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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 6, 2021 22:13:49 GMT 12
I am proud to have been asked to team up with Pieter, Gareth, Tim and Ellie of Xtended podcast to contribute a little towards this epic history series on RAF Coastal Command in WWII. The Cinderella Service as it is known is no longer forgotten. We delve into all sorts of stories and history with this series on the very important arm of the Royal Air Force that gets very little recognition. I hope you will all follow the series and enjoy it. The first episode with guest Ben Kite launches tomorrow and is a real cracker. aviation-xtended.co.uk/ |
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Post by ZacYates on Nov 7, 2021 11:46:31 GMT 12
I wish I'd known you were going to be on, I would have asked you to find out why it's called "Xtended".
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 7, 2021 12:17:08 GMT 12
Zac I was not interviewing the podcast team. However the show began as a short weekly "Across The Pond" segment by Pieter Johnson as part of Airplane Geeks. He then spun it off into a standalone podcast with Tim Robinson and Gareth Stringer, and more recently Ellie Carter has also joined the team.
The name comes from being a longer version- they called it after a commercial aviation term ETOPS - which I believe means Extended Operations. So it became Xtended.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 8, 2021 7:14:18 GMT 12
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Post by ZacYates on Nov 8, 2021 12:56:26 GMT 12
Zac I was not interviewing the podcast team. Sorry, I should've been clearer and said "off mic". The name comes from being a longer version- they called it after a commercial aviation term ETOPS - which I believe means Extended Operations. So it became Xtended. Ah. Thank you. |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 8, 2021 13:09:01 GMT 12
I am good mates with Pieter Johnson, we chat online regularly every week.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 15, 2021 6:46:56 GMT 12
Coastal Command Chapter 2: The Aircraft is now online from Xtended. This is a co-production with The Wings Over New Zealand Show. In this episode the various aircraft used by RAF Coastal Command are explored, with guests Ian Thirsk, Bill Reid and Andrew Bird. New Zealand's own Bill Reid talks about the Avro Anson on the front lines in Coastal Command service, and his own unique flying tribute to the men that flew them, his Avro Anson Mk. 1. aviation-xtended.co.uk/ep-123-coastal-command-chapter-2-the-aircraft/ |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 22, 2021 7:51:10 GMT 12
Ep.124 – Coastal Command Chapter 3: Battle for the AtlanticWelcome to our Coastal Command series. This is Chapter 3 – Battle of the Atlantic. In this chapter we discuss the role of RAF Coastal Command in the Battle of the Atlantic, with Mark Lardas. Mark holds a degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering and spent his early career at the Johnson Space Centre doing Space Shuttle structural analysis, and space navigation. An amateur historian and a long-time ship modeller, Mark is currently a freelance writer in Texas and has written multiple books of which two are on the ‘air’ Battle of the Atlantic. aviation-xtended.co.uk/ep-124-coastal-command-chapter-3-battle-for-the-atlantic/
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Post by Dave Homewood on Nov 22, 2021 7:51:51 GMT 12
Has anyone here been listening to the Coastal Command series? I have learned a lot so far from it.
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clint
Squadron Leader
Posts: 135
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Post by clint on Nov 28, 2021 11:02:01 GMT 12
I've just finished the first episode, will definitely be listening to the rest.
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Post by Dave Homewood on Dec 13, 2021 15:27:20 GMT 12
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clint
Squadron Leader
Posts: 135
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Post by clint on Dec 17, 2021 7:42:03 GMT 12
I've listened to all 4 episodes so far and it's interesting stuff.
Can't wait for episode 5 about NZ aircrew who served with Coastal Command
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Post by nascothornet on Dec 17, 2021 9:58:17 GMT 12
I've listened to all 4 episodes so far and it's interesting stuff. Can't wait for episode 5 about NZ aircrew who served with Coastal Command Hope you like it. The Kiwi and the Australian chapters are some of my favourites |
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Post by nascothornet on Dec 17, 2021 10:03:21 GMT 12
Zac I was not interviewing the podcast team. Sorry, I should've been clearer and said "off mic". The name comes from being a longer version- they called it after a commercial aviation term ETOPS - which I believe means Extended Operations. So it became Xtended. Ah. Thank you. Yep that’s right Dave. Extended Twin Operating Performance Standards relates to two engine airliners approved to fly longer distances. Likewise we needed more time to do longer features. Yes then shortened to Xtended. It stuck and 10 years later we can’t really change it! |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Dec 17, 2021 12:31:01 GMT 12
Welcome to the forum Pieter!
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Post by Dave Homewood on Dec 20, 2021 8:20:30 GMT 12
Chapter 5 – Kiwi Crews.In this chapter we look at the role and involvement of aircrews from New Zealand in RAF Coastal Command. Dave Homewood from the Wings Over New Zealand podcast interviews Dave Duxbury and Don Wilkie in this episode and joins us to co-host the chapter. aviation-xtended.co.uk/ep-128-coastal-command-chapter-5-kiwi-crews/ 
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jan 13, 2022 7:36:14 GMT 12
Ep.129: Coastal Command Chapter 6 – The Adversaries
Welcome to our Coastal Command series. This is Chapter 6 – The Adversaries. In this chapter we look at the adversaries for RAF Coastal Command. Understanding the U boats and their armament, we talk to Mark Lardas, author of Battle of the Atlantic 1939–41 – RAF Coastal Command’s Hardest Fight Against The U-Boats from Osprey publishing. Mark talks us through the different U Boat types and their specifications in an interesting view of the Coastal Command adversary! We then take a look at how Admiral Dönitz called upon the Luftwaffe to provide a long-range spotting and shadowing unit to act as ‘eyes’ for his U-boats. Robert Forsyth talks us through how they used their Junkers Ju 290s far out into the Atlantic to hunt Allied shipping from his book ‘Shadow over the Atlantic – The Luftwaffe and the U-Boats: 1943–45’ (Published by Osprey Publishing). aviation-xtended.co.uk/ep-129-coastal-command-chapter-6-the-adversaries/
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jan 17, 2022 6:49:43 GMT 12
The latest episode of Xtended is now available, focusing on RAF Coastal Command, and made in cooperation with The Wings Over New Zealand Show. It is "Ep.130: Coastal Command Chapter 7 – Australian and Allied aircrews." In this chapter we hear the reports and stories of aircrews from Australia, Jamaica, Canada and Morocco. Their commitment, heroism, and ultimate sacrifice. We talk to Keith Webb about the Australian aircrews and his personal links through his uncle Flying Officer Keith Wathen who was sadly lost in combat. Keith is an experienced cinematographer, editor, writer and voiceover artist. Over the past 35 years Keith has directed thousands of Video and TV projects. Keith is also Project Director for the Temora Aviation Museum’s Unsung Heroes project, a video archive comprising hundreds of interviews with veterans from WW2, the Korean War, Vietnam and beyond. We have an insert piece recorded by The Australian War Memorial for the Keith Murdoch Sound Archive and we kindly acknowledge the use of this recording for our programme here. It is with Flight Lieutenant Tom Fitzgerald, a Navigator in 547 Squadron talking about his time flying the Liberators in Coastal Command. Finally, we turn to Andy Bird who gives us an insight in to three characters who served in Coastal Command from Jamaica, Canada and French Morocco. Andrew Bird studied at Reading College of Art & Design and served in Royal Air Force Reserves based at Brize Norton, Oxfordshire working extensively with The Artists Rifles (Reserves). Andy is an author and military historian, publishing books in particular on the maritime air war in Europe. He started researching and corresponding with former Coastal Command Anti-Shipping Strike aircrews and ground staff 32 years ago and has a wealth of material and scanned images. He is the author of ‘A Separate Little War’, ‘Coastal Dawn’ and ‘Heroes of Coastal Command: The RAF’s Maritime War 1939’. He has written for several newspapers and magazines and has also written, presented, or acted as a historical consultant in documentaries, for BBC Radio and Television, C4, and NRK in Norway. aviation-xtended.co.uk/ep-130-coastal-command-chapter-7-australian-and-allied-aircrews/ |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jan 25, 2022 22:03:16 GMT 12
Ep.131: Coastal Command Chapter 8 – The Fleet Air ArmWelcome to our Coastal Command series. This is Chapter 8 – The Fleet Air Arm. In this chapter we look at the role of the Fleet Air Arm as it supported RAF Coastal Command in World War Two. We go back to Ben Kite who opened the series for us, to help us look at the strategic alignment of the Fleet Air Arm with RAF Coastal Command and set the scene for this Chapter. We then turn back to Naval Air Historian, Matt Willis, to help us better understand the more tactical elements of their role; the aircraft, the squadrons and the sorties they undertook aviation-xtended.co.uk/ep-131-coastal-command-chapter-8-the-fleet-air-arm/
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Post by Dave Homewood on May 13, 2022 20:02:25 GMT 12
Some great news today, the series has been shortlisted for an award. We have been short listed as a Finalist in the Best Digital submission Award category for the 2022 Aerospace Media Awards for our Coastal Command series. We are flattered by the esteemed company we find ourselves with and would like to thank all of you, our listers and followers. We took on the challenge of this series because we felt the story had not been fully explored. We hope in some small way, we have helped to change this. ‘Constant Endeavour’ You can find the finalists here www.aerospacemediadinner.com/ |
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