EPISODE TWENTY-TWO
Welcome to “Safe on Deck”. My name is Antonio Gemma More'. In the fleet I flew the MH-53E “Sea Dragon” helicopter, and these days I instruct the next generation of Naval Flight Officers in the T-6A “Texan II”. Throughout my incredibly short time in aviation I have been fortunate to meet a wide cross-section of aviators. Along the way I have done my best to document each and every flying memory, but eventually I came to realize that even the sharpest photo or the highest-quality video can only really capture so much.. Everyone I have met has a unique story to tell, and “Safe on Deck” is my humble attempt to capture as many of those exciting and inspiring aviation stories as possible.
Episode twenty-two is part one of my interview with Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Bruce "Shag" Macdonald. Bruce joined the Air Force in 1980 on a RAF Cadetship to study Aeronautical Engineering, and after training on the Scottish Aviation "Bulldog" B.125, the British Aircraft Corporation "Jet Provost", and the British Aerospace "Hawk", he was selected to fly the Panavia "Tornado" GR1 variable-sweep wing multi-role combat aircraft. Bruce flew his first-ever combat sortie on night one of “Operation Desert Storm”, attacking Tallil Airfield in southern Iraq at 100 feet and 600 knots to employ the JP233 Low-Altitude Airfield Denial System (LAADS). Following completion of his first operational posting in Germany, Bruce returned to the United Kingdom to fly the “Hawk”, instructing fast-jet student pilots on low-level navigation, ground-attack, fighter maneuver, and weapons-delivery sorties. Next, Bruce returned to the "Tornado" where he served as an instructor pilot on the GR1 Weapons Conversion Unit (WCU) before being recruited to train as a test pilot. Following graduation from Empire Test Pilot School (ETPS), Bruce conducted a multitude of systems research and developmental flight-test projects on the "Tornado" GR1 and the "Jaguar" GR3, all while continuing to fly the "Hawk" and the "Tucano" T1. Bruce was then selected for a highly-coveted exchange tour with the United States Air Force on the 40th Flight Test Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base where he flew the F-16 "Viper" and the C-130 “Hercules” on weapons delivery and certification flight-test sorties. Following a twenty-plus year career in the Royal Air Force, Bruce transitioned to the airlines where he flew the Boeing 717 and 737 for US domestic air carriers for over ten years. These days, Bruce is an Airbus experimental test pilot based in Mobile, Alabama where he performs production and customer acceptance test flights on the A220 and A320 airliners. Thus far, his career at Airbus has included flight time in the A220, A320, A330, A340, A350, A380, the A400M "Atlas", and the A330 "Beluga-XL". Bruce is a prolific general aviation pilot who currently owns and operates a Vans RV-4.
Thank you for taking the time to listen. In the future, I plan to continue to share similar interviews with both current and retired military aviators. If you have a question or a suggestion for a future interview please leave it as a comment below. “Safe on Deck” episode twenty-two, part one, with Squadron Leader Bruce "Shag" Macdonald. Enjoy!
Podcast timestamps:
24:23 - "Variable noise, constant speed" - learning to fly jets in the BAC "Jet Provost"
51:42 - One thousand pounds of fin fuel
1:24:02 - Low altitude precision radar-offset bombing in the Panavia "Tornado" GR1
1:44:33 - Operation Desert Storm
2:02:53 - Buddy-lazing with the Blackburn "Buccaneer"
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** The views and opinions presented on “Safe on Deck” are my own and those of my guests and do not represent the official policy or position of the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy, or its components. **
17 окт 2024
