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The 17th TRS’s arrival was somewhat

different. Capt George Howard was one

of its five pilots given fully serviceable

RF-101s to fly individual training sorties

before they joined up north of Upper

Heyford, for Major Jim Waugh to lead them

over the airfield in close formation. Capt

Carlos Higgins recalled that the remainder

(the number of which has been lost in the

mists of time), after dodging the parachute

training balloons at nearby Weston-on-the-

Green, also joined up in close formation

to attract the attention of the welcoming

party by thundering across the airfield with

‘everything hanging’ (flap and undercarriage

down), the like of which had never been

seen before. The 17th TRS had arrived!

LIFE AT UPPER HEYFORD

The uncertainty surrounding the destination,

timing and domestic implications of the

move meant a great deal of turbulence for

the officers and their dependents; where

were they to live, how were they to get

there, what were the education facilities

and what could they to do with their pets –

given the British quarantine rules? One of

the great irritations was the need to pass

a demanding UK driving test, and after

hours of ‘numbingly detailed explanation by

English officialdom’, one pilot stood up, tore

up his application form and strode out of

the room (he was leaving the UK in a few

weeks anyway).

However, given time, with the great

goodwill of the local people and the ability

to communicate in English, the Americans

settled in well. They raided the antique

shops, took part in many community

activities and enjoyed their domestic and

social life at Upper Heyford.

The 18th TRS occupied the area to the

north of the runway, the 17th TRS to the

south, close to the domestic site, and the

new incumbents were soon ready to resume

their Cold War training. They were now

much further away from their war targets

in East Europe, likewise their training

grounds on the continent, access to which

meant additional air traffic and airspace

considerations, but with external fuel tanks

and the option of high-low-high profiles,

there was no need for air-to-air refuelling

(AAR). That said, the 66th TRW pilots were

required to maintain currency in AAR, in both

probe and drogue, and boom and receptacle

options with the Boeing KC-135 tankers.

In fact, Carlos Higgins enthused over the

operational training on offer, the long-range

Voodoos invariably able to find good weather

somewhere for low flying.

DOWN TO BUSINESS

First on the agenda for the 18th TRS

was the 1967 Exercise Royal Flush XII,

designed to test all those who contributed

to the achievement of the Tac Recon

force objectives in war. The competition

called for a maximum team effort from the

mission planners and intelligence staffs,

the aircrew, in-flight reporting cells, camera

crews, film processors and photographic

interpreters (PIs), including the groundcrew

who had to ensure that sufficient, fully

serviceable aircraft remained available

throughout the competition.

Tac Recon aircraft took part in Royal

Flush within specific categories: day, night,

short, medium or long range, and in their

first year at Heyford, the 18th TRS Voodoos

competed in the medium range, day class.

Their pilots were required to photograph

and report on three targets, perhaps a

32 Aviation News incorporating Jets July 2018

Boeing KC-135 tankers, with boom refuelling

were very welcome replacements for the

slower, drogue-only Boeing KB-50s. Fred

Muesegaes and Kay Berry

Above: Lt Col Bob Gould (sunglasses) and Maj Carlos Higgins, 17 TRS,

Upper Heyford, 1968. Carlos Higgins

Left: A photographic interpreter (PI) debriefs Capt Vickrey after a Royal

Flush XII competition sortie. ‘Vic’ Vickrey

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