As an Avionics Technician in the Royal Air Force, I was able to spend many a night sitting on the flight deck of a Britannia, listening to the Amateur Bands on the Collins HF radio. A certain G3, who's probably forgotten all about it by now, used the radios to chat with people while I was listening.
In December 1974, I passed the Radio Amateur's Examination and sent off for my Class B Licence. As G8LPO, I was active on 2 metres SSB, using an 8-element Yagi on top of two scaffolding poles that my Dad fixed to the side of the house. For FM, I had an omni-directional co-linear in the loft. When not at home, I operated /M from the car using a 5/8 wavelength on a magmount, or /P with an HB9CV 2-element beam for SSB.
In 1985, I moved to Virginia. After a few years, G8LPO/W4 passed the 5 wpm Morse test and became KB4TUL. Shortly thereafter, I passed the Technician's exam and became N4OQI. Since then, I have upgraded to General class, and also upgraded my UK licence to a Class A (M0CXS).