Letter from Bill Akrill to his mother

Letter from Bill Akrill to his mother

Written as cadet from posting wing. Sending washing home. Will be glad to get away from current location. Describes daily activity, a friend and going to Westminster Central Hall. Suggests that hardest part of Initial Training Wing will be aircraft recognition and wished he had all his books. Hopes to get flight photograph to send.

1941-09-29

Four page handwritten letter

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EAkrillWEAkrill[Mo]XX0929

Cadet No 1436220 A.C. Akrill WE
5 Flight P. Squadron,
Posting Wing,
Avenue Close,
Avenue Road,
London N.W. 8.
Monday night 29 September
Dear Mum,
I’m sending my washing home as my things are getting a bit black & it’s not easy to get them done in London. I don’t think the civvy towel is mine actually but mine went & I lagged this which was rather lively but I havn’t [sic] used it. I don’t want it back. I will let you know my I.T.W. address as soon as I get there.
I shall be very, very glad to get away from this dump though for some things quite sorry to leave London. Here were [sic] only killing time until we can be posted. This afternoon is a good example of a Posting Wing life. We came back from dinner & had a nice long wait, sitting on the billet floor. We were called on Parade – the Parade ground is two or three minutes walk away – and went through all the palaver of
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falling in &c. Our Corporal then told us that there was to be a Kit Inspection, marched us back & dismissed us to lay out our kit. We went through all that trouble & sat on the few remaining square inches of floor until 4.20 when we learned on making enquiries the the [sic] P/O hadn’t turned up & [deleted] had [/deleted] the corporal had inspected it himself & had forgotten us as we’re cut off from the rest in the kitchen. So we decided we’d had it & put our stuff back again & went off for an hours drill before tea. A week like this will be quite enough, though on Wednesday our Flight is on Guard & we have the next day off & will possibly be posted of [sic] Friday – Sat at the latest (we hope!) Observers are posted immediately.
One good thing about this place is that if we have time we can get in for two meals at once as our flights are so big no-one misses us. I had a good feed tonight. Downstairs for 1 meal – 3 sausages & mash & 2 pieces of bread & [inserted] butter [/inserted] jam instead of one & then upstairs for 5 more sausages & enough butter & jam for half a bread loaf. I think the tea was doped for the new intake so I avoided it.
[underlined] 3 [/underlined]
I’ve been out with Wilfred (the Cadet I met at [deleted] Mwn [/deleted] Reynolds) over the week end. I shall be very sorry to leave him at the week-end though there is a very vague hope of our going together. We went on Sunday to the Westminster Central Hall to hear the Rev. Sangster. Wilfred’s a grand lad & we could be such good friends if only we could be together. Once again at Westminster everybody was very kind & we had two invitations out to tea.
I hear that the hardest part of I.T.W is Aircraft Recognition. I wish I had all my books here. I’ve not seen a plane or a picture of one [deleted] tod [/deleted] until today [deleted] whe [/deleted] I know all the British & some of the Jerries but we have to know Italians too as well as details of wing span &c. It certainly means that when I get to I.T.W it must be work all the time. We also get Maths, Navigation, & Morse in addition to drill. We have to become absolutely tip-top in marching &c. Talk about the goose-step! Our march is nearly as crazy!
Well I want to get to bed early tonight. We were up late this morning & I’ve
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got a bit of a cold. [deleted] I [/deleted]
I should be getting a photograph of our old flight & will send you one. There are only 29 out of the 50 here. 4 have been posted as observers & the rest haven’t passed their maths.
I havn’t [sic] heard much about Mr. H. I often think about the good time I had that first holiday week – years ago it seems.
[deleted] I [/deleted] Oh, there is a boy who was at school with Dave here. He was at the Medical at Nottingham with us & at Cardington with me.
Best of love to everybody,
[underlined] Bill [/underlined]