Cycle Ride John o Groats to Lands End
Jerry Williams (Bungy) and his youngest son who is 15 years
old, will cycle from John O Groats to Lands End. They are planning to
complete the ride in 12 days, and will do so unsupported, a total distance
of just under 1000 miles. Their chosen charities are the Royal British Legion
and Little Hearts Matter. For further information please check out Bungies
Blog http://jjbikeride.blogspot.com/ and
to donate go to
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/jjbikeride
Steve Huxley - MBE!
Congratulations to Steve Huxley on being awarded the MBE
ACA Constitution
To view the ACA Constitution click here.
Annual Report
The Annual report is now available to view , please click here.
KB Kentsbeer
We regret to report that Bob Kentsbeer (KB) died peacefully in his sleep on Friday 16 April.
ACA 2010 Photos added to the Gallery 13/04/10
Clive Taylor (Ex SAR Diver Lee-on-Solent)
We have received a request from Clive's Wife Madelen.
Clive is not very well and now living in a Nursing Home in Havant, Madelen has asked if anyone who knows Clive could they spare five minutes and give him a call or better still if you are in the Portsmouth / Havent area could you drop in and see him?
Update from Ray Higginson after a resent visit (May 2010) his wife is thrilled that he is getting visits from our membership please keep up the good work.
ACA Forum
Please use the ACA Forum to leave your comments
KB Kentsbeer
At 11:00 on Wednesday 21 July there will be a small service at Culdrose to
celebrate the life of ex WOACMN Bob (KB) Kentsbeer.
By kind permission of Cdr Jason Phillips RN, KB's ashes will be then be scattered
locally at sea from a 820 Squadron Merlin.
Sox Glover in conjunction with Joy, KB's widow and the MOD will be liaising
and all friends and ex-colleagues of KB are welcome to attend. They are requested
to contact him direct on 01326-575525 before 16 July.
About us
Although not always known as Aircrewmen, we have been around for longer than many realise.
During the second World War the first generation were called 'Telegraphist Air Gunners' (TAG's). They flew in the rear seats of Fairey Swordfish and other similar aircraft performing the navigation, communication and air-gunner roles, and took part in all the major Fleet Air Arm skirmishes during WW2.
Soon
after the war, the helicopter hovered onto the scene, and as the versatility
of this new aircraft became apparent, so men from the various branches were
'loaned' to become Rating Aircrew, and carry out the wide variety of tasks
that the role demanded.
During this period TAG's and Aircrewmen, and more recently Women, have served with distinction, many of who's service has been recognised with numerous decorations for gallantry and distinguished service.
Membership
Membership is open to all Royal Navy, Fleet Air Arm Serving, and ex Rating Aircrew, Telegraphist Air Gunner's (TAG'S)
The ACA Committee Meeting Weekend
Will be held on the 10th/11th September
at Yeovilton.
I have arranged a Dinning in night at the WO and S/Rs Mess with Brigadier
Mark Noble OC RNAS Yeovilton as the guest speaker. Cost will be around
£30, but to be confirmed nearer the date. Dress will be Black Tie/Mess Kit
and long dresses
I have asked if anyone coming down as a singleton can stay in the mess, accommodation
is short, but an answer again will be given nearer the time.
Accommodation is available in the Travel Lodge at the Podimore Roundabout
at £32 per room, per night, a short drive from the camp and also in several
hotels in Ilchester, the Northover and Ilchester Arms.
I have spoken to Stu Rainsbury about a visit to the Museum and he will sort
us out with that for a small fee.
A maximum attendance would be nice, as I have asked for 30 places at present,
but that can be increased. Any one from the ACA is welcome, this is not just
for the Comittee, but please let me know early so I can book you all into
the camp
If you want to come, I suggest you try and arrange accommodation early, either
with someone local or at a hotel to avoid disappointment.
If you are coming, please either call or e-mail me, with numbers and where
you are staying.
Payment would be prior to the event, but again I will let you know early
Many thanks
John Sheldon
LAUGHING KITBAGS
LAUGHING KITBAGS is due for release very soon. There will be a piece in the Western Gazette newspaper for everyone to read living down in Somerset. There will also be a `book signing` session in Waterstones bookstore in Yeovil on a Saturday (date to be confirmed). There is also a book launch evening (date to be confirmed) in `The Old Barn Club` Yeovil...this will probably be the same Saturday as the book signing.
I am in the process of setting up my web page to make it easy for you guys out there to order your copy. I’m also in touch with the Navy News and the Sun newspaper as a percentage of every book will go to Help4Heroes.
Calling all ex-matelots......be you aircrew, bombhead, chockhead (sorry, fire tech), writer, chef, stoker, weapons, etc, etc and especially my friends The Regulators.
I’m requesting to you all that you put info on your relevant association web pages about `Laughing Kitbags`.....I only wrote it for a laugh but it is now serious and has gone manic so bo****ks.....lets go for it :-)
Ian Ditch (Junglie Engineer) ian.ditch@talktalk.net
Remembrance Sunday 7th November 2009
We had a great turn out, with 26 ACA members marching at the Cenotaph.
If you wish to march this year, book early with John Sheldon as we only have 30 places and they are likely to go quickly, on a first come first served bases.
Ray Flys our Standard at St Pauls
For more pictures and detail of what Ray got up to click here.
Did you know you can get discount?
Check out the Forces Discount site
As a member of the Defence Community, you can enjoy FREE membership of the Defence Discount Directory. Gain access to hundreds of special services, deals and discounts.
The Defence Community comprises active members of the Royal Navy, Army, RAF, Royal Marines, Civil Service, Territorial Army; as well as Reservists, Veterans and Partners.
Rescue 194:
The Incredible Story of the Rescue of the Crew of the MSC Napoli
by the Man Who Saved Them
Authors: O'Donnell
Jay January 2007, and the TV news
bulletins are full of reports of a Whisky Galore story of high-performance
motorbikes and other goods washed up on a south coast beach. Thousands of people
turned up to see what they could scavenge. But what got lost in the heady free-for-all
was the fate of the ship that had been the source of all the treasure: the
British-registered MSC Napoli …
Rolling in across the Atlantic was the fiercest storm to rock the British Isles for decades. The European Windstorm 'Kyrill' would go on to claim nearly fifty lives by the time it blew itself out, eleven casualties in Britain alone.
Aboard the MSC Napoli a crew of twenty-six feared they might be added to that list. Their ship, holed beneath the waterline where the hull had cracked, had to be abandoned and the crew ordered into their lifeboat by the captain. There, sweltering inside their survival suits, and riding out waves rising higher than forty feet, they waited for rescue.
That was when the alert crews of 771 Naval Air Squadron were scrambled. Within minutes of receiving the distress signal, two Sea King helicopters, Rescue 193 and Rescue 194, took off from their airbase in Cornwall, turned into the wind, and battled their way through the ferocious weather towards the survivors.
Although he was supposed to have finished work for the day, Petty Officer Aircrewman Jay O'Donnell jumped on board Rescue 194 in case he could help. For O'Donnell was a graduate of one of the most arduous and demanding training programmes the British Armed Forces had to offer: he was a Royal Navy Search and Rescue Diver.
Over the hours that followed, in appalling conditions, he would be tested to the limit and beyond . . . In Rescue 194, O'Donnell tells the extraordinary inside story of the rescue of the crew of the Napoli for the first time. It's a gripping tale of disaster at sea, the power of the elements and, above all, of the skill, courage and determination that saw the helicopter crews earn awards for their bravery that day – and for Jay O'Donnell to be decorated by the Queen for gallantry.
New Book "Special Forces Pilot"
Richard Hutchings, who served throughout the Falklands war with
846 Naval Air Squadron flying Sea King helicopters, has waited over twenty-five
years to tell his story.
The sensitive nature of his experiences not only made this a sensible course but today provides the reader with some fascinating insights into the conduct of operations.
Dick Hutchings’ role was to insert Special Force units onto the enemy occupied islands either to gather intelligence or conduct offensive operations, such as the SAS’s sensationally successful Pebble Island raid. Without doubt the most dramatic task he undertook was the ambitious but ill- fated SAS raid into mainland Argentina.
Operation MIKADO, as it was known, has been little discussed but, as Captain of the Sea King involved, the author gives a first-hand account of what went wrong both in the air and on the ground. He describes the circumstances leading up to the crash-landing and destruction of his helicopter, encounters with the Chilean authorities and British diplomats in Santiago as well as the debriefing in an M16 safe house on return to the UK.
As well as being the fullest description of Operation MIKADO Special Forces Pilot is a gripping account of the War from the flying and SF angles.
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