You’re going to need a bigger boat....

Week three and things here are really starting to spice up! No, I’m just messing.  Things here are the same as they were when I first arrived.  That’s not to say that I’m bored or anything it’s just that nothing of interest has really happened.  Tom left for Fossil Bluff, which is one of Rothera’s satellite bases only open in summer.  In terms of distance it is south of Rothera by about 200-250 miles and is the equivalent of flying from London to Brussels.  Due to being a summer only station it only accommodates four (I say ‘station’ loosely, it is effectively a log cabin built in the sixties).  He left last Monday to work the radios down there and he should be back sometime in the next few days.  Due to the fact that he left before he could train in the tower he is yet to get himself signed off, something that I managed a few days ago.  I am now allowed in the tower Jason Derulo, which is pretty cool as it is a big responsibility looking after up to five aircraft at a time, one of which travels intercontinental.   Not to mention all the diving operations around base and, when needed, fire cover.

 Fire cover sounds like it should be the best thing since sliced bread: you’re all dressed up in your fire fighting clothing, manning the fire truck ready for action, going over your drills in case the moment comes.  That’s what it sounds like it should be.  In reality the clothing you wear looks like it was last used in the 60’s, you feel like an extra on London’s Burning, the boots are one size fits none and are big on me, so for Tom’s size 6 feet I hate to think what would happen if he had to run anywhere!  Also the fire ‘truck’ is more a fire pickup with a few hoses and a barrel of foam onboard, enough to do the job but it’s not red and there’re definitely no flashing lights....

As of yet still no flying for me.  Last year’s Navy Holdovers managed to get a few cheeky flights with the Chief Pilot practising take off and landings on snow with the skis down.  Hopefully Tom and I will get that chance but because the seasons been so delayed due to the new avionics in the Dash everyone is trying like crazy to catch up on flights.  It also doesn’t help when the weather is poor.  I used to think, with regards to flying, that the weather at home could be quite unpredictable and suddenly change; that was until I came down here.  The only way I can describe it is: yo yo weather.  One minute it will be blue skies, the next it will be a complete whiteout with visibility dropping to about 50 metres.  We’ve had a few days down here when there has been no flying at all.  On the subject of the flying down here being different to back at home, we had a very amusing incident with a seal the other day.  When back at home in the UK the dangers of bird strike are well know and bird scaring takes place, here it seems there are bigger animals to worry about.  I was in the tower on flight following when Steve, the MET forecaster, popped up to see what I was up to.  It was then that he pointed out two Elephant seals in the middle of the runway just hanging out.  Great.  Some time later in the afternoon: oh, what’s that?  V-BC calling finals?  Oh dear.  I can imagine the call to Clem, the Hangar manager, telling him we have an ‘obstruction’ the runway.  “Birds is it? I’ll just go scare them with the Gator” “Errmmm, I think you’ll need something a bit bigger than a Gator, Clem...”  For anyone who hasn’t seen an Elephant seal before they are huge!  Easily weighing over a tonne, they are about three times the size of a person.  Also they don’t take kindly to being chased across the runway by a small man in a golf buggy as Clem found out when the seal reared up and started chasing him.  Whilst all this is going on, the Twin Otter, V-BC, has had to do a go around to avoid seal strike.  Not your average day in the office.

Life outside the office the last couple of days has also been entertaining.  Every Saturday we have a three course meal where we dress smartly (shirt and jeans), have our weekly shower and have tablecloths on the table, that’s right tablecloths!  It’s really good fun and is the closest thing I’ll get to a Mess dinner whilst I’m down here, although it’s not the sort of occasion to crack out the Nos 2s.  From what I’ve heard from people who were down here last year it looks like the earliest Tom and I will get to wear our Mess Dress will be New Years Eve.

Another point of interest is the formation of The Dom Savage Experience, an up and coming new band hitting the Rothera music scene.  In all seriousness we aren’t really called The Dom Savage Experience but the name seems to have stuck whilst we have been looking for a new one.  Without blowing our own trumpet (because there isn’t one in the band - whey!), we are pretty good.  So far we have myself on guitar, Ross on bass and Reit on drums.  Unfortunately we are yet to find a singer and I have reluctantly stepped in until we find someone better, which won’t be hard.  So far we have learnt a handful of songs including: Muse – Plug in Baby, Wolfmother – Joker and the Thief, and The Raconteurs – Steady as She Goes.  The aim is to play a set at the New Year’s Party that is held in the hangar with other live bands and a few guys dj-ing, although depending on how the practice goes we’ll see if that comes to fruition.....