FROM THE CHURCHES’ REGISTERS

Wedding at St Giles’
Apr 28th            Marcelle Debreuque and Andrew Monks

Cremations at Breakspear Crematorium
Apr 20th           Geoffrey Humphries, aged 89
Apr 25th           Minnie Leach, aged 95 (after service in St Giles’)
May 4th            Euphemia Anderson Heath, aged 89

 

ST GILES’ CHURCH STREET PRAYER LIST

Each Sunday at St Giles’ Church we pray for all the people who live or work in a particular road in the Parish.  During June we will pray for the following roads: 

June 3rd            Heythorpe Drive
June 10th            Heacham Drive
June 17th            Hetherington Way
June 24th            High Road

If you live in one of these roads why not join us at our 8am or 9.45am services?  You will be most welcome. 

 

MUSICIANS WANTED

Local musicians are invited to join an instrumental group to play at the Swakeleys Open Air Service on Sunday 24th June at 11.15am.  

If you are grade 4/5 or above and would like to play, please contact either Peter Williams on 01753 571569; pjwill209@btinternet.com or St Giles’ Church Office on 01895 622971; office@stgileschurch.co.uk giving name, contact details and instrument. 

Music will be available before the day for those who need it and there will be a rehearsal in Swakeleys at 10.30am.

TYPHOONS OVER ICKENHAM

No, not a weather warning, but the reason for the occasional extreme noise level experienced in our midst in early May.  It was caused by the presence of four Typhoon fighter planes at nearby RAF Northolt.  They were here to take part in Exercise Olympic Guardian, a nine-day training operation over the skies of London and the Home Counties, to allow rehearsal of the safety and security roles they will be playing during the forthcoming Olympic Games. 

In recognition of the understanding and support of the local community the base opened its gates to several hundred local Councillors, residents and schoolchildren on the morning of 10th May. The visitors were able to see the Typhoon jets and speak to pilots, as well as visit stands from several of the base’s other units such as the Queen’s Colour Squadron, 32 (The Royal) Squadron and the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.

RAF Northolt is actually in South Ruislip, not Northolt, and it was originally intended to call it ‘Harrow Aerodrome’.  It opened in May 1915 as an airbase during World War One, and became known as Northolt because the nearest railway station at the time was called Northolt Junction.  Since then the airbase has been an important home for the RAF. 

In 1946 the airline BEA took up temporary residence until its move to the newly developed Heathrow (then called London Airport) began in 1952.  By 1954 Northolt had reverted to the military role it performs today, having also absorbed much of the activities, including the RAF Band, previously based at RAF Uxbridge. 

But back to the Typhoon, which is the first fighter plane to be based at Northolt since the Second World War.  This twin-engined, canard-delta wing, multi-role aircraft, is capable of flying nigh-on twice the speed of sound.  It is extremely agile, has a phenomenal rate of climb, and, according to the pilots, is a “dream” to fly.  Strangely perhaps, to the layman, this generation of ‘fly-by-wire’ aircraft are inherently unstable and their flight controllability is totally dependent on the reactions of computers constantly making minute corrections to the flying controls.  Where would we be without computers? 

The Typhoon jets will return to Northolt in July, along with some military helicopters, for the duration of the Olympic Games themselves. However, they are expected to spend most of their time on the ground in high readiness and will not be conducting any further training sorties.

AFN