Classic British Flight Sim

Nice info indeed Hobby, and it reminds me that Malcolm Lambert did tell me that when we were checking it out, but quite frankly I didn't really understand what he was getting at (maybe didn't believe him). There is a decent sized gap between the bottom of the hatch and the nosewheel strut, and it would be quite a leap of faith to try jumping to it. Also, at that speed you'd think you'd get plastered against rather hard. I think Malcolm implied pilots would usually keep the u/c raised rather than try this method, but it does seem to exist! Dodgy times indeed.

How did the Victor blast shield work? Similar to the B(I).8 windbreak door at all?

Hi Steve

I cannot recall the exact details of the Victor blast shields and I expect that there are members of the forum who may have flown in or serviced Victors so they would recall the layout more easily than myself.

However, having reached that stage in life that sometimes when I have climbed the stairs during the day in my own home I do wonder what an earth I came up for my memory may be at fault over the Victor blast shield. My recollection of that device is over 32years old!! Anyway I believe that the port side crew hatch hinged upwards and on the right hand side of that hatch (viewed from the inside of the aircraft) a metal sheet was attached to the crew door thus forming the wind blastshield. Don't know if anyone used that in an emergency but please remember that the air intakes were no too far away in both horizontal and vertical directions!!! There must be a photo somewhere on the www.

Yes, the 'jump onto the Vulcan front oleo leg' story is true but most people thought that feat to be in the realms of "make believe land."

Great photo of the Seahawk panel - what an elegant aircraft!!

Hi Hobby

It is shown in this set... I think

http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/pics/gulfwar/gwvictors.htm

Garry

Glad you enjoyed the visit to our Museum. I take it for granted and pass it twice a day. Glad you got to sit in a few things too!

Thanks Garry; what a relief - my memory is not as bad as I sometimes fear, the photos do show the hatch and windblast shield.

Must be quite daunting jumping from that in front of a couple of hungry vacuum cleaners.

Even if shut down I suppose if you got it wrong you could end up in the inlet or hit the wing.


Were you supposed to dive downwards?


Garry

If the s*** hit the fan Id rather take my chances out then in!

Firstly, thank you Steve for sharing your photos.

Embarrassingly even though the Midlands Air Museum is high on the list Aviation Museums I’d like to visit I still haven’t managed to despite it only being about an hour and a half from where I live. Well done to you therefore, for having visited in spite of currently living on the other side of the planet.

Despite the scepticism about the viability of the crew hatch as a means of escape I can vouch for it. Indirectly I owe my very existence to the fact that it is indeed possible to bail out via the hatch, as that’s exactly what my Dad (a former Vulcan Air Electronics Officer) had to do from XM610.

An account of the final moments of XM610 forms the prologue of the book Vulcan 607 which (quite apart from briefly featuring my Dad) is a fantastic read. As I’m sure some here will already be aware, it details the RAF's attack on the landing strip at Port Stanley during the Falklands war.

hobby wrote

at the captain's command proceed to the rear hatch while he lowered the undercarriage

It seems an insane idea that the under carriage should be lower in the event of a bail out as to my mind at least this could surely only serve to impede the escaping crew. Certainly in my Dad's case there was never any thought of lowering the gear.
Perhaps this was the brief for when undercarriage was already lowered and could not be raised perhaps due to a loss of hydraulic pressure, which in the event of an emergency could be a very real possibility.

Alex

Morning Gents,

you'll have to forgive me for not replying to this cracking thread earlier - I have been 'off the grid' for the last two days with a vicious stomach flu. Just getting over it now and will add to this reply a bit later on. Cheers,

Steve

Hi Steve

Sorry to here that :sad:

Get yourself well firts.this can wait

ATB

Garry