but Kev nearly falling off the Condec when he saw this happen. I have never seen a grown man
laugh himself to tears.
It is time to put names to backs seen in the picture, from back to front, Andy Marshall (Engine),
Kev Holmes (Cockpit), Martin Liggett (by Havard tail), Ade West (Condec Driver), Gavin
Richardson (Chock Man), Sandy Sanderson (by port ADS) and Garry Pym (Marshaller). There are
absolutely no aircrew in sight…… they were buying old pots from the WO.
PS. Yes, before someone asks, Garry Pym did get the tail numbers!
Andy Marshall
Golf Team 84-87
Dear Mick,
Thanks for the latest edition of Team brief (issue 50) that arrived recently, more
good articles and tales from the past, and I particularly enjoy the membership news and people
on the move article. I may be wrong , but I think the chap on the right in your “finally” picture on
the back page inside was a supply officer (not movements qualified!) called Dave Tisdale, who I
last heard of when I was in Cyprus in the early 90’s and he was OC supply Sqn. Long since left the
RAF I suspect.
I have just finished 2 years out here in Virginia, USA at the NATO HQ, but I have lost the
third year of the tour as I have just been promoted to Group Captain and am posted to HQ STC as
DACOS SPD (S&M), which as far as I can make out is th old Gp Capt Supply & Movements Policy
job. I may see some of the old faces again in my new job, with a bit of luck. Excuse the
handwritten letter, but the PC is in with all the other stuff in a container somewhere between here
and High Wycombe. I am writing this sitting out on the deck waiting to see whether Hurricane
Charley, currently to the south of us, off the South Carolina coast is going to spoil the last few
days out here. Hope my golf clubs don’t get rusty!.
Keep up the good work.
Steve Harpum.
You may be right about he chap in the photo – I know he was the only volunteer to be on the
aircraft that day!! Perhaps if we could track down Paul Mansfield he could give us the definitive
answer……………..Mick
26
GOLF – The 2004 UKMAMS Open
By Dougie Betambeau
On the 5th/6th September 24 of the Ryder Cup rejects assembled at the Abbey Wood 4* Best
Western in Redditch to compete for this years honours. The competition was played on the
parkland course over 36 holes, stableford, full handicap (apart from hitting the ball that’s all I
understand!!!). Ian Dewar (Lyneham) was the overall winner with 69 points. Stu Askew’s name
appeared 3 times for the prize giving, and the winner for the most golf played was won easily (he
needn’t have played on day 2!!!), by Stu Whitton with 149 gross on day 1, the calculator packed
up on day 2!!. Thanks must go to the UKMAMS Association and the Squadron for the donations
towards the prizes.
3 civvy guests played and thoroughly enjoyed the service banter and humour, they were
still in the bar at the death……..03.00!! The food was excellent, the rooms of a high standard,
only complaint is I stillk haven’t been given any rates!!!?? Having been voted a success both on
the golf side and definitely the value for money aspect, it was agreed to hold next years event at
the same venue. I am willing to arrange this again and have pencilled in mid August or end
September 2005. This years deal consisted of 2 x rounds of golf, evening meal, B & B, all for £59.
No doubt prices will rise but I still believe it will be a fantastic deal.
Once next years info is received I hope to have details in the next “Team Brief” and on the
new Movers website. In the meantime, to make my life a little easier, if you are interested in
taking part next year or have any suggestions, please let me know asap.
E-Mail:
Home Tel:
Address:
dougiejackie@poppi1.fsnet.co.uk
01793 728694
16 Glenmore Road, Taw Hill, Swindon, SN25 1WH
27
No 9 Movements Operator Course
15 August – 9 October 1973
Back Row L to R – AC’s Burk, Jennings, SAC Bishop, AC’s Herbert, Hughes, SAC Cole, AC’s
Almey, Barter, Brown, Cpl Ainalie, AC’s Williams, Perry, SAC’s Baker, Sacco, AC’s Biggs, Rowland
Front Row L to R – Sgt Inalegwu, L/Cpl’s Efealuiku, Ogbu, Sgt Fell, Flt Lt Cox, Sqn Ldr Harries,
FS Pike, Sgt Potts, Cpl Ugurum, Sgt Ogunniyi, WO II Ado
No. 117 OFFICERS MOVEMENT COURSE
13 MAR - 19 MAY 1972
Back Row L to R - Fg Off Hunter, Fg Off Berry, Plt Off (W) Reason, Plt Off Dunn
Front Row L to R - Flt Lt Upton (DS), Sqn Ldr Harries (OC AMTS), FS Wincott (DS
28