547: No Such Thing As A Mystic Beluga

Live from the Edinburgh Festival, Dan, James, Anna and Andy discuss raiders, radars, Wales and whales.
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[@RichWoods23]

Re. the radar death ray. In the 1930s it probably wasn't possible to design and power a focused shortwave or microwave radio beam with enough energy to cause any harm, but there's a story about the mechanics maintaining Czechoslovakian MiG-23 fighters in the 1970s. The nose-cone radar would have its target scan-and-lock function tested against a shed a kilometre down range, but because the radar was a powerful 9GHz microwave emitter with a 40km range then once they were done for the day they'd walk over to the shed and check to see if any rabbits grazing in the vicinity had been boiled alive by the lock beam. A welcome addition to the pot.

[@RichWoods23]

Re. the radar detector detectors, back in the 1980s I was told a story by an RAF pilot about the nap-of-earth flying training he and his mates undertook as Tornado aircrew. One of the sites was in mid-Wales, where only the sheep would be given heart attacks by huge fighter-bomber jets flying at 140mph just 40 feet above the ground. When they were flying along the valley floors there'd occasionally be people living on the hillsides or driving along the lanes who could look down on these aircraft zipping along, which was quite an impressive sight. Then one day a policeman decided to point his speed gun at a pair of Tornados, not understanding that it would trigger the missile warning system in the cockpit and prepare the chaff dispensers for firing.

[@carollollol]

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