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Guest: Squadron Leader Paul “Skids” Harrison, RNZAF
Host: Dave Homewood
Recorded: 18th of March 2025
Published: 21st of March 2025
Duration: 1 hour, 20 minutes, 4 seconds
In this episode Dave Homewood talks with Squadron Leader Paul “Skids” Harrison, who is currently an instructor with No. 14 Squadron RNZAF on the Texan II’s, but he also has a long history as a fast jet pilot with the Royal Air Force.
Skids joined the RAF in 1985 after several years in the Air Training Corps in his hometown of Brough, Yorkshire, in the UK. He trained as a pilot on the Jet Provost Mk. 3 and Mk. 5, and progressed to the BAe Hawk.
Selected for fast jets, he was posted onto the Blackburn Buccaneer, and following a six month Operational Conversion Unit course on the type, he became operational on the type with No. 208 Squadron RAF, based at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland.
Skids ended up deploying to Bahrain with the squadron as part of the RAF’s Operation Granby, the air component of the first Gulf War. He and his navigator were laser designating targets for the RAF’s Tornado fleet to drop their bombloads on.
Following the war he remained with the Buccaneer squadron till the type was wound down and retired. He then became an instructor on Hawks at RAF Valley for a couple of years.
Returning to operational aircraft, Skids did an OCU to learn to fly the Sepecat Jaguar single-seat supersonic attack aircraft. He spent time back over Iraq in this type in the policing role, as well as in Norway and other parts of the world. He then was attached to the Omani Air Force for five years, again flying the Jaguar, and other types.
A visit to New Zealand with his wife saw them fall in love with the country, and eventually they moved here five years ago. Skids joined the RNZAF, and is based at Ohakea as an instructor.
Photos from Paul “Skids” Harrison:
A young Flying Officer Skids Harrison on day one on on the Buccaneer in January 1988.
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