Flying Soldiers episode 6 - BBC 1997 documentary about trainee army helicopter pilots in the uk

[@TheCryptKeeper8]

Cybermega29 Thanks for uploading this. I started watching this when it was originally aired. I only managed to watch and record 3 episodes before i moved house, job and lost track of time and the series. Now 17 years later, i've finally got my questions answered. "I wonder who made it?"

[@bigbang7897]

Having grown up during the war in rural N Ireland trust me it's impossible to hide a helicopter but it was great fun watching them.

[@MarcPutniorz]

Made my day ❤

[@keithpringle3940]

That's some nice barracks at fremington!! I was there for adventure training in 97 and we were in a massive dorm with ablutions stuck in the end of it!! Best food I've ever eaten throughout my entire service though, the army chef there was fkn awesome and I certainly didn't whinge when I was volunteered for dishes!!

[@Retro-Future-Land]

7:47 Great documentary overall, but 1500 meters hitting a helicopter with an AK-47/AKM? Unless he means they'd have to close it down to 500 with the two spurs in the way? The pilots course seems to have gotten harder from what it was in the earlier decades? As one of the instructors points out, they don't just train them to be military pilots anymore but military commanders in the helicopter. Finally, I think this was filmed in the early 90s as the female officer is in WRAC uniform at the end, which wasn't changed to AGC until 1993-4?

[@WAYtoomuchbacon]

"Big Brother is always watchin'." Great reference to 1984, fantastic book.

[@decatto]

I remember Lt Andy James, He came to Clogher Co Tyrone and served with us F S P coy, 1 R W F , Great guy, glad to see him do well, we knew he would , Scotty .

[@salomonST60]

excellent! i have been aiming for a career as an army pilot my whole life, and this video gives a great insight to a challenge that i now feel i can take on :)

[@MV-vv7sg]

How has your journey gone? Are you nearer achieving or have achieved this dream 8 years on?!

[@Retro-Future-Land]

@@MV-vv7sg I think not.

[@MV-vv7sg]

@@Retro-Future-Land It’s startling and mortifying how ironic and well timed you comment is. 😔

[@schlutorflyer7415]

I know in the Australian Armed services your return of service obligation today after pilots course is about 9 years, plus it increases if you transition say from the C-130 to the 737. Remember this Doco was made in 1997. Back then our "ROSO" was only 6 years, with no increase in commitment no matter what you flew. The selection board would have known her status regarding the length of her commission.

[@ianbrown2962]

Schlutor Flyer

[@paulcoote3094]

Any updates on where they are now?? 2021??

[@ianhorsburgh9867]

if Cpl/Major Hitch watches this, wonder what goes through his mind ?

[@digitalradiohacker]

The extra pay he gets as apache crew? No wait, the extra pay and privileges he gets as a commissioned officer, having worked his way up from the ranks! How about, the thought that British TV, even back then, was so utterly desperate to attain ratings, that they were willing to stoop to American dramatisation, and his pity for for their triviality?

[@paulcoote3094]

Jenny went to 3 regiment, was that Apache's

[@Cmdrcheswee]

What was the stories of the rest of them after this?

[@YouMadeItEasy]

As a woman I feel I should be on her side, but I am not. She got paid to be trained for a year. She flew for three, possibly four years, though as she mentioned desk duty, I doubt it was four and then most probably left the Army. Where was her sense of duty? It seemed to be a calculated move to get the training and use it in civilian life. Would they have let her on the course if she had been as up front with her intentions at the selection process as she was once she had secured her wings?

[@Jeffybonbon]

In the forces you take what you can ?? She is now a civil pilot and the tax payer paid for it I agree with you the tax payer did not get value but she did

[@Jeffybonbon]

I watched this with great interest I always wanted to be a Pilot and I knew I would never pass the selection being colour blind I did manage a commission in the British Army and I relised I had to get used to being told No you cant do this you cant do that even though I had the ability So I left I now own a large property company and i can afford my own aircraft So Just because the army says No the world is there for you to say Yes I have no regrets of being a solider But if they had said Yes to me I would not be where i am now because I am a multi Millionaire now every one says yes and i dont ask for a salute because i am self made and good comes from bad

[@Antifaith29]

As long as she finshed up her contract with the army I dont see a problem with that. To be perfectly honest that was my intention when I joined. 9 years later along with 22 months in Astan it didn't quite work out how I had planned it but why not use the time to get a leg up in life? They're sure as hell using you.

[@seprishere]

Quite. The Army is different from the Air Force.

[@WFishes]

Fair dos:The Brits sure can march.

[@Wilfire1961]

Or, looked at the other way, it's not impossible that the Army had on file somewhere that she was on a short service commission. She was prepared to extend that to do the full four years' duty which the Army required to justify the resources to train her, and before you question her sense of duty, I think you need evidence to show she neglected it at *any* time during that four years, or misled the highly experienced selection board in *any* way.

[@francessweeney2308]

They would only give women short commissions initially during the 80s and 90s of about 6-9 years max as it was assumed they would leave and start a family. Of course they were welcome to extend to 16-22years if they so wished. But not when they first joined. In 2016, women are now allowed to have the same services commissions as men. Feminism does have it's uses, same as it helped to stop the lesbian/gay witch-hunts in the armed forces.

[@Retro-Future-Land]

@@francessweeney2308 LOL. In Germany when I served lesbians/dykes were very rampant in certain units where a large proportion of them were to found. And I never heard of any witch hunts either.

[@Wilfire1961]

The gender issue is irrelevant: this was one service person being trained by an army which is well able to decide whether it will get its money's worth, and more, out of you. As for civilian life, are service personnel now only allowed to receive training which they can't possibly use after their service? All in all, a naive comment, offensively made.

[@alanbstard4]

oh it's relevant

[@Norbichrapowicki12]

I would lobe to do this mt dream

[@DarkpowderUK]

Did they just say the "forces of Chlamydia?" ;-)

[@bear15128]

As a pilot, I loved this video. As a veteran of the Police Force I found a familiar trend with women. In the Police they join,put up with a couple of years then GO. This female officer? having already obtained her PPL went into this course and I think she knew she could pass, then given her short stint, she 'PISSED OFF' in other words she USED the army and deprived another more deserving person of a position in the course, a person who may have stayed in the army for many years to come.DUBLEBUMS

[@nicholasdavies8795]

Chris Ure Chris , I'm a retired police officer and I totally endorse your comment !

[@alanbstard4]

see this. Looks like Jenny was "ex" rather soon AH! At Christmastide in 1998, exactly 113 years after the founding of the Ipswich & Suffolk Club Co Ltd, a young lady, Captain Jennifer Firth was appointed. Jenny was an ex helicopter pilot in HM Army. If ever we needed somebody to give us a good 'vertical take off' it was now. And she was in the pilot's seat. www.ipswichandsuffolkclub.co.uk/club-history/69?start=6

[@kevinlynott309]

As a 'veteran of the police force' oh do piss off, we all do our 30 and collect a pension for life at 49 in some cases. Do you think the army didn't know how long she had signed on for? The post was on orders she applied for it, and the army would see in her file how long she was in for. So what if she had a PPL, I didn't see her flapping around like some of the blokes on the course. Oh as for pissing off male army officers have been doing it for decades after 8 or 9 years of to investment banking, the city dear boy or daddy's farm. till chuckling at police veteran.

[@alanbstard4]

I bet that, regardless of her flying abilities, the DoD was desperate to see Lt Jennie succeed. The fact she was allowed to learn service training on a short service commission suggests that. Such are the pc days we live. Where does she fly in civvy street. The oil rigs?

[@alanbstard4]

AH! At Christmastide in 1998, exactly 113 years after the founding of the Ipswich & Suffolk Club Co Ltd, a young lady, Captain Jennifer Firth was appointed. Jenny was an ex helicopter pilot in HM Army. If ever we needed somebody to give us a good 'vertical take off' it was now. And she was in the pilot's seat. www.ipswichandsuffolkclub.co.uk/club-history/69?start=6

[@IndianaDel1]

"MoD" in the UK Laddie

[@24934637]

Such a shame to spend a whole year training someone, and then only get 3 years useful flying out of them! Massive waste of financial resources that could be better used on someone with greater commitment!

[@PARABOLA1966]

Excellent documentary. Too bad British in general are downright stiff and stuffy hahaha.

[@vfr-andy3133]

Thats what makes us great ;-)

[@PARABOLA1966]

Andy Blake But lovely-lol. Do make great aircrafts, and have a lovely countryside. Do have a bloody suggestion; have to change your immigration policies, though, otherwise you will all be speaking Arabic in a generation or two-not good...

[@s123b6]

has special forces para wings .

[@Tony-xx2vs]

Jenny was a waste of my money.

[@seprishere]

Not really. The Army's rules asked for a relatively short time, especially for officers. And she presumably did serve her time.