Linden Hill Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 His name is Paul Filmer (how ironic). Anyone been on any trips with him? Ken, How many times have we been there when they just let us in the front door... FSB-friendly Life News report here. The spy was caught with with a rucksack full of cameras. A dead giveaway for spies. http://lifenews.ru/mobile/news/190494 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Exhausted Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 I am grateful for his service. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Linden Hill Posted March 16, 2016 Author Share Posted March 16, 2016 Service to whom? I'm trusting you realize we're talking about an errant aviation photographer here, not Gary Powers. A Washington Post reporter has identified him as this person: http://www.globalaviationresource.com/v2/179-2/ Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Exhausted Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 So what's the problem? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Flankerman Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 Ken, How many times have we been there when they just let us in the front door... But we've had to wait for up to 30 minutes - while the security staff checked all out passports against the official list. Even then we were escorted everywhere - and told not to point our cameras at the Il-80 'Maxdomes'. I haven't read a tranlation of the Life News link - but was he on his own around the base - or inside with an authorised group ?? like we were ?? Imagine the uproar if a Russian-speaking spotter with a bag full of cameras was found near a US base - or somewhere like Edwards !!! Mind you, I did see some 'spies' on some of our trips...... Some of my pics from Chkalovskaya.... (scroll down a bit) http://www.flankers-site.co.uk/mos2007_day01.html http://www.flankers-site.co.uk/mos2008_day06.html http://www.flankers-site.co.uk/mos2009_day05.html Ken Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ChippyWho Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 The spy was caught with with a rucksack full of cameras. A dead giveaway for spies. A rucksack full of cameras...?! When I visited Duxford last summer, you couldn't move without tripping over a foreign spy -obviously their intel was a bit dodgy, or maybe 'base' and 'museum' got fuddled up in translation! :unsure: Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mfezi Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 I have also taken photographs while visiting foreign air bases, including in the USA and Russia. I always made very sure that I had official permission to do so (and even in the USA I was always escorted). Since I work in the flight test environment, I have also had many opportunities in my life to take photographs "unofficially" on foreign air bases in a wide variety of countries, but that is a temptation that I have never given in to. One of my colleagues was once temporarily detained and had a film confiscated (happened in Russia) for doing so, and another was deported (from a middle Eastern country that I would rather not name), which severely affected his professional career. I have taken their experiences in as "lessons learned" and either photograph completely openly with official permission, or leave the camera at the hotel. I have had arguments with counter-intel people in the past about cellphones also, so I have a very old cellphone without a camera that I use on work-related trips at sensitive installations. In the article quoted by Linden Hill, and regardless of the source of the article, the circumstances do sound very suspicious. For those that have difficulty understanding the google translation: Basically he was noticed by a guy working at a fuel station outside the base who saw him walk past the gas station and head into the field. He (the guy at the gas station) said that he was surprised to see someone there at that time, and upon approaching him he recognized him as someone that he had seen a few days previously at a bus stop. He said that when he saw him about four days earlier, the person asked him in very bad Russian what was the best way to get to Moscow. He said the person could hardly speak Russian. According to the article, they found a professional camera, scanner (I assume a radio-scanner) and noise-cancelling headphones on him. I think if this happened in any country close to an airbase the police or base counter-intel types would have wanted a chat with him. If he was simply an innocent spotter, I do think he was not very smart at all... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TomCooper Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 Mind you, I did see some 'spies' on some of our trips.........j... all have 'CYA' imprinted in big neon letters on their foreheads... :D Must be a NSA/neocon/al-Qaida/Mossad conspiracy there... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Flankerman Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 ...j... all have 'CYA' imprinted in big neon letters on their foreheads... I don't get the reference Tom - please explain - 'CYA' ?. Ken Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Darius at home Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 If it is the guy that the Washington Post identified you would think he would have more sense than to hang around a Russian airbase taking photos without permission. His arrest as a "spy" can hardly come as a surprise, especially given the current involvement of the Russian AF in foreign parts. I suspect he will be detained for a period and then deported. Darius PS presumably "Exhausted" thought he was a real spy, wich caused his apparently automatic "thank-you for your service" response. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Linden Hill Posted March 16, 2016 Author Share Posted March 16, 2016 (edited) My original post was meant to be facetious, which appears to be lost on some here. Mea culpa. In Russia you never go anywhere near a military base without either official permission or at least the help of friendly locals. This little episode reminds me a lot of these miscreants in 2001: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/1697862.stm I suspect this is the vantage point at Chkalovskii he was aiming for: And this was the mode of transport we last used (followed by a mile hike up to a monastery) to get round the back of Zhukovskii, together with some Russian friends. Even with our 'guardian angels' present, I suspect this might not be a good idea nowadays: Edited March 16, 2016 by Linden Hill Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Darius at home Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 Looks like two UK Defence attaches got nabbed near another Russian base in the same period. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35821607 Darius Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Linden Hill Posted March 16, 2016 Author Share Posted March 16, 2016 Mozdok is much more sensitive than Chkalovskii. It was the main base in the North Caucasus for strike aircraft during the two Chechen Wars. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
spejic Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 (edited) I don't get the reference Tom - please explain - 'CYA' ?. "Cover Your (word for rear end that ARC seems to censor)". It's when your first priority is making sure you can't be blamed when something goes wrong. Edited March 16, 2016 by spejic Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kotey Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 As i know this "spotter" were released in same day without any charges, two british military officers with diplomatic passports, whos were tryed runaway from military police patriol near Mozdok airbase in same day were raleased immediatly after they shown they diplomatic immunitet card. So its typical "spy games" at my look. BTW one of russian modellers, who tryed made few photos of newest Su-34s at one of airbase at south of Russia had same troubles - as i suppose Russian MoD have some kind of scanners for optic lens at airbases and fast detected this try. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TomCooper Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 I don't get the reference Tom - please explain - 'CYA' ?.Cover Your A... -Agency... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TomCooper Posted March 16, 2016 Share Posted March 16, 2016 My original post was meant to be facetious, which appears to be lost on some here. Mea culpa. ... I suspect this might not be a good idea nowadays: ...how the times changed since...sigh... back in the early 1990s... At various points in time (say: public holidays), and various places (nah, I'll not name any), one could simply walk in, and even take a seat in the cockpit. I'll never forget my surprise to find out that no two Su-... erm... on a specific air base had the same cockpit configuration.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Mfezi Posted March 21, 2016 Share Posted March 21, 2016 And for those of us also spending a lot of time in Africa, it seems we must be even more careful around here: http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/british-plane-spotters-face-jail-in-kenya-20160321-3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ya-gabor Posted March 22, 2016 Share Posted March 22, 2016 Spotter or not? Remember a visit by a big group of “spotters” back in early 90’s who had a trip arranged for them to every Hungarian AF base. Many of them were spotters just for this one trip and no one ever heard of them since then, never published anything, you could not find any photos by them . . . So there are spotters and “spotters”. Even back in the days (early 2000) when relations were “normal” with Russia at the MAKS entry I had to explain in detail to the security personal why I have two cameras and several different lenses with me. “Why do you need so many cameras????????” and the question was very serious from the Security guard! So even real spotters and aviation journalist/photographers are suspicious in many countries! Best regards Gabor Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Flankerman Posted March 22, 2016 Share Posted March 22, 2016 (edited) On one of my first of many trips to Moscow for MAKS - way back in the early ninties with an organised tour group - we had an American with us who stood out like a sore thumb. We were in jeans and T-shirts - he was always in a 3-piece suit and kept himself apart from the rest of us. The fact that the organised tour went on from Moscow to Beijing was seen as significant to some in the group. 'Back door' entry to China ??? Ken PS - I understand from some of those who continued to Bejing that he 'disappeared' from the group soon after they got there. Edited March 22, 2016 by Flankerman Quote Link to post Share on other sites
habu2 Posted March 25, 2016 Share Posted March 25, 2016 (edited) “Why do you need so many cameras????????” and the question was very serious from the Security guard! I would have responded "why do you need so many bullets?" but that may have been unwise... Edited March 25, 2016 by habu2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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