GORILLA TACTICS

BILL WRATTEN’S AEROBATIC DAYS

speed from one manoeuvre matched the entry speed of the next. I aimed for a minimum time interval between each manoeuvre so there was no waiting by spectators. I tried to make the performance riveting for the layman (noise and speed) and acceptable to fellow Lightning pilots (accuracy, consistency, high dif culty index). My boss seemed content with progress thus far and I felt as con dent as I thought I should be at that stage. But the magical milestone remained: clearance for the rst rehearsal with loops down to 500 feet over the air eld, and rolls, slow rolls, Derry turns down to 250 feet.

This milestone was reached in May 1967. I received the message that I had been granted the necessary clearance and my rst practise at these heights would be on 8th May 1967 in Lightning Mark 2 XN791.

It all began in February 1967. I was a member of 19 (Fighter) Squadron and my commanding of cer, Wing Commander Brian Cox, had agreed to let me develop an aerobatic sequence. I had to prove to him that I was competent to display the Lightning at low level at public events. Exciting stuff! I was eager to anticipate the chance for some great ying and I was keen to show off the most marvellous aircraft ever to grace the skies. Looking back, my motives, I’m sure, were honourable; personal ego was low on the list. At least, I think it was.

I was equally sure that I had to be honest with myself if the challenge proved beyond me. My boss, though, was encouraging and he undertook to witness every rehearsal if and when I was cleared to display at low level over the air eld. He would not hesitate to let me know if the display looked either pedestrian or suicidal. I would be very much on trial.

So the hard work commenced. I was cleared to practise at progressively lower heights – 5,000 feet, then 3,000 feet, 1,500 feet, 1,000 feet – all of which went fairly well. The sequence was adjusted to what I felt was a fair compromise between maximum performance and good presentation. I at tempted to ensure that the exit

By that stage, my sequence was timed to last about seven-and-a-half minutes from the slow speed entry to the high speed departure. I had felt reasonably happy with the practises at 1,000 feet but now, at these new low altitudes, I found myself in another world. I could barely take in what was happening around me. The time passed in a blur of disbelief. I could not begin to understand why I was never where I should have been over the air eld; my airspeed was all over the shop; the loops were ragged; the rolls were hurried and rough as old boots; my hyperventilation de ed the laws of medical science. I breathed so rapidly that I should have lapsed into unconsciousness. Eventually I landed, soaking wet with perspiration, and when I taxied-in I felt thoroughly depressed and de ated. I only hoped that none of my colleagues had been watching. I anticipated a facial expression from the boss that would advise me to stick to my job as the squadron QFI (quali ed ying instructor).

The boss, though, remained reasonably upbeat. He said that it wasn’t so bad for a rst go. He then went on to describe how I had probably felt, how I had seen things happen ten times faster than expected and that I never felt properly positioned or prepared for the next event. In other words, I was just not quite fully in charge of my aeroplane.

The accuracy of these comments surprised me very considerably, to say the least, and from that moment I listened avidly to his every word during debriefs. I found he had a disarming knack of being critical without causing me to feel demoralised. On the contrary, I learnt quickly to anticipate what he would say about every