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An Avanti on My Doorstep!

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I have posted already about some light aircraft photography that occurred because a sailing competition never got going. What I also saw that day was something very opportunistic. I had happened to check what was due into Southampton Airport that afternoon with expectations of nothing special. When I saw a French registered Avanti was coming in from Italy, I was very pleased. Of course, I assumed it wouldn’t end up happening but, since it was coming a long way, knew I would have plenty of warning.

When I saw it was on its way, I then started to ponder where to photograph it having never done any photography at Southampton. A southerly approach was what was in use but then I saw an arrival come on from the south so now I was perplexed. Where should I go. I had an idea for a spot south of the airport that might work out so went there with plenty of time to see if it really was a good spot. It did seem to be good, so I then went back to the car to wait. I watched the track of the inbound flight to see if it did come in from the south or not.

It looked like it was coming my way, so I walked back out to my spot. Once there, I saw the plane turn right and it was now clear it was heading north for a southerly approach. I should have stayed in the car. I now sprinted back to the car and made a move for where I figured might work out at the other end having never actually checked it out. At least the process of tracking north for the descent onto the approach meant I had a bit of time in hand.

I got to the north of the airport and found a parking spot just in time to get up on the embankment that overlooks the runway. There were some regulars already there, so I knew this was not a bad choice. I had barely got my breath back when the distinctive sound of the Avanti reached my ears. There it was and I had some shots and then it was down. Back to the car and on my way! Nice result so close to home. Sadly, it departed early the next morning when weather wasn’t great and I was sleepy.

Calshot Spit Lightship

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When I was a lad and satellite navigation was a dream, nautical navigation relied a lot more on things like lighthouses. Lightships were a big part of this, and Trinity House had a number of them stationed around the UK coastline. One was at Calshot Spit in the Solent and so I would see it every time I looked out of the window of our flat (and also when crossing on the ferry). I guess these vessels became surplus to requirements over time and got taken out of service. Apparently, the Calshot Spit vessel was moved into a development in Southampton but, again, became surplus to needs. Fortunately, it has been saved and is currently alongside the Solent Sky Museum. It isn’t open to explore but sits alongside the road. I assume there is some restoration work required.

Flyby of RN Helos for the Returning Carrier

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The arrival of the carrier strike group was the big theme of the day, but the Fleet Air Arm was going to support the process with a flyby. A pair of Merlins and a Wildcat were assigned to the role, and they were initially noted off Bournemouth as they joined up before heading to Portsmouth. As they came over Portchester, we could see them from where we were, and they flew up the harbour and over our location to head out and meet the carrier.

We would see them a bit from a distance as the manoeuvred around the ship and this allowed us to have a reasonable idea of where everything was at any point. Then, as the ship entered the harbour, the formation flew over the top to celebrate the return to home port. The Merlins then peeled off while the Wildcat hung around.

 

Finally, “The Prince” Comes into View

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While I was tracking HMS Prince of Wales as she came around the Isle of Wight inbound to Portsmouth, it wasn’t long before we got our first sight of her. I know there is a dredged channel that was created when the ships were acquired and I assume that this is a function of the route they take when coming in but she was first seen as we looked out through the entrance to the harbour as she crossed from right to left heading towards land. Then she disappeared behind the coast for a while.

A bit later, the silhouette of the ship reappeared now heading back away from the land as she tracked to follow the coastline towards the harbour. She was still a long way away, but the distinctive shape of the ski jump and the twin islands made her easy to confirm. Then she was hidden again as she disappeared from view where we were, behind some of the old buildings of HMS Dolphin.

By now the helicopters had joined up to fly over her so they were our clue as to where she was. Then a mast appeared above the buildings followed by a radar and the next thing you knew, a tug was coming into the harbour to be shortly followed by 80,000 tons of ship. She is certainly big enough and looked it as she came fully into view. The thing that struck me was not so much the beam of the ship but the length. With tugs holding her both ahead and astern, she drifted past us taking quite some time to do so given the 284m of her that there is.

It wasn’t far to go to get to her berth and she was soon stationary in the water while the tugs repositioned to push her alongside. The crowds started to disperse, the boats that had been waiting for her to arrive before they could move started on their way and the families headed for the Gosport ferry so that they could go on base and greet their loved ones that had been away since April. Quite something to experience.

Patrolling the Harbour to Stop Anyone Getting Too Close

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While waiting for the HMS Prince of Wales to arrive in Portsmouth, we got to see the local law enforcement at work. There were some police officers on the shore, and they were talking to the various people that had come out to see the carrier strike group return. There were also boats on the water that were clearly loitering waiting to see the ship arrive. A RIB was busily zipping around from boat to boat to make sure that they stayed in their allowed areas and didn’t intrude on the path of the carrier and its surrounding vessels. I’m sure they were being very nice about it, but they did look rather officious as they accelerated from one boat to another – and the heavily armed guy probably got attention.

Exploring the Sandringham (Sunderland)

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The Solent Sky Museum is full of exhibits but there is one that will never be missed by any visitor and that is the Sandringham. This example started out as a Sunderland before being converted post war to a passenger configuration. It spent its time in Australia and New Zealand before it was bought by a famous actress, Maureen O’Hara, for her husband who flew it in the Caribbean. After his death. It was brought back to the UK for preservation.

It is a beast of a plane, and you can only imagine what it was like when it was operational. There was a time when a similar plane made its way to a new owner after spending some time on the water and then the slipway at Calshot when I was a kid. I remember seeing it from the ferry as we passed. It looked small from a distance but get close to one of these things and it is quite something. Even so, the interior has lots of space but does feel pretty enclosed. There are a series of cabins with seating inside. Some are lower in the hull while there is an upper area in the rear fuselage.

The furnishings are pretty plush so it might have been a comfortable ride but that avoids thinking about how much noise and vibration there might have been from the big radial engines mounted up on the wings. I wonder whether they were far enough away to not be hard to deal with. The cockpit is accessible, and it gives you a good view of those engines. They have also mounted a maintenance stand. Because the plane will usually be on water when maintenance is undertaken, the stand hangs from the wing around the engine to allow a technician to have access to work without getting wet!

The cockpit is not quite so luxurious. You don’t want the crew to be getting too comfortable, I guess. The conversion programme focused on the passenger space rather than that of the non-paying people. I wonder whether it was changed much from its wartime configuration. I had seen a Shorts Solent in Oakland at their museum, but it was outside and interior access wasn’t available at the time. This was a far more engaging experience. Quite a plane.

Sunny Autumnal Sunday at Daedalus

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I suspect that, in a number of posts over the years, I have talked about being lucky with the way that things work out. In this case, I had gone out with the intention of photographing a sailing regatta. I got to the shore, and the conditions were gorgeous. However, they were too nice. Clear autumnal skies, cool temps but warm sun and no wind. That last bit will explain why it wasn’t ideal for sailing. I waited around for a while to see whether the wind would pick up but it soon became clear that, even if it did, things were not going to be dramatic out on the water.

This left me contemplating the next step. I had a couple of thoughts – one of which was to stop off at Lee on Solent. The airport there has a café and a viewing area next to the tower. Since I was going to be heading by and this also being the base for the local search and rescue helicopters, I thought I might get some AW139 flying in nice light.

When I got there, there was no sign of any helicopter activity. However, a sunny Sunday gets plenty of light aircraft movements. Also, sitting by the tower was a two seat Spitfire. Seemed like loitering might be in order. The Spit had the canopy open with a helmet sitting on the frame so maybe it would be heading out.

It didn’t take long for the pilot to come out and fire up. Of he taxied and I was feeling pretty optimistic. However, that was the last we saw of him. I guess the plane is hangared elsewhere on the field and that was the destination. Meanwhile plenty of other movements so I got plenty to watch. It was great seeing families with small kids watching the planes and the kids getting so excited by anything whether it was a Spitfire or a Piper Warrior. I’m glad I hung around and it more than made up for the lack of sailing.

How Many Tugs Does an Aircraft Carrier Need?

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Just like planes, ships can be tracked online these days. Once HMS Prince of Wales got within range of the transponder detectors, she showed up on the apps, and we knew that she was coming in. However, if you wanted a clue that she was getting close, it was the selection of tugs that headed out of Portsmouth Harbour ahead of the planned arrival time. Off they all went, ready to bring the big beastie back into harbour under control.

Once they were near the dock, they would all gather on one side of the carrier to nudge her sideways to tie up alongside in the naval dockyard. There is space for both carriers alongside and I had hoped they would use the spot nearer to us but that wasn’t the case. The large fenders mounted on the bows of the tugs looked like they would prove very helpful when trying to change the direction of 80,000 tons of ship.

Koalas Are Too Coy

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Over the years, I have been to plenty of zoos. As a result, I would have thought I had seen koalas at some point but, as I write this, I am struggling to think when I might have done so. Marwell has some koalas so, maybe they were the first I had encountered in person. I am not sure whether they recognised the potential significance of this moment. While there were a few of them in the enclosure, they didn’t seem that bothered about our presence.

I understand that they have a reputation for being sleepy (and bad tempered) so having to wait for open eyes was going to be a problem, but they also seemed to want to have their heads turned away from everyone. I waited a bit to get something, but it wasn’t going to be worth holding everything up. This was the best I could manage.

Lining the Shore to Await the Returning Strike Group

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I persuaded Nancy and Liese to join me on a Sunday lunchtime jaunt to Portsmouth to see the return of the HMS Prince of Wales from the carrier strike group cruise to the far east. They had left in April and were coming back on the last day of November. Talking to some around us, they had originally been planning to return the following day, but the forecast was not so good, and things came forward a day. I was also suspicious that they were more interested in getting the coverage that a weekend return would provide.

Originally, I had figured we would try and find a spot on the shore on the Portsmouth side. This seemed like somewhere that would be rather busy and Liese suggested that, maybe Gosport would make more sense. Not only did this have parking options and the potential to not be as busy, but it also meant the light would be on our side and it would provide Portsmouth as a backdrop to any photos. A wise suggestion.

We got there early and went out on a fishing pier that provided a great spot. Originally, I had intended to go for a wander and return closer to the time but, in the end, we found ourselves chatting to people around us that had family members on the returning carrier. It was so much fun chatting with them, so we ended up just hanging around.

As I looked across to the Portsmouth side, the crowds were building up. The Round Tower is a popular spot, and it had filled up first. Camera crews were up there too. As the arrival got closer, there were people all along the shore, near our favourite pub and down on the shingle by the water. It was a chilly day where we were, and I imagine it was even colder down on the water’s edge. Everyone was waiting for one thing. The arrival of a big boat!