Letter from Pat Hogan to his father

Letter from Pat Hogan to his father

Writes about family and friends news, his activities, other people and gossip. Large portion of letter damaged by water stain.

1945-09-20

Four sided handwritten airmail letter

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EHoganPJHoganDH450920

A436464 P/O P. J. HOGAN
RAAF AUSPO
LONDON
20/9/45
Dear Dad,
Don’t be surprised if I [missing words] While I remember it I’d better tell you the real reason [missing words] I recently had a letter from Mrs Shelton. The group of the [missing words] the snow was [two indecipherable words] one they’d had of Alan in an Officers [missing words] to take one of him off. I don’t know whether Alan had [missing words] or not in that group photo I had sent you of the [missing words] the old “cheesecutter” [sic] on. I told [missing word] could get a copy to [missing words] for me. [missing words] friend of his – and his crew. [missing words] one of the quietest and most popular skippers on the squadron [missing words] is his name. He was a [indecipherable words] & [indecipherable word] good cleanliving [sic] chap [missing words] and a good Catholic. He finished his tour in Feb and was [missing words] until NE when he came back to the squadron with his old enemy [missing words] spent. It is only about a month or so ago, his DFC was promulgated [missing words] weeks ago he was showing me a cable of congrats. from his people [missing word] with the hope he would be home shortly. It was his first flight in Lancasters & it was really stiff at this stage. Of course they had to ride her down when the engines failed for air [indecipherable word] command we don’t carry parachutes. Four died & the other (the nav) is critically injured.
Things have been pretty quiet at the nav. section of late so I whipped up to London for a day shopping yesterday & also had a long yarn to Mr Adamson at Head Office. Strange [missing word] scarcely any Australians round the Strand area & hardly any Yanks around Piccadilly. To get back to the point it was the one day somebody happened to be looking for me & hence I’ve now been giving some ridiculous [deleted] little [/deleted] duties designed to keep in camp for a fortnight. How [missing word] is [indecipherable word] as I see it. I guess they’ll think I’m doing it urgently.
[page break]
Oddly enough my skipper, [missing word] McElwee, was also caught yesterday in [missing word] when he should have been hanging around his section played pontoon I suppose. In any case he got a [missing word] orderly officer. They are getting [missing words] daily.
The Johnson’s told me [missing words] friend going up to Bendigo [missing words] call upon you. I hope you [missing words] your anticipated [missing words] leave [missing words] though it is looking [missing words]
Don’t [missing words] address again & [missing words] it comes up.
Sorry this effort has been so scrappy. You see I didn’t get back up here until all hours last night, walked the 3 miles out to camp. Found I’d been dobbed in yesterday so had to get up early to [indecipherable word] and [indecipherable word] about all day. Hence I’m a bit weary tonight. This pen is also wicked & I hope you can manage to decypher [sic] it.
Good to know Marie seems to have completely recovered & that the rest of you seem to be O.K. I see South & Carlton won the semi finals.
Love to all at home
Pat
[page break]
BY AIR MAIL
AIR LETTER
[postmark]
Mr D H Hogan
67 Chapel St
Bendigo Vic
Australia
[missing words] PH. HOGAN
[missing word] AUSPO
LONDON.
[date stamp 22 SEP 1945]