Good Day

[sherrardk]

Just spent 15 minutes staring at a hedgehog’s butt while it ate it’s tea (in the feeding thingie) and then he had a nice drink and waddled off up the garden. We also saw a really cool Apache helicopter taking off (we see lots of helicopters but we like the cool ones best). Been a good day for me and three youngest :)

[jim360]

pervert :P

[Bobbisox1]

Like the heli bit but hedgies scare the chit outa me :0/

[retrocop]

Do you live near the AAC base at Middle Wallop or was it a U.S. based chopper?

[marval]

Sounds lovely.

[retrocop]

or RAF Odiham Hants a RAF helo base?

[sherrardk]

I live right next to the army base in Hereford so we see all sorts of cool stuff.

I’m so pleased the hedgehogs are reappearing, I’m considering treating them to a new feeding station :)

[Buenchico]

>>> We also saw a really cool Apache helicopter taking off

You should live around here, Sherr. There are 5 full squadrons operating Apaches just down the road from me, at Wattisham Airfield (which Wikipedia describes as " the biggest centralised operational Army Airfield in the UK").

We see, and hear, rather too many of the damned things, especially when they're flying night exercises. It's not easy to sleep when there's an Apache chopper repeatedly flying VERY low circuits over your house from mid-evening until 3.30 in the morning, as happened recently!

Oh, how we long for the olden days, when Wattisham was an RAF base and we had the roar of Phantom jets flying in and out. They were far better!

[sherrardk]

I can see them taking off from my spot on the sofa and we’re getting really good at guessing which ones are coming and going from the different noises they make. The coolest was when the Osprey flew right over the conservatory, it was so low and it was in the dark so the lights were Uber cool too (it’s a v good helicopter/plane but it’s so damn ugly).

[retrocop]

I live right under the flight path for choppers entering/leaving London airspace to go, usually, to Battersea Heliport. We can always tell the approach of military choppers as they have a lower deeper throbbing noise and their approach can be heard miles away.Most Military choppers (chinooks) fly over our house en route to the Joint Nato Base over Uxbridge way and are quite prolific ferrying chiefs of staff especially during a crisis in the world (e.g. Falklands)
Epsom Race Course is just down the road and we get a non-stop taxi service for corporate flights to the LZ on the course.
Day in and day out we see our fair share of low flying helicopters but I haven't seen a tiggywinkle since about 1980 around here. :-(

[sherrardk]

We get chinooks, hear them coming a mile away. Occasionally the person at the back will wave if we go out to see them - the kids love it. Also get a lot of parachuting going on and parascending (think that’s the right word). All of the neighbours had their trees cut down (presume it was a security thing) so we get a great view :)

[Buenchico]

Do you get much night flying, Sherr?

[sherrardk]

Not a lot really late, not unusual for something to be buzzing about until about midnight. Occasionally everyone and their gran seems to be flying around. Gets so loud sometimes I have to pause the telly because they land/take off extremely close to the house. On the plus side, I feel really safe in the house because their security cameras cover the back fences.

[Buenchico]

There was an Apache flying low over my house repeatedly last night. Every time it went away for a bit, just as I starting to get to sleep, it came back again. The real problem was though that when it went away (at about midnight), I couldn't get to sleep for ages because I kept thinking it would come back again.

>>> On the plus side, I feel really safe in the house because their security cameras cover the back fences

Note to self: Remember to break in at the front ;-)

[sherrardk]

Front of the house is ok too, live opposite an ex copper who is v nosey (and a bit weird - he washes his car when it’s chucking it down) :)