Page 115 - Demo

115pilots were enthusiastic but very short of flying hours and experience. None of the Strikemasters had been flown for months, the only operational jet aircraft being some F85s, supplied by the USA with appropriate technical assistance, and some Hawks. An ongoing dispute with BAe over bill payment restricted Hawk serviceability and no Hawk air8to8air firing had been carried out for more than three years, but it was arranged for our benefit, with predictably mixed results. The services of our co8opted QWI were very much in demand. The predominant colour scheme for everything from uniforms to the painting of the base main gates was a mixture of black and pastel pink. When I remarked on this odd combination of colours to an ex8pat wild life ranger at a social event, he replied that %u2018those are the colours the Masai make their traitors wear!%u2019 The Army%u2019s tribal make up was predominantly Masai, whilst the 82 Air Force was mainly Kikuyu, and the two tribal cultures never mixed. We rose greatly in the 82 Air Force%u2019s estimation when my multi8engine examiner got involved in a major search and rescue operation in the wilds of the north of Kenya, so at the end of the day the visit was deemed to have been very successful, but I often wonder what state the 82 Air Force of Kenya is in today. There was still time on most of these visits to enjoy some local culture and entertainment, even the Singaporeans didn%u2019t fly all 24 hours of the day. Touring a game reserve in Kenya and bestriding the equator, driving in the sand dunes of Dubai, snorkelling off the coast of Oman and visiting Petra are just some of the memories I have. Another type of overseas visit undertaken by CFS worth mentioning is the Commandant%u2019s Liaison Visit. Every year the Commandant would take a small team of instructors, usually numbering no more than five, on a visit to an overseas air force to discuss matters of mutual interest. The visit would be by invitation and tended to come mainly from Commonwealth nations although visits to other countries, such as the USA, Finland and Switzerland were typical. In 1987, when the Swiss Air Force announced that it was ordering the BAe Hawk as its new advanced trainer, the Commandant was invited to Switzerland to meet the Swiss Air Force and brief its senior staff on the RAF%u2019s experience with the Hawk. Accompanying him were myself, my fast jet examiner (ex8Harrier), a member of staff