February 2018 FLYPAST 41All three deltas were airborne
again at 09:30, 09:45 and 10:00
on April 18, arriving on schedule
at Scampton shortly after 14:00
after a 4½-hour flight. The Comet
followed having staged through
Keflavik, Iceland.
GREMLINS
The bird strike-damaged XH500
remained at Nellis while the double
engine change was carried out.
It was air tested on the 21st and
departed for Goose the following
day. There misfortune struck again,
as it was further delayed for 40
hours awaiting a spare part for its
nose wheel oleo.
The gremlins struck again in mid-
Atlantic aided by a strong tailwind.
Flt Lt Streatfeild noted the No.3
fuel tank contents diminishing
excessively. Observation of the
Vulcan’s underside, using the air
electronics officer’s periscope,
revealed vapouring fuel was
streaming behind.
Calling Keflavik for permission
to make an emergency landing,
they received the reply that the
airfield had a 300ft cloud base with
driving snow. Streatfeild decided to
continue to Scampton, transferring
the remaining fuel to the other
tanks. They arrived at Scampton at
18:30 on April 26.
On return, investigation revealed
that a rubber hose had split just a
few inches down-stream from the
high-pressure pump. A great deal of
luck had precluded a major fire.
Nevertheless, technicalserviceability of both the Vulcans
and Comet had achieved a
remarkably high standard
throughout the tour. Excepting
XH500, no aircraft failed to take off
or complete a mission on schedule.
The unfortunate XH500 had
provided a remarkable tribute to
the sturdiness and reliability of the
Olympus by flying across America
with considerable damage to two
engines.
This was with a programme that
required the Vulcans to complete
more than 10,000 miles flying and
to operate on seven of the nine
days that the bombers were away
from base. It was a remarkable
achievement, echoed on many
future occasions during the Vulcan’s
long period in service.Top
Second prototype Convair
XB-58A Hustler 55-661
‘Mach-In-Boid’ sitting
with its hatches open
in the desert heat. This
aircraft made the fi rst
in-fl ight B-58 refuelling
in November 1958 and
the fi rst human ejection
for the type in February- Sadly, this historic
aircraft was scrapped in
July 1977.
Above
An almost head-on
view of a white-painted
Avro Vulcan B.1 of 617
Squadron.