Westland Scout

[Aircav]

Hi
Can anyone ID these weapons pods on this Scout, XP-901. I found the photo on the internet and it was taken at le Bourget in 1969, I never seen them before on a Scout.
Thanks
Steve

[Army of One]

Are they weapon holders or parachute flare holders....? Wiki states it could carry four  4.5 flares for night time recce....

[Aircav]

Definitely not flare holders, I've seen them before but thanks for your reply 

[The Wooksta!]

Early TOW missiles?  Can't see why they'd be square though.  Missiles tend to be round!

[Army of One]

Oh bum!!!! Thought I'd got one there......I found another pic with the frame work on but diff pylons n no stores XP-907......they look like the SS.11 ones though.....I think

[Aircav]

The tubular pylons are standard for the SS.11 and SS.12 missiles but that's not what weapons are on here and the pods are to small for TOW Lee. I've been having another look at the photo and the serial is XP908 not XP901 as the guy who had posted it said and the other thing in the sight on the roof is a fixed none standard type which I've not seen before either.
Its seems that XP908 was with the Demonstration & Trials Flight for a while.

[The Wooksta!]

Didn't think they were TOW either but it was worth raising anyway.

[Jeffry Fontaine]

I would suspect that it was one of these two weapons:

Fairey (BAC) Swingfire (wikipedia)
Vickers Vigilant (wikipedia)

Both were in service by 1969 and both were launched from a rectangular box shape launcher that also served as the shipping container. 

The BGM-71 TOW ATGM was still under development in 1969 (according to the wikipedia entry)

[Aircav]

Hi Jeffry
Swingfire was trialed on the Lynx but not the Scout but saying that the pods may very well be Vigilant, it was a small missile, I'm off to the AAC museum before the Nats in Telford so I'll take a copy with me and see if your right.  
Many thanks
Steve

Just found this clip on Pathe showing a Sycamer firing Vigilant
http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=41591

[Aircav]

Found this clip to of a Scout at the 1965 Larkhill show, ground skid and theres some nice footage of a Sioux on the race track and a Hunter doing a straffing run.

http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=41027

[rickshaw]

I would suspect that it was one of these two weapons:

Fairey (BAC) Swingfire (wikipedia)
Vickers Vigilant (wikipedia)

Both were in service by 1969 and both were launched from a rectangular box shape launcher that also served as the shipping container. 

The BGM-71 TOW ATGM was still under development in 1969 (according to the wikipedia entry)

Way too small to be Swingfire.   Sight head is also far too simple.   Looks too small for Vigilant.  I suspect they are the wire spool boxes for SS10 or SS11.   Here is a Sioux armed with SS10 and there does appear to be similar shaped boxes above the missile:

[Aircav]

I don't think its anything to do with SS11 heres the missiles on the Scout and the Avimo sight.

[Mossie]

The Bofors Bantam had a square section launcher, maybe that's it?  However, I'm not sure it's a launcher, the wedge seems to be an end plate of some kind, larger than what appears to be a spar.  My guess is it's a mounting of some kind.

[rickshaw]

I don't think its SS11, might be SS10 though.  There are definitely actuators of some kind which open the front of the boxes.  You can see them, just to the left of each of the boxes.   

[Aircav]

SS10 was phased out in 1963 and as the photo is of a D&T Flight Scout from 1969 I don't think its them.