best ever?
- Thread starter lauralovestodig
- Start date
In the 70s I had to leave the old Ark Royal on compassionate , & the only way they could get me off was to fly me off in a Gannet , fxxxxxxxxxxg awesome , never forget it , flew me to Norfolk Virginia , US Navy staff car to the nearest civilian airport , then up to New York Kennedy air port , straight onto a BA 747 to Heathrow , hire car waiting for me , never even needed a ticket , RN at its best , compassionate turned out ok in the end as well ,
:lol:
It's for winners!
However, they've shitcanned all that now and it's a case of people flying crab air to join their units.
EG-A group joining a ship in Dubai will go from Brize to Qatar and either go civvy air from there to Dubai (1 Hour flight) or if there are quite a few people travelling in a group the aircraft will go direct to Dubai.
Whilst it is cheaper, it means that what was a 7 1/2 hour beforehand now turns into a 2 day evolution.
However, they've shitcanned all that now and it's a case of people flying crab air to join their units.
EG-A group joining a ship in Dubai will go from Brize to Qatar and either go civvy air from there to Dubai (1 Hour flight) or if there are quite a few people travelling in a group the aircraft will go direct to Dubai.
Whilst it is cheaper, it means that what was a 7 1/2 hour beforehand now turns into a 2 day evolution.
Had lots of good times --however I think the best one was getting off the Hermes .
Had a draft chit to next billet and it said to join having had all leave due.
Hermes was always at sea-and I had a months leave owing .
I was helo transferred to a Destroyer and arrived Malta next morning same day flight from Malta. The Maltese cop on departures queried the how did I get to Malta but stamped my passport exit .
Arrived home the next day.
First Christmas at home in three years.
Had a draft chit to next billet and it said to join having had all leave due.
Hermes was always at sea-and I had a months leave owing .
I was helo transferred to a Destroyer and arrived Malta next morning same day flight from Malta. The Maltese cop on departures queried the how did I get to Malta but stamped my passport exit .
Arrived home the next day.
First Christmas at home in three years.
Approx three months as escort to HM The Queen in Britannia at the opening of the St.Lawrence Seaway. Ports of call read like a directory of the best available runs ashore on the continent of North America. The grippos were awesome. Memories of a bus hurtling through the centre of Toronto, four police motor cycle outriders, sirens screaming, didn't want us to be late as spectators to a RN/Toronto police rugby match - the third half wasn't bad either. Steaming slowly up the narrower parts of the St.Lawrence astern of the Yacht, with all the people of the Indian Nations in full war bonnets and tribal dress gathered on both banks, like a giant technicolour western. Walking up the eight giant locks on the Welland Canal to bypass Niagara and watching "Ulster" locking in - she looked absolutely minute in the vastness of those locks. Steaming up from Chicago to Fort William and being out of sight of land for nearly three days on the aptly named Lake Superior. Our Captain sending "now 2000 miles inland and 602 feet above sea level" signal to UK from the Lakehead towns at the top of Superior.
Entering Chicago to a tumutuous welcome that included fireboats, fireworks, all the yachts in creation and anything that could float. They all came out to greet the Queen, and we were always in close company.
The Canadian distillery that sent bottles of whisky for every member of the ship's company. Quebec, Montreal, Detroit, and other not so famous places too numerous to mention, where the local people queued at the end of the gangway to take Jack out. The grippo board outside the Coxwain's office was always full, and we were sometimes faced with the choice of a really good unrepeatable day out (Niagara etc), or casting loose amongst the gaggle of girlies that always seemed to be in evidence.
Bearing in mind that this mini cruise was sandwiched in between two periods down in the Caribbean and a pre-Christmas cruise to Baltimore, Washington DC, and Philadelphia, I reckon it's difficult to top, and I had some other pretty good runs in my nearly 24 years.
And we still drew our Tot. And HM sent us a "Thank you for your smart escort. Splice the mainbrace" when the Britannia left us.
Happy, Happy days.
PS. Her Majesty wasn't the only one to shed a tear when this shower of robbing barsturds that call themselves a government, decided to decommission the Yacht.
2BM
Entering Chicago to a tumutuous welcome that included fireboats, fireworks, all the yachts in creation and anything that could float. They all came out to greet the Queen, and we were always in close company.
The Canadian distillery that sent bottles of whisky for every member of the ship's company. Quebec, Montreal, Detroit, and other not so famous places too numerous to mention, where the local people queued at the end of the gangway to take Jack out. The grippo board outside the Coxwain's office was always full, and we were sometimes faced with the choice of a really good unrepeatable day out (Niagara etc), or casting loose amongst the gaggle of girlies that always seemed to be in evidence.
Bearing in mind that this mini cruise was sandwiched in between two periods down in the Caribbean and a pre-Christmas cruise to Baltimore, Washington DC, and Philadelphia, I reckon it's difficult to top, and I had some other pretty good runs in my nearly 24 years.
And we still drew our Tot. And HM sent us a "Thank you for your smart escort. Splice the mainbrace" when the Britannia left us.
Happy, Happy days.
PS. Her Majesty wasn't the only one to shed a tear when this shower of robbing barsturds that call themselves a government, decided to decommission the Yacht.
2BM
the_matelot - I know i dipped out cuz whenever i had to fly back to the UK or out to meet a ship id fly with either Crab air or some civvy airline!!!
However, i do know of people that have flown first class (on more than one occasion too!!) and they always like to wind me up about how i got seen off whilst they enjoyed drinks in the first class lounge!!!! :cry:
However, i do know of people that have flown first class (on more than one occasion too!!) and they always like to wind me up about how i got seen off whilst they enjoyed drinks in the first class lounge!!!! :cry:
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