Flt Lt John Coutts - get off the fence John!
Ft Lt J Coutts – The Beverley!
John, sadly no longer with us, was the captain on the fateful XV180 that crashed at RAF Fairford on 24 March 1969 with no survivors. If you’d like to read more about the accident, then feel free to click here.
Before converting to the C-130, John flew the Beverley on 30 Sqn. I think it is true to say that John was not a huge fan of the machine, as you will read.
John Coutts is third from the left. The crew are in Aden on the last flight back home - with the aircraft appropriately painted!
Although John has gone, he has certainly not been forgotten. I have been in touch with one of his daughters, Alison, who has been kind enough to send me some notes she found of John’s time on the Squadron flying the Blackburn Beverley. In the notes it clearly gets across John’s views on the beast and demonstrates John’s sense of humour!
From John:
The Beverley
A few thoughts on the THING
" AND THE BEVERLEY WAS CREATED”
Near the factory owned by Blackburns,
by the waters of the Humber,
was a small decrepit airfield,
filled with junk and filled with lumber.
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“Waste not want not" said the boss man,
"No one'll ever buy it,
let us fit it all together,
then the RAF can fly it.
-
So they started work in earnest,
all with hacksaws madly cutting,
bits of lorry, bits of fencing,
bits of barn and Nissen hutting.
-
Thus a structure was created,
roughly nailed and stuck together,
covered o'er by Nissen hutting,
to keep out the wintry weather.
-
Antique wheels from older tractor,
all were fastened by a clamper,
underneath the metal mountain,
just before the bogey damper.
-
In each engine cowling snugly fit,
firmly held by special fixer,
was - shining power unit,
"Special Mod 10 concrete mixer.
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When they ran the mighty motors,
all the airframe madly quaking,
some were pulling some were pushing,
they'd discovered aircrew braking.
-
So beware you mighty birdmen,
lest you drop an awful clanger,
don’t fly Blackburn’s pet abortion,
better try to fly the hangar!
A famous aircraft designer once saw a Dutch Barn blow past during a gale. It was then that the basic idea for the Beverley was born. The original design of the machine was intended to fulfil single-seat fighter specifications, but as full power was required to taxi the aircraft forward at a slow walking pace, another engine was added.
The resulting increase in all-up-weight necessitated the addition of two further engines to enable it to move at all!
By this time the general dimensions had increased somewhat, and work was often delayed for several days at a time while the aircraft was utilised by the airport manager as a spare hangar for visiting aircraft.
This state of affairs continued for such a long time that by the time the prototype was ready for flight, all other types were jet powered.
The rather embarrassed designer, fearing to appear behind the times had the propellors placed much higher than he had originally intended in the hope they wouldn’t be noticed. This entailed the raising of the mainplane and the fuselage sides which accounts for the enormous height of the machine.
As no adequate runway was available, the undercarriage was adapted to take locomotive wheels, and its first take-off was from both tracks of the Brough – Hull railway line. It did in fact become airborne by the time it had reached and frightened the life of the passengers watching at Beverley railway station, hence the name.
The conversion kit for this purpose is still in existence. While the aircraft is in use in the role, the flight deck should be referred to as the ‘Drivers Cab” and the VHF (radio) should be re-crystalized to include the frequencies of Crewe signal box, and the head office of the National Union of Railwaymen.
Spinning of this aircraft is not recommended, as the torque reaction involved causes the earth to rotate in the opposite direction to the spin, which brings forth much wailing and gnashing of teeth to say nothing of the rude notes from the Greenwich Observatory.
The aircraft is extremely versatile and may be employed in many roles, particularly those that do not call for flying or movement of any kind. It is also highly amenable to modification. For example, wind tunnel tests have shown conclusively that the wings could be placed on the bottom and the wheels on the top without the slightest difference in performance.
Taken as a (w)hole, which is what it could be taken for, The Beverley is an ideal aircraft for some half-witted civilian enthusiast with a few million pounds, a private oil well, and a total abhorrence of flying or movement of any kind, but it is the grottiest chicken coop or mushroom growing shed you could ever see.
Come on John, tell us what you really think! - ed