Kindly submitted by Sgt. D R Bishop who was based at RAF Binbrook from August 1986 to July 1988
On Q with Binbrook Air Traffic
So what qualifies me to write about being on QRA from an Air Traffic point of view, how about being an Air Traffic Controller at Binbrook during the period 1986 to 1988 for starters and during my service career, the following adds a bit more gravitas, being on Q with No 8 squadron on AEW Shackleton’s, Northern Q with Phantoms from 43 and 111 squadron out of Leuchars, Q with 101 squadron VC10 tankers out of Brize Norton and off course Southern Q with the English Electric Lightning’s of No 5 and 11 squadron’s RAF Binbrook, how many people can write that?
On Q with Air Traffic, was similar for each Squadron involved and those techies detailed to do it, except we only did it once during the two week stint, on the Wednesday going onto Q the usual panic started within Air Traffic of getting the confidential codes sorted out. I won’t go too much into that as they probably use the same system now! The night shift working that week started off Q, when normal night flying was finished for the evening, one Local (Visual Control Room) qualified controller and one assistant remained behind, with one approach/director qualified controller on call for when the aircraft recovered.
I never did a night on Q, I always seemed to pull a Saturday duty, twenty four hours stuck in the tower, so let’s concentrate on this and give you an insight to the only time the USSR had the damn cheek to penetrate UK airspace when I was working.
The shift started at 0800 and relieving the off going controller, he or she would give me two briefings, one on the state of the airfield and the other being the state of Q and what readiness they were on. Up to local and sign on as having taken over the watch and then back down for the 0800 briefing over the secure communication lines.
Briefing over, it was time to pop down to the Met Office for the weather brief along with one of the pilots who was on Q for the next twenty four hours, I was only really interested in the forecast wind, one to choose the duty runway and two, was it safe for 03 departures. Briefing over I collect the rover keys and ask the assistant to man local while I am out and about doing the airfield inspection, slightly different inspection this morning as I stop on the 26 threshold piano keys, I ask the assistant to raise and lower the barrier, even though I know ground equipment technicians will be out later to do there little bit, I need to confirm its operation, blat down the active instead of turning off and onto the taxiway back to Air Traffic, I turn right and have a look at the Q taxiway to ensure everything is okay down there and pop into the pilots crew room to say hello and to let them know that me and Flt Lt. So and So are on duty today, and ask if they have any particular scramble requirements should they go?
All done and back up to local to start my VCR checks and all appears to be serviceable, as we are on Q a double check of the very pistols, the reason for that I’ll mention later, all complete and I add that information to my airfield log book, then downstairs to check the radar, but as Ground Radar are in doing their DI’s, I ask them if it is all okay? They would like to do some maintenance today on various bits and I ask them to call me before starting, just in case Q gets scrambled!
Then with all the frequencies patched through to the Switchboard room, I join the assistant and confirm that the Radar controller has checked in and we discuss what videos we have to watch and when we shall watch them, the decisions we have to make! Today my assistant is Rudy, well that’s my nickname for him, local lad and a good assistant. The vids today are two I have not seen, ‘Weird Science’ and ‘Highlander’, we decide to watch ‘Weird Science’ in the afternoon and ‘Highlander’ during our loosely termed dinner.
In the afternoon we start to get some updates from Boulmer of possible activity later, that would be nice for a change, as when it has been my turn for being on standby for Q these last eighteen months, I never had a scramble once, have been up to cockpit readiness, but no scramble.
Now it is evening and pitch black outside and time for me to do another airfield inspection, this time the Night Inspection, which consists mainly of checking the airfield lights. Back in the tower and it is up to Local for me to check airfield light settings etc, the only lights I leave on are the taxiway lights from the Q shed to 03 threshold for the Q aircraft if needed for a scramble. I then stick little cardboard disks over the equipment I have to switch or turn on, if we get a scramble that way I cannot make any mistakes.
Watching Match of the Day, we get the scramble, it is the fastest you will ever see a controller move! Up to local I go, main lights for the VCR are switched on so I can see what I am doing, then I remove the numbered disks in order, first the runway lights switched on, obstruction lights on and that is that for the lights. Visual check of the runway, I can hardly see anything anyway but habits cannot be changed. Then remove the disks for the barrier and raise the 26 threshold barrier. I then check the surface wind and cross wind resolver and everything is within limits.
Hive of activity down the Q sheds, buzz through to Waddington approach to see if they have any conflicting traffic, nothing at all to conflict. Traffic lights on red, no one is one the airfield, buzz down to the fire section to inform them Q is being scrambled, just over three minutes from scramble, the Lightning is fast taxiing out, seconds under four minutes and airborne. Not bad as the they have to get airborne in five minutes from a standing or sleeping start. Buzz down to the assistant that Q is airborne and make a log entry of the departure time in the movements log and my own log.
All departures are silent, I switch off the bi directional lights leaving the omni directional lights on for the next fifteen minutes, switching frequencies I hear Q1 has declared himself serviceable and Q2 is stood-down to 10 minute readiness.
Going downstairs I confirm with Rudy that the radar controller is on her way in. A couple of hours later, Q1 is recovering for Runway 21 and up to local again. I switch on the approach lights and the runway lights for 21, I slowly move the intensity of all the lights up to max and slowly back down again, the aircraft saw the lights at a range of 60 miles.
With Q1 calling finals to land, up with the binoculars to see if I can pick up a good ‘chute and I call it. As the aircraft calls clear of the active he reports ‘one in the can’, which we know as, he has intercepted a zombie and the information is passed around.
Needless to say, on hearing the aircraft touch down, my lovely approach controller left the tower quicker than I made it up to local.
When the aircraft has safely shut down, I then switch all the airfield lights off bar the obstructions lights, as someone was forgetful in leaving them off today!
On Q with Air Traffic, was similar for each Squadron involved and those techies detailed to do it, except we only did it once during the two week stint, on the Wednesday going onto Q the usual panic started within Air Traffic of getting the confidential codes sorted out. I won’t go too much into that as they probably use the same system now! The night shift working that week started off Q, when normal night flying was finished for the evening, one Local (Visual Control Room) qualified controller and one assistant remained behind, with one approach/director qualified controller on call for when the aircraft recovered.
I never did a night on Q, I always seemed to pull a Saturday duty, twenty four hours stuck in the tower, so let’s concentrate on this and give you an insight to the only time the USSR had the damn cheek to penetrate UK airspace when I was working.
The shift started at 0800 and relieving the off going controller, he or she would give me two briefings, one on the state of the airfield and the other being the state of Q and what readiness they were on. Up to local and sign on as having taken over the watch and then back down for the 0800 briefing over the secure communication lines.
Briefing over, it was time to pop down to the Met Office for the weather brief along with one of the pilots who was on Q for the next twenty four hours, I was only really interested in the forecast wind, one to choose the duty runway and two, was it safe for 03 departures. Briefing over I collect the rover keys and ask the assistant to man local while I am out and about doing the airfield inspection, slightly different inspection this morning as I stop on the 26 threshold piano keys, I ask the assistant to raise and lower the barrier, even though I know ground equipment technicians will be out later to do there little bit, I need to confirm its operation, blat down the active instead of turning off and onto the taxiway back to Air Traffic, I turn right and have a look at the Q taxiway to ensure everything is okay down there and pop into the pilots crew room to say hello and to let them know that me and Flt Lt. So and So are on duty today, and ask if they have any particular scramble requirements should they go?
All done and back up to local to start my VCR checks and all appears to be serviceable, as we are on Q a double check of the very pistols, the reason for that I’ll mention later, all complete and I add that information to my airfield log book, then downstairs to check the radar, but as Ground Radar are in doing their DI’s, I ask them if it is all okay? They would like to do some maintenance today on various bits and I ask them to call me before starting, just in case Q gets scrambled!
Then with all the frequencies patched through to the Switchboard room, I join the assistant and confirm that the Radar controller has checked in and we discuss what videos we have to watch and when we shall watch them, the decisions we have to make! Today my assistant is Rudy, well that’s my nickname for him, local lad and a good assistant. The vids today are two I have not seen, ‘Weird Science’ and ‘Highlander’, we decide to watch ‘Weird Science’ in the afternoon and ‘Highlander’ during our loosely termed dinner.
In the afternoon we start to get some updates from Boulmer of possible activity later, that would be nice for a change, as when it has been my turn for being on standby for Q these last eighteen months, I never had a scramble once, have been up to cockpit readiness, but no scramble.
Now it is evening and pitch black outside and time for me to do another airfield inspection, this time the Night Inspection, which consists mainly of checking the airfield lights. Back in the tower and it is up to Local for me to check airfield light settings etc, the only lights I leave on are the taxiway lights from the Q shed to 03 threshold for the Q aircraft if needed for a scramble. I then stick little cardboard disks over the equipment I have to switch or turn on, if we get a scramble that way I cannot make any mistakes.
Watching Match of the Day, we get the scramble, it is the fastest you will ever see a controller move! Up to local I go, main lights for the VCR are switched on so I can see what I am doing, then I remove the numbered disks in order, first the runway lights switched on, obstruction lights on and that is that for the lights. Visual check of the runway, I can hardly see anything anyway but habits cannot be changed. Then remove the disks for the barrier and raise the 26 threshold barrier. I then check the surface wind and cross wind resolver and everything is within limits.
Hive of activity down the Q sheds, buzz through to Waddington approach to see if they have any conflicting traffic, nothing at all to conflict. Traffic lights on red, no one is one the airfield, buzz down to the fire section to inform them Q is being scrambled, just over three minutes from scramble, the Lightning is fast taxiing out, seconds under four minutes and airborne. Not bad as the they have to get airborne in five minutes from a standing or sleeping start. Buzz down to the assistant that Q is airborne and make a log entry of the departure time in the movements log and my own log.
All departures are silent, I switch off the bi directional lights leaving the omni directional lights on for the next fifteen minutes, switching frequencies I hear Q1 has declared himself serviceable and Q2 is stood-down to 10 minute readiness.
Going downstairs I confirm with Rudy that the radar controller is on her way in. A couple of hours later, Q1 is recovering for Runway 21 and up to local again. I switch on the approach lights and the runway lights for 21, I slowly move the intensity of all the lights up to max and slowly back down again, the aircraft saw the lights at a range of 60 miles.
With Q1 calling finals to land, up with the binoculars to see if I can pick up a good ‘chute and I call it. As the aircraft calls clear of the active he reports ‘one in the can’, which we know as, he has intercepted a zombie and the information is passed around.
Needless to say, on hearing the aircraft touch down, my lovely approach controller left the tower quicker than I made it up to local.
When the aircraft has safely shut down, I then switch all the airfield lights off bar the obstructions lights, as someone was forgetful in leaving them off today!