Grostenquin, France
430 Squadron Photographs

Extracts from 2 Wing Historical Reports:

23 Sep 53

Nine 430 Sabres took off from Zweibrucken to Copenhagen, Denmark, for exercise "Heads Up". Bad weather prevented them from landing at Aalborg as was originally planned. At Copenhagen, aircraft were met by Danish Air Force officials and S/L Heenter of the RAF. Later the squadron was honoured guests at a cocktail reception given by the Canadian Embassy.

24 Sep 53

Start of airlift of personnel and equipment from Zweibrucken to Aalborg, Denmark. Airlift was completed.

25 Sep 53

Exercise "Heads Up" got underway today, began with general briefing at 0930 hours. 430 Squadron scrambled four times but no hits recorded on any of these sorties. Weather poor. Operation Order received.

26 Sep 53

W/C JC McCarthy and F/O A Whyte departed by service aircraft for Aalborg, Denmark with funds for 430 Squadron personnel who are on Operation "Heads Up". Exercise "Heads Up" progressed slowly, two scrambles in the morning and one in the afternoon. Kills claimed as two F-84’s.

28 Sep 53

W/C JC McCarthy and F/O A Whyte returned at 1500 hours by service aircraft from Denmark. All squadrons with the exception of 421 are on Operation "Heads Up". This squadron comes under the Commander AAFNE; 416 Squadron now in Norway and 430 in Denmark. They are under command of W/C JF Edwards. The war progresses very slowly the main cause being the weather. Two scrambles this morning, no interceptions.

29 Sep 53

F/L E Lutz departed by service aircraft for Denmark with funds for the squadrons on Operation "Heads Up". Today saw the dawn of a new war and at daybreak it started. All morning the station was attacked. The squadrons put in 20 sorties in the morning and 32 sorties in the afternoon. Claims for the day: 1 Canberra, 1 Lincoln Bomber, 2F-86’s, 1 Danish Meteor Mk 11, 2 Vampires, 2 Sea Furies and 11 F-84’s.

30 Sep 53

Very quiet for last day of exercise. Only four scrambles during the morning. Exercise was over at 1200 hours and the squadrons prepared to return to Zweibrucken. Arrival at Zweibrucken at 1700 hours.

Comments by John Greatrix: - On 27 September 1953, we were on an air defence exercise. Operation Heads Up, at Aalborg, Denmark. W/C Stocky Edwards led us to Aalborg for the joint RDAF, RCAF and RNoAF activities. The station had one main runway with a squadron of Danish Meteors on readiness at one end, and 430 Squadron at the other. The Danes were scrambled from the Ops centre, we from the control tower. One morning we were on two-minute alert: George Shorey leader, Gord MacDonald No. 2, myself No. 3, and Red Hetterick No 4. Suddenly we were scrambled. We got good starts except for No. 2, who had a "hung" start and delayed our taxiing out. George, however, quickly taxied to the button, and as soon as he saw us pulling out of the line, he started his takeoff roll. What none of us knew, however, was that the Danish Meteors had also just been scrambled.

Gord, Red and I were trying to catch up with our leader and were just about to taxi onto the runway when we saw the heat waves rising at the far end - two Meteors were already barrelling towards George, who was well into his takeoff roll. Suddenly the Meteors rose, on the judder, just over the Sabre, and whistled by us in split formation, wings wobbling. George was long since committed and there in front of him was a second element of Meteors. At this point he barely managed to get airborne, almost on the stall, slats extended to the stops, as the Meteors flashed by on the runways beneath him. We were all scared witless by this turn of events and looked on in disbelief that no one had crashed. I watched George disappear straight and level into the sunrise, gear and flaps still down with, I imagineed, one owl-eyed, petrified fighter pilot coming to the slow realization that he had just experienced a considerable miracle. If our No. 2 had had a good start, usual for the J47, we would have all been on the runway at the same time and Aalborg would have been a mess of smoking craters.

Oh yes - scramble procedures were amended forthwith, lest another incident of "chicken" arise.