The Surprising Details of a Few Years of World War 2 1939-1945
Title
The Surprising Details of a Few Years of World War 2 1939-1945
Description
A memoir written by a Royal Australian Air Force wireless operator. Firstly, he describes major events in the war but he continues with his own experience, training in Canada then commencing further training in the UK. Only three pages are present.
This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.
This item was sent to the IBCC Digital Archive already in digital form. No better quality copies are available.
Creator
Spatial Coverage
Coverage
Language
Format
Three printed sheets
Publisher
Rights
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
MRobertsK430224-150527-010001, MRobertsK430224-150527-010002, MRobertsK430224-150527-010003
Transcription
[inserted] 1 [/inserted]
THE SURPRISING DETAILS OF A FEW YEARS OF WORLD WAR 2 1939 - 1945
Recently reading through a very detailed record of the events of World War 2, I found myself thinking along the lines of “I didn’t know that”
As a youngster I recall being interested in a T.V show titled “WHY IS IT SO” So perhaps you may be interested in joining with me as I recollect my surprises, and add a few details of my 3 years service with the RAAF.
Come with me while I recollect some very important years of my life many years ago.
My personal reflections relate to my service as an RAAF wireless operator with the ROYAL AIR FORCE as a member of the crew of a LANCASTER bomber with RAF 218 Squadron at CHEDBURGH Norfolk England.
However let’s start at the beginning.
My memories of this war started with seeing MR. CHAMBERLAIN in 1939 on the newsreels waving a piece of paper declaring “Peace in our time” after returning from a meeting with Adolf Hitler in Berlin.
Tragically this was not the case as almost immediately on the 1st and 2nd of September 1939 Hitler unleashed what is now a familiar word “THE BLITZKRIEG” which indicated the pent up fury and planning that proceeded the atrocities committed at the time by the German Army and Air Force in the attack on and the subsequent invasion of POLAND.
Britain and Australia declared war on MY BIRTHDAY 3rd. September 1939
Surely that’s a milestone!!
I was 15 years old at the time and the suggestion was that the war would be over by Christmas 39 or 40.
How wrong they were!
The superbly trained massive German forces eventually in May 1940 advanced into Belgium and Holland (136 German divisions) and 2500 German aircraft with the new technique of parachuting 16000 airborne troops into Rotterdam, Leiden and the Hague The overwhelming opposition forced the Allied forces on the Continent to retreat and the political turmoil in Britain brought Churchill forth as wartime leader.
The allies fought furiously against the German advances, with huge losses, but on 24th May 1940 the evacuation of approximately 400,000 soldiers commenced from DUNKIRK (France)
The British army with substantial international assistance would return on “D” Day in June 1944.
Later in August 1940 German aircraft commenced bombing British factories and oil storage tanks and 12 aircraft apparently off course bombed London.
At the time British bombers dropped leaflets and eventually bombs on Berlin. German bombing of London was intensified and it was recorded that 1075 civilians were killed in the month of September 1940.
[page break]
Invasion by Germany was anticipated but did not eventuate.
On the 17th of September Hitler postponed the invasion of Britain “until further notice’.
In 1940 the air wars continued and submarines were sinking a very large number of ships delivering supplies to England.
On 22nd June 1941 Germany invaded the Soviet Union.
The German army fought it’s way to Stalingrad with the massacre of thousands of Jewish civilians taking place at every opportunity.
On 12th of September the first snow flurries dropped and the assistance of the Russian winter against the invaders (in unsuitable winter clothing) commenced. Stalin on 14th 41 September ordered that Soviet troops would fight to the death and those who retreated would be shot, and some executions became public knowledge. The atrocious weather and ferocious resistance stopped the German advance and the soldiers retreated. Very many froze to death.. or starved to death.
Military equipment and supplies to Russia by Britain and America via the North sea ensured that the German army had no chance of regaining supremacy on that front. It is estimated that there were around 20 million military and civilian casualities [sic] on that front before hostilities ceased.
In the meantime in all areas Jewish civilians were rounded up and interned in concentration camps. Apart from the camps Jews were regularly slaughtered in large groups where they were, and an estimated 6 million Jews lost their lives during this war.
It is very difficult to comprehend the loss of life on this scale.
On 10/06.40 Italy declared war and Britain continued bombing German cities in response to German bombing of London, Birmingham, Coventry etc.
The British Army was overcome by the German onslaught and was evacuated from Dunkirk from 24/5/40 The battle continued to rage in North Africa and Italy and the world was devastated by the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour on 7/12/41, sinking the bulk of the U.S. Navy ships. Like the Germany blitzkrieg, the Japanese offensive exploded in the Pacific and the Japanese occupied Bangkok on December 9th 1941 and on December 10 made 2 landings on the Malay peninsula, the Gilbert Islands and 1 day later there were 2 additional landings of 2000 troops each on the east and west coasts of the Philipines [sic] and on Hong Kong on Dec 18. Allied troops in the area fought courageously but eventually on 15th Feb 42, 32000 Indian, 16000 British and 14000 Australians surrendered, more than half to die as prisoners of war.
The Japanese continued to advance towards the Australian mainland with landings in Rabaul (Jan 42), the battles of the Kokoda Trail (Jly 42); the first of 64 air raids on Darwin from (17/2/42 and subsequently Broome and Wyndham. The attack on Sydney Harbour by midget submarines took place on 31/5/42.
The Battle of the Coral Sea (2/5/42) fought by the U.S. navy was to stop the invasion forces intended for the Solomon Islands and Port Moresby.
The battle lasted 4 days when the ships on both sides were attacked by aircraft, some with torpedoes and the battle was plane against plane, and plane against ship.
The Americans lost 66 planes and the Japanese 70, with not a single shot being fired ship against ship. The huge damage sustained and loss of personel [sic] forced a stop to the southward expansion which was to have included the invasion of Australian shores. Many ships were sunk including the huge USS Aircraft carrier “LEXINGTON”
[page break]
[inserted] 3 [/inserted]
NOW THE WAR BECOMES PERSONAL FOR ME as at the age of 17 I felt it necessary to join up to help in the battle against the invasion of my homeland. I was accepted into the RAAF on 1st Jan 1943 (aged 18) and commenced training as a wireless operator at Somers. In March 1943, those aged over 19 were sent to train in Canada, which left me with a large number of others to proceed to Ballarat for wireless training. The city had a very cold winter, and I found the blankets supplied had weight but not warmth. I then found at the Easter break that I had to attend hospital with very severe sinus/antrim pain and the subsequent nasty operation and recuperation moved me from course 36 to 38 (2 months later). Let me say that I envied the army personnel who joined together, fought together and de-mobbed together, which later meant a lot of familiar faces of friends at reunions. In the airforce there were few sustained friendships. Anyhow after Ballarat it was on to Sale for gunnery training, then to the M.C.G. to be kitted out with summer uniforms which confused us and other observers. We boarded the USS Mt. Vernon for transport to San Fransisco USA. then across the USA by train to New York and pre-embarkation leave. Eventually we were loaded on to the 4 funnel ‘Isle de France’ which pulled away from the wharf late at night, and the next morning we found we were tied up again at the wharf, as sabotage in the form of kerosene soaked blankets had been found in the kitchen. A few more days leave and we were loaded aboard the ‘Queen Mary’ to sleep in 6 tiered bunks in half of a first class cabin.
The ship was full to capacity, and many hammocks were shared in 12 hour shifts. Fortunately in Jan 41. the Americans obtained examples of the Japanese “Purple” and German “Enigma” coding machines and from then on messages were deciphered at Bletchley Park decoding and intelligence section. This meant that the British were able to track the movement of submarines, amongst other things, substantially reducing what had been horrific losses of ships transporting supplies across the Atlantic. Also the Queen Mary could easily outdistance any submarines. (Strangely the Germans did not know that the code was broken, and this situation fortunately continued to the end of the war)
Being commissioned I was one of a number required to attend the bridge to scan the ocean’s 40 foot waves and fog for periscopes.
We landed without incident on 7th Jan 1943 and Australian airmen were transported by train to our holding unit which was the ‘Grand Hotel’ Brighton, England. A number of our course were eventually sent to Llandurog [sic] Northern Wales (16/5/44) for advanced wireless training. It was here a very good friend was killed when the aircraft slammed into Mt. Snowden in the fog. Back to Brighton, and shortly after a trip to an unused holiday resort at Filey Yorkshire for a commando training course which included climbing up and down huge nets, and tearing around through 4 feet of snow stabbing dummies with bayonets attached to .303 rifles. In June 44 we went to Desborough Northampton for O.T.U. training on 2-engined Wellingtons. The first day all the trades were assembled in a large hanger, [sic] and the pilots present were instructed to locate 5 other airmen prepared to form a crew. Fortunately my eventual pilot was not put off by the dark blue uniform (or the Australian shoulder badges), as he was determined to have an all commissioned crew, and wireless ops were thin on the ground. He eventually found a couple of gunners who were friends, and had recently returned from instructing in Canada with commissions, (the crew were all English but me). We did 31 trips in Wellingtons and then in Sept 44 went on to Shepherd’s Grove Suffolk 1657 heavy conversion unit for training on 4-engined Stirlings where we acquired a Sgt engineer needed in the larger aircraft. These aircraft had been in constant use as bombers, and now in retirement badly needed new
THE SURPRISING DETAILS OF A FEW YEARS OF WORLD WAR 2 1939 - 1945
Recently reading through a very detailed record of the events of World War 2, I found myself thinking along the lines of “I didn’t know that”
As a youngster I recall being interested in a T.V show titled “WHY IS IT SO” So perhaps you may be interested in joining with me as I recollect my surprises, and add a few details of my 3 years service with the RAAF.
Come with me while I recollect some very important years of my life many years ago.
My personal reflections relate to my service as an RAAF wireless operator with the ROYAL AIR FORCE as a member of the crew of a LANCASTER bomber with RAF 218 Squadron at CHEDBURGH Norfolk England.
However let’s start at the beginning.
My memories of this war started with seeing MR. CHAMBERLAIN in 1939 on the newsreels waving a piece of paper declaring “Peace in our time” after returning from a meeting with Adolf Hitler in Berlin.
Tragically this was not the case as almost immediately on the 1st and 2nd of September 1939 Hitler unleashed what is now a familiar word “THE BLITZKRIEG” which indicated the pent up fury and planning that proceeded the atrocities committed at the time by the German Army and Air Force in the attack on and the subsequent invasion of POLAND.
Britain and Australia declared war on MY BIRTHDAY 3rd. September 1939
Surely that’s a milestone!!
I was 15 years old at the time and the suggestion was that the war would be over by Christmas 39 or 40.
How wrong they were!
The superbly trained massive German forces eventually in May 1940 advanced into Belgium and Holland (136 German divisions) and 2500 German aircraft with the new technique of parachuting 16000 airborne troops into Rotterdam, Leiden and the Hague The overwhelming opposition forced the Allied forces on the Continent to retreat and the political turmoil in Britain brought Churchill forth as wartime leader.
The allies fought furiously against the German advances, with huge losses, but on 24th May 1940 the evacuation of approximately 400,000 soldiers commenced from DUNKIRK (France)
The British army with substantial international assistance would return on “D” Day in June 1944.
Later in August 1940 German aircraft commenced bombing British factories and oil storage tanks and 12 aircraft apparently off course bombed London.
At the time British bombers dropped leaflets and eventually bombs on Berlin. German bombing of London was intensified and it was recorded that 1075 civilians were killed in the month of September 1940.
[page break]
Invasion by Germany was anticipated but did not eventuate.
On the 17th of September Hitler postponed the invasion of Britain “until further notice’.
In 1940 the air wars continued and submarines were sinking a very large number of ships delivering supplies to England.
On 22nd June 1941 Germany invaded the Soviet Union.
The German army fought it’s way to Stalingrad with the massacre of thousands of Jewish civilians taking place at every opportunity.
On 12th of September the first snow flurries dropped and the assistance of the Russian winter against the invaders (in unsuitable winter clothing) commenced. Stalin on 14th 41 September ordered that Soviet troops would fight to the death and those who retreated would be shot, and some executions became public knowledge. The atrocious weather and ferocious resistance stopped the German advance and the soldiers retreated. Very many froze to death.. or starved to death.
Military equipment and supplies to Russia by Britain and America via the North sea ensured that the German army had no chance of regaining supremacy on that front. It is estimated that there were around 20 million military and civilian casualities [sic] on that front before hostilities ceased.
In the meantime in all areas Jewish civilians were rounded up and interned in concentration camps. Apart from the camps Jews were regularly slaughtered in large groups where they were, and an estimated 6 million Jews lost their lives during this war.
It is very difficult to comprehend the loss of life on this scale.
On 10/06.40 Italy declared war and Britain continued bombing German cities in response to German bombing of London, Birmingham, Coventry etc.
The British Army was overcome by the German onslaught and was evacuated from Dunkirk from 24/5/40 The battle continued to rage in North Africa and Italy and the world was devastated by the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbour on 7/12/41, sinking the bulk of the U.S. Navy ships. Like the Germany blitzkrieg, the Japanese offensive exploded in the Pacific and the Japanese occupied Bangkok on December 9th 1941 and on December 10 made 2 landings on the Malay peninsula, the Gilbert Islands and 1 day later there were 2 additional landings of 2000 troops each on the east and west coasts of the Philipines [sic] and on Hong Kong on Dec 18. Allied troops in the area fought courageously but eventually on 15th Feb 42, 32000 Indian, 16000 British and 14000 Australians surrendered, more than half to die as prisoners of war.
The Japanese continued to advance towards the Australian mainland with landings in Rabaul (Jan 42), the battles of the Kokoda Trail (Jly 42); the first of 64 air raids on Darwin from (17/2/42 and subsequently Broome and Wyndham. The attack on Sydney Harbour by midget submarines took place on 31/5/42.
The Battle of the Coral Sea (2/5/42) fought by the U.S. navy was to stop the invasion forces intended for the Solomon Islands and Port Moresby.
The battle lasted 4 days when the ships on both sides were attacked by aircraft, some with torpedoes and the battle was plane against plane, and plane against ship.
The Americans lost 66 planes and the Japanese 70, with not a single shot being fired ship against ship. The huge damage sustained and loss of personel [sic] forced a stop to the southward expansion which was to have included the invasion of Australian shores. Many ships were sunk including the huge USS Aircraft carrier “LEXINGTON”
[page break]
[inserted] 3 [/inserted]
NOW THE WAR BECOMES PERSONAL FOR ME as at the age of 17 I felt it necessary to join up to help in the battle against the invasion of my homeland. I was accepted into the RAAF on 1st Jan 1943 (aged 18) and commenced training as a wireless operator at Somers. In March 1943, those aged over 19 were sent to train in Canada, which left me with a large number of others to proceed to Ballarat for wireless training. The city had a very cold winter, and I found the blankets supplied had weight but not warmth. I then found at the Easter break that I had to attend hospital with very severe sinus/antrim pain and the subsequent nasty operation and recuperation moved me from course 36 to 38 (2 months later). Let me say that I envied the army personnel who joined together, fought together and de-mobbed together, which later meant a lot of familiar faces of friends at reunions. In the airforce there were few sustained friendships. Anyhow after Ballarat it was on to Sale for gunnery training, then to the M.C.G. to be kitted out with summer uniforms which confused us and other observers. We boarded the USS Mt. Vernon for transport to San Fransisco USA. then across the USA by train to New York and pre-embarkation leave. Eventually we were loaded on to the 4 funnel ‘Isle de France’ which pulled away from the wharf late at night, and the next morning we found we were tied up again at the wharf, as sabotage in the form of kerosene soaked blankets had been found in the kitchen. A few more days leave and we were loaded aboard the ‘Queen Mary’ to sleep in 6 tiered bunks in half of a first class cabin.
The ship was full to capacity, and many hammocks were shared in 12 hour shifts. Fortunately in Jan 41. the Americans obtained examples of the Japanese “Purple” and German “Enigma” coding machines and from then on messages were deciphered at Bletchley Park decoding and intelligence section. This meant that the British were able to track the movement of submarines, amongst other things, substantially reducing what had been horrific losses of ships transporting supplies across the Atlantic. Also the Queen Mary could easily outdistance any submarines. (Strangely the Germans did not know that the code was broken, and this situation fortunately continued to the end of the war)
Being commissioned I was one of a number required to attend the bridge to scan the ocean’s 40 foot waves and fog for periscopes.
We landed without incident on 7th Jan 1943 and Australian airmen were transported by train to our holding unit which was the ‘Grand Hotel’ Brighton, England. A number of our course were eventually sent to Llandurog [sic] Northern Wales (16/5/44) for advanced wireless training. It was here a very good friend was killed when the aircraft slammed into Mt. Snowden in the fog. Back to Brighton, and shortly after a trip to an unused holiday resort at Filey Yorkshire for a commando training course which included climbing up and down huge nets, and tearing around through 4 feet of snow stabbing dummies with bayonets attached to .303 rifles. In June 44 we went to Desborough Northampton for O.T.U. training on 2-engined Wellingtons. The first day all the trades were assembled in a large hanger, [sic] and the pilots present were instructed to locate 5 other airmen prepared to form a crew. Fortunately my eventual pilot was not put off by the dark blue uniform (or the Australian shoulder badges), as he was determined to have an all commissioned crew, and wireless ops were thin on the ground. He eventually found a couple of gunners who were friends, and had recently returned from instructing in Canada with commissions, (the crew were all English but me). We did 31 trips in Wellingtons and then in Sept 44 went on to Shepherd’s Grove Suffolk 1657 heavy conversion unit for training on 4-engined Stirlings where we acquired a Sgt engineer needed in the larger aircraft. These aircraft had been in constant use as bombers, and now in retirement badly needed new
Collection
Citation
Kevin Roberts, “The Surprising Details of a Few Years of World War 2 1939-1945,” IBCC Digital Archive, accessed May 12, 2025, https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/38126.
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