RAF Thorney Island and HMS ?

[hobby]

In days of yore can anyone please tell me which runway ILS was fitted to at this airfield?

Because 3wire kept disconnecting itself from my FS9 setup I am using rcbco-20 and have set up a practice arrester wire area on rnwy 29. Using the Seamew I have spent the afternoon flying ccts and arrested landings at TI.
When practicing arrested landings on dry land were FAA stations so equipped also equipped with practice catapult launching gear? If so, was that kit ever used to launch Gannets/Seahawks or Skyraiders or was that only used for Sea Tigers/Walruses/Fairey spotter aircraft. I think I recall a picture of an RN cruiser using a girder like structure powered by cordite(?) to launch a spotter acft in the film 'The Battle of the River Plate.'

For those who served in the RN and FAA what was the naval name (HMS ?) for Thorney Island? Not HMS Troutbridge surely!!!

[Rick Piper]

Hi Hobby

As far as i can tell & Remember it was just RAF Thorney Island & possibly RAF Whitwell in WWII.

Not aware of an HMS "" for her.

I have an accurate AFCAD for FSX part built for Thorney that matches the Horizon Generation X layout (ie:current layout) runways,taxyways & aprons with later hardstanding dispersals.

it just needs some objects placing really.

Regards
Rick

found this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ai ... Royal_Navy

RNAS Lee-on-Solent/HMS Daedalus

RNAS Gosport/HMS Siskin

RNAS Worthy Down/HMS Kestrel

RNAS Eastleigh/HMS Raven

RNAS Ford/HMS Peregrine

RNAS Hinstock/HMS Godwit

RNAS Yeovilton/HMS Heron

RNAS St Merryn/HMS Vulture

RNAS Zeal/HMS Humming Bird

RNAS Henstridge/HMS Dipper

RNAS Dale/HMS Goldcrest

RNAS Burscough/Ringtail

RNAS Ronaldsay/Urley

RNAS Inskip/HMS Nightjar

RNAS Woodvale/Ringtail II

RNAS Eglinton/HMS Gannet

RNAS Maydown/HMS Shrike

RNAS Machrihanish/HMS Landrail

RNAS Abbotsinch/HMS Sanderling

RNAS Ayr/HMS Wagtail

RNAS Hatston/HMS Sparrowhawk

RNAS Rattray/HMS Merganser

RNAS Donibristle/HMS Merlin

RNAS Crail/HMS Jackdaw

RNAS East Haven/HMS Peewit

RNAS Drem/HMS Nighthawk

RNAS Arbroath/HMS Condor

[DaveB]

Hi Hobby..

Missing off that list of Rick's is of course RNAS Culdrose/HMS Seahawk but that doesn't help you with any possible name for an RN Establishment at Thorney Island. I can't imagine Troutbridge being a viable name as from the list Rick produced, you can see that RN Air Stations tend to have 'Birds' names for the 'barracks/admin' side (almost without exception) and I've never come across a 'Troutbridge' bird. I did say 'almost' without exception so you never know :think:

EDIT..
Hobby, after doing a little more research on the subject.. I'm not completely sure that the RN squadrons at RAF Thorney Island would have had their own 'HMS' as the detachment was relatively short lived (Dunkirk to D-Day) and they were under the direct auspice of RAF Coastal Command. What I've found is by no means conclusive but likewise, I can find no record thus far if a bonafide RN Establishment there as the station was under the command of the RAF from the day it opened to the day it closed. All station CO's were GpCapt's.
ATB

DaveB :tab:

[hobby]

For Rick:
Many thanks for your notification of the AFCAD for FSX. I still run FS9 only nad spent a lot of yesterday trying to produce an AFCAD2 for Thorney Island. I am not sure if your AFCAD for FSX would work in FS9.

What a wonderful list of Naval Air Stations Rick, thank you so much.

For Dave B:

The RAF Station badge for Thorney Island seems to have a bird which might be a Lapwing or perhaps a wading bird - wonder if the FAA detachment ever privately called RAF TI "HMS (?)". I cannot see any matelot being happy without having a 'ship' to call his own.

"HMS Troutbridge" last heard of 'up the creek' with Leslie Phillips, and the rest of the radio cast of the 'Navy Lark' over 50 years ago.

Thank you both for your research.

Comments on shorebound practice arrestors and catapults would be welcome.

[hobby]

Searching in my heraldic book collection I see that the station badge of RAF Thorney Island contains a lapwing on abase of thorn branches the sation motto being "Fly to Assist." The station badge weems to have been awarded in 1971.

[Rick Piper]

Hi Hobby

I have a load of "Navy Lark" mp3's that Dave B kindly sent me.

"Commander Povey's Launch spotted sir"
"Permission to start gunnery practise!"

lol

I will dig out the Afcad 2 version when i find where i hid it.

note there is no traffic or scenery objects just the ground areas made ;-)

Regards
Rick

Edit: here is the file http://rickpiper.cbfsim.org/files/ThorneyIsRP.zip

extract to your addon scenery folder and add to your scenery.cfg through the FS9 menus
Note there are 2 files

the AF2 file and a cvx flatten (can't remember if that is needed for FS9 but it works in FSX)

but the AF2 is fine in FS9 as i am still making the AFX one here

[DaveB]

"HMS Troutbridge" last heard of 'up the creek' with Leslie Phillips

You know.. I knew I'd heard that name somewhere before and the penny didn't drop

I know what you mean about the lack of HMS to seek refuge under but this did (and does) happen under certain circumstances. The RN contingent will have a CO and admin staff but will mess and function alongside the other service/s. I'm sure that at the time.. the RN may well have 'unofficially' called it HMS Thorney Island

I'll see what I can dig up on shorebound cats and arrestors ;-)

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[hobby]

Thanks Rick for the afcad.

Now to another ship. At lasty I stumbled on the fact that there are two Ark Royal 4 zips for FS2004. I had the older version by an American team in just one location - the Straits of Gibraltar. This seemed a very simple model and I spent abit of time practicing cat shots and arrester landings,

Then, later this afternoon I discovered the HMS Ark Royal with the four locations, Florida, Devon, Gib and Norway. A really good looking model in the jpgs BUT! When selected I arrive 'tween decks! Using slew I get above the deck which seem to have no substance and I fall through. Using 'slew' again I rise above the ship to find the flight deck on top of asteep cliff made of water with flat sea all around. Approach is OK but wheels go right through the deck on touchdown. What can the matter be? More importantly - is there asolution? Help needed. Glug! Glug! Eject!!!

[DaveB]

Hi Hobby,

The Ark Royal IV you mention, the last one, is the best one out there but.. it takes a deal of care with the install for it to work correctly. It was the teams first attempt so they put it together the best way they knew. Some folk never not it to work (Bridon Bear being one that springs immediately to mind) and this after I'd sent him the exact files and file structure I had here. It sounds that you have a problem with the OF files (Ocean Flatten). As a starter.. try rebooting your flightsim and trying again (this often works). Alternatively, try flying 'to' one of the Arks rather than starting a situation from it (this can also sort out a level problem though for the life of me, I don't know why). Make sure that the OF files you added in 'Add Scenery' are above the other Ark files too otherwise it won't work.

Having checked all of these work and you find it still doesn't work.. go back to square one and read through the readme file.. carefully adding areas as instructed. You should eventually end up with 4 fully functional Ark Royal IV's ;-) You will see inside the zip that there are alternative Ark versions.. one without aircraft on deck and one with aircraft on deck. There is no reason why you shouldn't mix and match which ones you want but I'd make sure you get at least one working as prescribed before you start fiddling. Note also that there is a fix available at the usual sites which corrects a 'Crash' issue on some systems.

When this happy occassion comes.. you'll find that if you fly 'to' Ark, you won't see the deck/approach lights working. I'm not completely sure why this happens but if you start a flight 'from' Ark, all lighting works fine ;-)

On the subject of cat's and arrestors shoreside..
I honestly don't think the RN had them James. They'd have been rigged up at places like Boscombe Down for trial purposes but from what I can remember, the first time a pilot used an arrestor wire was when he landed onboard for the first time.. likewise his first experience with a cat would have been onboard ship. I'm not 100% sure of this but more than reasonably confident In latter years, there used to be a mock 'Ski Jump' at Yeovilton for SHAR pilots to practise on but I can find nothing or remember anything to suggest the FAA had 'live' cats and arrestors shoreside for the same use.

ATB

DaveB :tab:

[simondix]

Did RNAS Lossiemouth get missed on the list. It was HMS. Fulmar.