CLOSED - THANKS to all customers for the last few years

I feel very tired, strange considering it is Saturday morning. Never mind, a relaxing day and a whizz up to the NEC for an antiques fair tomorrow. I hope the blizzards keep away. Now what shall I have to eat, decisions, decisions!

Morning Socs, just popping in for a cuppa before driving up to Norwich to see my Mum. Hope the weathers not too bad...

Morning Socs. and Spacey!

No sympathy for you Socs!

Quick cup of tea for me then off in to city to watch
Scotland v All Blacks this afternoon - will need full stomach
for that!!

Safe trip to Norwich Spacey ..

I used to know a chap in the Norfolk Mountain Rescue Team.

You awake now Socks?

Same man as I knew Socco, climbed in Wales but started with vertigo, but loved climbing that's why he moved to Norfolk, didn't have any further trouble with his vertigo.
Morning choccie

It wasn't until I moved away from Norfolk that I realised just how flat is it is, anyway working for the Norfolk Mountain is my sort of job, little danger and little to do ;-) and there are hills in Norfolk, near my Mums there is the Ringland Massif (normally know as Ringland Hills) I have spend several minutes climbing sorry walking up them in the past, it was worth it though the views were magnificent, you can see nearly as far as the Bernard Matthews poultry farms.

Socs, was he based at Coltishall? When I was a kid in the 60's they had Lightnings based there I used to love hearing them fly over, not that you could miss them ;-)

Right time to go 176 mile drive awaits.

Have a good weekend.

Choccy
Just about awake, did you enjoy your muffin?

Spaceman
Not Coltishall, Swanton Morley. I did a spell on Lightnings, big noisy beasts.

Socco, Lightning update:
On the 29th June 1960 No 74 Squadron became the first operational Lightning equipped RAF squadron.

From 13 April 1964 to 30 September 1974, Coltishall was the home of No 226 Operational Conversion Unit. Its role, to train pilots to fly the Mach 2 Lightning Interceptor. Prior to the disbandment of the OCU in 1974, 810 pilots had been trained to fly this mighty aircraft.

Opto
It wasn't all beer and skittles, they were a pig to work on.

Must pop out now, back later.

One has returned from the metropolis, bedlam isn't the word for it. Peace reigns in the Socco residence.

Well it's been VERY quiet in here.

Lightning's were amazing aircraft for their day, they had a huge amount of thrust and could fly almost vertically upwards from ground level, they were also extremely fast but they had a major problem, at high speeds their range was very low (if I remember correctly 20 minutes at full power).

The also made an incredible amount of noise ! I lived in Norfolk for the whole of the time that they were operational and during the week you could here them in the sky even when they were a long way away.

Lightning's still fly in South Africa where you can pay to go up in one. A group in Cranfield restored more than one back to flying condition but they could not get permission to fly them in the UK.

Socs, Swanton Morley not sure if it the civil bit of it is still operating as I know they went bust, but until fairly recently there were several Boeing Stearmans based there including one owned by the actor Martin Shaw who lives nearby.

Spaceman
20 minutes at full power, you'll be lucky, be sucking fumes from the tanks by then.

Good morning campers

"Bothered"

Morning Jeffie :>)
"About what?"

Spaceman
Were there no trees and such, Bernard Matthews outfit is in Suffolk place called Holton which incidentally is flat (WW2 airfield).

Loadsa

Didn't realise Choccie had her very own TV station.... ;-)

http://www.chocolat.tv/

LOL - ahh the woman has an empire!
;>)