Total waste of taxpayers cash!

[mrloudly]

Have been contacted by special branch. They want to
come and inspect my private landing strip...
Apparently it's to stop drugs smuggling and terrorist threats...
They not heard of fields and helicopters?

Mine's a 300 metre pony paddock FFS!!!!....

"David, where's your axe" ?

[Eric Mc]

They were obviously watching "North by Northwest" last night.

[anonymous-user]

Bearing in mind your strip has been identified as suitable for importing stuff, are you absolutely certain they were real Special Branch?

[mrloudly]

Certain. They're checking all landing strips. Contacted me thru Sywell.
Absolute waste of tax payers cash!!! Any field's good enough to crash land in
if you've got £500k of Dak on board! A written of aircraft, "it's a cost of doing business!"
Heli's can, and do, land anywhere!

[Simpo Two]

And when they do find a load of contraband, they burn it. They could at least flog it off to help the UK coffers...

I can see it now on eBay: 'hmrc(38,283)'

[Eric Mc]

You don't even need to land, do you. Just chuck the package out the window using a little parachute if necessary.

[eharding]

Crossflow Kid said:

Bearing in mind your strip has been identified as suitable for importing stuff, are you absolutely certain they were real Special Branch?

I remember the Special Needs turning up at Fenland on a random visit during an aeros competition. I just happened to be the first one they started questioning about 'where are you going today'. I pointed to the overhead. 'Er...and then?'. 'Straight back down again'. I think they thought I was taking the proverbial. After getting the same response from the next 20-odd pilots they tackled, they gave up and buggered off to haunt somewhere else.

[mrloudly]

No wonder this country is screwed... Have these jerks got nothing better
to do? An army of numpties doing numpty work led by numbskulls....

Maybe they'd be better checking safe landing spots in Libya...

[anonymous-user]

what exactly to they think they are going to "find" on the inspection?? (other than approx 300m of grass...... no, no, the walking on kind......;-)


I suspect that any drugs landing activity isn't going to fill in the visitors book with "thanks, perfect landing strip, and really easy to unload all our hooky gear straight into our waiting RRS, 10/10, well recommended!"

[mrloudly]

Max_Torque said:

what exactly to they think they are going to "find" on the inspection?? (other than approx 300m of grass...... no, no, the walking on kind......;-)


I suspect that any drugs landing activity isn't going to fill in the visitors book with "thanks, perfect landing strip, and really easy to unload all our hooky gear straight into our waiting RRS, 10/10, well recommended!"

Good point, I'd better put her car in the barn

[Oakey]

mrloudly said:

Have been contacted by special branch. They want to
come and inspect my private landing strip...
Apparently it's to stop drugs smuggling and terrorist threats...
They not heard of fields and helicopters?

Mine's a 300 metre pony paddock FFS!!!!....

"David, where's your axe" ?

Nice of them to give you and your Colombian pals notice to get all that cocaine far away from your strip and ensure no 'deliveries' are due in

[Mr_B]

I read a book about World War 2 intelligence and how some farmers got visits as suspected fifth columnists due to ploughing the field in what looked like a big arrow from the sky, pointing to a possible target, or just as an obvious ground marker to aid navigation.

[Chrisgr31]

It wasnt that long ago that drugs were flown into a small private airstip near Goudhurst, although the authorities were there to catch them and used the Sssex Police helicopter to stop the aircraft taking off again.

I guess its not the airstrip they want to see but you!

[tight5]

"Police pay and conditions need a "radical overhaul" - including cutting back £60m a year in overtime"

they might be looking for back handers to boost their income !