1 25 69 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2315/57077/LBealesRW570398v100.pdf e3c3ff3fec2e45b726180ac09887ef51 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Beales, Robert Walter Description An account of the resource Eight items. The collection concerns Sergeant Robert Walter Beales (570398 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, miscellaneous documents, a photograph and his caterpillar broach and certificate. He flew operations as a flight engineer with 218 Squadron until he was killed 24 August 1942. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Lindy Malloch and catalogued by Andy Fitter. Additional information on Robert Walter Beales is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/201673/">IBCC Losses Database.</a> Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-12-04 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Beales, RW Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Robert Walter Beales' observer's and air gunner's flying log book. Two Description An account of the resource Observer's and air gunner's flying log book of RW Beales, flight engineer. It covers the period from 1 January 1942 to 24 August 1942 and includes details and locations of his flying training and operations flown. Whilst in training he flew on two of the '1000 Bomber' raids. Other targets were Bremen, Cologne, Duisburg, Essen and Hamburg. His pilots on operations were Pilot Officer Bayley, Pilot Officer Abberton and Sergeant Yates. On one occasion he had to bale out because of an engine fire. Beales was lost on operations on 24 August 1942. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Great Britain. Royal Air Force Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-08-24 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 1942-02 1942-03 1942-04 1942-05 1942-05-30 1942-05-31 1942-06 1942-06-01 1942-06-02 1942-07 1942-07-26 1942-07-28 1942-07-29 1942-08 1942-08-11 1942-08-24 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Germany Germany--Ruhr (Region) Germany--Bremen Germany--Cologne Germany--Duisburg Germany--Essen Germany--Hamburg Great Britain England--Cambridgeshire England--Norfolk England--Suffolk Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Air Force. Bomber Command Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Log book and record book Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One booklet Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context LBealesRW570398v100 Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Review Oct 2024 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Mike Connock 1651 HCU 218 Squadron air gunner aircrew bale out bombing of Cologne (30/31 May 1942) flight engineer Heavy Conversion Unit killed in action navigator pilot RAF Downham Market RAF Waterbeach Stirling Wellington https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2924/55480/BMilsonGWMilsonGWv1.pdf 8f34f02a38b3e3793de663de1cf0bfc7 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Milson, George William Description An account of the resource 203 items. The collection concerns Flight Lieutenant George William Milson DFC (b. 1916, 937875 Royal Air Force) and contains correspondence, documents, and photographs]. He flew operations as a pilot with 18 and 84 Squadrons and became a prisoner of war of the Japanese. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Elizabeth Jane McElwee and catalogued by Barry Hunter. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2024-01-19 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Milson, GW Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource George Milson's memoir Description An account of the resource George Milson joined the RAF in September 1939. After receiving his wings, he was posted to No. 18 Squadron, flying night operations to Dunkirk, Duisburg, Wilhelmshaven, and later carrying out low level shipping sweeps and “Circus” operations over northern France. George completed thirty operations before being posted to the Middle East, joining No. 84 Squadron at Mosul and later serving in the Western Desert. There he flew repeated daylight strikes on enemy troops and shipping during the advance across Libya and took part in formation work, desert flying and intensive operational activity as the squadron moved forward. In January 1942 he flew as part of a six aircraft ferry flight from Egypt to the Far East, travelling via Habbaniya, Bahrain, Sharja, Karachi, Calcutta, Rangoon and finally Sumatra. He carried out both day and night attacks on Japanese landing forces, fleet units and positions around Palembang and Java, often in difficult conditions with poor facilities and heavy losses. During the collapse of Java he escaped on foot from Kalidjati with a small mixed group before being captured near Tjilatjap. He spent more than three years as a prisoner of war, first in solitary confinement and then in camps at Tjilatjap, Bandoeng, Changi and Kranji, taking part in work parties and camp duties until liberation in 1945. After repatriation he returned to Britain and was demobilised later that year. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource George Milson Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Singapore Great Britain England--Torquay England--Paignton England--St. Leonards (East Sussex) England--Stoke-on-Trent England--Skegness England--Boston France France--Dunkerque Germany Germany--Duisburg Germany--Wilhelmshaven Netherlands Netherlands--Texel France France--Brest France--Bordeaux (Nouvelle-Aquitaine) Germany--Norderney Malta Gibraltar Italy Italy--Pantelleria Island Egypt Egypt--Marsá Maṭrūḥ Egypt--Heliopolis (Extinct city) Egypt--Cairo Egypt--Ismailia (Province) Iraq Iraq--Mosul Iraq--Baghdad Egypt--Suez Israel Israel--Tel Aviv Israel--Haifa Iraq--Karkūk Iran Iraq--Baṣrah Israel--Tel Aviv Malaysia Malaysia--Butterworth (Pulau Pinang) Sudan Bahrain United Arab Emirates Pakistan Pakistan--Karachi India India--Mumbai India--Hyderabad Burma Burma--Akyab (District) Burma--Toungoo Burma--Rangoon Indonesia Indonesia--Sumatra Indonesia--Palembang Indonesia--Medan Singapore Indonesia--Bandar Lampung Indonesia--Batavia Sri Lanka Sri Lanka--Colombo Indonesia--Bandoeng Indonesia--Tjilatjap England--Liverpool New Zealand England--Langham Europe--Frisian Islands North Africa India--Kolkata United Arab Emirates--Shāriqah England--Torquay Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Air Force. Bomber Command Royal Air Force. Fighter Command Royal Australian Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Memoir Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 41 printed sheets Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context BMilsonGWMilsonGWv1 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Maureen Clarke Claire Campbell Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending text-based transcription Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1939-09 1942-01 1942-02 1945 13 OTU 18 Squadron 2 Group 211 Squadron 84 Squadron air gunner aircrew Anson anti-aircraft fire B-17 Blenheim bomb aimer bombing Catalina Distinguished Flying Cross Distinguished Flying Medal ditching escaping Gneisenau Hampden Harvard Hudson Hurricane Initial Training Wing Magister Me 109 mess Morse-keyed wireless telegraphy navigator observer Operational Training Unit Oxford pilot prisoner of war RAF Abu Sueir RAF Bicester RAF Bodney RAF Boscombe Down RAF Cardington RAF Coningsby RAF Cosford RAF Cranfield RAF Farnborough RAF Ford RAF Great Massingham RAF Halton RAF Hendon RAF Hinton RAF Horsham St Faith RAF Little Rissington RAF Lydda RAF Oulton RAF Polebrook RAF Portreath RAF Skegness RAF Upwood RAF Watton RAF West Raynham Red Cross Scharnhorst sport training Wellington Whitley wireless operator wireless operator / air gunner https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2924/55369/SMilsonGW937875v60017.pdf 72299830fa04994e9ef914240aad8258 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2924/55369/SMilsonGW937875v60018.pdf 3fe0f13e60e18db4a5714030390dec5a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Milson, George William Description An account of the resource 203 items. The collection concerns Flight Lieutenant George William Milson DFC (b. 1916, 937875 Royal Air Force) and contains correspondence, documents, and photographs]. He flew operations as a pilot with 18 and 84 Squadrons and became a prisoner of war of the Japanese. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Elizabeth Jane McElwee and catalogued by Barry Hunter. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2024-01-19 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Milson, GW Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource History of 84 Squadron from 3 January 1942 - 7 March 1942 Description An account of the resource A detailed history of 84 Squadron over a two month period. There is a second, different, history. Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Egypt Egypt--Heliopolis (Extinct city) Iraq Iraq--Baghdad Bahrain United Arab Emirates Pakistan Pakistan--Karachi India India--Mumbai India--Hyderabad India--Allahabad Burma Burma--Toungoo Burma--Rangoon Indonesia Indonesia--Sumatra Indonesia--Medan Indonesia--Palembang Indonesia--Batavia Malaysia--Kuantan (Pahang) Indonesia--Lahat Indonesia--Indramayu Indonesia--Bandoeng North Africa Malaysia Singapore India--Kolkata United Arab Emirates--Shāriqah Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Australian Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Service material Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Eight and eleven printed sheets Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SMilsonGW937875v60017, SMilsonGW937875v60018 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 1942-02 1942-03 Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending text-based transcription Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive 211 Squadron 27 Squadron 84 Squadron aircrew Blenheim bombing control tower crash evacuation ground crew Hudson Hurricane killed in action observer pilot https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2982/54808/PKnoxVD24010021.jpg 3380129f7d578477d3611172029e7f36 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2982/54808/PKnoxVD24010022 b.jpg 9cf11f190370b39b56a3b3b1a1c44829 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Knox, Victor Douglas Knox, V D Description An account of the resource 196 items. The collection concerns Squadron Leader Victor Douglas Knox (b 27 October 1920, 63842 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, correspondence, documents, objects and photographs. Following his career in which he flew operations as a pilot with 462 Squadron in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa he was Accidents Officer at 4 Group. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Stephen Knox and catalogued by Lynn Corrigan. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2024-08-18 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Knox, VD Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource At Croft Description An account of the resource Four men in uniform, all with pilot's brevets, stand in a line on a snowy path alongside a building with windows and downpipe. On reverse, 'Jan 1942 at Croft. Self (F/L Knox) Dep 6c A Flight, S/L Snow O.C.A Flight 78 Sqdn, F/L Kirkpatrick Dep OC B Flight, S/L Clafferton O.C. B Flight 78 Sqdn' Additional information on Albert John Drake Snow is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/226333/">IBCC Losses Database.</a> Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Yorkshire Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Air Force. Bomber Command Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One b/w photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PKnoxVD24010021; PKnoxVD24010022 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive 78 Squadron aircrew pilot RAF Croft https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2798/49878/MWillettS[Ser -DoB]-190703-04.pdf 1f372259f6081b9a56ba3514b5400778 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Willett, S Description An account of the resource 155 items. The collection concerns contains documents, correspondence about the Fighter Command Communication Squadron, and photographs including a series of reconnaissance photographs. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Shane and Lesley Willett and catalogued by Jan Johnstone. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-07-03 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Willett, S Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context MWillettS[Ser#-DoB]-190703-04 Title A name given to the resource Loads carried by German Air Force Mediterranean Air Transport Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Great Britain. Royal Air Force Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1943-05-26 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Wehrmacht. Luftwaffe Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Service material Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Fourteen page typewritten report Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending text-based transcription Description An account of the resource A paper written about the loads carried by different types of transport aircraft operated by the German Air Force during the North African campaign. Types of aircraft used and details of consignments carried are described. There is a header 'MOST SECRET' at the top of each page. Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942 1942-01 1942-10 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. North Africa Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. He 111 Ju 52 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2802/49817/SBondS-HornerLv10003.jpg 68b9910fead29f53aa2ebd5deb3f2f48 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2802/49817/SBondS-HornerLv10004.MP3 666a20660319a5108c8f5d901a700a6e Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Horner, Lionel Description An account of the resource Three items. Collection concerns Lionel Horner who flew a double tour on 50 Squadron as a Lancaster navigator. Collection contain his flying log book and an oral history interview. The collection was licensed to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Dr Steve Bond and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. This collection was provided, in digital form, by a third-party organisation which used technical specifications and operational protocols that may differ from those used by the IBCC Digital Archive. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022-01-18 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SBondS-HornerLv1 Transcribed audio recording A resource consisting primarily of recorded human voice. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document SB: So basically I just really wanted to chat through your career. You told me when we met the other week that you did a double tour. Is that right? On 50 Squadron. So perhaps we could start with that. Could you — LH: Well, I had a very interesting career because I was a member of the University Air Squadron when the war was on. At the beginning of the war. SB: Oh right. LH: And they let me finish my degree. SB: That was Oxford was it? LH: No, Leeds. SB: Leeds. LH: They let me finish my degree. I joined the University Air Squadron of course when I was there and they said, ‘Right. We’re sending you out to America to be trained.’ SB: Oh. The Arnold Scheme this was. LH: Yeah. You know your stuff don’t you. SB: Well, a great friend of mine was on the first Arnold Scheme course. LH: Was he really? Well, I was on 42e. SB: Ah right. LH: Anyway, they sent me out there to be trained as a fighter pilot and I did the training with, on all the aircraft you know. Stearmans upwards. SB: Yes. Yes. LH: And became a fighter pilot. Still in England. I hadn’t reached America yet. This was all by correspondence and they said, ‘We’re not going to have the ability to find you a place as a fighter pilot with the American Army Air Corps. We’ve got enough fighter pilots. Will you remuster as a bomber pilot?’ SB: Right. LH: Well, by that time I was out there and I remustered as a bomber pilot and flew all that lot. SB: Right. Right. Oh, ok. LH: I finished the bomber pilots’ lot and they said, ‘I’m afraid we’ve enough pilots. Both fighters and bombers. Will you remuster? SB: Really? LH: I said, ‘What? Navigator? Well, I wanted to be a pilot you see. Anyway, I joined the what’s it called? The big commercial firm. What’s the name? Airways in America? SB: Ah. LH: Anyway, I became a commercial navigator, trained navigator even though I was in the RAF and then I became a navigator. South American Airways. SB: Oh right. LH: Do you know it? SB: Yes. I do. Yes. Yes. LH: I became a navigator with them. Then I was commissioned. SB: Right. LH: And then I came back to England and went through the usual processes away from America and you know at OTU, Heavy Conversion Unit. SB: Yeah. LH: Skellingthorpe. SB: Right. LH: 50 Squadron. SB: Right. LH: Two tours. SB: Right. How long were you doing the commercial flying for? LH: How long? Only to be trained. SB: Right. LH: It wasn’t a commercial job. SB: Right. LH: It was just to get me a navigator’s brevet. SB: Oh, I see. Right. Ok. So, you came back to England. When would that have been? LH: 1942. SB: ’42. Ok. LH: So I was in for the beginning of the big English operations and I did more to Berlin and that’s really why you’re here because I’m quite proud of this. SB: Crikey. LH: I did more to Berlin than anybody else in main force. SB: Really. Really. I think you said seventeen. LH: Seventeen to Berlin. SB: Wow. That’s quite something. LH: That’s on my first tour. SB: That was all in your first tour. LH: Aye. So I was lucky wasn’t I? SB: So when did you get onto the squadron then? What — LH: When? SB: When. Yes. LH: Well, I’ve got all the facts here. SB: Oh. Ok. Ok. LH: Do you want a precise date? About January ’42. SB: Right. So just taking a step back before we talk — LH: Yeah. SB: About the squadron in more detail. Where did you do your OTU and HCU? LH: OTU at Market Harborough. SB: Right. LH: And the Heavy Conversion Unit somewhere near Gainsborough I think. SB: Oh, right. Ok. Ok. So, now we’re on — LH: 1661. SB: 1661. Ok. LH: Do you know? Does that ring a bell? SB: It does. It rings a bell certainly yes. I can’t think just at the moment where that was but not to worry. So does, on the squadron now then — LH: I’m on the squadron. SB: Right. And this is ’42. LH: Yeah. SB: Right. So you go through your first tour with seventeen Berlins. LH: Yeah. SB: That must have been — LH: I’ve got it all written down. SB: Right. LH: Do you want to see it? SB: Right. Well, if I have a look at that in just a sec. LH: Yeah. SB: Chat about it first. So there must have been many memorable ops amongst those I imagine. LH: Yes. SB: Any particularly difficult moments shall we say that you recall? LH: Not difficult moments. Oh, that’s somebody calling. Not difficult moments but my, a couple of pilots were involved breaking the rules. Nothing to do. One flew low over Sheffield. SB: Right. LH: To salute his girlfriend and lost everything. SB: Oh really? LH: Yes. They punished him. Took him off flying. SB: Good lord. LH: That was a bit savage. SB: Wasn’t it just. Yes. So you came to the end of your first tour. LH: Tour. That’s right. SB: Did you, did you start the second one straight away? Or did you — LH: Well, the second one straight away with 50 Squadron again. SB: Right. [[ tea talk]] LH: What was your first name? SB: Steve. LH: Steve. Did you get involved in this as a private interest or — SB: Oh yes. I mean I did tell the story. I’ve always been interested in wartime aircrew and when I joined the Air Force in ’73 there were still quite a few chaps serving at that time who’d served during the war so I got chatting to them and so on and eventually I, it went from there to doing what I’m doing now. Chatting to chaps and recording their careers and so on. And oh, I’ve been doing that about twenty five years. LH: But there a financial interest involved? SB: No. No. No. No. No. LH: No. SB: I mean it resulted in [pause] it resulted in that book last year. LH: Really? SB: Oh yes. But no there’s no [pause] I’m not in it for financial interest. I’m in it purely because I’m passionate and enthusiastic about the story. So — LH: You used the word passionate first and then you changed to interest. SB: Passionately interested. LH: Are you passionately interested. SB: Yes, absolutely. So, over the years I must have chatted to I don’t know about a hundred and fifty chaps from — LH: Really? SB: All over the place. Yes. LH: And aircraft all over the place. SB: Yes. Yes. LH: Fighters, bombers. SB: Yes. LH: Reconnaissance. SB: Yes, absolutely. LH: Flying boats. SB: Yes. LH: Really? SB: Yes. In fact, if you look at all the major aircraft types the only, there are very few I have not found chaps. One, perhaps not surprisingly is the Battle. Obviously a very short and awful baptism of fire. And the other one I’ve never found is a Whitley man. LH: I can understand both of them. SB: Right. LH: Battles were very popular at the time. They were the first brought out. It was a wartime aircraft wasn’t it? SB: Yes. Yes. LH: And so was Whitley but they were both very popular but they were lower down the merit rank. SB: Yes [laughs] yes, that’s right. So, so that’s why I do this and as I say that was the first result last year. There is another book coming out this year which is about, it’s called, “Bomber Command Failed To Return.” That’s a collection of stories of chaps who were shot down and went on the run or were shot down and taken prisoner. LH: And you called it, “Bomber Command Failed to Return. SB: Failed to Return. LH: As a sort of blur on the idea. SB: Yeah. And there’s another volume of that next year. So you know it’s essential that chaps like yourself, their story is told. It gets — LH: Do you run it as a continuous title or do you punctuate it? SB: It’s punctuated. LH: Bomber Command. SB: Yes. LH: Inverted commas. SB: Yes. LH: Failed to Return. SB: Yes. LH: Very good. Very good. SB: So that’s why I do it. So, now we’ve just to get back to you you went straight on to your second tour. LH: Yeah. SB: So there was no gap in between. LH: No gap in between. SB: Right. LH: I had some shooting ups obviously. One or two very near things but I survived it all and I was very lucky indeed to have wonderful crews. The usual story. Look at this. I can recommend these. Try these lighter ones. SB: Oh, I will. Thank you. Yes. LH: They are gorgeous. SB: Oh right. LH: You, you really will enjoy those. SB: I’m sure. I’m sure I shall. So when we started your second tour did the whole crew start the same tour? LH: Started with me. Moved with me. Very good. What’s the [daughter] written? SB: Air Safety Management. LH: Air Safety Management. SB: Well, I now lecture at City University in London. LH: Do you? SB: On air safety management. LH: What’s that new abbreviation about aircraft? They put it as aircrew. Part of aircrew. Its ENLA or something. It’s a — SB: Oh, I don’t know that one. No. I don’t know that. LH: Well both, both the chairman and another member of our committee have it on their CVs. SB: Oh. LH: To do with aircraft maintenance. It’s new to me. SB: Well, I don’t know what that is. I don’t recognise it. Anyway, not to — LH: Is this it? [pause] Just give me a second to look it up because I’ve never known what it meant so it’s intriguing to me. SB: Oh ok. LH: If you can tell me what it does. SB: Well, I’ll do my best. LH: You like the biscuits? SB: Yes, I see what you mean. Very nice. LH: They are aren’t they? [pause] Does the [coughs] does the name Alan Watkins ring a bell? SB: No. I can’t say it does. LH: Does the name Roger Hannaford? SB: Oh, Roger Hannaford. Yes. Sure. LH: Well, he has that qualification whatever it means. SB: Oh. LH: And he used to fly the big ones. SB: That’s right. Yes, he did. LH: You saw that, did you? Just read it through. [pause] LH: Take your time. [pause] SB: Oh, that’s appalling isn’t it? LH: Absolutely. SB: Yes. LH: Did you know about it? SB: I didn’t know about that. No. No. That’s dreadful. So anyway, let’s get back to you. LH: Yeah. SB: So you finished your second tour when? LH: The second tour [pause] SB: Let me relieve you of that and ask you to sign that for me later. [pause] LH: I had to finish my second tour. Do you want to see that? SB: Ah Yes. Thank You. Right. LH: Read through it together. SB: Yes. LH: Anything you need. SB: So, University of Leeds. Right. University Air Squadron. What were you flying at Leeds University Air Squadron? LH: The old standard. SB: What? Tiger Moths? LH: Tiger Moths. Yes SB: Right. Ok. So on. Right. Oh, Pan American Airways. Right. LH: Yeah. SB: Right. LH: Pan American Air. You’d think that it would be S T E A R wouldn’t you? SB: It is. LH: It is is it? I thought there was a mistake. SB: Yeah. Right. Then market Harborough for Wellingtons. 1661. Right. Oh, that’s not the dreaded Nuremberg raid is it? LH: Yes. SB: I thought I recognised the date. LH: Yeah. SB: What do you recall about that? I mean that. Gosh your first op. LH: Exciting first op. SB: Yes. Can you — LH: 10th of August 1943. SB: Yes. That is the one isn’t it? LH: Could you just check that if you have any dates there to see I was on it. SB: Oh no. The really bad one was March ’44. LH: March ’44. That wasn’t mine. SB: Right. Ok. LH: Ok. Well, my Berlins started well up and then as I said I did seventeen of them. SB: Yeah. Yeah. LH: And eventually I finished my first tour. That was how the question began. Was it? The first tour completed the 25th of February. SB: Yeah. LH: Awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross invested by George the Sixth. SB: Yeah. LH: And then only a few on the second tour and then finished. SB: Right. Alright? LH: Yeah. SB: So you had, oh gosh five Berlins on the trot. Goodness me. Four there. I mean what must you have thought when you saw Berlin on the target map again? You must have thought oh not again. Surely. LH: I did think like that a bit but we, we were well laden. Harris was a fine fellow and his influence got around to the squadrons and don’t forget we had a distinguished record in 50 Squadron. Did you know that? Did you know we got the first of the great decorations on 50 Squadron? SB: The first VC. LH: The first VC. SB: Yeah. LH: You knew that. SB: Yes, I do. Yes. LH: And we were a well reputed squadron. SB: Yes. LH: But don’t forget with only a civilian background not a professional background like yours it was all new and vitally interesting. I mean the girls used to flock around me you know. That was very interesting. SB: I can believe it [laughs] a bit of a charmer. So any other incidents that stick in your mind during your ops? I mean did you get any significant damage at any time or — LH: Yes. I got structural damage but nothing memorable in that sense. SB: Right. LH: Let’s have another biscuit shall we? Would you like to try another? SB: Oh I just. I could be tempted I think. LH: Go on then. SB: Alright. Thank you. Do you have your logbook? LH: Yes. SB: Perhaps I could, would it be ok for me to have a look through that? LH: Yeah. Now or later? SB: Well, you must have your biscuit first of course. LH: Of course [pause] From your point of view, from your point of view can you recall a memorable experience as far as the human beings you’ve come across? Or could you recall too many? SB: Well, gosh there are many. I think the thing that struck me most of all with all the chats I’ve had is coincidences. There’s a friend of mine in Milton Keynes who was a wireless operator on 158 Squadron, Halifaxes and they were shot down on their twelfth op in January ’45 going into Hanover by a night fighter. They all got out ok and Jack who is the chap I’m talking about went on the run for seven days until he was rounded up and then spent the rest of the time, the rest of the war in a POW camp. And seven or eight years ago now we were talking about it and I said to him, ‘Did you, do you know who shot you down, Jack?’ And he said, ‘No. No idea.’ So I thought I wonder if I can find out. So to cut a long story short I did find out who shot him down. LH: Really? SB: Yes. Who was one of the top scoring night fighter pilots and is still alive and I got them in touch with each other and took Jack out to Germany to meet him and they had three or four days together and got on like a house on fire. Absolutely. That was, that was pretty memorable. LH: I’ll say. SB: I think the other one that — LH: I think that’s extremely memorable. SB: It was and they’re still in correspondence with each other now. LH: Oh really. SB: Yes. Which was marvellous. The other one that sticks in my mind is when I was finishing off research for that one nation that I hadn’t got any interviews with was Italy. Now, through a student in my university I got put in touch with an Italian general who lives quite close to Venice and I went out to see him about four years ago. Still with us. He’s ninety eight now. Probably ninety nine now actually and he was a fighter pilot and he was telling me lots of stories of escorting torpedo bombers, attacking the Malta convoys and so on and he described an incident to me where he was, his wing man was shot down by Allied fighters. He was damaged but managed to stagger back to Sicily with a damaged engine and he said they were most unusual. I said, ‘What was it that struck you down?’ He said, ‘Oh, they weren’t Spitfires or Hurricanes. Something very unusual. I’m not quite sure what they were. Radial engine aeroplanes.’ I thought strange. Anyway, about six months later I was interviewing a Fleet Air Arm pilot who’d come over for a squadron reunion. Lives in North America now and he’d flown Grumman Martlets in the western desert. Flying off desert strips not flying off carriers and he started to describe to me a combat he had had with two Italian fighters. One was shot down and the other one was damaged and flew away and as conversation went on it was obvious there were many pointers to indicate that this was the same thing. This was the same combat because that was the only victory that the Martlet scored. The only air to air victory they scored over the Mediterranean. So he, he said to me, ‘I’ve often wondered if that other Italian made it back to Sicily.’ And I said, ‘Well, yes he did. I spoke to him six months ago about it.’ LH: It was actually a very memorable easy to remember name the Grumman Martlet, wasn’t it? SB: Yes. Yes. LH: The name comes of the tongue actually. SB: What else? There’s a chap in our ACA branch who did a full tour on Hampdens. In fact, he did thirty three including the first two thousand bomber ops. Not too many of those chaps around now. So there are many. Many memorable conversations I’ve had. LH: And it’s are still fascinating to you. SB: Absolutely. LH: And I suppose you’ve heard everybody who ever flew a Lancaster enthused beyond all limitations about them. SB: And the same for the Halifax chaps of course. LH: Yeah. But I, we never [laughs] we never had any time for them. SB: [laughs] so you were very enthusiastic about the Lanc were you? LH: Yeah. Very. [pause] LH: And they really were reliable too. I mean you could put them on the bombing, turn a circuit and it would hold that height all the time no trouble. SB: Right. Right. LH: May I just have a look at that? SB: Of course. Please do. Yes. Help yourself. [pause] LH: An unusual definition for an Oxford definition. Hero. SB: It is. But I thought it was the most apt. LH: Quite. Quite. [pause] LH: That’s true isn’t it? It’s become commonplace to refer to high achievers as heroes. SB: Yes. Yes. LH: I wouldn’t go along so far, I wouldn’t along with that so far as that. High achievers can be imbued, caused by, you know sheer [pause] sheer application to the job in hand. SB: Oh sure, they can but the media so overuses the term. LH: Oh, I see. That’s what you’re aiming to bring out. SB: Yes. Yes. Yeah. Absolutely. Footballing heroes and this sort of stuff you know. LH: Yes, I see what you’re aiming at. SB: Yes. Yeah. LH: Whereas you would be inclined to restrict your heroism to bravery would you? SB: Yes. Absolutely. [pause] LH: And from your own experience that our squadrons at Skellingthorpe had a good reputation or have you not come across it? SB: Well, no. I think it’s true to say they have. There are some squadrons that recur. Have a recurring theme of certain squadrons. LH: Well, you’ve got the spread of experience haven’t you? SB: Yes. Yes. LH: Everything from coastal. SB: Well yes. Absolutely. Yes. So yes, I do get that feeling actually. That is a number which is held in high esteem. 44 is another one that crops up a lot. LH: Yeah. 44. That was Waddington. SB: Waddington. Yes. LH: And 61 was quite famous. SB: It was. Yes. Indeed. That’s right. Yes, 83 is another one that gets talked about a lot. LH: Yeah and there were some good heroes on 61 if I remember. I think Reid was on 61 wasn’t he? SB: I’m not sure. He may well have been. [pause] LH: Very good. SB: I think you’ve let your coffee go cold, Lionel. LH: No doubt. We don’t have interesting conversations like this every day. SB: Well, I guess not. No. Likewise. But there’s not much of Skellingthorpe left now is there? I think it’s been pretty much built on from what I understand. LH: I haven’t been up there. SB: Right. Could I have a look at your logbook please? LH: Yeah. Will you let me find it first? SB: Oh of course. Of course. LH: Would you like another biscuit? SB: No, thank you. That’s, that’s — LH: Are you sure? SB: I’m quite sure. That’s lovely. Thank you. [pause] SB: Ah, thank you. [pause] SB: Now, let’s see — Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Interview with Lionel Horner Description An account of the resource Lionel begins by mentioning that he was on Leeds University Air Squadron at the beginning of war. Once he finished his degree, he was slated to train as a fighter pilot in the United Sates, but due to lack of space on courses, eventually was trained as a navigator on an America civil airline. He returned to UK for operational training and heavy conversion then carried out back to back tours on 50 Squadron. He recalls a few anecdotes about time on 50 Squadron including seventeen operations to Berlin, including five on the trot. Lionel talks of 50 Squadron's good reputation. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource S Bond L Horner Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2011-09-14 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942 1942-01 1943 1944 1945 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain United States England--Leicestershire England--Yorkshire England--Leeds Germany Germany--Berlin Germany--Nuremberg Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Air Force. Bomber Command Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 00:31:32 audio recording Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Interview Lionel Horner Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SBondS-HornerLv10004, SBondS-HornerLv10003 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Maureen Clarke Julie Williams Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending revision of OH transcription 158 Squadron 1661 HCU 29 OTU 50 Squadron Advanced Flying Unit aircrew Anson bombing Distinguished Flying Cross Halifax Heavy Conversion Unit Lancaster military discipline navigator Operational Training Unit RAF Halfpenny Green RAF Market Harborough RAF Skellingthorpe RAF Winthorpe shot down Tiger Moth training Wellington wireless operator https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2802/49816/SBondS-HornerLv10002.pdf 6e0721a83c960328c196498dfdbaba0b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Horner, Lionel Description An account of the resource Three items. Collection concerns Lionel Horner who flew a double tour on 50 Squadron as a Lancaster navigator. Collection contain his flying log book and an oral history interview. The collection was licensed to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Dr Steve Bond and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. This collection was provided, in digital form, by a third-party organisation which used technical specifications and operational protocols that may differ from those used by the IBCC Digital Archive. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022-01-18 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SBondS-HornerLv1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Interview with Lionel Horner Description An account of the resource Partial transcript of conversation with Lionel Horner. He was on Leeds University Air Squadron at the beginning of the war. Once finished his degree, he was slated to train as a fighter pilot in the United States but, due to lack of space on courses, eventually was trained as a navigator on an America civil airline. He returned to UK for operational training and heavy conversion then did back to back tours on 50 Squadron. He relates a few anecdotes about his time on 50 Squadron including 17 operations to Berln, including 5 on the trot. He talks of 50 Squadron's good reputation. The interviewer tells a story of a friend on 158 Squadron, Halifax shot down on 12th operation and finding out who had shot him down. Includes contemporary colour photograph of Lionel Horner. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource S Bond L Horner Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2011-09-14 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942 1942-01 1943 1944 1945 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Leicestershire Germany Germany--Berlin England--Yorkshire England--Leeds England--Lincolnshire Germany--Nuremberg Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Air Force. Bomber Command Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Memoir Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Five page printed document with colour photograph Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending text-based transcription Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SBondS-HornerLv10002 Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Interview Lionel Horner Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Maureen Clarke 158 Squadron 1661 HCU 29 OTU 50 Squadron Advanced Flying Unit aircrew Anson Battle bombing Halifax Heavy Conversion Unit Lancaster military discipline navigator Operational Training Unit RAF Halfpenny Green RAF Market Harborough RAF Skellingthorpe RAF Winthorpe shot down Tiger Moth training Wellington wireless operator https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1875/46446/SHarriganD[Ser -DoB]v170003.mp3 7b0a025060d3546c7e9fc983ab2ece3c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-06-19 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire Description An account of the resource 34 items. Interviews with veterans recorded by Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire. Interview with Bertie Salvage Three part interview with Dougie Marsh Interview with Terry Hodson Interview with Stan Waite Interview with John Langston Interview with Nelson Nix Two part interview with Bob Panton Interview with Basil Fish Interview with Ernest Groeger Interview with Wilf Keyte Interview with Reginald John Herring Interview with Kathleen Reid Interview with Allan Holmes Interview with John Tomlinson Interview with Cliff Thorpe and Roy Smith Interview with Peter Scoley Interview with Kenneth Ivan Duddell Interview with Christopher Francis Allison Interview with Bernard Bell Interview with George Arthur Bell Interview with George William Taplin Interview with Richard Moore Interview with Kenneth Edgar Neve Interview with Annie Mary Blood Interview with Dennis Brader Interview with Les Stedman Interview with Anthony Edward Mason Interview with Anne Morgan Rose Harcombe The following interviews have been moved to the relevant collections. Interview with <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/items/show/46454">Kathleen Reid</a> Interview with Wing Commander <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/items/show/46467">Kenneth Cook DFC</a> Interview with <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/items/show/46456">Colin Cole</a> Interview with <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/46464">Charles Avey</a> Interview with <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/items/show/46470">John Bell</a> Interview with <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/items/show/46459">Les Rutherford</a> Interview with <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/items/show/46460">James Douglas Hudson</a> Transcribed audio recording A resource consisting primarily of recorded human voice. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document Interviewer: It’s the 18th of May 2012 and I’m here to interview Mr Ken Duddell who was born on the 1st of March 1924 in Horsehay in Shropshire. Good afternoon, Ken. KD: Good afternoon, Angela. Interviewer: Could you possibly give me some information about your training with the RAF? KD: Yeah. I joined [cough] I joined the Air Force in January 1942 just before I was eighteen and I qualified as a flight engineer in July 1943 at RAF St Athans. I was then posted to 1 Group in Lindholme and then on to Blyton for training. After training at Blyton with a crew, I joined a crew, we went to 460 Squadron Binbrook but our skipper went missing on a second dickie trip. So we stayed there a while, then we went to 12 Squadron at Wickenby hoping to get another skipper. We didn’t. And finally we went to Faldingworth where we picked up Squadron Leader John Whittet who was converted on his second tour. He’d done a tour on Blenheims and Wellingtons before in the Middle East and he qualified on Lancasters and we got posted to 103 Squadron Royal Air Force, Elsham Wolds where he became B Flight commander. Interviewer: Ok. KD: From Elsham Wolds, we got to Elsham Wolds in November 1943 and the skipper took over as B Flight commander and we commenced operations shortly afterwards. I flew as a flight engineer on Lancasters and our crew, shall I name the crew? Our crew was Squadron Leader Whittet who was the skipper, pilot, Flying officer Jackson who was the bomb aimer, Flying Officer Dennis O’Neill-Shaw who was the navigator, Flight Sergeant John Kinlay who, a Royal Australian Air Force who was the wireless operator, Sergeant George Bishop the mid-upper gunner and Sergeant John Watt the rear gunner. We commenced flying in November and from then on we flew until the skipper had finished his twenty operations on second, second tour. And we didn’t fly every night because the two flight commanders A and B had to alternate as did the wing commander in charge of the squadron. One of the things we did it was wintertime and we, Butcher decided, that’s Air Chief Marshall Sir Arthur Harris decided that he would attack Berlin as much as he could. So during that time we went to Berlin nine times and on one time going into, going to Berlin we got hit by a fighter. But as the fighter opened fire so the rear gunner opened fire. Within a few seconds the mid-upper gunner turned and he turned his turret and he fired at him as well and the fighter broke off and although he damaged us we carried on with the mission and bombed Berlin and then came back to Elsham Wolds. Interviewer: So, Ken, when you went out on these missions how did it make you feel because you were only nineteen and a half years old at the time? Were you, were you scared or what? KD: Well, if you — Interviewer: How did you feel? KD: If you said you weren’t scared you were actually telling lies because everybody was in some way or another. I was there because A) I had an elder brother who was in the Air Force serving in the Middle East. He’d gone out in 1939. Second brother was in the Army and he, he was, he had been to Norway and then he went to Ireland and then eventually went over D-Day plus one. A younger brother, I was the third, the younger brother, the fourth was in the Navy. He was on Destroyers and he was on the run to Russia, Murmansk with the convoys that went there. So my, my feeling was that we were part of a quartet who in any way we could help each other we did this. What the system was at, on operations half past eight in the morning we reported to the skipper that everybody was fit on the crew and then we were detailed. In the meantime, they discovered whether there was operations on or not and we had when we’d done this we were found out if we were allocated to fly that night. If we were the idea get everything together. We would go out to the flights, to the aircraft that had been allocated us and then we would do an inspection and then do an air test for probably half an hour carrying out, you know checking the guns, checking the wireless, checking the navigational aids etcetera and the performance of the aircraft. Come back and hand it over to the ground crew who would then refuel and re-bomb and so forth. After that we would just wait ‘til briefing time and briefing would probably, in the winter was about 3 o’clock time in the afternoon. We would report to the briefing room which was a sealed room and you could only get in if your name was on the list and there was two RAF policemen there checking that you were the actual one. But you went in with your crew. Went in with your seven crew. Previous to that the navigator had been doing his map and route to the target etcetera. So when we got into briefing the wing commander or the group captain stood up and gave a short briefing and pulled the curtain back and we found out where we were going that night. Sometimes you’d find there would be quite an uproar in actual fact. There was a bit of bad language spoken because people said, ‘Not going there again.’ And then they would check the route. The navigation officer would go through the route, what’s the name and somebody would say, ‘Well, hang on. The last time I went there a few weeks ago we got trapped in there. It’s a dead, it’s closed up.’ Because what the Germans had done from the German border right up by Kiel down to the bottom of the French Belgian border and the Dutch border they’d put searchlights, anti-aircraft guns. They had radio masts so that the fighters could fly in between them and to try and map out the course of the, which we were going so they could attack us. And then generally yes it will be alright. Everybody went through the briefing and we then, you decided if you had a flying meal then or whether you had it before. We always a flying meal before take off just in case you didn’t come back because it was always bacon and eggs [laughs] And off you’d go. We got rations. They’d give us sweets and Horlick tablets and we also had an escape kit that you signed for and put in your overalls about six inches square and about an inch deep which had got map, a silk map of Germany and Europe. You’d got also some five cigarettes with matches and the matches were like Bengal matches which you had on bonfires. Not ordinary matches because these if you were escape and evasion you could light a fire somewhere or light things. And we also had water purification tablets so that if you, if you were evading and you came across water if you were uncertain whether it was pure you could get some in, put the tablet in and let it operate and you could get in there. Then when we’d had our flying meal we went up to the squadron at the time preferred, collect all our kit. Put our kit on. We had everybody except the navigator and wireless operator wore special clothing. The reason the nav and the wireless operator didn’t because they were curtained off in a section of the aircraft and the heating for the aircraft came through by the wireless operator. So, they were alright. We used to wear ordinary underwear, long johns and long vest. A vest without a collar with three whats the names on. They were lovely. Normal battledress and then I used to wear what they called an outer suit which had a fur collar and it was I suppose gabardine or something like that but it had lots of pockets in so you could put stuff into your pockets. Sea boots, socks like the sailors had, flying boots. We had four pairs of gloves, one pair of mittens with the fingertips cut out, chamois gloves, silk gloves, and a pair of gauntlets. So then you had the WAAFs and airmen who looked after the flying clothing. It was centrally heated in there so it didn’t go damp and so forth. They handed you your parachute, your Mae West and your parachute harness which would be numbered with yours, with your name on it usually too. Put that on, got all your, engineers had a tool kit to carry. We carried a nav bag that we had to keep a log and we’d got technical data about the aircraft on it in case we landed away and off we’d go to the aircraft. Transport would take us out. We’d do a quick check around to see it was alright. Lots of people had different things they did before take-off like seeing the tail wheel was well lubricated or the last cigarette and quite a lot of people had little, little things they carried with them for good luck. I had a, I had a silk scarf which my mum gave me. I never had it washed during that time. I thought it’s luck. You know it would be bad luck if I did that at all. And then we’d get in the aircraft when the time was right, start up and the sergeant would come in with the Form 700 which was the Servicing Unit. Skipper would sign it, close the door and off we’d go and we’d taxi out. And on the runway there was 103 Squadron one side and 576 the other and it would be alternating aircraft going, taking off. As soon as the other had cleared was about two hundred feet you’d start rolling along again. This was a very dangerous time of, of this because if you had any trouble, you had a wheel, a tyre burst or if you had an engine go until you’d got safety speed, until you got flying speed which was about a hundred and five knots you lifted off and away you’d go. Undercarriage up, flaps up and about four hundred feet you’d be on climbing power and away. You were pretty good then at all with it. Then you went up and if we were going out by Mablethorpe or on the east coast this was one of the favourite ways. We would climb straight ahead and we’d go Goole, [crawl] base. Goole [crawl] base until it was time to set course. Then we’d set course over base and off we’d go climbing all the time again trying to get as high as you could. We often got up to, in the cold we’d get up to twenty three thousand feet with the aircraft. It was very cold up there but you weren’t too bad. If we were going down south we just turned left, climbed to four thousand feet and down to Reading and then from Reading you went out Beachy Head. We would start climbing to go out Beachy Head and across to southern France as high as we could get. One time I know we were going out Beachy Head and Jerry was coming in and dropping red markers for his crews so they could see. But we didn’t stop for a cup of tea and a handshake, you know [laughs] we went on. Everybody said good luck to us and then it was just following the route, sorting everything out, keeping your eyes well open. Our skipper used to, you did one thing, you didn’t say nothing unless you had to. And often the navigator would come up with a change of course, the wireless operator would come up perhaps with a message from Group and because they or base they would transmit quarter to and quarter past every hour if they’d got anything to transmit and the wireless op would listen out and he would probably come up and say, ‘Nothing’s come up skipper.’ And that was it. But about every ten minutes the skipper would go around the crew asking if everybody was alright and he addressed the crew as they were. Bomb aimer, flight engineer, navigator, wireless op, mid-upper gunner or rear gunner and if you’d got anything to say to anybody you talked in that way because it was not Tom, Dick and Harry because if you had a spare person come in place of one he would be, he wouldn’t know what was going on. So if you stuck to that system it was well away which we did all the time. Interviewer: Right. So, when you got to your target and you’d dropped your bombs what, what was the feeling then? KD: Well, the thing was as you came over and the bomb aimer said, ‘Bombs going.’ ‘Bombs going.’ ‘Bombs gone.’ Two things. We always carried a four thousand pounder so you can, you can realise if you just you know if you’d got something that’s four pound and you drop it you feel a bit better. As the four thousand pounder went the aircraft started to lift up normally and your heart came out of your feet and started to come up your legs. The other, where it should be. All gone and then when you’d, when the, when the bomb aimer said, ‘Bombs gone,’ you still had to fly along for about forty five seconds because you had to wait until the Cookie had hit the ground and exploded and you dropped a flare in the meantime which caused the photo to be taken so you could take [unclear] you’d hit the target or you hit whatever you set out to do and you felt it and you thought God almighty. The big question we’re better now because not only you’d got rid of the bombs but you’d used roughly half the fuel and if you got twenty one thousand pound of fuel on you would use ten thousand pound of that so you know that was better. You could manoeuvre the aircraft better then if you got attacked and so forth. We didn’t get attacked going over the target or going out of the target but we did get attacked one time on the, coming in before we got there and we, this fighter came in and you could, you could not only hear it you could feel it in the aircraft. When the fighter opened fire they were nearly always tracer because this, this again would, I would say trying to make you frightened as well which it was of course if it was hitting you. And the fighter came in between the fuselage and the port inner engine, number two engine and you could hear it thumping in to the, the cannon fire thumping in to the aircraft and you could also see the other going into the side. But at the same time as he opened fire our rear gunner opened fire and within a few seconds the mid-upper gunner was joining him and we got, now normally when the, when the, when either of the gunners or anybody saw a fighter coming towards you, you would take evasive action. But on this occasion some clever bloke at Bomber Command had decided we’d have a little instrument on the front of, in front of the pilot which indicated a red arrow or a green arrow. The red arrow was port so when the gunner opened fire he didn’t need to speak you should have done it this way. But the skipper said, ‘Which way do you want me to go rear gunner?’ And of course, before he, before he could answer, he was so busy looking after the fighter, the fighter broke off. I suppose it would be about thirty to forty five seconds if that that the fighter attacked us and they were hitting him and he went off again. We got damaged but we were able to drop the bombs and go. But coming out again it was, you had to be, you had to be careful for it as well because the Germans adapted a system where they could, they knew which way you were coming out and find you and it was almost like a dual carriageway. On the right hand side they were going in. On the left hand side they were coming out and there were the German aircraft dropping flares just like lamps lighting up a dual carriageway so you had to be careful of those. One of the things we did, the skipper and I apart from the others the bomb aimer would look out but sometimes he’d be doing the radar so he wouldn’t but sometimes the wireless op would stand up in the astrodome and he’d keep an extra lookout. But the skipper and I he looked in front and to his left and to be aircrew you had to be ninety degrees to you to be able to see otherwise you weren’t able to do this. And that was his job and then mine was to look straight ahead my side because I sat on his right hand side. Out to the starboard wing over the top and over the top of the skipper as well and sometimes so I could you know search for him. If we were in searchlights he would drop the seat and he would be on instruments so he wouldn’t be able to see outside but sometimes there was a bulb on the starboard side on the engineer’s side and I’d look down quick. Look down at the target you know and he’d know I’d done it. ‘Don’t look down there engineer.’ He’d tell me off. But you’d come back and you were, you were active all the time. You’d got to keep your wits about you and come back and coming up to the enemy coast no matter which one it was you usually put the nose down and lost a few thousand feet, you know to get the speed to go on because we were keeping it. And then coming back if we were coming back into Mablethorpe as we did often you’d come across the North Sea or come up the North Sea over the east coast of England and you dropped down to what? About three or four thousand feet. Come over the coast and then you’d see lights. Green and red lights coming from the left side. The port side. The left hand side. That was the Halifaxes going back to Yorkshire and that way. You would come in and you, you’d call. Our aircraft was K-King mostly. King 2000 and the WAAF who was on the air traffic would say, ‘Call down wind K-King. Call downwind.’ And you’d come back and you heard a different voice and you knew you were back. You heard this WAAF there talking and sometimes you got to know them you know. Oh, that’s Betty or Freida or something like that. Then you’d come down and then come in, circle in and land back at dispersal depending upon if you’d got any bad damage. If you’d got bad damage you took it to the hangar. You told flying control and they’d take you to the hangar. If not you’d come back and in to the ground crew. They’d have a look and sort it out. See if there was any external damage and then you’d get out and the skipper would just sign the 700 if there was any snags with it. One of our ground crew, Ricky his name was he was LAC airframe mechanic and every trip before we went we used to have jam in four pound tins in the Messes. He’d got one of these tins with a drop of petrol in and some water and a rag and he’d clean the floor of the aircraft from the nose to the tail. And as we climbed in the aircraft to go and the skipper would say, ‘Thank you very much.’ And he’d say, ‘Bring it back clean, skipper.’ Hoping that we would come back. Yeah. [recording paused] KD: At Elsham we had obviously that every, every part of every, every aircrew person that the skipper went and sat in the flight commander’s office. The navigators had their own section as did, the same with engineers. Anyway, you can do this too and when you came back and you got stripped off and changed and went into operations to be debriefed from it the first thing you did was look at the board up there to see who’d landed and who hadn’t and then, just in case because you’d got friends on them you know. You would know a lot of people in there. We actually lost about twelve hundred who were killed anyway and you, you just wanted to know how your friends had got you know. You’d come back and you say, ‘Oh, good trip?’ ‘Yeah.’ Or, ‘Oh, we had a really awful one.’ And so you’d look at that and if, if when you went they still hadn’t come back you didn’t, you didn’t say, ‘Oh, well they’re gone,’ because they could have landed somewhere because sometimes especially if they landed at a training aerodrome they wouldn’t think too notify Elsham that aircrew had landed you see. So this often happened because it happened with one, my friend Cyril Bradclough. His crew. They landed at Wellesbourne Mountford I think at times but they forgot to notify Elsham. So nothing had come by about eleven, half past eleven in the morning so they sent telegrams to the families to say they were missing and then about half past one this aircraft came over and they landed. So fortunately, they went on seven days leave straightaway. Interviewer: Very good. KD: Survivors leave. But you always looked for people that you’d got, so and so and especially if somebody was coming up towards the end of the tour. The tour was roughly thirty. Twenty if you were second tour. And I did twenty nine and you’d look and see twenty eight, twenty nine. Oh yeah. So and so and so and so’s crew. And you’d got, you’d got friends and you know and if somebody had gone you just hoped that they had been able to bale out and even if they were taken prisoner of war that was better than being killed. But you didn’t get notification until a long long while after whether probably you had left the squadron and gone somewhere else and then you had heard that your friend had survived. Like I had a friend on 576 Squadron, Cyril Van der Velde he was a flight engineer. He got shot down on the 3rd 4th of May at Mailly le Camp and he was, he was, he escaped and he joined the Maquis for about seven or eight months before he got captured anyway. But I had a friend Tom Moore, he was a signaller and he was on 103 and in the beginning of December his brother came to visit and was allowed to live in his Nissen hut because he’d been accepted to be a navigator in the Air Force and we the three of us went out together a couple or three times and then the night of the 16th of December 1943 to Berlin Tom got shot down and he was killed. He’s buried in Berlin and a couple, I’ve always said to Valerie, ‘I must go and see Tom’s grave before I go.’ So a couple of years ago she said, ‘We’re going.’ So we went to see his grave and it was, it was upsetting because to me he was still twenty three year old. My friend Tom. And I’d had sixty seven years since then. Courted the girl I loved, married, had a family and I was still living. He was still lying there where he was. It could be very upsetting. Especially if the crew were popular and nearly every one was anyway. You only found the odd one that was a bit gruffy. Interviewer: Well, Ken, thank you very much for for telling us your stories and this oral history will be kept for many a youngster to listen to. So, thanks very much, Ken. KD: That’s fine, Angela. Any time. Thank you. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Interview with Kenneth Ivan Duddell 1008,1009-Duddell, Kenneth Ivan-N Lincolnshire Disc 2 Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SHarriganD[Ser#-DoB]v17 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2012-05-18 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 1943-07 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Sound Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 00:27:03 audio recording Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending revision of OH transcription Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource This Interview was recorded by Aviation Heritage Lincolnshire. Description An account of the resource Ken joined the RAF in January 1942 and qualified as a flight engineer in July 1943 at RAF St Athans. He passed through a number of RAF stations before they were posted to RAF Elsham Wolds and flew operations as a flight engineer with 460, 12 and 103 squadrons. Ken recalls the names of his crew; Squadron Leader Whittet who was the skipper, pilot; Flying Officer Jackson who was the bomb aimer; Flying Officer Dennis O’Neill-Shaw who was the navigator; Flight Sergeant John Kinlay, a member of the Royal Australian Air Force, who was the wireless operator; Sergeant George Bishop the mid-upper gunner and Sergeant John Watt the rear gunner. Ken talks of his brothers each being in the military. He discusses the action he went through when he was told he was listed for the next operation - from ensuring all the crew and the aircraft were fit to fly, the briefing room, the flying meal, the contents of the escape kit and their clothing. Ken describes the ways in which he was involved in the actual flight of the aircraft, how the target was bombed, and its possible consequences for the return journey. He recalls hearing the WAAFs talking over the radio and often being able to identify them. He remembers an LAC who always used to clean the floor of the aircraft and his comment to the skipper before take-off. Ken talks of the post flight scrutiny of the board to see who had landed at RAF Elsham Wolds and remembers two gentlemen who did not return. Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Germany Great Britain England--Lincolnshire Germany--Berlin Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Julie Williams Claire Campbell Maureen Clarke 103 Squadron 12 Squadron 460 Squadron aircrew bombing flight engineer Lancaster RAF Elsham Wolds superstition https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2357/45629/PFoskettW23020018.jpg 16850c46b97932d7a182c4d7931e6235 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2357/45629/PFoskettW23020019.jpg c60b7d6737407579bf4f501afe05ccd3 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2357/45629/PFoskettW23020029.jpg 63305cbbf56275bee9258494401c4c05 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2357/45629/PFoskettW23020030.jpg d7f65da8bd35990c3df3ac2bf5980804 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2357/45629/PFoskettW23020049.jpg 109c6354ac1cbc7b8543044905be01a1 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2357/45629/PFoskettW23020050.jpg 4bf7e05d5ddf29a587dec96da08801a1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Foskett, William Description An account of the resource 104 items. The collection concerns Flight Lieutenant William Foskett (b. 1921, 13230505 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, correspondence, documents, and photographs. He flew operations as an air gunner and navigator with 214 Squadron. After the war, he was stationed in Italy (RAF Udine), France, Germany and North Africa. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Peter Foskett and catalogued by Barry Hunter with the assistance of Roberto Bassi of the Aeroclub Friulano Campoformido. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2021-04-07 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Foskett, W Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Physical training Description An account of the resource Three photographs. A group of airmen undergoing physical training. On the reverse 'Newquay 1942 ITW'. A second and third photograph have on the reverse 'Newquay Jan. 1942. ITW'. IN the background of one is the New Theatre & Cafe. Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Newquay Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Three b/w photographs Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PFoskettW23020018, PFoskettW23020019, PFoskettW23020029, PFoskettW23020030, PFoskettW23020049, PFoskettW23020050 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. aircrew Initial Training Wing physical training training https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2559/43586/SLambertBrownP19330417v10009.pdf 3b873664b4f9c9724a4cf5b381ef9ed5 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Lambert-Brown, Peter P Lambert-Brown Description An account of the resource 12 items. The collection concerns Peter Lambert-Brown (b. 1933 Royal Navy). A collection of documents compiled for the Admiralty detailing the bombing of the Royal Navy Dockyards in Malta. The collection covers the siege of Malta and includes the various vessels and docks that were damaged, and the repairs that were undertaken carried out. The collection was donated to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Jacqueline Sherman and catalogued by Benjamin Turner. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2023-05-12 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context LambertBrown, P Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Appendix VI- Table of Raids Description An account of the resource Each page documents a table of attacks on the docks of Malta. The air raids detailed in the table record the raid number, number of casualties, damage (both place and extent) and damage to ships and equipment. Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1940 1940-06 1940-09 1941-01 1941-03 1941-04 1941-05 1941-07 1941-08 1941-10 1941-11 1941-12 1942-01 1942-02 1942-03 1942-04 1942-05 1942-06 1942-07 1942-10 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Malta Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Navy Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource 25 page typewritten report Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SLambertBrownP19330417v10009 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. bombing https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-0001.jpg 7d18491bf54ec6c59fe4bd8da6467bba https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00020001.jpg 1e2f5b088f6332baffa4cb8aec1d477b https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00020002.jpg 63e69f23dc74f2cec3399d304062c475 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00030001.jpg dcdb8f50b4005f888b94d04b5255f19d https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00030002.jpg 6c10c9f4e35010db355213565f7e5672 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00040001.jpg f3be96675bd01951909956354efe4fb8 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00040002.jpg 19a7aacba27ae30cddd1fea93f6af669 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-0005.jpg 514c5be1162791974b6f6348fb1632fc https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00060001.jpg 7226484568f61927216c8aee630ecf26 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00060002.jpg e8f9f8b71a99c5a37bb0fadaff490f31 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00070001.jpg 0b3414e57fbb6bfcddd46a224e4e6093 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2480/42633/SEllisEL183959v10019-00070002.jpg a7e267ffd30b6d1c523360ce60d3809f Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ellis, Ernest Lewis. Family album Description An account of the resource Sixty-eight items. Family album with multiple pages containing photographs of people and places as well as some documents, booklets, magazines as well as best wishes cards and post cards. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2021-11-16 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Ellis, EL Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document [photograph] [2 photographs] [photograph] [photograph] [photograph] [page break] [photograph] [page break] For my Aunt Bet [rubber stamp] 7506 [page break] [photograph] [page break] Virden (Jan 1942) [page break] [photograph] [page break] WALKERS STUDIOS LTD., St. Thomas St., Scarborough. Phone 140 [page break] [photograph] [page break] [photograph] [page break] J.V. Knight K.G. Lay [signature] W.B. Liaso J H Moreton. R. Mc.Lauchlan. DSO Connell. J A Powell. R.J. Martin. E R Morgan E Macdonald. T.S. Matthews. D.V. Hammond. [rubber stamp] [page break] [photograph] [page break] CANCELLED POST CARD Lewis [underlined] June 1942 [/underlined] Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Servicemen Description An account of the resource Top left - head and shoulders portrait of an airman wearing tunic and side cap. On the reverse 'for my Aunt Bet'. Bottom left - full-length image of an airman wearing tunic, standing on a road. On the reverse 'Virden (Jan 1942)'. Top right - two versions of the same photograph overlaid. A course photograph of a large group of trainee airmen wearing tunics, white belts and side caps sitting and standing in four rows. Two staff officers and three staff non-commissioned officers sit in centre of front row. Middle right - a group of fourteen airmen sitting and standing in three rows with a trophy in the centre of front row. On the reverse 13 signatures. Bottom right - head and shoulders portrait of Lewis Ellis wearing tunic with pilot's brevet and sergeant rank. On the reverse 'Lewis June 1942'. Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-06 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Canada Manitoba--Virden Manitoba Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Canadian Air Force Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Six b/w photographs mounted on an album page Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SEllisEL183959v10019 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Liz McElwee aircrew pilot training https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2305/42206/EPickfordLPickfordA420120-0001.jpg d7c6e27c19af82030720af365bf63c5b https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2305/42206/EPickfordLPickfordA420120-0002.jpg a3d38d5b98f4a5f53f6a090fbc6dfb28 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2305/42206/EPickfordLPickfordA420120-0003.jpg 028f64e98f24b65351ba885bcbdc4421 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Pickford, Leslie Pickford, L Description An account of the resource 189 items. The collection concerns Leslie Pickford (551653 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, diaries, <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2479">a scrapbook</a>, photographs and correspondence. He flew operations as a wireless operator air gunner with 139 Squadron. He became a prisoner of war in Italy in 1941, detained in camps at Prato all'Isarco, Rieti and Sulmona. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Jayne Bailey and catalogued by Barry Hunter. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2021-08-11 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Pickford, L Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document 20/1/42. Dear Ma We are getting better weather here now the sun comes out quite Regular so things are a little Better. can you send me two Pairs of Karki [sic] shorts in my next Parcel and some socks. [underlined] Dont [/underlined] send that mouthorgan, I Have’nt received your first Parcel yet or the cigs but am expecting them any time. Red cross Parcels are beginning to arrive again but they are very irregular, we get them for two or three weeks then we are without for a fortnight. Please dont forget the snaps I asked for. Mail is very dissapointing [sic] as we are lucky to get one a week. Ive had none since before Xmas. Please remember me to all and get them to write The more letters sent the Better chance I have of getting some letters. I hear my Pals are working Hard. I Hope they keep it up I must close now Hoping this letter finds you in the same good Health and Spirit it leaves me in. Your Loving Son Leslie [page break] [crest] [underlined] Posta di prigioniero di guerra [/underlined] [inserted] 118. [/inserted] Al Mrs A. Pickford 41 Broadlea Road Kingsway Manchester Lanc’s England. [two rubber stamps] [page break] [rubber stamp] [underlined] PICKFORD [/underlined] LESLIE SGT 551653 [post mark] VER[missing letters]OPER CENSURA [page break] Mittente: Casato, nome e grado PICKFORD. LESLIE Sender: Surname, name and rank SGT. 551653. Expéditeur: Prénom, nom et grade CAMPO CONCENTRAMENTO Campo No. 78 POSTA MILITARE. No 3300 ITALIA. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Description An account of the resource Weather is better. He asks for khaki shorts, socks but no longer wants a mouth organ. Red Cross parcels are irregular as is mail. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Leslie Pickford Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01-20 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Italy Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng ita Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Correspondence Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One double sided printed sheet with handwritten annotations Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context EPickfordLPickfordA420120-0001, EPickfordLPickfordA420120-0002, EPickfordLPickfordA420120-0003 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Title A name given to the resource Letter from Les Pickford to his mother Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Sue Smith aircrew prisoner of war Red Cross https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2294/41855/PKellettR1932.jpg e3d785c58d283797b9fae194b4c85864 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Kellett, Richard Kellett, R Description An account of the resource 31 items. The collection concerns Air Commodore Richard Kellett (Royal Air Force) and contains correspondence, photographs and prisoner of war diaries. In 1938 he flew a Wellesley from Egypt to Australia and later flew operations as a pilot and the commanding officer of 149 Squadron. He was captured near Tobruk in 1942 and was Senior British Officer at Stalag Luft 3 at the time of the Wooden Horse escape. The collection was loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Rachel Kellett and catalogued by Barry Hunter. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-12-19 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Kellett, R Access Rights Information about who can access the resource or an indication of its security status. Access Rights may include information regarding access or restrictions based on privacy, security, or other policies. Publication granted Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document [underlined] Western Desert: [/underlined] [underlined] 270 Wing Headquarters Staff [/underlined] [underlined] Royal Air Force. [/underlined] Back row: (l-r) F/Lt. Jackson, P/O. J.H. Dales, P/O. Willis. Centre: F/O. Walter, P/O. Young, F/O. Nicholson, P/O. Prout, P/O. Stevenson, F/O. Jenkins. Sitting: F/L. Woodcraft, F/L. Eric Ormonde, W/Cdr. R.N. Bateson, G/C R. KELLET (CO), S/Ldr. Durbin, Capt. O’Sullivan, F/L. Simpson. Taken at Gambut : January, 1942. Moved to Benghazi, and then disbanded. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Western Desert: 270 Wing Headquarters Staff Royal Air Force Description An account of the resource 16 airmen arranged in three rows. Underneath each man is named. Richard Kellett is front row, centre. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Egypt--Western Desert North Africa Libya--Banghāzī Libya Egypt Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One b/w photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PKellettR1932 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Cara Walmsley aircrew pilot https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2253/41004/MShattockGF1317240-180311-060001.jpg 60e54b730969747eeb082e4474d84da7 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2253/41004/MShattockGF1317240-180311-060002.jpg 665d0796ced2d7c6a28fa76b54695550 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Shattock, Geoffrey Francis Shattock, G F Description An account of the resource 123 items. The collection concerns Geoffrey Francis Shattock (b. 1921, Royal Air Force) and contains his log book, documents, photographs and a collection of <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2845">Postcards.</a> He flew operations as a pilot with 90 and 214 Squadrons. The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Sarah Bond and catalogued by Trevor Hardcastle and Lynn Corrigan. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2018-03-11 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Shattock, GF Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Cover and first two pages of 'The Souther Cadet' student magazine Souther Field, Americus, Georgia 1942 Description An account of the resource Produced by Class 42E to say thank you to the staff and instructors. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Georgia--Americus United States Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force United States Army Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Artwork Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Two printed pages Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context MShattockGF1317240-180311-060001, MShattockGF1317240-180311-060002 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 aircrew pilot training https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2192/39027/EWalleyBSWalleyFG-[Mo]420125-0001.jpg 22cd6146c17a5aca07491edba9d5a853 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2192/39027/EWalleyBSWalleyFG-[Mo]420125-0002.jpg 6055a21ac410bd4aa65294a5545b4208 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Walley, Brian Stephen Walley, BS Description An account of the resource 69 items. The collection concerns Brian Stephen Walley (b. 1922, 1062112 Royal Air Force) and contains correspondence and photographs. He flew operations as a pilot with 51 Squadron before he was forced to ditch his Whitley in the North Sea and became a prisoner of war. The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Brian Stephen Walley and catalogued by Barry Hunter. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2018-01-27 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Walley, BS Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document [underlined] Kreigsgefangenenpost [/underlined] [three ink stamps] Mr & Mrs F. G. Walley “HAFRYN” CORWEN, MERIONETHS N. WALES. GT. BRITAIN Sgt. BRIAN STEPHEN WALLEY 90067 Stalag VII A [page break] 25:1:42. My dearest Mum & Dad, I haven’t so far received any mail but am living in hopes as I should be getting one or two letters very soon. Things could be a lot worse than they are and I am making the best of a bad job and am having a reasonably good time. I believe I told you of the 2 N. Zealand laddies with me, anyway one of them was trying his hand at making a cake. After the mixture (Army ration biscuits and raisons with a spot of sugar, margarine & milk) had been cooking for about 2 hrs or so, he took it off the stove, and standing a yard away made a stab at it with a knife (I think he was expecting an explosion or something) When nothing happened, he took the knife out very gingerly and looked at it, at the same time he squawked, “By jingoes!!! It’s a pudding” You can imagine what a laugh we all had out of it, nevertheless, it was quite a good pudding. Gosh I’ll have some funny stories to tell when I get home. By the way I’ve asked the “Kiwis” (N.Z.) home on our return. How’s the family etc. Lots of love to all. Brian xxx. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Letter to Brian Walley's Parents from Brian Description An account of the resource He mentions he has not received any mail. One of his colleagues made a cake but it turned soft and they called it a pudding. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Brian Walley Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01-25 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain Wales--Corwen Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Correspondence Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One double sided handwritten letter card Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context EWalleyBSWalleyFG-[Mo]420125-0001, EWalleyBSWalleyFG-[Mo]420125-0002 Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending text-based transcription. Under review Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Tricia Marshall Is Part Of A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included. Walley, Brian Stephen. Letters aircrew prisoner of war https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1977/38292/SPalmerRAM115772v10035.jpg 0f1701e4cae9762208c676144d5170c9 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Palmer, Robert Anthony Maurice R A M Palmer Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-10-30 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Palmer, RAM Description An account of the resource 38 items. The collection concerns Squadron Leader Robert AM Palmer VC, DFC and Bar (115772, Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, photographs, fact sheets, newspaper cuttings, documents, correspondence and a substancial history of his last operation. He flew one hundred and eleven operations as a pilot with 75, 149  and 109 Squadrons and was killed 23 December 1944 when leading a daylight operation as an Oboe marker. The collection also contains 51 items in a <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2178">Photograph album</a>. The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Penny Palmer and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. Additional information on Robert AM Palmer is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/221528/">IBCC Losses Database</a> Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document 109 PATHFINDERS SQUADRON [crest of 109 squadron] ‘The First of the Legion’ The black panther indicates night hunting & the attitude of the animal symbolises attack. [Sketch] Victoria Cross No. 109 was first formed May 1918 at Lake Down as a day bomber unit but remained a training unit & was disbanded in July 1918. In August 1942 a move was made to Wyton as an ‘independent’ unit of the newly formed Pathfinder Force. They began to convert to the Mosquito. [sketch] Pathfinder Finder Force Badge History was made 20/21 December 1942 with the first operational use of Oboe on Lutterande, Holland. The first Target Indicators to mark a target was at Dusseldorf 31st December 1942. Expansion of the Squadron followed success. Over 1,450 operations were conducted against Germany & Occupied Territories. 1 V.C., 27 D.S.O., 1 Bar to D.S.O., 112 D.F.C., 62 Bars to D.F.C., 1 Second Bar to D.F.C., 1 D.F.M. were awarded. 34 aircrew were Killed in Action. In the summer of 1943 Flights of 105 & 109 were exchanged at Marham. 105 became the second Oboe Squadron. [sketch of RAF crest] The Wireless Intelligence Unit based at Boscombe Down was re-formed as 109 Squadron on 10th December 1940. Flying Ansons & Wellingtons they investigated enemy radio beams & tested RAF radar aids. The work expanded & various sections were dispersed to Tempsford & Upper Heyford for their specialised duties. In January 1942 the Squadron was re-assembled at Stradishall to develop the blind bombing aid of F E Jones & A H Reeves that came to be known as ‘Oboe’. A test of their still primitive equipment came with ‘Operation Trinity’, with the help of 7 Sqdn, an attack on the ‘Scharnhorst’ & ‘Gneisenau’. The first major success for 109 ‘Oboe’ was Essen 5/6 March 1943 [sketch] S/Ldr. Robert A M. Palmer V.C, D.F.C and Bar. On 23rd December 1944, with his Navigator F/L George Russell DFC, & flying 582 Squadron Lancaster & crew, led a daylight formation to Cologne/Gremberg M/Yards. On the Oboe run he lost 2 engines, port tail unit & was on fire in the nose & bomb bay. Even so he made a perfect ‘cops’ before being shot down by fighters Only the rear gunner, Russ Yeulett survived. 6 of the 10 formation we shot down. [sketch] Mosquito XVI flown by F/Lt. E. Carpenter & F/O W. Lambert DFM as Reserve to Palmer at Cologne/Gremberg. Flew on 1 engine & on fire to make run-in. Shot down by fighters crashed Juchem market place. Both crew killed. No. 109 moved to Little Staughton 1 April 1944 with 582 Lancaster Squadron. Both squadrons pioneered daylight formation bombing on Oboe. S/Ldr. Foulsham was killed on early operation. [sketch] Mosquito IV Oboe marking was 4 times more effective than any other method of target marking. The last bombs dropped on Berlin were by F/O. A E Austin & F/O P Moorhead in Mosquito XVI MM929 at 02.14 21 April 1945. The Squadron had 100 aircrew on strength by May 1945. 7 had done 90+ operations; 9 had done 100+ operations. Pride of place with 139 operations, 104 on Pathfinder duties, was S/Ldr Ron Curtis DSO DFC The Squadron marked for the attacks on coastal gun batteries for ‘Operation Overlord’ on D-Day thereby saving many lives on the beach landings. The last operational mission of WWII was 2/3 May 1945. to Kiel, Husum airfield & to Eggebeck airfield. The last mission before V.E. Day was 7 May on ‘Manna’ to Valkenburg A/F Ypenburg A/F, Hague racecourse Rotterdam & Gouda. [sketch of the grim reaper] The ‘Grim Reaper’ Mosquito DK 333-F Winged dragon of DK-331 flown by Hal Bufton, & E. Ifould. [sketch of a winged dragon] [crest of 8 group headquarters] [sketch] S/Ldr. M. Bowman DSO. DFC ‘Hal’ Bufton founder C.O. of 109 Squadron. [sketch] G/Cap H.E. Bufton DSO. DFC. AFC. C.O. [sketch] G/Cap. G.F. Grant DSO. Bar. DFC. C.O [sketch] G/Cap. R.W. Cox DSO. DFC. AFC C.O [sketch] S/Ldr. J.B. Burt DSO. DFC. Bar [sketch] W/Cdr. R G E Law DSO. DFC C.O [sketch] G/Cap. K J Somerville DSO. DFC. AFC [sketch of Bomber Command crest] Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 109 Squadron Pathfinders fact sheet Description An account of the resource Gives history of 109 Squadron from reformation on 10 December 1940 until last bombs dropped on 2/3 May 1945. Covers development of blind bombing and Oboe. Moved to RAF Wyton as independent unit of newly formed Pathfinder force. Mentions first Oboe operation 20/21 December 1942. Account of Robert Palmer's operation which resulted in award of Victoria Cross. Includes drawings of squadron badge, Victoria Cross, Mosquito, Robert Palmer, seven squadron commanders, 8 Group and Bomber Command badges. List decorations, total number of operations and casualties. Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1940-12-10 1942-01 1944-12-23 1942-12-20 1942-12-21 1944-04-01 1945-04-21 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Wiltshire England--Suffolk England--Norfolk England--Cambridgeshire Germany Germany--Cologne Netherlands Netherlands--Geleen Germany--Berlin Germany--Kiel Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea Germany--Düsseldorf Germany--Ruhr (Region) Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Air Force. Bomber Command Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One page printed document Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SPalmerRAM115772v10035 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Alan Pinchbeck 105 Squadron 109 Squadron 582 Squadron 8 Group air gunner aircrew Anson bombing of the Normandy coastal batteries (5/6 June 1944) Distinguished Flying Cross Distinguished Flying Medal Gneisenau killed in action Lancaster Mosquito Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944) Oboe Operation Manna (29 Apr – 8 May 1945) Pathfinders pilot RAF Boscombe Down RAF Little Staughton RAF Marham RAF Stradishall RAF Tempsford RAF Upper Heyford RAF Wyton Scharnhorst shot down Victoria Cross Wellington https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1953/36956/PHitchcockJS1706.jpg 16d17c4c9af2122a6187e51652c1dcba Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Hitchcock, John Samuel J S Hitchcock Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-09-26 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Hitchcock, JS Description An account of the resource 87 items. The collection concerns Flight Lieutenant John Samuel Hitchcock (740899, 106813 Royal Air Force) and contains his decorations, log books, uniform jacket, sunglasses, parachute logbook, documents and photographs. He flew operations as a pilot with 37, 57 and 78 Squadrons. The collection also contains <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2142">an album</a> from his training in North Africa. The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by P J Hitchcock and catalogued by Barry Hunter. Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document [crest] [photograph] 91st FLYING INSTRUCTORS' COURSE (32nd War Course), CENTRAL FLYING SCHOOL, UPAVON, DECEMBER, 1941 – JANUARY, 1942 [back row] Sgt. J. McTaggart, Sgt. G.E. Henderson, F/Sgt. C Bean. Sgt. Slater, Sgt. G.E. Wilson, F/Sgt. W.F. Smallwood. Sgt. Hampson. P/O. V.C. Lewis [second row] P/O. C.W. Markham, Sgt. J.R. Sneddon, F/Sgt. R.A. Drapper, Sgt. F. McWatt, F/Sgt. Brackley, Sgt. Cooper, Sgt. Chodzieki, Sgt. Bilau, Sgt. R. Noden, D.F.M., Sgt. Szlagowski, F/O. W. Motz [third row] P/O. J.E. Spencer, P/O. I. van Arenberg, P/O. J.C. Button, P/O. A.E. Jones, P/O. J.A. Hitchcock, P/O. E.E. Pine, P/O. Devigue, F/O. E.G. Titley, F/O. E. Przysiecki, P/O. B.C. Lewis, F/O. Sands, F/O. Fisher, D.F.C. [front row] F/O. L.V. Worsdell, P/O. E.B. Gartshore, F/O. J.E.H. Marshall, D.F.C., S/Ldr. A.L. Farrington, S/Ldr. N.S.T. Benson, W/Cdr. A.J. Holmes, A.F.C., G/Capt. H.H. Down, A.F.C., S/Ldr. C.G.H. Crusoe, F/Lt. J.L. Flinders, F/Lt. E.A. Shipman, F/Lt. R.F. Inness, F/Lt. Bradbury, F/Lt. R.T. Boyd, A.F.C. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 91st Flying Instructor's Course Upavon Description An account of the resource 43 airmen arranged in four rows at the front of a large building. Underneath each man is named on a printed caption. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One b/w photograph Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PHitchcockJS1706 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Wiltshire Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Sue Smith aircrew pilot RAF Upavon training https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1912/36019/MHayhurstJM2073102-170725-510001.jpg d25901911a780d9c67a1beafa6c8a079 https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1912/36019/MHayhurstJM2073102-170725-510017.jpg a911b8740256cf3ce2bf6b9c18b5c7c6 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Hayhurst, Jose Margaret J M Hayhurst Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-07-25 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Hayhurst, JM Description An account of the resource 108 items. The collection concerns Sergeant Jose Margaret Hayhurst (2073102 Royal Air Force) and contains decorations, uniform, documents and photographs. She served as a radar operator in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Andrew Whitehouse and catalogued by Barry Hunter. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Tee Emm Description An account of the resource Tee Emm magazine, No 10 Christmas & New Year 1941/2. This item is available only at the International Bomber Command Centre / University of Lincoln. Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Service material Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource One booklet Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context MHayhurstJM2073102-170725-510001, MHayhurstJM2073102-170725-510002 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1941-12 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1941-12 1942-01 training https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1895/35562/SGillK1438901v10014.pdf 45e33015d79b1268388faa7b80eaa921 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Gill, Kenneth K Gill Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-07-09 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gill, K Description An account of the resource One hundred and sixty-four items plus another one hundred and fifteen in two sub-ciollections. The collection concerns Flying Officer Kenneth Gill DFC (1922 - 1945, 1438901, 155097 Royal Air Force) and contains his log book, documents, photographs and family and other correspondence. He flew operations as a navigator with 9 Squadron before starting a second tour with 617 Squadron. He was killed 21 March 1945 having completed 45 operations. The collection also contains two albums.  <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2114">Kenneth Gill. Album One</a> <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2117">Kenneth Gill. Album Two</a> Additional information on Kenneth Gill is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/108654/">IBCC Losses Database.</a> The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Derek Gill and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document [inserted] Vera Longden [/inserted] HALTON CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH SUNDAY SCHOOL MONTHLY NEWS SHEET No. 17 JANUARY, 1942 Letters to R. Thomas, 6, The Crescent, Halton, Leeds My Dear Friends, Here's wishing you all the very best of good wishes for 1942 and may it see the end of this business! Things are looking much more cheerful in many ways than a year ago anyhow. And the newspapers seem to be much more optimistic and make pleasanter reading than was once the case. Oh yes I know Japan has come into the picture in recent weeks, – but so has America – and whilst the initial advantage is once again with the aggressor, yet I am equally sure that the action of Japan has done more to solidify the forces fighting against the Axis than any amount of speechmaking or pleading could ever have accomplished. It is now truly a world-war, – something that we thought well-nigh impossible after the last war. Well, we must see this job through and then see to it that there is no repetition this time. Christmas 1941 is now an event of the past. What sort of a time did you have? Turkey? Plum Pudding? Yorkshire Pudding? Beef? If you [underlined] did [/underlined] manage any anything like this, then all I can say is you were very lucky. We didn't do bad mind you, but some of those little luxuries one has come to associate with Christmas were denied us this time. But bearing in mind the fact that we are an Island depending to a large extent on supplies brought from overseas, we did remarkably well – better than Old Nasty ever thought we should. Generally speaking, the Christmas holidays passed off quietly but very pleasantly. We didn't go out singing on Christmas eve; we decided to wait until Christmas morning, and meeting at the Church about 8 a.m. (still very dark) we set out on our rounds, starting at the home of Mr. & Mrs. Farrow. We covered quite a lot of ground during the four and a half hours spent visiting the homes of our many friends, but the financial result amply compensated us for sore throats and tired limbs. As a matter of fact we raised £8. 2. 0, some £2 more than last year. The composition of our party proved a mixture of youth and old age, Mr. Monkman and myself being in the latter category of course. We were something like that advertisement one used to see on the hoardings shewing [sic] the head and tail of a fish, the middle portion having been taken for John West's salmon I believe. Probably 1942 will permit the replacement of the middle section when we sing our carols this year. Let's hope so. I am pleased to report that things have been pretty quiet here. Moaning Minnie did sound once (probably twice, I just forget) during the fortnight immediately preceding the holiday but nothing very exciting happened. Once again, a vastly different state of affairs as compared with 1940 during the same period. The weather has been exceedingly changeable but not what one might term in any way bad. In fact, Christmas morning was one of the loveliest I remember. When we went and knocked Chris Arnold up about 9 a.m. in order to sing to him and his family (don't tell him what I've said any of you) it was really lovely. And by the time we got to my father's house about 9.30 a.m. (just in time to hear somebody calling up to him "They're here" so that he might make a somewhat sleepy-eyed appearance) it was really warm. We should have included a charge for knocking 'em up too, although on second thoughts, they probably were "knocked up" after listening to us! And now for the Church News. What a month! Our Climax Day effort exceeded our wildest expectations. I won't keep you in suspense any longer. We raised just over £405 after paying what little expenses there were. Magnificent result wasn't it? I can assure you, it was one continuous thrill as each group Secretary and Treasurer came forward to tell how much they had raised and the methods by which they had raised the money. For those who are interested here are the respective figures: Group 1 £86. 7. 11, Group 2 £72. 10. 9, Group 3 £67. 7. 9, Group 4 £92. 5. 7, S. School (who only started in August to raise £10) £27. 10. 0, Miscellaneous Efforts £40. 13. 7, Total £386. 15. 7. The Tea and Concert brough [page break] - 2 - up the total to just over £405. No wonder the concert in the evening went off with such a swing. And that is not the end of the exciting story. A certain gentleman in Leeds, not a Congregationalist – in fact – so far as we know, not associated with any place of worship, was so impressed at the way in which we had set about overcoming the war-time difficulties, and the magnificent result attained, decided he would like to shew [sic] his admiration in a practical way and paid into our Church account at the Bank ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY POUNDS. (I have written it out in full in case you think I have made a mistake). This gentleman wishes to remain absolutely anonymous, and the only way we can make known to him our profound gratitude is by including the news through such agencies as this and hope that it will catch his eye. A really stupendous gift wasn't it? And what do we propose doing with all the money? Well, a good portion of it has gone already. We have paid off every single penny of outstanding debt, and have a nice little sum in hand with which to start the year. How's that for a send-off for the New Year? Probably in more normal times, we should not have paid off the debt so quickly, but we realised that many Churches have had a very rough time and will no doubt be in need of assistance to help them carry on. We thought if we returned the money loaned to us, it would then be available to help our less fortunate friends. Its marvellous how these gifts enable joy to be spread abroad like ripples on the surface of a pool, and one can never tell exactly where the ripples will stop. Just in passing, it's funny how GOOD news causes tears to flow isn't it? And there were a number of people confessed that they had all their work on to stop the tears from flowing. (Please don't tell anybody, but quite a number of men had to resort to coughing, and I had a queer feeling in my throat too!) The kiddies have had their usual parties; we had to arrange them in three instalments and had a great time. The Intermediates and Seniors had their's on New Year's Eve, and a number stopped to the watch-night service, which was quite well attended. On the way home, several stops were made to 'let the New Year in' and judging by the laughter, the 'letters in' made quite a good job of it. Mr. Arthur Brining tells me that one or two more of his class of Young Ladies are either joining up or having to go on munitions and such like. This means that I shall have to alter the heading when replying to correspondents shortly. (Don't get jealous Connie!) Well, I think that's about all for this month. Don't forget to drop a line any time – a post-card will do, just to let us know that you are still alive and kicking. It is always a great pleasure to hear from you. Cheerio, everybody, keep smiling. Cheerily yours, THE MINISTER, TEACHERS AND OFFICERS OF [underlined] OUR [/underlined] SUNDAY SCHOOL. [underlined] PERSONAL (More or Less). [/underlined] [underlined] Engagement. [/underlined] I am glad I expressed a certain measure of caution last month when I said (with fingers crossed) that so far as I knew etc . . . . Well, I have now been informed that two of our friends became engaged last month, and I am sure you will wish me to express in your name our heartiest congratulations to [underlined] KENNETH GILL and VERA LONGDEN. [/underlined] The congratulations have already been made verbally, but it is only right and proper to record these events 'officially'. So far as I am aware that concludes the news under this heading for the month – BUT . . . one never knows! [page break] - 3 - ???? [underlined] QUERY [/underlined] ???? No doubt you will recollect that under this heading last month, I enquired if anybody could supply me with the address of Leslie Day as I had not heard from him for some time. I had just received the desired information, when lo and behold, who should walk into school the following Sunday but our long lost friend. And now I'm going to make somebody jealous . . . Yes, he's out! Leslie has been released in order to take up work at a place not many miles distant. So for another of our boys, it's HOME, SWEET HOME AGAIN. [underlined] LEAVE CALLS. [/underlined] Quite a number of the boys have been home during the past few weeks and have paid us a visit. It was a refreshing experience to shake them by the hand and have a short chin-wag, and almost without exception the conversation sooner or later turned upon the jolly times we used to have, and the hope that those days should soon return. We share that hope to the full. Here are the names of our Visitors for December (with apologies for any name that may be inadvertently missed):- G. HOLLIDAY. K. GILL. R. GILL. A. RAMSEY. H. JOHNSON. C. BEVERIDGE. G. LONGDEN. D. PERKINS. D. COOLING. W.C. SMITH. D. SMITH. M. STOBBS. E. EASTWOOD. A. WEATHERILL. H. ARNOLD. R. THOMAS. T. STOCKS. [underlined] LETTERS FROM THE BOYS AND ALAS, NONE FROM OUR OWN LITTLE LASSIE. [/underlined] [underlined] T. STOCKS. [/underlined] Right glad to hear from you Tom. It seems quite a long time since I last had a line although of course I hear about you from your Dad. You seem to have hit on a pretty good spot on the whole judging from your letter, with plenty to occupy your spare time, what with Concerts, Cinemas and the like. So you have been on manoeuvres too? Did you get anywhere near here. Some of the boys tell me that they have been quite close to home in the course of these 'trips off' but quite unable to pay even a fleeting visit. It must be pretty maddening to be so near and yet so far. I should like to see some of you with two or three days growth of beard – something like modern Robinson Crusoes I should imagine. I am very sorry that I didn't manage to have a chat with you when you were home recently. Since my illness, I have not been able to attend all the meetings. Your good wishes to all the friends are hereby duly recorded and I am sure we all share your wish that the day will soon come along when we shall all be together again. Have you heard from Norman lately? If so, how is he getting on? Is he involved in any of the Middle East activities? Give him our best wishes if you are in touch with him. I send him the News Sheet of course. Well, all the best Tom! [underlined] G. DIXON. [/underlined] What cheer George. So you were fortunate enough to get two 'good do's' last year, Christmas and the New Year. Good old Scotland. You sounded a little pessimistic about the prospects this year in the South. I hope things have turned out better than you feared. Anyhow, if your leave comes round early in January, that will be a consolation. I pass on your congratulations to Herbert Eastwood on his marriage, but that pessimistic note still sticks I notice, for you say "Poor Herbert, he's in the river, all right now." (Shades of Sandy Powell). No George, Arthur Ramsey is [underlined] NOT [/underlined] in Scotland when he calls the Army 'home' – as a matter of fact he's in the South! (That's got you hasn't it?) Your sympathy with Ed. Eastwood in the matter of the cook's reputation is passed on and no doubt will strike a sympathetic chord. Many thanks for all your good wishes to friends both at home and away, and I am pleased to say that I am now feeling much better. [underlined] E. HAIGH. [/underlined] I am glad that the News Sheet reached you safely in spite of your temporary absence from home. So you had no better luck in your new surroundings. You seem most anxious to try your luck having a 'crack' at something. If the long [page break] - 4 - promised invasion comes off, you will probably get all the practice you want. You're getting as cynical as our mutual friend 'George' – see his letter above. Joking apart I agree with you that plenty of fellows would gladly change places with you. I can quite understand that you must get thoroughly bored, but cheer up. On behalf of all the boys, and those at the Church, I thank you very sincerely for all your good wishes, and hope that you managed to get home for a few hours leave. Glad to hear from you. [underlined] H. GOODALL. [/underlined] Glad you continue to find the News Sheet so interesting Herbert. Yes, we're keeping pretty fit just now in spite of the dark mornings and evenings, although I notice from the paper to-night that from to-morrow the black-out may be removed one minute earlier so that the worst is over. I am glad you agree with my decision as to what duties I should still stick at, and look forward to your renewed help Herbert when we get over this trouble. I learned with pleasure that you are now housed in a place of bricks and mortar and share the 'companionship' of a fire. Being under canvas is all very well when circumstances make it necessary. Yes, I think you can count yourself very fortunate to have enjoyed a clean bill of health taking all things into consideration. Both Pa, and Mr. Seager are keeping well. Mr. Seager started the 10th year of his ministry with us yesterday. It doesn't seem all that time since he came does it? I gladly pass on your good wishes to all the boys for the New Year, and to the various friends mentioned in your letter. Thank you Herbert for another long and very interesting letter. [underlined] W.C. SMITH. [/underlined] What? Another change of address William? You're the giddy limit and no mistake. I really don't know however you'll manage to stay in one place again when peace is restored. I share your hopes that men and women will wake up to the realities of life when the war is over and that they will never forget the lessons taught them. I am glad you were home for 'Climax Day'. What do you think to the latest gift? It's wonderful how our Church has been blessed. Sorry the leave passed so quickly, and what a journey to your new abode! There is one consolation apparently in the fact that the camp seems a pretty decent place from your first impressions. I much appreciated your booklet greeting which was quite a novelty to me; I have read through it several times and many of our friends have commented on it. Needless to say, it will not go with the other cards when we take them down, but will find a place with my school reference books and be very useful. Many thanks too for your good wishes to Mr. & Mrs. Seager, Dad, and all the boys for 1942. All the best Bill. [underlined] A. WEATHERILL. [/underlined] Another change of address, Allan. I think I shall have to drop a line to the War Office and tell them how much bother they cause me. One can imagine the effect such a letter would have in that quarter, – I don't think. So you've managed to squeeze in a few days leave. Good for you. You seem to have found bed very comforting. So do I too – at the wrong end of the day! Funny thing how one comes to hate leaving 'em in the morning – at least that is my experience. You would get a surprise to find Arth. Eastwood home didn't you? And Bill Dacre too. You know, I haven't seen him for donkey's years – however long that may be. If I had his address I would gladly send him a copy of the News Sheet. Yes, I remember your cousin Douglas too. You are quite correct, he has a 'brick' in the School. I have written a short history of our Church which will be published some day, and your cousin will find his name duly recorded in it. Where is he now? Further coincidence; you say he has married a girl connected with Burmantofts Congl. Church, and this was the Church we used to attend years ago before coming to Halton. I will gladly get out a list of all the chaps for inclusion in a future News Sheet – probably the next one if I can manage it. So you've heard from Alf Horsman. I have not had a letter from Alf for a while now. Going on O.K. is he? So you want to see him home "if only for the pleasure of seeing him pushing their pram about." You're getting cruel Allan. Anyhow, thanks for a letter full of interest. Write again soon for I enjoyed your letter very much. [underlined] D. LONGDEN. [/underlined] It's nice to have a line from you Dennis. Yes, the Groups did really fine didn't they? Don't boast about Group 4 too much. They are the most miserly folk you ever met. When we asked them to join us in planning final details for "Climax Day" they said they would only give us "their advice" (which we had not asked for) if we paid them 2d for the help of the "Brains Trust." Scrooge was never in the picture where money grabbing comes in. So your team are in the semi-final. [page break] - 5 - Best of luck. Hope by the time this reaches you that you have won the final. Yes by all means, bob in and have a look at us in our Y.P.F. when you get home. You'll enjoy it! I pass on your congratulations to Connie on her engagement and to Herbert, who has now reached the 'final' stage. Also your good wishes to R. Gill and Gladys; D. Lymer; D. Smith and D. Cooling. Yes Dennis (the last of the 4 D's) I well remember the days in the old hut with H. Hill, Ht. Eastwood, E. Connor, R. Wilson, yourself and one or two others I could mention! Good old days were they not? Thanks for all your good wishes Dennis, including your big brother George. He looked fit when home recently. [underlined] D. SMITH. [/underlined] Now then, brother of the soft voice, how art? Glad to know that you received the parcel O.K. and that the contents thereof will have a 'good home'. I should like to congratulate you on your most original excuse for getting back 6 hrs. late after leave. "Train puncture" indeed! Well, you won't be able to plead a 'cracked wheel' very often to [sic] I hope you escaped punishment on this occasion if only for your ingenuity. And then you plead that you did not come on Sunday night because "something turned up unexpectedly". Anyhow, so long as it wasn't your toes we'll let you off this time. Once more I acknowledge the greetings to all the friends (including Ronnie Gill) for 1942. I have noted your change of address; no, its no nearer home as you remark. Best of luck Dennis. [underlined] F. BYWATER. [/underlined] This is a bit queer Frank. Here am I in January, 1942, writing to thank you for your letter of the 28th August, acknowledging our News Sheet of February last. And this is described as the 'age of speed.' Nevertheless, I agree with you Frank when you say that we must not complain, bearing in mind the many difficulties involved, and it is a very great pleasure to hear from you once again. I am so glad too that the News Sheet is "just what we want" to quote your description, and that it is shared with the other fellows. Please give them all our very best wishes, especially any from good 'owd Yorkshire tha' knaws. And to turn to your letter again; I think your mother and the other members of your family do really feel at home with us now. I know is [sic] must have been a strange experience after so long a connection with Marshall Street. I was wishing your Mother a happy New Year last Sunday morning and then we had a joke or two between us, as we often do. She really does very well I think. Your letter Frank took me back in imagination to the days spent at Cockburn, and then memories flooded rapidly one upon another. Mr. Champion was due to speak at our Young Peoples Fellowship the other Sunday evening, so I took your letter down with me. He was most interested. I don't envy you Frank in the terrific temperatures you have to endure. Give me the Artic rather than the Equator any time. Your reference to the hospitable people of Leeds made good reading, and if the lads did feel so much at home in our midst after their nerve-racking experiences at Dunkirk, you can assure them from me, that speaking on behalf of my fellow citizens, it was a great joy and privelege [sic] to be able to welcome them into our homes. They were a set of grand lads and we shall remember their short stay with us for many years to come. You will have seen many places of interest during your visit to the East including the Pyramids, Sphinx, Mosques, Bazaars etc, but I should imagine Leeds City Square will take a lot of beating. Joking apart, I can quite understand your delight at the chance given to you to visit Palestine. Well Frank, I shall have to finish now. Please accept my best thanks for a long and extremely interesting letter. Our best wishes to ALL of you. [underlined] YOUNG PEOPLE'S FELLOWSHIP. [/underlined] When any of you have an hour to spare some Sunday evening when home on leave, will you drop in and see us? We shall be glad of your company and you will enjoy the evening – of that I am sure. It has also been suggested to me that probably several of you would welcome the chance of giving a short talk to the Young People – especially those of you who used to teach in the School, or are interested in young folk. Surely you will have much to say and much which may be a very real help to them. If you are willing to help in this way when home for a few days (we could never dream of asking you when on 48 hours leave!), will you drop me a line? In the meantime, you can be thinking out what to tell them. Think about it chaps. [page break] - 6 - [underlined] JUST A SMILE! [/underlined] Said the Nazi to a Swiss Official: "How do you come to have an admiral? You have no seaboard." Replied the Swiss: I see no harm in that. On the other hand, in Germany you have a Minister of Justice." ;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Officer: Why did you shout kiss me sergeant in front of the other men? Pte. Smith: Someone said 'e'd seen ‘im at our rum ration . . an' I wanted to find out if 'e 'ad, Sir. ;;;;;;;;;;;;;; It is rumoured in Rome that Hitler will shortly confer on the Duce a high Italian Decoration. ;;;;;;;;;;;;;; A young R.A.F. officer stationed somewhere in Egypt, was flying near the Great Pyramid, carrying out exercises in navigation and discovering his geographical position with a sextant. After a series of involved and confused calculations, he turned suddenly to his pilot and said "Take your hat off." "Why?" asked the pilot. "Because, according to my calculations, we are now inside St. Paul's Cathedral." THE VERY BEST OF GOOD WISHES TO YOU AND ALL YOUR PALS FOR 1942. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Halton congregational church Sunday school newsletter - January 1942 Description An account of the resource Sends good wished for 1942. Contains news of congregation members. In particular announces the engagement of Kenneth Gill and Vera Longden. Also notes Kenneth Gill home on leave. Letters from the boys and other church news. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Yorkshire England--Leeds Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Civilian Royal Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Six page printed document Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SGillK1438901v10014 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Sue Smith faith love and romance https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1895/35556/SGillK1438901v10013.pdf 560ed9f1d59ba4257564f21bcc9c2824 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Gill, Kenneth K Gill Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-07-09 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Gill, K Description An account of the resource One hundred and sixty-four items plus another one hundred and fifteen in two sub-ciollections. The collection concerns Flying Officer Kenneth Gill DFC (1922 - 1945, 1438901, 155097 Royal Air Force) and contains his log book, documents, photographs and family and other correspondence. He flew operations as a navigator with 9 Squadron before starting a second tour with 617 Squadron. He was killed 21 March 1945 having completed 45 operations. The collection also contains two albums.  <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2114">Kenneth Gill. Album One</a> <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2117">Kenneth Gill. Album Two</a> Additional information on Kenneth Gill is available via the <a href="https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/108654/">IBCC Losses Database.</a> The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Derek Gill and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document Charles Letts’s DIARY [page break] Telephone Numbers Name Number [page break] Memoranda from 1941 Left home July 7th for London Left London July 26th for Leuchars. Left Leuchars Oct. 3rd for 9 days leave. Left home Oct. 12th for Leuchars. Left Leuchars Oct. 17th for London Left London Nov. 22nd. for Clyffe Pypard Left Clyffe Pypard Dec. 13th for 14 days leave. Became engaged Dec. 16th to my darling. Left home Dec. 27th for Heaton Park. [page break] Memoranda from 1941 [printed information] [page break] January 1 Thursday 1942 Were issued with extra kit, vests, gym. kit, overalls, new towel & a new kitbag. Had to mark bags with code letters etc. Wrote letters to Vera & home. Had bath & went to bed. [page break] 2 Friday 1942 Had two teeth out at 12.25pm. at Bowlec Station. What a job it hurt quite a bit & bled a lot. Hugh McCoy went with me. Had rest of day off. Code words altered. [page break] 3 Saturday 1942 Gums still sore but a lot better, had mouth-wash after breakfast & had nothing to do till 1.30pm. Pay parade at 2.15pm received £2 what for beats me. Finished at 4pm. Wrote letter to Betty Hughes & one to Vera. Rang up, [indecipherable words] out & rang again & Vera was out. Spoke to Mrs. Longden. 4 Sunday Took in kitbags not wanted on voyage. Went with Pete to tea at Alcocks’. Good night Wish Vera could have some. Tried to get through but couldn’t. [page break] 5 Monday 1942 Went to pack & messed about & got embarkation cards. Seems we’re going at last. Tried to ring but couldn’t get through. Wrote V & home. Left Byron’s at 10.30pm for Park. Had supper & stayed there till 2.30am. Marched to station & got on train at 3.00am. Woke up at Glasgow. [page break] 6 Tuesday 1942 Arrived at 12.0a.m. on docks at Gourock. Went aboard steamer & was taken out to troopship, not bad accomodation [sic]. Sleep in hammocks & on mess-tables. The lads are all here. Wrote to V & home. Had a bit of fun getting hammocks set up right. Slept in our clothes. [page break] 7 Wednesday 1942 Got up at 6.30a.m. not bad night. Was given guard duty for 24hrs, 1 on & 2 off. My post on bow of ship. Left Gourock at 2.0p.m. & had a Yank destroyer to acompany [sic] us. Quiet night. Running down the Irish Sea. [page break] 8 Thursday 1942 Bacon & egg for breakfast. Finished guard at 9a.m. Ran in to Milford Haven at 2- pm. Left at 4 pm. With 2 Yank destroyers & 1 troopship with soldiers aboard. Heading back up Irish Sea. Ship rolling a bit. [page break] 9 Friday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Good night Just out of Irish Sea. P.T. on deck after lifeboat drill. Was given job of sweeping up decks every day. Went up on boat-deck. Heavy seas coming up Was sick seven times in afternoon & evening. Decided to sleep on mess-table. Clocks put back an hour. [page break] 10 Saturday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Fairly good night. Was sick again before breakfast. Had a kipper & kept it down. Just has pudding at dinner-time & a [indecipherable word] Powder. Heavy seas & gale-warning. Cleared out scuppers & lashed everything down. Sea came over lower decks & Boat rocked awful. 11 Sunday Everything in a mess on the floor. Heavy seas still running. Chicken for dinner. Read 2 books in afternoon. Don’t feel too good. Another gale coming up. [page break] 12 Monday 1942 Clocks back another hour. Nearly slid off table last night. Decks had all been awash. Heavy seas again. Was sick before breakfast. Ship rolling very badly. One destroyer gone back owing to engine trouble. Feel O.K. just now. Nothing interesting. [page break] 13 Tuesday 1942 Fairly good night, but sea still rough. Ships pitching so much that propellors [sic] come out of water. Feel fairly well. Nothing interesting. [page break] 14 Wednesday 1942 Good night, although sea was very rough. Porpoises seen on port side after dinner. Had a talk by a Yank officer. Ropes put on deck for holding on to. Battened down after tea. Lower decks perpetually awash. Sea came in twice at portholes. A few lads were knocked over by waves & soaked. Other destroyer packed up & gone away. Troopships on our own now. [page break] 15 Thursday 1942 Decent night, storm calmed a little, sea still very rough. Should be in on Saturday now. Some chaps had their money changed or rather given in today. [page break] 16 Friday 1942 Good night. Heavy sea again. Spray coming over like rain. Seems we just missed U-boats during night. [page break] 17 Saturday 1942 Good night. Sea a bit calmer. Much colder, it snowed in afternoon. Picked up Yank destroyer so must be getting nearer. Nothing unusual. 18 Sunday Fine morning, rather cold. Chicken for dinner again. Should see land tomorrow. Wrote home & Vera. Nothing unusual. [page break] 19 Monday 1942 Up at 6-0a.m. On deck at 7-0a.m. Very cold. No land in sight yet. Sighted land at 9.30a.m. At last the journeys ended. Stayed on board till 9.15 p.m. then boarded train for Monkton. Seems very strange seeing so many lights. Sent cable to Mum, cost 3/6 but it was worth it. [page break] 20 Tuesday 1942 Arrived at Moncton [sic] at 5-0 A.M. & trudged through snow & rain to camp. Were given billets & then had egg & tomatoes for breakfast. Had a rest on bunk till dinner. Pay parade at 2-0p.m. received 3 dollars. Cabled to Vera. Went round Moncton & had a banana split & then to pictures. Plenty of fruit here, everything seems very strange & lights seem unreal. Very cold here but it’s a dry cold & not so bad really. [page break] 21 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6-30 a.m. Breakfast & then parade for flighting. Pay parade at 2.0p.m. & received 10 dollars (American). Received our other kitbags then sent both kitbags by lorry to the train. Our 1250’s came back at 9-0p.m. and then to billets & bed. [page break] 22 Thursday 1942 Up at 4-0a.m. Breakfast at 5a Paraded at 6-15a.m. & went down to station. Roads very slippery. Entrained at 8-0 a.m. Grand scenery, rivers & lakes frozen over. Dinner lovely, negro waiters. Crossed to U.S.A. at 2-30p.m. Clocks put back an hour. Dinner at 6p.m. grand food. Changed trains at 8-0p.m. Still in snow area. No beds have to sleep on seats. [page break] 23 Friday 1942 Woke up at New York at 5-30a.m. Ham & eggs for Breakfast Changed trains at Washington at 10-30 a.m. Very hot sun. Grand dinner, chicken. Country very dry & parched looking. Passed tobacco plantations & cotton fields & orange orchards. Should be in tomorrow morning. [page break] 24 Saturday 1942 Woke up at 4-0 a.m. at Atlanta dining cars taken off. Passed some fruit farms & tobacco fields Population nearly all negro. Arrived at Turner Field, Georgia about 9-0 a.m. Billets are fine. Breakfast grand food & waiters. Gave in blankets. Dinner fine. Collected kitbags, filled in forms etc. & had grand tea. Lecture on discipline etc. Went back to rooms at 7-45p.m. Lights out at 10-0p.m. Fine place here, very big & plenty of room. 25 Sunday Up at 6-0a.m. Bacon & eggs etc for breakfast. Were shown how to lay out our rooms. Haircut in morning. Scrumptious dinner. P.T. at 1-30pm. to 3-30p.m. Played basket-ball. Lecture again. Tea. At 5-0p.m. “Open Post” after tea while 21-00hrs. Went into Albany not much there. Bed at 10-30. p.m. Very hot here, better than our summers. [page break] 26 Monday 1942 Up at 5.45a.m. Breakfast then P.T. for an hour. Shower then lecture on system of guards. Break. Wrote to Vera & sent it by Letter Mail 5c. Drill period for an hour & a half. Very funny trying to learn American drill. It seems rather babyish to us & not half as smart. Wash & Brush up then dinner. Parcelled up laundry ready for collecting. Started writing home. Very warm. Lecture on “customs & courtesies”. Clothing inspection. Athletics, played touch rugby. Tea [deleted] h [/deleted] at 4.30p.m., very nice. Drill after tea. Went to see Bert in evening. Made out a list of all the Leuchars lads & got their signatures, put on it preference for Lakeland, Florida. Bed at 10-0pm. [page break] 27 Tuesday 1942 Up at 5-0a.m. Washed & dressed than had 40 winks while assembly sounded. P.T. after breakfast very stiff. Lecture on Guard Systems of Air Corps then drill. We combine our own & their drill now, makes it a bit better. Shower then dressed for dinner. Took in list to Orderly Room & was O.K. Dinner fine, served potatoes & tea today. Customs & Curtesies [sic] again after dinner. Issued with text books and manuals. Thunderstorm & very heavy rain. Took in laundry to stores then to tea. No “open post” tonight. Read a bit, then wrote home. Had a shower & then to bed after cleaning up. [page break] 28 Wednesday 1942 Up at 5.45a.m. Washed & dressed then breakfast. Much colder today Americans wearing greatcoats. P.T. after breakfast then lecture on “guards” Seems we’ll have to do it soon. Drill followed & had to take a squad. Dinner at 11.30 a.m. Took in boots to be repaired to stores. Had lecture on Military Law, then athletics till tea time. No Open Post again tonight. Had a shower, then read old letters etc. . then retired to bed at 9-0p.m. [page break] 29 Thursday 1942 Up at 5.45 a.m. washed & dressed, then breakfast. Warmer today than yesterday. Calisthenics after breakfast. Drill followed, then had to line up in formation & sign a form, what it’s for I don’t know. Saw officers that came over with us on boat. Dinner at 11-30pm [sic] . Lecture on Civics; then on Terminology used at Training Schools. Athletics till tea-time, played touch rugby. , Very warm. No “Open Post” again, lads getting discontented & “browned off”. Cleared up, washed and so to bed at 9-30p.m. [page break] 30 Friday 1942 Up at 5-45a.m. Breakfast. Raining hard, ground soaked. No P.T. Lecture on Terminology. Gave in size of collars & trousers. Dinner at 11-30a.m. Lecture on Civics, very tiring, bad speaker. Marched down to stores & drew rifles & bayonents [sic]. No athletics. Tea at 4-30p.m. “Retreat” formation; did it very well indeed. “Open Post” till midnight. Went to town with basket-ball players. Went to see “Manpower” at “Clair”. Not bad. Wandered round & got back at 10p.m. & so to bed. [page break] 31 Saturday 1942 Up at 5-40a.m. Raining very hard. No P.T. Soon cleared up. Inspection by Commanding Officer. Nothing to do till dinner. Finished at 12 o’clock. Washed & changed & went out at 1-30p.m. Called at Y.M.C.A. & Services Club. Tea at “Georges” very nice. Saw “Across the Sierras”, bought shirt & towel & cleaning rod for rifle. Back in camp at 10p.m. Cleaned gun. Bed at 11-0p.m. February 1 Sunday Up at 5-50a.m. Breakfast. Laid on bed & read till dinner time. Wrote to Vera. Went to see Bert after dinner. Tea at 4-30p.m. read paper then went to see “Corsican Brothers” very good Bed at 11-0p.m. [page break] 2 Monday 1942 Up at 6-0a.m. Calisthenics before Breakfast. Lecture on Terminology then drill for an hour. A little warmer now than first thing this morning. Break for an hour then dinner. Took up positions for possible air-raids on hillsides. Film on Military Hygeine [sic] after that. Collected boots at stores then ‘Retreat’ formation with rifles. Tea at 5.45p.m. Cleaned rifle & bayonet & boots. Finished letter to Vera. Bed at 9.30pm. [page break] 3 Tuesday 1942 Up at 6-0 a.m. P.T. before breakfast. Lecture on Terminology then rifle drill for an hour. Lecture on Civvies then break while dinner. Athletics, played touch-rugby. Brought back laundry, not too good. Film on Personal Hygiene. Retreat formation with rifles & bayonets. Tea at 5.45p.m. No open Post. Cleaned up, packed up laundry etc. Had a shower & so to bed at 9.30p.m. Am playing t. rugby tomorrow for Platoon. [page break] 4 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6-10a.m. P.T., wore our overalls over gym-kit. Breakfast. Took in laundry, then lecture on History. Drill with rifles & bayonets. Practice formal guard mounting. Break for an hour, then lecture on Geography. Dinner at 1.0pm. Athletics, played T. rugby, no score. Film on Courtesy & Customs. Retreat formation. Open Post. Went to Y.M.C.A. & watched basketball. Had supper & arrived back at 11.0p.m. then bed. [page break] 5 Thursday 1942 Up at 6.10a.m. P.T. a little warmer today. Breakfast, then lecture on History. Drill and Rifle Inspection. Mounted guard at 12.0 o’clock. Am on 3rd. relief Went on at 4.0p.m. at water tower. Off at 6.0pm. then tea. Wrote home. On again at 10p.m. till 12.0p.m. Not bad doing guards here. [page break] 6 Friday 1942 Off at 6.0 a.m. Calisthenics for others Breakfast then relieved guard for 1/2hr. On again at 10a.m. & off at 12.0a.m. Dinner. then parade for pay. Received 20 dollars. Bought two singlets from store. Read in afternoon after check-up. Weigh 158 stripped. Said I’d been payed in dimes & nickels. Open Post. Didn’t go out. Went to canteen, then library. Read a bit & then to bed at 10p.m. Rather tired. [page break] 7 Saturday 1942 Up at 6.0a.m. Breakfast. No P.T. Cleaned up, then inspection. Nothing to do till dinner. Read in afternoon. No “Open Post”. Went to Camp Cinema to hear violinist. Very good show. Saw “Marry the Bosses’ Daughter”, not so good, bad acting. Bed at 10-30p.m. Bert came “home” today from hospital. 8 Sunday Up at 6.0a.m. Breakfast. Ready for 8.30a.m. Left camp for Sylvester. 75 of us. Church first then split up for dinner. Bert & I went to Cooks. Grand time. Had to come back for retreat. No “Open Post”. Went to see Mac. Read & then to bed. Clocks on an hour. [page break] 9 Monday 1942 Up at 7-0a.m. Breakfast then Calisthenics. Drill then break. Lecture on history Before dinner. Bought two pairs of underpants at store. Dinner at 12-30pm. Talk on Aircraft Rec after dinner. Went to sleep again as usual. Athletics, played touch-rugby. Big parade for Wing Commander Hogan. Says we’ll be moving in 12 days time. Tea after that, then Retreat. Went to see Mac, with the boys. Read a bit and then to bed. [page break] 10 Tuesday 1942 Up at 7-0am. Breakfast then Calisthenics. Rifle drill after for an hour. History lecture before dinner at 12-30pm. Film on Aircraft Recognition after dinner, not so good. Lecture by Mr. De Lom on Army & Customs etc. very good. Athletics played touch-rugby again & won. Tea at 5-30p.m. then Retreat. Started raining. “Open Post”. Got a lift to “Adam’s Inn”. Still raining so Bert & others went back. Arrived at Sylvester at 8-30pm. Had a grand supper. Very nice people indeed. Left at 11-10p.m. Mr. Cork ill so couldn’t drive me back. Got a lift on a petrol waggon & arrived back just in time, only just too. Still raining, but I had a grand time. [page break] 11 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6.45a.m. Breakfast. Johnie stayed in bed. No Calisthenics, ground too wet. No drill either. Saw “Target for Tonight” at camp cinema. Break then dinner after History Lecture. Aircraft Recognition lecture sleep as usual for half an hour. Bert took my trousers to be pressed at camp tailors. Athletics & more touch-rugby, won again. Tea at 5.30pm. then Retreat. John & Ted went to a dance in Albany for R.A.F. boys only. Bert & I went to P.X. read a bit & then to bed. The lads came in at 2.0a.m. had a good time. [page break] 12 Thursday 1942 Up at 6-45am. Breakfast then Calisthenics. Supply Formation, drew extra Cassack bag. Lecture on History, went to sleep. Dinner at 12.30pm. Film at 2-0pm. on Aircraft Recognition. Lecture on Customs & Courtesies. Athletics till tea-time, played touch rugby, & won; champions of squadron. Tea then retreat formation. Won colours for being smartest squadron. “Open Post”. Bert & I left at 7-30pm. with staff sergeant. Went to pictures to see “North of the Yukon” Drove out of town & passed all the “Barbeques, Joints, & night-clubs etc. Stopped at “The Esquire” for a 7 up drink. Left at 11-25pm Called for a “hamburger with” in town & got back at 11-55p.m. Very good evening out. [page break] 13 Friday 1942 Up at 7-00a.m. Breakfast. Calisthenics, rather cold wind. Drill for an hour with rifles. Lecture on Organisation; went to sleep as usual. Dinner at 12-30 a.m. Lecture on Aircraft Recognition, slept. Athletics till tea time. Played touch-rugby, drew with “B” squadron champions. Replay needed. Lost at football. Tea at 5.30p.m. then Retreat formation. Won colours again for smartest squadron. No “Open Post”. Wrote home. Shower, cleaned up and then to bed. Bought pipe from P.X. not bad. [page break] 14 Saturday 1942 Up at 7-0a.m. Breakfast. No P.T. Took in bed-sheets. Cleaned up, cleaned windows. Inspection at 10-30a.m. Everything O.K. Dinner at 12.30p.m. Got changed and left camp. Caught bus to Sylvester & arrived at 1-45p.m. Drove around town & picked up two girls Betty & Margery. Went to a dance & tried jitter-bugging, easy enough. Back to Cook’s for tea, scrumptious. Drove round country, & called back at dance for 10 minutes. Left at 10.30p.m. & back in billets at 11-45p.m. Grand day. 15 Sunday Up at 7.0a.m. Breakfast. Back to bed till dinner time. Dinner. Filled in diary wrote home. Frank got blood-poisoning. Rain all day. Tea at 5.30p.m. Went to P.X. Boys went to pictures. Bed at 10p.m. [page break] 16 Monday 1942 Up at 7-0a.m. Still raining. No Calisthenics. Back to bed for 1/2hr. Breakfast at 8.45am. Air Corps Lecture at 10-0a.m. Not much good. Drill at 11.0a.m. Rained again. Lecture on discipline at 1-00pm by a Lt. Colonel. Dinner at 2-0p.m. No Athletics Collected clean laundry from stores. Tea at 6-45pm. Went to Albany with Eric, very close & sweaty. Went to see “It Happened in Bombay” at “Clair”. Caught bus back to camp. Bed at 12.00pm. [page break] 17 Tuesday 1942 Up at 7-0a.m. Ground too [missing letter]et no Calisthenics. Start guard [missing letter]t 1-0p.m. Lecture on Bombardment Aviation. Dinner at 2-0p.m. Went on guard at Water Tower [missing letter]gain. American guard there too. Off at 5-0pm. Tea at 6-45p.m. read a bit, had a coffee & on at 9p.m. Coffee at 11-10p.m. then bed till 2-45a.m. [Off at 5-0am & bed again while 8-30a.m. Breakfast & on again at 9-30a.m. Finished at 11.0a.m. Dinner at 2-0p.m. Gave in rifles and bayonets. Tea at 6-45p.m.] see over. [page break] 18 Wednesday 1942 Finished guards at 11-am. Dinner at 2-0p.m. Gave in rifles & bayonets at stores. Slept till tea-time. Read a bit, had a coffee & then to bed. No Open Post as we were late for parade yesterday. [page break] 19 Thursday 1942 Up at 7-0a.m. Calisthenics, rather cold. Breakfast at 8-45a.m. Lecture on Observation & Reconnaisance [sic] by Lt. Honeycut, very good. Drill for an hour. Gave in books before dinner. Dinner at 2-0p.m. Athletics in afternoon. Played touch rugby & won again, finals tomorrow some time. Read a bit, then retreat formation, did very well. Tea at 6-45p.m. Boys went to see McCoy. Went to P.X. for an hour, then wrote to Vera. Bed at 10p.m. [page break] 20 Friday 1942 Up at 7.0a.m. Calisthenics as usual. Breakfast at 8.45a.m. Lecture by Lt. Lamb, had a good time, sang a few songs. Drill for half an hour. Break till dinner. Bought new ‘Parker’ pen at P.X. $8.75 down to $5.25. Dinner at 2.0p.m. Pay parade, received our money handed in on boat & $11 pay. “Open Post” after Retreat. Went to Albany, had steak & chips. Went to Services Club, party on, had a good time, College graduation dance. Called in at Clubroom then caught a wagon back to camp. In at 11-45p.m. Bed at 12-15a.m. Tired. [page break] 21 Saturday 1942 Up at 7.0a.m. Didn’t go to Calisthenics slept under Johnies bed. Breakfast. Cleaned up, then to P.X. bought new tie. Had photo taken. Finished Vera’s letter. Dinner at 2-0p.m. Went to town with the lads. Saw “They Died with their Boots on”. very good. Had tea at Georges’. Walked round and caught bus at 9.10p.m. In bed at 10.30p.m. Leave at 8-0pm. tomorrow. 22 Sunday Up at 7.0a.m. Breakfast at 9-0a.m. Received kit at stores. 3 shirts, 2pr. pants, 4 sets underwear, 6prs of socks. Packed kit & cleaned room out. Dinner at 2p.m. Tea at 6p.m. Put kit on waggons. Entrained at 7.30pm. Left at 8-0p.m. for Arcadia. [page break] 23 Monday 1942 Woke up at 7.0am Not a very good night. Arrived at 7.30a.m. Taken by truck to camp. Grand place, rooms for four, lockers, shower and washplace to each room. Kit arrived at 10.a.m. Cleaned up & put kit away in lockers. Dinner at 1-30pm. Grand food & mess hall. Went to stores and drew leather jacket, goggles, helmet & books. Room inspection. Tea at 6.0pm. Talk at 8.0p.m. by officers. Raining hard. Bed at 10-30p.m. Very nice place here, tennis courts, swimming pool, basketball court etc. Large rooms, good lighting, table & chairs. [page break] 24 Tuesday 1942 Up at 6.25a.m. Cleaned up & breakfast at 7.0a.m. Paraded at 8.0a.m. & went down to Flight Line. Given some instructors & shown kites. Had controls etc. explained. Seems we’ve a lot to learn. Dinner at 1.10p.m. Medical check after dinner. Went to lecture block and drew text books. Nothing to do till tea-time except retreat formation. Tea very good. Cleaned bathroom, took all evening but looks good now. Had a shower & then to Bed at 10.30p.m. [page break] 25 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6.25a.m. Breakfast at 7.0a.m. Went down to hangers and flight line at 7.30a.m. No flying, left at 9.0a.m. Had a coffee & came back to billets. Calisthenics at 11.45 to 12.45. very good. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Classes at 2.0p.m. till 5.30p.m. Didn’t do so much 45 mins. on & off. Retreat formation then tea. Cleaned up, had a shower & to bed at 10.30pm [page break] 26 Thursday 1942 Up at 6.25a.m. Breakfast at 7-0a.m. Went down to hanger. Had lecture on take-offs, circuits, wind directions, drift, S bends etc. Very warm now, still in blues. Did Calisthenics for an hour, Sun very warm & turning red a bit. Shower & then dinner at 1-10p.m. Classes at 2.0p.m. to 5.30p.m. Retreat Formation at 6.15p.m. then tea. Had a chat with American Cadets. Had a shower, wrote up notes on Navigation & so to bed at 10.30p.m. Sent dad cablegram for his birthday, cost $2.85. about 14/3 approx. [page break] 27 Friday 1942 Dad’s Birthday, hope his Cablegram arrives in time. Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Went down to Flight Line. Mr. Jones was absent. No flying, heavy squalls & Nor-west wind. Read Manual for an hour. Left at 10.0a.m. Had a coffee then looked up Theory of Flight. Went to P.X. & Bert bought a camera. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Classes 2. to 4-30p.m. Left early to watch tennis exhibition. Took some snaps. Retreat Formation at 6.15p.m. Tea after retreat. Wrote up notes on Navigation. Bed at 10-30p.m. after a shower. [page break] 28 Saturday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Down at “Ready Room” at 7-50a.m. No Mr. Jones again. Read Handbook again. Calisthenics at 11.45a.m. for an hour. Played football. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Groundschool at 2.0p.m. to 5-15p.m. Left early, went to canteen for orange soda & ice. Retreat, then tea. Wrote home, then did notes on Meteorology. Bed at 10-30p.m. March 1 Sunday Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Calisthenics at 8.0a.m. for an hour Very cold. Down at Ready Room at 9-30a.m. Mr Tanquay our instructor. Up at 10.20a.m. for 40 mins. Grand plane. Dinner then Ground school till 5.30p.m. Retreat then tea. Wrote notes on Flying. [page break] 2 Monday 1942 Didn’t get up while 7.0a.m. Missed breakfast parade. Went to canteen and had coffee & ham sandwiches. Rained very heavy. No Calisthenics. Down on Flight Line at 9.30a.m. No Flying, ground too wet. Stayed in hanger with Mr. Tanquay, explained Army Forms 1 & 1a. stalls, & forced landings. Had a coffee, then dinner at 1.10p.m. Ground School 2pm to 5.30p.m. Changed into blues for Retreat. Tea after. Inspection at 8.30p.m. Demerits for speck of dirt on toilet. (Hope his rabbit dies) Wrote letter to Vera. Bed at 10-30p.m. Received [deleted] lett [/deleted] cable from mum. [page break] 3 Tuesday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7-0a.m. Calisthenics for an hour. Down on Line at 9-30a.m. Up at 10-20a.m. Did. climbing turns, stalls, medium turns & landed after 50 mins. Received 1 demerit for leaving mop & broom in room. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Ground school at 2.0p.m. Had exams in engines & Theory of Flight. Retreat formation at 6.20p.m then tea. Wrote to Vera, then wrote up notes on Flying. Bed after a shower. [page break] 4 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7-0a.m. Calisthenics for an hour. Down at Flight Line at 9.30a.m. Went up at 10-0a.m. Took off on my own. Did turns, stalls, and spins. Down after 45 mins. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Changed into blues. Ground School for 3 1/2 hrs. Has sandwiches in canteen then waited for bus. Arrived in Sarasota at 8.30p.m. Went down to U.S.O. on pier and were invited to stay at the “Gulf View” Inn. Car took us & manager showed us round & introduced us to his guests. Band in dancehall, had a grand time. Pedro & I sang “Yours” and others joined in singing popillar [sic] songs, negro waiter sang [inserted] poor [/inserted] blues. Marvellous place, very welcome. Rooms for two with single beds. Bed at 1-0a.m. Very Tired. [page break] 5 Thursday 1942 Up at 6.45a.m. Washed & dressed and went down for a walk on the beach. Waited in the lounge for the boys & then to breakfast. Read in lounge while girls came in then went down to the beach. Went in for a dip but found it rather cold. Dinner at 12-30p.m. Left at 1.30p.m. by bus to Sarasota. Bought a camera and a swimsuit. Had a look round then went to a picture show as it rained. Caught bus at 5-30p.m. and arrived in Arcadia at 7-0p.m. Had tea in a restaurant then got bus back to camp at 8.30p.m. Bed at 9-45p.m. [page break] 6 Friday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. rather tired. Breakfast at 7-0a.m. Calisthenics for an hour. Went down on Flight Line at 9.30a.m. Rain had soaked field, no flying, no instructors. Back to billets and wrote up notes on Flying. Dinner at 1.10p.m. Ground school 2 to 5-30p.m. Pay parade after, received $16. Retreat formation at 6.20p.m. Tea at 7.0p.m. Cleaned up room for inspection. Played basketball. Shower and then to bed at 10-30pm [page break] 7 Saturday 1942 Up at 6-50a.m. Breakfast at 7.15a.m. Calisthenics for an hour then changed for flight line. Flew at 9.50a.m. Took off did climbing turns, stalls, spins. Did spins on my own, not too bad. Dinner at 1-10p.m. then groundschool at 2.0p.m. to 5-30p.m. Warmer today than yesterday. Played basket ball again. Shower & bed at 10-30p.m. 8 Sunday Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7.10a.m. Down on “Dawn Patrol” this week. No flying, ground too wet. Calisthenics for an hour. Dinner then groundschool, didn’t do much. Tea then wrote home. [page break] 9 Monday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Dawn Patrol. No flying, ground too wet. Gave in note-books for checking. Mr. Tanquay seemed pleased. Didn’t do Calisthenics, wrote home instead. Dinner at 1.10p.m. Groundschool 2.0p.m. to 5.30p.m. Had exams in Navigation & Meteorology, did them O.K. Retreat formation then tea. Open Post. Managed to get on bus for Sarasota at 7-0p.m. Arrived at 8.30p.m. Booked a room at Hotel Watsons. Went with boys round towns to night-clubs etc. Had a good time & bed at 3-0a.m. [page break] 10 Tuesday 1942 Up at 9-0a.m. Had breakfast at a restaurant then wandered round town. Bought a watch $4 quite good too. Saw Mr. Whipple at U.S.O and were invited out to dinner. Seven other chaps out there too. Had a fine time on beach, sea very nice. Plenty of people there too. Saw Priscilla and Annette. Left at 4-30p.m by taxi. Got on bus at 5-3p.m. & arrived in Arcadia at 7-0p.m. Had ham & eggs at cafe then got bus back to camp. Booked in at 8-0p.m. Cleaned up, had a shower & then to bed at 9-30p.m. Very tired. The lads are very red with the sun. [page break] 11 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7.15a.m. Dawn Patrol. Bert up first, Johnie, then me. Took off, climbed to 2,500ft. did stalls power on, then power-off. Did a spin, not too bad. Landed at auxiliary field & took off again O.K. Landed again at field & taxied up to line, & parked ship. Calisthenics for an hour then dinner. Groundschool 2-0p.m. to 5-30p.m. Had exam in Theory for Flight. Retreat formation then tea. Played basketball, had a shower then wrote up notes on flying. Bed at 10.p.m. Six of our lads solo’d today. [page break] 12 Thursday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Dawn Patrol again. Heavy ground mist no flying till 9-0a.m. No 1 ‘T’ pos changed to No 2 ‘T’ Pos at 10.0a.m. Up for 15 mins. Taxied to line, took off, climbed to 1500ft. did gliding turns, entered traffic, & landed again. Not too bad. Calisthenics for an hour, played football, very warm. Took some snaps on Flight Line. Dinner at 1.00p.m. then Ground School 2.0p.m. to 5.30p.m. Retreat formation at 6.20p.m. then tea. Wrote up notes on flying then started letter home. Entered log-book up. Bed at 10-30p.m. [page break] 13 Friday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. breakfast at 7.10a.m. Dawn Patrol again. Johnie up first. Heavy ground fog came up & flying was suspended. “T” pos. changed from No. 2 to No. 4 & flying resumed at 11-0a.m. Didn’t go up. Calisthenics for an hour. Took film in for developing. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Groundschool at 2.0p.m. to 5.30p.m. Plot to do in navigation easy enough. Retreat then tea-parade. Played basketball till 8.0p.m. Had a shower, then read notes for exams tomorrow. Bed at 10-0p.m. [page break] 14 Saturday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7.10a.m. Dawn Patrol again. Johnie & Bert up. Cloud came in low, flying stopped. No flight again for me. Left line at 10.35 a.m. Calisthenics for an hour. Dinner at 1.10p.m. Groundschool at 2.0p.m. to 5-30p.m. Exams in engines & theory for flight. Retreat at 6-15p.m. then tea. Finished letter home. Bed at 10.15p.m. 15 Sunday Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7.10a.m. Calisthenics for an hour then down on Flight Line. Flew for an hour, nothing right. Dont fly regular enough. Dinner at 1-10p.m. then Groundschool. Retreat then tea. [page break] 16 Monday 1942 Up at 6.30am. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Calisthenics for an hour then down on Flight Line at 9.30a.m. Flew for 33 mins, a lot better today. Dinner at 1.10p.m. Groundschool at 2.0p.m. to 5.30p.m. Retreat formation then tea at 6-30p.m. Played basket-ball for an hour, cleaned up for inspection, which didn’t come off. Wrote up notes on flying. Read a little then to bed at 10.0p.m. [page break] 17 Tuesday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7.0a.m. Down on line at 9.30a.m. Flew at 10.15a.m. for 47 mins. Did stalls, spins, landings & take-offs. Not so good today. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Groundschool at 2.0p.m. Exams in Meteorology & Engines. Retreat formation then tea at 6.30p.m. Wrote to Vera, then to bed at 10-15p.m. [page break] 18 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7-0a.m. Calisthenics for an hour. Down on line at 9-30a.m. Heavy low clouds, thunderstorm broke at 11.30a.m. Heavy rain. Had a talk with Tanquay on flying generally. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Groundschool 2.0 to 5-30p.m. “Open Post” till 12.p.m. Went to Arcadia with the lads, walked round a bit then went to skating rink & had a good time. Caught last bus and got in to camp at 11-45pm. Bed at 12p.m. very tired. [page break] 19 Thursday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7.0a.m. Cleaned room, then Calisthenics for an hour. Down on line at 9.30a.m. Flew at 10.5a.m. for 45 mins. Did stalls, spins, S. turns, & rect. courses. Had a good day today. Dinner at 1-10p.m. then groundschool, test in Theory of Flight. Retreat at 6-20p.m. and tea at 7-0p.m. Wrote up notes on flying then to bed at 10-30p.m. [page break] 20 Friday 1942 Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7.10a.m. Calisthenics for an hour then down on Flight Line. Flew for 45 mins. Take-offs & landings O.K. Stalls not so good. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Groundschool at 2.0p.m. to 5.30p.m. Pay Parade after. Received $21 dollars. Arranged to go with boys by car to Sarasota. Retreat then tea. Played basketball, then wrote up notes on flying. Bed at 10.0p.m. [page break] 21 Saturday 1942 Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast then down on Flight Line. Flying not so bad today. Calisthenics for an hour then dinner. Changed into blues I then went with boys to Sarasota in private car. Touched 97m.p.h. & arrived in 45 mins. 54 mls. Had a good time at the Lido & went in sea for a while. Drove round & had tea in town. Left at 8-15p.m. and arrived in Arcadia at 9-20p.m. Drove round & then back to camp for 10p.m. Tired. 22 Sunday Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast then down on Flight Line. Flying not so good. Check tomorrow. Calisthenics then dinner. Groundschool after, exam. in Meteorology not so bad. Tea at 6.30p.m. Wrote up notes on Flying. [page break] 23 Monday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Down at Flight Line at 7-45am. Check ride, progress, with Flight Commander Eckart. Flying not so good, passed on to Army for another opinion. Calisthenics for an hour then dinner at 1-10p.m. Groundschool in afternoon, test in Navigation, fairly easy. O.K. Retreat then tea at 6-30p.m. Cleaned up for inspection which didn’t take place. Had a coffee, then cleaned buttons, boots etc. Read a little then to bed at 10p.m. [page break] 24 Tuesday 1942 Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Down on Flight Line at 7-45a.m. Up for Army Check. Took it at 12-15p.m. Got through it, flying not so good though. Calisthenics for an hour, then dinner. Flying again this afternoon. Went for another Check Ride with Lt. Flophenstein & was eliminated for mechanical & dangerous flying. Back to Moncton next Tuesday. Tea after Retreat. Received February’s News Letter from Dick Thomas. Wrote to Dick after a coffee at canteen. Read a book & then to bed at 10-30p.m. 20 lads went back to Moncton today after being eliminated. [page break] 25 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7-10a.m. Cleaned buttons & boots etc. then cleaned room a bit. Hung around all morning waiting for board meeting. Dinner at 1-10p.m. Went round camp and took some snaps of swimming pool & flight line etc. Retreat formation then tea. Had a coffee at canteen then read a while. Bed at 10.3p.m. Seniors had Graduation Dance tonight, good band. Listened to band while 12p.m. then dropped off to sleep. [page break] 26 Thursday 1942 Up at 7.30a.m. Didn’t go to breakfast. Had sandwiches in Canteen. Wrote letters home, to Vera & Betty Hughes. Went to try & get leave but have to wait for board. Dinner at 1.10p.m. Read book all afternoon. Retreat then tea. Read a while, cleaned up, then to bed at 10-p.m. [page break] 27 Friday 1942 Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7.10a.m. Cleaned room up, then went to see if boys had heard when board was to be. Filled in diary. Board meeting at 11-0a.m. Nothing much in it. Said I’d do for Observer, dangerous flying, & mechanical flying too. George & I managed to get leave while Monday noon. Had dinner then cleaned up. Tea at 6.30pm. then got bus for Sarasota. Arrived at 9-0p.m. Went to U.S.O. then on to Casa Madrid & saw film. Called in at Manhattan & met Mr & Mrs Harris, & Mrs Bauer. Invited us out to hotel. [page break] 28 Saturday 1942 29 Sunday [page break] 30 Monday 1942 [page break] 31 Tuesday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7.15a.m. Gave in blankets & sheets etc. Took kitbag to Administration block at 9-0a.m. Signed papers at 9.30a.m. & gave in Clearance Form. Got kit ready, then went to the boys. Had dinner at 11-30a.m. Saw Maxine & Flossie, then the lads & then departed with kit for train. Saw Kathryn in Arcadia. Left at 1-15p.m. for Moncton. [page break] April 1 Wednesday 1942 Bad night, didn’t sleep very well. [page break] 2 Thursday 1942 Crossed border at Vanceboro’ at 7-0a.m. Had passport checked & baggage. Dinner at 12-0a.m. very good. Arrived at Moncton at 3-45p.m. Walked up to camp & messed about giving in particulars for an hour. Billeted in same block as Jack Kellet & boys. Went into town & had tea. Walked round then went to pictures to see “Shanghai Gesture” very good too. Arrived in camp at 11-30 p.m. and so to bed. [page break] 3 Friday 1942 Stayed in bed till 11-0a.m. Cleaned up & then had dinner Went to town & met Mr Grant & had a ride round in his car. Had tea at his house & then late dinner at 7-0p.m. Stayed until 11-30p.m. then Mr Grant brought us back to camp. Had a grand evening very nice evening & can go there when we want to. [page break] 4 Saturday 1942 Up at 6.45a.m. Cleaned up, then breakfast. Paraded at 9.0a.m. Went up to pay accounts & drew $5 as a casual payment. Went into town for dinner. Walked round then had tea. Went to pictures at night to see “Ride Em Cowboy” with Abbott & Costello. Back in camp at 10-p.m. Had a shower & then to bed. 5 Sunday Up at 6.45a.m. Cleaned up then breakfast. Church parade 9.0a.m. Went into town for dinner. Walked round then back to camp for tea. Pressed trousers & jacket, filled in diary. Bed at 10-30p.m. [page break] May 11 Monday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. Breakfast at 7-0a.m. Paraded at 8.0a.m. Drill for an hour, went to Medical Quarters for a check-over. Filled out forms etc., then dinner. Saw minister of United Church. Met our officer & had a chat with him. Tea at 4.0p.m. Parade at 5.0p.m. for retreat. Wrote letters. [page break] 12 Tuesday 1942 Up at 6-30a.m. Breakfast at 7-0a.m. Paraded at 8.0a.m. Went to lecture block at 9-0a.m. Went to hangar and had flying kit issued. Not so good. Dinner at 12.0a.m. Went & had signals test, not so bad. Was shown round plane & had things explained. Were fitted with parachute harness. Drew issue of books, & instruments etc., Tea at 4.0p.m. Paraded at 5p.m. received passes & left camp at 7.0p.m. Had a coffee then went up to the social at St. Lukes. Had a grand time & left at 11.30p.m. Arrived back in camp at 12-10a.m. & so to bed. [page break] 13 Wednesday 1942 Up at 6.30a.m. breakfast by 7-0a.m. Paraded at 8.0a.m. drilled for a while then Signals course. Navigation till dinner time. Dinner at 12.0a.m. Signals at 1-30p.m. for an hour then Bombing for two hours. Tea at 4-30p.m. Retreat 5-15p.m. Signals 6.30p.m. for an hour. Filled in diary. Paraded at 9.0p.m. made bed & did a bit more of diary. [page break] 14 Thursday 1942 [page break] Notes for 1943 [page break] Cash Account – January Date Particulars Received Dollars. Paid 3. English £2-0-0 20. Canadian. 3 - - 21. American. 10 - - [page break] Cash Account – February Date Particulars Received Paid 6TH. Feb. American. $20-00 20TH. Feb. American. $11-00 [page break] Cash Account – March Date Particulars Received Paid 6TH. MAR. American. $.16 - - 20TH. MAR. American. $21 - - Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Kenneth Gill 1942 Diary Description An account of the resource Starts with account of movements in RAF for 1941. Continues lwith entries for daily activities. Embarks Greenock, Leaves Milford Haven on 8 January for voyage across Atlantic and describes voyage to Canada. Arrives Moncton 20 January describes daily routine. Left for United States on 22 January. Describes train journey via New York, Washington, Atlanta and arrived at Turner Field, Albany Georgia 24 January. Goes on with daily entries describing activities mentioning food, lessons, sport, weather, rifle training, social activities and physical training. Mentions visit to Sylvester. Transfers to Arcadia, Florida 22 February. Starts flying training at end of February. Continues with description of ground school, flying and other daily activities. Mentions visit to Sarasota. Failed pilot flight check on 24 March 1942 an was sent back to Moncton, Canada. Entries for a few days activities and entries then peter out for April and May and then cease. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource K Gill Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 1942-02 1942-03 1942-04 1942-05 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 1942-02 1942-03 1942-03-24 1942-04 1942-05 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain Scotland--Glasgow Wales--Pembrokeshire Wales--Milford Haven Canada New Brunswick--Moncton United States New York (State)--New York Washington (D.C.) Georgia Georgia--Atlanta Georgia--Albany Florida Florida--Arcadia Florida--Sarasota Florida Georgia New York (State) New Brunswick Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force United States Army Air Force Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Diary Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Multi-page printed booklet with handwritten entries Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context SGillK1438901v10013 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Peter Bradbury aircrew entertainment military living conditions military service conditions pilot RAF Greenock sport training https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1153/34240/MThomasJH424515-180122-010001.jpg 1783227c68b3b536b22ceae94ce65e1a https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1153/34240/MThomasJH424515-180122-010002.jpg 8e76a73a1a305ab2d5bf1629898310dd https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1153/34240/MThomasJH424515-180122-010003.jpg d512cea6013a4f59c9eb343a3b7880c1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Thomas, John Henry J H Thomas Description An account of the resource Seven items. Collection concerns John Henry Thomas (b. 1923, 424515 Royal Australian Air Force). He flew operations as a pilot with 102 Squadron. Collection contains an oral history interview, memoirs of his service and other events and a painting. The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by John Thomas and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2018-01-22 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Thomas, JH Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document HANDLEY PAGE HALIFAX The Handley Page Halifax was the predecessor of the famous Avro Lancaster bomber. These two four-engined bombers composed the majority of the Main Force of Bomber Command over the last three years of the war. Just as the Manchester became the Lancaster so HP56 a twin-engined bomber to be fitted with Rolls Royce Vulture engines was converted to a four-engined aircraft fitted with Rolls Royce Merlin [deleted] Merlin [/deleted] engines and became HP57. It was test flown on 25 October 1939. Testing at Boscombe Down reported an insuffiency [sic] in rudder control but this was not rectified until the Mark 2, Series 1a went into production in August 1943. The first operational sortie was the bombing of Le Havre docks on 10 March 1941. On the return flight over England one of the aircraft was shot down by an RAF nightfighter. The enemy was’nt [sic] the only hazard. The Merlin engines initially were 1130hp but successive model changes saw power increased to 1220hp in January 1942, to 1390hp and finally to 1480hp in the August 1943 production. While the engine changes were being made other modifications were also taking place. In August 1942 the front turret was removed and replaced by the Tollerton nose and the dorsal turret became a Boulton and Paull four gun unit. At one stage this turret was also eliminated and then reinstated. As previously stated in the August 1943 production the rudders were changed to the much more efficient D shape and the Tollerton nose was replaced by a perspex rounded profile which remained till production ceased after hostilities ended. Early models had three bladed constant speed wooden airscrews, later replaced by Rotol metal ones. [page break] In September 1943 production of the Mark3 commenced it entered service in December 1943. This model fitted with 1675 hp Bristol Hercules aircooled radial engines created the Halifax crews had hoped for, it had a fast rate of climb and its operational ceiling was 24,000 feet. Initially some units came with rounded wingtips which later became the norm. Losses declined and more crews completed their tours. The Mark 4 was a non-production design using turbo-charged power plants {One wonders why this was not proceeded with?} The next model the Mark 6 was the pinnacle of Halifax perfecting, as the installation of Bristol Hercules 100 engines producing 1800 hp gave the aircraft an initial rate of climb of 1650 feet/min. a very high cruising speed and a maximum speed of 312mph making it second only to the B-29 in this regard. The extra power and performance was obtained by the use of Claudel-Hobson injectors instead of the standard carburettion [sic]. The Mark 8 version was a transport andtthe[sic] Mark 9 was a paratroop carrier. Halifaxes served in Bomber Command, Coastal Command, Mediterranean Theatre, Glider towing {Horsa and Hamilcar} Special operations and ferrying servicemen back from the Far East Theatre. 6178 Halifaxes were built of which 6162 entered service and 1833 were lost The following were the types and numbers in service: October 1940 to October 1941 .... Mark 1, Series 1, 2, 3...84 September 1941 to July 1943 .... Mark 2, Series 1, 1a.. 1873 Mark 5, Series 1, 1a... 1014 September 1943 to March 1945 ... Mark 3 ............... 2091 July 1944 ... to November 1945 Mark 6 ................ 438 January 1944 to November 1945 Mark 7 ................. 417 March 1945 to November 1945 Mark 8 ................. 100 October 1945 to October 1946 Mark 9 ................. 145 Between 1941 and 1945 Halifaxes flew 80,000 sorties and dropped 227,000 tons [page break] of bombs. Many of us owe our lives to the sturdiness and reliability of this aircraft particularly Mark 3 and 6. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Handley Page Halifax Description An account of the resource Describes the introduction of Halifax into service with associated problems. Mentions first operations to Le Havre. Goes on to describe engine and gun turret upgrades as well as other modifications. Continues with introduction of Mk 3. and Mk 6 followed my Mk 8 and 9. Lists marks of Halifax and service dates as well as some operational statistics and notes roles it was used for. Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1939-10-25 1943-08 1943-03-10 1942-01 1942-08 1943-09 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Wiltshire France France--Le Havre Atlantic Ocean--English Channel Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Royal Air Force. Bomber Command Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Three page printed document Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context MThomasJH424515-180122-01 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Sue Smith Halifax Halifax Mk 2 Halifax Mk 3 Halifax Mk 5 Halifax Mk 7 Hamilcar Horsa RAF Boscombe Down https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2062/33896/PPriceAP19010004.jpg 814078fc3056643c27ea3f91d696b524 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Price, Arthur Phillip. Album 1 Description An account of the resource Fifty-six items. Fifty four page photograph album with photographs of people, places and events taken in Canada. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-05-17 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Price, AP Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Alberta Description An account of the resource Top left - view from air of a lake with town. Captioned 'Sylvan Lake Alberta'. Top right - three women in winter clothes riding on a toboggan. Bottom left -three airmen wearing greatcoats standing by a car in front of a building with sign 'Uptown Theatre'. Bottom right - view of a music band stage inside a building with Christmas decorations. Captioned 'Sgt's mess, Jan 1942, Dance'. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Canada Alberta Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Civilian Royal Air Force Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Four b/w photographs mounted on an album page Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPriceAP19010004 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. entertainment https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2062/33894/PPriceAP19010003.jpg e977b1eaf3dcae91b85361ecdf5af68b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Price, Arthur Phillip. Album 1 Description An account of the resource Fifty-six items. Fifty four page photograph album with photographs of people, places and events taken in Canada. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-05-17 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Price, AP Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Bashaw Alberta Description An account of the resource Top right - view of town buildings. Captioned 'Bashaw Alberta'. Bottom left - man on skis. Captioned 'Jack Ross'. Bottom right - three women in winter clothes standing in line in snow with toboggan in front. Top left - missing photograph captioned 'Jock and myself Bashaw Jan '42'. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Canada Alberta Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Civilian Royal Air Force Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Three b/w photographs mounted on an album page Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPriceAP19010003 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. ground personnel https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/2062/33893/PPriceAP19010002.jpg fa0dda9113905ae42fb83cb9cf4508d0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Price, Arthur Phillip. Album 1 Description An account of the resource Fifty-six items. Fifty four page photograph album with photographs of people, places and events taken in Canada. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2019-05-17 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Price, AP Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Bashaw Alberta Description An account of the resource Top right - an airman wearing uniform tunic and side cap standing in snow beside a woman and young child. In the background a hedge and part of a house. Captioned 'Mrs Sill and Roddy, Bashaw, Jan 1942'. Bottom left - man on skis going down slope. Captioned 'Skiing at Bashaw'. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1942-01 Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1942-01 Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Canada Alberta Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Civilian Royal Air Force Type The nature or genre of the resource Photograph Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Two b/w photographs mounted on an album page Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context PPriceAP19010002 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/files/original/1826/33140/BScottEWScottEWv1.pdf 92a9acd045c19578c33cacdec86958b1 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Scott, Eric William E W Scott Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2017-04-06 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context Scott, EW Description An account of the resource 139 items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Eric Scott (1425952, 188329 Royal Air Force) and contains his log books, a memoir, correspondence, documents, newspaper cuttings, a flying course handbook and photographs. He flew operations in North Africa as a bomb aimer with 142 Squadron and then after an instructional tour in Palestine started a second tour on 37 Squadron in Italy where he was shot down and finished the war as a prisoner. The collection includes three albums. <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2040">Album 1</a> Photographs of Jerusalem, Bethlehem. Tel Aviv, Haifa and friends. <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2041">Album 2</a> Photographs taken during training in the United States and England and during his service in North Africa and Italy. <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/2046">Album 3</a> Correspondence, newspaper cuttings, documents and the last issue of the Prisoner of war Journal. The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Jacqui Holman and catalogued by Nigel Huckins. Transcribed document A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Transcription Text transcribed from audio recording or document The Memoir of ERIC WILLIAM SCOTT [Photograph] Immediately before and during WORLD WAR II – (1939 to 1946) [Page break] ALLIED EX-PRISONER OF WAR MEDAL [Photograph] Obverse: The prominent feature of the front or obverse side of the medal is the strand of barbed wire which has entrapped a young bird, symbolic of freedom itself. These elements surmount a globe of the world indicative of the international parameters of the medal. The wording “International Prisoners of War” encircles the entire design. Reverse: The haunting and vicious barb of the ever present wire is used symbolically to divide the reverse side of the medal into four elements, each bearing one of the words in the phrase “Intrepid against all adversity”. Ribbon: One of the most distinctive medal ribbons yet designed, it is woven 32mm wide with an unusual feature in having a symbolised strand of white barbed wire 2mm wide placed centrally, this is bounded on either side by 4mm black bands representing the despair of the compound. These, in turn, are edged by two further white 2mm bands representative of the second and third fences of the compound, outside of these are 7mm bands of green, reminiscent of the fields of home and finally, both edges are comprised 2mm red bands symbolic of the burning faith of those who were interned. [Photograph] [Page break] FOREWORD: From the age of 14 1/2 years old – 1936 – I was employed by Clayton Dewandre Co. Ltd., of Lincoln. Initially my work included machine shop and fitting practices. During the latter part of 1938 I was accepted as a student apprentice and commenced work in the Research and Development Department as a student Technician. I attended evening college, on Monks Road, Lincoln, four nights each week studying for an ONC in Engineering. When war was declared in September 1939 I was concentrating on the development of a twin piston air compressor, to provide air pressure for a new tank being developed at the Ministry of Defence at Chobham. I was involved in other projects too; new air/oil coolers for the Spitfire and Hurricane, power assisted controls for the same aircraft, radiators/coolers for army vehicles and tanks and new braking systems for vehicles and gun limbers. In January 1941, having successfully completed my ONC Engineering Course, I decided that I would volunteer for the R.A.F. Because of my reserved occupation my only option was to try and be accepted for aircrew duties, which is what I wanted and would prevent Clayton Dewandre from blocking my acceptance. R.A.F.V.R. TRAINING I arrived at the RAF recruiting office in Saltergate, Lincoln, in February 1941. The necessary forms were completed, I was almost 19 years old at the time. Notification was received in March from the RAF to attend Cardington, Bedfordshire, for written, oral and medical examinations over a three-day period. These examinations did not prove difficult except for one oral question of “what route would I take if I flew from England to Turkey, without crossing belligerent countries?” My geography was never a strong point and I had to admit to the four officers of the board that I didn’t know. However, I was accepted into the RAFVR as a Pilot under training (U/T Pilot) and sworn in along with approx. 50% of those attending at the time. My RAF number was 1425752 and a silver lapel badge showing RAFVR letters, with an eagle, was issued to each person. The officer in charge of the intake of applicants explained that they had too many aspiring aircrew at the time, and because of the limited training facilities, we would now be on deferred service until notified. I returned to Clayton Dewandre and continued with development projects until call-up papers were received in August 1941. These instructed me to report to St. John’s Wood, London, adjacent to London Zoo! It was always known as A.C.R.C. (Air Crew Reception Centre). [Page break] [Photograph] AIRCREW RECEPTION CENTRE 12/7 FLIGHT – LONDON – AUGUST 11TH 1941 [Page break] We were billeted in large flats – six bunks to a room. I was “closeted” with five Scotsmen and for some days just couldn’t understand a word they were saying. What with shedding ones hair and other “foreign” phrases it was very difficult to communicate. However, they became very staunch friends during our initial training. During our three weeks at A.C.R.C. we were re-examined medically, given all the necessary injections, inoculations, blood tests, etc., including a smallpox vaccination. Many of the recruits suffered quite a lot of pain from this intensive treatment, particularly from the vaccination. I was fortunate since, having been treated as a child, my reaction was minimal. “Kitting out” was a major operation – large kit bag stuffed with spare boots, best blues, vest – airmen for the use of – underpants, numerous pairs of socks, four shirts with eight loose collars, two ties, two side caps, shoe cleaning brushes, button cleaning equipment, sewing wallet, gas masks and tin hat. We had to remove our civilian gear to the Wembley Warehouse and don our battledress equipment. Each side hat came complete with a detachable white flash which fitted around the front and was held in place by one of the turned-up peaks. This indicated that the wearer was aircrew under training. Whilst at the warehouse in Wembley we were instructed to pack our civilian attire and wrap it in brown paper, with the address clearly printed on the label provided. These were then dealt with by the RAF stores personnel. Whilst at the A.C.R.C. we were divided into Flights of approximately fifty recruits and were drilled, drilled and drilled – every day – to “lick us into shape”. Being a short person i.e. 5ft 6” I was always halfway down the flight rank. Those at the front and the rear were mainly ex-policemen. It meant that we shorties had to almost run to keep up with those in front and, to prevent those at the rear from treading on our heels. The corporal in charge eventually got the stride distance sorted out – R.A.F. Standard - which suited all concerned. 3 [Page break] STRATFORD ON AVON INTIAL TRAINING WING [Photograph] [Photograph] PROMOTION TO L.A.C. NOVEMBER 3RD 1941 [Postcard] [Page break] INITIAL TRAINING WING, STRATFORD-ON-AVON : AUGUST 1941 – NOVEMBER 1941 We were billeted in hotels commandeered by the MOD. I was in the Falcon Hotel – a very old building with sloping floors, small windows and creaking stairs and floorboards. Whilst at Stratford we had to do guard duty – two hours on – four off – from 6.0 pm to 6.0 am. During the winter months it was not very pleasant and the creaking/groaning of the swinging hotel signs were, initially, rather daunting particularly when coupled with the church clock chiming and listening for the officer and NCO of the guard watch coming round to try and catch us out. During our stay at Stratford we were taught Morse code both sending and receiving, including Aldis lamps, navigation and the Dead Reckon Type with Mercators charts, maths, aircraft recognition, theory of flight, aero engine design and, of course, drilling! Our working day commenced with reveille at 6.0am and breakfast at 7-7.30am and ended at 4.30pm (16.30 hours). Wednesday afternoon was for sport which I spent rowing on the Avon. I also had the opportunity of seeing a few shows at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre. We sat our exams at the end of October 1941 and I was promoted from AC2 (the lowest Non-commissioned rank to LAC – (Leading Aircraftsman) on the 3rd November 1941. This entailed sewing a cloth badge showing an aircraft propellor onto the sleeves of our uniforms. Pay also increased from two shillings and sixpence per day to five shillings per day. I was suddenly rich beyond my wildest dreams. FLYING TRAINING The way was now open to commence flying training. Prior to going home on my first leave, we were issued with an additional kit bag containing an inner and outer flying suit – special flying socks, flying boots, silk, wool and gauntlet gloves and flying helmet with goggles. Taking all this gear home was quite a problem, the total kit comprising one large kit bag, one flying kit bag, upper and lower pack, side pouches, gas mask and tin hat. One week after completing I.T. Wing training I was posted direct to RAF Watchfield, No. 3 E.F.T.S. The airfield was all grass and was mainly a beam approach training school flying Oxfords and Ansons. Supplementary to this was an Elementary Flying Training School with Tiger Moths and Biplanes made by DeHaviland [sic, and this was my destination. The weather that November was very cold and a few minutes in the air, with the open cockpit aircraft, froze our faces. The bulky fling suits were a necessity and the boots, lined with sheepskin, did manage to keep the circulation going in the feet. My fling instructor was Lt. Bembridge, a Battle of Britain Pilot. He was very anxious to show me the aerobatic qualities of the Tiger Moth. Often, after landing, my face would be ashen and I felt very sick but I was never actually air sick. The 4 [Page break] WATCHFIELD, NR SWINDON [Postcard] GYPSY 7 ENGINE – 200 H.P. MAXIMUM SPEED – 120 MPH NOVEMBER 21ST – DECEMBER 1ST Total hours flying 6 3/4 in which time I passed out Solo [Page break] aircraft was very good to fly being light and responsive to control changes. It was, however, quite difficult to land because of its lightness and we rookies often found ourselves trying to “put the wheels down” whilst we were still ten feet or more above ground level. This, with the subsequent bouncing, was known as “walking it in”. Undercarriage repairs were required every day, but on completing the required flying exercises – see pilot’s log book – and after 6 hrs 10mins dual instruction I was allowed to go solo. It was a tremendous feeling and quite frightening to know that I was on my own and a safe take off and landing was my responsibility. There were other RAF men on the ground watching my progress and biting their nails. I cannot remember exactly but I think I completed three take offs and landings during the 00.35 minutes solo. The time at No. 3 E.F.T.S. Watchfield was apparently an elimination period. Those who had gone solo, 8 hours allowed, were detained to go for further training to either Canada, America, South Africa, Rhodesia, or Australia on what was known as the Empire Air Training Scheme. Those cadets who needed a little extra flying training, but showed promise, were posted to other E.F.T.S. schools in the UK whilst the remainder had to re-muster as navigators, wireless operators or air gunners. The Empire Air Training Scheme was initiated because of enemy action and weather conditions severely limiting flying training courses in the UK therefore preventing the flow of trained aircrew, with operational service, at the rate required. Generally, the country providing the training paid for new airfields to be built and a large proportion of the training costs. This included the U.S.A. THE ARNOLD SCHEME – UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Following a brief period of leave from Watchfield in December 1941, I was instructed to report to Heaton Park, Manchester. The weather was atrocious with rain and fog. Approximately 3,000 cadets congregated at that venue and we had to “hang around” until our names and numbers were called when we went to a billeting clerk to be told who we were to stay with and the address. John Player and myself were given the same billet – a Mrs. Pimlett – the address escapes my memory. On arrival we were met by a middle-aged lady in best “bib and tucker”, complete with carnation. She welcomed us into her home, showed us our room and explained that she was going to a wedding. She then invited us to go to the evening reception and wrote down the address. After a bath and general “tidy up” and, with best blues donned, buttons shining and boots polished, John and I went to the address given. We were truly welcomed by the wedding party and enjoyed the evening with them, eventually returning home with Mrs. Pimlott. We learned that our landlady had an invalid husband and she financed their living by taking in sewing of pre-cut garments and of course now by providing a billet for such 5 [Page break] [Photograph] Mid-Atlantic on board the ‘Montcalm’ 12th January 1942 [Photograph] Our only company across the Atlantic the ‘Volendam’ [Photograph] Moncton Railway Station Canada [Page break] as John and I. The sewing side was almost slave labour and she had to work all day and well into the evening to obtain a meagre income. John and I departed Manchester for Glasgow on January 6th and embarked on the S.S. Montcalm. This ship had been an armed merchantman before being converted into a troop ship. A 4” naval gun was mounted at the stern and this ship was, we were told, of 13,000 ton capacity. We set sail on January 8th 1942 with a sister ship names Volendam which also had RAF cadets on board, and in convoy with other ships and destroyer escorts. After leaving Glasgow we called at Milford Haven and then nosed out into the Atlantic. The weather, after two days at sea, became very stormy and the ship pitched and rolled to an uncomfortable degree. Many men were sea sick and food was definitely out of order. John and I lived on arrowroot biscuits and lemonade for eight of the fourteen day voyage to Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada. During the very story crossing we were called upon to carry out various duties and mine was submarine watch! I couldn’t have recognised a periscope if I had seen one and in any event, the waves and ship movement were such that just staying upright was enough without looking for submarines. Although I had been allocated a hammock for sleeping purposes, I just could not get into one, and kept falling out the opposite side so swapped for a bunk – even though the ship’s movement was intensified by a fixed bunk. Because of the atrocious weather conditions our destroyer and convoy of ships disappeared after five days out into the Atlantic. The Volendrum went out of sight after a further two days sailing. Eleven days after leaving Glasgow the bad weather gradually abated and we started eating Navy food again on the mess deck, but it was necessary to hang on to the plates to prevent them sliding off the end of the table. After thirteen days at sea we were thrilled to see the bright lights of Moncton appear on the horizon. The first things I saw after docking were large stalks of bananas – my favourite fruit – which I had not seen since 1939/40. I bought a complete stalk and shared them with John – they were delicious. The temperature in Moncton was well below zero and a good covering of snow was evident. The cold could easily cause frost bite but it was a dry cold and providing that we were well covered, including ear flaps, a good walk would generate a pleasant glow. The barrack blocks were well above RAF standards as also was the food. We were at Moncton for only a few days whilst the “powers that be” allocated the 3,000 cadets from the Montcalm to the various training establishments in the U.S.A. and Canada. 6 [Page break] [Photograph] Canadian Prairies in January 1942 [Photograph] Albany, Georgia, USA Looking down Main Street – January 1942 [Photograph] Our barrack hut – No 5 – 9th Feb 1942 [Photograph] British Cadets marching back from Retreat Turner Field, Albany [Photograph] Right Our black waiters at Turner Field Albany, Georgia [Page break] Our train journey commenced late January – destination: Turner Field, Albany, Georgia, USA, and lasted for five days. We slept in bunks which hinged down from above the windows. The Canadian prairies and Northern States of the USA were thick with snow – see photographs. The train stopped for a short time at Grand Central Station, New York and also at the AMTRAC main station of Washington DC. We travelled south through Virginia, North and South Carolina and Georgia and the weather became warm and pleasant. TURNER FIELD, ALBANY, GEORGIA Our stay at Turner Field was only for approximately two weeks during which time we were introduced to the American Army Air Corp disciplines and daily routines. We were housed in two-storey barrack huts – see photographs – each room housed two cadets and the standard of comfort was very good. The base had its own band and this marched round the camp at 06.30 hours at Reveille, at which time we had to don our shorts and ‘T’ shirts for thirty minutes of P.E., always starting and finishing with press-ups. With this rigorous daily routine we quickly regained our fitness. Each cadet was weighed by a dietician and allocated a “weight” table in the dining room and, by that means, the calorie intake was controlled. I was on an underweight table, weighing in at just eight stone. This table had lots of rich foods and unlimited bottles of milk. Needless to say, my weight remained the same but I did justice to the food! During our visits to the dining room we were instructed that we must only sit on the first two inches of the chair. Why this stupid rule existed I do not know, also our backs had to be upright at all times, i.e. sat to attention. At 18.00 hours we were marched to the parade ground for the last post and lowering the Stars and Stripes, at which time we had to sing the American National Anthem. CARLSTROM FIELD, ARCARDIA, FLORIDA Our stay at Turner Field ended with the transfer of John Player, Stan Gage and myself, along with approximately thirty American and British Cadets, in total, to Carlstrom Field, Arcadia, Florida. Arcadia was only a few miles from Sarasota and Fort Myers. Miami was approximately 200 miles further south. Carlstrom Field had been a civilian pilot training base operated by Sembery Riddle Co. All staff were civilians except those responsible for discipline and routine flying checks. The civilians were taught on Piper Cubs whereas service personnel were trained on the American Military Primary Trainer, the Boeing PT.17 Stearman. This aircraft, although a biplane, could not be compared with the Tiger Moth. It was much heavier, more powerful, had a Wright Cyclone radial engine and, to our horror, had wheel brakes, the control of these brakes were by treadles attached to the rudder bars. This resulted in numerous ground loops with Cadets landing the aircraft in a tense condition and, inadvertently pressing down on one or more of the rudder bar brake treadles. Consequently, the maintenance staff were kept very busy repairing damaged wings. 7 [Page break] [Picture] [Page break] ILLUSTRATIONS FROM THE CADET’S HANDBOOK LATERAL CONTROL Ailerons – The ailerons, which are the surfaces used for lateral control of the airplane (wing down or up) are situated on the outer, trailing edge of the wing and are used for rolling the airplane …. [Pictures] LONGITUDINAL CONTROL The Elevators – are horizontal, movable control surfaces located, on conventional aircraft, on the tail group, controlled by forward or back pressure on the stick and are used for obtaining longitudinal control (up and down). [Pictures] NB: Handbook still complete and in good condition [Page break] FRONT COVER FROM CADET’S HANDBOOK [Picture] [Picture] CARLSTROM FIELD – 1941 Compared with the photo to the left, Carlstrom Field – 1941, as pictured above, may with all conservatism, be termed the ideal training ground for fledgling pilots. Constructed at a cost of over a million dollars, the new Carlstrom Field facilities offer the utmost in providing for the student pilot’s health of mind and body. Moreover, every piece of flight equipment is the finest available, insuring insofar as is humanly possible, the student’s rapid advancement as a steady, dependable pilot. The instructors at RAI have been chosen with extreme care and trained at RAI’s Instructors’ Courses to the end that you may be taught to fly by an aviator who is one of the best in the game. It is a matter of tradition and record, substantiated by the rosters of Military and Commercial aviation, that pilots trained at Carlstrom Field have gone forth as some of the most capable in aviation’s history. [Page break] My instructor was a Mr. R.L. Priest, a very patient man. We were all issued with a book which gave a detailed account of how to carry out various manoeuvres including aerobatics. I was allowed to fly solo on the 24th March 1942 – see Certificate in Cadets Handbook – after being checked by Mr. Jane. Further checks were made at 20, 40 and 60 hours, and if satisfactory the specified stages of the Primary Training were complete. During our stay at Arcadia we were allowed off base – “open post” from 4.0pm Saturday until 10.0pm Sunday. After exploring Arcadia – only one day necessary – we ventured further afield to Sarasota and Fort Myers. Before being able to hire a car we had to obtain a licence from the local Sheriff which meant driving him round the block. Eight of us shared one car. Those who had driven before and held British Licences went first and those, such as myself, hung back. However, after five cadets had taken the Sheriff round he said “Okay boys, let’s give you your licences”, so we all qualified. John Player, Stan and I generally went into either Sarasota or Fort Myers during “Open Post” staying at the cheapest guest house we could find. Our pay was only five shillings, plus two shillings and six pence flying pay, plus six pence colonial allowance per day, i.e. eight shillings per day. The rate of exchange was 4.50 dollars to the pound. The American cadet pay was 10 dollars per day. We met many good and generous hosts during our breaks from camp but we were amazed by the number of people (males) who wore Stetson and spurred boots, without a horse in sight! Sarasota had a very large caravan trailer area, mainly used by Americans going south to escape the winter snows and cold weather in the north. The weather generally was very pleasant during our stay at Carlstrom but the extreme humidity made life rather uncomfortable and it was common practice to shower at least once during the night. During our training, one of the flying exercises was pylon eighties which taught the cadet to allow for wind drift. This meant selecting a field and flying the aircraft with the wing tip held on one of the intersections, then flying diagonally across the field so the wing tip again intersected with the opposite corner of the rectangular field. I am certain that almost all cadets were guilty of taking empty Coca Cola bottles up on this exercise and, choosing a field with cows, we would drop one after another of these bottles causing almost a stampede. The bottles gave a loud whistle during their descent. Many farmers waved their fists and tried to get our aircraft number on these occasions. It was during my stay at Carlstrom that I heard the black staff – generally dining room and similar duties – join together after evening meal and last post, singing blues songs. They were very impressive and this practice among them was experienced by me at all of the other bases to which I was posted. 8 [Page break] [Photograph] The first batch of mail from home Carlstrom Field, Florida [Photograph] Taken in the air, showing P.T. 17 flying above another aircraft – Carlstrom Field. [Photograph] Indian Children of Seminole Tribe, The Everglades, Florida [Photograph] Eric (left) & John – relaxing in Florida [Photograph] Home of the Stewart Family [Photograph] Dexter Ave. Montgomery (Pop’s Car) [Photograph] Cameron Stewart at The Lake [Page break] Four day’s leave was granted at the end of our Primary Training. John and I decided to try and hitch to Miami. Our first lift, given by an insurance collector, took us a good 150 miles to Fort Lauderdale, calling in the Everglades at Indian settlements for their premiums. We met and spoke to the Seminole Tribe families and were permitted to take photographs of their children. A second lift took us into Miami where we checked in at a hotel. We didn’t expect to arrive in Miami on the same day as we left Arcadia. During an evening meal we were approached by a middle-aged man from another table who enquired who we were and what we were doing in the USA. He asked us where we were staying and promptly said he would ring and cancel out room because we could stay in his hotel without any payment and this included all meals. He introduced us to his wife and friends and told us that he had emigrated to America after World War I and was from Sheffield. It was our good fortune to have been in the right place at the right time! GUNTER FIELD, MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA We returned to Arcadia after our leave to be posted to Gunter Field, Montgomery, Alabama for our Basic Flying Training. Gunter Field was approximately six miles from Montgomery – the capital of Alabama and between the two was Kilby prison. During our first few weeks at the base it was noted that the electric lights dipped intermittently on quite a regular basis. We later learned that it was caused by the Electric Chair at the prison – very disconcerting to know that a prisoner was being executed when the voltage dropped. Our aircraft for basic training was the BT.13 monoplane with fixed undercarriage. The exercises taught were virtually identical to those covered during Primary Training, except that we were not allowed to carry out snap rolls as they tended to twist the plane and fuselage. See Pilot’s log book for details of flying exercises. This part of our training concentrated more on instrument flying and cross-country daylight and night exercises. My instructor was an ex-British Cadet from an earlier course, P/Officer Rogers. He was a good instructor and I enjoyed flying with him. Formation flying – three aircraft in ‘V’ formation could be somewhat traumatic at times, wing tips had to be placed and maintained between the wing and tail plane of the lead aircraft and not more than one wing length at the side. With air turbulence, particularly during afternoon flying, it was very dodgy. We also had to carry out low-level formation flying, as low as fifty feet. On one occasion, when flying along the Goosa River, the instructor in the lead aircraft was so low that water spray splattered us in the wing planes and a man who was fishing was so startled as we swept up the river, that he jumped in. Landing in formation was also very precarious. The lead aircraft pilot signalled by hand how many rotations of the main flap he was applying – we had to apply a higher number of rotations to ensure that we didn’t over-shoot him. On one occasion, I was rapidly rotating the flap handle when it came off its spindle. I had to make a rapid break from the formation. On another occasion an oil pipe in the engine nacelle fractured, spraying the windscreen and blocking all forward vision. Again it was a 9 [Page break] [Photograph] [Page break] case of breaking formation and a hasty return to base, landing with only side vision! See large photographs of BT.13 – I am flying the nearest aircraft) My Basic Training concluded on the 2nd July 1942. Durin my stay at Gunter Field, the first anniversary of Pearl Harbour was “celebrated”. The three American services decided to hold a parade in all major cities. The British contingent at Gunter were instructed by the O.C. RAF to take part. A Union Jack Flag was obtained and had to be paraded and escorted at the side of the Stars and Stripes. The first time they brought the British Flag onto the parade ground it was upside down. We were all issued with rifles – many months since we had carried out rifle drill, and even though it was July, with temperatures in the 90 degree F. region, we had to wear RAF Blue uniform. When we took these out of our kit bags the buttons were green and it took quite some time to bring them to parade ground condition. Following the march through Montgomery, John and I made for the ice warehouse where we could buy a water melon to quench our thirst. It was at this point that an American youth came to us and suggested we should return home with him for lime drinks. He said his parents were across the road and they would drive us home. The youth was Cameron Stewart and his parents, Vannie and Pop. John and I went to the Stewart’s house and into the country on the Goosa river, almost every open post after that day. Very often Pop would pick us up to save us getting the bus into Montgomery. At that time Pop was co-owner of a gents outfitter’s shop. Their house was typical of those in the Southern States with Clapboard outer skin and very much like a plasterboard inner lining. All rooms were air conditioned and the freezer size, huge. All windows and door frames were wire netted to keep out the flies and mosquitoes. The American hospitality was really rather marvellous, lines of cars would be parked outside the base on “open Post” and cadets were picked up at random and entertained by families for the weekend. Pop and Vannie’s hospitality continued when John and I were posted for Advanced Training to Craig Field, Selma, Alabama – a round trip of 100 miles from Montgomery – which Pop drove every weekend to pick us up. This was the final stage to our graduation and the Advanced Trainer was the AT.6 Harvard, a high performance aircraft within the 200 mph bracket. My instructor on this aircraft was P/O Percival and he allowed me to go solo after 2hrs.35 mins dual instruction. My stay at Craig Field was very short. During circuits and landings at an auxiliary airfield I was involved in an accident with another aircraft on the landing strip. The other aircraft was occupied by an American instructor who had disregarded all the ground rules for taxi-ing after landing and had decided to taxi to the take off point along the same route on which he had landed. I had chosen this line of approach to land and as the aircraft had already covered most of the landing length when I approached I did not see him reverse his tracks before I touched down. With a rear wheel it is not possible to see ahead after landing, until zigzagging when taxi-ing. Both aircraft collided. Although there was a control aircraft on the airfield my instructor advised me that I wouldn’t receive any support from the American controller as he was a good friend of 10 [Page break] EXTRACT FROM PILOT’S FLYING LOG BOOK [Photograph] [Page break] [Photograph] Telegram from mum on my 20th birthday – 10th March 1942 Also received telegrams from Jessie Brown, sister Dora Dickerson and sister Ethel Dixon (all telegrams still preserved in their original envelopes) [Photograph] PICTON, ONTARIO, CANADA 1942 [Photograph] Approaching Canada’s Horseshoe Falls [Page break] [Photograph] [Page break] the instructor. Three American Officers checked my ability to fly the aircraft and at no time was my flying criticised. However, there had to be a scapegoat and that was me. REMUSTERING – CANADA On leaving Criag Field I was sent to Ottawa, Canada to appear before a board of officers who controlled the training of RAF cadets both in the USA and Canada. During my interview we discussed the events of my accident and I was asked what I thought my next stage of training should be. I requested that I be considered for posting to an advanced flying school in Canada to complete my pilot training, having now achieved 130 hours in American aircraft. I was instructed to report to a Group Captain on the board the following day for their decision. On attending this appointment I was told that they would agree to my request but I must also give written agreement that I would convert to twin-engine aircraft and stay in Canada for at least one year as an instructor. After much thought I declined their offer and opted to be retrained as a Navigator/Bomb Aimer at a school in Picton, Ontario. As my navigational training had already been concluded in America it was only a matter of a few night cross-country exercises to complete this part of my course, plus the written exams. The bombing and gunnery aspects were completely new, including theory and practice. I graduated at the end of November 1942 and during my stay at Picton I had the opportunity of flying over and photographing the Niagara Falls. I was also able to make two visits to the Falls. Other places visited were Hamilton and Toronto, the latter was visited on a number of occasions. It was at Picton that I met up again with Carl Hurlington and Jimmy Milichip both of whom had been sent back for retraining from pilot courses in Canada. Carl and I stayed together up to squadron allocation in North Africa. RETURN TO THE U.K. We embarked at New York, along with 30,000 other servicemen, on the Queen Elizabeth I – two weeks before Christmas 1942. The journey to Greenock (Glasgow) took four days and there were no escorts as it was considered that the ship could out-run the ‘U’ boats. Only one cooked meal was served each day and every individual was given a ticket which showed which mess and meal time, which was part of the 24 hour serving. Supplementary food could be purchased from the various shops on board [sic] It was an uneventful journey and quite the opposite to the out-going one. On arrival in Glasgow we were held for three days on board before it was our turn to be ferried ashore, after which we entrained for the RAF centre at Harrogate. 11 [Page break] [Newspaper cutting] Last week saw the departure of another contingent of British Pilot Officers, lads who had, many of them, passed through stages of their training at Maxwell and Gunter Fields, at Selma’s Craig and Dothan’s Napier, and have since been stationed as instructors at various points in the Southeast. Many of these chaps will remember Montgomery as the site of their “getting acquainted” with America, and many of them have formed ties with our town which will endure long after this present war is history. When, some twenty months ago, Montgomery was invaded by the British, our capitulation was prompt. We fell before their onslaught like a Sicilian village before our own advancing troops. Into hundreds of Montgomery homes these cadets of the RAF were invited, perhaps a little doubtfully, but most of them quickly established themselves as wholesome lads, a little different in surface mannerisms and speech, but actually very like American boys, and very happy to find a friendly welcome in a strange land. What began as a gesture of Montgomery’s hospitality developed, often, into fast friendships, and many Montgomery homes became “home from home” for youths from Yorkshire and Wales, Londoners and Scottish lads. RAF blue was a common sight on Montgomery’s streets. And, as the training program progressed, RAF men who had trained here began to take part in the raids over France and Germany and in other theatres of war. Montgomery is represented on these RAF sweeps over enemy territory just as it is represented in the actions of our Flying Fortresses. Now the sight of an RAF uniform has become a rarity. With the exception of those who sleep on the hill above Montgomery, the RAF trainees have taken their wings and gone to the combat areas. They write back to Montgomery as if writing home, and Montgomery has a warm place in their hearts. Almost without exception they want to return in happier times to revisit this heart of the deep south. “I know you’re glad to be going home’ someone remarked to a departing officer The officer hesitated. “Well yes, of course But I shall be back…definitely” Written by ‘Pop’ Stewart for the Montgomery Advertiser [Photograph] Receipt for diamond engagement ring [Photograph] Jessie Brown 1942 Below: Sister Eva outside No. 4 William Street, Lincoln [Photograph] [Page break] I was eventually interviewed by Leslie Ames the cricketer, who decided that because of the extent of my pilot training I should be a better asset to the RAF by being posted to a Wellington Operational Training Unit acting as Bomb Aimer, second pilot and supplementary navigator. I wasn’t sure how I could cope with it all but I agreed to his suggestion. – The following day I was given Christmas leave. At this point in my memoirs I must introduce Jessie Brown. I met Jessie during the brief time that she worked at Clayton Dewandre and we began to go out together between my attendance at evening college and also at weekends. This was the period between my acceptance for the RAFVR and actually reporting for training. Before leaving Lincoln we agreed that if either of us met someone else we were quite free to go out with them. However, both Jessie and I corresponded on a regular basis during my stay in this country and also during my time in America and Canada. Also we spent my leaves together. When I returned from Canada we decided that our relationship was very special to us, even though we had not known or been together very long. It was during my Christmas leave that we decided to become engaged. We went to Gravesend to see my sister Eva who was in the ATS and was stationed there. She was a telephonist on a Heavy Ack, Ack Gun Site but managed a short spell off duty so we went for a meal together and shared all our news. We travelled back to London and stayed in a rather cold and drab hotel off Regent Street for the night and went to a jewellers called Hinds to buy an engagement ring. Jessie chose a white gold ring with five diamonds. The assistant in the shop gave her a diary and this diary and the receipt for the ring are together in our memorabilia. At the same time, whilst on leave, we decided that if I was again posted abroad we would marry before I left. Imagine my surprise when on arrival at Moreton-in-Marsh O.T. Unit we were told that, on completion of our training we would be posted to 205 Group British North Africa Forces. This news meant very hurried preparation for our wedding to take place at the end of March beginning of April. With the very limited facilities available and rationing of food, clothes, etc., the planning of such an event was very difficult and celebrations had to be extremely limited. The flying weather conditions during the first three months of 1943 were atrocious and our wedding date had to be postponed on two occasions but everyone was very understanding about these changes of plan. However, it did make life rather difficult for Jessie and others trying to make final arrangements. The first and most important stage of OTU training was to “crew up” with other members of aircrew who it was thought could work as a team. I was a member of a crew made up of Pilot – Cyril Pearce – also a 42H class member in the USA but at different air bases – Jock Taylor (Scottish) navigator – Jock had joined straight from college and was the youngest crew member; Jack Morvel – WOP/AG and hailed from Bury – said he dyed to live but now lived to die – very encouraging and jovial character; Ted Peters – London – rear gunner.. [sic] Ted was a bit of a loner but we always encouraged him to join us in our out-of-base activities, mainly in Moreton, which at that time was just packed with airmen. Our crew was all NCO, and we knitted together very well. Most of our training was night flying on long cross-country exercises – Bulls Eyes – going from cities in England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland, carrying out various laid down routines such as infra-red simulated bombing of docks, 12 [Page break] [Photograph] 19th April 1943 – St. Swithin’s Church, Lincoln Carl Harlington, Enid Scott, Eric Scott, Jessie Brown, Eva Scott, James Brown [Picture] [Page break] factories etc., which would record on camera for accuracy. On some occasions the cloud base was so thick and low that we never saw the ground from take off to landing and all navigation was done by dead reckoning and Astro-shots. Our accuracy in locating “targets” and turning points were very hit and miss, hence the postponement in completing our training. Some crews were lost during this period, either crashing in the Welsh or Scottish mountains or from the mechanical failure of the aircraft. It was also during this final part of our training we had to “stand to” for participating in a 1,000 bomber raid on Germany. I never found out the intended target because it was cancelled prior to briefing. Our training completed – not without a few hair-raising experiences, we eventually went home on “embarkation” leave. Jessie and I were married at St. Swithins Church on 19th April 1943 and our reception was in the ‘Gym’ room of the Rose and Crown Inn at the junction of William and Dale Street, Lincoln. We really appreciated the number of local people who helped us and we didn’t seem to miss out on anything with regard to food. Carl Harlington, who was also at Moreton and who hailed from Thorne, Nr. Doncaster, was my best man, but he was the only RAF person present, though one or two others were invited. Jessie and I spent our wedding night at my sister Mary’s house in St. Hughe’s Street, Lincoln and the following day we travelled by train to Stratford upon Avon where we stayed in a B & B which we found on arrival – address : Sheep Street. After three days we returned to Lincoln as my leave was completed. On my return to OTU I found that Cyril Pearce had also married during his leave, to a WAAF – Doreen – who was stationed at Gloucester. They married on the Saturday and we on the Monday. Our final stage at Moreton was to “pick up” a new Wellington aircraft from a dispersal airfield near Gloucester and fly it on a number of exercises to ensure that everything functioned satisfactorily before taking it out to North Africa. As this exercise usually absorbed three weeks of our time, Cyril and I arranged for Doreen and Jessie to join us at Moreton for a week, I.e. the last week prior to departure. We stayed at the “Wylwyn Café” which also let rooms. One of the events which stays in my mind was our visit to the circus at Moreton. We all went along including Jock Prentice – another pilot who had also been married during his leave and whose wife had joined him at Moreton. The circus acts were extremely poor but what topped the lot was the smell – particularly when they let the lions into the “arena”. One can imagine the shouts and comments which ensued from a few hundred airmen! We learned during this last week at Moreton that Doreen was AWOL from Gloucester, so Jessie and Jock’s wife loaned her civilian clothes to wear to hide the fact that she was a service woman, bearing in mind that the Service Police were well represented at Moreton and the surrounding area. The final day arrived when we had to say goodbye to our wives and walk to the airfield knowing that we would be flying that day, 27th May 1943 on the first leg of our journey to North Africa – which was from Moreton to Portreath in Cornwall. 13 [Page break] OPERATIONAL TRAINING UNIT MORETON-IN-MARSH [Picture] [Picture] [Page break] We stayed overnight at Portreath and on 28th May at 6.30am took off and set a course to go around the tip of France, across the Bay of Biscay, momentarily seeing the coast of Portugal and Spain and crossed the Moroccan coast at Casablanca. We then corrected course for our overnight destination at Ras-el-ma. On landing, at approximately 3.30pm British time, i.e. a nine hour flight, we were relieved to open the hatch and climb out. The air temperature suddenly hit us as we stepped onto the ground and we were surrounded by black people (local) in strange uniforms and cloaks and even stranger rifles and other firearms. This was the guard for our aircraft. RAF Ground Personnel took us to report in, and then to the “canteen” (tent) for our meal before going to our billet to make our bed for the night. During the late afternoon, Cyril and I changed the engine coolers to the tropical type as instructed at Moreton. We took our tropical khaki uniforms, with the “long shorts” as issued and our Blue kit had also been changed to khaki to “merge” with the desert sand. On 29th we set course for Blida near Algeria which was the Headquarters of 205 Group. This took us across the Atlas mountain range which was a truly magnificent sight. This flight was only of four hours duration. My only significant memory at Ras-el-ma was when we started the engines to fly to Blida. It was my job to prime the engines and then give Cyril the “thumbs-up” to crank them and, if they didn’t fire straight away I gave another pump on the primer which was at the Nacelle. Normally three pumps were required to get the engine – a Hercules Radical – to fire. No-one told us that in warmer climates two pumps were adequate and consequently flames poured out of the exhaust and burned my hair, eyebrows and singed my eyelashes. The smell was terrible but luckily I was not injured in any way. The second engine was started with two pumps and yours truly stood well back. On landing at Blida we were told that we would be staying there the following day. This station’s billets were ex-Foreign Legion and the beds were curved upwards towards the centre from top to bottom. Here we encountered for the first time the French Loo!! We never thought we would manage to cope with it but practice makes perfect! We went into Algeria the next day and saw oranges growing on the trees in the streets, experienced our first Arab Souk and the way of “hard bargaining” before purchasing anything. We had received some pay in Francs before going into town but, apart from buying “lunch” and coffee I can’t recall paying for anything else. On 31st May we once again took off and set course for Kairouan, Tunisia. It was a three hour flight and we landed at 3.0 pm, having had to circle for thirty minutes because of exploding oil drums at the “airfield” which had been “touched-off” by the heat of the sun. Kairouan was a number of white buildings just a mile or so from the airfield. This airfield had previously been a cornfield and the stubble was very much still in evidence. Steel, interlocking tracking – made in USA – had been laid on top of the stubble to form the runway and of course it became very hot and was the main cause 14 [Page break] [Photograph] [Page break] of tyre bursts, of which there were many. The accommodation was all tented as was the various messes, because the squadrons were a mobile unit. The two Wellington Squadrons – 142 and 150 which had been sent from Waltham, Lincolnshire had been giving tactical night bombing support to the 1st Army which had landed at Bone. The “Desert” Wellington Squadrons who were now also based around were 104, 40, 37 and 70 and further support was provided by a squadron of Liberators, South African manned, and one of Halifax’s. These night bomber squadrons formed 205 Group and could produce between 80 and 100 aircraft for a night’s operation. FIRST OPERATIONAL TOUR – 142 SQUADRON I flew my first operation with Sergeant Cox, his B/A was sick. He had completed two thirds of his tour and Jock Taylor and I shared his tent. The target was a small island occupied by the Italians and from which they could attack our shipping. It was only lightly defended from air attacks and it was an “easy” target. This operation was one June 9th and the island, Pantelaria. (see log book). We didn’t fly again until the 19th June when we flew as a complete crew – the target was Messina. This target was just the opposite to my first trip and we learned very quickly how to shorten the bombing run to a minimum and weave to avoid the AA shells which, on all major targets, proved to be very accurate. Sergeant Cox and his crew failed to return on this trip, which came as quite a shock to Jock and myself, reminding us that we were very vulnerable. We continued to attack targets in Sicily and the area in Italy near to Sicily, in readiness for the invasion which took place on the night of July 9th when we were told to stay over our targets for at least thirty minutes dropping one bomb at a time and attracting the searchlights which we must then machine gun. Jack Morvel went into the front turret for this time over the target, which for us was Syracuse. Major targets such as Naples, Leghorn, Salerno, Pisa and all the airfields, were heavily defended by both AA guns and fighter cover. We had a few close shaves and there were a number of occasions when the AA shells exploded and splattered our aircraft and the cordite passed through the fuselage. On one particular trip over Naples when we become coned in the searchlights, Cyril had to throw the aircraft around to try and escape because the gun-fire was uncomfortably close. Jack Morvel was hanging onto flares in the tricel shute ready to release them when I warned him what was going to happen. The sudden, almost vertical bank that Cyril made caused Jack to lose balance and he fell into the side of the Elsan toilet which promptly broke loose and emptied its contents all over him. He wasn’t ‘flavour of the month’ for days after and had to replace his uniform battle dress. We did however manage to locate and bomb the target and return home – but had to make a second bombing run. Our first tour was completed – thirty eight operations – by a visit to the Civitavecchia marshalling yards on October 3rd 1943, i.e. June 9th had started a four month period. During that time I wrote and received many letters from home and received parcels with a variety of contents. We were entertained by professional artists on make-shift stages in the open air – names such as Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour, Charlie Chester and others. Members of the War Cabinet made visits to the Group 15 [Page break] 142 SQUADRON, NORTH AFRICA – JUNE 1943 [Photograph] From left to right : Ted Peters, Eric Scott, Jack Morval, Jock Taylor, Cyril Pearce [Photograph] from left: Ted Peters and J Prentice with two crew who were killed over Naples July 1943 Our camp near Kairouan, Tunisia [Photograph] [Page break] and told us what was and was not happening and why. We complained about the rations – mainly melted bully beef and biscuits, and the cigarettes that were issued. They changed the cigarette packets from ‘V’ to Woodbines, the contents remained the same, terrible. Fortunately we could purchase various other true brands from the Sergeant’s Mess. We made several visits to Sousse, Hammamet and other smaller coastal places for a dip in the Mediterranean. The lovely white walled city of Koirouan was a myth, it smelled to ‘high heaven’ and we couldn’t go to the Souk unless there were five or six of us together. The Arabs were definitely objectionable, probably because we were very tight in our bargaining at “tent level”. They did however win the “top award” when they took a tent whilst five men were asleep inside!! It was quite a shock to the occupants when they awoke. Water allowances were very limited. The daily ration for a tent of five was a five gallon drum. This had to be for washing ourselves, our clothes and for drinking. The drinking water was kept in a hole just outside the tent, using a brown pot jug which kept the water at an acceptable temperature. The air temperatures were very high during the day but were pleasantly cool at night after sunset. It was not possible to touch metal exposed to the sun after 10.0am and it was common practice to fry an egg on a metal plate in the sun. Our wash basin was an upturned tin hat with the inside removed and fitted into the tail fin of a bomb. Other improvisations such as making a comfortable bed frame and raising it from the ground away from dung beetles, scorpions, etc. were introduced within days of arrival or were “bought” with cigs, chocolate, etc., from crews who had completed their tour and were leaving. Flies were a big nuisance, settling on food and spreading disease. Gyppy Tummy and Dysentery were experienced by virtually everyone and ‘having the runs’ was no fun at all. Jock Taylor went down with yellow jaundice and was in the hospital tent for at least a week. He perspired considerably and every day his shirts were encrusted with salt from the body. His feet were also very odorous – but he did consent to leave his socks off during non-flying hours! We had to be very careful not to get sunburn as this was a chargeable offence if it prevented anyone from flying. Our posting to Tunis arrived and we were to stay at the transit camp for further instructions, presumably to await either air or sea transport to the U.K. During our stay in Tunis we met ‘Poni’ (the only name we knew him by). He was Maltese and his mother and sister, together with himself and his horses escaped from Malta because of the siege and came to Tunis where he continued to earn his living as a jockey, with his horses pulling a ‘cart’ on two wheels around the local race tracks. They appeared to be a wealthy family and he took us around Tunis for dinners in local hotels and objected then we insisted on paying for an occasional meal. 16 [Page break] PALESTINE – MAY 1944 [Photograph] Y.M.C.E. Building – Jerusalem Right: The British War Cemetery [Photograph] [Photograph] ‘Mount of Olives’ [Photograph] ‘Garden of Gethsemane’ [Page break] We also visited Carthage, the construction of which astounded us, with the running water and drainage system. This ancient city is a must to visit for anyone travelling in the area. We had a severe shock when our posting came through. Only Jock Taylor was returning to the UK because of his jaundice, the rest of us were to fly to Cairo by Dakota, have leave and then proceed to Palestine where a new Operational Training Unit was being opened to instruct RAF personnel coming through from Rhodesia, South Africa and other Empire Training countries, prior to joining 205 Group. We flew from Tunis across the Sahara Desert, visiting Tobruk on the way and landed at Cairo airport. We were taken to Heliopolis, a large transit camp about five miles out of Cairo and were incarcerated there for three weeks. Cairo was visited almost daily. We had lots of back pay to draw upon and we visited a number of shows and night clubs. Jack Morvel blotted our copy book on one occasion when a troop of dancers were caterpillering off stage and he promptly dashed onto the stage and joined the end of the line. We had to leave but we had seen the show at half price. The Arabs in Cairo had to be watched very closely. They would steal anything, even the wealthy merchants from the Souk area couldn’t be trusted. Eventually we left Cairo by a train which had wooden lattice seats, for two days of journeying to Tel-Aviv. Our bums were numb by the time we arrived! Upholstered seating was out because of the bugs which abounded in the Middle East and all bed legs had to the placed in tins partially filled with paraffin to prevent the bugs getting into bed with you! Our destination from Tel-Aviv was 77 OTU Qastina. The station was only partially complete when we arrives and we were the first “instructors” to enter the station. The Sergeant’s Mess had not been completed at that stage and our aircraft had not arrived. We spent Christmas 1943 on the Station. The accommodation was brick built blocks with three persons to a room. We had good beds, good showers new ‘mossie’ nets and plenty of storage room. The temperatures were quite moderate and we had to wear our Blues during the early part of the year. Most of the construction work was being done by Arabs with RAF supervision. They would only work when they needed money and would arrive on their donkey, hobble the two front legs and report for duty – all very slowly. Occasionally we would unhobble a donkey, slap it on the rump and then at the end of the day watch the face of the owner then he found it was missing. They always dramatised everything that happened to them. The airfield had been built on a small plain which was also the grazing area for local village animals. This resulted in considerable difficulties controlling aircraft movements because the Arabs would drive their sheep, camels, etc., across the airfield and runways at random. We tried to discourage them by rounding up their animals, 17 [Page break] BETHLEHEM A Judean Home [Photograph] Mother of Pearl Workers [Photograph] TEL-AVIV Boulevard Rothschild [Photograph] Habimah Theatre [Photograph] HAIFA The Road to Mount Carmel [Photograph] Technicum [Photograph] [Page break] putting them into a compound and then insisting that they pay a ‘fine’ to get them back. The local Mokta (Mayor) visited us frequently and we prevailed upon him to stop the villagers from crossing the airfield. The climax came when a Defiant hit a camel which was crossing the runway. Unfortunately the aircraft was a write-off and we didn’t think much of the camel steaks either! Eventually we were able to educate the Arabs to keep off the runways and, if they needed to cross, to wait for a green Aldis from the control tower. The Arab women could carry very heavy weights on their heads and this was demonstrated when two of them dropped bales of compressed straw onto the runway – we had to use the 15 cwt Chevrolet to drag them clear. Whilst in Palestine we took the opportunity to visit the sights mentioned in the Bible. Jerusalem, Gol-Gotha, Haifa, Sea of Galilee, Bethlehem. The Jewish people were not kindly disposed to us. It was the period when ships with European immigrants were being turned away and would-be leaders were conducting terrorist activities. It was necessary to always be on the alert against attack. Our main entertainment was either visiting Tel-Aviv for the day, being invited to the Polish Armoured Division near Ramalah, or having a dance in the Sergeant’s mess. The ATS and WAAFs were brought in by truck for these occasions. When a course of ‘pupils’ passed out, one per month, they would invite their instructors to join them in the mess to celebrate the occasion. Many did ‘pass out’ but it was quite an event each month and I never needed rocking off to sleep on such nights. The only other significant occasion I remember was P/O Izzard who was being taught to fly on one engine. I was also in the aircraft instructing a bomb-aimer. The screen pilot asked his ‘pupil’ to unfeather the port engine and return to normal power but unfortunately he feathered the starboard engine. We were too low to recover any power and the screen pilot had to crash land the Wellington in open country. Luckily no-one was injured but the aircraft was written off. A week later I went for the weekend to The King David Hotel, Jerusalem. When I woke up the next morning my hair from ear to ear was on the pillow. I thought that someone had played a prank on me but soon discovered that my hair was still falling out. On my return to Qastina I reported to the M.O. who sent me to Tel-Aviv hospital. The Specialist went into raptures because he had not previously seen such a perfectly defined Alopecia profile of hair loss – just in line with the medical book. He brought into his consulting room both junior doctors and nurses but my question was what could he do about it and how quickly would it grow. The response was quite negative, I was told it would re-grow but over a period of months. The cause – delayed shock from the crash landing. During the early part of my stay at Qastina I was sent to Ballah, down the Red Sea, on a Bombing Leaders and Instructor’s course. We worked fourteen hours every day either in the classroom or flying. We had to cram a three month course into two weeks. Immediately on arrival we were given a smallpox vaccination, apparently it 18 [Page break] [Picture] [Page break] had broken out in the area. Fortunately for me it didn’t take. They tried three times but then gave me an exemption certification. The course was very enlightening – our tutor being a Squadron Leader and ex Oxford University Professor. I came second in the course with a 96% pass, beaten by a New Zealand Maori with 98% - a man with considerable retentive abilities. I continued to teach at 77 O.T. Unit, Qastina, until the end of June 1944 when I agreed to team up with Brian Jeffares a NZ pilot to return for a second tour of operations, based at Foggia, Italy. My other recollections during the stay in Palestine were the frogs and toads. Thousands of them came out after dark and made such a fearful noise when we walked across the grass verges and tarmac roads they just squelched under our shoes. The other was the cheapness of fruit. We had a plywood tea chest, normal size, which we would half fill on a bi-weekly basis. This would cost around five shillings. Huge grapefruit was stacked at the side of the roads, like sugar beet, and left to rot because of the lack of transportation to send them to other countries. Jack Morval and I were, on one occasion, invited out to a meal with an Arab family by a Palestinian Policeman. Quite an experience. We sat on mats around a large dish full of mutton portions, including eyes, of which everyone present had to eat at least one. This was not pleasant but I did manage to swallow one with my own eyes closed! The Arab family were upper-class and very good hosts and could speak quite good English. I was under the impression that the Palestinian Policeman dined with them on a regular basis. 19 [Page break] 205 GROU – FOGGIA, ITALY 1944 [Photograph] Our Crew see dots:: Brian Jeffries (NZ) Jack (Canada) Snowy Ayton (NZ) Eric Scott (UK) Jack Nichols (UK) [Page break] SECOND TOUR OF OPERATION – 205 GROUP Our Crew: P/O Brian Jeffares New Zealand Pilot W/O Snowy Ayton New Zealand Rear Gunner F/Sgt Jock Nicholls Scotland W/O Air gunner F/O Jack Canada Navigator F/Sgt Eric Scott England Bomb/Aimer We left as passengers in a Dakota bound for Capodichino airfield, Naples, on 23rd July 1944. Our first touch down for refuelling was Benghazi, then further stops at Tripoli, Bari and finally Naples. Flying time was 11hrs 50 minutes but the duration of the overall journey was fourteen hours. (See Log book). We were allocated to 37 Squadron of 205 Group flying MK X Wellingtons but these were now fitted with the MK X1V bomb sights, another Barnes Wallis invention and considerably superior and more accurate than the old MK IX. It worked on a gyroscopic principle so that if the aircraft banked the sight only rotated half the amount, thus keeping the sighting vertical. This enabled short bombing runs to be made with great accuracy and gave profound relief to the crew as this period was the time most likely to be hit by Anti-Aircraft fire and coned by searchlights. Following two days of air tests to acquaint ourselves with the locality and hazards we were listed for our first operation to an aerodrome in the South of France. A trip of almost nine hours duration. We had two bombs ‘hung up’ and I had to chop out a section of the ‘cat walk’ above the station concerned and then release them manually over the sea. Over the next twelve days we completed seven operations, two of which were to the Ploesti oil refinery complex near Bucharest. This was the third most heavily defended target in Europe with many searchlights, light and heavy AA guns and, I have since learned, a ratio of two fighters to every bomber. Our losses were very high in 205 Group, around 10%, but not nearly as much as the Americans who followed us on daylight operations. They lost well over 100 aircraft each day. Our first operation on Ploesti was quite reasonable and we were not coned, although the gun fire was accurate and the smell of cordite in the plane was quite unmistakeable we came out unscathed. The next attack was quite the opposite. We approached the target at 15,000 feet and were at least three miles away from the aiming point when a master searchlight came straight onto us, followed by at least five others. We corkscrewed, dived and did every manoeuvre possible but could not get rid of them. We were then down to 8,000 feet and being hit by light and heavy AA fire. We did the shortest bombing run ever and then continued to take avoiding action, losing height all the time. We levelled out at 700 feet, at last free of the defences and about seven miles from the target. We saw a number of aircraft being shot down and much air to air firing by observing tracer fire. We knew that some of the fires on the ground were dummies and that some of the ground explosions were to make us think that 20 [Page break] [Drawing] [Page break] more aircraft were crashing than was the case. However, our losses on that occasion were high. Following the Ploesti trips two crews in our Group refused to go on any further operations. They were court martialled and accused of ‘lack of moral fibre’, lost their rank and brevet and sent to detention. I often wondered whether the court of officers presiding had ever been to Ploesti or any similar targets. It was a very frightening experience especially with such a small force of aircraft. We pressed on, operating through August, September and into October. Being an experienced crew we were sometimes called upon to carry out Path-finding, when we had to locate the target using flares, in Chandelier then make a second run to drop target markers of either Red or Green, then a third run to drop our bombs. Not very healthy and also we were not equipped with ‘H2S’ or ‘G’, blind target identification aids, as fitted to all four-engined aircraft operating from the UK. Some of our operations involved dropping mines on the Danube which prevented, delayed, or damaged barges being towed with German supplies to their front lines in Hungary, it particularly restricted the supply of oil to their forces in Italy and Germany. Dropping mines was known as ‘Gardening’ and each crew were given a ‘Bed’ or stretch of the river in which the mines must be delivered. Naval officers briefed and de-briefed us on these occasions. We usually carried four mines. When about 100 miles from the target and depending upon the terrain, we would drop to between 600/700 feet to be under the Radar beams. As the river came into view, bearing in mind that it was always a full moon situation, we would drop to 200 feet. On identifying our Bed we would further reduce height, sometimes to 100 feet before releasing the mines. This ensured that the mines would not break up on impact with the water. Inevitably there was much light gunfire from the banks and also rocket launches on barges in the river. The rockets whistled past the aircraft but we were never hit by either of the defences and we didn’t waste time getting away. One of our squadron crew was shot down over the river on one mine laying trip but they managed to ditch, swim to the bank and three weeks later arrived back on the squadron. We wanted to know why it took them so long! With the Russian advance, guns and fighter aircraft became even more concentrated and targets more difficult to attack, consequently our losses also increased because of this. About the middle of October, Wing Commander Langton, our C/O sent for our crew and told us that the Group was converting to Liberators. He said that our tour of operations would be completed in the next week or so and that we would then return to the UK. It was not worth the expense of us converting for a few operations. The following day I filled in the necessary forms to apply for a commission as I considered that this would be more beneficial to me on my return than a Warrant Officer rank 21 [Page break] [Photograph] Beside the main road from Bucharest to the famous oil town of Ploiesti, lies the beautifully tended Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery. While British Defence Attaché in Romania (1979-82) the author became curious to know how the 80 British and Commonwealth airmen, who lie in this peaceful place, met their deaths between May and August 1944. He discovered that they were from the RAF’s 205 Group which, flying from airfields in the Foggia Plain of Italy, was the night bomber component of the Mediterranean Allied Strategic Air Force. They had lost their lives during the sustained day and night offensive against the Romanian oil industry and its distribution network, the transportation system supporting the German front in Moldavia and the mining of the Danube. The cost to the Group, against these well-defended objectives – rated third after Berlin and the Ruhr - was 254 aircrew. 154 lost their lives, 73 became prisoners, while 27 evaded capture and returned to Allied lines after many adventures. 46 Bombers were lost. Patrick Macdonald’s account of these operations is based on the contemporary official reports and intelligence assessments fleshed out by the recollections of many of the men who were there from all corners of the Commonwealth. ‘…a riveting story, well organised and well told… Patrick Macdonald’s book convincingly justifies his assertion that this bomber offensive, though little publicised at the time was no side show when set against other events nearer to the main arena of the war and for those who took part in it.’ British Army Review [Page break] which was imminent. I was interviewed the following day by Wing Commander Langton who said that he would forward a recommendation to Group HQ without delay. On the 17th October we carried out what we thought would be our final operation on a marshalling yard in Yugoslavia. However, on the afternoon of the 21st we were asked to fill in for a crew whose pilot had reported sick. The target was Maribor marshalling yards in Yugoslavia. Everything went wrong on that day. The aircraft was an old MKIII and one engine was ‘playing up’ when we checked it out in the afternoon. When we went to take off the engine was still showing high mag. drop. Further work was carried out but eventually we took off fifteen minutes late and with a slower than normal aircraft. Our arrival on target was at least twenty minutes behind schedule and, of course, we were on our own. After dropping our bombs we turned for home and tried to do a bit more catching up. On approaching the Yugoslavian mountains we were attacked by a German fighter from below. No-one saw it as it was in a blind position. The damage was mainly to the petrol tank on the starboard side, so I switched both engines to that tank to save fuel. Despite the fact that we dog-legged, changed height and changed our position every few minutes, we were again attacked about fifteen minutes later and on this occasion the aircraft went out of control. Brian gave the order to abandon the aircraft. I opened the front lower entry/escape hatch, saw Jock and Jack the navigator go forward, then picked up Brian’s parachute and gave it to him, meanwhile he was trying to slow the descent of the aircraft which was quite considerable. On trying to clip on my own ‘chute I could only feel a clip on the left side – the right hand clip seemed to be flattened. Being dark I couldn’t see what had happened. There was very little time to ponder the problem because we were over the mountains which I could see from the side window. My only chance of survival was to jump and hope that the canopy shrouds would not entangle so that the ‘chute would open. I said a very quick prayer asking God to give me a safe landing and then swung out of the forward hatch. I then felt for the rip cord handle and pulled it. Almost immediately there was a very load crack and I was jerked into a floating situation. At the same time I saw our aircraft explode on the ground. Not being sure of my ‘angle of dangle’ I was not ready when I hit the ground with considerable force. My face hit a boulder on the mountain side – I’ve never looked so good since. It was pouring with rain and numerous dogs were barking, presumably because of the exploding aircraft. HOSTAGE/PRISONER OF WAR The first thing I did after releasing my parachute was to thank God for my life, and also prayed that somehow Jessie and the family would know that I was safe. After wrapping myself in my parachute for warmth and protection from the rain I went to sleep. The tolling of a church clock and the barking of dogs woke me at daybreak. The rain had ceased and looking around I realised that I was about one third of the way up the mountain and it was mainly boulders and scree around and below me. My face was 22 [Page break] [Photograph] [Page break] stiff and sore and coated with dried blood on one side. I collected my parachute into a manageable ball and then examined the harness. The right hand clip was torn away and the remaining metal, near the harness, was very distorted. It was apparent that either a bullet or shell from the fighter had hit the clip and torn it away. The thought of such a ‘close call’ made me shiver and I was thankful for my safe deliverance. I hid my parachute between a boulder and the ground on the face away from the valley. There was a farmhouse near the bottom of the mountain in a concealed position. I watched the activity at the house for at least three hours. The farmer came out of the house with his dog, followed by a woman who assumed to be his wife. Later, a girl who was probably about twelve years old and a boy 8-10 years started to do tasks around the farmhouse. By this time the chimney was smoking. Looking at my watch I saw it was around 10.0 am when they all returned to the house. At 11.0 am I decided that the family were harmless and that I would approach them for assistance to try and contact Tito’s Partisans. I didn’t have any problems negotiating the descent and arrived at the farmhouse unseen. The lady opened the door to my knocking and audibly gasped. I explained who I was with gestures and she called her husband. When asking them for help I tried to explain that my parachute could be retrieved and given to them in return. The man came with me and helped to bring my parachute down to the house. I offered him a cigarette and, with the ‘hot end’ I burnt a piece of the canopy as a keepsake. What I didn’t realise was that the farmer had sent his son the alert the military authorities. On the boy’s return the farmer motioned me to follow his son, giving me the impression that he would guide me to the Partisans. My freedom was short-lived however, as by evening we were picked up by the Croation Military who were co-operating with the German Army and also fighting the Partisans. They were a very ‘trigger-happy’ bunch of soldiers and I knew that it was useless to make a run for it so, with a number of guns pointing in my direction I was escorted to an ancient truck and driven under guard to Gospic and the Military H.Q. where I met Snowy, Jock and Jack. We were locked in a room and left overnight but were given a meal of what seemed like pasta and jam. It was good and very welcome. I quietly asked the other crew members about Brian, whether anyone had seen him or heard about him. Snowy said he thought he had gone down with the aircraft. Apparently, just before I escaped, Snowy had gone out backwards with the turret rotated at 90° to the fuselage. This was quite a common practice and a much quicker escape route for rear gunners. Unfortunately Snowy had got his feet tangled up with the firing cables and this prevented him getting clear of the turret. He then put his helmet back on and asked Brian to hold the aircraft a little longer so that he could clear the cables. Whether he told Brian when he was clear is not known but there is no doubt that Brian sacrificed his life for his New Zealand cobber – a very generous act of self-sacrifice and discipline. I do not know where Brian is interred or whether he has any known grave. After sleeping fitfully we were allowed to go one at a time to wash etc. Meanwhile an American-born woman married to a Croation came to see us and provided breakfast 23 [Page break] [Post Office Telegram] TRANSCRIPT OF OFFICIAL TELEGRAM Mrs E.W. Scott 4 William St. Great Northern Terrace Lincoln From Air Ministry 73 Oxford St. PC 23/10/44 Regret to inform you that your husband 1425752 Flight Sergeant E.W. Scott is reported missing as the result of air operations on 21st October. Enquiries are being made through the International Red Cross Committee and any further information received will be communicated to you immediately. Should news of him reach you from any other sources please advise this department. Letter following shortly pending its receipt no information should be given to the press. 1140 A [Page break] and a cup of tea. She also arranged for me to be taken by a guard to the local hospital to have my face treated and accompanied me to translate when necessary. After two days in the Military Headquarter, during which we were relieved of our identity discs – much to my disgust – we were taken to the local prison and locked up in a cell about 12 feet x 8 feet with a stone floor. It was very cold and we couldn’t seem to persuade the guards to give us some blankets. Eventually the ‘American lady’ came to see us and explained that we were not prisoners of war but hostages. She arranged for blankets to be issued and reassured the guards that we would not harm them. This conversation produced a complete change of attitude from the guards who shared their Schnapps with us and a few days later brought playing cards out. They never won, Snowy was a past master at cheating. About one-two weeks after capture, the military advised us that they were going to hand us over to the Germans as being only hostages they couldn’t be responsible for our safety with the Russian advance. We objected and asked why they wouldn’t allow us to contact the Partisans, if they showed us their location on a map we would attempt to walk to them. They would not agree to this and the following morning in heavy rain we had to board an open lorry for transit to Zagreb and the Germans. The journey took several hours and we were soaked to the skin when we were taken into the German camp and locked in cells which were constructed of wood. A long passageway linked each cell and we quickly found out that there were American airmen in the next two cells to ours. Apparently they had been shot down a few days previous after returning from a raid on Vienna. The Feldwebel in charge of us was a very dour, Prussian type of German and shouted at us at every opportunity, and at the same time hitting us with his rifle butt whenever we wanted to visit the toilet. The food provided was very poor, but nevertheless, it helped to fill an empty stomach. The Americans decided enough was enough with the hostility of the Feldwebel and with us in accord started to sing ‘Or would you rather be a mule’. The Germans went berserk, hitting us again with their rifle butts until the Unter Officer intervened. The following day we were handed over to four Luftwaffe guards and taken to the local railway station where we boarded a train bound apparently for Budapest. None of us had smoked a cigarette for some time and, on boarding the train, we saw long cardboard-type holder s with what appeared to be tobacco inside. On closer inspection, however, they were only the tubes which had been attached to Turkish cigarettes – disappointment all round. After many hours of train travel with a lot of stops we arrived at Budapest Station around mid-morning the following day. We had not eaten or drunk since leaving Zagreb. The 8 plus 4 of us were taken to the German Military Police office on the platform, given a chunk of black bread and some German sausage. It was then we heard the Russian shells falling on the City and in fact they were hitting part of the station complex. The German guards, who were all in their fifties, herded us quickly back onto the train and with civilians who were cramming into the compartments and on the carriage roofs, the train left the station leading North from whence we had come. 24 [Page break] [Crest] AIR TRAINING CORPS [Crest] CITY OF LINCOLN SQUADRONS Nos. 204 & 1237 Lindum Holme, Lindum Terrace, Lincoln Tel: Lincoln 914 From O.C. 1237 Squadron. A.T.C. Dear Mrs Scott, It is with very deep regret that we learn that your son, Flt/Sgt. Eric Scott has failed to return from recent operations. We need not tell you how very proud we are of Eric’s record with us and subsequently with the R.A.F. and how sincerely we hope that you may soon receive brighter and reassuring news of him but in the meantime please remember that all ranks of his old A.T.C Squadron are with you in thought and sympathise with you in these dark times. Yours in deep sympathy, [Signature] Flt. Lieut. O.C. 1237 Squadron, A.T.C. AIR MINITRY, (Casualty Branch), 73-77 OXFORD STREET, LONDON, W.1 P/424636/3/P.4.A.2. 29 October, 1944. Madam, I am commanded by the Air Council to confirm the telegram in which you were notified that your husband, Flight Sergeant Eric William Scott, Royal Air Force, is missing as a result of air operations on 21st October, 1944. The telegraphic report from Air Force Headquarters, North Africa, states that your husband was air bomber of a Wellington aircraft which set out to attack marshalling yards at Maribor, Yugoslavia and failed to return. This does not necessarily mean that he is killed or wounded, and if he is a prisoner of war he should be able to communicate with you in due course. Meanwhile enquiries are being made through the International Red Cross Committee, and as soon as any definite news is received you will be at once informed. If any information regarding your husband is received by you from any source your are requested to be kind enough to communicate it /immediately Mrs E.W. Scott, 4, William Street, Great Northern Terrace, Lincoln. immediately to the Air Ministry. It is desired to explain that the reference to publication in the Press was included in the telegram informing you of the casualty to your husband in order to avoid prejudicing his chance of escape by undue publicity, should he be at large in enemy-occupied territory. This does not mean that any information about him is available but it is a precaution adopted in the case of all personnel reported “missing”. The Air Council desire me to express their sympathy with you in your present anxiety. I am, madam, Your obedient servant, [Page break] The following morning saw us travelling through Yugoslavia again, with a number of stop/starts. Eventually we stopped and, on looking out of the carriage window I saw to my horror two Typhoon fighter/bombers of the RAF, fitted with rockets. They were only 200-300 feet high and I then guessed they were going around to line up with the train. I immediately altered the guards and the Americans. The main carriage window could be pushed down to act as an emergency exit and by this we hurriedly vacated the train, ran up a grassy slope, across a village green and positioned ourselves on the protected side of a stone war memorial. The rockets hit the engine and machine gun bullets ripped through the carriages. Although the train was marked with a Red Cross the majority of passengers were German Army personnel and many were wounded in the attack and some were killed. This caused considerable bitterness and a number of army men man-handled us from the village onto the grass slope and lined us up for execution. Our guards just didn’t do anything to protect us. I bowed my head and said a prayer for all of us, fully expecting to be shot there and then. Was I frightened? very much so. I thought that I had been brought safely through a number of traumas only now to be executed. In those few seconds, however, a German officer ran in front of the armed squad of soldiers and commanded them to return to the train, which they eventually did with reluctance. He came to us and apologised and explained that he had been a prisoner in England during the First World War and had been very well treated and was not, therefore, allowing German soldiers to ignore the Red Cross and Geneva Conventions for prisoners. We stayed with our guards on that grassy slope until lunch time the following day when a replacement engine was coupled and the train once again began its journey North. Our destination was Vienna. On arriving at the outskirts of the City it was apparent that all was not well. The German Officer who had protected us from the firing squad explained to us that there had been an American bombing raid on the City that morning. Many residential areas had been hit and it was too dangerous to go across the City with our guards. However, he arranged for a fit young army man to run with us across the City to the other station and hand us over to their military police – our guards were to follow in a more leisurely and safe manner. Although we were much less than fit and ravenously hungry, we ran for dear life across Vienna. Chunks of stone, brick and other forms of masonry came our way but nothing hit us and we managed with our guide to dodge the people who tried to cut us off. We all reached the station without injury and were pleased to be handed over to the German military police who once again issued us with the usual rations of black bread and sausage, for which we were very grateful. When our guards eventually arrived we boarded a train and had an uneventful journey to Frankfurt and were incarcerated in the German Dulag Luft, i.e. the interrogation centre for airmen. We were each locked in a cell with a bed and blanket and a barred window gave light but an electric light burned day and night. There were many bed bugs which made life uncomfortable but it had to be accepted. If the toilet was needed we had to pull a cord 25 [Page break] Dulag-Luft Germany 13TH NOV 1944 I have been taken prisoner of war in Germany. I am in good health – [deleted] slightly wounded [/deleted] (cancel accordingly). We will be transported from here to another Camp within the next few days. Please don’t write until I give new address. Kindest regards Eric Scott F/Sgt R.A.F. [Telegram] TRANSCRIPT OF TELEGRAM Priority CC Mrs. E.W. Scott 4 William St. Gt. Northern Terrace, Lincoln From 73/Oxford St. PC 966 W1/QW/PP Information received through International Red Cross Committee states that your husband F/Sgt Eric William Scott is prisoner of war in German hands. [Page break] near the door and this dropped a wooden lever on the outside. When the guards were sufficiently satisfied that a prisoner could go to the toilet without seeing anyone else they opened the cell door and escorted the person to the toilet. Food was put into the cell by the guards three times each day. Breakfast consisted of two thin slices of black bread coasted with erstaz butter and jam. Lunch was a thin ‘watery’ soup and one slice of bread. Evening meal was once again black bread and sausage. I had four interrogation sessions whilst at Frankfurt, all were during the night between midnight and 4.0am. My interrogator was the same officer on each occasion. He offered me a cigarette which I took and, when he turned his back to me to look at a map, I took two more cigarettes from his box and put them into my pocket. Following several threats, because I had no proof of identity, with the absence of my dog tags, he told the guard to return me to my cell. After being locked up again I took a cigarette from my pocket but then realised that I had no means of lighting it – I had fallen for that one very easily. The remaining interrogations were very similar to the first except that during the last one he told me more about 205 Group than I knew, so he was well informed. Finally they sent me down to another part of the building for political interrogation. The next cell to me was occupied by an American and it was possible to talk to each other because the cells were open-topped. It was during this interrogation that I learned of the death of President Roosevelt. The following day and about ten-fourteen days after my arrival at Frankfurt, I joined the rest of our crew and entrained for a POW Camp. We had an uneventful journey to Bankau, Upper Silesia and Stalag Luft VII. Just prior to leaving Frankfurt we were each given a card to fill in for sending home saying that we were prisoners of war and were well. Also a cardboard suitcase with American-style clothing was handed to us through the Red Cross. This consisted of a great coat, pair of boots, four pairs of socks, woolly hat, two vests, two pairs of pants, two shirts and part of a Red Cross parcel of food. STALAG LUFT VII On arrival at the camp, most of the occupants crowded at the entrance to see if there was anyone they knew. It was then that I learned of the Arnhem fiasco and that the Dulag Luft housed many of the Glider Pilots. The entrance to Stalag Luft VII was by two large gates about twenty yards apart and both were well guarded. The compound was rectangular, with accommodation huts down each side. Each hut had at least six rooms off each side of a central corridor. The hut was about eighteen inches above floor level to allow the dogs to go underneath. Each room was equipped with a coal stove mounted onto a steel plate and eight bunks – four upper and four lower. I was allocated an upper bunk in the first room on the left in the second hut on the right looking from the entrance of the compound. The rest of the inmates of the room were Aussies, a New Zealander, a Scotsman and English. In the same hut were two other Lincoln people, a Glider Pilot taken at Arnhem and a wireless operator shot 26 [Page break] CUTTINGS FROM THE LINCOLNSHIRE ECHO [Newspaper cuttings] A letter from ex-Cadet E. W. Scott brings the good news that he has been promoted to Flt.-Sgt. And is at present in Italy, starting on his second tour of operations. Flt.-Sgt. Scott is a bomb-aimer and has seen service in North Africa, Sicily and Italy. On completing his first tour he had a short leave in Egypt and then went to Palestine, where he has for several months been instructing. He is now looking forward to finishing his second tour and then coming home. LINCOLN FLIGHT-SERGT IS PRISONER OF WAR Flight Sergt Eric W. Scott, R.A.F.V.R, reported missing in the Adriatic theatre of war two months ago, is a prisoner of war in German hands His wife, formerly Miss Jessie Brown, of William-street, has received a post-card saying that he is well, but as he was expecting to be moved, told her not to write until she heard from him again. Flight-Sergt Scott is the second son on Mr. and Mrs F. Scott, of William-street, Lincoln, and before joining the R.A.F. in 1941 he was employed in the research department at Clayton-Dewandre Co. Ltd. He was a member of the 1237 squadron Lincoln Air Training Corps. Members of the squadron will be very pleased to learn that their old comrade Eric Scott, now a prisoner of war in Germany, has been granted a commission. Apparently this very excellent news came through about a week before he was reported missing, but his relatives have only recently been notified, and it is still doubtful whether Eric himself yet knows he is now a pilot officer. Congratulations, Eric, from your old squadron. [Page break] Goodbye to the Wimpeys ROME, Monday. – The Wellington bombers with the R.A.F. in Italy, the “Wimpeys,” have been replaced by Liberators for land warfare, it was announced tonight. Only a few remain for anti-submarine and shipping strikes. Their four-year record began with the famous “mail runs” to Benghazi. Since then they have ranged over all the battlefields, from Iraq through North Africa to the Apls and the Balkans. But now, said an R.A.F. officer tonight, “the old ladies are just not fast enough.” – Express News Service. down in a Sterling [sic]. A third Lincoln man, by the name of Dennis Martin, was also in the camp. The compound was enclosed by (a) danger wire approximately eighteen inches from the ground and fastened to posts driven into the ground at regular intervals. If anyone crossed the wire, for whatever reason without permission, the guards could legitimately open fire. (b) About ten yards further out from the ‘danger wire’ was the inner fencing, strong with barbed wire and with the top angled inwards. (c) A third fence, similar to (b) encircled the compound and was made in a similar fashion. Between (b) and (c) were coils of razor sharp wire about three feet in depth. Four sentry boxes were positioned down each side of the compound and one at each end – the latter being centrally located. These boxes were approximately twenty feet from the ground and gave each sentry a good vision of his area. All boxes housed a ‘searchlight’ which arc-ed across the compound at regular intervals during darkness or could be manually moved by the sentry. A machine gun was also mounted in each box and each sentry had his own rifle. All were loaded. When playing ball games, including golf, if a ball went over the ‘danger wire’ limit the guard had to be attracted and his permission obtained to retrieve it. Even then it was a bit dicey and it was advisable to have a number of the prisoners on hand when going beyond the wire to ensure that the sentry knew he was being watched. The total number of inmates during my short stay there was 2,600. I arrived mid-December, the camp had only been opened the previous July. Some POW’s had, however, been transferred from other camps to ensure a smooth routine and operation. Our camp leader was an Australian, Bill Thompson. I met him again at a POW reunion about twelve-fourteen years ago at Nottingham. He was a good and hard working leader and all complaints from POW’s and German Staff were channelled through him. The escape committee consisted of six POW’s (old hands) who vetted each plan for escape. Many were turned down but, even when accepted, the people concerned had to wait in the queue. Many POW’s helped out with escape details, i.e. false papers, uniforms etc. The camp included a library and school. There was no shortage of teachers, some were tutors from the top Universities in the UK. The Auditorium was also well used to promote plays, particularly those with satire against the Heronvolk, which usually resulted in the German Officers stamping out before the end. The German guards with or without dogs patrolled the compound and huts every day to try and ensure that prisoners were not engaged in activities which were ‘verboten’. Gardening was a regular task for prisoners, when the opportunity was taken to bury the spare radio. The news from the BBC was circulated to each hut once a day. Only two men knew who held the radio, the one who retained it and the camp leader. It was the duty of the occupants of the camp to keep the Germans occupied to ensure that the maximum number of guards were needed to operate the camp. Every morning and evening all prisoners had to fall in by hut in the compound and be counted. Because I was relatively short in stature I was asked to be in the rear or middle line of three and, after being counted to move swiftly to a point in the line yet 27 [Page break] [Drawing] BLOWER/COOKER-POW CAMP-STALAG LUFT V11 [Page break] to be counted. This ‘false count’ often meant being ‘on parade’ for at least one hour and, with the weather being extremely cold and with falls of snow it was no joke but had to be done. The senior NCO of the German guards became very hysterical and fired his revolver in the air if, by the third count, the number was one or two out of the official number. With the two other Lincoln men I went for a one hour walk around the compound each day and then spent time making blower units for sale on the weekly market. A good blower, for high speed cooking was worth three blocks of chocolate from a Red Cross parcel. In the short time I was in Stalag Luft VII I made three blowers. See sketch. Each prisoner received a Red Cross parcel each month. This meant that there were two parcels to feed the eight men in each room every week. The British parcels contained a tin of skimmed powdered milk, 2 blocks of high calorie chocolate, 100 cigarettes, dried prunes, tins of spam and corned beef, a very unique tin opener, tins of fish, flour, sugar, a pack of margarine, currants or raisins, tea and cocoa, the American parcels also had coffee. These supplemented the loaf of black bread, ersatze [sic] butter made from coal, ersatze [sic] coffee made from acorns and the watery soup plus sauerkraut, which was plentiful and was collected by one room member from the cookhouse each mid-day. It was on one of these occasions that one of our POW’s was shot and killed by a sentry guard. The camp and Bankau air raid sirens had sounded about one hour previously. When this happened, all POW’s had to return to their rooms. This was quite a frequent occurrence and American Fortresses once again flew over the camp on the way to their target. We had to wait for their return before the all-clear sounded. On this particular day the Bankau all-clear was heard and it was past 12 o’clock – which was the time for collecting food from the cookhouse. Even after a further five minutes we did not hear anymore sirens so one sergeant, thinking that the camp siren must have gone, dashed out from his hut to be the first in the cookhouse queue. Half-way across the compound he was shot and killed. Pandemonium broke out. POW’s with artistic flair immediately took pencil and paper to draw the facial details of the sentry. German officers tried to disperse the POW’s but there were far too many for them to make any impression. Our camp leader and two assistants came along with the Prussian Camp Commandant when he insisted that the sentry should be photographed and his name and other details should be given to our Camp Leader for action to be taken by the appropriate authorities at the cessation of hostilities. The sentry in question was relieved of his duties and posted without delay. Sometimes ‘SS’ troops were brought into the camps for guard duties as a rest period and it was necessary to be very wary of these young Nazi enthusiasts. Bearing in mind that I went into the camp in mid-December 1944, I was soon ‘volunteered’ by the other seven room occupants to try and make a Christmas pudding. 28 [Page break] [Newspaper cutting] SCATTERED in the path of the Allied armies are many prison camps and internment camps. Some in the east, as the map shows, have already been overrun by the Russians. [Page break] We had the flour, fruit and milk mix, also sugar and it was possible to buy potatoes and carrots from the Germans for a few cigarettes. My biggest problem was knowing what to cook it in even though it could be steamed. One of the room inmates had a spare pyjama jacket so it was unanimously decided that the pudding mix be stuffed down a cut sleeve and tied at both ends. This was done with great ceremony and the pudding steamed in a large gammell with a tube bottom made from tins out of the Red Cross parcels. We were usure regarding timing but decided to steam it on the stove for two hours. On Christmas Day our mid-day dinner consisted of : STARTERS Mixed Stewed Fruit MAIN COURSE Fried Spam, Fried Potatoes, beans cooked in a tomato sauce SWEET Christmas Pudding We finally had to steam the pudding for another hour. It was very solid and only a very small amount could be eaten. We shared the rest with other rooms in the hut. To say it tasted like Traditional Christmas Pudding would be an exaggeration but we enjoyed it and slept well during the afternoon on an unusually full stomach. Although the food at Stalag Luft VII, supplemented by parcels, kept us going we didn’t increase in weight, rather the opposite for most POW’s. However, I remained at about 8 stone. On the Squadron my weight was between 8 1/2 – 9 stone. The week after Christmas there were strong rumours of the camp having to be vacated because of the rapid Russian advance into upper Silesia. We were advised by our Camp Leader to make preparation for moving. I made a back-pack from my papier-mâché suitcase which measured about 18” x 12” and was waterproof. Four holes, one punched in each corner, allowed me to thread rope through to form shoulder straps for carrying. In this suitcase went spare vests, socks, pants, shirt and the blocks of chocolate I had been hoarding for such an occasion. 29 [Page break] [Postcards] Postcards written on 10th and 17th December 1944 from Stalag Luft V11 just prior to the forced march [Page break] On the 18th of January, with snow up to 12” deep and temperatures 10-15 degrees C below zero, we were told that we would be leaving Stalag Luft VII by foot at 4.0 pm that day, i.e. at dusk. We were each handed a Red Cross Parcel, the contents of which were distributed around our bodies. The first night of walking and freedom was a welcome experience. Each dawn, or thereabouts, we went into a farm and into the barns or cattle sheds to sleep. Because of the depth of snow my socks were always wet. I wore two pairs at a time to try and keep my feet warm. The pair I took off went into my shirt to dry and a replacement pair of dry socks put on before going to sleep. On one occasion during the first seven days, a pig had been slaughtered and made into soup in a large cauldron. The demand far exceeded the supply so I didn’t get any. The contents of the Red Cross Parcel virtually vanished after the first week. Washing faces and hands was a problem and generally had to be done using snow. My boots were pushed into the hay or at the side of a cow in an attempt to keep them above freezing but, with very little success. Generally it was necessary to hand-manipulate the shoe leather in order to get them on when it was time for moving. The weather conditions became worse, blizzards as well as icy conditions – it was really appalling. Our breath froze in our beards and it had to be gently warmed by hand to prevent it being a mass of ice. By this time the novelty of freedom had well worn off and airmen who had been injured during their bombing trip or on baling out and crashing, were very much the worse for wear. Some had to be left behind in houses, the occupants being mainly of Polish origin in Upper Silesia. Our rate of progress was very slow, about 20 miles each night. The second week of walking was similar to the first except that the men were getting weaker and with little or no food provided our tummies started to shrink and become painful. By February my chocolate store was exhausted, even though I had used it as a supplement to whatever food I could find, mainly frozen sugar beet, which now became my staple diet. A number of men went to sleep in the barns and didn’t get up again for the next night’s walk. Others collapsed at the roadside in the snow. Whether they were taken care of by the local inhabitants I don’t know. Even the German guards were dropping out because of hunger and cold. There were occasions when we were urged to cross a bridge over a river and, on reaching the other side, the bridge was dynamited. We were surprised at this because all the rivers were frozen solid and could easily have carried vehicles. At this stage of our journey we were allowed two nights each week to rest up because we were so close to complete exhaustion. We were told that we were heading for Luckenwalde Stalag IIIA, near Potsdam, Berlin. We were also told that the German High Command had been told to execute prisoners rather than hand them over the advancing British, American and Russian armies. We still managed to get news information so our radio was still with us. 30 [Page break] [Letter] Letter sent to home – March 1945 – from Stalag IIIA [Page break] There were so many days during the latter part of this forced march that I would have been quite willing to have laid down and died but yet it seemed so futile to give up after having endured so much since October 1944. I prayed very often for help to keep going and for a successful return to Lincoln but my expectations were very much tinged with the prospects of not making it at that stage of the march. The appalling weather continued and I felt very much like a zombie, just putting one foot in front of the other because the man in front of me was doing the same. We came to a point in the journey when the Camp Leader said enough was enough and told the Germans that they either abandon all of us to await the Russian Army or they provided transport for the remainder of the journey. After three days at a large farm, where we did get a little food and where I saw airmen fighting each other for a piece of meat in a stew because of their hunger, we were walked to a railway embankment and, by helping each other, boarded a train with cattle truck accommodation. This was sheer luxury compared to walking. A three day stop/start journey with the train halting each night, brought us to Potsdam and a relatively short walk to Stalag IIIA. It was apparently late February but time didn’t mean anything anymore. The size of this camp was staggering. We were told that it held around 75,000 people, the majority being displaced workers of all nationalities and age ranges. Children were even being born in the camp. From a military viewpoint there were Russian, Polish, French, Dutch, British and Americans. On arrival at Stalag IIIA we were each given a Red Cross Parcel. The priority however was for a shower and shave. It was apparent that we were covered in body lice and, even after showering and putting on a clean vest, the lice quickly reappeared in all of the vest seams. Boiling the vests and our battle dress tops in tin baths on open fires did not make any difference. When I first went into the shower I was stood next to the C of E Padre. He was at least 6ft 3in. tall and his ribs were really hollow and I just laughed but, when I looked at my own ribs they were identical. The small bar of swan soap – similar in size to that issued in hotels – just disappeared between our ribs. We were a good case of a starvation diet and over exercise. When the German doctors re-X-rayed us they also weighed us, I was just six stones. With regard to the Red Cross Parcels, Lofty the Glider Pilot, sat in the aircrew compound, opened his tin of Peanut Butter and ate the lot – no bread or anything with it – it gave me a nauseating feeling just watching him. We didn’t know how long it would be before we got another parcel so we made this issue last as long as possible. The shrinkage of our stomachs also meant that we didn’t need much food to feel full. Three weeks after arriving at the camp there was a full scale battle, with air attacks by both sides across the area. We had to take whatever cover we could as bullets and rockets passed across the compounds. We made a large white cross and laid it on the compound floor between the line of huts. The battle see-sawed back and forth for three days – it seemed more like three weeks. At first light on the third day all the German guards were gone and we were in control of our own compound. I immediately went to the German medical centre to try and pick up a Leika camera, a 31 [Page break] [Photograph] Badges from a German Uniform [Photograph] [Photograph] Issue of RAF Watch – still working today [Photograph] Right: Prisoner of War identification tag [Page break] [Record Card] RECORD CARDS RETRIEVED FROM CAMP RECORD OFFICE (see over) [Page break] [Record Card] [Page break] number of which were used for X-raying. I was too late but moving onto the record office I managed to find my own record cards and these I kept. The Russian army arrived in strength the same day. Tanks just crushed the barbed wire fencing so that one side of every compound was open to free movement of prisoners. The Russian prisoners in the next compound to us went berserk. They were immediately given access and disappeared with the advanced Russian troops who were all of Mongolian extraction. The general appearance of the Russian advance troops was very rag-tag. Lorries had hard tyres, mules were used for towing guns, the soldiers didn’t have tin hats and their rifles and automatic weapons, etc., were of very varied make. Some were weapons captured from the German army. When the main body of the Russian soldiers arrived they were all uniformed and more disciplined. However they were not well disposed towards us and if we wanted food we had to find it in the locality. Lofty and I went around the area including the outskirts of Potsdam to see if food was available. Many houses had been abandoned in a hurry but the food left behind was very meagre. We went into a Tailor’s shop and it was there that I found and kept a pair of scissors which I have used for decorating ever since. I also thought that the considerable length and very sharp points of the scissors would be a handy weapon if needed for my defence. The Russians placed large tubs on open fires and made their yoghurt. This was all the nourishment they could offer us but the smell from the sour curds was terrible and despite my hunger I just could not eat any. Lofty however, devoured both portions! Many of the Russian troops had not seen flushed toilets before and continually came into the compound toilet blocks, put their feet into the bowl and pulled the chain several times, grinning all over their faces. It was at this time ant a Russian took my watch and did his best to steal my wedding ring but he relented eventually and left me. A senior Russian Officer, with many aides, sat at a table in our compound and we had to file past giving our name, number, origin, nationality, etc. This took over a week to complete as many POW camps of British airmen had been sent to Stalag IIIA, including those from Sagan. Hence we now had a Group Captain, demoted by himself to Flt. Lt. in charge of the British aircrew contingent, irrespective of rank. He advised all the men not to try and make their own way to the West of the Elbe because we would again be taken prisoner or shot by either side. The Russians wanted to arm us and send us into the battle for Berlin but of course this was refused based on the Geneva Convention. The Russians did not acknowledge this. Their next ploy was to send us home via Moscow. We were the first major bunch of British aircrew released and our leaders again refused this, really upsetting the Russians who put a loose guard around our compound. Some days after the Russians had ‘released’ us numerous American trucks turned up at the side of our compound. All were driven by black soldiers and unarmed. Two white American officers were in charge and they had apparently been sent, with agreement by the Russians, to collect us and take us across the river Elbe to the American sector. The Russians who were responsible for us didn’t want to know and 32 [Page break] [Crest] CATERPILLAR CLUB 26th April, 1945. Mrs. Scott. 4, William Street. LINCOLN. Dear Mrs. Scott, [Underlined] F/Sgt. E. W. Scott. [/underlined] I was very glad to hear from the above that he had saved his life with an Irvin chute, and at his request have pleasure in sending his membership card herewith. I regret that due to supply restrictions we are not able to order Caterpillar Pins for Prisoners until after the war, but one will be sent as soon as available. Please excuse the form letter, but this is due to pressure of work. With best wishes for his early return, I am, Yours sincerely, [Signature] Leslie L. Irvin. MEL. Encl. Card. [Photograph] Cloth Caterpillar Badge Right: Membership card of the Caterpillar Club [Photograph] Below: Two Caterpillar pin badges [Photograph] Piece of silk burned from parachute after bailing out [Photograph] [Page break] put an armed guard around the trucks and flatly refused permission for us to move. This situation continued for three days, then the American lorries were allowed to return – empty to their sector. One or two men managed to get away rolled in a tarpaulin in the trucks. One of these was Dennis Martin who went to 4 William Street and told Jessie that I was alright. After a further two days we were ushered into Russian lorries and driven to the Elbe and once there we disembarked, crossed the river on foot by pontoon bridge and given a terrific welcome on the other side. We were all still full of body lice and, as we passed through a medical tent, we were checked for T.B., and D.D.T. was pumped from small guns down our vests and shirts. The Red Cross, bless them, issued us with toilet and shaving gear. It was a very painful, but necessary task to remove my beard of three-and-a-half months, although I had done a rough trimming job with the tailor’s scissors. My battle dress trousers gaped open just above the leg pocket due to the material having rotted, particularly with boiling them in an endeavour to lose the lice. I looked more like a tramp than an airman. We stayed with the Americans for two days and had some wonderful food, but could only manage small amounts. Air transport them took us to Brussels airport where we were again given a warm welcome and fed and watered. After a further twenty-four hours it was my turn to board an RAF Lancaster to fly home. It was May and, although I had missed V.E. day, I though with a bit of luck I would make V.J. day. I never did identify the airfield at which we landed but we were bussed to a railway station and boarded a train – normal passenger service – to Cosford. I felt really uneasy being among civilians again and my torn uniform and general appearance in the compartment was cause for comment by the other occupants. The other significant factor was that I had no idea of the current news so couldn’t make any conversation. A lonely journey and one of self-consciousness. On arrival at RAF Station Cosford I was ushered into a queue, in line with a table, behind which sat a records clerk with a sheaf of papers. These tables extended from one end of a hanger to the other. When it came to my turn the clerk asked me for my RAF number, rank and name but none of these appeared in his papers. He then asked me whether I had received any mail from home and I told him I hadn’t. The question now was, did my wife and other members of my family know that I was alive. I told him that I had sent the usual pre-printed card from Dulag Luft Frankfurt and had written letters home, Even so I had no evidence or knowledge of whether they knew I was a prisoner of war. This lack of evidence, plus the fact that I was not on the register of returning prisoners caused me considerable concern. I couldn’t telephone anyone because I was not aware of telephone numbers. The clerk gave me papers to get clothing equipment, badges of rank, medal ribbons, shoes, and the many other pieces of equipment we had to have in the RAF. After visiting the ‘tailor’s shop’ where numerous local women were sewing on all the badges of rank etc., I took my equipment to a hut allocated for 33 [Page break] [Newspaper cutting] In memory of the PoWs of the ‘Long March’ By Peter Davies [Photograph] The commemorative statue by the sculptor Pamela Taylor THE MEMORIAL to RAF prisoners of war who died on the ‘Long March’, unveiled by the Duke of Edinburgh at the Royal Air Force Museum, Hendon, yesterday, is a reminder of one of the Second World War’s most extraordinary – yet unsung – feats of endurance amid extreme privation and suffering. This was the enforced march of British, Commonwealth and Allied PoWs to western Germany from camps on the eastern borders of the Third Reich in the winter and spring of 1945. In the summer of 1944, with the Red Army already on the borders of Germany, there were around 200,000 RAF, army and naval PoWs, besides thousands of Americans, in camps dotted throughout Germany and the occupied territories. Many of these lay in the east of the country and included Stalag Luft III, of Great Escape fame, 100 miles south east of Berlin. Others were more remote still: in East Prussia, Poland and Czechoslovakia. To prevent their occupants being liberated by the advancing Russians, Hitler ordered that they should be marched westwards, out of harm’s way. Put in charge of this operation was an SS lieutenant-general, Gottllob Berger, a man with a history of brutal suppression of unrest in the occupied territories. However, with the Third Reich collapsing around him he seems to have felt it might be politic to ignore the Führer’s severer orders for the treatment of PoWs. In the chaotic conditions of Germany in early 1945 when the evacuations began, this scarcely made any difference. Driven from the shelter of their camps, bullied, beaten and hectored by their guards, shot dead if they lagged behind or fell by the wayside, a quarter of a million PoWs stumbled and shuffled their way hundreds of miles to the west, without adequate food, shelter or clothing, in the bitterest winter Germany had experienced for 50 years. The harrowing tale of the 86-day trek of the inmates of the notoriously brutal Stalag Luft IV at Gross Tychow in Pomerania to Fallingbostel in Lower Saxony, 500 miles distant, may stand as representative of the collective ordeal. A number of these prisoners had already made the 250-mile journey by sea from Stalag Luft VI at Heydekrug on the borders of Lithuania the previous summer, piled below decks in the disease-rife hold of a rusty cargo boat. The march-out from Stalag Luft IV began on February 6, 1945, with the temperature 20 degrees below zero and with snow falling. Just 11km were covered before nightfall. Blisters on feet were soon bursting, opening them to infection. In the extreme cold resistance to disease was soon eroded. Injuries suffered in baling out or in combat were exacerbated. Over the following interminable ice-cold days some lucky few might find a barn to lie in at night, but most were compelled to lie in the open. In snow- and waterfilled shell holes men clung to each other for warmth under a shared greatcoat. When guards were not looking the men raided the fields for potatoes, turnips and mangolds. Raw rat became a delicacy. At times men were reduced to chewing grass. So near to starvation were they that one PoW recalled looking at his arm, suddenly realising it was a piece of meat and wondering, lightheadedly, whether he could bring himself to take a bite out of it. The men were plagued with lice and the constant battle to rid themselves of them was a losing one. “If you kill one a thousand will come to its funeral” was the grim PoW saying. But the killer was dysentery, robbing men of their vitality – and dignity. In the utterly insanitary conditions it was almost impossible not to catch it. Men often chose to soil themselves as they marched, rather than falling out to risk being shot. Yet no one could afford to discard even the filthiest rags in the intense cold. The brutality of their guards was compounded by the hostility of a populace who regarded the airmen as Luftgangsters and Terrorflieger as a result of the widespread damage from bombing raids. Friendly fire in one form or another was a constant peril. As the Stalag Luft IV men entered Swinemunde, bombs were falling on the port, while shrapnel from the flak defences fell among them. In one of the worst incidents another group, ex-inmates of Stalag Luft III, were targeted by RAF Typhoon fighter bombers. In spite of frantic gesticulations by an officer who bravely exposed himself to cannon fire, waving his RAF greatcoat aloft, more than 60 PoWs, including him, were killed by pilots who could have no reason to imagine that a column on the move consisted of other than the enemy. The figures for those who perished on these marches can only be estimates. Somewhere in the region of 10 per cent did not survive the ordeal. Commissioned by the Royal Air Forces ex-PoW Association, Pamela Taylor’s iconic study of a PoW dragging his remaining possessions on a makeshift sled commemorates those who did not reach the end of their terrible journey. An extract from The Telegraph Newspaper after a ceremony to commemorate those who died on the ‘Long March’. Summer 2002 ‘The marches were long and desperately arduous. Some POW’s walked for more than 500 miles and were on the road for many months. Hundreds died of exhaustion, disease and starvation. Those who survived were awed by their experience. How they escaped with their lives and eventually reached home is a gripping story of endurance and courage. Extract from ‘The Last Escape’ by John Nichol & Tony Rennell [Page break] us to ‘disrobe’ and shower. Our old uniforms were dumped into large containers but I did remember, however, to keep the piece of my parachute canopy and also my POW’s identity plate, together with the tailor’s scissors – my acquisition from Potsdam. After donning my new uniform and packing the surplus equipment in a kit bag, I reported to the station orderly to collect a travel warrant, food coupons and some clothing coupons. My train time to Birmingham was given to me and I caught the next ‘lorry’ to leave the camp for Cosford Station. However, I had to stay overnight at Derby Station because of my lateness of departure but caught the early morning train to Lincoln to arrive home around 5.00 -6.00 am. As I neared Lincoln I began to panic because of not knowing whether Jessie and the family knew of my existence. I walked from the Midland Station and arrived outside the door of No.4 William Street – and knocked. Jessie came to the door with Dad’s mackintosh over her – we couldn’t believe we were together again. Everyone got up, even Grandma Dowse, to welcome me home. They did know that I was safe and had received my letters. It had been eight weeks however between receiving the ‘missing’ telegram and getting my first card from Dulag Luft, which was much longer than the norm for being advised. This of course was due to being held as a hostage and also travelling unnecessarily to arrive at Frankfurt. Coming home was a wonderful experience and it was necessary to once again get to know my wife. There were both emotional and mental problems to pass through. I suppose today these would be dealt with by counselling, but such a process was not known in 1945. Within twenty-four hours of getting home Jessie told me that I had been commissioned and had even received my new RAF number. The commission was backdated to my application in October 1944. It was therefore necessary for me to return to Cosford to obtain the changes of uniform, clothes coupons, shoes, socks, shirts etc. This meant staying two days at Cosford and then returning to Lincoln, but using first class travel. What a difference a day makes! On my return home I went to Atkinsons the military tailors to be measured for my ‘best blues’, peak cap etc. All of this I had to pay for myself. I had already purchased a Canadian Crombie great coat from an officer who was being demobbed at Cosford before returning home. It was of better quality than could be obtained in the UK and was in excellent condition. I was able to obtain my mackintosh coat straight away so for May was adequately equipped. After a few days in Lincoln Jessie and I went to Bridlington for a week. We stayed at Maud Gilberts, she had lived in Lincoln on Great Northern Terrace and Jack and Ethel had helped and supported her when she lost her husband at Dunkirk. As she hailed from the North East she had eventually returned to Bridlington. 34 [Page break] [Photograph] Flying Officer Eric William Scott and Mrs Jessie G Scott [Photograph] Identity Disc [Photograph] New Wings [Photograph] Final entries in Observer’s and Air Gunners Flying Log Book [Page break] I forgot to mention that my leave was for sixteen weeks and if I wanted anything either medically or otherwise I had to report to RAF Wittering, near Peterborough. Jessie gave up her job to be with me. As it happens I did have to go to our local G.P. because a rash of spot appeared on my body. He said it was caused by enrichments of the blood with returning to a normal diet. During my leave I went into town towards mid-day and to the Black Bull in the Hight Street as I had learned that returning military personnel congregated there. On my first visit I was amazed to see my old school friend Frank Curtis. He was a WOP/AG on Halifax’s, flying from Yorkshire. His left leg was missing, apparently having been virtually severed by shell fire whilst attacking flying bomb sights [sic]. He had been in hospital for some months but was now home on indefinite leave and on crutches. He was married to Lillian who unfortunately had contracted TB, but recovery was hopeful. The four of us spent many happy hours together and I travelled with Frank to Ely hospital to try on his new tin leg. After two or three visits he eventually came away with his tin leg on. It was a painful process learning to walk again, but eventually he succeeded in using it permanently with the help of a stick, and handed back his crutches. During my sixteen-week leave I was visited by Jack our Canadian Navigator and I also saw Jock Nichols at Cosford. Snowy I did not see but learned from other New Zealand Ex POW’s that he was on a draft to return home, so that accounted for the four crew members who had safely returned to the U.K. Wel all enjoyed V.J. day together – Frank and Lillian, brother-in-law Jim and sisters-in-law Mary and Janet, the latter cartwheeling down the road and also paddling in the beck. My leave came to an end and I reported to RAF Wittering where they fed us on venison and knocked us into shape military fashion. I was volunteered to lead a flight of NCO’s and other ranks on an official parade in Peterborough. I had forgotten all of my drill procedures so had to go ‘cap in hand’ to the Station Warrant Officer for verbal and physical instruction to enable me to carry out this function. So Flying Officer Scott had his first official function to perform since being commissioned. After two or three weeks at Wittering I was re-musterd as a Flying Control Officer and posted to Pershore, near Evesham. We worked in three eight hour shifts 6.0am-2.0pm being the first. It was interesting work and, with the aid of a batwoman (WAAF) who kept my uniform, shoes, etc. immaculately clean, woke me at the appropriate times for duty, made my bed, changed towels, dealt with the laundry etc., life was quite good. Another officer who had been on flying control at Pershore for some months had rented a house in Cheltenham and his wife and daughter lived there whilst he commuted every second day to stay with them for 36 hours, which was allowed within the shift system. It transpired that he was going on leave for two weeks and that the house would be vacant for that period. He gave me the opportunity of living there with Jessie for that time, paying rent and fuel costs. We jumped at this opportunity of being together and Jessie travelled down to Cheltenham, Ist Class! to meet the departing wife and family and to get to know the house and its workings before they actually left. I had already received my cycle from Lincoln so, on my 36 hour break from duty I would pedal into Evesham, catch the Black and White bus to Cheltenham and they 35 [Page break] [Photograph] Jessie and Eric with Jacqueline - (aged three months) [Photograph] Vickers-Armstrong Wellington III Postcard sent from Jack and Marjorie Morval on 1st August 1994 [Page break] would look after my bike. It was a good arrangement and we really enjoyed that time together, even visiting Weston-Super-Mare. On departing Weston-Super-Mare on one particular visit we decided we would purchase a block of ice cream to take home. We put the block on the luggage rack above us as we were on the front seat near the door. Imagine our surprise on seeing runny ice cream dripping off the rack at the back of the bus. It was definitely a case of keeping a ‘low profile’! Cheltenham at that time was a very high class Spa town and we explored it thoroughly. Following Jessie’s return to Lincoln, I was sent to Watchfield, the place where my flying began, on a Flying Control Officer’s course. This lasted two to three weeks. I then continued my duties at the control tower at Pershore until my demobilisation became imminent in August. The RAF advised me that they would be willing to extend my commission, but would require me to be posted to Hendon as a flying control officer on passenger transport. I pondered this issue and received much advice from both service friends and those at home. I decided eventually that if I stayed in the RAF both Jessie and I would be shunted around both in the UK and overseas and that our times apart would be unacceptable. I advised the RAF that I wished to be demobbed. Towards the end of August I reported to London where I received the necessary discharge papers, sports coat and flannels etc. and a travel warrant to Lincoln. My life in the RAF was at an end and my leave was given to the end of September. After a week at home, before which Jessie had moved from 4 William Street to her mothers at 61 Great Northern Terrace, I reported to Clayton Dewandre to take up my career again as a technician. Because of my break in apprenticeship I was classified as a Dilutee. My weekly salary was £4.19s.6p, barely a living wage but somehow we managed. Jacqueline was born on 18th of October 1946 at Great Northern Terrace and was the first baby to be delivered by our ex Royal Navy GP Dr. Leane. He always referred to her as his first demob baby. That winter of 1946/47 was very cold with hard layers of snow. A quick thaw in April 1947 caused widespread flooding in Lincoln and we had to move out, going uphill to my sister Mary’s in St. Hugh’s Street. It took many days of mopping up, cleaning and disinfecting to make our two rooms habitable again. In June 1947 we acquired a house to rent at 22 Chelmsford Street, through the good auspices of George James’ mother (sister-in-law Janet’s mother-in-law) who knew the Landlord, a Mr. Dalton. After six/eight weeks of hard work we moved in and this was really the beginning of our life as a family. 36 [Page break] [Newspaper article] THE Prisoner of War THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE PRISONERS OF WAR DEPARTMENT OF THE RED CROSS AND ST. JOHN ORGANISATION, ST. JAMES’S PALACE, LONDON, S.W.1 VOL. 4. No. 39. THE FINAL ISSUE July, 1945 Message from Field-Marshal Lord Chetwode THIS is the last issue of “The Prisoner of War.” There is no longer any need for the journal since those who were prisoners or internees in Europe are now free and with few exceptions are at home again. The Red Cross and St. John War Organisation rejoices that this piece of its work has been finished. No Editor, I am sure, ever saw his paper come to an end with such satisfaction as the Editor of “The Prisoner of War.” The flow of letters that has come from next of kin has told us how eagerly each copy of the journal was looked forward to each month. Time and again, mothers and wives have written to say that it has seemed to bring their dear ones nearer to them. I am certain that all who were prisoners and are now happily restored to their families will remember it as one of the best services which the Organisation has rendered. Their gratitude is a reward which we are proud to have earned. To every man who has been a prisoner, and to every family now reunited, I wish a future of abiding peace and renewed happiness. They will all be mindful, I know, as are we in the Red Cross and St. John War Organisation, that war still rages in the Far East and that men and women of our race are held captive by the Japanese. There we still have work to do and for their next of kin we shall continue to produce “Far East,” the sister journal of “The Prisoner of War.” I am confident that we shall have the good wishes and the active support of all to whom, directly or indirectly, this journal has been a source of comfort during the three years of its existence. The Editor Writes – IT falls to me as Editor to make my final farewell in this last issue of The Prisoner of War. At the beginning of 1944 I wrote in these columns that the best New Year’s wish I could offer to all our readers was that before many months had passed they would no longer be our readers. That wish was fulfilled for some, as the repatriation ships came in during the year, but for many the eagerly awaited day was deferred until victory had been won. To-day there are no more Kriegies, no more letters from German camps and lazarets, no more Red Cross parcels – and no more need for this journal. I cannot believe that any editor ever owed so much to so many of his readers. It has been on their letters, and those they received from their men in exile, that this journal has been built up. We depended on them for most of the news and all the photographs of life in the camps that we have published. “Far East” will Continue Far East, our companion journal, which started on its separate existence near the beginning of last year, will outlive us. It will be published as and when information becomes available about the lot of those in the hands of the Japanese. Unhappily news in the past has been rare, and the services that it has been possible for the United Nations to render have been limited, irregular, and unevenly distributed. But everything that it is humanly possible to do is being done. The Governments, the Red Cross Societies, the Protecting Power, the International Red Cross Committee and their delegates on the spot are leaving no stone unturned to bring succour to the prisoners. “Not Forgotten” On other pages of this last issue appear articles by the heads of the various sections of the Prisoners of War Department which have ministered to the many needs of prisoners in Germany and Italy. For all of them and their colleagues their work has been in the nature of a mission cheerfully and lovingly undertaken in the knowledge that they were not only succouring fellow-countrymen and women in exile but were helping them to realise that they were not forgotten by those at home. F.M. Lord Chetwode, O.M. On this page appears a message from Field Marshal Lord Chetwode, O.M., the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Red Cross and St. John War Organisation. It is upon him, as its supreme administrator, that the heavy burden falls of directing and inspiring the manifold human activities of the Organisation. Not the least of the reasons why hundreds of thousands have had cause to be grateful to the Organisation for its work during these war years had been its “personal touch.” Sir Philip Chetwode crowned his brilliant career as a soldier by this great mission for the men in the Forces. Our readers will join us in congratulating him upon the barony which the King had conferred upon him in recognition of his distinguished work for sufferers in this war. IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS (See Page 16) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The memoir of Eric William Scott Description An account of the resource The memoir contains details of Eric’s wartime career between 1939-1946. It covers his initial training, elementary flying training and his journey to the US for further training. During this time, he sustained an injury which curtailed his pilot training and he continues as a navigator/bomb aimer. He married before being posted to North Africa where he took part in 38 operations. During a final operation in Maribor, he baled out after being attacked, was captured by the Croatian army and became a prisoner of war in Stalag Luft 7. The memoir concludes with his repatriation and life on his return to England.  The memoir includes photographs and a description of a prisoner of war medal. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource E W Scott Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource Thirty-seven page printed document with text and photographs Language A language of the resource eng Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Text. Memoir Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context BScottEWScottEWv1 Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Royal Air Force Spatial Coverage Spatial characteristics of the resource. Great Britain England--Lincolnshire England--Lincoln England--Bedfordshire England--London England--Warwickshire England--Stratford-upon-Avon England--Wiltshire England--Manchester Scotland--Glasgow Canada New Brunswick--Moncton United States Georgia--Albany Florida--Arcadia England--Gloucestershire England--Cornwall (County) North Africa Algeria Tunisia Tunisia--Qayrawān Middle East--Palestine Middle East--Jerusalem West Bank--Bethlehem Israel--Tel Aviv Israel--Haifa Italy Italy--Foggia Romania Romania--Ploiești Slovenia Slovenia--Maribor Poland Germany Germany--Potsdam England--Shropshire Florida Georgia New Brunswick Israel West Bank England--Lancashire Danube River Poland--Bąków Temporal Coverage Temporal characteristics of the resource. 1941-02 1941-10 1941-11-03 1941-12 1942-01-06 1942-01 1942-02-09 1942-03-24 1942-05 1942-06 1942-07-02 1942-11 1943-04-19 1943-05-27 1943-06-09 1943-10-03 1944-06 1944-07-23 1944-10-21 1945-03 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource This content is available under a CC BY-NC 4.0 International license (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0). It has been published ‘as is’ and may contain inaccuracies or culturally inappropriate references that do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the University of Lincoln or the International Bomber Command Centre. For more information, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ and https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/legal. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available IBCC Digital Archive Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Anne-Marie Watson Maureen Clarke Conforms To An established standard to which the described resource conforms. Pending text-based transcription. Under review 142 Squadron 205 Group 37 Squadron aircrew bale out bomb aimer Caterpillar Club Dulag Luft Flying Training School Harvard lack of moral fibre love and romance mine laying navigator Operational Training Unit pilot prisoner of war RAF Blida RAF Cardington RAF Cosford RAF Kairouan RAF Moreton in the Marsh RAF Watchfield RCAF Moncton recruitment Red Cross searchlight shot down Stalag 357 Stalag 3A Stalag Luft 4 Stalag Luft 6 Stalag Luft 7 Stearman the long march Tiger Moth training Wellington