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Ex-RAF top gun (call sign Hooligan) has made a killing training China's fighter pilots - and helped recruit dozens of British airmen paid £250,000 a year by Beijing... so why has the MoD only just woken up to this outrage?
[MAIL] His arm resting nonchalantly on the side of the cockpit and with the Tornado’s roof completely removed, dashing Keith Hartley turns to face the camera.He looks every inch the national hero, risking life and limb during this 1988 test flight, which was conducted when Tornados and their pilots were on the front line of the Cold War. Only when you take a second glance at this remarkable photograph do you realise that Hartley isn’t just flying without any overhead canopy: he has also removed his oxygen supply. That’s no mean feat at speeds exceeding 500mph. Three decades on, the famous picture of the RAF’s ‘cabriolet’ testing programme, which the pilot autographed for posterity, still incites a certain awe, capturing the swagger and derring-do of the Top Gun era. Back then, Keith Hartley was the very Best of British. Known by the call-sign ‘Hooligan,’ his swashbuckling work played a key role in defending our realm. Today, things are different. For while the former RAF officer remains gainfully employed in the aviation industry, his recent endeavours engender scorn, rather than envy. To former comrades, he’s no longer a hero. Why so? Earlier this week the British government released a ‘threat alert’ about former British fighter pilots who are signing up to help train the Chinese equivalent of the RAF. Posted by: Skidmark 2022-10-23 |
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