The Night Mail

[Hroth]

2 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

I'll just add this to make a jet pilot's day....

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-67771640

 

 

And that brings a new meaning to "frequent flyer"...

 

[SM42]

Well we popped into town and could have sworn our resident pilot was out on patrol again rather than ill in bed and wus up

 

 

We did invade Czechia via a mountain pass that was really fun to drive with lots of hairpins, snow and the odd ice patch. 

Even more fun coming back in twilight. 

 

Saw just  one train, a little Czech 810 rail car pottered over a level crossing between Stare Mesto and Hanusovice. 

 

Amdy

Edited December 27, 2023 by SM42

[iL Dottore]

2 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

I'll just add this to make a jet pilot's day....

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-67771640

 

Don’t “Northerners” have the saying “where’s there’s muck there’s brass” (and let’s not forget Terry Pratchett’s wonderful creation <Harry King>)

[AndyID]

6 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

An update on the appearance of the fire engine on our driveway last night.

 

 

The fire safety notice was delivered by the crew to all the houses in the immediate vicinity of the house that did have a fire!

 

 

https://www.shropshirestar.com/news/local-hubs/telford/2023/12/27/fire-crews-battle-boxing-day-blaze-caused-by-ornamental-candle-on-log-burner/

 

 

The house is next door but one to ours!

 

Nobody called me in a panic so my 3 buckets of sand, the fire blanket and the extinguisher were unused.

 

Mind you by the time I'd got my pants on over my tights, and found my cape and mask, the brigade would have turned up and dealt with the conflagration with the couple of buckets of water.

 

Interesting that they were able to contain the fire with a camera. Or was that a mistranslation from Welsh?

 

I also note you are in the Horton area. Are you familiar with the stories by Dr Seuss? I seem to remember one of the titles was something like "Horton Hires A Ho".

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

4 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

I'll just add this to make a jet pilot's day....

I shall keep a record of my contributions, and request my frequent faeces miles.

[SM42]

54 minutes ago, AndyID said:

 

Interesting that they were able to contain the fire with a camera. Or was that a mistranslation from Welsh?

 

I also note you are in the Horton area. Are you familiar with the stories by Dr Seuss? I seem to remember one of the titles was something like "Horton Hires A Ho".

 

Horton hears a Who, or in Polish, Horton slyszy ktosia. 

 

Strangely, a film we watched last night on TV

 

Andy

[AndyID]

1 hour ago, SM42 said:

 

Horton hears a Who, or in Polish, Horton slyszy ktosia. 

 

Strangely, a film we watched last night on TV

 

Andy

 

There was an email circulating some time ago with a list of all the Dr Seuss titles inappropriately altered. That's where my version came from. Every time I remember that one I get the giggles. 🤣

[Winslow Boy]

7 hours ago, iL Dottore said:

Coprophagia.

Quite a common phenomenon in the animal world.

Dogs also do it - but tend to eat the faeces of ruminants as it allows them to obtain plant based nutrients that otherwise would be inaccessible.

Presumably by smell.

 

Having a big and complex brain has allowed us to overcome the limitations of our senses - a mediocre sense of smell being one of them.

Oh, Dear. The Squadron Leader seems uncomfortable with “bodily fluids”. Believe me, there are worse bodily products than a little poo*

…which is, of course, often the precursor to emesis (vomiting).

 

I can’t think of a single drug - from aspirin to the most sophisticated mRNA based vaccines - that doesn’t cause nausea, vomiting and headache in someone.

One tends to develop a degree of indifference/tolerance to medical/patient fluids and smells. Although I’ve found that without constant exposure (as in seeing patients every day) that tolerance tends to wane.
 

* two of the worst things I have ever smelled were the vomitus of an end stage metastatic colon cancer patient who was vomiting faecal matter and a suppurating 3rd Degree burn in a patient who had refused treatment for the burn for several weeks!

Thoughtful though that was it was still more information than was needed.

[J. S. Bach]

Especially the last paragraph!

[Dave Hunt]

7 hours ago, Happy Hippo said:

The military designation would be AVTURD

 

Nice one HH. For civilian use I guess it would be AVSCAT

 

Dave

[Dave Hunt]

Another largely non-productive day due to extreme snottery mainly taken up with crosswords, reading and playing Scrabble but this evening it seems to be receding so I have high hopes of some time in the shed tomorrow. We shall see.

 

Dave

[pH]

8 hours ago, newbryford said:

98 is for "preserved" locos that have been registered for use on the mainline.

The 3rd character is the power rating and the last two digits are (normally) from the loco number.

i.e. The Flying Money pit is 98872 - Class 98, Class 8 power and 72 from 4472

There are some clashes that mean the above cannot be used. Such as 98700 is 70000 and 98702 is 46100

Similarly 98802 is 71000, because 6000 has taken 98800

Another example of trying to include meaning in a derived code where the items to be coded are not guaranteed to produce unique results. First three digits - OK, since they aren’t intended to be unique. Last two digits - should be consecutive numbers, with no attempt to include significance.
 

People who need to know will know the appropriate number for a particular engine. Think about it - in your spotting days, did you ever confuse 46222 with 46257?

[newbryford]

40 minutes ago, pH said:

Another example of trying to include meaning in a derived code where the items to be coded are not guaranteed to produce unique results. First three digits - OK, since they aren’t intended to be unique. Last two digits - should be consecutive numbers, with no attempt to include significance.
 

People who need to know will know the appropriate number for a particular engine. Think about it - in your spotting days, did you ever confuse 46222 with 46257?

 

No.

Before my time.....

[Happy Hippo]

23 minutes ago, newbryford said:

 

No.

Before my time.....

I thought they were 'Peaks'!

 

Of you can't remember then then I'm afraid to say that time has not been  kind to you.

 

Although having said that, I appreciate we cannot all have the ageless charm of  Jamie, DH or Olddudders

[newbryford]

3 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

I thought they were 'Peaks'!

 

Of you can't remember then then I'm afraid to say that time has not been  kind to you.

 

Although having said that, I appreciate we cannot all have the ageless charm of  Jamie, DH or Olddudders

 

Class 46 "Peaks" (although sometimes referred to as "Cromptons"  - not of the 33 variety - only went up to 46056.

 

 

[newbryford]

6 minutes ago, Happy Hippo said:

I thought they were 'Peaks'!

 

Of you can't remember then then I'm afraid to say that time has not been  kind to you.

 

Although having said that, I appreciate we cannot all have the ageless charm of  Jamie, DH or Olddudders

 

"Ageless charm".

You smooth talking b*******......................

😃

[BR60103]

12 hours ago, Oldddudders said:

I'll just add this to make a jet pilot's day....

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-67771640

 

Finally, a practical use for airyplanes.

 

[J. S. Bach]

Night Owl from the Piedmont.

[SM42]

8 hours ago, pH said:

Another example of trying to include meaning in a derived code where the items to be coded are not guaranteed to produce unique results. First three digits - OK, since they aren’t intended to be unique. Last two digits - should be consecutive numbers, with no attempt to include significance.
 

People who need to know will know the appropriate number for a particular engine. Think about it - in your spotting days, did you ever confuse 46222 with 46257?

 

I see it as trying to bring a semblance of order in a  computer database that was created around 50 years ago when 46222 and 46257 would be seen as class 46s even though they aren't and thus all sorts of class 46 data would be attributed by the computer as it knew no better. 

 

A separate class 98 for steam locos got rid of all that confusion.  

 

I may be wrong, as I don’t know the technical in and outs of TOPS, but that is my theory.

 

Is TOPS also the reason for the seemingly endless Southetn Region EMU renumbering program that always seemed to have a explanation in your Ian Allen ABC book every year in the mid / late 70s?

 

I was too young in those days to get into technical nitty gritties and now too old to remember the details. 

 

Andy

Edited December 28, 2023 by SM42

[Flying Fox 34F]

My understanding of the TOPS series for 99xxx numbering is for vehicles that had been sold off and delisted.  Upon being

re-registered the 99 number is allocated.  When you see carriages with original numbers in a charter train, they are privately owned, but we’re never delisted as their certification must have been maintained by the operator.

 

The Jet Fuel from Poo, maybe a better solution, than electric powered aircraft.  If the technology can be made small enough, it can convert the waste from the onboard toilets and feed the engines direct!

 

Finally, the Good Doctors comments remind me, I have distinct memories of certain unpleasant sights and smells.  Many railway officers will understand.  As for the unfortunate cancer patient, it reminds me, we would not let a Pet suffer such a fate.  Just my opinion.

 

Paul

[SM42]

12 minutes ago, Flying Fox 34F said:

 

 

The Jet Fuel from Poo, maybe a better solution, than electric powered aircraft.  If the technology can be made small enough, it can convert the waste from the onboard toilets and feed the engines direct!

 

 

 

Paul

 

I wouldn't like to rely on the digestive processes of those on board. 

 

Can you imagine the PA announcement  

" Would all passengers please make a deposit so we can get to Ibiza" 😁

 

Would you get a discount on your air fare if you contributed?  Would you need to get a receipt? 

 

It would probably be better to leave  that processing equipment weight at the airport and process the collections on the ground once the tanks are emptied. 

 

It's actually not a bad idea to use the toilets as a source of fuel. 

 

Andy

[DenysW]

19 minutes ago, SM42 said:

It's actually not a bad idea to use the toilets as a source of fuel. 

As a source of energy it's probably already happening, via emptying the cess tanks into the sewer system having landed. Too long, complicated and boring to explain why it's impractical for jet fuel, save to say that sewage is generally 99.8-99.9% pure water.

[Winslow Boy]

43 minutes ago, SM42 said:

 

I wouldn't like to rely on the digestive processes of those on board. 

 

Can you imagine the PA announcement  

" Would all passengers please make a deposit so we can get to Ibiza" 😁

 

Would you get a discount on your air fare if you contributed?  Would you need to get a receipt? 

 

It would probably be better to leave  that processing equipment weight at the airport and process the collections on the ground once the tanks are emptied. 

 

It's actually not a bad idea to use the toilets as a source of fuel. 

 

Andy

If it was Ryan Air you'd probably be charged extra for it.

 

Mind you if they served curry.

[newbryford]

2 hours ago, SM42 said:

 

 

 

Is TOPS also the reason for the seemingly endless Southern Region EMU renumbering program that always seemed to have a explanation in your Ian Allen ABC book every year in the mid / late 70s?

 

 

Yep - when coaching stock was added to the system.

 

Lots of Mk1s were also renumbered, such as SKs from the 25xxx range to the 18xxx series, so they didn't clash with Class 25s.

BFKs were renumbered from the 14xxx series to 17xxx to avoid clashes with EMU vehicles.

50xxx DMUs were altered to 53xxx to avoid the 50s.

 

There are quite a few other examples.

[Happy Hippo]

1 hour ago, SM42 said:

 

I wouldn't like to rely on the digestive processes of those on board. 

 

Can you imagine the PA announcement  

" Would all passengers please make a deposit so we can get to Ibiza" 😁

 

Would you get a discount on your air fare if you contributed?  Would you need to get a receipt? 

 

It would probably be better to leave  that processing equipment weight at the airport and process the collections on the ground once the tanks are emptied. 

 

It's actually not a bad idea to use the toilets as a source of fuel. 

 

Andy

Or in my case....

 

Clear Prop!