Meet a military veteran, who has been serving in the Royal Air Force for 27 years and has seen action in the Falklands War and now in Afghanistan.
This is no actual airman, but a trusty old Chinook known as Bravo November.
It first saw action in the Falklands War in 1982, when it carried 105mm guns to support SAS troops on Mount Kent who were under fire from Argentine artillery.
On a later mission it ran into a snowstorm on its way back to San Carlos Water.
The helicopter crashed into the sea at 100 knots but, instead of smashing to smithereens, bounced out of the water and leapt back into the air.
Bravo November managed to hold together for another vital two weeks, delivering troops and supplies wherever they were needed.
At one point during that war, Bravo November rushed into battle with 81 British troops jammed inside. It was twice the normal maximum load - a feat that to this day stands as a record for a troop-carrying helicopter anywhere in the world.
Bravo November was able to continue flying and make a significant contribution to the British war effort, transporting 1,530 British troops, 600 tons of equipment and 650 Argentine POWs during the conflict (in total, the British took prisoner 11,313 Argentines, and the Argentines took prisoner 115 Brits).
Now, trusty old Bravo November is seeing action in Afghanistan, several times narrowly dodging Taliban bullets and rocket-propelled grenades.
The RAF has 48 Chinooks, the largest fleet of any military outside of the United States.
27 years old: the Chinook from the Falklands STILL serving in Helmand
By Peter Almond
18th July 2009
Daily Mail
It is an RAF legend - children scramble around a copy of it at the RAF Museum in Hendon, and Baroness Thatcher has been photographed with it.
But Bravo November, a remarkable Chinook helicopter which first saw service in the Falklands, is still going strong on the battlefields of Afghanistan.
The 18-year-old British soldiers boarding it in Helmand know only from a small brass plaque inside that this helicopter is a nearly decade older than they are - and it's still not ready for retirement.
Valiant veterans: A Chinook drops off British troops in Afghanistan
Bravo November - named after BN, its original identification tail number - is probably the most remarkable RAF aircraft of the last 30 years.
It won its first Distinguished Flying Cross for pilot Squadron Leader Dick Langworthy in May 1982, during the Falklands War, when it was only two months out of its packing crate at RAF Odiham, Hampshire.
It won its second DFC for pilot Sqn Ldr Steve Carr on the opening night of the Iraq War in 2003, and its third for pilot Flight Lieutenant Craig Wilson in Afghanistan in 2006.
Now officially known as ZA718, Bravo November still holds a world record for carrying the largest number of troops in a single flight.
'Bravo November is a hugely significant aeroplane to the RAF,' said retired Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Johns when he opened an exhibition honouring it at the RAF Museum on the 25th anniversary of the Falklands war.
'The RAF almost never singles out individual aircraft for tribute. But Bravo November is exceptional.'
But is its survival just down to luck? Certainly it seems to have been lucky in the Falklands.
It was away on a flight test when an Argentine Exocet missile sank its transport ship, the Atlantic Conveyor, along with all four of the other Chinooks on board, killing 12 sailors.
Bravo November went almost immediately into action after the first British troops landed on the Falklands, initially carrying 105mm guns to support SAS troops on Mount Kent who were under fire from Argentine artillery.
On a later mission it ran into a snowstorm on its way back to San Carlos Water.
The crew's night-vision goggles failed and the helicopter crashed into the sea at 100 knots. Water poured over its cockpit and the two engines started to 'flame out'.
Service record: Bravo November during the Falklands War against Argentina in 1982
But luck was with pilot Dick Langworthy and his co-pilot Andy Lawless. Their controls had been set to climb, and with the twin rotors flailing, the helicopter leapt into the air like a cork from a bottle.
Slightly damaged, and without spare parts or adequate lubricants, Bravo November managed to hold together for another vital two weeks, delivering troops and supplies wherever they were needed.
At one point Bravo November rushed into battle with 81 troops jammed inside. It was twice the normal maximum load - a feat that to this day stands as a record for a troop-carrying helicopter anywhere in the world.
By the time the Argentines surrendered, Bravo November had flown for 109 hours and carried 1,500 troops, 95 casualties, 550 prisoners of war and 550 tons of cargo.
War veteran: Bravo November today, the RAF's most famous aircraft
It also served in Northern Ireland, Lebanon, Germany and Kurdistan.
At the start of the second Gulf War in 2003, Bravo November took the first Royal Marines on to the Al-Faw peninsula to seize vital oil-pumping facilities. Any one of the five Chinooks on that first British attack could have led the way.
But either by luck, coincidence or the scheming of RAF engineers, the lead commander, Sqn Ldr Steve Carr, found himself flying Bravo November.
Three years later, on the night of June 11, 2006, Flt Lt Craig Wilson was captain of Bravo November in Helmand when he was ordered to recover a casualty at a landing site.
Even though he had done little night flying in the country, he flew at 150ft, made a precision landing and recovered the casualty.
A few hours later he was back on another evacuation mission, although this time he was forced to delay his landing while an Apache gunship suppressed enemy fire.
After this, despite having been on duty for 22 hours, Flt Lt Wilson volunteered to deliver reinforcements to threatened troops. He brought back two wounded soldiers, saving their lives. His actions earned him the DFC - Bravo November's third.
Curiously - or out of concern for ending Bravo November's 'luck' - no mention of this award was made at the Falklands 25th anniversary the next year.
And today, after many months of deep maintenance back in England, Bravo November is back in Afghanistan quietly doing its job - several times narrowly dodging Taliban bullets and rocket-propelled grenades.
'It just always seems to be there when you need it,' said Wing Commander Andy Naismith, former commanding officer of Bravo November's 18 Squadron. 'It never lets us down.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1200604/27-years-old-Chinook-Falklands-STILL-serving-Helmand.html#ixzz0LiXHeTKo
dailymail.co.uk
This is no actual airman, but a trusty old Chinook known as Bravo November.
It first saw action in the Falklands War in 1982, when it carried 105mm guns to support SAS troops on Mount Kent who were under fire from Argentine artillery.
On a later mission it ran into a snowstorm on its way back to San Carlos Water.
The helicopter crashed into the sea at 100 knots but, instead of smashing to smithereens, bounced out of the water and leapt back into the air.
Bravo November managed to hold together for another vital two weeks, delivering troops and supplies wherever they were needed.
At one point during that war, Bravo November rushed into battle with 81 British troops jammed inside. It was twice the normal maximum load - a feat that to this day stands as a record for a troop-carrying helicopter anywhere in the world.
Bravo November was able to continue flying and make a significant contribution to the British war effort, transporting 1,530 British troops, 600 tons of equipment and 650 Argentine POWs during the conflict (in total, the British took prisoner 11,313 Argentines, and the Argentines took prisoner 115 Brits).
Now, trusty old Bravo November is seeing action in Afghanistan, several times narrowly dodging Taliban bullets and rocket-propelled grenades.
The RAF has 48 Chinooks, the largest fleet of any military outside of the United States.
27 years old: the Chinook from the Falklands STILL serving in Helmand
By Peter Almond
18th July 2009
Daily Mail
It is an RAF legend - children scramble around a copy of it at the RAF Museum in Hendon, and Baroness Thatcher has been photographed with it.
But Bravo November, a remarkable Chinook helicopter which first saw service in the Falklands, is still going strong on the battlefields of Afghanistan.
The 18-year-old British soldiers boarding it in Helmand know only from a small brass plaque inside that this helicopter is a nearly decade older than they are - and it's still not ready for retirement.
Valiant veterans: A Chinook drops off British troops in Afghanistan
Bravo November - named after BN, its original identification tail number - is probably the most remarkable RAF aircraft of the last 30 years.
It won its first Distinguished Flying Cross for pilot Squadron Leader Dick Langworthy in May 1982, during the Falklands War, when it was only two months out of its packing crate at RAF Odiham, Hampshire.
It won its second DFC for pilot Sqn Ldr Steve Carr on the opening night of the Iraq War in 2003, and its third for pilot Flight Lieutenant Craig Wilson in Afghanistan in 2006.
Now officially known as ZA718, Bravo November still holds a world record for carrying the largest number of troops in a single flight.
'Bravo November is a hugely significant aeroplane to the RAF,' said retired Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Johns when he opened an exhibition honouring it at the RAF Museum on the 25th anniversary of the Falklands war.
'The RAF almost never singles out individual aircraft for tribute. But Bravo November is exceptional.'
But is its survival just down to luck? Certainly it seems to have been lucky in the Falklands.
It was away on a flight test when an Argentine Exocet missile sank its transport ship, the Atlantic Conveyor, along with all four of the other Chinooks on board, killing 12 sailors.
Bravo November went almost immediately into action after the first British troops landed on the Falklands, initially carrying 105mm guns to support SAS troops on Mount Kent who were under fire from Argentine artillery.
On a later mission it ran into a snowstorm on its way back to San Carlos Water.
The crew's night-vision goggles failed and the helicopter crashed into the sea at 100 knots. Water poured over its cockpit and the two engines started to 'flame out'.
Service record: Bravo November during the Falklands War against Argentina in 1982
But luck was with pilot Dick Langworthy and his co-pilot Andy Lawless. Their controls had been set to climb, and with the twin rotors flailing, the helicopter leapt into the air like a cork from a bottle.
Slightly damaged, and without spare parts or adequate lubricants, Bravo November managed to hold together for another vital two weeks, delivering troops and supplies wherever they were needed.
At one point Bravo November rushed into battle with 81 troops jammed inside. It was twice the normal maximum load - a feat that to this day stands as a record for a troop-carrying helicopter anywhere in the world.
By the time the Argentines surrendered, Bravo November had flown for 109 hours and carried 1,500 troops, 95 casualties, 550 prisoners of war and 550 tons of cargo.
War veteran: Bravo November today, the RAF's most famous aircraft
It also served in Northern Ireland, Lebanon, Germany and Kurdistan.
At the start of the second Gulf War in 2003, Bravo November took the first Royal Marines on to the Al-Faw peninsula to seize vital oil-pumping facilities. Any one of the five Chinooks on that first British attack could have led the way.
But either by luck, coincidence or the scheming of RAF engineers, the lead commander, Sqn Ldr Steve Carr, found himself flying Bravo November.
Three years later, on the night of June 11, 2006, Flt Lt Craig Wilson was captain of Bravo November in Helmand when he was ordered to recover a casualty at a landing site.
Even though he had done little night flying in the country, he flew at 150ft, made a precision landing and recovered the casualty.
A few hours later he was back on another evacuation mission, although this time he was forced to delay his landing while an Apache gunship suppressed enemy fire.
After this, despite having been on duty for 22 hours, Flt Lt Wilson volunteered to deliver reinforcements to threatened troops. He brought back two wounded soldiers, saving their lives. His actions earned him the DFC - Bravo November's third.
Curiously - or out of concern for ending Bravo November's 'luck' - no mention of this award was made at the Falklands 25th anniversary the next year.
And today, after many months of deep maintenance back in England, Bravo November is back in Afghanistan quietly doing its job - several times narrowly dodging Taliban bullets and rocket-propelled grenades.
'It just always seems to be there when you need it,' said Wing Commander Andy Naismith, former commanding officer of Bravo November's 18 Squadron. 'It never lets us down.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1200604/27-years-old-Chinook-Falklands-STILL-serving-Helmand.html#ixzz0LiXHeTKo
dailymail.co.uk
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