This recording was made around 1990, as Leslie recounts the story to his grandson, Matt Phillips.
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Matt Philips]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Anne-Marie Watson]]> Carolyn Emery]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Gibraltar]]> Great Britain]]> Malta]]> Mediterranean Sea]]> Middle East]]> Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay]]> England--Berkshire]]> 1941-07]]>
G H A Bilton]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Civilian]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Canadian Air Force]]> Great Britain]]> England--Yorkshire]]> England--Hull]]> England--Lancashire]]> England--Blackpool]]> Wales--Vale of Glamorgan]]> England--Durham (County)]]> England--Leicestershire]]> Burma]]> Germany]]> Germany--Düsseldorf]]> Germany--Ludwigshafen am Rhein]]> Germany--Kiel]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Stuttgart]]> England--Berkshire]]> France]]> France--La Rochelle]]> France--Lille]]> France--Boulogne-sur-Mer]]> France--Caen]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> France--Paris]]> France--Creil]]> France--Falaise]]> Germany--Braunschweig]]> France--Brest]]> England--Sussex]]> England--Huntingdonshire]]> Italy]]> Italy--Bari]]> Denmark]]> Denmark--Copenhagen]]> Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea]]> Atlantic Ocean--English Channel]]> Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> France--Chantilly Forest]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> 1946]]> Chris Brockbank]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Tilly Foster]]> Jean Massie]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Egypt]]> Great Britain]]> Italy]]> Libya]]> North Africa]]> Egypt--Suez Canal]]> England--Buckinghamshire]]> England--Cornwall (County)]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Somerset]]> England--Oxford]]> England--Shropshire]]> Italy--Naples]]> Libya--Tripoli]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> John Horsburgh]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams ]]> Pending review]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> British Army]]> Australia]]> New South Wales]]> Egypt]]> Egypt--Cairo]]> Great Britain]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Scotland--Lossiemouth]]> Greece]]> Greece--Crete]]> Libya]]> Libya--Tobruk]]> Italy]]> Italy--Sicily]]> Malta]]> North Africa]]> 1939]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> Adam Sutch]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Australian Air Force]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Poland]]> Atlantic Ocean--North Sea]]> England--Berkshire]]> England--Cornwall (County)]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Frankfurt am Main]]> Germany--Oberursel]]> Poland--Żagań]]> 1941]]> 1942]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> Adam Sutch]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Peter Schulze]]> Carolyn Emery]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Canada]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Southeast Asia]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Dresden]]> Germany--Essen]]> Germany--Hamburg]]> Germany--Hannover]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> United States]]> Alabama--Montgomery]]> 1940]]> 1941]]> 1943]]> 1944]]> 1945]]> Jennifer Barraclough]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Egypt]]> France]]> Germany]]> Great Britain]]> Malta]]> North Africa]]> Egypt--Suez Canal Region]]> England--Bedfordshire]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Wiltshire]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Libya]]> Libya--Bardiyah]]> 1942-05-30]]> 1942-06-11]]> Flying training commenced at RAF Booker on Tiger Moths and he was then sent out of England as part of the Empire Training Scheme. Flying training on Stearman aircraft recommenced at Lakeland in Florida followed by multi-engined training at Macon in Georgia and Valdosta for advanced training. In October 1942 he became a pilot under the American Army Air Force System and declined an offer to stay and become an instructor.
Returning to Britain on an unescorted Queen Elizabeth liner, he trained on Oxfords at RAF Little Rissington. Posted to RAF Harwell to fly, in Bluey's terms "clapped out Wellingtons" he describes the system for forming a crew. They were posted to RAF Riccall to fly the Halifax.
The next posting was to an operational squadron at RAF Lissett where he did his first operational flight to Krefeld in June 1943 and trips to Berlin, Cologne and Mannheim. After his trip to Krefeld, his rear gunner refused to fly and was removed. On his second trip to Mannheim, Bluey's aircraft was struck by a bomb from an aircraft flying above. They had to reduce height and so used Window to disguise their location. The final trip was to Berlin in November 1943 and, having completed his tour, was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Bluey never flew again. Sent to Tilly Whim, Bluey was trained to operate Oboe and explains the device. Posted to an Oboe station at RAF Winterton to monitor junior operatives, he met his future wife.
After the war had finished he became an instructor on the Link Trainer and sent to various RAF stations and finally to RAF Marham from where he was demobilised and returned to civilian life. In civilian life, employment in the farm feed industry was followed by time in the lubricant industry until retirement. Bluey compiled a register of all crews that flew with 158 Squadron and formed a Squadron association in 1947, of which he became president, and organised a memorial to the squadron at former RAF Lissett.]]>
Annie Moody]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Pending revision of OH transcription]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> England--Gloucestershire]]> England--Norfolk]]> England--Oxfordshire]]> England--Suffolk]]> England--Yorkshire]]> Canada]]> United States]]> Florida]]> Florida--Lakeland]]> Georgia]]> Georgia--Macon]]> Germany]]> Germany--Ruhr (Region)]]> Germany--Berlin]]> Germany--Cologne]]> Germany--Krefeld]]> Germany--Mannheim]]> 1943-06]]> 1943-11]]>
Mick Jeffery]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Christine Kavanagh]]> Pending review]]> Pending OH summary]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Air Force. Coastal Command]]> Civilian]]> Great Britain]]> England--Cambridgeshire]]> England--Lincolnshire]]> Adam Purcell]]> IBCC Digital Archive]]> Julie Williams]]> Pending review]]> Pending OH summary]]> eng]]> Sound]]> Royal Air Force]]> Royal Air Force. Bomber Command]]> Royal Australian Air Force]]> Australia]]> Burma]]> Great Britain]]> India]]> India--Bengal]]> Victoria]]> Victoria--Mount Martha]]> Victoria]]> 1941]]> 1943]]> 1945]]>