Vulcan where it shouldn't be

Vulcan where it shouldn't be

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Dr Jekyll

Original Poster:

23,820 posts

268 months

Wednesday 12th January 2022
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A website for US Vietnam veterans - the 'GameWardens Association' features this picture. Supposedly taken in the Mekong Delta in 1965.



Presumably it was taken somewhere else entirely. But is it conceivable that a Vulcan deployed to say, Singapore, would cut through Vietnamese airspace at low level in the middle of a war?

Does anyone know the true location of the picture?

Largechris

2,019 posts

98 months

Wednesday 12th January 2022
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Early B2 or waverider prototype?

Digger

15,171 posts

198 months

Wednesday 12th January 2022
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Not much to go on . . .

dvs_dave

9,038 posts

232 months

Wednesday 12th January 2022
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It’s obviously a Vulcan. But as to the veracity of the time and location the photo was taken, it’s basically “some bloke said”. There’s absolutely nothing to prove otherwise. So in short I’m calling BS.

sherman

13,812 posts

222 months

Wednesday 12th January 2022
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A practice run for the refueling strategy to get to the falklands almost 20 years later? hehe

Simpo Two

87,030 posts

272 months

Wednesday 12th January 2022
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Dr Jekyll said:
But is it conceivable that a Vulcan deployed to say, Singapore, would cut through Vietnamese airspace at low level in the middle of a war?
A Vulcan at low level would be very vulnerable to ground fire.

macp

4,111 posts

190 months

Wednesday 12th January 2022
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Interesting thread but shame its not verifiable.

Eric Mc

122,854 posts

272 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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I saved the picture and then enlarged it as best I could.

It definitely looks like it's sporting the first of the camouflage schemes worn by the B2s i.e. gloss white undersides with gloss grey/green upper surfaces. It also seems to have a standard RAF roundel under the port wing - so that would place the picture in the 1965 to 1970ish time period.


Edited by Eric Mc on Thursday 13th January 08:43

Whatsmyname

944 posts

84 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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Anyone checked the exif data?

spitfire-ian

3,892 posts

235 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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Whatsmyname said:
Anyone checked the exif data?
rofl

lufbramatt

5,427 posts

141 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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Features in this lecture at 41 ish minutes in

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soMNBdOajMA

s p a c e m a n

10,997 posts

155 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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Just to make it easy to find the original and look at the posters other uploads..

http://www.tf116.org/vgallery1.html#Arrans

FourWheelDrift

89,606 posts

291 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
quotequote all
s p a c e m a n said:
Just to make it easy to find the original and look at the posters other uploads..

http://www.tf116.org/vgallery1.html#Arrans
It's flying very low here.


aeropilot

36,530 posts

234 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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Eric Mc said:
It definitely looks like it's sporting the first of the camouflage schemes worn by the B2s i.e. gloss white undersides with gloss grey/green upper surfaces. It also seems to have a standard RAF roundel under the port wing - so that would place the picture in the 1965 to 1970ish time period.
I don't recall (and can't find any photo in a search) that RAF Vulcans EVER carried a roundal on the undersides, for either the all-white anti-flash schemes, later white underside/camo uppers, and later light grey undersides/camo upper seen in the later 70's...??

There were Vulcan detachments to Singapore pretty much full time (rotated between squadrons) between 1963 and 1966 during the Malaysian-Indonesian confrontation, but I'd be very surprised if any ever ventured that close to Vietnam war zone?
Maybe taken a lot further out to sea, or when the guy was on a RnR trip to Singapore?

One for posting on PPrune, as there's still a fair few ex-Vulcan crew from that time that post there.


Edited by aeropilot on Thursday 13th January 12:21

FourWheelDrift

89,606 posts

291 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
quotequote all
aeropilot said:
I don't recall (and can't find any photo in a search) that RAF Vulcans EVER carried a roundal on the undersides, for either the all-white anti-flash schemes, later white underside/camo uppers, and later light grey undersides/camo upper seen in the later 70's...??
Well if it is Vietnam it might be special to those operations to stop the yanks shooting at it.

Eric Mc

122,854 posts

272 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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It looks like its got two black panels under each wing - which could be shadows.

Eric Mc

122,854 posts

272 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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I know it's artwork rather than a photo but this scheme does have underwing roundels -


aeropilot

36,530 posts

234 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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None of the comprehensive collection of photo's in the Kev Darling book on the Vulcan show any Vulcan with underwing roundels in any of the schemes between 1960 and the change to warp-around camo in the late 70's.

I've also had a quick look through a lot of the old Xtradecal & Aeroscale sheets and can't see any of those with any underwing roundels either...?




Eric Mc

122,854 posts

272 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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Might be duff artwork.

The prototypes DID have underwing roundels - at least for some of their careers.
Obviously, the "Vietnam" Vulcan won't be a prototype.



Yertis

18,659 posts

273 months

Thursday 13th January 2022
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dvs_dave said:
It’s obviously a Vulcan. But as to the veracity of the time and location the photo was taken, it’s basically “some bloke said”. There’s absolutely nothing to prove otherwise. So in short I’m calling BS.
I don't think flying a Vulcan over what was still (technically) a friendly country to be all that implausible.