I was in the RAF at the up in Scotland (UK), working in an armoury.
We heard the news of the first plane hitting the towers, and eventually somebody 'tweaked' our 'coat-hanger antenna' so we could listen to the news. About an hour afterwards, that was when it REALLY kicked-off. The armoury was placed into 'lock down', and we had to produce a full audit of all serviceable weapons. The station guard-force came and collected all the temporary-issue ammunition. We could hear a couple of Tornado GR1's sitting at the arming-point with their engines spooling.
We were locked in. Nobody could come in, nobody could leave. Our contact with the world was through a small hatch and the internal phone. We were given empty bottles to piss in.
For the first time in my military career, it was our first 'stand to' that was not a drill. We remained at that state for nearly 12 hours.
On reflection, it WAS the start of a 'war'.
Iraq and Afghanistan followed, and we spent much our lives living out of kit-bag afterwards, until I demobbed in 2005.
Still seems surreal, as did the tours....
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