31st March 1976

RRR 3319 47n 40w 19:08 F190 50n 30w 20:36 52n 20w 21:59 ETA EGVN/Brize Norton 23:50 outside temp' -30°C, wind 320/20, SelCal CGAJ

Royal Air Force, Shorts Belfast C.1, XR366

23rd March 1976

GULL 07 50n 20w 17:07 F280 50n 25w 17:54 50n 30w next

USAF, WC-130H from 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, 65-0968 (departed from RAF Mildenhall)

[Photo: departing Davis Monthan AFB © James O'Rear]

20th March 1976

SAM 24126 58n 20w 10:01 F310 59n 30w 10:42 endurance 09+00, wind 190/50 at 57n 15w

USAF (Special Air Mission), C-135B, 89th MAW, 62-4126

VV FI34 departed LFTW/Nimes Garons 10:55 F240 60n 10w 15:00 61n 12.40w 15:18 LIMA 15:52 ETA BIKF/Keflavik 16:10

U S Navy (type?)

19th March 1976

JM 262 departed Rota NAS 08:00 37n 10w 08:42 F220 38n 15w 09:36 BRAVO 11:23, ETA Lajes 11:42

USMC, C-130

KING 81 60n 10w 08:49 F250 STN/Stornoway 09:19 now in contact with Scottish Airways on VHF, request the RAF Woodbridge weather for 11:40

USAF, HC-130

17th March 1976

KING 85 48n 10w 10:32 F260 45n 15w 11:39 ETA Lajes 14:45 endurance 10+13, wind 250/50 at 49n 08w, we require 50,000 lbs of fuel on landing. Also required is accommodation for four officers, and six enlisted personnel and transport on arrival. We are due to depart Lajes on the 18th. The current 'active' runway is 34 at Lajes.

USAF, HC-130 (copied on 6750)

7th March 1976

USAF Fighter Deployment - 'Coronet Rally'

I commenced monitoring this exercise early on Sunday morning, when I copied SPURT 51/52/53/54 at 39.52n 55w 09:15 blocking F270/290 40n 50w 10:10 40n 40w 10:35 LIMA at 39.30n 21.46w 11:17

This was the first wave of 12, KC-135 tankers that had departed from Pease AFB, New Hampshire at 05:35 to rendezvous with 17, RF-4C's. These Phantoms from the 363TRW/62TRS, were routing from Shaw AFB, South Carolina to RAF Alconbury, UK for a deployment until the 24th March. The other eight tankers were calling SPURT 61/62/63/64/71/72/76 & 77.

They had established their HF flight guard with MacDill Airways (HQ of Strike Command, Florida) on frequency 6750 upper, when they joined up with the F-4's, callsign's FEWER 11-16, 21-26 and 31-36, blocking F270/290.

The Stateside based tankers escorted the FEWER flight to the ARCP at 39.05n 29.15w where they climbed to F390 for the return leg to Pease AFB. At this point the refuelling task was taken over by another 12, KC-135's from Torrejon, Spain, using call-sign's LINZ 56/57/58/59/66/67/68/69/76/77/78 & 79.

After these tankers had completed their refuelling tasks, nine returned to Torrejon, via Santiago, blocking F270/280.

For the initial part of this deployment, 'duckbutt' (air sea rescue) cover was provided by KING 58, a HC-130 at F210, which subsequently routed into Lajes, Azores. From 41.15n 23.01w this essential cover was provided by another HC-130, call-sign KING89, which had departed RAF Bentwaters at 06:45 (its normal base of RAF Woodbridge being closed due to runway repairs), routing out at F220. It reached this rendezvous point at 11:05, where it remained in orbit 'till 14:00 (now at F240) when it joined up with the inbound KC-135's and F-4's for the return leg. It's ETA back to Bentwaters was 17:45. The KING 89 relayed traffic back to Woodbridge Rescue via 'phone patch on 11226 Upper (HF).

On approaching 49n 08w the flight of remaining tankers and fighters called London Military on 293.0 UHF and routed in via Lands End to RAF Alconbury, where the first F-4 touched down at 15:12.

This operation had taken over 12 hours to complete, over half of which the author had monitored on various HF frequencies, 5688, 6750, 8967, 8989, 11226

For the record, the RF-4C's involved were 65-0936, 65-0937, 65-0938, 65-0942, 66-0419, 66-0427, 66-0455, 66-0460, 66-0461, 67-0430, 67-0456, 67-0457, 67-0461, 68-0576, 72-0145, 72-0147 and 72-0149. The tankers and Hercules remain unidentified.

6th March 1976

[A good day for Boeing 707's !]

Shamrock 6862 48n 10w 11:53 F350 45n 11w 12:20 40n 12w 13:21 SelCal CHJM

[Photo: at London, Heathrow, UK in September 1979 © Richard Vandervord]

Aer Lingus, B.707-348C, EI-ANO en route from Dublin to Tenerife

BW 901 49n 08w 12:03 F280 47n 15w 12:45 ETA Barbados 19:40, SelCal FMKL

[Photo: at Port of Spain, Trinidad on 10th January 1980 © Richard Vandervord]

British West Indian Airways, B.707-351C, 9Y-TEK

CS-TBI 41n 20w 00:54 F350 43n 30w 02:07 43n 40w 03:14 Mach .80

[Photo: at London, Heathrow in 1973 © Charlie Stewart]

Air Portugal, B.707-399, CS-TBI

SA 210 34.04n 60w 01:26 F330 29.50n 50w 03:26 ETA GVAC/Sal, Cap-Vert 06:50, endurance 07+43, outside temp' -51°C, wind 295/20, Mach .80, SelCal FJAK

South African Airways, B.707-344, ZS-SAD 'Bloemfontein'

Shamrock 115 55n 40w 17:21 F340 52n 50w 18:22, SelCal BLAC, at 50w call Gander on 127.1 VHF

[Photo: at Shannon in April 1981 © Fergal Goodman]

Aer Lingus, B.707-348C, EI-APG 'St. Senan'

OO-SJD 58n 20w 17:03 F350 58n 30w 17:46 at 30w call 8910

Sabena, B.707-329, OO-SJD