The Night Mail

[Winslow Boy]

8 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

They may have been small, but they were very well formed  (I can't find a condescending grovel emoji.)

I think a representation of your good self would be applicable there. Don't you think.

[Happy Hippo]

11 hours ago, Dave Hunt said:

 

The pressurisation in a fighter cockpit keeps the pressure at the equivalent of half the actual height plus 2,000 ft., i.e., at 30,000ft the cockpit pressure is effectively at 17,000ft. Above 10,000ft cockpit altitude the pilot is given gradually increasing oxygen enrichment until at 20,000ft cockpit - 36,000 ft actual - he is on 100% oxygen and then pressure breathing starts, the overpressure gradually increasing as further altitude is gained.  

 

Well, you did ask.

 

Dave

I was 'fortunate' enough to use a hypobaric chamber in preparation for an advanced parachute course.

 

Once inside, the chamber is depressurised and you are given a series of written tests to do.  As the oxygen in your body runs out, you cannot function.

 

The idea for us, not being aircrew, was to emphasis the warning signs of oxygen starvation.

 

So, by 16000 feet, without oxygen, you get a very dry mouth.

 

By 25000 feet, after about a minute or so, you start losing cognitive functions.

 

For a HALO jump it is standard practice above 12000 ft for the jumper to require oxygen.

 

However, I've been to 16000 ft in a Lynx helicopter, and jumped with no ill effects, apart from a dry mouth.

 

The jump from a C160 Transall, courtesy of the Luftwaffe, was done from 25000 feet, without oxygen.

 

Unlike the RAF/USAF with the tail open for ages, standing on the ramp, then getting red light, green light, GO, we remained clear of the ramp, which remained closed.  The aircraft remained pressurised, then we got a red light followed by a green light.  Then the ramp went down and we were straight out.

 

In less than a minute we were down into breathable air once more.

 

Our back up protection for such foolishness, was an automatic opening device (AOD), which was a barometric sensor connected to the reserve canopy.  This fired the reserve if the barometric  pressure increase was above a certain rate.

[Happy Hippo]

13 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

I think a representation of your good self would be applicable there. Don't you think.

[Tony_S]

26 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

They may have been small, but they were very well formed  (I can't find a condescending grovel emoji.)

I was looking forward to having an excuse to buy two of the MR locos but I really don’t like causing controversy. 😇

[DenysW]

12 hours ago, Chris Snowdon said:

And the trick used a generation later and for almost a century was the reverse, classifying new-builds as rebuilds, to come off the current account rather than capital account.  A different public good, according to the necessity of the time, but still "creative"

Extra to @Compound2632's detailed script - the cynic in me says that when the Capital account is fully spent, if you don't want to go to Parliament for more, then you charge things to Revenue.

[DenysW]

1 minute ago, Tony_S said:

an excuse to buy two of the MR locos

One for your Midland Royal Train, one to haul the plebs around?

[Happy Hippo]

1 hour ago, Hroth said:

 

You'll have to have a list to keep track of all the other lists.

Better start now before you forget one of the older lists...

🤪

 

It's simple, my illustrious colleague has a list of lists.

[SM42]

6 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

 

Our back up protection for such foolishness, was an automatic opening device (AOD), which was a barometric sensor connected to the reserve canopy.  This fired the reserve if the barometric  pressure increase was above a certain rate.

 

Such a foolish act as jumping out of an aeroplane that is not firmly attached to the ground is something I quite fancy doing when I've run out of all the other things I'd like to do.. 

 

 

I once worked with a girl who went skydiving for fun. 

 

The reason she discovered this past time was that she quite fancied the pilot.  

 

I always thought staying in the aeroplane may have been a better option in that case.

 

Andy

[DenysW]

17 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

Man,that's one fugly mutha 😁😱

Do you apply the same summary judgement to the GWR County class? Both seem to have been Really Useful Engines, albeit in different power classes. One had a more handsome livery, but which one is not yet a consensus opinion.

[Happy Hippo]

6 minutes ago, SM42 said:

 

 

 

The reason she discovered this past time was that she quite fancied the pilot.  

 

 

Me too!

 

[Hroth]

2 hours ago, Winslow Boy said:

Don't worry I'll remind him. Have I mentioned I don't have a sh@d.

 

A shad? 🤔

 

Didn't realise that you were short of herrings too.... 🤪

 

[jamie92208]

3 hours ago, polybear said:

 

Bear has just started a “Special, Special List”…….

😠

I better not mention super sheds with hangars attached.

 

Jamie

[skipepsi]

4 hours ago, bbishop said:

Dave, the MR didn't have a Small Engine policy, it had a Nothing Heavier policy. 

FIFY

[Winslow Boy]

2 hours ago, Hroth said:

 

A shad? 🤔

 

Didn't realise that you were short of herrings too.... 🤪

 

And aircraft hangers, conservatories, barns and generally large buildings but strangely enough not a garage.

[Happy Hippo]

6 minutes ago, Winslow Boy said:

And aircraft hangers, conservatories, barns and generally large buildings but strangely enough not a garage.

I liked my garage until I went and stayed at a house in the USA.

 

The American idea of a garage is more akin to a small aircraft hanger in the UK.

 

 

[Tony_S]

33 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

I liked my garage until I went and stayed at a house in the USA.

 

The American idea of a garage is more akin to a small aircraft hanger in the UK.

 

 

We visited friends in the US. They lived in a small house really aimed at retired couples. But we went to one of their family who lived in a larger property. They were most amused when I asked if I could look in the basement as I had seen so many basements in Model Railroader I wanted to see what the looked like in reality. 

[Tony_S]

37 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

The American idea of a garage is more akin to a small aircraft hanger in the UK.

Our garage looks like a double garage but isn’t. Perhaps double for two original Fiat 500s . It used to hold one car and a workshop area but the car was displaced for trains. Aditi said that was fine as long as I de-iced her windscreen. The Ford acquired shortly afterwards had a heated screen so it wasn’t difficult. 

[iL Dottore]

I have started putting together my railway Itinerary for Japan.

 

First up is a visit here:

https://www.railway-museum.jp/e/

 and lots of fun things to try out

https://www.railway-museum.jp/e/event/experience.html

 

Then I'm off to Hokkaido on this:

 

And I'll be going "Hard Class"

https://www.japan-guide.com/community/villagemayor/report-3151

 

[AndyID]

2 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

I have started putting together my railway Itinerary for Japan.

 

First up is a visit here:

https://www.railway-museum.jp/e/

 and lots of fun things to try out

https://www.railway-museum.jp/e/event/experience.html

 

Then I'm off to Hokkaido on this:

 

And I'll be going "Hard Class"

https://www.japan-guide.com/community/villagemayor/report-3151

 

 

Speaking of ugly.......

[J. S. Bach]

Those look like nice trains but I prefer the styling of the original ones. My one gripe when the HAWK pulled into Sasebo, none of my usual running/squadron mates had any desire to even leave the ship. I finally managed to almost literally drag one of them into town! "WE ARE IN JAPAN, GUYS. LET"S GO!!!!" I wanted to go to Tokyo and walk the Ginza, ride the Hokkaido line; nope, no luck. And I did not really want to go alone.

 

Note, the same almost happened when the HAWK anchored in Hong Kong harbor. At least there (for some unknown to me reason) a couple of them decided to go. We rode the Peak cable car and the trolley that runs (ran?) along the harbor. One thing we did not do was ride the train up to the Red Chinese border, although we did talk about it. I wanted to ride the hydrofoil to Singapore and go into Raffles but for "political" reasons (at that time) we were not allowed to go there and a scheduled "show-the-flag" ship's visit was also cancelled for that reason. Back to Subic Bay instead! WOW!! Absolutely no idea as to why Hong Kong was "acceptable" and Japan was not.

 

 

 

[iL Dottore]

23 minutes ago, AndyID said:

 

Speaking of ugly.......

Definitely an ugly duckling (but, as they say, form follows function)

 

And with these “ugly ducklings” the various JR Companies provide a state-of-the-art high speed service (regularly running at either160 mph or 200mph - depending on route [and that’s for the whole route, not just stretches]), an utterly spotlessly clean train - inside and out, a very smooth and comfortable ride, a second class cabin that puts most of the UK’s first class train cabins to shame, a first class (Green Class) cabin that UK passengers can only dream of and a Gran Class service and cabin that can match many private jets for luxury and all embracing comfort. Oh, and they are always on time - to the second (literally).

 

So in this case, I’ll take fugly over pretty any day!

 

[New Haven Neil]

26 minutes ago, J. S. Bach said:

My one gripe when the HAWK pulled into Sasebo, none of my usual running/squadron mates had any desire to even leave the ship. I finally managed to almost literally drag one of them into town! "WE ARE IN JAPAN, GUYS. LET"S GO!!!!"

 

Crikey, when we docked anywhere in Japan we battled to get shore leave!  Loved it....everyone did, we had to take our turn.

[Northmoor]

21 hours ago, AndyID said:

It's pretty amazing to find out what will burn if there is enough oxygen, and that includes steel.

As the investigation into the Kings Cross Underground fire proved.  I can imagine few more horrific sights than what the fire brigade saw in the booking hall that evening.  Many things changed on LU after that but the commonly-repeated myth that the fire was accelerated by the wooden tread escalators is a bit of myth; treated wood is surprisingly difficult to ignite, but when the metal is burning, anything will.

[Northmoor]

11 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

When my connecting service arrived at Le Mans, platform 2 was buzzing with people, awaiting the 08.30 TGV to Marseilles. The TGV network does serve other markets than just Paris. 

 

My employer gives us hefty discounts on Eurostar so I looked into just how far (living easy travelling distance from St.Pancras) I could do in a day trip; the answer was Avignon, but you still don't get time to do much (and thanks to Br*x*t, I assume I'd now need to allow more time to be looked at suspiciously).  The idea of getting to Marseilles, having a cold beer overlooking the old harbour* and then home again in a day, appealed greatly and was actually similar price to a UK railtour to Carlisle.

 

*Probably my best two days work ever; inspecting the gearboxes of the RN's oldest and newest ships on consecutive days with a now sadly departed colleague and being bought beers by the customer (who we had a very relaxed working relationship with) in the above location at the end of each day's work.  To the UK taxpayers reading this, Thank You.

[Northmoor]

13 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

Our back up protection for such foolishness, was an automatic opening device (AOD), which was a barometric sensor connected to the reserve canopy.  This fired the reserve if the barometric  pressure increase was above a certain rate.

ISTR an issue early the Typhoon's introduction to service was that the altitude of much of Afghanistan was higher than the setting on the seat's AOD.  One of the pilot's said this would have been unfortunate for the ejecting pilot, although possibly preferable to surviving if it was the Taliban who found you first.

Edited 20 hours ago by Northmoor