What exemplified the team spirit on the Squadron at the time were the actions of 'Team Groundcrew' under the JEngO ('Dave?' Malcolm Ward) who went to the Canadian support staff to 'scrounge' a suitable piece of metal, which they moulded and shaped into the shape of the leading edge, and welded it on. This was done overnight and, the next morning, the aircraft was back on the line.


The same day as they had their birdstrike, an American F-15 air defence fighter also had a birdstrike. Their Squadron Commander, not the calibre of Ben Laite of course, considered that it would be career-limiting for him if his squadron suffered another birdstrike, and directed his Eagles to operate at 5000 feet to defend the targets that the 208 Squadron Buccaneers were attacking. In the following sorties, therefore, the Buccaneers, trucking along at 100 feet, would detect the F-15s on their Radar Warning Receivers, pick them up visually and zoom-climb up behind them to launch simulated air-to-air missiles (AIM 9G at the time) before diving back down again to claim not only the target destroyed, but also an air-to-air 'kill.' Much embarrassment for the Americans, but an excellent example of the teamwork that 208 Squadron had at the time, not just from the aircrew 'Team Dave,' but also from 'Team Groundcrew,' whose exceptional overnight efforts put the aircraft back on the line.


The Chairman then offered the opportunity for anyone else to regale the gathering with another anecdote, a challenge that was taken up by Ben Laite, who had a very special story from Op PULSATOR, the Squadron's operational deployment to Beirut in 1983/84.


He recounted that, on one particular day, he was at the morning operations briefing, when the Army Liaison Officer stood up and said: "I've been invited to go to the aircraft carrier that the Americans have got out there for lunch. Would any of you like to join me?" All of the Army officers present sat down and said nothing, but Ben said enthusiastically: "Excuse me, Sir, I'd like to come." When questioned about why, he answered that French fighters had been launched off their carrier about 2 days previously and it would be good to know where they had dropped their bombs, and how they got the information, and where their intelligence came from. It was agreed that this was a good idea and, the next day, a helicopter picked them up and took them out to the French, wonderful, huge aircraft carrier (the 'Foch'). The Captain welcomed them: "Bonjour, mes amis, we're going to have a nice chat and have some lovely lunch. We have already invited the Americans." The Americans in question were from the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D Eisenhower, and they were exhibiting a very 'gung-ho' attitude. Ben got the word that there was a photographic interpreter who would take him down to be briefed on what had happened with the French sortie.

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