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u3a Photography Group - visit to HMS Tern - 14th May 2025
by Tim Wright - 12:33 on 15 May 2025
Nine of us met Andy Hollinrake at HMS Tern this morning on a lovely spring day with sun and little wind . He gave us an excellent conducted tour around the site. It has been upgraded a lot from my last visit with new information boards and appropriate items now included in the various buildings. Andy added to it all with an excellent set of photographs of what Wartime HMS Tern looked like. He also had met a number of people who either worked there during the war or relatives of those who had. He had a lot of anecdotes about the personnel such as the Photographic section. They were involved in the Reconnaissance photography but also photographs of the practice guns firing at targets to see how accurate they were. The Cinema has a version of a 35 mm projector similar to that used during the war plus posters etc. of the films shown. Mutiny on the Bounty was the most popular film. Anywhere from 100 plus aircraft were based there as it was used for training a lot, plus up to 1500 personnel. The most complete building is the Control Tower which one can go into. The Fire Station near the entrance to the site holds many wartime bits of memorabilia plus remains of aeroplanes and lots of photos of the airfield in action. Having been promised an hours tour, we left after two hours of expert explanations with a very good idea as to the way a wartime aerodrome had operated. If you missed our tour today be sure to go on one of Andy's in the future as it is worth every penny. Seven of us then made our way to the RSPB Listening Wall on the way to Marwick. There we had our picnic with the wall providing good shelter from the moderate breeze but in full sun. Not a lot of birds to see or hear but maybe at dawn or dusk one might get more sound than people eating!
The project for next month is "Electricity " which is a bit of a shocker but with thought should provide some images both domestic and outside. Closing date is Monday 30 th June. This is 6 weeks hence as I am away earlier and then it is the St Magnus Festival. Please send HMS Tern photos to me for that date and "Electricity " to David .
Do you want to go to another Island such as Sanday for the day on Wednesday 3rd July ? or do you wish to remain on Orkney Mainland and if so where ? Please let me know soon so we can book something as I go away at the end of next week .
Keep clicking ,
Tim
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