The very first Vulcan delivered to RAF provided the first example of the
front seat crew ejecting, while the rest (+1 civilian passenger!)
perished... at London Heathrow airport of all places... and (strange to
relate), the Vulcan did not have ILS fitted... yet the Air Marshal up front
(perfectly normal, no doubt) allegedly insisted on landing in very poor
weather. RIP three squadron leaders and one Avro technical advisor.
Memorable for all the wrong reasons.
Google XA897.
Piers
On 1 Mar 2017 5:38 p.m., "ChrisB" <ftog@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> It’s horrible, John! I only ever entered a Vulcan like that, as a
> visitor. I never flew the dreadful machine.
>
> Yes, the rear crew have departed successfully through the lower hatch. In
> fact, on one occasion a crewman forgot to detach his mic/tel lead and
> remained stuck in the hatch as a result; his two colleagues passed him by
> before he could retrieve himself and attempt another escape – successful
> this time.
>
> A colleague of mine on Jaguars had flown Vulcans before his conversion to
> fast jets. He had occasion to eject once, but only after the rear crew and
> copilot had gone. Apparently he flew it for a minute or two with the roof
> hatch gone, just to see what it was like.
>
> There have been at least two instances where the rear crew could not
> escape because the aircraft was too low – as ChrisT was relating about the
> “Buff”.
>
> Chris
>
> > On 1 Mar 2017, at 14:08, JOHN DUGGAN <john.duggan10@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
> >
> > I went on a MX5 run on Sunday to the Gloucestershire Jet Age Museum. One
> of the exhibits was the "front end" of a Vulcan Bomber also known as the
> Tin Triangle. Hmmmm !! Respect for all who flew in them. As Chris B has
> said before visibility can be likened to looking through a keyhole. My not
> too nimble frame had great difficulty getting into a front seat and then
> the centre console was pulled into place. I do not know how they could have
> ejected without leaving skin and possibly parts of their anatomy
> behind!!!The Navigator, bombardier and engineer had marginally more room,
> but sliding out of the escape hatch was a risky business at best. Did any
> crews successfully "escape"
> > Survival did not seem to uppermost in the designers mind. I can now see
> where Chris was coming from when he said he was glad they are all
> grounded. A VERY interesting visit. Regards John Duggan, Wales, UK
>
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