Letter from Lewis Ellis to his mother and father

Letter from Lewis Ellis to his mother and father

Writes of passing exams and that he had now started navigation and armaments. Mentions their flight sergeant and other instructors and doing drill. Writes about their well regarded commanding officer. Writes a little about their establishment and weekly dances.

1941-08-31

Two page handwritten letter and envelope

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EEllisELEllisH-[Fa]410831

[postage stamp] [postmark 31 AUG 1941]

Mrs Ellis
54, Wulfric Rd.,
Manor,
Sheffield. 2.
Yorks.

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[blank page]

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1238597 AC2 E.L. ELLIS.
“D” Flight 4 Squadron
11 I.T.W.
Waldorf Hotel
Scarborough
Yorks

Dear Mam & Dad,

Just a line in reply to your letter I got yesterday – Saturday. Every things OK. Ive passed my “Gas” exam and we had the maths exam last Wednesday and it was very easy, I ought to have 100% for that.

We have now started lerning [sic] “Navigation” and “Armements.” [sic] Navigation is pretty simple and armements [sic] is lerning [sic] to take to pieces, put together [deleted] on [/deleted] and fire one of those guns they have in the gun turrets of “Blenhiems, [sic] Wellingtons, Sunderlands etc: our Sidney will know what I mean.

Our Flight Sergent [sic] (Sergent [sic] Major) is a devil, he has us drilling about 1 1/2 hours a day – plays H – with us and when we’ve finished & feel half dead he tells us we are the best flight he’s taken. We’ve got two NCOs in charge of the flight (Our’s is Senior Flight) one is Cpl Lock – Surry [sic] cricketer and the other hes only twenty & one of my pals is Collinson – proffessional [sic] footballer – so you see our flight is the most athletic in the squadron.

Our CO – Alwyn – is the best officer I know – he stops and talks to any of us when we’re in the street and believe it or not one night he went in the kitchen and made cocoa for the guard. [deleted] I’ve done [/deleted] I did six guards in the first two weeks & we are guard flight next week so I’ll have another three at least.

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In our Squadron there are 4 flights – A – B – C & D and we have been here the longest and so we are senior flight. The other three flights are observers but we are all pilots.

Each Friday we have a “Wing Dance” its 1/6 for us but being as some chaps out of our flight were on the door we get in for nothing (our Flight). It was the poshest dance Ive seen. Terrific band about 200 officers and about 100 of us juniors (our title is not AC2 but CADET) when we are on parade). Both our corprals [sic] were drunk – there were two bars – and the CO had to be taken home. Anyway we all enjoyed it except for the Air Raid – we get six a week here.

Well I reckon that’s all – I don’t know the chap our Cyril means he hasn’t been up yet.

Rember [sic] me to every body and the rabbits

Hows our Lyne

Your loving son

Lewis.