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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
Anderson, William
William Anderson
Les Anderson
W L M Anderson
William Leslie Milne Anderson
Description
An account of the resource
Two items. An oral history interview with Flying Officer William Leslie Milne Anderson (1925 - 2018, 196733 Royal Air Force), and one photograph. William Anderson was a flight engineer and flew operations in Lancasters with 166 Squadron from RAF Kirmington.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by William Anderson and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
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
2015-05-17
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Anderson, W
Transcribed audio recording
A resource consisting primarily of recorded human voice.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
WA: My name is William Lesley Milne Anderson, and I’m recording this for the International Bomber Command Centre, on the seventeenth of May, 2015 [pause] at – where am I [pause] at Beverley, in Yorkshire.
MJ: Right that’ll –
WA: Right [pause] I was a flight engineer on Lancaster aircraft. My rank a, at the end was flying [emphasis] officer. [Pause] I went to Edinburgh Aircrew Recruitment Centre when I was eighteen and a quarter, hoping to join the RAF and to fly. Everybody wanted to be a pilot. I went there with a school pal of mine who was going to join up as well, but we were told, at that time, if we wanted to be down for pilots, if we pass the various medical and tests, we would have to wait for nine months before we were called up. So this friend of mine decided, ‘fair enough’, to accept nine months wait so that he could eventually become a pilot, whereas I decided that I’d go for something else, and when I asked what was available to go more or less straight away I was told ‘a flight engineer’, so I said ‘that’ll do me fine’. [Pause] I w – when war broke out I’d only be, oh, fourteen [pause] and [pause] but, I thought ‘well, if I’ve got to go into the forces, I would rather fly somewhere than walk in the Army [laughs] to get there’, so that’s why I chose the Air Force. The training was at a place called Saint Athan in South Wales, that was after – well funnily enough, I had to report to Lords cricket ground, and that was where we had a medical and were issued with a uniform, and then we were marched along to a part of London called Saint John’s Wood, and when we had to go and collect our pay one day we were marched to the zoo [emphasis], I thought – was funny, I been in the Air Force and I’ve landed in a cricket ground, in a block of flats, and I get paid from the zoo [laughs]. So I thought ‘when do I see an aeroplane’. However, I was, was going to have to wait quite a bit longer [emphasis] because after, think it was a fortnight or three weeks, we were posted to Torquay, and when we got to Torquay we found that quite a lot of the hotels [pause] had been taken over by the RAF, and there, once again [emphasis], no aeroplanes in sight! But we did the basic training, the marching, ohhhh, the guard duties, even a bit of clay pigeon [emphasis] shooting, and this went on for about twelve weeks, and after the twelve weeks we were sent off to Saint Athan, and at last [emphasis] thank goodness, there were aeroplanes, because [pause] it was – I can’t remember exactly how long, but it was interesting, not sitting in little classrooms, but in a big [pause] building – a hanger I suppose – divided up into sections, where you could hear what was going on just across the wooden division that was separating you from the next group. So anyway – oh I missed the bit out where, at – the important bit, was I couldn’t swim [emphasis] [pause] and, they didn’t tell me, when I got to Torquay, until I got to Torquay, that I had to pass a swimming [emphasis] test, and so they took us down to the harbour, and the Corporal lined at the squad I was in [?], on the harbour, and told us we were going to jump in, and swim down just about twenty yards to a set of steps so that we could climb up to the top again. Luckily we had a Mae West , but [emphasis] my name being Anderson, on some occasions, is very handy because quite often you’re first, but in this case there was a chap called Adams before me, and when the Corporal said ‘Adams, jump in’, Adams said ‘I can’t swim, I’m not jumping in’, and so he said ‘Anderson, in you go’, and I said ‘I can’t swim, I’m not jumping in’, and so he said ‘if you go in the way I tell you to, you’ll go in and hit the water without doing yourself any damage. If I’ve got to push [emphasis] you in, you might land on your head or your back or your behind’, so bearing in mind that we got a Mae West on, he said ‘curl your toes over the edge of the harbour wall [pause] hold your nose, and take one step forward’, and of course, went down, and when I opened my eyes under water I saw millions of little bubbles, and with a Mae West on I was shot to the surface and up, and somehow or other I managed to get to the steps – don’t know how. But, when all the squad had been in, there was Adams, still in the water, still in the same spot where he’d jumped in, paddling like mad but going nowhere. So the Corporal said, ‘one of the swimmers, jump in, drag him to the side’, and that was our introduction to swimming. The rest of the swimming was done in the baths. And then, when we got to Saint Athan we carried on with swimming there. [Pause] Now, so, we did quite a bit of training at Saint Athan, I would say it was a very good course, and so, when the course was finished, although we’d made some friends during the time we were there, we were broken up by being posted to different placed training units up and down the country. I landed up in 1656 Heavy Conversion Unit at Lindholme just outside Doncaster. That was where I met the crew. The six other crew had been together for a while, flying of course, in two-engined Wellingtons, and the Conversion Unit was to convert them to four engine aircrafts so they had to pick up a flight engineer. At that time, which would be [pause] forty-three [pause] forty-three, most of the Lancasters were going from the factories to the squadrons, so we were actually trained on Halifaxes [pause] and then after a course there we went for a fortnight to RAF Hemswell which at that time was number one Lancaster finishing school, and we were only there for [pause] two weeks, and I seem to remember [pause] most of the work that we did there was ground work on the systems different in the Lancaster from the Halifaxes and the flying [pause] consisted only of circuits and bumps, daylight, circuits and bumps at night, and the number of flying errands we did was eight, and we were sent off to the squadron, and the squadron happened to be 166 Kirmington, which nowadays is, of course, Humberside International Airport. [Pause] At Kirmington [pause] it was a fairly basic [emphasis] airfield, had only opened in forty-three, near the end of the year, and [pause] roundabout in the countryside there were lots and lots of trees, forest, and the, the huts, the mission huts we were in, were in the trees. Fair bit of walking to be done to get to the airfield if you happen to miss the transports, but [pause] on the whole, it was Kirmington village, the people were very good to us, although I didn’t particularly drink, there was only one pub in the village [pause] that was in forty-four by this time – May. Now [pause] oh, got stuck, um, yes. The crew that I joined at Lindholme contained three Canadians, the mid-upper gunner, the rear gunner, and bomb aimer, were all from Canada. The pilot was English, from Halifax, the navigator was from Leicester, and the wireless operator was from a village – I’ve forgotten the name of the village again, but up somewhere around Newcastle. [Pause] Anyway, off we go, and start operations. We were lucky [pause] inasmuch that the battle for Berlin had finished roughly in the January of that year, because Berlin causalities had been heavy. Many of the trips that we did were not long trips because at that time – [pause] oh, forgotten, sixth of June, D-Day, that was the start, that was my first operation, sixth of June, D-Day, and that was to a marshalling yard north of Paris. A lot of marshalling yards had, were being attacked to make sure that the troops and supplies didn’t reach D-Day, er, reach the [pause] [knocks on something] [pause] and of course [pause] doodlebugs had put in an appearance, and so they had to be taken care of, and so many of the doodlebugs were, weren’t very far in to France, so a number of the trips were fairly short. For that we were thankful. Some of the trips of course were quite long. Anyway, we had got there in May, forty-four, and we did our last trip on the thirtieth of August forty-four. My skipper, the navigator, and myself, were all posted back to Lindholme as instructors. My skipper decided that he would like to stay in the RAF and by this time he had become a squadron leader, so he applied for a permanent commission. He stayed in and did his time after the war was finished, and finished up as Group Captain Laurie Holmes DFC, AFC [pause] and the OBE [laughs]. [Pause] When the war finished, because of my age I knew my demob group was a long way off, and I didn’t see much point in instructing to pass crews on to still to squadrons as if the war was still on, so I applied to join Transport Command. [Pause] Just as well, because, although the war finished, May, forty-five, I didn’t get out until, somewhere about August forty-seven! [Laughs]. But in that time I saw quite a bit of the world and got paid for it in Transport Command, flying on Yorks, which was virtually a Lancaster with a different shaped body. First flying carrying freight, because they changed the shape of the body so that freight could go easily in, or seats could be put in for passengers. After a number of trips taking us as far as Delhi and back, we were reassessed and went on to passenger carrying. Still Yorks, of course this time with seats in, and we went as far as Changi, Singapore, and that was our turnaround point, and came back. [Unclear muttering] [break in tape]. Well luck [emphasis] had to play a big part in things, I mean as I said earlier on, many, a number of our flights were fairly short because it was the time when doodlebugs were around, and they had got to be get rid [emphasis] of. Also, when you found that you were maybe down for mining. Mining was considered a, oh, quite a, you know, easy [emphasis] flight, mining, going along drop some mines in the water, come back. But we, one night, had to go to a place about fifty miles from Russia, right along the Baltic, and there were the airfield next to us, or closest to us, was called Elsham Wolds and there they had a, oh well all together there twelve Lancasters going mining at this target, all that distance away, and five were from Kirmington, and seven were from Elsham Wolds. Now because it was near the end of our tour, [unclear] some systems and some squadrons where, as you were classed as being more experienced, you moved up, from say maybe the third wave, to the second, to the first, and somebody got to be first in dropping – until this particular night we were down to drop first, the mines. But we went out with four hundred other aircraft that were going to Keel, but so we left this country, crossed the North Sea, in the company of four hundred other aircraft. Didn’t see four hundred aircraft but nevertheless, that’s what they said there were there, and then they turned off to starboard, to head for Kiel, where we kept on along the Baltic – twelve of us, supposed to be. As we got near the target [pause] a searchlight popped up, and another one, and another one, the three of them started waving around and we thought ‘they know we’re coming’. However, after they’d waved about for a little while they all went out – sigh of relief. So we were supposed to drop first. So we dropped and went through the target a bit and turned away and headed back, and as we turned away the searchlights came on, so the rest of the aircraft had to come through searchlights, but, although there was fire from the Baltic, from ships in the Baltic and [emphasis] from the harbour, we didn’t see any aircraft shot down. However, we had been told that we might not get back into Kirmington because of weather and so we were given an alternative route back to land at Lossiemouth, North of Scotland, so we landed up there, and but there weren’t twelve Lancasters, but we didn’t think much of it at the time because [pause] we knew that the weather was such that we weren’t getting back into Kirmington or Elsham, so then, landed somewhere else, maybe couldn’t get into Lossiemouth, or anyway, I don’t know, but it wasn’t until the next day that we got back to Kirmington that we found that we had lost two out of the five aircraft and word came through from Elsham Wolds that they had lost three out of the seven. Which meant five out of twelve, which wasn’t a very good result, and yet [emphasis] in coming back all [emphasis] that way, along the Baltic, we didn’t see an aircraft being attacked, or an explosion, but when the chap called – Squadron Leader Wright [?] came to read or to write the history of 166 Squadron, in doing research, they found the bodies had been washed up in, er, countries bordering the Baltic, from, from the raids. So, there we are – luck. Lost five out of twelve aircraft, but you haven’t seen one attacked, you haven’t seen one explode, you haven’t seen one on fire, you get back to Lossiemouth without any problems, you know.
MJ: And that’s unusual.
WA: Aye. But five out of twelve, aye. But for a mining trip, and people were thinking ‘oh, Holmsey [?] and crew they’ve been lucky they’ve been down to do a mining trip tonight’ you know, aye [laughs]. So, aye it’s, I don’t know. Anyway, anyway up there, that’s [break in tape].
MJ: On behalf of the International Bomber Command Oral History Project, I Michael Jeffries would like to thank Flight Officer Anderson for his recording on the date of the seventeenth of May, 2015. Thank you very much.
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 William Anderson
Description
An account of the resource
Flight Officer William Anderson began his service in the Royal Air Force at the age of eighteen when he signed up in Edinburgh. In this interview he speaks about his training, reporting to Lord’s Cricket Ground in London, being paid at the London Zoo, and having to learn quickly how to swim in Torquay. After training at RAF St Athan, he was posted to 1656 Heavy Conversion Unit, and joined a Lancaster crew based at RAF Kirmington. His first operation was on D-Day to a marshalling yard near Paris. After that Anderson recounts stories of going on mine laying operations, particularly one over the Baltic, where five out of twelve aircraft were lost on one operation.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Michael Jeffries
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
IBCC Digital Archive
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Christina Brown
Heather Hughes
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
AAndersonW150517
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Great Britain. Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
00:30:43 audio recording
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-05-17
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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.
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Sound
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. Transport Command
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England
France
Wales
Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea
England--Devon
England--Lincolnshire
England--Yorkshire
France--Normandy
Wales--Vale of Glamorgan
Scotland--Moray
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944
1656 HCU
166 Squadron
bombing
Halifax
Heavy Conversion Unit
Initial Training Wing
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
mine laying
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
RAF Hemswell
RAF Kirmington
RAF Lindholme
RAF Lossiemouth
RAF St Athan
RAF Torquay
recruitment
searchlight
training
York
-
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c2656e75ffd94b4b1f86adb1d22046d5
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
Boldy, David
Dave Boldy
D A Boldy
Description
An account of the resource
334 items. The collection concerns Flight Sergeant David Adrian Boldy (1918 – 1942, 923995 Royal Air Force) and consists of his school reports, letters from school and photographs of family and locations in India, letters from training and service, and photographs from his social life and time training. It also includes newspaper cuttings and letters about him being missing in action. David Boldy was born and attended school in India and studied law at Kings College London. He volunteered for the Royal Air Force and trained as an air gunner in South Africa. He flew operations in Manchesters and Lancasters with 207 Squadron from RAF Bottesford. His aircraft failed to return from an operation to Gdańsk 11 July 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by David Boldy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.<br /><br />Additional information on David Boldy is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/102182/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Boldy, DA
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[underlined] [deleted] R.A.F Torquay. [/deleted] [underlined]
from Boldy.
59, Bathurst Mews.
Lancaster Gate,
London. W. 2.
My darling Dad,
Mum tells me that she has sent several of my letters to her on to you so you can regard them as written to you as well.
I am getting on very well here & rather enjoying life. Now and again we get rather fed up with the petty red tape in existence but otherwise it is a fine life. I have now been in the R.A.F. ten weeks. Each pay day - & every other Friday - we beat up the town & frequent the local taverns. We have some good fun. I have joined a Tennis club behind our billet - & have had some rather good tennis. I played in the Squadron Singles tournament & was beaten in the first round 2-6, 4-6. I led 4-1 in the [deleted] L [/deleted] second set. The
[page break]
court was asphalt and I just cannot play on it. There is nothing like a game on lawn.
Last week-end I managed to get home. I arrived on Saturday 10 p.m. and had to leave Sunday 4pm. Still it was worth it despite the short time. I had a very nice weekend. Steve had come in from Harefield brought a fellow student. Mum treated me royally. I may be able to go up again pretty soon.
We have done a lot of bathing [deleted] p [/deleted] P.T. here and every one I met in London remarked on how fit and tanned I was looking.
The subject’s [sic] we have studied lately are, Maths, Armaments – guns on the planes –, Navigation and Signals – Morse Code – I can do 4 words per min. The requisite amount being 6.
No more at the moment.
God bless you.
[underlined] Love Dave. [/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/.
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from Sergeant David Boldy to his father, regarding his initial training and visiting his mother at home.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Boldy
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Two page handwritten letter
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text. Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EBoldyDABoldyAD[Date]-02
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
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1945-08
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 David Boldy to his father
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
England--Devon
Great Britain
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Karl Williams
Morse-keyed wireless telegraphy
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/53/504/EBoldyDABoldyAD400627.2.pdf
bcb06d69c1d9954e3bdab1e616e7dc07
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
Boldy, David
Dave Boldy
D A Boldy
Description
An account of the resource
334 items. The collection concerns Flight Sergeant David Adrian Boldy (1918 – 1942, 923995 Royal Air Force) and consists of his school reports, letters from school and photographs of family and locations in India, letters from training and service, and photographs from his social life and time training. It also includes newspaper cuttings and letters about him being missing in action. David Boldy was born and attended school in India and studied law at Kings College London. He volunteered for the Royal Air Force and trained as an air gunner in South Africa. He flew operations in Manchesters and Lancasters with 207 Squadron from RAF Bottesford. His aircraft failed to return from an operation to Gdańsk 11 July 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by David Boldy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.<br /><br />Additional information on David Boldy is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/102182/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Boldy, DA
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[inserted in different hand][underlined] London, W.2. [/underlined]. 59, Bathurst Mews,
Boldy - Lancaster Gate
London, W.2. [/ inserted in different hand]
27th June, 1940.
My darling Dad,
I’m awfully sorry I haven’t written for some Time but we have had another change & are working very hard. We spent twelve days at Hasting. It was very pleasant. We did not like the first two days but then got used to it. The programme there was an early morning dip in the sea. This was followed by Parade. We then had maths & signals – the latter is Morse Code – After this P.T. – On Wednesdays we have organised games such as Tennis water-polo, etc . Also a couple of Antigas lectures are thrown in. we have not yet started Navigation but I don’t think it will be long now. After din [sic] we were free to go out. I have acquired quite a habit now of
[page break]
going in for a swim almost everyday.
We are now at Torquay. It is a very picturesque place. I forgot to mention socially Hastings was quite amusing. I did not do much apart from swimming. The programme here is more or less the same as at Hastings. The only difference here is that the R.A.F. have never been here before. The result is that everyone stares at us when we drill or march to the dining Hall. It is very amusing. There are masses of girls here so as soon as the R.A.F. is payed [sic] we shall have to beat the town up. the bathing here is not very good as it is very shallow for a long way. I hear however that there are some very nice places close by.
The weather here is supposed to be very hot & tropical. We have
[page break]
not noticed it so far as we are not having really good weather at the moment.
The Political news is terrible. I cannot understand the attitude Taken up by the French government. They could easily have fought on from their colonies and Taken the fleet, Air force and all available men & materials. All this will be hopelessly out of date by the Time you receive this letter.
Incidentally Cecil one of my best pals at College was at Hastings under training as a pilot. He is now at Torquay. I met him the other day. As I know where he is I shall be seeing a lot of him.
I am here with most of my friends. Half of us our [sic] in the same room. We are billeted in
[page break]
Hotels, run completely by us of course. Our room faces some Tennis Courts and the bay. The view is lovely.
We work very hard here, and am just about all in at the end of the day. I am looking very fit and well Tanned [sic].
At Hastings we had a couple of Air Raid Warnings at Hastings. The night we slept on the Concrete floor of an Air Raid Shelter. Nothing happened & we didn’t here[sic] anything. Anyway we were too sleepy to worry.
Don’t worry about us & keep your chin up.
No more to-day. God bless & keep you for us.
Love Dave. [hand drawn picture of cap]
[inserted in different hand] [underlined] P.S. [/underlined] [underlined] 1 [/underlined]
[underlined] 8th July [/underlined].
I am afraid this will get over weight for the Air Mail if I add a sheet. Dave came in on Saturday the 6 th at 10.p.m. looking absolutely fine. His cap had a white bit in front something like in my attempt at drawing, this is to show they are Air Crew & are they proud of it! We gave him a very happy 18 hours & were glad to have him that long. Steve & his friend John Porace were here for the weekend too. We saw him off at Paddington, 5 minutes from here & met some of his lot. Nice boys. All the little mothers sporting their R.A.F. brooches (winged), & smiled bravely, grateful for the brief glimpse of their boys. Dave took back plenty of luck, 50 cigarettes & my tooth paste! Love Baby. [inserted in different hand]
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/.
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from David Boldy to his father about his daily activities at Hastings, and then at Torquay. Comments on the French government, mentions a meeting with Cecil and cadet training
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Boldy
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940-06-27
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four page handwritten letter
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text. Correspondence
Artwork
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EBoldyDABoldyAD400627
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--Hastings
England--Torquay
England--Devon
England--Sussex
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-06
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 David Boldy to his father
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Steve Baldwin
Andy Hamilton
aircrew
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/53/505/EBoldyDABoldyAD400828-0001.2.jpg
0548f06acf1c8e79782da809eb7d9621
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/53/505/EBoldyDABoldyAD400828-0002.2.jpg
fecc8fabff2b1e0c610eca72e25a4560
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
Boldy, David
Dave Boldy
D A Boldy
Description
An account of the resource
334 items. The collection concerns Flight Sergeant David Adrian Boldy (1918 – 1942, 923995 Royal Air Force) and consists of his school reports, letters from school and photographs of family and locations in India, letters from training and service, and photographs from his social life and time training. It also includes newspaper cuttings and letters about him being missing in action. David Boldy was born and attended school in India and studied law at Kings College London. He volunteered for the Royal Air Force and trained as an air gunner in South Africa. He flew operations in Manchesters and Lancasters with 207 Squadron from RAF Bottesford. His aircraft failed to return from an operation to Gdańsk 11 July 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by David Boldy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.<br /><br />Additional information on David Boldy is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/102182/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Boldy, DA
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
From D. A. Boldy.
D Flight, No 3 Squadron,
No 5 I.T.W.
R.A.F. Torquay.
R.A.F. Torquay.
28th August. 1940.
My darling Dad,
Thanks for your letter. I am glad to hear you are back at work & hope you have a successful season.
About ten days ago I came back from my week’s leave. I had a wonderful time & thoroughly enjoyed myself. Steve also took a week’s leave. Peter my friend who had joined the navy was also in London on 28 days sick leave as he had been wounded. He is quite allright [sic] now. All of us felt terribly tired out when we got back as we had hit the hay, but it was worth it.
I have finished the initial course & now await posting to a navigation school. My average for the whole was 90%. At the moment we are still doing the same as before, drill, P.T. & lectures. I am enclosing a photograph of myself in flying kit, I hope you like it. It is rather a good one. I haven’t been up yet but will go up at the next place.
The weather has been very good. I have have [sic] had some very good tennis & won two
[page break]
mixed doubles tournaments at the Torquay Club. I got 5/- each time. We swim now & again. I had a good swim yesterday. We still do a lot of work though & seem to feel perpetually tired. [indecipherable word] everyone remarked how fit I looked. We have had several warnings since I have been back & [deleted] Lodon [/deleted] London is having a number. They don’t worry us at all, we can take it & some day the Jerries are going to get a mouthful they won’t be able to swallow.
I only realised a short time ago that Steve had got through more than half his course. Another two years & he should be a qualified Doctor. Good for him. I have now been over 4 months in the R.A F. I am an L.A.C. (Leading Aircraftsman) & earn, £3 10s a fortnight. No more Today.
God bless you
[underlined] Love Dave. [/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/.
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from Leading Aircraftsman David Boldy to his father about being on leave from the Royal Air Force with his brother Steve and Peter, a friend who was wounded in the Navy. He has completed the initial course and awaits posting to navigation school. He sends a photo in flying kit. Steve is more than half way through his medical training, and they got to play tennis in Torquay.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Boldy
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940-08-28
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EBoldyDABoldyAD400828
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Torquay
England--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-08
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Two page handwritten letter
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text. Correspondence
Text
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
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 David Boldy to his father
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Steve Christian
entertainment
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/53/565/EBoldyDABoldyLM400625.1.jpg
5cdd09b212cea038791e91c0094b38b4
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
Boldy, David
Dave Boldy
D A Boldy
Description
An account of the resource
334 items. The collection concerns Flight Sergeant David Adrian Boldy (1918 – 1942, 923995 Royal Air Force) and consists of his school reports, letters from school and photographs of family and locations in India, letters from training and service, and photographs from his social life and time training. It also includes newspaper cuttings and letters about him being missing in action. David Boldy was born and attended school in India and studied law at Kings College London. He volunteered for the Royal Air Force and trained as an air gunner in South Africa. He flew operations in Manchesters and Lancasters with 207 Squadron from RAF Bottesford. His aircraft failed to return from an operation to Gdańsk 11 July 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by David Boldy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.<br /><br />Additional information on David Boldy is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/102182/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Boldy, DA
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[deleted] 923995, Boldy. A.C.2
No. 3 Squadron, D Flight, RAF,
No 5 I.T.W.
Room 46, Elfordleigh Hotel
R.A.F. Torquay.
Devonshire. [/deleted]
[inserted] [underlined] from
Boldy,
59, Bathurst Mews
Lancaster Gate
London, W.2. [/underlined] [/inserted]
25th June.
My darling Mum & Steve,
Just a line to let you know how I am getting on. We moved from Hastings on Monday morning & arrived at Torquay in the evening. We were not allowed out yesterday but are going out tonight for a swim. The R.A.F. was obviously novelty and everyone looked at us. We have to march to the dining Hall about 5 minutes march and everyone just looks It is like a monkey parade. Torquay looks a jolly fine place. The bay is lovely. We left the girls in Hastings well trained. Here there are 1000 girls from the Prudential evacuated from London. We start serious training shortly! More later. God bless
You both love [underlined] Dave [/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/.
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from David Boldy to his mother and brother. He let them know that he has moved from Hastings to Torquay and includes some of his observations on his new posting, with references to girls evacuated from London.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Boldy
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940-06-25
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text. Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EBoldyDABoldyLM400625
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Torquay
England--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-06
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One page letter
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
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 David Boldy to his mother and brother
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Andy Hamilton
evacuation
love and romance
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/53/679/EBoldyDABoldyLM400627.2.pdf
6d7b4236969468c351eba982bf203eb8
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
Boldy, David
Dave Boldy
D A Boldy
Description
An account of the resource
334 items. The collection concerns Flight Sergeant David Adrian Boldy (1918 – 1942, 923995 Royal Air Force) and consists of his school reports, letters from school and photographs of family and locations in India, letters from training and service, and photographs from his social life and time training. It also includes newspaper cuttings and letters about him being missing in action. David Boldy was born and attended school in India and studied law at Kings College London. He volunteered for the Royal Air Force and trained as an air gunner in South Africa. He flew operations in Manchesters and Lancasters with 207 Squadron from RAF Bottesford. His aircraft failed to return from an operation to Gdańsk 11 July 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by David Boldy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.<br /><br />Additional information on David Boldy is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/102182/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Boldy, DA
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
923995, BOLDY. A.C.2.
D Flight No 3 Squadron,
No 5 I.T.W.
R.A.F. Torquay.
27th June 1940.
My darling Mum & Steve,
Many thanks for both your letters.
Torquay is certainly beautiful but as I told you in my last letter the bathing is rotten. You never quite know when [one indecipherable word] where you will land up in 2 feet of water.
The French certainly seem to have caught it in the neck. Ian is the limit, he simply cannot take it. If he is behaving like that now, God Knows what he will do if he really bumps up against something. We all grouse but that is because we have nothing better to do. But I will say Margaret is enough to get on anyone's nerves. The band leader must have been an interesting chap.
I should think you would be fairly safe in the shelter, but of course the trouble is getting to the damn thing in time. Something ought to be done about the woman in the
[page break]
Mews. People who leave the shelters before time deserve all they get. We have not been disturbed at all so far in Torquay. I'm glad to hear there is another mouse less in the flat.
It was bad luck about Pat's boy friend. Perhaps he may still be alive. It would be a good idea if you could get hold of a couple of tin hats for raids as they are a great protection.
I am very pleased to hear about [deleted] tin [/deleted] my smashing blonde [inserted] (aged 4.) [/inserted] As a matter of fact to be quite honest she is the only lady I am at all interested in at the moment. I think she deserves a photograph of me. I hope Steve is not being lazy.
The message to Dad is perfect. It must be damnable for him, especially as letters take so long these days.
I am glad to hear Bill is getting on well after his operation. [one indecipherable word] remark about
[page break]
[inserted] [underlined] 2. [/underlined] [/inserted]
about Uncle Martin talking nonsense is rather amusing. I hope you do well in your surgery.
The night suits will do fine. I shall write for anything else I need. Thanks for the £1 you are going to send. In future I shall only take £1 at a time it will then last longer. I hear we will only be paid £1 for the next fortnight - Out of it I have to pay 2/- for a photograph 1/- sports fund, & 1/- for a wireless (radio) raffle.
Last evening Scottie and I went out. We had something to eat - very meagre as that is all we could afford. After that we did some morse code. It was very useful as I now know the alphabet. I shall have to work on speed now. We must do six words a minute.
We went down to the promenade to-day for [deleted] B [/deleted] Drill, P.T. and [deleted] parade [/deleted] [inserted] indecipherable word [/inserted].
We did Drill & P.T. but had no.
[page break]
swim for some reason or other. It was very amusing. We all changed on the green adjoining the road & many people were looking on. There was rather an attractive blonde, showing a good bit of leg, who seemed very interested. We were not at all bashful. Our corporals behaved disgustingly when they were changing. The Blonde however was unperturbed.
I am on Firepicket tonight, so shall not be able to get out this evening. Perhaps it is just as well as I have no money. I owe 6/- and am owed 6/- so will have all my pay on Friday. Some blokes' [deleted] ha [/deleted] accounts don't balance quite so favourably.
The weather has been funny, sun & rain alternately.
Will enclose letter for Dad.
No more to-day. God bless you both
Love [underlined] Dave. [/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/.
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Great Britain. Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from David Boldy to his mother. Speaks about his daily life in Torquay including drill, physical training and fire picket duties. He comments on his social life with the girls.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Boldy
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940-06-27
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four page handwritten letter
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text. Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EBoldyDABoldyLM400627
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
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-06
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Devon
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Joy Reynard
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 David Boldy to his mother
bombing
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/53/680/EBoldyDABoldyLM400628.2.pdf
436851d8e5a3fce28d9fc1e5466dbcfd
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
Boldy, David
Dave Boldy
D A Boldy
Description
An account of the resource
334 items. The collection concerns Flight Sergeant David Adrian Boldy (1918 – 1942, 923995 Royal Air Force) and consists of his school reports, letters from school and photographs of family and locations in India, letters from training and service, and photographs from his social life and time training. It also includes newspaper cuttings and letters about him being missing in action. David Boldy was born and attended school in India and studied law at Kings College London. He volunteered for the Royal Air Force and trained as an air gunner in South Africa. He flew operations in Manchesters and Lancasters with 207 Squadron from RAF Bottesford. His aircraft failed to return from an operation to Gdańsk 11 July 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by David Boldy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.<br /><br />Additional information on David Boldy is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/102182/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Boldy, DA
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[inserted] 923995 A.C.2. BOLDY.D.A
[underlined] D Flight etc [/underlined] [/inserted]
28th June 1940.
Mum darling,
Just a line before I go out for the evening. I didn't post the other letters yesterday as I was flat broke & the others were so broke I could not even raise 2 1/2d.
To-day I have £1. We got 26/- pay. I bought some Players and had a much needed haircut & a shampoo. There was no mail for me to-day, so I shall probably get your last letter tomorrow.
Fire picket duty yesterday was quite amusing. We had a meal across the road on Tick in a sort of boarding house. Jolly decent of the old girl who gave it to us. I had only 2 1/2 hrs sleep last night & after parade & P.T. was dead beat. I have some what recovered. After a short rest & a shave Ajan and I are going out.
It has been a piping hot day
[page break]
This afternoon we had a gas lecture out in the garden. It was lovely out there. We were supposed to go in for morse code but the C.O. let us stay out as he said we were always been [sic] marched here & there. He is a damn decent chap. I think he was in the Army before he joined the R.A.F.
None of us has had a bath for ages & there is no hot water [deleted] her [/deleted] in the hot Taps at the moment so I don't know what we are going to do. I suppose the water will become hot in due course.
No more to-day.
God bless you both
[underlined] Love Dave. [/underlined]
[page break]
[inserted] [underlined] 3. [/underlined] [/inserted]
[underlined] A Longish Post Script [/underlined]
I am sorry I only put on 2d worth of stamps on my letter yesterday but that is all I had at hand. At the moment I am in the guard room. D Flight is duty Flight this week. I am on fire picket. We have three hour patrols. Ajan & I are on from 3 - 6 a.m. Pretty awful, but little things like that don't worry us these days. Two of us brought some food for those on duty. We shall have it shortly.
I have just seen the Italian terms for the first Time. What a Terrible state of affairs. I can't understand the French government giving in like that. They might at least have handed over their Navy & Air force to us. Also all the soldiers they could evacuate to this country. What amuses me is the way some of these political writers yap about how
[page break]
we can still win, instead of getting down to the job & doing something for a change.
I read in D.R.O. (Daily Routine Orders) to-day that week-end leave or rather 24 hr. leave was being renewed. That is from 6 p.m. on Saturday Till midnight Sunday. Only 25% of the Squadron are allowed out at a Time. It wouldn't leave me much Time at home, but I will see what happens.
No more now.
[underlined] Love Dave. [/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/.
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Great Britain. Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from David Boldy to his mother. He writes about his finances, the lack of hot water and that he is hoping for leave. He comments on the French surrendering.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Boldy
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940-06-28
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four page handwritten letter
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text. Correspondence
Text
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EBoldyDABoldyLM400628
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--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-06
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Joy Reynard
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 David Boldy to his mother
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/53/681/EBoldyDABoldyLM400630.2.pdf
2fd906e66298359414ec478c6f9de1eb
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
Boldy, David
Dave Boldy
D A Boldy
Description
An account of the resource
334 items. The collection concerns Flight Sergeant David Adrian Boldy (1918 – 1942, 923995 Royal Air Force) and consists of his school reports, letters from school and photographs of family and locations in India, letters from training and service, and photographs from his social life and time training. It also includes newspaper cuttings and letters about him being missing in action. David Boldy was born and attended school in India and studied law at Kings College London. He volunteered for the Royal Air Force and trained as an air gunner in South Africa. He flew operations in Manchesters and Lancasters with 207 Squadron from RAF Bottesford. His aircraft failed to return from an operation to Gdańsk 11 July 1942. <br /><br />The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by David Boldy and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.<br /><br />Additional information on David Boldy is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/102182/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Boldy, DA
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
923995, A.C.2. BOLDY.D.A.
D Flight, No 3 Squadron,
No 5 I.T.W.
R.A.F. Torquay
30th June 1940.
Mum darling,
No mail for a couple of days. I dare-say the mails have been delayed.
On Friday the R.A.F. really got going and woke Torquay up. We went to a place where they gave us some really potent Cider. We saw one of our corporals and yelled for him in chorus. Eventually two Bobbies turned up but by that time we had really got going and nothing worried us. We had a Terrific evening, all the people in Torquay were literally amazed.
Behind our Hotel there is a big Tennis club. A couple of us have joined. We paid 10/6 for the duration of our stay here. The normal fee is [deleted] 2b [/deleted] 21/- a [deleted] we [/deleted] month. We are now fully pledjed [sic] members. I had
[page break]
some very good Tennis yesterday. The courts are lawn. Two of us played five sets of singles. We then joined up with two girls from the Prudential & had a mixed doubles. After that we all had a half pint of cider and a coffee. These girls are very Classy as the office fellow said. One of them took a very poor view of our dirty buttons, (of course we polish them before we go out. [sic] Please send me my Tennis racket, two pairs of white shorts and two white shirts. Also those old vests of mine to Take in the sweat on parade. We are going bathing with these girls at two oclock. [sic]
I can probably get a pass next week end. I can't arrive before midnight Saturday & must leave about 4 on Sunday. The fair [sic] is roughly 27/9. If you think it is worth the expense let me know in your next letter and
[page break]
[inserted] [underlined] 2. [underlined] [/inserted]
I shall come home. I might try to catch the 4.30 train and be in by Ten, but I don't think they will allow that. Anyway I could try. Write & let me know what you think. [deleted] If I [/deleted] I have tried to phone you several times but I just can't get through, There is always a delay of an hour and a half or so. Yesterday in addition to the Tennis we had a three mile run at P.T. I could have run a whole heap more so I must be getting tough.
The weather yesterday was Terrific. It is the same to-day, blazing hot. Most of us find the Air [sic] here very relaxing and want to go to sleep at the wrong Time. We have just returned from Church parade. During the service a young girl of 15 sang the Ave Maria. Solo. When she stood up there was a lot of chatting & she
[page break]
nervous. [sic] When she really got going there was dead silence as she sang [deleted] beat [/deleted] beautifully I don't think she has had much training either.
Two of us have just returned from a place called Sandy Cove. We played a set of singles at 11 but packed in as it was too hot. We then went out with the girls I mentioned earlier on. We went to Sandy Cove a beautiful bathing spot & had a swim. We got a rowing boat for two hours & rowed out a mile or two which was very enjoyable. After that we returned to Torquay & the girls went to their place. They wanted to play Tennis at the club this evening but we are too dead beat to do it. It was a very pleasant day. It has been the hottest day we have had here for some weeks apparently.
[page break]
[inserted] [underlined] 3. [underlined] [/inserted]
[page break]
At the moment I am completing this letter in my room. All I have on are my short underpants and a pair of socks. There are no cinemas or anything like that here on Sundays. Some places certainly haven't any common sense.
To-day for the first Time after Ten or twelve days I had a glorious bath. I put on clean underwear & my civilian shirt and am feeling really clean for the first Time in ages.
I don't know how far it is true but I hear we may be leaving here soon as they apparently intend cutting out all this initial stuff and getting down to the navigation & flying training. I don't think there could be much truth in it as this last move was a Terrific affair, though I must admit we could easily do without
[page break]
the stuff we are doing at the moment, with the enception [sic] of the morse code.
I am going out now for half an hour or so and will try & phone through. I don't expect I shall get through.
From the papers to-day it looks as if Hitler's invasion of this Island Fortress is in the eve of beginning. I hope [deleted] it [/deleted] this venture fails utterly and Teaches him a lesson he won't forget in a hurry.
No more To-day. God bless you both.
[underlined] Love Dave. [/underlined]
[underlined] P.S. [/underlined] This would be a grand life if we had less work to do. It is a grand life anyway. I feel as fit as a fiddle.
Love [underlined] Dave. [/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/.
Subject
The topic of the resource
World War (1939-1945)
Bombing, Aerial
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from David Boldy to his mother giving details of his daily routine in the RAF and his social life including swimming, playing tennis and meeting girls.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Boldy
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1940-06-30
Format
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Six page handwritten letter
Language
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eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EBoldyDABoldyLM400630
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940-06
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Joy Reynard
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 David Boldy to his mother
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
entertainment
love and romance
RAF Torquay
sport
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/89/876/LCalvertRA1488619v1.1.pdf
a4d74b59eb8d89a89607ee6b934e1006
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
Calvert, Roger
R A Calvert
Description
An account of the resource
Seven items. The collection consists of an oral history interview with Flight Lieutenant Roger Alfred Calvert (b. 1923, 1488619; 152814), his logbook, navigators training course class book and 3 photographs. Roger Calvert was a navigator with 141 Squadron at RAF West Raynham flying Mosquitos on night intruder operations. For most of his operational career his pilot was Flight Lieutenant John Thatcher.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Roger Calvert and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-04-24
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
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Calvert, R
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
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Roger Calvert's Royal Canadian Air Force flying log book for aircrew other than pilot
Creator
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Great Britain. Royal Air Force
Format
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One booklet
Language
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eng
Type
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Text
Text. Log book and record book
Identifier
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LCalvertRA1488619v1
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Royal Canadian Air Force
Publisher
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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.
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Canada
France
Germany
Great Britain
Netherlands
Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea
Ontario--London
England--Bedfordshire
England--Herefordshire
England--Norfolk
England--Northumberland
France--Dieppe
France--Paris
France--Pas-de-Calais
Germany--Bochum
Germany--Bremen
Germany--Darmstadt
Germany--Dortmund
Germany--Dresden
Germany--Emden (Lower Saxony)
Germany--Frankfurt am Main
Germany--Gelsenkirchen
Germany--Hamburg
Germany--Kiel
Germany--Mainz (Rhineland-Palatinate)
Germany--Merseburg
Germany--Nuremberg
Germany--Oberhausen (Düsseldorf)
Germany--Osnabrück
Germany--Rüsselsheim
Germany--Schleswig-Holstein
Poland--Szczecin
Germany--Stuttgart
Germany--Wiesbaden
Netherlands--IJssel Lake
Netherlands--Zeist
Poland--Police (Województwo Zachodniopomorskie)
Poland
Ontario
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Description
An account of the resource
Royal Canadian Air Force flying log book for aircrew other than pilot of Flight Lieutenant Roger Calvert from 25 March 1943 to 6 July 1945. Detailing training and operations flown. Served at RAF Cranfield, RAF Great Massingham, RAF Ouston, RAF Twinwood Farm and RAF West Raynham. Aircraft flown were Anson, Beaufighter, Mosquito, Oxford, Tiger Moth and Wellington. He carried out a total of 32 intruder operations as a navigator with 141 Squadron from RAF West Raynham on the following targets in France, Germany, Poland and the Netherlands: Bochum, Bremen, Darmstadt, Dieppe, Dortmund, Dresden, Emden, Frankfurt, Gelsenkirchen, Hamburg, Kiel, Mainz, Merseberg (Leipzig), Nuremberg, Oberhausen, Osnabruck, Pante-Lunne airfield, Paris, Pas de Calais, Politz, the Ruhr, Russelhelm, Schlesvig, Steenwjik aerodrome, Stettin, Stuttgart, Wiesbaden, Zeist and Zuider Zee. His pilots on operations were Squadron Leader Thatcher and Flying Officer Rimer. The log book is well annotated and contains a green endorsement and several photographs of aircraft flown and attacked. Notes include an air sea rescue sortie, the sighting of a V-2 and one Me-110 claimed.
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943
1944-07-18
1944-07-19
1944-07-20
1944-07-21
1944-08-07
1944-08-08
1944-08-09
1944-08-10
1944-08-11
1944-08-12
1944-08-12
1944-08-13
1944-08-16
1944-08-17
1944-08-18
1944-08-19
1944-08-25
1944-08-26
1944-08-26
1944-08-27
1944-08-30
1944-09-11
1944-09-12
1944-09-12
1944-09-13
1944-09-15
1944-09-16
1944-09-17
1944-10-04
1944-10-06
1944-10-09
1944-10-19
1944-10-26
1944-10-29
1944-11-01
1944-11-04
1944-11-06
1944-11-10
1945-01-13
1945-01-14
1945-01-15
1945-01-16
1945-01-17
1945-01-28
1945-01-29
1945-02-01
1945-02-02
1945-02-03
1945-02-04
1945-02-08
1945-02-09
1945-02-13
1945-02-14
1945-04-22
1945-04-23
1945
141 Squadron
21 Squadron
Air Gunnery School
Air Observers School
air sea rescue
aircrew
Anson
Beaufighter
bombing
bombing of Dresden (13 - 15 February 1945)
Initial Training Wing
Me 110
Mosquito
navigator
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
RAF Cranfield
RAF Great Massingham
RAF Ouston
RAF Padgate
RAF Torquay
RAF Twinwood Farm
RAF West Raynham
Tiger Moth
training
V-2
V-weapon
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/155/2173/WhitworthJ.1.jpg
24bd96b9837be57b873fc91da711adcf
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/155/2173/AWhitworthJL160622.1.mp3
035dbbe8410756ff1b3360461b4b946f
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
Whitworth, John
J Whitworth
John Leslie Whitworth
J L Whitworth
Description
An account of the resource
17 items. The collection consists of an oral history interview with Flying Officer John L Whitworth (b. 1921), one photocopy, seven pilot’s navigation charts and eight photographs which include seven target photographs. John Whitworth was a pilot and flew Mosquitos with 162 Squadron Pathfinders from RAF Bourn in 1944 and 1945.
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
2016-06-22
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
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Whitworth, JL
Transcribed audio recording
A resource consisting primarily of recorded human voice.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
PL: Hello, my name is Pam Locker and I’m in the home of Mr John Leslie Whitworth of *** Harrogate, HG2 0NTand it’s the 22nd of June 2016.
JW: Yes
PL: So John, can I just start by saying on behalf of the International Bomber Command Memorial Trust, an enormous thank you for agreeing to talk to us and share your memories.
JW: My pleasure.
PL: Can I start with your — start at the beginning?
JW: Yes, I came from a large family, eight, born in Sutton Coldfield. I was number seven, five elder sisters, one older brother and one younger brother. My father and mother — for many years my father had, before the war, had a very substantial motor, er, motor car showroom business, service station, everything, which the war killed There was no business, it collapsed completely. My father was too honest. He paid out everybody, every employer and everything, and started up and expanded this cycle business. A very wonderful father, er, man, with all these kids he educated. I was educated at Bishop Peter’s School, Sutton Coldfield, a famous old grammar school. Anyway, I was, I was then being trained as an articled clerk, chartered accountancy. The war came, we struggled a bit. My younger brother, because of the collapse of my father’s business, couldn’t go to university, so I’ve always been very, very bitter about Germans. I don’t like Germans. I don’t trust them anymore or anything and the sooner we get far away from them in the European Union the better. But that’s me. Anyway (pause), England, Britain was hit very hard. Along came Dunkirk. To me, we looked after ourselves marvellously. Got our army back. Like everybody else I’d already signed up to go in the Air Force, put on reserve and everything. After the complete collapse I joined the Home Guard with all my powers, the whole lot. To say that Britain couldn’t look after itself is rubbish. We did, we had to then, we’d got nothing. Thousands of little boats went across and got people back from the Channel and to say we fought on our own, cannot live without the European Union, is rubbish. We can, we’ve done it once and we can do it again. Anyway, in the Home Guard, name Whitworth. Everybody had volunteered for aircrew, all my friends, or the Fleet Air Arm. We were at the end of the queue. It was 1940 [laugh]. It was 1941 before I eventually went in the Air Force, signed up down at Cardington in the week and then training at Torquay, at ITW, and then flying training at Sywell, near Northampton. Learned to fly Tigers. At that time, er, most training was going on in Britain. I went down to Lyneham where, to learn to fly Oxfords, um, and literally we were almost the last [emphasis] of aircrew, bomber aircrew at any rate, trained in Britain. Everything went to Canada, Rhodesia and everything, all the whole lot. I was almost the last one. Learnt to fly Oxfords, and then went to Moreton in the Marsh. What was I doing in ’42? I got my wings. I didn’t get a commission because [laugh], I’ll say this, I was marched in for my final interview in front of the group captain and everything, and a certain Warrant Officer Marsh said, ‘This gentleman has not had — this candidate has not had the courtesy of having a haircut’. I was not a long haired — it was about like — I was not — well of course — well that ruined that. I got my wings at Little Rissington, er, sergeant pilot, posted very rapidly to Moreton in the Marsh, which — Wellingtons — which was the feeder station for crews, Wellington crews, all going out to the Middle East. Trained there, formed a crew and the second pilot, a Geordie, two Australians, three Brits, two Australians, and a New Zealander. A mixed-up crew. Wonderful. Great. Always remember going together. When you first got together on Wellingtons, you’re all stuck in a crew room and you sort yourselves out and a nice looking fella, there’s his picture there, called Brian Hurd, walked up to me, looked at me, looked at me, said, ‘My name’s Brian Hurd. Do you want a good navigator?’ I said, ‘I’m John Whitworth’, I said, ‘I’m one pilot to two but I think I shall be captain’. I jolly well intended to be anyway [laugh], I knew I was better than the other lad who’d asked to fly with me. Formed up, we trained there, down to Portreath, Cornwall. Waited for a week for a following wind in a brand new Wellington. Gibraltar. A night’s sleep. Off to Malta. As we got near Malta, we knew we, we were getting there [slight laugh]. It was getting evening then. It was a long flight. It’s a long flight, seven hours, with no friends either side. There wasn’t any going to Gibraltar. If you didn’t make it, well nobody would see what’s [unclear], you know, occupied [unclear], one or the other and it was the same down there. As we stood there, there was flak going up. It was an air raid. Oh, it was good to see. It was the only time in my life I’ve ever been glad, as a bomber pilot, to see flak. That was ours [emphasis], shooting at the Germans [laugh] who were raiding it and stopped it. In we went and they were - pow! All over the plane, gave our three passengers a pop! Gone. In twenty minutes we were gone, up to Egypt, non- stop. When we got to Egypt, straight down into unit, tied up in the central transit camp. We hadn’t had any sleep of any sort for thirty-six hours. That was it. That was what happened to everyone. Posted almost immediately to 37 Squadron, Wellingtons, at Abu Suier, near Ismailia, and started my first tour.
PL: Who were your passengers?
JW: Three army fellas. A sergeant and an officer who were all — I think were a bit huffy. I mean in a Wellington, you’ve no room. We said, ‘Make yourself as comfortable as you can on the bed’. And that’s it. He sort of got the idea he could come up the front. Were all sergeants, even a lieutenant, and well, it meant nothing to us at all, ‘Behave yourself. Don’t be sick’. [unclear] And then, ‘Don’t be sick. Here’s some bags. Don’t be sick in my aeroplane’. They listened to me. They weren’t. When he went back, he said, ‘We were flown out from Malta by a little bastard sergeant who pushed us around and said, ‘Don’t be sick’’. And I meant it. [unclear] I always remember, ‘Don’t be —’ [laugh] Well that was it. I’d tell my passenger. Never mind them. If someone’s sick in your aeroplane it stinks and clearing up and anyway, that was our squadron. Almost immediately I was informed that I’d have to do a number of operations as a second pilot, er, and learn the trade, fair enough, before I got my captaincy. I did — my crew didn’t like that, especially as the fella that took over — his name was Pierce, it was Pilot Pierce. I went up, took — had to take a plane up to Tel Aviv in Palestine and while I was there, he went on his first op with my crew, crashed on take-off and my great friend Alex Sutcliffe, the New Zealander, who’d come all the way from New Zealand, trained, trained with me. He used to come home, met my family, and they liked him. He was a quiet country lad, was lovely, was killed on his very first — hadn’t even done his first op. Anyway, but I came back from Palestine and they said Alex was killed last night. Oh God, they crashed and he as front gunner, was in the fuselage. It set on fire and he had difficulty getting out. They got him out but he was badly burned and died. A particularly terrible tragedy for someone who’d come all the way from New Zealand to help us and flown all the way, halfway back to the Middle East and everything, had friends and everything, was killed. Anyway, now I’m going to tell you, I was lucky that I didn’t get commissioned. When it came through on the Squadron later on, all the things came through. There was no Marsh to muck it up. I was commissioned later on Squadron but I was lucky in my crew,the whole way because we were all sergeants and I made wonderful friends for the time they lived. We operated from there. I did two ops, on the third op I went to Tobruk, which was a seven hour flight. Three hours or so each way, three and a half hours over the target. On the second flight an engine started to play up, seized up, lost a propeller. Wellingtons lost — would lose, the best Wellington, best for petrol, would lose a hundred feet a minute, so if you were at eighty, eight thousand feet we’d got eighty minutes flying. That was three hours flying to do back. We got a fair bit the way back but eventually we gradually sank, sank, sank down and we were getting back towards the lines and we just flew into the ground. No option. No don’t jump out in the desert in a parachute or anything like that. No option, you, you stuck together, we crashed, all walked out. The pilot I was with was good but we combined well on that crash. I still had quite a bit to do with it. We could have landed better, I can say that now. I said it then and I say it now, I was a better pilot than the fella I was attached with but that was it. Anyway we walked out. We walked, oh, I suppose this was about 2 o’clock in the morning, and we walked all through the night across the desert. The desert was pretty flat scrub like bracken, you know, all through into daylight. And believe you me, when you’re walking to save your life or to avoid being captured, you walk. We carried ten gallon of water, which was in every Wellington strapped to the ladder, and the six of us walked and there wasn’t a grumble all the way of any description. We walked and walked and walked. And dawn came up and we kept walking and it got hotter and hotter but we still walked. Er, it was est— estimated we’d done over twenty, twenty-five kilometres which was somewhere between ten to fifteen miles but we walked and we weren’t sure whether we’d got over the lines. We were well south of the lines on the edge of [unclear], a depression there and the walking wasn’t bad but we didn’t know if it was mined. We didn’t know anything, we just walked. We weren’t really certain but we thought we were — had reached safety, but there was no trouble that far south which we’d deliberately come. The navigator had got us there, er, and suddenly we looked and there coming down the sand, a wadi, a shallow depression there, was a truck in desert colouring and everything, you couldn’t — no markings on it at all and we looked at it and somebody said, ‘Oh God. Look at those front mudguards’. They were flat. British trucks were Bedfords, curved mudguards. The Germans and Italians were — militar had a big flat front at the top where they could load a mach or you could load three chaps when you were escaping or going forward to the mach and you could sit on there and hang on. These had got flat mudguards. We dropped down on the ground in a little huddle, all six of us there. I had got a thirty-eight pistol that the pilot had, all the pilots had those, carried them. Don’t know why but we did. [laugh] We had a little conflab. What can we do? There’s nowhere to run. No, we mustn’t get separated. We just got to give up. I mean, the fella got out and he’d got a machine gun, obvious a — never knew what sort it was — it was a machine gun and that and if he shoots [unclear] all packed up, we got to give up and the captain, Mick Marne, said, ‘If anyone’s got to give up, it’s my responsibility’. Tied the handkerchief on his pistol, hands up and walk towards the truck, and I suppose this truck was a hundred and fifty, two hundred yards away, and he got about halfway holding this up. I see it so clearly, you know, in my mind and this chap standing in the front of the truck with this and just watching him come. And all of sudden he started [applause], yelling and jumping, ‘He’s British, he’s British, he’s British’. It wasn’t an American truck they were using. This was a research salvage unit, four wheel drive, desert truck with American flat mudguards. Oh God. Oh, a cup of tea that’s all we thought of. They were out looking for crashed aircraft, all other manner of vehicles picking up spares or anything and that’s it. Anyway, we had cup of tea, that’s all we could think of. Out came a primus stove and we had a cap of tea. Picked us up. We got in the back of that truck. Steel floor, steel floor with a few bits, nothing else, no, nothing at all. And that was the best seat I’ve ever sat on. We were safe and we headed off for the nearest airport which, well was about — I suppose at this time it was about 11 o’clock in the morning, 11 o’clock, and we headed off - bump, bump, bump - and bump on our bottoms in the back, no, no padding, [laugh], all there was the steel floor and some parts that they’d got which had at least been strapped so they didn’t get — and off we went to back to Cairo, Almaza airport. Another truck and we were back, all six of us. The only injury was a fellow called Barlow, he’d whitish fair hair, almost snowy, he got a terrific black eye, that was the only thing and we were back home. And thank heaven. We were known to the — by the signals we’d sent back as we came back that we were somewhere in the desert, and not even, nothing had been sent back to England about missing or anything. They were waiting for some news so no bad news had been sent back. And we were back. Now, I said I’m lucky. I’m lucky and possibly one of the luckiest people who ever got in the Air Force. Two days later, we were all lined up for another operation, again to go — this was August the 2nd and August the 4th or August the 1st or thereabouts.
PL: 19—
JW: 70 Squadron was the other squadron and they were sending about fifteen aircraft on another operation. It was all Tobruk at that time it was because that was —
PL: What year was this, John? What year was this?
JW: This was 1942. This was August 1942. We’d flown out in June. This was August. Er, the captain was a pilot officer. Alright. He seemed a decent bloke. He wasn’t — we were all sergeants. We took our kit out before going to briefing [cough], five of us, myself and — and I was second pilot. I was not in charge anyway. Just seeing that was everything before going to briefing. The aircraft, thirty aircraft, were all down the side of the airfield, not all in a line but all round the edge waiting and we were the front one at an angle. The others were all straight, and the other four got in, the plane, checking the thing and I was in the front talking to an airmen. I don’t know what it was, something about the aircraft or something, and then I heard this noise, a noisy aircraft in the circuit, obviously not running properly, and I watched it and it was a Boston, an American light bomber but part of the South African Air Force, and it was coming round and it was in trouble, and it came round and, didn’t realise at the time, he came round downwind, had to. The other four in the aircraft hung on, one in the rear turret, and I was with the airmen in the front and I watched, watched it. I was right by the ladder, instead of climbing up, I just watched it, watched, and watched and he came down and touched down at the end of the runway, bounced and he completely lost it, lost control completely and he headed straight for us, absolutely — we’re number 1. Aircraft 1, 2, 3, we’re — straight for us. All I could do was scream something to the others, nothing, could do nothing, and I ran with the airman, just ran and, er, as we ran, there was this a terrific petrol explosion behind us as the two hit - woof! And the fully, fully bombed up, all these aircraft had all got five— five hundreds on board, and we dived into a slip trench which was put fairly close behind in case of German low flying attacks, which didn’t happen but could have happen. This was the nearest thing, you dived in, we dived in there, lay down and the first bomb went off and blew, blew — I was suppose I was thirty, thirty yards, forty yards from where it blew up, blew it to bits, a piece of geodetic that big landed on the back of the airmen in front of me and - pow! We rolled over, over and over. I said, ‘We’ve got to run’. The two of us just scampered off as hard as we could go and I never saw that airman again, no reason to, and I ran and ran and ran, er, get into a proper air raid shelter, which I found another bomb had gone off in an aircraft, and dived in. Well of course nobody but the people out there and flying control could see what happened. Everybody thought it was an air raid, these bombs were going off, there was aircraft somewhere, Jerrys or something, Italians were bombing us and these were bombs and the whole of the air raid warnings had gone off and everybody was in the shelters and everything. The natives working were running screaming and, oh dear, and I collapsed in the shelter and two of my friends were there, one of which was Brian Hurd, his picture’s there, my previous navigator, and they took me off to the, the sick quarters and, er, which time, there were one or two people coming in, and took me back and I was given this injection and I was put to bed by two of them, put to bed, and — but for the rest of the night, um, this aircraft and the others caught fire and five blew up and a number of others were damaged in that, in it, and of course the whole airfield was chaos. So, I know but I really — the next day I was — I just never got out of bed but anyway I survived. Eight, eight air crew in that collision, two survived. Our rear gunner, he got out of the rear cockpit somehow or other. He was injured. I never saw him again. That was the only survivor out of eight. Now there was lucky for you and I hadn’t got a scratch. Our air gunner, the New Zealander, he was taken — I know he was taken to a hospital in Cairo. What was he? He was injured. I never saw him again. But there was luck. I was one survivor out of eight or half as, or one of two and I was burned here on the — I’ve got all the reports. In, in the reports this was the worst damaged aircraft and airfield at Abu Suier of any axis air raid in the whole [emphasis] of the North Africa campaign. It’s in the RAF records that this was the worst and I was a survivor. Anyway, there we are. I was attached to it then and attached to another crew who —
PL: John, can I just ask you, what about the other planes? Were other, I mean I imagine it to be like a domino effect.
JW: Yes, all five in a row were set on fire and blew up.
PL: Goodness.
JW: Five and we were all one crew.
PL: Did any of the other crews managed to escape?
JW: And others were damaged. Somewhere or other I’ve got the report with the numbers of them. But it says in the records that was the most damage done by any air raid and it was done, done by ourselves.
PL: Did any of the other crews manage to escape?
JW: They all got away. Er, probably in, in the one or two others they hadn’t come out. We’d just gone out with our kit and it happened in that minute or two. That was all. We were only out there three minutes but nobody else was hurt or anything and I was a survivor and that was it. Myself and the airman, he was alright. There, there we are. I survived that. Went on to do — that was three ops, another thirty-four, after I did about ten. Well for one thing I had to do was as second pilot, because this was the crew I should have inherited, was getting near, the captain was getting near the end of his tour and I should have inherited but they’d gone. And so I’ve got to be found a place in another crew and, and there wasn’t one with a place coming up for a while so I had to do, I think I did about another ten and then I got — took over a crew which I kept right to the end. Did another thirty-four ops. Two hundred and fifty hours [laugh]. It’s all there. All in that book.
PL: Goodness me. And did you —
JW: Anyway, er, I finished the tour up at — we got moved forward at that time. Of course, there was the big advance. The — if you could be exciting in the Wellington bombers. Jerry was streaming back, streaming back and we, at night, we bombed them. And the front line, the British front line, they had a strip of lights wherever they’d got to. So anything west of that was the Germans or Italians. We’d bomb that at quite low level, er, all the battle area and groups and that were lit up by Aboukir by the Fleet Air Arm who were in Alexandria, who weren’t very far away, but they were on a carrier that was stuck, they were stuck, they were stuck and they did a very good job of blooming hitting it and in a flat area, after bombing, we used to go down to low level, about three hundred feet, and empty our machine guns on anything we could see and back, er, that was introduced by the squadron commander, the Australian Rankin, who couldn’t do enough to kill Germans. He’d got some reason. It started, Rankin, said, ‘When you come back at low level anything, there’s not big bombs, you’re at three feet, anything you can see west of the British lights shoot at’. [laugh] And we had these big Wellingtons. That’s what they were there for. Strafers. It made a bit of variety [laugh] but anyway, I finished my tour, back to Cairo, there at Cairo stuck in a transit camp for ages waiting for a way back. There was nothing. You couldn’t go up the Mediterranean or anything. You got to get — eventually the Americans sent up a very good, er, military airline, a military airline, which flew us across the southern Sahara to West Africa to Lagos and there, then we sat at Lagos waiting for a boat until an absolute hell ship came, which was full, full of coloured troops in the basement. They were going up to Freetown for some reason I don’t know, and, er, as we flew, we sailed from Lagos to Freetown which was a week’s journey, covered by a rickety old armed trawler [laugh], so they could only draw water from one side for some reason. The Cap Cadoran was her name. This was a French merchant boat which we converted into a troop carrier. As we did so we got a bigger list and when we eventually arrived in Freetown we’d got a list like that [laugh]. Well that meant going down into the mess decks or anything like that, you got steps like that or the other side [laugh], there you climbed up them or go down, either up or down, according to which side. Oh dear, that meant that one day someone with buckets of porridge were coming into, from the cook, cook area into eating (we ate and slept in this area) and someone slipped and the buckets fell down the steps and everybody got a bit, you know what I mean [laugh]. It was a joke, anyway. We said, ‘Did you get any porridge today?’ Up to Freetown and there were these coloured troops and the rest were all returning aircrew, there was a hell of a lot of them. All parts of Bomber Command were there, all the volunteers, Canadians, New Zealanders and Australians and when we got to Freetown, they absolutely — we were going home. We’d have literally got in a row boat and rowed across, if you could think of it [laugh]. They weren’t. They went, they were just going from there to, the Aussies and New Zealanders were getting further from home again and the Canadians weren’t getting any nearer really and they refused to move until they’d inspected — and literally — it wasn’t a strike, it wasn’t a mutiny, it was a plain fact. They just stated that we shall not to move off this boat until we can expect the next and rightly so as I say. All the Brits, we agreed with them but we were going home. We’d row a blooming thing. They weren’t. Anyway we were put on — oh, several big troop ships came up from South Africa, all loaded with prisoners of war and, and other people going back to the European, going to — South African troops as well going up to Europe. We were put on a Dutch boat which was good and, er, they formed up a huge, huge quarry, huge convoy in Freetown which has a huge harbour, and almost with them I think we had a cruiser and three destroyers and about, I think it was six troop carriers, and right smack in the middle, protected all around, was the Warspite Battleship which had been — had come all the way round. It was badly damaged somehow or other by an air raid in the Mediterranean, and it come down through and was on its way back to Britain for repair but they stuck that right in the blooming middle, which we — it was correct. It was proper battle order, but to RAF blokes to have the blooming Navy in a warship with us all round [laugh], it was funny. We came up, back up and stopped off at the Canaries for a while, while the battleship refuelled and destroyers, and we just walloping along and nothing but we had — we heard some explosions a long away which we believe was someone expected something and let off one of the depth charges but never knew. Up to Liverpool, back on leave, a week or two’s leave and I was posted down to Wing to a Wellington Instructor Unit. I’d been there as a sergeant. While there my flight sergeant came through and was called up and my commission had came through on December the 5th 1942 and I was commissioned in February. Hung on for a week or so to get my uniform and everything and I was then — oh, the chief ground instructor seemed to think I’d, I’d make a good ground instructor, probably because I could speak reasonable English [laugh] and that, and sent me on a number of courses, a PO and a flying course, that was on Oxfords, and did well on that and then I went on a ground instruction course. Oh, a great course at Luffenham Airfield, how to intruct, which was a very instructive course, taught how to, how to make a speech, and how to tell things and everything, things which were so handy in later life, how to put it together and things. Very, very good — how to bomb things. It was a very, very good course. Then I went on an engine handling course down at Bristol. And then, then they decided they wanted a squadron air sea rescue officer, so I went on an air sea rescue course, um, took, told how to land an aircraft in the sea in fog. But no way you could pass on and no way of practising that except above the clouds, try it on the clouds and that [unclear]. I spent a whole lot of, a whole period there, early days, and then I was put straight in ch— second in the ground instruction area, er, airmanship, and I had a cushy job, absolute cushy job. Formed up a golf team. We used to sneak off for an afternoon and that sort of thing up to, up to the local golf course at Leighton Buzzard and, oh dear and, er, I had a great friend called Atkins, he was an engineer. He’d done a tour on Stirlings and we got on like a house on fire, and he was a keen golfer and he suddenly found out I was a golfer. He said, ‘I hear you play’. Yes, I was one handicap. ‘Oh’, he said, ‘Let’s — I play off about seven up at Liverpool way’. He said, ‘Let’s go up and hire us some clubs at the nine hole course at Leighton Buzzard’. And off we went up there and across. Saw the pro. Oh yes, he’d hire us some clubs, some very old ones and he didn’t have any idea. He just thought we were people trying it out. And some old balls and that and we had a few holes. Anyway, we came in and he apologised. He said, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry about these’. And he went off up the [unclear]. You couldn’t make it up. Anyway we joined up and, oh dear, it was a really cushy number there. Really was. We could disappear out for the afternoon. We both joined the local club and played in competitions and organised the team. And, um, on one great occasion I remember, always and so will he, we went and played and he said, ‘I’ve got a car’. And the original leave petrol I got when I was demobbed right at the beginning lasted about 18 months [laugh]. I mean, we found it and never really had to use our own petrol but you went in the right garage and you got a coupon for one and we’d say, ‘Come on, come on. We’re rested air crew, bomber air crew. What can you do for us?’ And, you know, ‘C’mon, where’s the gaffer?’ I never got away with less than five gallons from the one [laugh]. We always had petrol. Anyway, he said, ‘Ashridge is a good course just down by [unclear] not very far away’, he said. That’s the famous course where Henry Cotton, who we knew was in the Air Force, is, was pro and everything. ‘Let’s go down and have a weekend stay in the hotel nearby at Ashridge’. And we went down there and played golf. Went down the Friday, that’s right, the Friday evening, booked in the hotel. Nice and comfortable. We didn’t earn a lot of money but we got enough to stay and we went up to Ashridge and played golf on the Saturday, and met a number of people, and got chatting about this and aircrew and God knows what, and, um, someone said, ‘Oh, Henry Cotton is back in his house just down the road. He was a pro there and been a pro there’. He said, ‘He’s back there and he comes up to play occasionally’. Henry had been invalided out. He was invalided because he’d got stomach ulcers, duodenal ulcers, which you had to have a special diet and you were straight out in the Forces because they couldn’t do it. And, ‘He’ll probably be around’, and we said we’d like to meet him, you know. We were equivalent in rank in any case to what he’d been, and in any case in the Air Force, he was non-aircrew. We were pretty, pretty snooty, you know, especially after operations. You’d done a tour of ops and you looked down on everybody else, which we had. And we came in and there was Henry Cotton and we were introduced to him and had a long chat and that sort of thing and, er, I don’t know, we got on and we were going to play on the Sunday morning and then go off. And we said we were there and he said, ‘I must be playing tomorrow afternoon with my wife, Toots’. Toots, she was a South American, I think it was, a nice person. He said, ‘Would you like to join us for a few holes?’ Join Henry Cotton! Ay? Henry Cotton! Good Lord yes, definitely yes and we had nine holes with Henry Cotton. That was something. In my golfing career people said, ‘Who’d you played with?’ I’d say, ‘Oh yes, I’ve played with Henry Cotton’. ‘What?’ [laugh] True. The only boast in all my life, but the great Henry Cotton. Anyway, er, it came to a point in September ‘44 I’d been where life was too easy, er, my greatest pal was shot down at Arnhem in Thunderbolts, attacking, and I volunteered to go back on ops and Fox started to form up a Lancaster team. One or two people came up and, er, started touring and, um, Charlie — what’s his — the chief engineer, said, ‘I hear you’re going back on ops, Lancs, John’. I didn’t call him Charlie. ‘Yes Sir. Yes Sir. Yes Sir. I’m going’. He said, ‘Well, I can get you on Mosquitos’. I said, ‘What? Mosquitos’. I mean, they were only really coming out as the fastest propeller plane in the world, and faster than anything, absolutely, well bombers. ‘I can get you onto those’. What? Oh golly, and off I went to Mosquitos. No, first I had to pass the high altitude test, which was three times in a decompression chamber, the equivalent of thirty-five thousand feet, so you that didn’t get the bends. I mean Mosquitos operated at around thirty thousand feet and some people get the bends, you know, at around thirty thousand feet. Of course, you never did it on heavies or anything else and I remember sitting in there, didn’t dare move, you know, in case, in case you got a pain. Anyway I passed it and was on — I went straight off onto a Mosquito Training Unit and onto the squadron. And the Mosquitos, not just an ordinary squadron, a squadron being formed for Pathfinder Force. We were — we did spoofs and everything for the other Pathfinders, the Bennetts and — a light night striking force and Mosquitos attached to it. We did spoofs and things, window in front of the heavies and that, all sorts of things. I did fifty ops on Mossies. Twenty-one to Berlin.
PL: Goodness. I’m sorry John. I don’t understand, what’s spoofs? When you say spoofs, what do you mean?
JW: [laugh] Spoofs. What it is, a spoof, we went in front of the main force when they were going to a target and that, and then we branched off, like wherever it was going, we branched off to another target, bunging out this window, these bits and pieces, to give it that we were a much bigger force, deliberate to take — they thought that the Pathfinders who were in the front were going to so and so, and we used to go towards that, alert the German fighters, they’re going Berlin. Everything they thought, ‘cause of Mosses, they thought it was Berlin. Thought the heavies were going there but they weren’t. They were going to another target. And that was it. And that was the lot to my job. And then we, I was moved from 142 to 162 — 142 was a stick it squadron on the worst station in Bomber Command, the ground and lodge, all mud. Oh, we were glad to get posted from there. I did about ten ops, mainly to Berlin, from there and we were posted to 162 at Bourn, which is a nice station, with another Mossie squadron, and, er, not too big a mess and no mud, [unclear] was shocking. This, this was October, you know, October ’40, blimey, October ’44 and it was terribly wet. Terribly. You couldn’t go anywhere without wellingtons or flying boots, awful place, and not even a decent pub which [laugh] — and we were posted to Bourn, which was near Cambridge, and that was where I finished up. Completed fifty ops from there just in time, just before the war ended, and back to Group and two tours. I was — if you were a fighter and you got five killed, you were considered an Ace. In Bomber Command there was no such thing as that, but if you survived two tours as a pilot you were, you were a Bomber Baron. That’s what I acquired. A Bomber Baron. It meant nothing. It meant nothing. It was just a phrase. I’d done two tours and I could go up to Group, Pathfinder Force, and could pick anything I wanted. And at that time, I meant to stay in the Air Force and I wanted to go onto a Dakota transport unit to learn how to fly those, which would be good if I wanted to carry through to civilian flying. I went up there. They said. ‘That’s easy, but there’s a cracking good job for you I can put you on at Pershore’, which was quite near home. A ferry unit, Number 1 Ferry Unit. They were ferrying aircraft, Mosquitos, out to India and everything like that, for the huge build up at that time for the big attack planned, Army, Navy and Air Force, on Malaya and Singapore and they were pouring out. And I went out there and then a posting came to go to Islamabad, Number 9 Ferry Unit in India, which was a very established station and I thought, ‘Oh, there’d be something of a job out there’, which there was. And I took it, I needn’t have gone as I’d done one overseas tour. I needn’t have gone, but I did go and ended up there and, of course, out there we were getting everything ready, and everything all ready to — the most experienced going right to the forward ‘drome so that when the big attack came, we could take aircraft to where they captured an airfield and established a unit, and we moved down there, Rangoon, and we were all ready and someone came and said, ‘There a great big bomb. Huge bomb. We think the war will be over’. It was the atomic bomb and it was all over. And, um, we were stuck there. Nobody wanted to know anything or anyone. There was nobody wanted aircraft, nothing. All the chaps could think was, ‘How can we get home? How? ’ Army, Navy, the lot. We were stuck there, absolutely. I was the second in command of the ferry flight at Maubin there, and, er, Squadron Leader Poutney, he was posted to somewhere else. He’d got his permanent commission, he was posted somewhere and I was appointed CO, Temporary Acting Squadron Leader, Temporary Acting Confirmation Flight Lieutenant Whitworth to Supervisor disbandment of the unit. Just somebody had seen I was a trained chartered accountant and must have thought I could do something, which I did. I did a good job, ended up being posted down to another unit, the group, the group communication flight to disband it as well and I ended up with nothing but an aeroplane and the first one — two aeroplanes and I got instruction for everything, every blooming thing, everything off, where it went in. The crews, all the crews, all the ground crews but nothing for the aeroplanes. I left them, but obviously the, the things were in control. And it had been a ferry crew had come and collected, abandoned them there and the second [unclear]. Anyway, I could see I’d get a good job but it would be in administration and I hadn’t stayed in the Air Force as pilot. And up came my demob number and I came home and out.
PL: So how did you get home?
JW: How did I get home?
PL: Yes.
JW: Boat. Boat. All the way from Rangoon across the Ind— oh, nice boat. Empress of Canada, nice boat but jammed full of troops, jammed full. And the officer’s thing was absolutely a mess. The first day out of — oh, two sittings for food and, er, we sailed out into the Indian Ocean there, south Indian Ocean, and I thought, oh, this is going to be a slog, we’ll be a week up to Colombo. Got to cross this and one in the know said, ‘Don’t worry’, he said, ‘Don’t worry, Sir. Once we get out and starts to roll a bit there won’t be two sitting for meals. Half of these blokes which you’ll never see again’. And we didn’t. Oh, whether they only had every other meal. There was no crowding in the mess for food or anything [laugh] and I never had to worry about seeing these people. And there was not half of them I never saw again, and it was quite a comfortable trip up to Colombo, er, collected a few more, off then and up the — across the South Indian Sea and round Aden, and up through the Suez Canal and up to Hyéres, not far from a port quite near Marseille and they landed us there and the boat was immediately going back. And we came by train across France, right through to the channel ports and across and that was it. And, er, I was demobbed and within a week and then of course I was dead lucky. Dead lucky. I survived everything and then a further great bit of luck occurred. I really didn’t want — I did go back to the office accountancy people for a while. I shouldn’t have been, I shouldn’t have had to take the intermediate exam. I should have gone straight to the final. To be quite candid, having been in charge of two big units, with rather responsible jobs for the last few years, sitting down, swatting and doing — taking the exam I didn’t know what to do. My father — my brother was also coming home and he was going into the business which my father had built up quite a bit, his cycle business, quite considerable. I got in and I looked around all sorts of things, I went out to New Zealand flying, flying crop spraying, I got that and it was a bloody great thing. Canada. And, as I saym I had five sisters and four of them were married, substantially, and one of them, name of George, nice fella, came to me and said, ‘I hear you’re giving up accountancy?’ I said, ‘Yes, George. I really don’t know I’m going what to do. I’m trying to make up my mind to whether go to Canada or something like that or fly with one of the smaller airlines’. He said, ‘Well, I’ve inherited a small engineering manufacturing business’, he said, ‘It’s going alright. Would you like to join me?’ I couldn’t believe my ears. I couldn’t, I couldn’t believe my ears. Anyway I joined him and we worked damned, damned hard and everything and built it up to a substantial business over the next period. Really wasn’t expecting it. And I got married, got married to Audrey, who I’d met before the war and had always — we were parted for seven years but she was the girl and we got married. We had money, we had children and enough money to send them to good schools and was very comfortably off. Very comfortably off, er, right, right until getting towards retirement and I was — George had then retired and died and I was managing director, Chairman and managing director. It was a substantial company and things were getting hard. They were — things were getting, you know, a bit tough about then, er, and I was, I was sixty-one and took one job instead of the sales director. I said, ‘I’ll handle this’. And I made a mess of it. It was a very [unclear] Leyland on trucks. It was a big, big contract. I didn’t make a mess of it but I went and they said, ‘You didn’t do us good’. I was never a great salesman but, ‘You didn’t do a good job on that. Barry Watkins would have done a lot better, got much better terms. You’re over the hill’. And I retired at sixty-two. Came out. There we are. There we are.
PL: So what about the golf, John? What about the golf?
JW: I — oh dear. As soon as I got back straight back to Walmley, a good club. And straight — I got back, I was one handicap and I got down to scratch in 1950, which at that time I was thirty-eight, and for three years, and then in 1953, they altered all the calculations of the handicaps and everybody went up and I went up to three. And I got back to one. I never got back to scratch again. But I was in the County team, I won the County championship, I won the knockout and a few other things and I had very good years, very good years, a lovely wife, two boys, money, nice cars. I lived well. But then —
PL: Wonderful. Wonderful.
JW: As I say then at this time when I reached sixty I retired, I took early retirement, I took early retirement. It cost me as everything was based on the last three years. It cost me, but there we are. I wasn’t hard up. Then we lived in the same house. Bought the house, rented the house when we first got married in ‘54, I bought the house, nice house, in a nice area and everything, Oxford, in my front room. I remember buying it. I had good friends in, in the business and costed it all for me and everything and said you should buy. This was in 1957. You should, um, you should be able to buy this for about four thousand, four thousand three hundred, which was a good market price for a very nice house with land around it too. And I bought it in the front room and I got to our figure and my wife walked out the room. I wasn’t sure she wanted this house but I bought it for four thousand six hundred and I went out and she was crying in the hallway, ‘Oh John. I did so want I this house, you know’. I said ‘I’ve bought it’, ‘What?’ Oh, what, my wife moved, what, grabbed her handbag and tore back in and said there were things she’d lined up to buy in the Oxford area. We bought it and lived in it for fifty-four years until, until she died. Extended it and everything. Nice house, nice house, extended it and added a granny flat for the wife’s father. I lived well but I never thought I’d live to ninety-five, you know. Pension wasn’t great. It wasn’t bad but I’ve got plenty of capital which I’ve spent quite a bit of it, living well, but I thought all the rest of my family had gone into the eighties, and one sister did go into her nineties but, as I say, I never thought I’d live to ninety-five [laugh].
PL: Amazing. Amazing.
JW: Here I am now, still able to get round, losing my teeth [laugh].
PL: But not your memory?
JW: No. Not my memory, no, no.
PL: So John how did you, how do you about feel about how the veterans of Bomber Command have been treated over the years?
JW: How what?
PL: How the veterans form Bomber Command were treated over the years?
JW: Oh, it was a dreadful long time before they gave us the clasp. We shouldn’t have had anything. I mean, in the Middle East, I got the Africa Star and clasp for North Africa on it. At home, got the Air Crew Europe thing but nothing else, nothing else. But there were, considering there were fifty-three thousand, your chances, as I say, Mosquitos yes, Lancs a different matter, different matter.
PL: Did you feel that you were more in —
JW: There were a lot of gongs dished out but an awful lot of them, they were dished out and dead the next week and that sort of thing. People think they didn’t but they were. There was, but the people that got ‘em were dead. And the survivors, well there were quite a few. As I say, I survived and got the DFC and that but it took a long while for them to, to really acknowledge that clasp, Bomber Command, at long last, um, what’s his name? Our Prime Minister, he did authorise it. It should have gone through a long, long time and really I don’t think Churchill did enough and the end of the war to appreciate — to be honest I don’t think he realised that we’d lost fifty-three thousand volunteers, fifty-three thousand of volunteers, not one was pushed in. Everyone was volunteers and all educated, even, even, I mean, my brother was trained as a pilot and got through, served his flying training school in Canada and was near getting his wings but he couldn’t navigate. Jim couldn’t navigate. My brother could never learn how to read maps and getting near his final wings flying test he got lost in Canada and had to land and find out where he was and ring through and they sent for him and everything. And he couldn’t navigate. He couldn’t — he could go to the other side of Birmingham, Sutton Coldfield, and have a job to find his way back. Although it meant going north I don’t think he ever could put the sun and time together. I mean, you know, even in summertime. South, the suns around the 12 o’clock or, or a bit earlier than that to read summer time and east and west and all that and he could never do that. I don’t know why. I don’t know why. He was a damn good engineer. He’d be a blooming good pilot. He should have — he was scrubbed as a pilot right, right at the end of his flying course, right at the very end he was scrubbed. Well, I mean, um, the three categories of pilot, navigator, bomb aimer, the top one. Well [slight laugh] navigator, bomb aimer navigation was essential. So, he — there was no training. He would have made a good flight engineer, really good one, engineering trained and everything. He was really good. He knew all about — but there weren’t any in Canada. All the engineers, nearly all were trained in, in Britain or from British people who had been fitters, etcetera, in Canada and had gone out there. That’s where the basic trained and so of course.
PL: So what did he do?
JW: He became a gunner and put on a squadron, 462 Squadron, which was an Aussie squadron with Aussies, er, up here, up in this part of the world, 5 Group, and then they were transferred down to 100 Group, special duties, and this, in effect, this squadron that used to go around with several wireless operators picking up German radio and [unclear] language. Sometimes they had a German with them and just mucking them up, you know, jamming all the transmissions and that was his job. He did twenty-seven ops and survived. [unclear] two back. There we are. That’s it. But we should have had much more recognition. We should have had that Bomber Command clasp in ‘44, ‘45 long, long ago not just — not just, what’s it? Since I’ve come up here. It’s coming two years ago. It’s two or three years ago. We should have had that. There we are.
PL: Well John, it’s been an absolutely fascinating interview. Thank you so much for your generosity.
JW: I’ve been the luckiest bloke, luckiest bloke to survive. I survived everything. I survived everything even, even in Mosquitos. We were hit over Hamburg with the flak which came through in front, twenty-five thousand feet. It was always a bit of a mystery because very rarely did they get their flak up but we had one hit us and a piece of shrapnel came through the nose of the aircraft and went between — pilot and navigator sat there — between us and thudded in behind, and a bit of Perspex from it flicked my navigator’s eyebrow and, of course, we got a blooming hole in the front and a three hundred mile an hour wind coming in. And I turned and he pulled his mask down and of course, at twenty-five thousand feet, you bleed quite profusely, any — oh God, blooming blood all down here and I remember grabbing him and forcing him to — he pulled his mask off and doing this but it was only a nick. I remember dragging my handkerchief out and stuffing it down and getting him round, and, er, it was alright, and cleaned up a bit of blood spilt, caused two lumps. It was horrible but it was only a nick. That had gone through, missed him and missed me at eye level.
PL: Did you feel more in control what was going to happen to you being in Mosquitos rather than being—
JW: We were?
PL: Being in Mosquitos, did you feel you were more in control?
JW: Oh, absolutely. Mosquitos were marvellous. For a start, they were a two man crew, pilot and navigator or pilot, AI operator sitting. It was two men team. Absolutely. It really was. Whether you was fighter, intruder, Pathfinder, the navigator and the pilot, you worked together one hundred percent. No good pilot was any good without a good navigator, especially on — any plane you had to have a good navigator — but Mosquitos, the two of you were a team and I had a cracking navigator, Canadian, Bill Todd, he was a superb navigator, never failed. He could read H2S radar like — and so it was printed in plain language and that sort of thing. He was — he never took us over. I mean, I’ve got the route cards of many of my ops. We flew near, whenever we were going to Berlin, we flew up north near around Bremen or anything, to wake them up, waje them up, wake them up, down to Berlin. Wherever we went, Magdeburg in the middle, whatever it is, we always flew near, not over [slight laugh] they’d shoot at us, near to — to wake, wake never — Berlin, Berlin they never had any peace, ever. I’ve got copies of, er, from Goebbels’ diaries where he writes, ‘The Mosquitos were here again last night. We never get a good sleep every night’. But anyway, there we are. But the Mosquito was superb. It was a marvellous aeroplane. The film done on the Mosquito, “333, 233 Squadron” an operation where supposedly to a — Mosquito squadron to a heavy water plant in Norway and everything. You see them going off, these well-known film stars, the captain, squadron leader, I think his navigator was only a warrant officer or something, which was extraordinary for a start. I’m sure he was only a flight serg. You see them going up and doing the whole lot, and they come back and the pilot gets out first, oh well, well, you know, well, he comes down before the navi. That’s impossible, that’s a physical impossibility. In a Mosquito the pilot has to get in first, get in it and the navigator comes up and sits alongside him. The entry’s blocked, pull the ladder up, shut the trap. To get out, the navigator has [emphasis] to go first, he just has to and the pilot follows but no, in the film they come back and the pilot gets out, the wonder boy gets out first. Oh, every Mosquito pilot navi is infuriated about that film. They’re infuriated. Physical impossibility or damn near. You have to get the navigator in last and out first. There’s no room. No room. One can’t get past the other. [laugh] That’s infuriating. Oh dear. Any Mossie navigator that’s seen that says, ‘That’s blooming impossible’ [laugh]. Well, chatting to my flight commander he became, he became CO, Wing Commander, what’s his name? Peter MacDermot at Honington, where that film was made. They got these six Mosquitos and that and did that film. I brought it up. He said. But no, no, the star’s got to come out the plane, the great pilot, and it’s the blooming navigator that took him there and that’s it. Rubbish, rubbish. But anyway —
PL: Well, John, is there’s anything else at all that you would like to add?
JW: Well, oh dear me, I could rattle on forever, can’t I? Rattle on forever. No, I’ve been a very lucky chap. I’ve had a great life. I had a super wife, super wife, artist, mother, good looking, prettiest girl, super wife. Sixty-one years, everything. Look at that. She — those are all, my wife did all these. And that one, I always remember that. She did one or two like that in our kitchen, a nice big kitchen, we extended it. And the “Kippers by Candlelight” was the thing.
PL: “Kippers by Candlelight”
JW: It was a bit of fun. She liked doing things like that. And I remember a pal of mine coming in, Robin Lewis, always a bit of a wag, he looked at that and said, ‘Kippers’, he said, ‘don’t they look sexy?’ Do you know, they were known ever since, Audrey’s sexy kippers [laugh]. No reason at all. That’s always Audrey’s painting. It was Audrey’s sexy kippers [laugh].
PL: Well that sounds a very good note to end on, the sexy kippers.
JW: The sexy kippers. Well anything you want you can always give me a ring, anything, anytime. Would you like another cup or tea or biscuit or anything?
PL: I’d love one. Thank you so much.
JW: No. [laugh]
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
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Interview with John Whitworth
Language
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eng
Type
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Sound
Identifier
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AWhitworthJL160622
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Creator
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Pam Locker
Rights
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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
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
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2016-06-22
Format
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01:21:44 audio recording
Contributor
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Christine Kavanagh
Vivienne Tincombe
Description
An account of the resource
John Leslie Whitworth was born in Sutton Coldfield. Signed up for the Royal Air Force in 1940, finally being called up for service in 1941, before starting his training at the Initial Training Wing in Torquay, followed by more training at RAF Sywell in Northamptonshire. John was posted to RAF Moreton on the Marsh, which was a feeder station for the Wellington bomber crews, and he tells of meeting a lifelong friend called Brian Hurd, who was his navigator. John reminisces of his overseas posting to Egypt, to 37 Squadron at Abu Suweir, and flying over Gibraltar where he describes his first sighting of flak. John tells of his sadness of the death of his close friend, and also of his crash into the desert, after the Wellington he was piloting lost a propeller, his journey across the desert, and his subsequent rescue. Retells the story of a South African Air Force Boston which crashed into parked aircraft at Abu Suier in August 1942. Tells of his posting to a Wellington Instruction Unit, his training at RAF North Luffenham, and his love of golf. In September 1944, John volunteered to go back on operations, and was assigned to 142 Squadron flying Mosquitos working with the Pathfinder force, before being transferred to 162 Squadron, before finally being posted to ferrying Mosquitos to India. John completed two full tours with Bomber Command and was into his third when the Second World War ended. After the war, John became involved in his brother-in-law’s Engineering Manufacturing business, which he took over when his brother in law died.
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Devon
England--Northamptonshire
England--Gloucestershire
England--Rutland
England--Torquay
Egypt
Gibraltar
India
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1940
1941
1942-08
1944-09
142 Squadron
162 Squadron
37 Squadron
aircrew
anti-aircraft fire
Boston
crash
Distinguished Flying Cross
grief
Initial Training Wing
Mosquito
navigator
Pathfinders
RAF Moreton in the Marsh
RAF North Luffenham
RAF Sywell
RAF Torquay
sport
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/315/3472/APayneAJ150811.2.mp3
ee6769cc020c59ef42f4867ae1c03636
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
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Payne, Alan
Alan John Payne
Alan J Payne
Alan Payne
A J Payne
A Payne
Description
An account of the resource
Two items. An oral history interview with Alan John Payne DFC (1315369 and 173299 Royal Air Force) and his log book. He completed 18 operations as a bomb aimer with 630 Squadron.
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-08-11
Rights
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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
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Payne, AJ
Transcribed audio recording
A resource consisting primarily of recorded human voice.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
CB: Right. My name is Chris Brockbank and I’m conducting an interview with Alan Payne in Wendover, Buckinghamshire along with his grandson, Aaron Payne. And we’re going to talk about his life and keep the tape running until we need to have a break. So, Alan could I ask you to talk about your life from the earliest days please and then your childhood and how you came to join the RAF and then your experiences. And then after the RAF what you did. So over to you —
AP: Well, I was born here in Wendover. My father was a coal merchant. He had his own business. He even had, he even had his own coal trucks. Coal trucks. And I attended a local junior school until I passed to go to the Wycombe Technical Institute where I did technical studies. I had quite a happy childhood. I had one brother who unfortunately now has dementia. He’s younger than me but he does suffer with dementia. But then as I say, I had a childhood in Wendover. Local school. Then went to High Wycombe Technical College. The war was on then. I didn’t want to join the army or the navy so I volunteered for the Royal Air Force. I was seventeen when I volunteered. So, volunteering for the air force meant I was safe from being recruited in to the army which I did not want. And I had about a year to wait until I was called up and I got notice to report to Lord’s Cricket Ground in London. That was the recruiting place. Lord’s Cricket Ground. Just basic stuff there. Lots of inoculations. We were put up at Abbey Wood and then from there we were sent out to Torquay first of all for basic training. Drill. Law. This type of thing. Then from there I went to Brighton for a time. There again it was basic training. They were, they housed us in the hotels along the front. One thing I do remember about that time was Richard Tauber who was appearing in the, in The Pier Concert Hall and I saw him and thought what a wonderful chap he was. He was an Austrian Jew of course and he got out of Germany before the trouble started. But that’s one thing I do remember about that time there. This is all basic stuff.
[pause]
CB: So, after Brighton what did you do?
AP: After Brighton.
CB: What did you do in Brighton?
AP: Well, after Brighton — I did mention Torquay didn’t I?
CB: Yes.
AP: And then Brighton. Then from Brighton we were sent, we were sent out to South Africa. I was quite lucky really because I was sent to train with the South African Air Force and we were — we had to transport up to Liverpool. Got on a boat called the Volendam. A Dutch boat. The Volendam. And we departed for South Africa in convoy and that journey took, I think, four or five weeks. We stopped at Freetown on the way to refuel and then into Durban. And from — Durban was just a holding centre. And then from Durban we were posted to East London. East London. Where we started our training in flying and I hadn’t really flown before then. But we started flying then on Avro Ansons and that was basic navigation. And at Queenstown — that was navigation and then, and then from there we were posted to the gunnery school where we did bomb aiming and air gunnery. Pause it just a minute Chris while I just make reference?
CB: Ok. So, your logbook will remind you.
AP: Port Alfred.
CB: Yeah.
AP: It was Port Alfred where we went to for gunnery.
CB: Ok.
AP: A very nice little seaside town not far from Queenstown. Went to Port Alfred. There we were on Airspeed Oxfords. And then whilst there for [pause] to get us used to the night time flying we were sent to a little place called Aliwal North. And the runways there were lit by flares. So there was no lighting there. Just these flares that we had to land on but that gave us our basic training for night flying. And it was at Port Alfred that we passed out and had a, we had a passing out parade in Queenstown. We had a very good do there and I do have the, a copy of the menu.
[pause]
So, having, having finished our training we, we were sent down to Cape Town and we sailed back from Cape Town in the old Queen Mary with no escort at all because she relied on speed to get us through. I think she did about thirty three, thirty five knots. So we sailed back in good time and on the way back too we were taking a whole load of Italian prisoners of war and we escorted them back to — Liverpool that we went in to. And then to finish our training I was posted to Dumfries in Scotland where we did basic training. Bombing, map reading, this type of thing. And from Dumfries we were sent to a holding station at Harrogate. And I always remember the CO there was Leslie Ames, the old Kent cricketer. He was the CO at this hotel. Had a very cushy job really, in the war, didn’t he? But we were there for a few weeks and then we were posted to Turweston — an Operational Training Unit where we were on Wellington bombers. And it was at Turweston and this, and this other station, Silverstone that we were crewed up. And it was rather strange — we were all let loose in a big hangar and we had to sort of had to find our pilot and navigator, bomb aimer, wireless operator. We just got together and sorted ourselves out. That was the way it went in those days. I was lucky because my pilot, Geoff Probert, was an ex-guardsman. We called him grandfather because he was, he was thirty odd. He’d volunteered as a pilot and we were all in our early twenties so he looked after us really. And he was a jolly good captain. Anyway, we did our OTU training and we were all, we were all crewed up and ready to go and at Silverstone we also did some cross-country stuff. And then the next move was to Winthorpe. A Conversion Unit. And we converted then to Lancasters and that’s when the training really started. And I was there in October, November ‘43. And then at the end of November we were posted to East Kirkby. That was, that was the operational station. We were posted to 630 Squadron which was a wing of 57 Squadron. I always remember that part of my service well really because it was just like a builder’s site. There was mud everywhere. There was just basic, basic accommodation in Nissen huts. A central stove. Everything was running with condensation. The clothes were damp. Everything was damp. And it was a very cold winter then. In fact, we did our first op on the 2nd of December to Berlin. And everything was centred on getting the aircraft operational. The fact of our comfort didn’t really enter into things but we managed and, but as I say it was pretty rough at that time. There was no basic comforts. There was no basic comforts at all and the weather was so cold too. We started off with six trips to Berlin and the weather was so bad we hardly saw the target at all. We were bombing on Wanganui flares through cloud cover. During that time, we did Berlin, Stettin, Brunswick, Berlin, Magdeburg. As I say, six Berlin trips. But, at the same time although the weather was bad we did find time to get out to the Red Lion at Revesby which was our local pub. And we had a bit of relief there.
[pause]
The worst trip I had really was the one to Nuremberg. That was at the end of March. It was March 30th. We were attacked then by an ME109 but luckily, he missed us but he did fly pretty close. But we were lucky really. As I said we had some near squeaks. And one of the things that did, that I always found amazing was the fact that you’d be flying along in the dark and all of a sudden you got over the target and there were planes everywhere. And we had two, we had two narrow go’s where we nearly collided with another Lancaster. But as I say we were very lucky in many respects. Another op we did was the one to Mailly-le-Camp. That was, that was a military camp and that was a bit, that was being marked by Group Captain Cheshire. And everything went wrong that night. Everything was late. We had to circle and circle until we could get in to bomb on the flares that had been set by Cheshire. And then following on then, on the run up to D-Day we were more or less doing trips on marshalling yards, bridges, anything that would hamper the movement of the Germans. When D-Day approached [pause] when we finished our tour, just before D-Day in fact, although our last trip, the end of March 1944 was mine laying in Kiel Bay. And there we were hit by a — attacked and hit by a JU88. We caught fire but luckily the fire, for some good reason went out. We were jolly lucky then. But as I say we’d done twenty nine trips then and the CO came to us. He said, ‘Well,’ he said, ‘You’ve had it now. You can finish.’ But on the social side there I did know a young WAAF girl called Pat who more or less adopted the crew. No. We adopted her. And she took a liking to me and we spent a lot of time together. I’ve got a little picture of her here. We used to go cycling together and went to the pub at Revesby. I got very fond of Pat but of course when it came to [unclear] to go to see her. I don’t know whether he has or not. As I say by the end, by the time we’d finished, the end of May, the weather was, the weather was better but it had been a pretty dreadful winter. Anyway, at the end of our tour we all broke up and we all went our different ways. First of all, I went out to Moreton Valence where we were doing instructing and doing compass swings and basic stuff. And from there to Llandwrog in North Wales. And then I was quite lucky then because we were sort of messing about doing not much in particular and then a posting came through. They wanted, they wanted a navigator to go out to Palestine. So, I was, in the first instance I was sent out to Saltby, a Conversion Unit. And then to Matching and I crewed-up then with a guy called Flying Officer Nichols. And we were, as I say on Halifaxes which was a better aircraft for transport work than the Lancaster. The Lanc had a very narrow fuselage whereas with a Halifax you could get two lines of chaps down either side of the aircraft. And we did container dropping, glider towing. Anything which would help the 6th Airborne. We were attached to the 6th Airborne Division then and we went out with them to Palestine which, in 1946, wasn’t very healthy really. Because the Irgum Zvai Leumi were — and Begin, they weren’t very happy with us then. They blew up the King David Hotel. They shot two of our sergeants in [unclear]. You may remember that. We always had to look at, mind our backs because the — at that time, I shouldn’t say this but the Jewish weren’t very friendly towards us. And we used to go out to, they used to, they were bringing their migrants in by boat and part of our duty was to fly over the Med to report boats coming in. At the same time we did exercises down to Bagdad with the Airborne division. We did quite a bit of flying up through, up through Italy and we helped then to bring some of the migrants back to Palestine. It was quite an interesting time really although we had to watch what we were doing. But as I say we used to fly to Bagdad.
CB: What were you doing when you flew to Bagdad? What was the main reason for that?
AP: It was an exercise for the 6th Airborne Division.
CB: So, you were moving troops.
AP: It was a very good camp at Bagdad actually. They had a, they had a very nice camp outside and we went there two or three times. There were lakes there and the flying boats used to come in there, you know. I quite enjoyed the time out there in a way had it not been for the fact that we were liable to be sort of potted at. We also went down to Khartoum which was one of the hottest places I’ve ever known. In fact, it was so hot there that we couldn’t run the engines up. We had to be towed to the end of the runway, start the engines and take off so they did not overheat, you see. That again was an exercise with the Airborne division and they would do, they would do parachute drops. That type of thing.
[pause]
AP: We did quite a few trips up too, from Aqir airbase in Palestine. We did quite a few trips up to Udine. Udine. By stopping at Malta to refuel and then flying up to the coast of Italy in to Udine. And there again, it was a case of exercising with the 6th Airborne Division.
CB: So, you weren’t doing any doing bombing. You were —
AP: Oh no. No bombing at all. No. It was all —
CB: Not even practice. It was moving people.
AP: Moving people about. Troops. Migrants. And then, come the end of August it was time for me to be demobbed and that’s the only time I’ve flown in a Dakota. I was flown down to Cairo with some other guys. Then we were flown back by Dakota to London via Malta into Heathrow. And Heathrow then, of course, was just a series of huts. There was nothing like there is today. But that’s the only time I’ve flown in a Dakota. Although, a few weeks ago, when I was up at East Kirkby I sat down at a bench with a colleague of mine. Got chatting. And the guy I spoke to owned the Dakota at East Kirkby. Maybe you know him. Do you know him?
CB: I don’t. No.
AP: Well, anyway, he happened to be there and it was his aircraft and we chatted away and he’s very fond of the Dakota. But that more or less tied up my time in, with the Royal Air Force and I didn’t know quite what to do for a time. But I had always wanted to go into building so I applied to become an architect and I was lucky enough to be accepted at the School of Architecture at Oxford. I had to wait a few months before there was a vacancy and our course at that time only consisted of thirty people. There were two girls and the rest of us were men and half of them were ex-service people. In fact Oxford in those days was full of ex-servicemen and we had to compete with the youngsters. But after five years I passed. That must have been in [pause] ’46 ’47 I went to Oxford. It must have been the early ‘50s. And in those days jobs were hard to find and luckily I had some contact in North Wales and I was found a position there to start my architectural career. And from there things just moved on. Do you want — is that?
CB: Married?
AP: Pardon?
CB: When you got married.
AP: Oh yeah. Well, back in, back at the end of the war.
CB: Ok.
AP: Sorry. I left that out.
CB: How did you come to meet your wife?
AP: Oh, at the ‘drome in Llandwrog in North Wales.
CB: That was an OTU was it? Training place.
AP: Yeah. It wasn’t an OTU. No. It was a training place. Actually, I was there on — it would be — not D-Day. VE day. VE day in Caernarfon and the whole town turned out. Do you know Caernarfon? Very nice little town.
CB: Yeah.
AP: We went into Carnarvon and I’d met Gwen then and we went out together and celebrated around the castle.
CB: Yeah.
AP: And that was before, before I went to Oxford of course.
CB: So were you able to earn money while you were at Oxford?
AP: Well, I’ll say one thing for the Labour government then they paid for our fees and gave us a living allowance. So that was one, that was one credit that we had, we had to bear. Not bear. To put up with.
CB: And Gwen was working as well.
AP: She was. Yes. Yes, she was working for a time. Then the children came along and that was it.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Housewives didn’t work in those days did they?
CB: They didn’t.
AP: They stayed home and stayed put.
CB: No. No. Going back to your early days. How were you actually selected first of all? How were you selected for aircrew because you might have done a ground job? So at what point —
AP: Well I remember going to Oxford. There was a recruiting centre there and I’d put down for, I’d passed as pilot, navigator, bomb aimer.
CB: Yeah.
AP: That was the categories. I passed for that and I had a medical at the same time there. That was in Oxford back in, when I was only seventeen. And then they selected you for aircrew training. Everybody wanted to be a pilot of course but it was a matter of luck when you, when the time came. If they wanted navigators you were a navigator. You know. Or pilot. As things turned out it’s just as well I did go as a navigator I suppose.
CB: In what way?
AP: Well, I survived.
CB: Right. Going then on to the training in South Africa. You wore the brevet of an observer. So how was the course structured and how did you have that brevet rather than a navigator brevet?
AP: We were the last course to do the observer. We were the last people to do the observer course. And after that it became NavB and bomb aimers. But we did the whole lot. We did the three. Bomb aiming, navigation, air gunnery. We did the lot. After that the NavB’s just did navigation.
Yeah.
But for that reason, when we got back to the UK the Lancs were coming in. They wanted bomb aimers. And having done the observer course we were, of course, selected to take on that job you see.
CB: But you did navigation. Oh you didn’t.
AP: I didn’t — well I did map reading of course in Bomber Command.
CB: Yeah. Right.
AP: Which was quite important in the run up to D-day because a lot of our targets then were marshalling yards, bridges, that type of thing and we had to do map reading and pin point bombing.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Because we daren’t drop the bombs on the French domestic.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Sites.
CB: Which was the problem with that Cheshire raid. Identifying the military camp which was close to a village.
AP: Mailly-le-Camp. Yeah. That was quite a tricky raid that was. In fact, that picture you’ve seen was done a day or two before or a day or two after.
CB: So, what was, what actually caused the holdup and why were so many planes circling? Waiting.
AP: There was a hold up. I don’t know. I don’t know what happened. We never did find out but everything — we were late getting there. I mean, we got there too early or Cheshire was too — he was in a Mosquito and he went in after we did and marked the target. But it was a very successful raid. Although we did lose quite a few aircraft in collisions. We had to circle around waiting for these markers to go down.
CB: Yeah.
AP: And Nuremberg has been well documented by John Nicholl of course but that was a complete disaster because it was a beautiful moonlight night. A beautiful night and you could see for miles but the winds were, the winds were behind us and we got there far too early.
CB: Right.
AP: I believe Rusty was on that raid, wasn’t he?
CB: He was. Yes.
AP: Well he would tell you that. I suppose.
CB: Yes. So, in terms of bomb aiming you’ve got the markers sent down. What colour were they and how did you respond?
AP: Either red or green.
CB: Right.
AP: Well we were told, we were told by the Pathfinders which to bomb on, you see. I didn’t, I didn’t like that aspect of flying really because you didn’t know quite what you were going to hit. It could be a hospital, a school. You didn’t know. Whereas with the runup to D-day you had specified military targets and you knew that you weren’t affecting the civilian population. Because I wasn’t at all happy with bombing. I didn’t do the Dresden raid thank goodness but wearing my other cap it seemed so unnecessary to me to have bombed Dresden. It was a beautiful city. I have been back since and they’ve rebuilt it and even so it did seem a great shame to do that at that point in time.
CB: So, in the Nuremberg raid did you get any damage to your aircraft?
AP: No. Luckily, we had a very good run but all around us we saw aircraft going down. Ninety six went down that night. As you know.
CB: Yes.
AP: And we were told, you know, that the Germans were using scarecrows just to frighten us. They weren’t scarecrows they were Lancs blowing up. It’s a horrifying sight to see a Lancaster, you know, completely burning out.
CB: Did you know about Schrage Musik then?
AP: Hmm?
CB: Did you know about the German upward firing Schrage Musik?
AP: Oh yes. Yeah.
CB: At that time?
AP: Well, yes. We had H2S you know. H2S. And we were convinced that they were homing in on that. As soon as we got over the coast. Because that used to give us a picture of the ground on the, on the radar screen —
CB: Yes.
AP: But we were, we were convinced that the Germans were homing in on this. It may not have been the case but it was, it was one constant battle between the fighters and us, you know.
CB: Yes.
AP: We had Window as you know which was metallic strips. That used to help. No. In a way we were very lucky and of course having Geoff Probert, a very senior chap, he was thirty two. In fact, we called him grandad because we were all in our early twenties, you know and he used to keep us in order.
CB: He did.
AP: Yes. He was very good like that.
CB: Yes. What about other members of the crew? What were they like? So, navigator. Who was he?
AP: Tom Mackie. Tom Mackie was the navigator. He did the same sort of training that I did but he just missed out on the observer course and did the NavB and do you know after the war he set up a firm called [pause] and he became a millionaire with his own aircraft. I’ve forgotten the name now.
Other: City Electric.
AP: What?
Other: City Electric.
AP: City Electrical. Which is worldwide. He died about a year ago. Because I was very friendly with Tom. But he had, he had his own aircraft. In fact we flew — I did one or two flights with him after the war. He and it all started with his gratuity. He got in, he got into the motor trade just at the right time and sort of built, sort of built an empire.
CB: So, he was the navigator.
AP: Yeah.
CB: What about your wireless operator signal? Who was that?
AP: He was the one chap — we do know the others have passed on but our wireless operator was [pause] well we just lost, lost track of him. We tried to locate him. Tom, our navigator, used to go to Canada where we thought he was but he could never find him.
CB: What was his name?
AP: Lawrence. Vic Lawrence. He was the wireless operator. Nice guy but we just lost track of him so whether he’s alive or not we just do not know.
CB: What about the flight engineer? Who was that?
AP: Eric. Eric. [pause] the name’s gone. It’ll come back to me.
CB: Was he a busy man in the sorties?
AP: Oh yes. He was nearly a second pilot in a sense. He sat next to the pilot and he adjusted the, he sort of adjusted some of the instruments and on take-off he would hold the throttles open. How stupid, the names gone. When he, when he left the RAF he moved down to the coast near Bournemouth. I saw him a few times after. And he, I’ve got a picture of him up there. His wife was an ATA pilot.
CB: Oh.
AP: She flew aircraft from the factories to the squadrons. Mainly Spitfires of course.
CB: Yeah.
AP: I don’t think women ever flew Lancasters. Not to my knowledge.
CB: A couple of them did.
AP: Pardon?
CB: A couple of them did.
AP: Did they?
CB: Yeah.
AP: Well I don’t know. I was told that it was most unlikely but you say they did.
CB: Yeah. Yeah.
AP: It was a big, complicated aircraft to fly — the old Lanc.
CB: Yeah. Yeah. And then your mid-upper. Who was that?
AP: A guy called Bradd. B R A D D. Bradd. What happened was after two raids our original mid-upper gunner went LMF. He couldn’t take it any more after two raids. And I was sent to pick him up. It’s mentioned in this book by John Nicholl. The names are — I’m sorry I should have done more research before you turned up shouldn’t I?
CB: It’s ok. We can look it up. So, what exactly happened to him?
AP: He just didn’t like it. He thought, he thought he wouldn’t survive. Well we all thought we wouldn’t survive really but there we go. We pressed on.
CB: Was he the only one person you met who was an LMF victim as it were?
AP: Yeah. The only one. The only one I met. And then when he left we had a guy come along called Bradd. Dennis Bradd. B R A D D. And when I’d done, when we’d done the tour he hadn’t quite finished his. He had to do some more ops to make up his thirty and unfortunately, he went down two or three trips after which was most unfortunate because he was a nice guy.
CB: And what about the rear gunner?
AP: Yes. He was, he was a bit older than most of us. He was in his late twenties. He survived but he’s passed on now of course.
CB: What was his name?
AP: [pause] Dear me. It’ll come back to me. It’ll come back to me. I just cannot remember at the moment.
CB: Ok. When you were doing your training what sort of people were there in South Africa? Did they tend to be only British people or did people come from other of the Commonwealth countries?
AP: No. The people that trained us were mainly South Africans. South African Air Force
CB: Trained you.
AP: Trained us. And they were very good. I always say that. I think we had a good training in South Africa and of course the weather was good. There was no hold ups with the weather. You could get on with things whereas the guys that trained in this country and Canada had problems with the weather sometimes.
CB: Yeah.
AP: But you see the air gunners joined us on the squadrons. They didn’t have any training really. They were mainly basic. Perhaps with a low education rate — without being unkind. As you know.
CB: Well their role was to run the guns.
AP: Run the guns. Yes.
CB: What do you see their role as being in the aircraft as a crew member? What was their main role?
AP: Well mainly to look out for fighters coming in at us.
CB: So, because they had guns their job was to defend the aircraft. Was that right? How often, in your experience, did they use their guns?
AP: Very seldom. Very seldom.
CB: Why was that?
AP: Well maybe we were lucky. I don’t know. But I think the rear gunner used his guns once and the same with the mid-upper chap that came along.
CB: The one who went LMF, it wasn’t a bad experience of a fighter attack that caused him —
AP: Not at all. No. Not at all. I always remember I had to, I had to go along to a — I was trying to think — it was in the Midlands somewhere. He was being, he was being held at a police station. I can’t remember why. But I had to sign for a live body and I’d never done that before. A live body of the gunner. He was quite a nice guy. He just couldn’t take it. in fact, on the way back we went in to Nottingham to a dance hall and I had a few beers with him, you know and then brought him back to camp and of course as soon as he got back to camp he was whisked, whisked into the guardroom and then they used to tear off the brevets and the sergeant’s stripes and they really went through it you know.
CB: Did they do that in public? On a parade?
AP: Yeah, I did see it happen. There was a place at Coventry where they did that. It was done on parade. It was very dreadful really what they did. In my opinion.
CB: So why did they do that?
AP: Just to set an example really. I mean, in the First World War of course they used to shoot them didn’t they?
CB: Yeah.
AP: Anybody that —
CB: Yeah
AP: At least they didn’t do that. No. You were pretty tough after that training. Well the gunners never had much of a training. I don’t know why he ever became an aircrew member really.
CB: How did he fit? Before he went LMF how did he fit in the crew? Was it fairly obvious that he was —
AP: Well we never had him. You see we never had the gunners for long. We did the basic training with Con Unit, OTUs and then the gunners only came along later on.
CB: So normally the gunners would join at the OTU on the Wellington. Wouldn’t they?
AP: Not they didn’t in the case with myself. No.
CB: Right. Ok.
AP: They joined us later.
CB: Right. At the —
AP: It was just the basic members.
CB: At the Heavy Conversion Unit.
AP: Yeah.
CB: Yeah.
AP: They joined at the Conversion Unit. Yes.
CB: Yeah. Right.
AP: Yes.
CB: And so, the engineer joined you though at the OTU. Oh no there was no engineer at the OTU because they didn’t —
AP: No. There was no engineer then. No.
CB: The Wellington didn’t have them.
AP: No. They came along at Con Unit. It was just pilot, navigator, bomb aimer. They were the main ones. And the wireless. They were the main ones who joined. Who were there.
CB: Right.
AP: From the word go.
CB: Now, you started off as an AC2. How did your promotion go and why?
AP: Well it was the time. You become a sergeant after, when you pass out. Then after a year you became a flight sergeant.
CB: After a year.
AP: After a year.
CB: Right.
AP: Then you got recommended. Certain of us got recommended for commissions, you see.
AP: Do you know what the basis — what was the basis of the decision for making people —
AP: I don’t know exactly. The CO. The group captain in charge really. No. I never quite know. I got one and the navigator got one and the rear gunner got one. We all got commissions.
CB: So, what was the rear gunner’s strengths that made him suitable?
AP: Do you know I don’t quite know. It was just the fact that he was over thirty by that time I suppose and he was a fairly senior bod and they decided to give him a commission. I can’t think of his name, you know. And I saw him a few times after the war because he lived up in North London somewhere. We had a few meetings together. It’s stupid the way names go isn’t it?
CB: It’ll come back to you later.
AP: It will.
CB: But did you, did you do many things together as a complete crew when you were on 630?
AP: Oh yes. We went out a lot together.
CB: What did you do?
AP: Our favourite pub was the Red Lion at Revesby which was about a five mile cycle ride which we did no trouble at all. And I told you we had this little lady, Pat, who took a shine to me. And she used to sing you know. She used to get up in the pub and sing. She was good like that.
CB: She was the WAAF?
AP: She was a WAAF.
CB: What did she do in the RAF?
AP: Well she was on the reception committees. When you came back she would help make you comfortable. Bring you cups of tea and things. Plenty of cigarettes everywhere which was crazy really but they did. And that’s what she did. They sort of picked the ones who were outgoing types of girls, you know. She was quite outgoing in that respect.
CB: So at the end of a raid how did you feel?
AP: Relieved. Relieved.
CB: So you got down. What was the process? The plane lands. Then what?
AP: Well we had the —
CB: You taxied,
AP: Debriefing of course.
CB: You taxied to dispersal.
AP: Oh yeah.
CB: And then —?
AP: Emptied the, emptied the aircraft out and then we had to be debriefed.
CB: Each one individually?
AP: No. We all sat as a crew with the debriefing officer and one of the girls would be with us. Give us tea and things like that. That’s how I met up with Pat really. Because she used to be doing that sort of work you see. And then we went out together to places like Revesby. It’s not far from — do you know Revesby?
CB: Yeah.
AP: The Red Lion there. It’s still there you know.
CB: Yes.
AP: Just the same.
CB: Yes.
AP: I often called in there when going that way to renew acquaintances. Yeah.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Yeah. I used to think nothing of cycling five miles then for a drink
CB: And how —
AP: Beer wasn’t easy to get hold up. Decent beer.
CB: Did it run out regularly?
AP: Yeah. And there was one pub we went to they were so short of glasses we drank out of jam jars. I forget which pub it was but I think that was The Plough at East Kirkby. No. The Red Lion at East Kirkby. We did use that very often. That got so crowded. It was so near the ‘drome. We preferred to go out to Revesby.
CB: Right.
AP: We went to Mareham too. That wasn’t too far away.
CB: Now, we’ve talked about the aircrew. We’ve talked about your debriefing. How did the link go with the ground crew? How? Did you liaise with them much or —?
AP: Oh yes, we went out to drinks together but on the whole not too much. No. They didn’t seem to want to be too involved but we did have one or two nights out with them certainly. And during the moon spells you could afford to have drinks. You knew you wouldn’t be called on. The exception being Nuremberg when they did call us out with a full moon but apart from that normally the moon was a quiet period.
CB: Right. And the crew chief. What would he be? Rank.
AP: Corporal or sergeant.
CB: And what was their attitude to the aircraft?
AP: Oh, they looked after their own aircraft. My word they did. They were very proud of it. You know. Keep it serviceable. There were so many, you know, became [pause] not de-serviceable. What’s the word?
CB: A wreck.
AP: Not a wreck exactly but, you know, they had to do a lot of work on them. They kept ours — they kept us flying all the time. That was one good thing. I feel sorry for this present Lanc. They’ve had this engine fire, haven’t they?
CB: Yeah.
AP: And it seems it’s quite a major problem. The air frame’s been affected around the engine mounting.
CB: Oh, has it? Yes.
AP: Yes. So, I’m told. So how long it will before it flies again I do not know. At the same time the Panton is hoping to get Just Jane flying but whether they will or not I don’t know. They say it’s going to cost a lot of money to get the airframe right and to get a certificate of air worthiness. That’s the problem.
CB: Going back to the war experience what was your worst experience on a raid?
AP: Well I wouldn’t say Nuremberg although Nuremberg was bad. I wouldn’t say it was the worst one. I think the worst one was Mailly-le-Camp where we seemed to be buzzing around for ages waiting for things to happen.
CB: This is the Cheshire raid.
AP: Yeah. I don’t blame Cheshire at all. He was a good, he was a good chap. In fact, we did a Munich raid some time afterwards where he took off about two, he took off two hours after we did [laughs] and we flew down to North Italy and then we headed north for Munich and bombed Munich and Cheshire had moved in in the meantime and dropped his flares with a Mosquito. Yes. He was good like that and of course [pause] the Dambuster fellow. He went down in a Mosquito didn’t he?
CB: Gibson. Yes.
AP: Guy Gibson. Couldn’t think of the name for a minute. I hope you’ll pardon me forgetting names.
CB: That’s ok.
AP: As I say these things are affecting me a bit. These.
CB: Could you talk us through your situation as an air bomber because you’re the person looking at the flak coming up. So, at what — so could you talk us through the point the pilot hands over to you. Could you just talk us through what you did? What it was like. How you dealt with it.
AP: Well the air bomber, the air bomber or bomb aimer as some say — the official title is air bomber by the way. His job really was to take over when the bombing site was coming up and to guide the pilot to the markers. And we were told what marker. It was either red or green normally. And of course, we had to, we had to man the guns. I never fired the front guns but they were there if necessary. But we always used to say, ‘Left. Left. Right.’ ‘Left. Left,’ you had to say. You didn’t say left or right. It had to be, ‘Left left.’ Or right. That was one — so that sort of did away with any sort of errors you see. But as I say the bomb aimer saw everything going on more than anybody else. The poor old navigator — he didn’t see a thing. He was behind closed curtains. Probably just as well. He didn’t see a thing. The wireless operator too. But the bomb aimer was there to see everything.
CB: So, what were you actually seeing? Because the run in takes how long?
AP: Oh, it could take anything from thirty minutes to two or three minutes. We were flying, I’ll say one thing about the old Lanc you could get up to about twenty three, twenty four thousand feet and it seemed like ages going in, you know. With flak all around you. It always seemed you could never get through the flak. It always seemed there was a hole in the flak and you were in that hole, you know. Just marching along. We got hit once or twice but only minor stuff.
CB: So, when you’re on the run in the pilot is effectively saying, ‘Over to you.’ Is he?
AP: Yeah. Yeah.
CB: You’re not actually controlling anything yourself but you’re telling him what to do.
AP: Oh no. He’s got the controls to guide the thing. We’re just saying either, ‘Left. Left,’ ‘Right,’ or so on. You know.
CB: And then —
AP: We had, of course, control of all the switch gear. You know, the bomb selector.
CB: Ok. So just talk us through the bomb selection because you had a wide range of ordnance on board so how did that work? There was a sequence.
AP: Well it was pretty much automatic really, you know. Our main bomb load used to be a four thousand pound cookie with incendiaries. And it was all automatic. Once you, once you got over the target you pressed the button and everything worked automatically. And the camera which was in the back of the aircraft which we didn’t like. That was phosphor bomb.
CB: So, there was a sequence that the bombs left.
AP: Yeah.
CB: What was the sequence?
AP: Well the cookie normally went first. The four thousand pounder. Followed by the incendiaries. We did have raids where we had fourteen one thousand pound bombs but normally on the mass bombing it was to cause fires which I didn’t go much on to be quite frank. But there again it was a, that was the way it was directed we should fight the war.
CB: Right. So, the cookie was non, it wasn’t aerodynamic. It was just a cylinder so —
AP: Like a big dustbin. Yeah.
CB: What did it do? It was a blast bomb.
AP: A blast bomb. Yeah. That blasted everything so the incendiaries would come along and set fire to the blasting but there were so many bombs being dropped I don’t think they made much difference really. And we were given a time to, we were given, different squadrons had different times to approach the target you see.
CB: Right.
AP: And the Pathfinders [pause] they would, you know, they would direct the bombers to what they thought was relevant at the time. Yeah.
CB: So, the Pathfinders were circling. Or the master bomber was circling. Giving instruction was he?
AP: They — I wouldn’t say they would. They used to go in first and mark the target but I don’t think they hung about. It wasn’t healthy to hang about.
CB: I meant the master bomber would stay and watch. Would he?
AP: In the mass raids — no. In the more selective raids like Munich and some of the other raids he’d be there all the time. But on the mass raids early on, the Berlins, it was just a question of the Pathfinders coming in, marking the target and then getting the hell out of it.
CB: So what heights were you normally, normally delivering your load?
AP: Twenty one, twenty three thousand. Yeah. Pretty high really. We were above the Halifaxes and Stirlings. I always felt sorry for the Stirlings. That’s why I quite liked meeting that friend of yours.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Because how he survived I do not know but he did didn’t he?
CB: Extraordinary.
AP: Did he do a full raid?
CB: He did. So I’ll cover that with you later. But the air bomber bit is interesting because we don’t necessarily have much detail on that and so that’s why I’m just asking you a bit more about it. And —
AP: Yeah. Well, as I say, it varied over the course of my time you see. First of all it was mass bombing, then more selective bombing and then pinpoint bombing as we approached D-day you see. The whole character of the thing was changing actually.
CB: So, when, when you did the pinpoint bombing. Was that with markers?
AP: No.
CB: ‘Cause a lot of it’s daylight isn’t it?
AP: No. No. Not daylight at all. No. No. We had to do it by map reading and —
CB: Ok.
AP: There were no markers then. No.
CB: No. ‘Cause we’re talking, for you we’re talking we’re talking pre-D-Day.
AP: On some day there were only two squadrons. Only twenty or thirty aircraft, you see.
CB: Yeah.
AP: That was, they were the interesting raids really. They were the raids I preferred because we knew then that we were bombing specific targets to the, for the good of the army. And we were trying to upset the German transport movements.
CB: Yeah. So, going back to you’ve released your bombs. You’ve got a camera and then there’s a flash that goes down.
AP: There’s a flash. Yeah.
CB: Does that, how does the timing work for that? Do you set it as the bomber aimer?
AP: That, again, is all automatic.
CB: So —
AP: We didn’t, we didn’t like the phosphor bombs because I mean, if they hang up they were deadly you know.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Did you have them at all?
CB: I know what you mean. Yeah.
AP: They were at the back of the aircraft.
CB: Yeah.
AP: By the toilet.
CB: Right.
AP: But as I say they would drop automatically and then they were timed to go off to take the photos as the bomb, as the bomb exploded.
CB: Because the time of their firing would depend on how high you were.
AP: Yes. It was all, it was all done automatically you know by the, by the experts shall we say.
CB: So, what was the purpose of the camera?
AP: I frankly don’t know. It seemed to me to be a bit unnecessary but at least it proved you’d been there. There was a danger you see, I suppose that some crews may not have even have bombed the target. And that was proof you’d been there. Oh, I got some good aiming point photographs. I think that’s why they awarded me the old DFC. We got some good aiming point photographs.
CB: At what point did you receive the award of DFC?
AP: After the, after the tour. They analysed things you know and we’d had a good record of aiming point photographs.
CB: Who else in the crew?
AP: The pilot did. And myself. I thought Tom MacKay, the navigator should have had one because he was very good chap. In fact, he flew, when Gwen was ill he flew her out to Switzerland twice you know to try and get her better treatment but it didn’t work. She had Parkinson’s. But he knew somebody in Switzerland, in Geneva who he thought might help her because he lived out there for a time. And he arranged, he had his own, as I say he had his own aircraft and we flew her out there a couple of times but it wasn’t to be.
CB: When you came off operations you now went on to training other people you said.
AP: Yeah.
CB: What was that like in contrast?
AP: A jaywalk really. There wasn’t a lot to do really, you know. We had to find, we had to find time. We had to sort of find jobs to do really because although we were helping to train other people we were doing compass swings and things like that. We were back on Ansons and it all seemed a bit airy fairy after Lancasters but it had to be. You know, we were training. We were sending out the new crews coming along.
CB: Was there a sense of relief doing it or was it just boring?
AP: A bit of both. A bit of both.
CB: So, when you came to be demobbed how did you feel about that?
AP: Well I was demobbed, of course, from Palestine. And that’s when I mentioned I was flown in a Dakota back to Heathrow which was just a series of huts in those days. We had a good long run. They paid us for a good long holiday. Two or three months I think. Then I went on to Oxford, you see.
CB: How did you come to meet your future wife, Gwen?
AP: I was in the Royal Air Force then.
CB: What was she?
AP: She wasn’t in the air force. No. She wasn’t Royal Air Force. The other girl I had, that I knew, was Pat. She was with me at the Operational Training Unit but I’d finished by the time I went to North Wales.
CB: By the time you finished your tour did you feel short changed for not doing thirty or was there a sense of relief?
AP: Well it was a sense of relief I think. We were quite badly quite shot up on that. We were mine laying you see in [pause] we were mine laying in — what’s the name of the port.
CB: Brest.
AP: We were attacked by a JU88.
CB: And what height would you be flying for mine laying?
AP: Oh we were quite low. We were quite low. I’m trying to think what [pause] what was the first question you asked me?
CB: What? The sense of relief? I asked you earlier what your worst experience was.
AP: Well that was one of the worst. Yes. [pause] Kiel Bay. I couldn’t think of the word. Kiel Bay.
CB: Where’s that.
AP: We were laying mines in Kiel Bay.
CB: Where’s that? Oh, outside Kiel.
AP: Kiel. Yeah.
CB: Yeah. Yeah.
AP: Kiel Bay. I couldn’t think of the words for a minute. You see, I mean, despite the ops we had one or two occasions where we boomeranged. You know, something went wrong with the aircraft and we had to return. It happened to the guy who died a few weeks ago. The New Zealand, the New Zealand Dambuster fellow.
CB: Yeah.
AP: He had to, he had come back because he had a hit and his compass was put out of action. And we had one or two cases like that.
CB: Les Munro.
AP: Yes, I couldn’t think. Len Munro. Yeah.
CB: Les. Yeah.
AP: Les Munro I meant. I met him a few times.
CB: Did you?
AP: A nice guy he was.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Did you ever meet him?
CB: He was over recently. I never met him but he was.
AP: I met him at Aces High two or three times. He had his girlfriend with him. He’d lost his wife but he had a lady companion who was very pleasant. She used to help him but he was pretty active right to the end. Well, I didn’t see him at the end of course. As I say there was cases too when you would get all ready to go. All the build-up and everything and then it would be cancelled. All that sort of getting ready. Nearly all, not all day but you had to do a night flying test before where everybody went up and flew for about half an hour and tested everything and then you’d come back and then go to briefing. So that was all part of the game but those didn’t count.
CB: Was that a frustration?
AP: Frustration really. Yes. Having spent the whole afternoon or a bit longer getting ready and then to find it was cancelled. That happened a few times and that didn’t count.
CB: So, what was the atmosphere before you went on the raid amongst the crew?
AP: The atmosphere. It’s a job to pinpoint it really Chris. We were all a bit apprehensive I suppose really. A bit apprehensive. Is it recording? But some of the crews used to have a pee on to the — on to — what was it now? There were different ways people had to let off steam. We all had our little [pause] I had a little St Christopher I always took with me. Geoff, the pilot, had a scarf. And I remember one raid, we were ready to take off and he’d forgotten his scarf. Luckily, he had his motorbike with him and he shot off to the billets, got his scarf and came back. It made us a bit late but he was determined he wouldn’t fly without his scarf. We all had these little [pause] what’s the word? Keepsakes.
CB: Did everybody do that?
AP: Lucky charms.
CB: Yeah. Lucky charms. Did everybody?
AP: Yeah most had. I had a little St Christopher which I’ve lost now but I did have one and I always made sure I had it.
CB: And when the tour was over was there a feeling that you would get together at some stage afterwards or was there just an acceptance that you were being disbursed?
AP: There was just an acceptance. That’s the problem really. You were sort of lived together for six months. You were living together, you know and then you suddenly break up and everybody goes their own way. And we didn’t all get together afterwards. We tried. Geoff Probert, my skipper, he went to Hatfield and I never did see him. We tried to meet up once or twice and we never did. Then he went up to Sheffield and he died fairly young. ‘Cause he was older than the rest of us. So getting together was a problem. I did reach some of the guys afterwards but you see after the war you really had to forget all about it and I did for about five or six years. Going to Oxford you had to get your head down and get down to studies and you more or less forgot all about the war. It’s only now, in latter years, that we begin to think about it again.
CB: But did, what did you feel the general public’s attitude was to people who had been effectively on the front line? After the war.
AP: Well, as I say I didn’t really think too much about it then. I think people were quite sympathetic to what we had done. Some people thought we were having, having it too cushy. At least one thing — we came back to white sheets. We didn’t sleep in dirty, muddy trenches which I would have hated. We came back to a decent bed after a raid and we were looked after.
CB: Yeah.
AP: With our eggs and bacon.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Which no one else could get.
CB: No.
AP: That was a great relief to have eggs and bacon and that type of thing. So some people thought that aircrew and submarine people had been molly coddled but we had a fairly dangerous job to do.
CB: A final question then. You’ve touched on it already. How did you feel about what you were doing in actually aiming — effectively aiming the aircraft and dropping the bombs?
AP: How did I feel?
CB: Each time.
AP: I didn’t like the area bombing because you never quite knew where your bombs were landing. I was always a bit perturbed about that. I had that in my mind you know but we had a job to do. And they started the bombing first so we had to sort of — they bombed Coventry and London didn’t they? But as I say towards the end of the war with the bombing — the run up to D-day it was a different cup of tea really.
CB: Yeah. And was your bomb sight — what was that like?
AP: The Mk 14.
CB: Yeah. Were you happy with that or —?
AP: Oh yes. Yeah.
CB: Yeah.
AP: Of course they’ve improved no end now. In fact, if you when you’ve got time I’ll take you to the Trenchard Museum at Halton where they’ve got some of the old Mk 14 bomb sights. You want to go to go there, you know.
CB: We will. The Americans claimed that their bomb sights were so much better for accuracy. That’s why I ask the question.
AP: I think ours was pretty good. We got some good aiming point photographs. The Americans may have been better because they did their daylight stuff didn’t they? Mark you they did catch a pasting didn’t they? On some of these daylight raids. Didn’t they?
CB: Absolutely.
AP: Yeah.
CB: Well, we’ve done really well Alan. Thank you so much. I’m going to stop the tape now and we’ll have —
AP: I’m sorry. I should have done genned up with this. There are things I forgot didn’t I?
[Recording paused]
CB: Hang on. Just as an extra then Alan. We talked about Pat and I wonder first of all when you went on a raid what was the reaction of the WAAFs as you set off?
AP: Well there was a great deal of cooperation. I think they felt that, you know, most of the crews knew a WAAF somewhere down the line and they were invariably at the end of the runway to wave us as we went off. Without them we’d have missed it. They weren’t there when we came back of course. They were all in the debriefing huts waiting for us to come back. But no, they cooperated. I think they realised what we were doing and I felt that their presence helped a heck of a lot.
CB: So, in terms of Pat she clearly was a major factor in your life then.
AP: During that time. Yes. During that time, she was. Helped to take off the stress off the bombing ‘cause we used to go for cycle rides and things together, you know and she’d come out drinking with us. And she used to sing. She had quite a good voice. I don’t know where she learned to sing but she used to get up and sing. She was a bit, sort of outgoing in that respect. There aren’t many girls who would get up in the pub and sing are there?
CB: Probably not. But how did this break up in time?
AP: What?
CB: This relationship you had with her.
AP: Well we didn’t — when I got posted away of course, I mean, I couldn’t keep up with meeting all the time and I suppose we did write for a time of course and gradually I suppose the letters got less and less and it just faded away but I often wonder what happened. Even now I often wonder if she’s alive still.
CB: In your experience with 630 Squadron Association are there any people who were ground crew personnel who have been members or did it tend only to be aircrew?
AP: It’s funny that you should say that. I met a, we had a meeting at Aces High with Bomber Command and there was a WAAF there who was a driver at East Kirkby. She lives now in Bournemouth and she was there with her son. I didn’t know her at the time but she told me she was on transport. You know they used to drive the crews out to the aircraft and she was doing that. Well, she’s older than me. She was ninety three I think she told me. So that’s one case but there aren’t many of the old WAAFs turn up.
CB: No.
AP: We do see — now who was, who was the inventor of the bouncing bomb, now.
CB: Barnes Wallis.
AP: Her —
CB: His daughter.
AP: His daughter comes along. You’ve met her have you? She often comes along with — oh [pause] the last remaining bomb aimer. I saw him the other day. His name is gone now. He was up at East Kirkby. Johnny Johnson. He’s written a book. The farmer’s boy he was, wasn’t he? Have you read the book?
CB: I haven’t. no. But he —
AP: Oh, I’ve got it. I haven’t read it. I gave it to my other son because he was a farmer. Johnny Johnson.
CB: Ok. That’s really good. Thank you very much.
[recording paused]
CB: One more question now, Alan. People tend to have an affection not just for lucky charms but for aircraft so were you normally with the same plane? Or what was the situation?
AP: We were normally with the same plane. Yes. There were occasions of course when we didn’t have the same plane. But it was always nice to have the same plane. And LEY was ours. LEY.
CB: And if you flew in another one how did you feel?
AP: Oh, it didn’t really bother me too much but it was just nice to know you had your own aircraft.
CB: Because they tend to have specific characteristics.
AP: I suppose they do, really. Yes. Yeah.
CB: Ok. Thank you.
[recording paused]
CB: Ok.
AP: Well there was a survey party had got lost in the Sahara and they asked for volunteers to go and find it. Well, they had a sort of point where they thought he was and we had to make for that and then we started to do a square search based on the visibility. And we found it and they waved to us and we radio’d back where they were. But that’s just one little thing we did and we had to volunteer for that. We had this note that these people were lost in the desert.
CB: Yeah. A practical humanitarian task.
AP: Well yeah. Yeah.
CB: Let me just take you back to that JU88 encounter because that could have been fatal.
AP: Oh easy. So easy.
CB: So what happened? What height were you etcetera and how did he find you? And —
AP: Well it just happened. We were sailing along and all of a sudden these bursts burst of cannon fire all around us. I mean the rear gunner should have seen him really but he never saw him and I think he was — he wasn’t underneath us. He was behind us. Normally the idea was to come up from the underside.
CB: Yeah.
AP: And fire in to the petrol tanks.
CB: Yes. Yeah. So the, so the gunner — he was coming from behind and the gunner didn’t see.
AP: Didn’t see him. No.
CB: What was the — in the dark this was.
AP: In the dark, oh yes.
CB: Yeah. Yeah. Right. So, he starts firing so the shells are exploding is that right?
AP: Yeah.
CB: Then — then what happened?
AP: Well there weren’t many shells actually. In fact, you know, we thought he would come back because the plane had caught fire. Luckily it went out. And we honestly thought he would come back for another go but he didn’t. I think he thought he’d got us and that was it. And old Geoff, the pilot put it into a steep dive and started to corkscrew and we lost the JU88.
CB: So, the corkscrew might have been the solution.
AP: Yeah. Yeah.
CB: But what happened to the strikes? Where were the strikes on the aircraft? On your plane.
AP: Well, as I say one was on the rear turret and the other side and one in the wing but apart from, it didn’t really do any sort of damage structurally. Although one caused a fire, you see. And one —
CB: Where was the fire?
AP: I’ve got a picture of this machine gun. The machine gun is all bent over where the shell hit it. And the rear gunner — he was jolly lucky to be alive. He really was.
CB: So, let me get this straight the shell hits the rear turret. In the gun.
AP: It hit the end of the gun. It was remarkable. It really was.
CB: And the gunner wasn’t injured.
AP: No. He wasn’t hurt. He was sort of knocked out, you know. He was semi, he was sort of, you know, the blast sort of knocked him out temporarily. He was sort of muttering away, you know, half in and half out but he came around and we still had the mines on board, you know. That was another thing. We didn’t jettison. We went on and dropped them afterwards ‘cause when he attacked we were still going in on to the target, you see. In to the bay, Kiel bay. And that was our twenty ninth raid. And I think the CO, Wing Commander [Dee?] saw we’d had enough. ‘Oh, you can stand down now,’ he said.
CB: After. After that. Yes. So, you dropped your mines successfully.
AP: Yeah, we dropped the mines.
CB: What height would you drop a mines from? ‘Cause you can’t do it from height ‘cause it’ll break.
AP: No. You can’t do it from height. No.
CB: So what height were you dropping?
AP: I think we must have been about twelve thousand feet. Something like that. Yeah. A long time ago now. You tend to forget these things don’t you?
CB: Sure. Yeah. Thanks.
Dublin Core
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Identifier
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APayneAJ150811
Title
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Interview with Alan Payne
Rights
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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
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IBCC Digital Archive
Type
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Sound
Language
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eng
Format
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01:21:03 audio recording
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Pending review
Creator
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Chris Brockbank
Date
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2015-08-11
Description
An account of the resource
Alan Payne was born in Wendover, Buckinghamshire. He volunteered for aircrew with the Royal Air Force and after initial training was sent to South Africa where he trained as an observer. When he returned to the UK, he was allocated the role of bomb aimer and after joining a crew he was posted to 630 Squadron at RAF East Kirkby. His first operation was to Berlin. He describes the operation to Mailly-le-Camp as one of his worst experiences with Bomber Command. Returning from an operation on Nuremberg his aircraft was attacked by an Me 109 and on their last operation mine laying off Kiel they were attacked by a Ju 88. After his tour Alan became an instructor before being posted to Palestine. When he was demobbed he undertook training at Oxford University to become an architect.
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
South African Air Force
Spatial Coverage
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Germany
Great Britain
South Africa
Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea
England--Lincolnshire
Germany--Berlin
Germany--Nuremberg
Germany--Kiel
Temporal Coverage
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1944-05-03
1944-05-04
Contributor
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Julie Williams
630 Squadron
aerial photograph
aircrew
Anson
bomb aimer
bombing
Bombing of Mailly-le-Camp (3/4 May 1944)
bombing of Nuremberg (30 / 31 March 1944)
coping mechanism
crewing up
debriefing
Distinguished Flying Cross
ground crew
ground personnel
H2S
Halifax
Ju 88
lack of moral fibre
Lancaster
Me 109
military living conditions
mine laying
Nissen hut
observer
RAF Dumfries
RAF East Kirkby
RAF Silverstone
RAF Torquay
RAF Turweston
RAF Winthorpe
Scarecrow
superstition
target photograph
training
Wellington
Window
Women’s Auxiliary Air Force
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/339/3504/ATaylorJ150916.2.mp3
f76e00dfb7d0f9819f6a843d7b85b955
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
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Taylor, John
J Taylor
Description
An account of the resource
An oral history interview with Flight Lieutenant John Taylor DFC (1923 -2021). He flew operations as a navigator with 50 Squadron.
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2015-09-16
Rights
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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
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Taylor, J
Transcribed audio recording
A resource consisting primarily of recorded human voice.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
MY: This interview is being conducted for the International Bomber Command Centre. The interviewer is Malcolm Young and the interviewee is John Taylor. The interview is taking place at Mr Taylor’s house in Sale in Cheshire and the date is the 16th of September 2015. John, if we could start. How did you come to join the Royal Air Force?
JT: Well, at the, when I was young I’d got two sisters closest to me. I was the eldest of seven. And I’d got a, I had a scholarship to the Grammar School and reached the fifth year in 1939 and so I was about to go into the sixth form when the school was evacuated into Lincolnshire. No. Gainsborough. North Nottinghamshire. I didn’t want to go. They were doing half time, you in somebody else’s house. So, I left and went to work.
MY: Yes.
JT: And I went to work as an assistant analytical chemist at Boot’s factory on Island Street in Nottingham. And I was sixteen at the time. I joined the air raid, ARP — the Air Raid Precaution people as a first aid party. I had training and days when we — mock incidents and things. Every time the sirens went I had to put my overall on, put my tin hat on and cycle to the warden’s post. And, and I got sick of this. But I found out that working as an analytical chemist — it was a reserved occupation and one day, cycling home I saw a poster “Reserved men. You can volunteer for flying duties with the RAF.” So, I thought, that’s for me. I was seventeen then and I went around to the recruiting office and they seemed delighted to see me [laughs] and signed up. And then I went home and told my parents who were not overly pleased. Proud perhaps. But not overly pleased. Then of course, I had to go through all the medicals and especially the eyesight things. It was rather funny when it came to the eyesight thing because you know, they closed one eye and you had to read the letters. And when I’d finished the examiner said, ‘Now let’s see what a mess you make of your other eye.’ The other eye 6/6. Perfect. So, right, both eyes 6/6 [laughs] Obviously, they wanted people. And then of course I was sent home to wait. And it was, nineteen four — all this happened in 1941. And in 1942 just six days, three days after my nineteenth birthday I was called up. They’d sent me a list. Razor, shaving brush. I’d never shaved at that time because I was very fair and smooth. And all the rest of the clobber. And I got it all together in the suitcase and off I went to report to St John’s, London. No. Lord’s Cricket Ground. Cricket ground. And on the train down there was a chappie sitting opposite me. Dark, a rather big nose, suitcase and he said, ‘Are you going to Lord’s Cricket Ground?’ ‘Yes.’ And so, I met Vic Page who became quite a friend. So, it wasn’t too bad. The two of us together. We got to Lord’s Cricket Ground. They formed us into uneven lines and then, to my horror told us to strip naked. We were under the stands. Where the stands go up there’s a space underneath. Of course I was brought up with two sisters and so, a virgin of course, anyway.
[that’s my son in law to collect the — ]
[pause]
JT: That was my first FFI.
MY: Yes.
JT: Free from infection. After that we shambled around somewhere else. They were decking out uniforms. And then we went to a block of flats in St Johns Wood. They were very posh apartments but of course, everything had been stripped out. But we were in a, a room for three. And although we got the iron beds and the biscuits — those were square [pause] I don’t know what they were filled with. Horsehair or something. And, to my surprise — sheets. I didn’t expect to have sheets with I joined the forces. And we also had our own ensuite. But we were told by the corporal that we’d got to keep that clean and we weren’t given any cleaning materials. It was up to us to keep the bath and basin and everything clean. And we spent three weeks there at the Initial Receiving Centre or whatever they called it. My first time in London but it wasn’t Vic’s first time.
Other: Sorry to just interrupt. I can’t see —
[recording paused]
JT: Yes. In London. We were allowed, after the first week when we’d had drill every morning and been shouted at more than I’d ever been shouted at in my life. And the corporal in charge of our flight of thirty of us and it was the, I think they must have all been taught from the same script, ‘If you play ball with me, I’ll play ball with you.’ But they weren’t bad. They weren’t bad. And everywhere in London they marched us around and we saw other flights being marched around. All to the different places. And every morning stopped for break at some sort of café and we could get a scone with butter and a cup of tea for about a penny ha’penny. And you could see the corporal sitting at a table at the side. They got theirs free I think [laughs] for the perks of taking us to this café. And [pause] but quite early in the afternoon we were let off, especially in the evenings and weekends and so we went to the Opera House. And they’d taken all the seats out and boarded over at a level with the boxes that went around. Covent Garden Opera House. And there were dances.
MY: Oh.
JT: So, we went to dances there. And another time we went to travel by tube because it was convenient and cheap. Went to Max Miller to see Max Miller perform. And I thought it isn’t all bad being [laughs] in the forces. Because you feel, you know you’ve got such anticipation. Another time they took us to the Rudolph Steiner Hall by coach and showed us some training films. Horrendous things that can happen to you if you don’t take protection [laughs] when you have sex. I’d never had sex anyway. And then [pause] that must be a difference from today’s nineteen year olds. And then they put on a lot of little filler films. So, I was sitting in the warmth of the cinema, in the upper circle there and I think there were orchestral rites, “The Rustle of Spring.” And I thought [laughs] I didn’t think being in the air force was like this. But of course, the other side of it was parade every morning. Inspection. And the sergeant would come down and the old script, as I say, I think they were all taught, ‘Am I standing on your hair?’ ‘Am I,’ no, ‘Am I hurting you?’ ‘No sir.’ ‘I should be. I’m standing on your hair. Get it cut.’ You had to go off to the station barber, pay sixpence and they took nothing more than an inch. No hair on your head more than an inch. Two days later, on parade again, ‘Haircut.’ ‘But sergeant I had it cut.’ ‘Never mind. Get your hair cut.’ You’re really being taught that you don’t question orders. You just do what you’re told without thinking. Totally opposite from Bomber Command. But we went through this initial training but at the same time we had classes on Morse. We had to reach twelve words a minute in Morse which I found fairly easy because you got the rhythms of it. As long as you didn’t concentrate and just let it flow you could, because it was all blocks of letters or numbers. And they taught the Aldis lamp. Now, that was difficult. When we saw that light flashing from the Aldis lamp I found it very hard to distinguish between the long and the short flashes. But I struggled and reached the five words a minute which was the minimum to pass. And then having had three weeks of being knocked into shape and beginning to look like airmen although we were AC2s [laughs] and we were allowed a weeks’ leave. Made a big fuss of at home. And then we were posted down to Torquay for the Initial Training Wing. I think it was Number 1 Initial Training Wing, Torquay. And there again we were in a hotel. The Hotel Regina which overlooked the inner harbour at Torquay. Very nice big room, stripped bare. With just four beds in it, I think. Or five. And a very nice crowd. Very nice crowd. And you know, talk about the rude and licentious soldiering. We got an Irish guy there from Southern Ireland. Got a beautiful lilting voice and he could sing. And we used to ask him to sing for us and he’d sing all these Irish songs like “Mother Machree” and all. And again, not what you’d, not how you see soldiers or — [pause] Our regime there was to run in PE kit up to the top of Rockend which is at one end of Tor Bay. Do an hour’s PE, run down again and then do an hours drill. Change and do an hours drill and then go to lessons. And at the end of that time I was as fit as I’ve ever been before or since because I wasn’t a games player at school. I lived, you know, over a furniture shop. My father was a furniture dealer. With sisters. So, games were not my forte. But that was probably why I wasn’t commissioned until much later. Because I didn’t fit their idea of an officer. Any rate, we quite enjoyed, I quite enjoyed it but I mean one weekend we invited my sister and her friend down. I was very popular then with the boys wanting, and they stayed in a boarding house near and so that was rather nice. I had a girlfriend I later married. Much later. Now, at the end of ITW we had a riotous party at a hotel where I was drunk for the first time in my life and felt awful the next day because I’d only just started drinking beer. The next stage was then off to [pause] Eastbourne. The Grand Hotel. And there we were again in a room with a ensuite but the usual beds and you had to put the sheets, the blankets just exactly three inches and then the sheets exactly one inch and then — so you’d got a sandwich of blanket, sheet, blanket, sheet, blanket. And the corporals would come around and look at them. Throw them all on the floor and say, ‘Do it again,’ if they weren’t exactly right. And you’re, we all had gas capes. The only time we ever used them was when they were testing us by going into a gas filled room. But you had to hang them up exactly where the seams were flat and the bit where your back went you had to pull it out so it was standing out straight. All that sort of thing. Looking back, I realise the whole idea is to take away your civilian identity and make you service. But of course, among the lectures not only did we get lectures on navigation but lectures on the history of the Royal Air Force. And we went on route marches. The discipline at Eastbourne was not as harsh as before because our sergeant was a ex-flyer, an air gunner who’d done his tour of ops so, we were a bit in awe of him and he was very easy going. We’d march out of camp and a bit down the road he’d say, ‘All right. Fall out for a smoke.’ Which I didn’t. I didn’t smoke. But we’d rest and then he’d say, ‘Alright, we’re marching back. Bags of swank as you go in,’ [laughs] We’ll do our route tomorrow. Although as route marches sometimes they got quite, quite pleasant. The rhythm of swinging along and somebody would start singing and then others would pick it up and they were the most raucous and rude songs I’d ever heard. But we were all singing with gusto when we were out of sight of the camp. So, I think they [pause] after we went overseas. That’s right. Because they’d started the Empire Air Training where they were training aircrew in Canada, South Africa and America. Although at that time in America they just wore grey suits. Everybody knew who they were of course. They were all in grey. Identical grey suits. Because America wasn’t in the war at that time. And I was posted to New Zealand err to South Africa. Yes. I was just looking to see where it started.
[pause]
JT: Looking in my logbook at the moment.
[pause]
JT: About November 1942. 41 Air School, South Africa. But before that, of course we’d been, had a horrendous sea journey from Liverpool on a converted cargo ship where they’d put extra decks in and three thousand troops on the ship. And it was a big convoy with an aircraft carrier and two cruisers and about four destroyers and there were several troop ships like ours. Some of them were going to Singapore. You know, we were going to South Africa. And you were sleeping — some slept under the tables, the mess tables. Some slept on the mess tables. And some slept in hammocks above the mess tables. They were advantages and disadvantages in all because if you slept on, in the hammock you would either have cockroaches falling on your face if it’s something over the ceiling and you had to stow it up ship shape every morning. And of course, if you slept on the bottom tiers you were liable to have people being sick on you because of all the seasickness. Terrible. But after the first three days I felt ok. I got my sea legs and, but the ship was crowded. You were allowed one pint of beer a day and you had to queue right around the ship deck to get it and it was warm. And you had to sit with your back against the, I don’t know what you call it, some rails at the side of the ship, to drink it. They asked for volunteers to serve in the sergeant’s mess. Now, I know they tell you never volunteer for anything but I thought this might be alright. So, my pal and I, we volunteered and enjoyed it very much. Our job was to collect the food from the galley, carry it. Two plates on each arm to the sergeant’s mess and then we’d wait on the sergeants if there was anything else they wanted and everything. And then when they went back to duty, we produced the food. The food we kept to one side.
[recording paused. Phone ringing]
JT: Aircrew people.
MY: Oh.
JT: He calls himself Ivor the Engine and he does all the research and I put it in the air newsletter I produce every month that goes — send these out to all the people who are in the Aircrew Association but can’t get to meetings.
MY: Yes.
JT: So that keeps them in touch. So, oh have we started again?
MY: Yes.
JT: Oh, I didn’t realise [laughs] I was saying about after the sergeant’s had gone to duties I and my friend, we produced the food we’d put on one side. Which was the food for the sergeants. Much better quality than what we were getting in our mess and we sat down in the sergeant’s mess and had it. And then we were free until lunchtime and of course we’d missed all the drills and parades that they had so, we thought it was a good number. And this went on for two weeks. Perhaps three weeks. And suddenly we were called before the colonel in charge who said, ‘I’m afraid you can’t do this.’ ‘Why sir? Why sir?’ ‘It’s because you’re potential officers and you can’t wait on the NCOs.’ And so that skive finished and they got squaddies from the army to do the job we’d been doing. I was sorry about that because the trip took twelve weeks because we had to go right down into the South Atlantic to be out of the reach of the U-boats. Almost to the coast of Brazil before we swung around, came down below Cape Good Hope. Landed at Durban. And on the way, I think, I don’t know whether we’d got dysentery on board and we were queuing up for the toilets and they’d got no doors on. Just cubicles. And as the ship rolled all the water on the floor rolled towards us and we lifted our feet up as it rolled back. Oh dear. Oh dear.
[telephone ringing recording paused]
JT: I’ll talk about, we’d got this dysentery and so you queued because you knew that you had to go to the back of the queue because by the time you got to the front you’d need to go again. But we survived all that and landed in Durban and it was paradise. Lights were on. No blackout. You could go into the Red Shield Club or the NAAFI but the Red Shield Club was very good. The Salvation Army ran it and you could get egg and chips and things like that and plenty of it. And the attitude towards us was very good from the English that lived in Durban. Cars would pull up with a couple of girls in the back and the father in the front. He’d say, ‘Boys. Are you going anywhere? Would you like to come for lunch?’ And we’d hop in and go for lunch. We were entertained. And then after an initial time in Durban where we were in tents for the first time in my life we moved to [pause] I’m lost for words sometimes. East London. We were stationed at East London which was the, oh like I said that was 41 Air School. From there we did dead reckoning theory, dead reckoning plotting, compasses, meteorology, maps and charts, instruments, reconnaissance photography, ship recognition, aircraft recognition, signals, astro navigation and it was interesting. I was very interested. We were flown. It was the first time we’d flown because this was the first time we’d actually come in contact with an aeroplane. And they were the Avro Anson. They called them, “The flying classroom.” And three navigators came up with a South African pilot. We had the first navigator who actually did the navigating. The second one, I forget quite what he did. And the third one, there was no seat for him so he sat on the parachutes at the back and it was his job to wind the undercarriage down. It was quite an arduous task. And then we rotated. And I quite enjoyed that. I remember we did a square search. And that’s where you, if you’re searching for something. Let’s say a ship that’s been reported in distress. So that you don’t go over the same ground twice or miss it there’s a pattern of going out there and then turning at certain ways and making squares. Ever increasing. So, you covered the whole thing. And then at the end of that time and you were over the sea with nothing in sight you have to plot a course back to base. And so, it was all dead reckoning. But you, you could look at the waves and turn an instrument around until it was aligned with the wave caps and then you got the wind which was at right angles. And of course, it was important to find the correct wind because otherwise your calculations didn’t amount to much. At any rate, as we set off for base we passed right over the town and the South African pilot said, ‘Well done. You’re spot on.’ And I felt very chuffed about that. And East London was equally fascinating. It got dark at 8 o’clock but that didn’t matter because it was warm. Although we wore khaki during the day, we wore our blues in the evening. And quite early on somebody had come to the camp and offered to put us up — two servicemen for the weekend. So, I volunteered for this. And it was Mrs Butler. Her husband had a farm at a little village called Berlin [laughs] About twenty miles from East London. And she’d got three daughters and a son and I was quite fascinated. And in fact, I was so fascinated I went back every weekend. Caught the train from there and became one of the family as it were. And she was like a mother to me. And then in the evening we’d sit on the stoop, as they called the veranda. Drank pink gin. And sometimes they’d have, the native workers on the farm would have a bonfire, sit round drinking kaffir beer and we would join in and sit around on the outside drinking pink gins and it was very enjoyable. But one weekend we got a shock because they said we were going to have a church parade. Of course, that would kibosh your chances of going to Berlin for the weekend. So, Jimmy Elliot and I who were pals, both trainee navigators, we set off for a walk after lunch on the Saturday and after a little while we had a terrific thunderstorm. The rain poured down and we thumbed a lift from a passing lorry. The only lorry we’d seen in ages. And he gave us a lift and we travelled through the rain until it stopped and we said we’ll have to get off there because we’d got to get back. So, we got off and he left us. We said, well we seem to have come around in a semi-circle in a way. There was a bend. If we cut across it would be the shortest distance back to camp. So, we set off marching across the veld. Quite an experience because the grasses were above our heads almost and you got queer insect noises buzzing at you and a bit of trepidation there. And it was getting dark and we came to a river. And we thought well what do we do now? Do we go all the way back to the road? It’s taken us all this time. Or do we try and get across it? We decided to try and cross it. So, shoes and socks off, tied around our necks. Shorts pulled up as high as they could go and we started off wading across this river. The river came up to our thighs but luckily no further. And we managed to get to the other side of the river but we were confronted with a quora. A village of beehive huts and the women sitting outside pounding maze and things. And there were natives standing there on one leg, the other leg against it. Holding spears. What do we do? Well, we’ve got no choice. Just go straight ahead up that track and don’t look at them. So, we set off up this track. The women picked up their babies and hurried inside the huts. And then another black girl came down the track, a blanket wrapped around her. ‘Oh, master John.’ ‘Oh,; I said, [unclear] Missy farm?’ I didn’t know what to say. And Missy Butler, ah. And she pointed back up the track. It was the house girl at, who had looked after us while we were — so we went up there, and of course Mrs Butler was very pleased and surprised to see us because we’d said we couldn’t go. But we were made very welcome. And of course, Jimmy Elliot, he’d never been in so we introduced him to the Butler household. And nobody to this day ever believes it wasn’t deliberate. And yet it was pure coincidence. Pure accident. Some of the things I remember about going to Berlin is that you could go down into the village, which was about two miles away and you could buy sherry. And the best sherry cost a half a crown a bottle. So, we could make a contribution to the parties. Mrs Butler used to play the piano. Used to roll the carpet up, invite neighbours in and they’d have parties and dance and sing. I learned the Afrikaans songs of course. The family next door, well when I say next door, next farm, were Afrikaans and so and they were living amicably together. And then they used to have auctions for — to raise money for warships and warplanes and the boys up north. Fighting in North Africa. And it was a Dutch auction they used to have where they started high and came down until somebody bid. And they asked me to be the auctioneer. Mrs Butler said afterwards that when I left they still asked where the little auctioneer had got to. When we left, when we finished our course, done all our flying and had the exams we were posted to Cape Town. Ready to go home. We went by train and we were very touched because Mrs Butler and the two, two of the three girls walked the two miles down and stood at the railway track. As we passed the farm — waving like made to us. Further on there were black girls that waved like mad too. Pulled their jackets up to show their breasts which met with whoops from the troops. Now, Cape Town of course we were just waiting. And on the way out on the boat I told you the sergeants had their own mess and the officers had the upper deck to themselves and the nurses. And so we saw how the other half lived. Every gangway was out of bounds to other ranks. So, we thought well we’re sergeants now. We’ve had a passing out parade. We’ll go home in style. Not a bit of it. We went home on an American ship where they didn’t recognise ranks as such. You ate at long tables and they gave you tin, metal plates with indentations for the bacon and the eggs and porridge. All slopped in. And you ate it standing up at these tables. They were standing up height. The Americans mixed everything up and then took a fork and they did a rotary movement with the fork to shoot the food in to their mouths. And the whole meal was over in five minutes, and we were given guard duties. We were given to guard the Poles who were also on this ship. And we had to stand guard to stop them going. Leaving their quarters. Never knew why because they were supposed to be on our side. And so, we came back to England.
[pause]
JT: What’s the time? Crikey. You’ve got me talking.
MY: If you move forward to when you were being streamed into Bomber Command. How did, what, how did that selection process work?
JT: Well, we went through OTU, which was. I can’t think of what it stands for now.
MY: Operational Training Unit.
JT: Operational Training Unit. Yes. And the first thing they did was to put us all in a big hangar and say, ‘Find yourself a crew.’ Pilot, navigator, wireless operator, engineer. We didn’t know anything about any of the others. It was pure luck. But a little Australian air gunner came up to me with a New Zealand pilot officer in tow and said, ‘This is Jack. Would you like to be our navigator?’ And I thought Jack looks a pretty dependable guy so I said yes. So, he said, ‘This is John but John said to me, ‘Well we can’t have two Johns in the crew. You’d better call me Jack.’ I thought that was very magnanimous of him [laughs] because he’s the skipper. And then Butch had made friends with an Irish wireless operator. And so we assembled the crew like that. And it was amazing how well we got on with each other. And of course, the [pause] I was driving a car by that time because in 1942 we’d had a mid-upper gunner who’d been a car, used car dealer and the pilot didn’t like him and got rid of him. But before that happened, he’d sold me a car. A 1938 Hillman Minx. Black with red seats. And so, I was very popular because I could take people into town and that sort of thing. I remember when I, I lived in Nottingham. I was born and bred in Nottingham. When I went to record everything and do my insurance and I said I only want fire and theft, ‘What happens if it catches fire next week? What do I get?’ And they said, ‘About two years in jail,’ [laughs] But the beauty of these airfields in Lincolnshire was that they were all within about forty miles of Nottingham where I lived and where my girlfriend lived. And so, every chance I got I went down the Fosseway to Nottingham. And of course, they got used to seeing me. But then I took members of the crew with me because coming from New Zealand and Canada and Ireland they couldn’t get home.
MY: No.
JT: So, they came home with me. Mother put mattresses on the floor. And I don’t know how she made the rations stretch. We helped because Butch and Paddy always made friends with the ugliest girl in the cookhouse and flattered her and everything. And they’d go around to the back door and get extra supplies of butter and stuff, bacon which we’d take with us to help my mother feed the crew. And we all went down to the local where my father used to, where my father and mother used to go. So, we became their crew.
MY: Which OTU were you at?
JT: I’ll tell you in a minute.
[pause]
JT: You forget the numbers and things.
[pause]
JT: That’s AFU. AFU came after OTU didn’t it? Because that’s Advanced Flying Unit.
[pause]
JT: And then EFTS — Elementary Flying Training School.
[pause]
JT: Well, do you know, I can’t remember.
MY: Which airfield was it on?
[pause]
JT: Names escape me. Names escape me.
MY: Well it’s not that important. We can look at that later. How long was it before you actually got on your first squadron?
JT: Do you know, nearly two years. Two years of training.
MY: Right.
JT: Because after we came back from South Africa we were posted to Harrogate. And they didn’t know what to do with us, you know. Whatever. Just holding while another course moved out. Put us on flying Tiger Moths around the Lake District which was very good. Anyway, get back to ops. We, you finish, we went on to Stirlings. We went on to Stirlings for the final stage of our training. Four-engined. We did Wellingtons at OTU and they were very comfortable. Very good aircraft, the Wellingtons. And then the pilot of course wanted to go on to, had to go on to four engines so we went on Stirlings which were the height of luxury with all the controls, beautifully coloured enamels, everything. But they couldn’t get above twelve thousand feet which was their downfall. And then we finished up at Advanced Flying Unit at Syerston which is near Nottingham and that was where you were introduced to the Lancaster. We lost a Lancaster there on training because he flew into a cumulonimbus cloud. You got whirled right up and broke to pieces which gave us a very stern lesson on not to fly into cumulonimbus clouds. And then because at the end of my training some people were selected to be commissioned. I wasn’t, although I was a good navigator because my background didn’t fit. Son of a furniture dealer. Went to Grammar School. Didn’t play games. Not officer type at all. So, we were posted to Skellingthorpe which is two miles from Lincoln. Waddington, I think was the base station. We were satellite. Although at one time in our training we had been to Scampton for a few weeks. I remember that because we missed the last bus one night and had to walk all the way back from Lincoln to Scampton. Now, Skellingthorpe. We shared an airfield with 61 Squadron. We were one side. They were the other. We had the record of dropping the most bombs and they had the record for flying the most sorties. It was sort of friendly rivalry across the airfield. Now, one or two things. The first trip we went on was to a target right in the south of France and we had to fly right down through the coast. Avoid, and then fly inland and find, find the target. And our bombs hung up. We had to return and we’d already fused the J type canisters. Do you know about those there?
MY: Yeah.
JT: Incendiaries set to go off at a thousand feet. So, our dilemma was if we landed, tried to land, with these on they’d go off when we got down to a thousand feet. So, we tried every manoeuvre. The wireless op and the mid-upper gunner had come down and were trying to open the floor and get at the bombs and dislodge them. And then the pilot was doing a lot of jinking about. Anyway, we managed to drop them in the sea and we saw this big flame as they went down and think thank goodness. But as it happened that operation was a failure anyway because what they thought was a German troop camp was a refugee camp which they’d bombed by mistake. So, we all had to go back the next night. This time we got, they weren’t expecting us I think the second night. So, we were [pause] I can’t go through all the ops and things but one or two stand out. First of all, there’s the people say, ‘Were you frightened?’ I say, I don’t think so. You grew with this knowledge that you might be living on borrowed time so you made the most of every moment. The girls and the beer and everything. And me being an imaginative type, as I walked across the fields in the June evening every blade of grass, every leaf on the tree seemed bright and vivid.
MY: Yes.
JT: Because it might be the last time you saw it. But you didn’t show any fear even if you felt it because you’d be letting down the other members of the crew. And you were worried about what they might think. They were the ones. Your crew were like your family and we worked very well together and played very well together. About the fourth trip we went to, I think it was that one, we went to Mailly-le-Camp where they’d German troops or something. And something went wrong with the communication between the master bomber and us. So, the first wave that went in bombed successfully. Came home. But we were in the second wave and we couldn’t hear any instructions from the master bomber. So, we had to circle and as we circled it gave time for the fighters from the Ruhr to arrive. Oh, and a massacre. You could see Lancaster, fighter, Lancaster, fighter, Lancaster, fighter. And we lost forty three aircraft and seven people in each aircraft. And the rear gunner Butch who’d been a plantation manager in New Guinea, he was yelling and yelling because he’d got a grandstand seat. I wasn’t so bad because I was in a cabin with a curtain I could draw. I could see out by standing up and putting my head in to the astrodome.
MY: Yes.
JT: And you could see from there. What I saw I didn’t like so I went back in again. Now, Butch didn’t fly with us on the next trip because of the experience he’d had. But the next trip was to Brest where the battleship in the harbour or something and we were coned over the target. Now, that means that the master searchlight has caught you and then all the other searchlights that are automatically linked to it all latch on to you at once. Can you imagine what it’s like to have seven or eight searchlights all focused on you? It was brighter than daylight inside the cabin. In fact, it was so bright you could hardly think. And you knew that the next thing to happen were the guns that were automatically aligned to these searchlights.
MY: Yes.
JT: Would open up. Sitting target. So, Jack just dived. Pushed everything forward. Dived almost vertically. Screaming down. I sat in my cabin watching the altimeter go around and around, down and down. Then I saw we’d dodged the searchlights and then the pilot and the engineer who sat next to him they were pulling back on the stick for all their worth. And we thought this is it. And we levelled out at two hundred feet and came back at two hundred feet over the Channel. And Butch never flew again. He [pause] was determined. He had a mental breakdown. If he’d been in the RAF they’d have said lack of moral fibre and they would have stripped him of his stripes, put him down to AC2 and put him to clean the latrines. Because he was in the Australian Air Force he was invalided home. He was sick, you know. Which is, you know, a much kinder way of dealing with this. On the other hand, I can see the reasoning behind the RAF because if people had been able to say I don’t like this after they’d done twelve ops they wouldn’t have an air force.
MY: No.
JT: So, they had to have something very worse than this to make you keep flying. I was thinking we went on, D-day was the next, next thing. We didn’t know it was D-day because — we went to briefing. They hadn’t said this is the invasion but they said you must keep from that part of the Channel because there are American warships and they will shoot at anything. We knew that from experience. Now, keep away from this area because there’ll be gliders being towed. And after he’d gone through all this list of dos and don’ts we realised that it was something big. And our job was to fly at dawn and bomb the naval guns at Cherbourg on the Cherbourg peninsula. And they’d given us a cine camera as well. But we flew and there wasn’t all that much flak although there was a lot of things going on all around us. So, it was a fairly easy trip until we got there and of course the coastal guns and everything go up at you. But we bombed. We couldn’t take a picture because it wasn’t light enough. You took your usual picture with your own flash. But as we turned around dawn had broken, the sky was getting lighter and there was scattered cloud and I looked down onto the sea and I saw all these little boats. All coming up to the beach. And that’s when I realised there was an invasion going on. We got home. Because we’d been flying two nights consecutively, we were given the night off and went to Nottingham. In the pub, in the pub they got the radio, ‘Tonight our troops landed in Normandy.’ And they said, ‘What about you lot?’ ‘We were there this morning,’ [laughs] Which got us a lot of beer.
MY: I bet.
JT: Now, after, after we’d finished our ops which were more or less the same. Those were some of the highlights. None of us got scratched. Although our most exciting trip perhaps was, we were going to the, is it the Saint Cyr Military Academy near Paris? Where they’d got troops, German troops being trained there. Officers. And we were going on daylight because it was so near to Paris. We were not used to going daylight. And so, as we set off some fighters, German fighters got among the stream and you saw them breaking, sliding all over the place. Dodging. They should have kept a light on the gunners. And I saw one aircraft, one Lancaster just slide down, slantingly and take the tail off another one. Which was quite awful to see. We passed the zone like that. I was navigating and trying to keep midway between the two zones that told us where the ack-ack was worst. And the fighters went away of course. You know, they only had about a twelve minutes and had to go back to refuel. Beautiful June evening. The sun was out still and all of a sudden I stood up in the astrodome to have a look. A stream of white smoke coming out of the starboard outer engine. And as I looked suddenly that smoke turned to flame and the whole engine went up in flames because we had been hit several times by flak on the way in.
MY: Yes.
JT: And of course, the engineer and pilot pushed the fire extinguisher button and the fire went out. But it meant we were only on three engines. The port inner engine, the engineer reported was running rough so we were losing power. Anyway, we went on and bombed. All, as I say on the run into the bombing run as we were swinging around I saw the Eiffel tower and realised that was Paris under there. I’d never been but there it was. And [pause] am I taking too long?
MY: No. I’m at your service, sir.
JT: So, we’ve got to [pause] yes when we’d finished our ops. Now, I’d been called up to the group captain at Waddington some weeks before for —recommended for a commission.
MY: Yes.
JT: And asked a few question. He said, ‘Well, these people say quite nice things about you. Who am I to disagree,’ [laughs] Right? And that was it? But it didn’t come through until the actual end of the tour, it coincided. I’d already gone to the training as a lecturer when it came through. It would have been nicer if it had come through while I was still back at the squadron. 50 Squadron. And of course, nobody really knew me there. They just took it for granted. But of course, I was moved because they move you straightaway.
MY: Yeah.
JT: So, I was moved to Chipping Warden as a course shepherd. That’s where they put you in charge of a course and men to make sure of their welfare and everything. No training. No training at all for an officer. No teaching how to use your knife and fork or anything like that. But they must have thought I was [pause] and, and then to my surprise they announced that I’d been awarded the DFC.
MY: Oh no.
JT: And that came as a great surprise to me. And so had my pilot and the bomb aimer. In those days you only had the one ribbon. So they made a great fuss of me at home and in the local newspaper. But then I went home [pause] but after a while of course you were between tours. Just because you’d done the tour of ops doesn’t mean that’s it. So, they posted me to Transport Command for my second tour. We were on Dakotas and we were going to bomb the Burma Railway in Burma. Not to bomb them. To push out supplies. So, I was posted to Baroda in India and that again was a culture shock. But looking back, to think that a nineteen, twenty year old bloke had all these experiences. We’d, the Maharajah of Baroda. They’d taken over, or he’d given us his cricket ground and so we were stationed — myself, my pilot and the other crews in what were the dressing rooms. All around veranda in front and then the open space of the cricket ground. And we didn’t have Indian food. We had a caterer and we had an officer’s mess and we could have anything as long as it was eggs. You could have scrambled eggs, boiled eggs, eggs on toast. Then some funny vegetables. And there was no drink. It was a dry state. The high point of my time really was when we were picked to go to Lahore to collect beer. Supplies of beer for the mess because you could drink it in the mess if you could get it. So it was put down as a training flight. And that was about the only time I’d really been treated as a proper officer. Because we flew to Lahore. Put up at the Faletti’s Hotel in Lahore and my pilot and I were waited on by six waiters with big turbans and cummerbunds. White everything. Before you could think of anything, they’d thought of it for you. We had a meal there and the next morning while we were waiting for news that our plane had been loaded up, sitting on the terrace and there were a lot of civilian ladies and gentlemen all doing the Times of India crossword puzzle – ‘What did you get for number eighty across?’ ‘Number eight across?’ ‘Oh, good show.’ I thought this is the life. We could stay here [laughs] We could stay here. But unfortunately, we couldn’t. And you know we went back to the mess. Took it back. And it was all gone in two days. But in Baroda we did flying from the Maharajah’s own airfield. We did trips around. My pilot, who was a Scotsman from Kirkaldy, he’d been a slaughterman in a slaughterhouse. He had been an officer before but he’d flown under a bridge and been broken down to PE. Corporal PE. And then he’d come back when the shortage of pilots — come back and worked his way up to flying officer again. And he’d got the DFC. Which is probably why he picked me when we were crewing. He was a mad so and so. You know, if he saw somebody with a flock of cows below, he’d swoop down and then laughed like mad when they all scattered. I thought, I’m going on ops with him. Heaven help me. But we never got to that stage because the Japanese war finished.
MY: Right. What to ask?
JT: Yes. You know [pause] we were getting to the stage where they were demobbing.
MY: Yes.
JT: Because VE day had passed so we weren’t fighting the Germans anymore. And my pilot’s demob number came up because he’d been in before me and so they brought the whole crew, a crew of three on a Dakota, back to England. And I’d still got six months to go before my number came up.
MY: Right.
JT: So, they sent me to Wheaton Aston. In Shropshire as well isn’t it?
MY: Yes.
JT: And I know it’s near Stoke [pause] as a flying control officer. Now, a flying control officer needs six month training course which seems a pretty waste to me if you are going to leave in six months’ time. So, I used to say to the flying control office, ‘You don’t need me, do you?’ ‘No.’ ‘Ok.’ Hitchhiked to Nottingham. And when it came to be demobbed you had to last of all go to the CO to get him to sign after you’d been to all the departments. He didn’t even know me and I’d been on his station six months. Oh dear. You couldn’t get away with it now. Or perhaps you could. Perhaps you could. But then of course I got demobbed and I got married in 1945 at the end of my tour of ops. So, I was married all the time I’d been in India.
MY: Yes.
JT: And then I got home and we started the house. At my mother in law’s I had a room at my mother in law’s house. And Boots had promised me the job back so, I went back to Boots. Yes, they gave me my job back — at the same rate of pay I’d left it at. Four pound fifteen a week. I’d been spending six pound a week in the mess alone on drinks and stuff. So, I thought this is not going to be right for me. And people I’d trained to use the instruments in the lab were now seniors and I’d still gone back as an assistant analytical chemist. So again, I saw an advert for teacher training. Emergency teacher training. And I thought that’s for me. So, I applied. Went to a centre and given maths tests. Wrote an essay. And was accepted for training at Danesthorp College, Ranskill. Near Ranskill and it was like being back in the service. All these people were ex-service. They still talked about their [unclear] and things and the cutlery. And the teachers were very good I thought. And we did a whole course sandwiched into thirteen months. Of course, you didn’t have the long holidays.
MY: No.
JT: In thirteen months, three teaching practices and they let us loose. And my, my job, I applied to Nottingham and to Nottingham County because they were separate. Nottingham City offered me a job. And their practice was to have a pool of teachers and then they sent them to the appropriate schools.
MY: Yes.
JT: So, I didn’t know what school I was going to until I was told to report to this Secondary School. The name’s gone for a moment. Now, in my education I’d done all the sciences as separate subjects so I’d done biology, physics, chemistry. I’d been interested in science. I’d done navigation which is a lot to do with science. Theory of triangles and things. So, I thought I’d be a science teacher but no. Headmaster said, ‘We’ve got a science teacher. I’d like you to take over the history.’ I dropped history at third year. At any rate I said I was always one for thinking things from first principles. And I think I must have done quite well because [pause] searching for the name of the school it was originally built as a primary school. At a time when everything was [affluent?] and the classrooms were built in a semi-circle with the windows that went right back to expose it to the open air, facing south and a terrace outside. And then there was a woodwork room and a music room. There was no staff room so the staff used to meet in what was a storeroom that they’d emptied and put a table and chairs in for the staff. I don’t know what the designers were thinking of but it was very nice. I got interested in theatre and especially marionettes. I’d made marionettes at college and we’d gone around giving marionette shows. So, I started a marionette club. And the very sympathetic woodwork master made us a beautiful stage with a bar that about four children could lean on and we’d put shows on. I wrote the script and then got the teachers to read the parts. Had great fun reading different parts and then the children manipulated the marionettes and of course they recognised the teacher’s voices in these marionette characters and it was quite a hoot. I enjoyed that. And from that I was given Head of English post. And I had been up for Deputy Head at another school but when the Headmaster wanted me in, I’d had a good recommendation he discussed all he wanted to do but the Director of Education said, ‘Mr Taylor can’t be appointed as Deputy Head. He has no degree.’ So, I settled for Head of English at another school. A bit resentful. And I found it also involved being head of the library. In charge of the library and in charge of drama.
MY: Yeah.
JT: And expected to put on a production every year. I borrowed costumes from the playhouse theatre that had just opened in Nottingham. They were for the two little cats that were the centre piece of this play, “The Magic Tinder Box.” And we put that on for three nights and that was a great success. And all the time of course I was applying for Deputy Headships at this time. Time I moved on. And I applied to Cheshire. There was a job came up. And so I drove up there. No. I went on the train, that’s right. And walked. I was interviewed and apparently the post had been earmarked by the Head for his Head of English department so it had been careful. It had been written for him. English. They wanted English. They wanted knowledge of using recorders. Tape recorders. Because he had a tape recorder. School hadn’t got one but he had. And after the interviews apparently, I found this afterwards, they were tied. So, it was a dead heat and it was left to the casting vote of the chairman. Now, the chairman had taken a dislike to the Head because he was, old man Cunliffe was a true blue Tory. And the head had stood as a Liberal candidate in the autumn. And so, when it came to the casting vote, I got it. I was called back in. And the chairman said, ‘And by the way Mr Taylor, congratulations on your DFC.’ I thought perhaps that might have been a little bit of a weight.
MY: Possibly.
JT: So, I came up here in 1964 and was the Deputy at the school down the road which was Sale Moors Secondary Modern. The head was a very dynamic bloke, John Hartley. And he said, ‘John,’ he said, ‘Usually I keep my people several years before I give them promotion but in your case, you know, you’re a bit older. I’ll have to do it more quickly.’ At any rate I was rung up one weekend to say Mr Hartley had died. This was within a year of joining. He’d had a stroke in his car over the weekend. I went to see his widow and she asked me to arrange the funeral and everything. And I did this, went to school the next morning, called a staff meeting. Told them. We made arrangements for certain sections of the pupils to attend. And order of service and everything. And then I found myself sitting in front of this big polished desk and the feeling that struck you [laughs] I’m in charge. There’s nobody to tell me what to do. I’ve got to tell them. And I wasn’t altogether pleased with the way things were arranged because there were, at that time it was six form entry. Sixth forms came in every year and they tried to bluff by calling them A upper, A lower, B upper, B lower, C upper, C lower. Everybody knew that C lowers were really ABCDEF.
MY: Yes.
JT: It didn’t fool anybody. And I was given four C lower as a penalty. Probably by that Head for because he wanted [delete] to be head. Although [delete] was a very nice man and we got on well. And I made some changes. I divided the school into two halves so there were only three tiers in each half. A bit of timetabling of course you could put one half against another. But the staff accepted this. And then I decided that the important maths and English — you might be good at maths and poor at English. Or vice versa. So, let’s have them set so you could be in a top set for maths and a bottom set for English.
MY: Yes.
JT: Or vice versa. So, I introduced that. And we had a governors meeting three times a year at the end of every term. And they still hadn’t advertised the job. And so, I got to know the governors very well. When they arrived for governors meetings I offered them sherry all around. My secretary was very good and made them feel very much at home. And my wife was very good at supporting me and getting to know the governors and telling me, ask him about — he keeps rabbits. He’s very interested, ‘Oh hello [delete] I hear you’re interested in rabbits.’ Anyway, it was two years before, before they advertised the job and they’d got six candidates. Three were existing heads. And three were deputies like myself. And the existing heads of smaller schools because of course this was a big school with sixth form entry. And at the end of the interview, now let’s, I’ve gone back a bit. At the same day as my interview I’d got an interview as Head of Sale West which was a new school recently opened. But it was group six. This was a group 8. And it was in the morning. So had the interviews, it went very well but they appointed somebody else. I drove home for lunch and said to my wife it’s no good if I can’t get a group C school, no hope of getting group A. In the afternoon they had interviews again. Same governors. Same people. And I got the job. And the chairman of governors said to me afterwards, ‘We wanted you to be head,’ because they’d known me for two years.
MY: Yeah.
JT: But we were a bit worried in the morning about giving you the headship of Sale West because somebody might have come along in the afternoon so blinded us with science. We had to take the risk of not appointing you to Sale West. And that’s how I got the job as Head of the school I’d been deputy at. In fact, it was a school I stayed at as Head because it grew under me. It grew to eight form entry and had new buildings. A very good drama studio. Good music studio. I was very happy there and I’d got a very happy staff. And we had parties after school in the evening. And the cook was very co-operative. Chintz tablecloths on the tables in the hall that we sat around. Brought our own drinks. I always said staff that drinks together stays together. You know they’re not allowed to have drink in school now.
MY: No.
JT: Not allowed.
MY: No.
JT: Lots of things are not allowed. So, I was at that school for about twenty three years because there was no point in applying anywhere else because a Group 8, six, twelve hundred pupils was in the top five percent of headships. And so short of going to Eton College or somewhere I couldn’t see, but it must have got a good reputation.
MY: Yeah.
JT: Because when the High Master of Manchester Grammar — he was made a governor of a Secondary Modern school and he asked the Director of Education, he said, ‘I know nothing about Secondary Moderns. What shall I do?’ And the Director of Education said, ‘Go to John Taylor’s and have a look at his school.’ So, he spent the day with me and no doubt learned something about running a school. Anyways, I’ve talked long enough haven’t I?
MY: Well we’ve actually managed to —
Dublin Core
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Identifier
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ATaylorJ150916
Title
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Interview with John Taylor
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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.
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IBCC Digital Archive
Type
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Sound
Language
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eng
Format
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01:52:13 audio recording
Creator
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Malcom Young
Date
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2015-09-16
Description
An account of the resource
John Taylor grew up in Nottingham and was evacuated before he went into sixth form. He left school and started working as an analytical chemist at Boots and although this was a reserved occupation he volunteered for aircrew. After his initial training he went to South Africa to complete his training as a navigator. On his returned to the UK he flew operations as a navigator with 50 Squadron from RAF Skellingthorpe. On one operation the incendiaries had not dropped and they feared carrying them back to base but it took several attempts before they dislodge them before finally succeeding. On an operation to Mailly-le-Camp the rear gunner was devastated at the losses he was seeing around him and it was his last operation. He suffered a breakdown and was invalided home to Australia. On another operation the aircraft was coned and in order to escape the pilot went into a steep dive. The pilot and engineer fought to bring the aircraft back under control a matter of a hundred feet from the ground. After the war he became a teacher.
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Spatial Coverage
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Great Britain
England--Lincolnshire
France--Mailly-le-Camp
France
Conforms To
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Pending review
Pending revision of OH transcription
Contributor
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Julie Williams
Temporal Coverage
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1939
1941
1942
1945
50 Squadron
aircrew
bombing
Bombing of Mailly-le-Camp (3/4 May 1944)
C-47
crewing up
demobilisation
entertainment
incendiary device
Initial Training Wing
lack of moral fibre
Lancaster
navigator
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
Operational Training Unit
physical training
RAF Skellingthorpe
RAF Syerston
RAF Torquay
recruitment
rivalry
searchlight
Stirling
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/193/3527/PYeomanHT1601.1.jpg
81e8d485ebaa1faca0c2e7fc8ce934c8
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/193/3527/AYeomanHT161013.1.mp3
bc5e3721d340abe4d24b5b171dcc0968
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
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Yeoman, Harold
Harold Yeoman
Harold T Yeoman
H T Yeoman
Description
An account of the resource
31 items. Collection concerns Harold Yeoman (b. 1921 1059846 and 104405 Royal Air Force). He flew operations as a pilot with 12 Squadron. Collection contains an oral history interview, a memoir, pilot's flying log book, 26 poems, a photograph and details of trail of Malayan collaborator.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Christopher E. Potts and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
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2016-10-28
Rights
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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
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Yeoman, HT
Transcribed audio recording
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Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
PL: My name’s Pam Locker. And I’m here today in the home of Mr Harold Yeoman of [deleted] on Thursday the 13th of October at 10 o’clock. 2016. So I’d just like to start Harold by saying thank you very much indeed on behalf of Bomber Command Memorial Trust for agreeing to an interview today. And if I could just start by asking you a little bit about your, your younger life and how you came to be involved with Bomber Command in the first place.
HY: Well, as far as my younger life’s concerned I worked in local government. And when the year came to about 1935 or ‘6, it was the day that Mussolini invaded Abyssinia, I realised then that I was of an age where I would have to do something. So, I talked to my parents and I had, my father had been in the army in the First World War and the RAMC. My brother was just about ready to go into the Royal Artillery. So my thoughts were primarily of army. And I thought well, I’ve got to volunteer for something before I’m called up and told what they’re going to do. They might put me in the Navy which I thought would be pretty horrible. So I went along to the local Drill Hall, the Army Drill Hall and said, ‘I’ve come to volunteer.’ And they said, ‘Well, that’s very hard lines because we’re full up. You can go on the waiting list if you like.’ I said, ‘No. I don’t think so. I’ll find something else.’ So [coughs] excuse me about that time I used to go to the pictures about once a week and one of the newsreels that came on, it was black and white of course was quite topical. It was dealing with wartime subjects and it was, the screen was divided into four parts. The picture. And one of the parts was a tank. Another one was a big gun and the one I was interested in was a picture of an aircraft flying along from left to right. I didn’t know what it was then but later I realised it was an Avro Anson. And here was a little man sitting in the gun turret on the top of the Anson. And I thought I could do that. You know, I don’t see why I shouldn’t do that. So, instead of thinking about the army I started thinking about the air force. Anyhow, the army said they were full up, they’d put me on the waiting list. I said, ‘No, thank you. I’ll find something else.’ The something else turned out to be the air force. So my brother who was eight years older than me and he saw what I was going to do and he got a bit jealous. He said, ‘Well, I’ll do the same thing.’ So we both went up to [laughs] we both went up to Newcastle to the, the Recruiting Centre which was in the west end of Newcastle. Scotswood Road. It was a school up on the hill and said, ‘We’ve come to volunteer for the, the air force.’ They said, ‘Righto.’ Took all my particulars and took my brothers particulars and said, ‘Well, you’ve got to have a medical.’ I said, ‘Ok. I can do that.’ And said, ‘well, come this way.’ They gave me [laughs] they just counted my arms and legs and saw whether I could see. They said, ‘Oh yes, you’ve got through.’ So that was it. ‘Just go outside and we’ll do the rest.’ So my brother came out and I said, ‘How did you get on?’ He said, ‘Oh. I failed.’ I said, ‘You failed?’ He said, ‘Yeah.’ I said, ‘What was the matter?’ He said, ‘Well, I’ve got varicose veins.’ I said, ‘Well, so have I but I got through.’ I got a small one which has developed since then but it’s no bother. Never mind. So he came away quite despondent and I came away quite happy that I’d got in to the air force and volunteered for aircrew. I thought I’d be a gunner sitting in the top turret of an Anson somewhere or other. And in due course I got a letter to say that I had to report to the Reception Centre at Babbacombe, a suburb of Torquay. Just, it was just described as P, I think it was P, PUB or something like that which meant pilot, observer or bomb aimer or something some such. POB. So I reported there and learned I was going to become a pilot which was a great surprise to me. So, did all the necessary ground subjects at Babbacombe. Drill, PT and so on and so forth and a bit of air force law. And then I was posted next door into Torquay itself at Number 3 Initial Training Wing. The subjects on the ground developed into a bit more complicated. A bit of navigation, some gunnery. A bit of air force law. As a subject dealing with tactics in, in the air when you were doing civilian, when you, before you got operational. And that all went off. I’d got a written examination there and passed that alright. And from there I was sent to really start finding out about aeroplanes which I’d never, I’d never been close to an aeroplane before that. Never been up in one. Never seen one close too. Never touched one. And went to Number 6 EFTS at Sywell which is just outside Northampton. It’s probably Northampton Civil Aerodrome now, where they had Tiger Moths and did my initiation on to Tiger Moths with a very unpleasant instructor who shall be nameless but I’ve got his name in the back of my mind. Got rid of him and got a much more pleasant instructor which improved my flying no end. I went solo in ten hours forty five minutes I think. Something like that. And I did my first solo flight in a Tiger Moth on Christmas Eve of 1940. And I did my first solo cross-country from Sywell to Cambridge where there was another EFTS where I had to land, report to the watch office and take off again. Come back to, come back to Sywell. Navigating myself which was quite easy. Had a map on my knee. Had to keep a log on the other knee. And I got through that alright and that was more or less the end of that course. And did some aerobatics which I was not very good at. Which I was very poor at actually. From there I didn’t know what was going to happen but I soon found out the next stage was the intermediate training which because of the enemy activity that was going on was done as far away from England as possible. So I was sent out to Canada to 32 SFTS at Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan where I flew Harvards. I went solo on them inside a very short order. It was only about half a dozen hours of duel I think on Harvards. We did the same sort of, same type of flying. Solo cross-country’s lasting anything up to about an hour and hour and a half. One was from Moose Jaw to a place called Dafoe. Up north in the north of Saskatchewan. From Dafoe to Watrous which was another small town. And from Watrous back to Moose Jaw. That was quite a nice, nice ride. And did a certain amount of aerobatics at which I was very, very poor. I thought well if I’m going to be a fighter pilot this is not going to serve me very well. So, at the finish of the, the course when I got through everything including examiners, examinations, the interview by the chief instructor, chief flying instructor, then the chief instructor of the station who was a very nice chap and he said, ‘Well, I suppose you want to go on to Spitfires like everybody else do you?’ I said, ‘No sir. I don’t.’ He said, ‘You don’t. What do you want to do?’ I said, ‘I want to go on to bombers.’ I said, ‘My aerobatics are very poor. I know that myself. And my instrument flying is quite good and I enjoy instrument flying so I’d rather go on to bombers.’ He said, ‘Well, I can’t promise you anything but we’ll see what we can do.’ And in due course I came back to England and was sent to Operational Training Unit at Bassingbourn which had Wellingtons. Amazingly enough I went solo on Wellingtons in less than four hours which was astonishing to me because I’d only flown single engine up ‘til then and getting into a Wellington was like coming in to a, in to a house. It was huge in my eyes having just been on single engine stuff. So I went solo on them in about three hours forty five minutes or so and did sort of a lot of basic work. Cross country’s and a bit of blind flying with the hood pulled down so you couldn’t see where you were. Including a blind take off. Well, that was very interesting. Settling down on the runway and getting yourself central. Then the instructor said, ‘Pull the hood down now and you’re going off.’ So I had to just do the take off completely blind with the instructor in the front and just went off by feeling when it was ready to get airborne. Eased back on the stick and away we went. And when I got airborne, climbed up to a thousand feet or so he said, ‘Right. Pull the hood back now. That was ok.’ That was an interesting one. I enjoyed that very much. And that was the initiation on to Wellingtons. Then the important thing was the crewing up which as you may know was done in a very haphazard manner. I just went into a room and there was a whole lot of mixture of pilots, observers as they were then. Observers as were then navigators and bomb aimers. There were gunners as well. And it was just a whole crowd of people and you just had to sort out your own crew and you’d come up to somebody and say, ‘Are you looking for a navigator?’ ‘Are you looking for a gunner?’ And it was like that. Well, I got a good navigator in an Australian chap called Colin Fletcher. The wireless op was from Solihull. We know, we knew him as Mick. Mick Pratt. And the two gunners. One was from Sudbury in Suffolk, Johnny Roe. And the rear gunner was from Balham. He was Tommy Evans. And that was the crew. So we then flew as a crew and did all the basic cross-country flying, night and day. And by that time we were ready to be posted on to a squadron. So we were posted to 12 Squadron at Binbrook. And that’s how I got to 12 Squadron. So was that enough or do you want some more?
PL: Well, what happened next? Once you got to Binbrook. Tell me a little bit about your operations.
HY: Yes. Well, we got to Binbrook as a crew and to [pause] I got into [pause] I was sent to B Flight which was commanded by Squadron Leader Abraham who was a very pleasant chap. And [coughs] my co-pilot who had been a Canadian, he wasn’t, I thought he was a Canadian. He was American actually. My co-pilot whom I picked up at OTU was then, he was detached to go in to another crew and I became co-pilot to Sergeant Potts and we did one or two operations. I did one or two operations with him. The first one I did was supposed to be to Cherbourg as a fresher operation which was one of the Channel Ports. And that was ok except that when we got as far as the south coast of England we started to have trouble with the starboard engine which started to leak glycol vapour. The glycol vapour then became ignited due to the exhaust, the heat of the exhaust. And the engine caught fire and we were trailing a plume of flame about sixty or eighty feet long. And the, the captain who said, who was a very nice bloke actually, Sergeant Potts, he said , ‘We’re going to have to put this thing down somewhere.’ So, it was pitch dark. It was at night and there was a bit of a moon and we, I didn’t know where we were and neither, I suppose neither did he because the navigation had just gone completely out of the window on that side. It was a question of survival. We were too low to bale out. We were only at, on the, over the coast. We were about eight or ten thousand feet. And the, the captain said, ‘We’ve got to go back because the engine’s giving trouble.’ This was before it caught fire. He said, ‘There’s no point in sticking around up here on oxygen. We might as well go down low.’ So we got down to two or three thousand feet by which time the engine had really caught fire. And we started to lose height almost immediately on one engine and we were too low to bale out. Ralph Potts said, ‘I’m going to have to put it down somewhere.’ So eventually we, we did a crash landing in a field by which time the engine was more or less, had more or less subsided. I’d pressed the fire extinguisher button and eventually it took effect. It flooded the engine with foam apparently. I didn’t know that. But I just pressed the button and hoped. Kept my fingers crossed. So, we, we came down in this field and luckily without any undue further mishaps. The engine was still very red hot. And when we hit the field we broke the back of the geodetics which came up through the floor and the aircraft was virtually in two bits. Luckily there was no, no injury to anybody so we all got out the, out of the top escape hatch over the pilot’s seat. And as we got out I was the last one out. I got the rest of the crew out. The captain went out first and I got the crew out by the seat of their pants. Literally pushed them out of the top and they jumped down on to the wing. I was the last one out. As I got out I found that the port engine with having flown on that for so long that was now red hot itself and I thought well that’s going to catch fire so I had to get back in and press the extinguisher button on the port engine. And that was it. We, we all got in to the field and didn’t know where we were. The next thing we knew there was an army corporal came across and said, you know, ‘Are you all ok?’ And we said, ‘Yeah. We’re all walking,’ And I said, ‘Where are we?’ He said, ‘Well, you’re near St Albans.’ So that was news to us. And he helped us over the hedge and the army then took charge of us and said, ‘We’d better get you some billets for the night and get you to a telephone. You can ring your aerodrome, let them know what’s happened.’ So we got the IFF box out of the aircraft. Which was the secret, highly secret in those days, it was a radar tracking appliance which we put on fifty miles from the English coast. We took, sorry we turned that off fifty miles from the English coast going out and put it on a hundred miles from the English coast coming back. And we took that out of the aircraft and put it into the local police station in to the safe. I was billeted in the house with a couple of middle aged ladies and just slept on the floor. There was nowhere else we could go. We got through to the, to Binbrook and let them know that we were, where we were. That we were down and safe and that the aircraft was rather bent. That was about it. We got, we got a meal, a couple of meals at the house. Thanked the ladies very much. And the next morning we got rail warrants to get back to Binbrook. So we had to travel by train from St Albans to London, across London and then from London up to Grimsby. And from Grimsby we got transport to, to Binbrook. And it was a bit, a bit amusing having to go across London on foot and in our flying kit with parachutes. People were looking at us thinking we were enemy spies. But we had, we had quite a nice journey from Kings Cross up to Grimsby. There was, I think there was a business that saw our predicament and didn’t ask many questions but he knew we’d had some trouble. So he took us along to the dining car and gave us a meal which was very kind of him. Anyhow, we got back to Binbrook and resumed activity. That was it.
PL: So, did your, your plane had to be rescued, was that repairable or were you given a new plane?
HY: I think it was. I think it was eventually put together again. And whether it became operational I don’t know but it wasn’t a complete right-off but it was as near as makes no matter [pause] And from then on we, I started in the, I’ve forgotten whose crew it was now. Oh yes it was a Canadian called Harold Cook, who took, took me over with the rest of the crew. My co-pilot, the American whom I thought was a Canadian, Elmer [Menchek?] he went into another crew and I flew with, with Harold Cook. Did a few operations with him which weren’t exactly uneventful but they were survivable. And then I developed, developed stomach trouble. Air sickness. I think it was with the stress of the burning aircraft which we’d had initially. I think that had a lot to do with it. The anti-aircraft fire had a lot more to do with it. And I was being airsick most of the, most of the time. I reported to the MO and he gave me some pills. But I did a few trips with, with these pills and they just didn’t work so I was then grounded. I was sent to Number 1 Group Headquarters at Bawtry Hall just to do a bit of admin as a supernumerary. And from there I went into intelligence. Became an intelligence officer. Did a course at Highgate in London. Got through that. Sent to, they asked me where I wanted to go to. I said well, told them where I lived. As far north as possible. So I got a posting to Linton on Ouse and there was an intelligence officer there for a time with 76 and 78 Squadron which had Halifaxes until I had a difference of opinion with the station commander who was a group captain. Greatly outranked me. He wanted me to do certain other jobs apart from intelligence work. I said, ‘Well, I don’t know how I’m going to fit them in. It’s not possible.’ He didn’t know. He’d just come, come from India. Been posted from India. He was what we called a wingless wonder or a penguin. And he hadn’t a clue about operational flying so as I said we had this difference of opinion. The next thing I knew I was shot out of the station. Posted elsewhere. You couldn’t win an argument with a group captain. It didn’t matter how hard you tried. So then he got rid of me and I was sent out of intelligence in to admin. Posted to [pause] I’m just trying to think of the name of the place now. It was a satellite of Mildenhall. Tuddenham. To assistant adjutant of 90 Squadron at Tuddenham. Which was a very, it was a nice job. It was not connected intimately with flying but it was, we had, we had aircraft on, on the station. That was the main thing. I did a time there and then the bull fell. I was posted to India. I reported to the one of the headquarters in Bombay and they said, ‘Well, you know you’re going to be posted to [pause] it was up in, on the northwest frontier. I said, ‘What’s the rank of the post?’ It was a sergeant who was doing the paperwork. He said, ‘Well it’s a flying officer post.’ And I was a flying officer by that time I’d got a thicker ring. I said, ‘Haven’t you got a flight lieutenant post anywhere?’ I thought I might as well stick my neck out and go the full hog. So he had another look at the paper and said, ‘Oh yes. We have as a matter of fact.’ So [laughs] I got a second ring and I’m just trying to think where I went. My memory is not as good as it was but —
PL: What year was this Harold?
HY: Oh, that was [pause] I think it would have been 1943 or ‘4. One or the other. And I got this flight lieutenant post at Baigachi, near Calcutta. From there I was posted further out east to Penang and I was adjutant of 185 Wing in Penang which was a very pleasant job because Penang is or probably still is the holiday resort of Malaya. And I had a very pleasant time there. It was quite an easy job. We had plenty time of job off. Played cricket. Played rugby. Played soccer. Everything that was going. Did the job as well. And made friends with a family in in George Town which was the, the main town on the island. And then the next thing that was, I think that was the end of my RAF service really because from then I was, I made my own, my own release document out. Being adjutant of 185 Wing I was responsible for moving people around. And I made my own release document out and came back to England and got released from the RAF. And that’s the end of the story.
PL: Well, Harold, just going back a little way. What were you, when you were India flying what what was the —
HY: I wasn’t flying in India.
PL: Oh right. Ok.
HY: No. No I’d been grounded.
PL: Right. Right.
HY: For good by then.
PL: Right.
HY: Had a medical board and been grounded.
PL: Oh right.
HY: Yeah.
PL: Ok. So none of that changed. So what sort of jobs were you doing?
HY: In India?
PL: Yes.
HY: Purely administrative. Movement of personnel. You’re responsible in a way for discipline among the NCOs and airmen which wasn’t a pleasant, it wasn’t an easy, it wasn’t a difficult job because they were all very well behaved. Apart from one bloke who shall be nameless. But they sorted him out quickly. And that was about it. I had plenty of time off and as I say played lots of sport and became quite friendly with as I said a local family who had a very charming daughter. We were quite friendly for a good time until I came home and we lost touch. And that was about it.
PL: And can, can I just take you back to your time in, at Linton when you were doing intelligence work and you left there. What sort of work was that?
HY: Well, that was at, at Linton on Ouse. What sort of work? Well, it was primarily briefing the crews for an operation and interrogating them when they came back. We had a form like you have. We had to ask certain questions. The first one was, ‘Where did you bomb?’ That was the, the target that you briefed them on and incidentally the targets were all military objectives. The aiming points as ours were when I was flying were military objectives. There was no question of deliberately bombing built up areas but we knew that there was now as you say his term collateral. We knew that built up areas were going to be hit. But the briefing was simply hit a certain factory. A main railway station. A GP — the head post office or some important communication centre. And when we came back we had to, they were asked, ‘Where did you bomb? And they always said the primary target which was what we’d briefed them on. ‘What height were you?’ ‘What course were you on?’ ‘How did you identify the target?’ ‘What was the opposition?’ ‘Where were the guns?’ ‘Were there many guns?’ ‘Where were they, where were they based?’ ‘Could you tell me where they were stationed around the target?’ And, ‘How did you identify the target?’ ‘And what was the navigation like?’ ‘What was the weather like?’ ‘What did you determine the wind speed and direction?’ How many, ‘What was the cloud formation?’ ‘How many, how much cloud was there in ten tenths, five tenths?’ Or whatever. And, ‘Did you see any aircraft shot down?’ ‘Could you identify them?’ ‘Where were they?’ ‘What time was it?’ And that was about all I think. So, any questions?
PL: Well, one thing that I always ask is how you felt Bomber Command were treated after the war? Do you have any comments you’d like to make about that?
HY: Yes. I think we became a dirty word. Nobody wanted to know us because we’d done some area bombing. Not, not personally. We knew that we were going to hit built up areas and quite frankly if we couldn’t find the primary target we used to say well we’ll just bomb a built up area if we can find one. And we would do that knowing that the Germans had started it by bombing Rotterdam and by bombing the East End of London fifty odd nights in a row. By bombing Coventry into obliteration. Incidentally, it’s a little aside, when I was in Northampton and they had Sywell posted, billeted out in Northampton with a very nice civilian family. They had a niece who had been in Coventry when it was very heavily bombed and she was staying with them at the time and we became friendly for quite a while ‘til I lost touch again. So as far as built up areas went we knew that the German Air Force had started indiscriminate bombing and our attitude was if we couldn’t find the primary target any built up area would do. We’d bomb any built up area irrespective of where it was as long as it was in enemy territory and it wasn’t in occupied territory which were, you know friendly territory to us. So that, that was the attitude we had about built up areas. There was two things we were, well the thing we were briefed on when we were sent on operations we’d got the primary target which as I say was a military objective — a factory, a railway station, a head post office. We got a primary target in the city. We got a secondary target. If you can’t find that one your secondary target is so and so. And failing all else your alternatives are what was known as SEMO and MOPA. S E M O and M O P A. Self Evident Military Objectives or Military Objectives Previously Attacked. SEMO and MOPA. They were the last resorts. And that was it.
PL: So, we’re just going to stop the tape for the moment.
[recording paused]
PL: Re-commencing tape with Harold Yeoman. So, Harold would you like to tell me a little bit about some of the operations that you were on?
HY: I think the ones that stood out in my mind very clearly were the trips we did to Essen which was the, the city where, in the Ruhr Valley in which Krupps Works was based. And that was the arsenal of the Nazi regime. And I did three trips to Essen altogether. Two of which were within twenty four hours which was a pretty horrific experience. We, the first one we got there at 11 o’clock one night and bombed. We think we bombed the primary. Came back again. I’d reported on the way in when we were approaching Essen I thought well there’s two fires going ahead of us. And I looked. We’d got to pick the correct one. And I worked out that we, we should go to the starboard. Pick the right hand one. That was the proper target. So we did that. When we got back we found that most people had bombed the wrong target which was the left hand fire which was further up the Ruhr Valley. Which was probably no bad thing but it wasn’t what we, the powers that be had said we had to get. So we, we discussed this over breakfast time the next morning and thought well that’s just too bad. We’ll, you know sometime we might get back there. And we thought we were going to have the day off today. Went up to the crew room and found that briefing was at 3 o’clock. So we went back to the, went to the crew room. We got briefed for Essen again and we had to be there by 11 o’clock that night. So that was twice within twenty four hours. And Essen was about the worst target in Germany apart from Berlin which I’d luckily never got to. And we were there within twenty four hours and got away unscathed apart from a few little minor holes. But we lost our own commanding officer on the second raid, Wing Commander Golding, who was a very nice chap. And a Canadian pilot whom I’d come with from Canada on the ship. Met on the ship and we became friends. Flight Sergeant Lowe. He was lost that night too. So we lost two in one night from, from 12 Squadron. Which was a bad blow but that was the thing that happened. That was the way it went. You just had to live with it and get on with it.
PL: And was the target destroyed in that instance?
HY: Well, we never, we never really knew until much later on because the only way we could find out was the, if they sent the, we just called it the PRU Photographic Reconnaissance Unit. They were unarmed Spitfires who went over at about forty thousand feet and took pictures and came back with the photos of the, the target you’d been to. But quite often we didn’t get to know. Occasionally we did, but that was very occasionally. The only, the only place we got to know first-hand was a, really it was an amazing briefing. Really. We’d never imagined that we’d ever get a target which was inside the city of Paris which was declared, virtually declared to be an open city which hadn’t to be attacked, bombed or hadn’t to knock a brick down. But we had a target of the Renault factory and that was in the, the southwest central of the city. The suburb of Billancourt. It was a night attack as all our raids were. They were all night. We didn’t do any daylight raids thank goodness otherwise the casualties would probably have been much heavier, probably Including myself. But this was a night raid and it was at low level which was an unaccustomed thing. We used to be at as high as possible. Usually eighteen thousand to twenty thousand feet was what we aimed at. We usually got that. Sometimes we got a little bit higher than twenty thousand feet but not much. It was a high rate of climb. Anyhow, the Renault factory had to be attacked at low level and it was going to be marked by, and it was marked by flares. A whole lot of flares which were laid by Stirlings which carried a big load. They were four-engined, and they carried quite a huge load. And the Stirlings kept the target marked by means of two rows, parallel rows of flares on either side of the target. All we had to do was find the flares. Fly up the corridor and find the target and drop your bombs and come away. And the opposition was absolutely nil. There was not a gun within range of us. There was one gun firing in Paris. In the, away to the east and it was firing tracer in to the air. At what we never knew. We didn’t care. It was so funny. We were just laughing our heads off at that. They were shooting at nothing and we were at the other side of the city. And we got absolutely no opposition. It was just like taking cake from a baby as they say. So we bombed at about twenty five hundred feet instead of twenty thousand five hundred. We were two thousand five hundred. The height you bombed at was limited by the highest capacity of the bomb that you carried. If you were carrying a four thousand pounder your minimum height was four thousand feet. If you were carrying a one thousand pounder that was your biggest one you could go down as low as a thousand feet. So we split the difference and bombed at two thousand five hundred. And as I say it was, it was just like walking down the street at home. Quite easy. And the target was put out of action for — I think it was nine months. Completely. It was. I’ve seen photos of it. I’ve got them in a book somewhere. And it was absolutely devastated. Unfortunately, we couldn’t help it of course, there was overshoot and undershoot and we killed two or three hundred French civilians. Which was regrettable but we got the message through to say, from the French Resistance to say that how much damage had been done and how many people were killed and said well it’s, that was war. And they were not happy to accept it but they accepted it as one of the risks of war. So these poor French people they paid the price of slight inaccuracies in bombing. Because you dropped your stick of bombs you couldn’t guarantee that every single one was going to hit the target. If you had a, you sometimes carried fourteen two hundred and fifty pound bombs. If you were dropping a stick of fourteen bombs and you were flying at a hundred and eighty miles an hour. Well you can calculate how far apart they were going to be. So if two or three hit the target that was great and the rest were overshoots and undershoots. So that’s about it.
PL: So did you know what was being made at the Renault factory? I mean —
HY: Yes. They were making wheeled vehicles of all sorts for the Germans obviously and to be used on the Russian front. And the Russians were, in those days were our great friends and allies. Supposed to be until we learned differently. There was only one thing they were, they are interested in, or were interested in, that was the Russians. They couldn’t care less about anybody else. Allies or not. But we didn’t know that at the time. Uncle Joe was Uncle Joe and he was great friends, you know. We were all pals together. So we were helping the Russians which we thought was a great thing. That’s what they were doing. Making wheeled vehicles for the Germans to use along the Eastern Front. And as I say production was completely stopped for about eight or nine months. Which is as much as you can expect.
PL: So were there any other raids that you remember Harry that, Harold, that you’d like to talk about?
HY: Well, the, the last one I did was to Cologne which was, I believe the last raid or the last but one before the thousand bomber raid in May of 1942. And that was the last trip I did to, to Cologne which was a brilliant moonlit night. It was a wonderful night really and the target was quite easy to find. We were routed to find the Rhine and we, once we found the Rhine and we flew down it and until we got Cologne in the sights and that was it. That was it. It was quite an easy, an easy one to find. And the trips to Essen were quite hair raising. They were very, very fraught because the opposition was so fierce. I mean it was, there were very few night fighters in those days. I only ever saw two and we got out of there quite smartly but the anti-aircraft fire was intense. And when you’re being shelled by heavy anti-aircraft shells and they’re bombing, they were bursting not very far away from me. You knew all about it. It’s a pretty horrifying experience. It’s one which I wish I [pause] it comes back to me now and again with great clarity. [pause] So that’s about all. Well, as I say at the end of a talk. Any questions?
PL: So, your, your — before you were grounded what was your last, your last trip out before you were grounded?
HY: My last what?
PL: Your last flight out before you were grounded.
HY: That was to Cologne.
PL: That was the Cologne one.
HY: Yeah. That was number fourteen I think. That was my fourteenth trip. And as I say I was being air sick. It started when, when I went to the Paris raid. That was the sixth or seventh trip. That’s when I started having this airsickness and it went on all the rest of the time despite the MOs pills. He said, ‘Well, this can’t go on. We’ll have to stop you flying.’ So, as I say I went to Headquarters 1 Group just as a supernumerary admin officer. I was given six months non-operational flying by the, a medical board in London. And [pause] I was ferrying. That was it. I went on to ferrying from, picking up brand new Wellingtons from a place called Kemble near Cirencester and flying them to Moreton in the Marsh where I was based which was an OTU for pupils who were going to North Africa to join the Desert Air Force. And we picked up, they would ring up in the morning and say, ‘We’ve got —’ one, two, three, maybe four, ‘New aircraft. Come and collect them.’ So the CO would say, ‘Right. You. You. You. Get in the, get in the Anson.’ Be flown up to Kemble and you would say, ‘Well, which one’s mine?’ ‘Oh, that one over there.’ You’d go there. The ground crew would be standing around, they’d say, ‘Would you just sign that,’ and give you a piece of paper. Signing for one brand new Wellington. And you’d get in on your own and just start it up and taxi out and fly back to Moreton in the Marsh and land. And signal. You used signal for transport. We had no radio. We were on our own. It was only a forty mile ride I think. Something like that. And we’d get to Moreton, I’d get to Moreton and signal for transport by pushing the throttles up and down a couple of times to full revs and that told them that you were overhead. You needed something to bring you back to the, back to the flight office.
PL: So were they, were they limited, was there limited equipment in them at that stage?
HY: No. They were fully operational.
PL: Right.
HY: And what —
PL: Apart from the radios.
HY: Well, the radio was there but you were flying. You couldn’t use it. You couldn’t turn it on or off or change the frequency or anything. You just ignored it. But they were handed over to trainee crews at this, this OTU who took the aircraft over and did a certain number of cross-country’s with it and they flew them out to North Africa. That was their first really long flight and it was a long flight. They flew to, from Moreton in the Marsh to Portreath in Cornwall I think. An aerodrome there. From Portreath they flew to Gibraltar. And from Gibraltar to Malta. From Malta to North Africa. And that was the chain that we were part of. Handing these brand new machines over to pupils who flew to North Africa with them.
PL: So Harold is there anything else about your wartime experiences that you’d like to share that perhaps aren’t necessarily to do with operations?
HY: Well, the thing is I still miss is being surrounded by people in uniform. I miss that very much indeed. Even to this day. It comes back to me very clearly at times. I wish there was a crowd of uniforms around me that I could just have a chat to. But incidentally I haven’t mentioned this but when I was sent in to intelligence at Linton on Ouse, the second or third morning I was there. Sat down at the desk. Desk here, telephone there, telephone there and another officer, intelligence office on my left waiting for the, a target to come through. And we had WAAF watchkeepers who act as, virtually they were virtually secret telephone operators. They dealt with all the secret traffic over the telephones can’t you. The second or third morning a WAAFs corporal came in, sat down. I thought I like the look of her. She looks very nice. And finished up dating her. Well, I didn’t date her. I went on a blind date. Somebody arranged a blind date. The girl who arranged it, the WAAF who arranged it said, ‘Would you like to come along?’ I said, ‘Yes. I’ll come along. Where are you going?’ ‘Oh, we’re going to the pub in — ’ not Doncaster. It was a town near Doncaster. Yes. I’ll come along. Who am I taking?’ She said, ‘Oh we’ll find someone very nice for you.’ And it was this WAAF watchkeeper, the corporal watchkeeper and we got on like a house on fire. We chatted away and came back together and I finished up marrying her years later. And that’s her on the mantelpiece.
PL: What a lovely story. So when did you marry?
HY: Well, I, we agreed not to get married until after the war. So I met her in — when was it? 1943 or ‘4.
PL: And how old were you then?
HY: Oh, in, well 1943 I’d be twenty two. And we got married in 1947. Yeah. I got demobbed in ’46 and by the time we got accommodation, that was the big problem, post-war accommodation. My parents and I had to search around here for it and eventually we got a couple of rooms near to where Bill lives now. And we then got, I told Joan that I’d found this and would she like to come up and have a look. So we had a look at them and she said, ‘Yeah. That’s ok.’ I think they weren’t very much. But we got married then. In Guildford where her aunt lived. Her aunt gave us a wedding present as a, got us married and reception etcetera. And I was married at Guildford. We settled down up here. But her home was in Worthing which was a long way but we used to go there on holiday. Spend half the holiday here and half down in Worthing.
PL: So you were demobbed in 1946 and you must have come out of the war thinking, what do I do now?
HY: No. Well I went back to my, my job.
PL: What happened next?
HY: Just, not far from here. A couple of hundred yards from here. I’d been an assistant at the time. Not an inspector. And I went back and just started to study and qualified as a weights and measures inspector and worked, as I say about three hundred yards from where we’re sitting in now. That’s where I met Bill.
PL: And then you’ve had, and that’s where you worked for the rest of your career.
HY: Yes. Yes.
PL: Just stopping the tape again.
[recording paused]
HY: After I was —
PL: Restarting the tape. Sorry Harold.
HY: Yes. After I was grounded my crew continued to fly. They did, I think it was one trip to Hamburg which was a successful one. They got back ok. They did the next trip to Essen. Again that was the bogey target. And they didn’t come back. And they’ve never been found. I’ve made enquiries from the RAF Museum. The RAF Museum at Hendon. And I’ve been over to Amsterdam. Got in touch with the people there who were very interested in RAF history as they used to hear us going over every night as it were. And see if they could do anything to trace them. They put me in touch with, with two people by letter and I’ve been in touch with them to see if there was any possibility of finding out what happened to my crew. But nobody knows anything. They just, they just went missing and they never came back. So all I can assume is that they were damaged in some way and they went down in the North Sea. And that’s the end of that story. No more I can do about it.
PL: You were going to tell me another story about coming back from the French coast, was it? And you saw some lights in the sky.
HY: Oh the glow. Yeah. The single glow. Yeah. When we were going, on the way to Paris we were quite low and just as we crossed the coast I saw a single light ahead. I reported this to the skipper who was flying it. I said, ‘Look. There’s a, I think there’s a fighter ahead. One. It’s a single engine.’ He, he’d got his eye on it and he said, ‘Yeah. I think it is too.’ So we flew on for a bit. I said, ‘We’re not losing him. He’s going the same direction as us.’ So he said, ‘Well, ok. Let’s alter course a bit.’ So we altered course to try and get out of his way and then resumed flying and he was, the glow was still there. In a couple of minutes I said, ‘Do you know that it is?’ I said, ‘That’s the target.’ And we could see the target burning virtually from the French coast. This was the one I’ve told you about. The Renault factory. I said, ‘That’s the,’ so and so, ‘Target. Just aim for that.’ So we just, we just went for that and it was. It got bigger and bigger and bigger. And we got there and we found the whole place was in flames. It was quite, quite an experience. I’d forgotten about that.
PL: Good heavens. And then just another thing we’ve talked about. When you were — leaping all the way back to Penang, you had an experience there where you were involved with a court case.
HY: Yes.
PL: With a local.
HY: Yes. A message came through to my CO. I was his adjutant then. And it came through and he came to me. He said, ‘Look they had the Judge Advocate General’s Department on the phone through our headquarters and they want three officers to sit on a court to try a local man who has been collaborating with the Japanese.’ And he said, ‘They want [pause] they want an army officer,’ who was in charge, a major who was in charge. ‘They want an army captain and they want an RAF officer,’ And he said, ‘You’re it.’ He said, ‘You’re sitting on the court case.’ So. It lasted about a fortnight. We sat there every day. We had to take it all down in longhand. Everything that was said. My hands at the finish were just absolutely useless. We tried this collaborator who was a chap called Carlile da Silva. He was Eurasian and he’d been collaborating with the Japanese and giving them information as to who the English sympathisers were and they’d be sorted out and taken away and tortured and killed and goodness knows what. And he had a very bad history like that. And of course after the war his number was virtually up because people came to us and said, ‘Hey. Get hold of Carlisle de Silva. He’s the man who was betraying you to the Japs.’ So he was arrested and put on trial. And it was very interesting, the trial. They got all the evidence from the various witnesses as to the connections with him. What had happened. What had happened to them. And we had to have, I think it was three interpreters because the, while the locals on by and large spoke some English, some of them very good English but the witnesses were sort of ordinary, ordinary Penang citizens. And some were Indian, some were Chinese and some were Malays. And we had to have interpreters for the three different. In fact the Chinese had two interpreters because some spoke Mandarin and some spoke, most of them spoke Hokkien which was the North China dialect. The North Chinese dialect. So, we had to have four interpreters to interpret the, what they were saying. Or interpret the questions to them and they would answer in their language and that would be interpreted back into English to us and we’d take it all down. And as I say the trial lasted about a fortnight and eventually we found him guilty and he was sentenced to a certain number of years of rigorous hard labour. Which I’m told involved picking up heavy stones and carrying them about twenty yards. Putting them down. Then picking them up again and carrying them back. Until they dropped with fatigue. That was the rigorous hard labour. No more than he deserved because most of them deserved to be put up against the wall but that wasn’t on the cards. But it was, that was an interesting experience being, there was a Major Blacklock I think was the chairman and there was myself and an army captain. The last morning I was a bit disturbed when I, when we were all the three of us came in and sat down on this dais with a desk and the public were admitted to all the proceedings. It was all open. And the last morning when we were going to pronounce sentence and telling him what was going to happen to him the door opened at the back and four or five locals came in and I just didn’t like the look of them. I thought they were pals of the defendant. They were going to probably throw a bomb or a hand grenade or something. So I reported it to the, the major, I said, ‘Look. I don’t like the look of those bods who’ve just came through the door, I said, ‘Can you do something about them?’ So he said, ‘Oh yeah. We’ll see to that.’ So he just got on the phone and the next thing we got a few military policemen came in and just gave them the once over and they were ok actually. They were just local civilians who, who had attended but they had a very suspicious look about them to me. So Carlisle de Silva got eight to ten years rigorous hard labour. Lucky to get away with it I think. But we couldn’t —
PL: Did you ever hear what happened to him after that? Did he survive —
HY: No idea.
PL: The —
HY: No. No idea. He just, it was published in the local paper. In the Penang Times Herald I think it was. I think I’ve got the cutting somewhere. All colourful stuff.
PL: Which leads us neatly to —
HY: Pardon?
PL: Which leads us neatly to your story about the filming of, “The Wooden Horse.”
HY: Oh yes. The local newsagent had an assistant then. A girl assistant. And I used to go in there quite frequently to get a newspaper, magazines or whatever. We became quite friendly and she knew, she was interested in in RAF wartime activities. And do you know I had long, long talks to her. She came here, had a cup of coffee. And when I watched, I watched a film on the box called, I think it was, “The Wooden Horse,” and to my astonishment one of the characters was my own flight commander from 12 Squadron and he was playing the part of the adjutant of a particular unit. And he was completely recognisable. I recognised him instantly. I said, ‘Oh that’s Squadron Leader Abraham.’ So I told this girl who had a very knowledgeable friend about film matters and he was a film photographer himself and he knew all about taking stills of programmes. So he got the still I made I got for her to tell her all about it. And she came and had a look at the, at the recording I had made and she said, ‘Oh, I can get, get a still made of Squadron Leader Abraham’s picture.’ So she did and I’ve got that on the wall behind me. So I’ve got my own flight commander in the room as it were.
PL: Did you ever find out how he got involved with that?
HY: Pardon?
PL: Did you ever find out how he got involved?
HY: No. I didn’t actually. He did change his name from Abraham to Ward apparently. I got to know that through a fellow survivor who I was very friendly with on the squadron who unfortunately lived in Kent. I’ve only seen him twice since the war. But we always talked about, you know the B Flight at Binbrook and Squadron Leader Abraham. He told me that he had a rich relative, an aunt I think who said she would leave him quite a lot of money as long as he changed his name to hers. And he changed his name to Ward. So he became Squadron Leader Ward. But he was from, I think it was Kidderminster. I never saw him after the war at all but I met this friend of mine from B Flight. He was an observer in, in Abraham’s crew actually. Eric [Foynet?] I met, met him a couple of times or three times since the war, in London and I’ve lost touch with him now. I think he must have died. He was a bit older than me. But a very good friend of him. And that’s about it.
PL: Well, Harold, thank you so much for sharing your fascinating stories with us.
HY: I’m glad you found it so. It was quite ordinary to me but obviously to someone else it might be more interesting than I found it.
PL: Extraordinary. Thank you very much indeed.
HY: Oh, you’re very very welcome. I’m glad to have been of help.
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Identifier
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AYeomanHT161013
Title
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Interview with Harold Yeoman
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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.
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IBCC Digital Archive
Type
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Sound
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eng
Format
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01:11:49 audio recording
Creator
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Pam Locker
Date
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2016-10-13
Description
An account of the resource
Harold Yeoman volunteered for the RAF hoping to become an air gunner and was surprised to find he would be trained as a pilot. He describes a crash landing in a Wellington returning from an operation to Cherbourg and being sent to Essen twice within twenty four hours. After several operations with 12 Squadron he was removed from operational flying due to air sickness and became a ferry pilot. His original crew went on to do more operations without him before they were lost.
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Spatial Coverage
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Canada
France
Germany
Great Britain
India
England--Lincolnshire
England--Suffolk
England--Yorkshire
France--Paris
Germany--Cologne
Germany--Essen
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Conforms To
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Pending review
Pending revision of OH transcription
Contributor
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Julie Williams
Temporal Coverage
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1940-12-24
1942
1943
1944
12 Squadron
76 Squadron
78 Squadron
90 Squadron
aircrew
bombing
crash
crewing up
Flying Training School
ground personnel
Harvard
Initial Training Wing
Lancaster
love and romance
medical officer
Operational Training Unit
perception of bombing war
pilot
promotion
RAF Bassingbourn
RAF Kemble
RAF Linton on Ouse
RAF Moreton in the Marsh
RAF Sywell
RAF Torquay
RAF Tuddenham
recruitment
sport
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
Women’s Auxiliary Air Force
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/360/5766/AFreethR160531.2.mp3
cf06e920ffcf1f6cdf9d9f0b1e811d60
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
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Freeth, Reg
Reg Freeth
R Freeth
Description
An account of the resource
Three items. An oral history interview with Sergeant Reginald Freeth (b. 1921, 1319543 Royal Air Force) his logbook and a squadron photograph. Reg Freeth trained in South Africa and served as a bomb aimer with 61 Squadron first at RAF Syerston then at RAF Skellingthorpe.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Reginald Freeth and catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-05-31
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
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Freeth, R
Transcribed audio recording
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Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
CB: My name is Chris Brockbank and today is the 31st May 2016 I’m in Goring on Thames with Reg Freeth and his wife Blodwyn and we are going to talk about his time in the RAF and the days before and after. So what are your earliest recollections Reg? What do you remember first in life? Where you were born and what did your parents do?
RF: I was born in Port Talbot I was one of a family of seven children I had two brothers and four sisters, my father was working as a shipper in the Port Talbot docks and he was born in Cardiff where my grandfather was employed on the Great Western Railway it was being built from England ino South Wales at the time this is back in the nineteenth century, my grandfather was born in Malmsbury in Wiltshire but he moved to Cardiff because of the work on the Great Western Railway of course my father was born in Cardiff then my father moved to Port Talbot and worked in the docks, I had two brothers one was working on the railway and the other one was in the Merchant Navy as a chief engineer and my four sisters they were doing domestic work, my eldest brother unfortunately he er he was shipwrecked in Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia on his first voyage but he survived I I er forget the name of the er cable car or something and er he survived the war but unfortunately he died at a quite young age because he had er.
BF: Its called emphysema, emphysema
RF: It was due to the er he had cancer of the lungs
CB: Right.
RF: Due due to the work in the ships in the er ships engineer he was only fifty seven, my younger brother he died when he was about seventy three, all my sisters have died, I’m then only survivor now I am ninety four years of age.
CB: So where did you go to school?
RF: I went to the Central Boys School and er I passed my er examination and at the age of eleven and went to the Duffryn Grammar School which is the same school as Richard Burton went to but I was older than Richard Burton and I was leaving the school when he was starting so I never got to know him that well I knew the family because they were from Pontrhydyfen [laughter] which is where my wife was born and my wife my wife’s family were living in the same street as Richard Burton’s family [laughs] in Pontrhydyfen, but um I passed my matriculation I think they called it at the time and er my headmaster suggested I should apply to go to the Civil Service in fact he gave me the money for the postage to stamp to er to send the application form away I couldn’t afford that at the time, and um I started work in the Civil Service in Swansea on 2nd January 1939 er whilst I was working there I was employed in the Labour Exchange as it was then and er of course the war broke out in September 39 and er when I was er eighteen nineteen twenty I tried to get into the Fleet Air Arm I wanted to er join the aircrew Fleet Air Arm I went down to I think it was Portsmouth I think it was Portsmouth for a medical examination and an interview and I failed the medical examination because I had a defective er bone in my nose and I couldn’t I couldn’t pass the test so I came back and I thought well I’m not going to wait anymore I’ll go I had an operation and I applied to go to the Royal Air Force, I joined the Royal Air Force on 4th August 4th August 41.
BF: Do you want a pen?
CB: Yes
RF: Yes want a pen want a pen top top top top all the other ones are bust.
CB: Thank you. 4th August 41?
RF: 4th August 41 um I went to St. John’s Wood in London um I was there for about three weeks I think and we were just getting um our inoculations and things and er doing a little bit of training we used to go into the park there Regents Park was it we used to have our meals there we used to march into the park have our meals and then come back to St. John’s Wood living in a posh house then and um I think we went on to Torquay er I don’t know what it was called like an instruction training.
CB: ITW was it initial training?
RF: ITW initial training wing.
CB: That’s it okay.
RF: Initial training wing went down to Torquay um I can’t remember how long must have been there for about three months and then we went up to Greenock in Scotland to er catch a boat er out to South Africa er we joined the convoy there and unfortunately our ship had problems and it couldn’t keep up with the convoy it had to drop out and we were left on our own in the North Atlantic we got to Freetown Sierra Leone on Christmas Day 1941 we were there for a few days and then we joined another convoy and went on to Durban in South Africa, we were billeted in tents at Claremont Racecourse on the outskirts of Durban for about a fortnight and then we went up to Littleton Camp near Pretoria er where we were sort of we were joined by all other recruits air crew recruits and we were sorted into groups and assigned to different air schools in South Africa for training as air observers, I was er sent to 47 Air School in Queenstown Cape Province and er when I completed my training I did navigation, bombing and gunnery and I passed all three and I was awarded the Air Observers Badge I went down to Cape Town to await transport back to the UK and er we got back er er um let me think.
CB: How long was the training?
RF: Sorry?
CB: How many months were the training?
RF: Um it was about eight months.
CB: So late 42?
RF: 1942 yes and then we were sent to Millom, RAF Millom um because during that period the aircraft used in the Royal Air Force for bombing missions changed from a small plane like a Wellington to the big plane Lancaster, Halifax, and Stirling, and they split the jobs the air observer’s job and we were sorted out in Millom to join the crew to carry on then er our training but the air observers that were trained in South Africa some were made observers, some were made navigators, and some were made bomb aimers, I was made a bomb aimer and very very fortunately my friend that I was with when I joined the Royal Air Force in St. John’s Wood, but he was trained at a different school in South Africa, he became the navigator and became the bomb aimer in the same crew so we were very fortunate and er we finished up after our initial training OTU and joined 61 Squadron at Syerston [?] in May 1943.
CB: Where was your OTU?
RF: Um Bruntingthorpe is it um I was stationed at Wing for a while near Aylesbury but I think most of my training was at um Bruntingthorpe.
CB: What about the HCU where did you go for that? The HCU where was the Heavy Conversion Unit?
RF: Er it was on the outskirts of Newark can’t think of the name there was an aerodrome there on the outskirts of Newark I can’t think of the name.
CB: Okay. So you joined 61 Squadron?
RF: We joined 61 Squadron in.
CB: At Syerston?
RF: May 1943 at Syerston.
CB: Right. Okay.
RF: Okay.
CB: And what were you flying?
RF: Er Lancasters, I trained on Manchesters and Wellingtons.
CB: So you came back from South Africa and then you went to your OTU how did you do the crewing up because you met your friend again there?
RF: Well we were sorted out in Millom on our return from South Africa.
CB: Into crews?
RF: And er we weren’t given any option we were just put into crews and fortunately I found I was with my best friend and he was the navigator.
CB: What was his name?
RF: Jamie Barr, Jamie Barr.
CB: Good, okay. So what about the rest of the crew what were they like?
RF: They were very good we were very very friendly got on very well um the flight engineer was George Turnbull he was er I think he used to live in near Northampton, the pilot that we had at the time on our first er commission on Syerston was Jamie James James Graham he was a Scots I think he was from Girvan in Ayrshire he was Scots, Jamie Barr was a Scot so we got on very well the Welsh and the Scots and the English we all mixed up well, Eric Walker was the um tail gunner er that’s about it isn’t it.
CB: Mid upper, mid upper who was mid upper, who was the mid upper?
RF: I can’t think of his name now but he didn’t stay long with us he was taken off ops.
CB: Okay so why was that?
RF: Finished up with Reg Bunnion then, Reg Bunnion was our mid upper oh now he was the wireless operator he was the wireless operator, er Jim Chapman was the er Jim Chapman was the er mid upper, Reg Bunnion was the er wireless operator because his name was Reg and mine was Reg they called him Bunny not to get mixed up you know on the intercom.
CB: Very important.
RF: Called him Reg.
CB: So what was the name of the original mid upper then?
RF: I can’t think of his name now but er he was taken out for LMF.
CB: He was right. So how did that manifest itself was that at the Heavy Conversion Unit at in the Squadron or when?
RF: It was on the squadron.
CB: What exactly happened?
RF: No idea.
CB: I mean in the aeroplane were you conscious of this, how conscious of you were you of it in the plane on opertions did you know about it?
RF: Yes.
CB: What did he do?
RF: Well he just didn’t want to fly anymore on ops and he refused to go on operations, I think they called it LMF wasn’t it lack of moral fibre.
CB: What did they do to him?
RF: Well he was taken off stripped of his sergeants er rank and er he was given just menial jobs then I don’t know what he was doing we lost touch with him.
CB: They took him away from the airfield?
RF: Yes took him away yes we lost touch with him.
CB: So when he was removed from the crew and had his brevets removed how did they do that did they do that in a parade or what did they do?
RF: It just happened we didn’t know what had gone on you know we weren’t told much.
CB: Okay. So how did the crew get on?
RF: We got on quite well and er I think it was Reg Bunnion I said wasn’t it took his place.
CB: Yes.
RF: I can’t think now [laughs] getting all mixed up.
BF: Yes it’s a wonder you can remember what did happen.
CB: So the crew was put together there was no choice?
RF: Yeah we were still in the same crew and we had a replacement he was the mid upper gunner.
CB: Right.
RF: He was the mid upper gunner he was the replacement I think it was Reg Bunnion that replaced him.
CB: Yeah right, and um how did the training go initially ‘cos you were in the OTU to begin with what did you do in the OTU?
RF: Well we were doing um practice bombing and er night flights covering the whole country really we were going up to Scotland, North England.
CB: So some of it was cross country navigation was it, some of it was navigation cross country?
RF: Yes yes yes it was very good you know it was good training and er we had a bit of a problem when we were doing one of our practice bombing missions at er Whittlesea bombing range near March Isle of Ely and we had to bale out.
CB: Really, what happened?
RF: Er one of the flares that’s attached to the inside of the fuselage of the can’t remember whether it was a Wellington or a Manchester now um it was come off its hook and slipped down behind the aileron controls which run along the fuselage and er the pilot asked us to check he was having difficulty um flying the plane to see what happened we found the flare had stuck behind the aileron controls and he said to try and remove it we we tried as much as we could and we couldn’t get it out so he told us we’d have to bale out he was a trainee he was a trainer pilot and he wasn’t carrying a a parachute the tail gunner didn’t get the message from the pilot clearly enough and he came back on the intercom to the pilot and said ‘what’s happening?’ he could see all the parachutes passing the end the tail of the plane and the pilot told him to bale out but the tail gunner didn’t realise you know what was going on at the time and er he was the last one to get out of the plane he landed in the WAAF’s quarters somewhere [laughter] he was lucky.
CB: What happened to the pilot?
RF: He made an emergency landing at RAF Wittering and er we were told that he died a few months later on an operational trip, but um all of us survived our er baling out we landed in er ploughed fields around that area and we were collected by the police from March Isle of Ely and they took us back to base it was er 6.20 p.m. on Sunday 20th December 1942 that’s when the er baling out took place [laughs].
CB: So on that flight had you released your practice bombs beforehand or not?
RF: No we hadn’t and I landed in a ploughed field it was pitch dark of course at that time 6.20 p.m. and I er lost one of my flying boots on the way down, I unfastened my parachute and it blew away before I had a chance to grab it, I walked across the field there was an irrigation ditch on the side of the field I waded through that no sign of any houses there so I walked up a lane and eventually I came to a farmhouse I knocked at the door and a lady came to answer it I told her what had happened she didn’t believe me she shut the door she thought I was a German because I’d blue eyes and blond hair you see [laughter] and er eventually I persuaded her to phone the police and that’s how the police came to pick us up.
CB: Then what so you’ve got a crew without a pilot or the pilot came back for a while did he?
RF: No he was he was the er the officer training.
CB: Oh he was training.
RF: He was training the pilot.
CB: Right.
RF: Our pilot survived.
CB: Oh he did.
RF: I was lucky because um my parachute opened inside the plane.
CB: That was dangerous how did that happen?
RF: Well I’d er when the pilot told me to bale out I lifted the the escape hatch and I couldn’t remember where the er rip cord was so I put my hand on the rip cord, we weren’t given much training you know on using the parachute, I found the rip cord and a slipstream came in to the plane under the escape hatch caught my hand and pulled the rip cord and the parachute began to open I could see the silk and I put my arms around it and I jumped out.
CB: Lucky.
RF: And er.
CB: You’d just clipped it on had you, you had just clipped it onto your webbing?
RF: Yeah it was clipped on it was clipped on ready but the rip cord had opened the parachute slightly there was just a trace of the er silk I could see it and I thought well I’m going to die I might as well jump out and die, so I put my arms round the parachute and er jumped out of the plane and I got on all right, but we were told then that er the ground crew said ‘who was the silly b that b who er pulled the rip cord inside the plane?’ they found the rip cord there inside the plane they didn’t complain [laughs].
CB: Did you count to three before you er let go with your arms?
RF: I just leapt out I leapt out.
CB: And how long before you moved your arms?
RF: Oh well it must have opened out you know as soon as I jumped out then the wind the wind from the Jetstream was there.
CB: Right. So everybody was uninjured?
RF: Yeah everybody survived yes we all survived.
CB: And er the instructing pilot er did they give him any special award?
RF: No no he thought because he was an instruct an instructor that he didn’t need a parachute but he was lucky he made an emergency landing and survived it was the fault of this er what do they call it?
CB: The flare.
RF: The flare.
CB: How did that become dislodged?
RF: It just must have broken the hook or something they were normally hooked up or something.
CB: But it didn’t ignite it didn’t go off?
RF: No no it didn’t go off it just got stuck behind the aileron controls.
CB: So what was the purpose of that flare in the bomb bay where would you normally drop the flare?
RF: I don’t I don’t think I ever dropped one.
CB: So how then you went straight back to training did you?
RF: Yes just carried we had a week’s leave then as it was Christmas time and er we just carried on training after that and eventually you know in the May we were assigned to 61 Squadron.
CB: Right so that was at Syerston?
RF: Syerston.
CB: And er what was your first raid?
RF: Er it was a nickel raid dropping leaflets I’ve made a list out here.
CB: Okay I’ll stop just for a mo.
BF: Shall I make a cup of coffee or tea.
CB: That would be lovely thank you.
BF: What would you like?
CB: Right so we’ve now looked at the list and your first trip was to Clermont Ferrand?
RF: Ferrand.
CB: Ferrand and er that was a nickel so you were dropping leaflets?
RF: Yes.
CB: What about the next one Dortmund what was that?
RF: Well before you go onto the second one.
CB: Oh yeah okay.
RF: Our navigator got lost and er we had to er call an emergency we were told to go to we were directed then got lost with his navigation and er we were told to go to Colerne is it? Colerne near Bath
CB: Colerne yes.
RF: And we were shown the way there to get there we landed in Colerne when I got out of the plane I asked where we were and I was told Colerne I thought they said Cologne [laughter] and I started running across the airfield [laughs] I thought we’d landed somewhere else you see in Cologne anyhow that was just our first experience [laughter] it was a funny one.
CB: Absolutely yeah okay. Then Dortmund?
RF: Dortmund yes mostly in the Ruhr in the Ruhr where we were bombing.
CB: Yes right, and was there any difference in targets and were some targets more difficult than others?
RF: Not really we’d er we didn’t have any trouble flying out we weren’t attacked at all we were very fortunate um our problem well my problem was finding where to drop the bombs because we were told that the er oh what.
CB: The markers?
RF: Yeah the flares.
CB: Yes.
RF: ER who who used to fly in what do they call them?
CB: The pathfinders?
RF: Pathfinders.
CB: Yes.
RF: They were dropping flares they were dropping flares and we were told to bomb a certain colour and if there wasn’t that colour to bomb the other colour but we were given priorities which colour to er drop these bombs and er if there was more than one we had to try and bomb in the centre, we didn’t see the target at all we just er saw the lights down on the ground and the flares it was the flares we were attacking.
CB: Right, and the flares were bright enough?
RF: Oh yes they were very clear.
CB: To be able to constantly see them?
RF: You could see them before you got to the target.
CB: Right.
RF: And then er I’d see different colour flares and I’d identify the ones we were told to bomb priority and I dropped the bombs there in the centre of those.
CB: So in your run in how far from the target was the run in to start, how many miles out?
BF: You want sugar and milk.
RF: Milk.
CB: I’ll stop for a moment hang on. So we are just back on the bombing runs then Reg.
RF: I’d tell the pilot you know to bear left or bear right port or starboard and then straight ahead.
CB: So you are lying down?
RF: I was lying down flat.
CB: Right and you’d got the bomb sight in front of you?
RF: Yeah keeping an eye on the er the flares in front of me and once I saw the flares I told the pilot and we were told which flares to have priority to bomb and I’d head for those and I’d bomb either the one flare that was the colour I was I was to bomb or the centre of more than one flare and just er drop the bombs I never saw the target really.
CB: So who pressed the button for dropping the bombs?
RF: I did.
CB: Right, and then what then you had to keep going straight and level how long for?
RF: Not for long.
CB: Because you had drop a flare then?
RF: As we came into the target I’d have to er identify the flares and I’d tell the pilot ‘bomb doors open’ and I’d open the bomb doors and then ‘bombs away’ and then everything turned off then the pilot just diverted to the left.
CB: But didn’t you have to drop a flare and then take a picture?
RF: I never took pictures.
CB: Who did who took the picture the pilot was it?
RF: Could have been it could have been the navigator I don’t know I never did it.
CB: Okay, so as you said then he would turn?
RF: He’d turn then and.
CB: Which way would he go was there a standard escape turn?
RF: He’d turn left port.
CB: Changing height or same level?
RF: Go higher after dropping the bombs, I think we were lucky with the Lancaster because it got to a higher level to drop the bombs than the other four engine bombers, you know the Halifax and Stirling they couldn’t get to our height they were below us so we were very lucky in the Lancaster.
CB: Right, and on your raids how often did you encounter enemy fighters?
RF: We never met any we were never attacked we were very very fortunate we had searchlights occasionally and we could see flak coming but it never hit the aircraft.
CB: So you are flying along and the flak is coming up what is that like?
RF: Well you could see it you know exploding and you could see the flares but er we were very fortunate as we were flying high you see in the Lancaster.
CB: What sort of height were you flying?
RF: About twenty five thousand.
CB: So are you’re saying could the flak not reach your height?
RF: Could be yeah.
CB: Some people experienced flak boxes did you come across that so there’s intensive flak in a box shape?
RF: No we didn’t no no.
CB: Because you were above it?
RF: No never saw it.
CB: Okay and what about other aircraft dropping bombs near you?
RF: Didn’t see any.
CB: And what about other aircraft exploding was that something you saw?
RF: Never saw them all I was concentrating on was the target and the flares and I could see all the flames on the ground you know scattered around it covered quite a big area you know all the flames.
CB: Yes.
RF: It wasn’t concentrated in one particular place it was scattered all over.
CB: Why was it so scattered?
RF: Because of the flares I expect dropped er in the wrong in the wrong place it’s difficult you know when you’ve got er different colour flares which one to target.
CB: Because there is radio silence anyway isn’t there?
RF: Yes.
CB: So before coming to the target and after the target what was your job before you reached the target what were you doing?
RF: What was?
CB: Before you reached the target what were you doing as the bomb aimer?
RF: Just keeping an eye open for enemy aircraft and er and the flares and the er um what do they call it? [laughs].
CB: The lights?
RF: The lights.
CB: The searchlights.
BF: The searchlights.
RF: The searchlights.
CB: Yes so you how did you deal with the searchlights?
RF: Searchlights.
CB: How did bombers deal with those?
RF: We were lucky we were never caught in those searchlights.
CB: Right.
RF: But I used to see them in the distance you know we were never caught in them.
CB: The bomb aiming position is immediately underneath the front turret so how often did you go into the front turret?
RF: I never went in there I was spending all my time on my tummy looking forward identifying the target.
CB: Right.
RF: I thought that was my main job and if we were attacked I would have gone into the front turret.
CB: Right.
RF: But we weren’t attacked so it was a waste of time going in there.
CB: Right. On the way home what was your job on the way home?
RF: I had nothing to do really I was just lying down keeping an eye open for enemy aircraft, searchlights.
CB: Did the pilot ever had to do a corkscrew?
RF: No.
CB: You’ve covered a number of places you went to Cologne three times in a row what was the reason for that?
RF: No idea we weren’t given a choice of target we were just told to go there I remember on the third occasion telling the pilot that I could see the flames in the distance I I don’t know how far it is from the French coast to Cologne but it was quite a distance and as soon as we crossed the French coast I told the pilot I could see the flames dead ahead.
CB: What was the most difficult raid of the ones you did?
RF: I think the ones in the Ruhr were the er most difficult Dortmund was it or Essen Essen did we go there twice?
CB: Your second sortie was Dortmund.
RF: Did we go twice to Essen?
CB: ER you only went once to Essen.
RF: Once.
CB: Your third one was to Essen yes that was the most difficult was it?
RF: Well they were all the ones to Ruhr were difficult because there was more er searchlights and everything you know and er there must have been more fighters below us they didn’t come up as high as us we were lucky I don’t know how many aircraft were lost on those raids in the Ruhr it must have been quite a lot.
CB: Now your last raid was on Stuttgart what happened on the way back from that?
RF: We were diverted by our um message on the er on the er what do they call it intercom not intercom.
CB: No on the RT?
RF: Yes we were told that our base at Syerston was er was closed because of bad weather and we were told to divert to Herne airport in near Bournemouth and our pilot had to come down after crossing the French coast to get under the low cloud cover over the English Channel it was about three thousand feet and coming down from twenty five thousand to under three thousand over a short distance you know from the French coast caused me to perforated my ear drum and we landed at er Herne safely and then er stayed the night there flew back to Syerston the following day.
CB: So when you had the perforated eardrum and you landed at Herne what happened did you go to sick quarters or what?
RF: No I just went to the er sergeants mess I think it was I don’t know how we managed to sleep [laughs].
CB: Did anybody else have a perforated eardrum?
RF: No No.
CB: Just you?
RF: Just me.
CB: What caused that do you think?
RF: Well it’s the rapid descent you know coming over the English Channel to get under the cloud cover the original pilot that we had when we first joined 61 Squadron he had to come off operations because of loss of hearing and he was put onto non-operational flying his name was er James Graham wasn’t it.
CB: Yes.
RF: And then we had a replacement pilot Norman Turner who took us as a complete crew and it was his third tour of operations it was a cycle of ten.
CB: Was everybody else in your crew a sergeant or flight sergeant were they before he came was everybody an NCO?
RF: We were all NCO’s.
CB: Yes until he came?
RF: They were made flight lieutenants after they completed their tour of operations but Norman Turner er he came back for a third tour he didn’t have to do it but er he wanted to do it and er took us on as a complete crew and we were very fortunate he was an excellent pilot.
CB: But he’d been in a different squadron before had he?
RF: He must have been yes yes and I think he had the DFC when he came to us, um after a short time we had a new aircraft delivered to 61 Squadron it was a QRJ QRJ QR was the squadron letters and J was the aircraft letter the um aircraft number was JB138 and er it was delivered direct from the factory to the squadron and Norman Turner took it on he liked the name J and called it “Just Jane” and er.
CB: Which is at East Kirkby now that’s the name of the Lancaster at East Kirkby now.
RF: East Kirkby it’s not the same one.
CB: No no.
RF: But the original “Just Jane” went on to do a hundred and twenty three operations with different aircrew during the war ended the war and was scrapped but it had a wonderful life “Just Jane” hundred and twenty three operations and er Norman Turner designed er a picture on the outer fuselage by the pilot’s er cockpit a picture of Jane who was a character in the Daily Mirror at the time sitting on a bomb that was our picture on the side of the fuselage Jane she was er a favourite model with all people in the forces at the time er I think she lived in Horsham didn’t she yeah.
CB: So you had a perforated eardrum you landed and then the next day you flew to Syerston what happened next for you?
RF: I was going up to London I don’t know where exactly for tests every so often and I was restricted to non-operational flying I couldn’t fly above three thousand feet and then after another test later on they increased it to six thousand feet and I finished up non-operational again up to ten thousand feet so my hearing must have been improving a bit.
CB: So what were you doing during that period it was non-operational so you weren’t with your crew anymore?
RF: No I was on OTU’S then.
CB: Where?
RF: Um oh dear Wing was one of them I know.
CB: So in the OTU’S what were you flying in at OTU?
RF: Wellingtons.
CB: And what was your job when you were flying at the OTU?
RF: I was a bombing instructor I did a course in Doncaster I think it was training course as a bombing instructor and er I went to quite a number of OTU’s I can’t remember the names can you remember the names of some of the?
CB: There were so many weren’t there.
RF: Yes.
CB: Were they nearby?
RF: They were all in this area you know central England.
CB: So Little Horwood?
RF: Where?
CB: Little Horwood, um Cheddington, um Westcott there were so many.
RF: Westcott yes Westcott.
CB: That was 11 OTU.
RF: Yes yes.
CB: Right, Turweston.
RF: No.
CB: Bicester.
RF: No.
CB: Hinton in the Hedges, Croughton there were lots round there.
RF: No.
CB: Okay.
RF: They were all around Lincolnshire.
CB: Oh you went up to Lincolnshire as well?
RF: Yes.
CB: So what did you do after being a bombing instructor?
RF: I went er what do they call it would be er the administrative officer you know of the squadron.
CB: Yeah the secretarial officer.
RF: Yeah I was helping him.
CB: Yes.
RF: Yes it was a funny job because er if we lost aircrew you know we had to dispose of all the er possessions and everything send them back to the next of kin.
CB: What was that like? What was that like how did you feel about that?
RF: Um felt a bit sad you know doing it but it had to be done and I used to go on I remember now I used to go on the bomb sites on the er you know where they do practice bombing.
CB: Yeah on the bombing range yes.
RF: I used to go on the bombing range I used to go out in er er like a jeep or something with a couple of er crew and we used to er check the the targets had been hit on the bomb on the site there on the bombing target practice bombing.
CB: What was the size of the bombs used for practice? What size were the bombs used for practice how heavy?
RF: When I was doing ops?
CB: When the bombs were used for practice.
RF: Oh I can’t remember.
CB: I think they were twenty five pounds.
RF: Yes.
CB: So you you left your crew did you keep in touch with the crew? They completed their tour did they?
RF: Yes they completed their tour but er I’d already lost them after I er left Skellingthorpe they remained in Skellingthorpe but I had to go to different OTU’s so I lost touch with them.
CB: Right, and when did you first make contact with your crew after the war?
RF: Nineteen Eighty Two wasn’t it?
BF: Yes.
RF: Nineteen Eighty Two something like that this member from Neath came to my house and asked me if I’d been in the RAF because he had seen the message put in by Jamie Barr that’s how we er got together.
CB: Right. So you went from working with the bombing range you then left the RAF at that time did you?
RF: Yes back to the Civil Service.
CB: So where did you go when you rejoined the Civil Service where was that?
RF: I went to Neath and that was with the National Insurance Office as it was then, and then I moved to Port Talbot with the National Insurance, and then I volunteered to go to er Reading to join a computer centre that they set up at Reading, I was interested in that type of work you know but it was in the early days of computers I wanted to be a systems analyst but they they said I was too old [laughs] to train but um I enjoyed it you know I was er working there for quite a number of years about six years wasn’t it?
BF: Yes six years.
RF: In Didcot six years?
BF: And then we went back to Port Talbot.
RF: Yes, and at the time there were people working in the new computer centre in Reading living in Didcot in different areas and we used to share transport we were very fortunate I only had to drive once once a week because we were picking each other up you see driving to Reading working in the same computer centre I’ve lost touch with all those now.
CB: When did you buy your first house?
RF: Er.
BF: Clifton Terrace.
RF: Clifton Terrace Port Talbot what year was that Nineteen Sixty Two?
BF: [unclear]
RF: Nineteen Sixty Two Steven was two.
BF: Yes.
RF: And we moved from there to Didcot lived in Didcot for six years they were building the power station there at the time and of course that’s the one that’s had this problem recently you know.
CB: It collapsed.
RF: Because it collapsed the power station causing the death of three people there er moved back then to Port Talbot again, and then moved from Port Talbot to Woking, then Woking back to Port Talbot, and then Port Talbot back here.
CB: Sounds like an elastic band doesn’t it.
BF: I would like to be near my family one of six children you know but I was the youngest but they all died so my family were up here then you see.
CB: Yes.
RF: So when we lived in Didcot back in Nineteen Sixty Six to Seventy Two we used to come to Goring quite often on the weekends because it er was quite a popular place here for visitors and we liked it here didn’t we?
BF: Yes yes we liked it very much.
RF: And when our daughter came back from abroad she’d been living out in the Middle East Dubai um we told her to buy a house here and she’s lived here ever since.
CB: Really. What was the most memorable thing about your RAF service?
RF: I think the most I enjoyed was the friendship especially with the crew we didn’t get to know the ground crew that well but they were very good but the crew was like a family you know we kept together we went out together and we flew together.
CB: What was the worst part of your time in the RAF?
RF: I can’t really say it was bad at all I enjoyed it it was nice especially out in South Africa used to er go swimming there they had a swimming pool in Queenstown used to spend quite a lot of time there I had quite a lot of friends on the training courses.
CB: But Jamie Barr was your best friend then but you lost touch with him completely after leaving the squadron?
RF: Yes for a number of years until Nineteen Eighty Two and then we’ve met up every year since I don’t think he’s well enough to go up to the reunion this year.
CB: Right.
RF: But we’ve always met up together.
CB: Where does he live now?
RF: Yeah get to know his family and everything.
BF: Where does Jamie live Reg?
RF: Ludlow.
BF: Ludlow isn’t it.
RF: Ludlow
BF: Yes we do phone him occasionally keep in touch.
RF: And um the other crew that we managed to trace they joined us every year at the reunion before going up to Lincoln for the squadron reunion we used to meet together in different hotels you know in Hilton hotels and places in this area but we always stuck together, um Bunny and his wife we got to know them all, Eric Walker and his wife Dorothy he was the tail gunner Eric unfortunately they died you see there is only Jamie and myself left now of the crew, er Norman Turner he was the pilot that we had the replacement pilot I think he was from Macclesfield his er his widow Dorothy she still corresponds Christmas time, and er Jim Chapman’s wife she’s still alive she keeps in touch, Bunny’s wife unfortunately is ill she’s in a care home now isn’t she yes, but we always stuck together for years you know year after year we were meeting up together the complete crew.
CB: And er Norman Turner was there until the end of the tour?
RF: Yes.
CB: Which you didn’t finish because of your problem with your ear, what happened to James Graham?
RF: He had to come off operational flying we lost touch with him then because he must have gone to OTU’s I know he was from er Girvan in Ayrshire originally that’s where he was born but I think he moved down to um Surrey Leatherhead lost touch with him but he’s died now.
CB: But he had to give up because of a medical problem?
RF: Yes um he he didn’t perforate his eardrum but he had loss of hearing it must have been the noise of the the plane of the engines.
CB: Well it’s fairly regular.
RF: Affected him.
CB: Now one of the things it’s difficult for people to grasp really is the situation where you’re the bomb aimer you are lying down looking forwards and vertically into the inferno what’s it like doing that?
RF: I didn’t mind it at all you know it was something er I can’t say I enjoyed it but I was glad to be in that position rather than the navigator, the navigator was tucked away in a corner like the wireless operator they were tucked away in the corner they couldn’t see out, I could see out the gunners the mid upper gunner and the rear gunner they could see out like I could and the pilot and the flight engineer but the navigator was tucked away in the corner you see and the wireless operator inside the plane, some of the er people I trained with in South Africa kept in touch I don’t know how they managed to find me one of them was from Kingston upon Thames he joined the Police Force after the war but unfortunately I never had a chance to meet him and he’s died, the other one the daughter put a letter in the Squadron Association Newsletter asking for information about her father and I saw the letter after I’d joined the squadron I was getting the magazine every so often, and I saw the letter and I correspond corresponded with her then and told her that I was training with her father out in South Africa and he came to the squadron as well but he was er a flying officer so we never sort of kept together in the squadron he was in the officers mess I was in the sergeants mess, but er we trained together but I had photographs I sent to her and she was grateful because she hadn’t been told anything about her father he’d been killed on an operational flight and her mother remarried and never talked about her father she was born a couple of months after her father was killed, so er she was very grateful that I’d given her some information about her father and sent photographs and things she goes up to the reunion every year and we have a chat up there that’s er.
BF: Pat.
RF: Pat.
CB: One of the aspects of this project that’s interesting is how many veterans like you have been unable, my father was one of them, unable to communicate with their family what they did in the war why do you think that was?
RF: Yes they didn’t like talking about it, our squadron um Wing Commander er he was killed unfortunately on the same night at Pat’s father but he was our Wing Commander and er his daughter she also managed to contact me and I gave her the information um she now lives in Pangbourne and she was er what was her name Jallet isn’t it?
BF: Yes Jallet.
RF: Susan Jallet and David Jallet they were doing the er doing the catering and everything for the reunion until their health failed.
CB: Right I’m just looking to see who they I haven’t got it down. Right so that’s really helpful thank you very much indeed er now Vic is there anything that comes to your mind that we?
RF: Did you want to pay a visit?
CB: I do in a minute yes. Do you want to stop now do you want to stop?
RF: No.
VT: Just a couple of things.
CB: This is Vic Truesdale now with a question.
VT: And will you put it to Reg ‘cos I think he’ll.
CB: Yeah to Reg okay.
VT: Er you didn’t it would be interesting to know how he chose the RAF and he told us about um where was it in London in the?
CB: St. John’s Wood
VT: St. John’s Wood but we didn’t know I think how he chose that.
CB: So the question is um you said that you joined the RAF at St. John’s Wood but why was it that you joined the RAF after the experience with the Navy and the Fleet Air Arm what made you decide to join the RAF.
RF: I can’t think I I just changed my mind that’s all [laughs] yes.
CB: But it was it because why didn’t you go to the army why didn’t you choose the army?
RF: I wanted to learn to fly, I wanted to be a pilot but er there we are you can’t get all your wishes, but er my first er target was the Fleet Air Arm for some reason it may be because my brother was in the Merchant Navy I don’t know.
CB: So when you did the original assessment then people tended to get categorised in the PNB pilot navigator bomber grouping did they suggest at any stage you should start pilot training or was it always directly to do with observer?
RF: I think we had tests in Oxford at the time and er it was er eyesight, colour vision and my eyesight was 20/20, my colour vision was perfect, so maybe that’s the reason they wanted me to be an observer.
CB: But you were happy with the decision?
RF: Yes yes I enjoyed it training out in South Africa.
CB: If you had had the option of becoming a navigator instead of a bomb aimer would you have preferred that?
RF: [sighs] I wouldn’t mind either really I would have preferred being a navigator because I liked er doing the maps I liked studying the stars and the cloud cover and things like that I used to enjoy that type of training when I was er I’m still a weather forecaster aren’t I [laughs].
BF: Yes.
RF: I forecast the rain today.
CB: As a result of your training that’s as a result of your initial training you learned about the weather?
RF: Yes.
CB: As part of your training.
RF: And I always liked maths when I was at school that was my favourite subject so looking at maps and er working out routes and mileage and things like that was far better for me than doing the bomb aimers training but I didn’t mind.
CB: Now then after a while the aircraft had H2S radar to what extent did you get linked in with that?
RF: It didn’t affect me at all but I it did the navigator but I was fortunate as I told you as I finished up in the same crew as my best friend as navigator and bomber aimer couldn’t be better.
CB: A final question to do with promotion, so you came off operations as a flight sergeant when did you get promoted to warrant officer?
RF: I can’t remember.
CB: What were you doing at the time?
RF: It may have been after I er did the the er bombing instructors course could have been I think it was in Doncaster I did the course.
CB: Yes okay. I think that covers most of the items thank you we’ll pause there. Supplementary question here from Vic which is you had to go to South Africa on the ship which became detached what was it like first of all being on the ship on its own and then back in a convoy what did you do?
RF: Well I remember crossing the Equator we had to go through a certain ceremony what did they call it?
VT: Neptune.
CB: Neptune.
RF: Yes I remember going through that particular phase before we got to Freetown and when we got to Freetown as I said we were there I think for three or four days waiting for another convoy we used to enjoy it because the natives used to swim into the harbour come up to the boat and ask for Glasgow tanners and we used to throw coins into the water for them and they used to dive in and pick them up they were always coming up and shouting “Glasgow tanners, Glasgow tanners” because it was the only English words they knew I think.
CB: Yes yes, what was the ceremony at the Equator what was the ceremony what did that entail?
RF: Well a special ceremony when you cross the Equator I can’t think of the name.
CB: Yes but what did you actually do you had to step across a line on the deck did you?
RF: Yeah or something or you went in the water or something.
CB: So then you were underway on the ship what were you doing all day on the ships?
RF: Well we were told to er man the guns we had a certain shift to do you know.
CB: Which type of gun is that?
RF: On the on the Merchant on the on the er passenger boat I can’t remember we weren’t given any training.
CB: They were big guns not machine guns?
RF: Yes they were big guns and we were told to go on a shift perhaps five hours or seven hours I can’t remember but we never had to use them.
CB: So the guns are in a turret are they? Were they open or were they in a turret?
RF: In a turret but I could stand inside you know I remember looking out and seeing the flying fish out on the ocean there.
CB: And which shift did you prefer bearing in mind this was a hot area?
RF: Which?
CB: Because of the heat which shift did you want to choose so you had to go on the guns and it was hot?
RF: I didn’t mind I didn’t mind.
CB: No you didn’t no.
RF: I think the name of the ship that we went in was Scythia [spells it out] Scythia [spells it out] and I think the other boat that we came back on was Empress of Russia.
CB: And how long did it take for the voyage?
RF: I can’t think it took three weeks to get to Freetown I know that and then it er must have been from Freetown we left in January must have been about six weeks down to Durban, we spent quite a long time in Cape Town after we’d completed our training waiting to come back and I managed to er get up to the top of Table Mountain I didn’t climb up I just used the cable car.
CB: Oh right. What planes were you flying in training what aircraft?
RF: Er Avro Ansoms and the Oxford.
CB: Which one was the gunnery which one for gunnery?
RF: I’m not sure we used both of them, I was very fortunate actually when I was training because er there was a person on our course by the name of Fraser and every day they put a notice up on the noticeboard saying what flight you were in for training and Fraser was always shown before Freeth this particular day Freeth was put before Fraser and his plane crashed and he was killed, I went to his funeral I remember that I was one of the pallbearers but er you know it’s all fate isn’t it.
CB: At the time though how did you feel about that?
RF: I didn’t think of it at the time you know I was just sorry for him but I it struck me afterwards you know why was it always Fraser and Freeth you know on the noticeboard it gave you details of the flight for the day and you’d look at the noticeboard and you’d see which plane you were going to er join and which target whether it was bombing or navigation and Fraser was always there before Freeth but this day it was Freeth before Fraser.
CB: You mentioned flying in the Manchester earlier did you go on any operations in that or was that only?
RF: That’s just training.
CB: What was that like for flying?
RF: It was a bit er bumpy you know it wasn’t very good compared to the I preferred the Wellington and er when I was taken off operations I remember flying them in a Martinet I don’t know what I was doing in the Martinet that was in OTU and er I went back in the Lancaster the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight I was invited to fly in that that was in September Nineteen Ninety Nine and um went up to Coningsby to join it and er we did a fly pass at Cleethorpes they were unveiling a memorial there to boar fighters and we did a fly pass again at Northcotes airfield in Yorkshire and then we went up to Leaming in Yorkshire North Yorkshire I was up for nearly two hours I went down to the bomb aimers position at my age.
CB: Fantastic.
RF: Nineteen Ninety Nine how old was I then seventy eight was it? Seventy eight I managed to get down into the bomb aimers position I had to be helped to get over the main spar I couldn’t climb over them.
CB: But a great experience.
RF: Yes wonderful.
CB: Right I think we’ve done really well thank you Reg. Now we are talking about one of the squadron commanders Wing Commander Penman.
RF: Wing Commander Penman.
CB: And what did he do?
RF: He was 61 Squadron Commanding Officer and for one particular reason I don’t know he wanted to go on a flight and he selected his crew, he took the er head of the navigation team, the head of the er bomb aiming team, the wireless operator, he selected his own crew took one of our crew members I can’t think of his name now and er unfortunately they were killed.
CB: All of them were they all killed or just him were they all killed or just him?
RF: They were all killed and they are buried in Germany his daughter was born a couple of months after his death and she now lives in Pangbourne Susan Jallet and she comes up to er the reunion regularly.
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 Reg Freeth
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
AFreethR160531
Conforms To
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Pending review
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Rights
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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.
Description
An account of the resource
Reg Freeth grew up in Wales and worked for the Civil Service in the Labour Exchange before he volunteered for the Royal Air Force. He trained as an observer in South Africa and flew operations served as a bomb aimer with 61 Squadron from RAF Syerston. He later became a bombing instructor, then an administrative officer. After the war he returned to work for the Civil Service.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Chris Brockbank
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-05-31
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Jackie Simpson
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
01:23:50 audio recording
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Sound
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
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
South Africa
England--Cumbria
England--Nottinghamshire
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941
1942
1943
61 Squadron
aircrew
Anson
bale out
bomb aimer
bombing
Initial Training Wing
lack of moral fibre
Lancaster
Manchester
Martinet
observer
Oxford
RAF Bruntingthorpe
RAF Millom
RAF Syerston
RAF Torquay
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/407/6865/LAnsellHT1893553v1.1.pdf
edfc366bd5e7a30081d45f021fab8420
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
Ansell, Henry
Henry Ansell
H T Ansell
Description
An account of the resource
28 items. The collection concerns Sergeant Henry Thomas Ansell, DFM (b. 1925, 1893553 Royal Air Force) and contains his logbook, his release book, a school report, two German language documents and several photographs, his medals and other items. Henry Ansell served as a flight engineer with 61 Squadron and 83 Squadron Pathfinders.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Vicki Ansell and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-07-30
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Ansell, HT
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
Harry Thomas Ansell's flying log book for flight engineers
Description
An account of the resource
The log book covers the training and operational duties of Flight Engineer Sergeant Harry Thomas Ansell, from 14 April 1944 to 24 May 1945. He trained at RAF Torquay, RAF St Athan, RAF Stockport and was stationed at RAF Wigsley, RAF Syerston, RAF Skellingthorpe and RAF Coningsby. Aircraft flown in were Stirling and Lancaster. He flew 34 operations with 61 Squadron, 15 daylight and 19 night, and 18 night operations with 83 Squadron. Targets in Belgium, France, Germany and Norway were Limoges, Prouville, Vitry, Doullens, Chalindrey, Villeneuve-St-Georges, Caen, Revigny, Courtrai, Kiel, Donges, Saint-Cyr, Lyons, Stuttgart, Cahienes, Joigny-Laroche, Pas de Calais, Bois de Cassan, Saint-Leu-d'Esserent, Secqueville, Châtellerault, Bordeaux, Rüsselsheim, Königsberg, Rollencourt, Brest, Le Havre, Darmstadt, Boulogne, Bremerhaven, Rheydt, Munich, Heilbronn, Glessen, Politz, Merseberg, Brux, Karlsruhe, Ladbergen, Dresden, Rositz, Gravenhorst, Bohlen, Horten Fiord, Molbis and Lutskendorf. His pilot on operations was Flight Lieutenant Inness.
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Belgium
France
Germany
Norway
Great Britain
England--Buckinghamshire
England--Cambridgeshire
England--Devon
England--Greater Manchester
England--Lancashire
England--Lincolnshire
England--Nottinghamshire
England--Yorkshire
Wales--Vale of Glamorgan
Atlantic Ocean--English Channel
Atlantic Ocean--Bay of Biscay
Atlantic Ocean--North Sea
Atlantic Ocean--Baltic Sea
Belgium--Kortrijk
France--Boulogne-sur-Mer
France--Brest
France--Caen
France--Calais
France--Chalindrey
France--Châtellerault
France--Creil
France--Doullens
France--Joigny
France--Le Havre
France--Limoges
France--L'Isle-Adam
France--Paris
France--Saint-Nazaire
Germany--Bremerhaven
Germany--Darmstadt
Germany--Dresden
Germany--Heilbronn
Germany--Hörstel
Germany--Karlsruhe
Germany--Kiel
Germany--Merseburg
Germany--Munich
Germany--Rheydt
Germany--Rüsselsheim
Germany--Stuttgart
Germany--Wettin
Norway--Horten
Russia (Federation)--Kaliningrad (Kaliningradskai︠a︡ oblastʹ)
Germany--Böhlen
France--Lyon
Russia (Federation)
France--Bordeaux (Nouvelle-Aquitaine)
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.
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
One booklet
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Log book and record book
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
LAnsellHT1893553v1
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
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1944
1945
1944-06-19
1944-06-20
1944-06-23
1944-06-24
1944-06-25
1944-06-27
1944-06-28
1944-06-29
1944-07-12
1944-07-13
1944-07-14
1944-07-15
1944-07-18
1944-07-19
1944-07-20
1944-07-21
1944-07-23
1944-07-24
1944-07-25
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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
1944
1945
1654 HCU
61 Squadron
83 Squadron
aircrew
Bennett, Donald Clifford Tyndall (1910-1986)
bombing
bombing of Dresden (13 - 15 February 1945)
bombing of the Pas de Calais V-1 sites (24/25 June 1944)
Distinguished Flying Medal
flight engineer
George VI, King of Great Britain (1895-1952)
Heavy Conversion Unit
Initial Training Wing
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Normandy campaign (6 June – 21 August 1944)
Pathfinders
RAF Coningsby
RAF Skellingthorpe
RAF St Athan
RAF Stockport
RAF Syerston
RAF Torquay
RAF Wigsley
Stirling
tactical support for Normandy troops
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/247/7274/EDorricottLWVarious41-42.2.pdf
d201580e6e4068cc2fc47fb041c3d9d0
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
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Dorricott, Leonard William
Leonard Dorricott
Len Dorricott
L W Dorricott
Description
An account of the resource
72 items. An oral history interview with Rosemary Dorricott about her husband Flying Officer Leonard William Dorricott DFM (1923-2014, 1230753, 1230708 Royal Air Force). Leonard Dorricott was a navigator with 460 and 576 Squadrons. He flew 34 operations including Operation Manna, Dodge and Exodus. He was one of the crew who flew in Lancaster AR-G -George, now preserved in the Australian War Memorial. He was a keen amateur photographer and the collection contains his photographs, logbook and papers. It also contains A Dorricott’s First World War Diary, and photographs of Leonard Dorricott’s log book being reunited with the Lancaster at the Australian War Memorial.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Rosemary Dorricott and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
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2015-10-07
2015-11-05
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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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
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Dorricott, LW
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Permission granted for commercial projects
Transcribed document
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Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
Regents Park. Page 1
Torquay Page 12.
Eastbourne. Page 59.
Canada Page 70
Miami U.S.A. Page 74
[Page break]
LEAVES
Nov 14th to Nov 21st 1941
from Torquay
Feb 28th to March 2nd 1942
from Eastbourne
March 8th to March 14th
from Eastbourne
March 18th to March 21st
from Eastbourne.
[Page break]
1
Sept: 1, 1941.
1230753 A.C2 Dorricott,
No1 ACRC 16/10 Flight,
Stockleigh Hall,
Abbey Lodge, Park Rd
London.
Dear Ma, Pa, and Nibs,
I arrived at Lord’s at 12.45, had to fill up at least half a day on forms, and then watched a cricket match, Then we were marched up to our billets. Doesn’t it sound posh?, but its only a block of modern flats. We had dinner at 3 o’clock – the cabbage was not too good, but we enjoyed the pud (plenty of sugar). We can go out within a 5 mile radius from 6 – 10-30 pm any night, but about once a fortnight, two of us have to look after the billet. I forgot to say we had dinner in a cafe in Regents Park which is just outside. We shall be issued with uniforms tomorrow, should have been today, only there were too many of us. Everyone is [sic] our flight is going to be an Observer. They re not a bad lot of chaps, and weve got a [inserted] negro [/inserted] with us. He talks good English, & has come
[Page break]
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from Canada. We shall probably be here from 2 weeks to a month.
Cheerioh for now,
Len.
Sept 4th.
Dear Mum, Dad, & Nibs,
I have not put the address this time, as it takes up too much room. I have just finished helping scrub the floor of our room, quite a mucky business. We had our uniform issued to us on Tuesday, but the tailor has had to alter our coats, etc, so we shall not wear them till tomorrow. We had a night vision test today, we had to wear very dark glasses, for 1/2 an hour, without taking them off and then went into a blacked-out room for a 1/4 hour, and then had to describe dimly illuminated objects on a screen in front of us, hardly anyone could name them. Soon we shall have umpteen innoculations [sic] and vaccinations, and am I
[Page break]
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delighted? We have had to get tons of brushes, marking ink, and cleaning tackle today, and all the fellows are busy cleaning their buttons and marking their kit. Two kitbags full, 3 shirts 5 pairs socks, (very hairy and all standard size) 2 vests, 2 pants, 2 towels and yards of other stuff. I don’t know what we’re gonna do about laundry. Most of the other chaps send theirs home, as you don’t get your own back, if you send them to the laundry. The Church Army van comes round at 7.30 pm to sell cakes and tea, our last meal is 5.15 pm. That cake came in very handy for us. Blow this writing pad its just like blotting paper. I shall be sending a case with my clothes in, as soon as I get my uniform,
Cheerioh for now
Len.
8.9.41
Stockleigh Hall.
Dear Mum, Dad and Herbs,
Im still having a pretty good time here. Yesterday we attended a
[Page break]
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Church Parade at Mount Zion Presbyterian Church, St Johns Wood, it was quite a nice service, started at 9.25 A.M. Later in the morning and in the afternoon I went with Gilbert Fairhead, one of the lads in my room, to the Zoo, we watched the keepers feed the lions, penguins, sealions etc, and had quite a good time, it is open free to Service men on Sundays. In the evening both of us went to the Allied Services Club in Marylebone Rd, and read and played cards, till 8.30. P.M. We’ve had a very slack day today, the only thing we did wad attend a lecture for 1/2 an hour this morning. Tomorrow morning we have two innoculations, one for typhoid, and the other for tetanus, one vaccination, and a blood group test. The M.O said we would not feel the effects till 10 days later. We don’t get paid till next Friday, single blokes get 30/- a fortnight, and married ones only 20/. By the way, that is not Acne in my address, but A. C. R. C (Air Crew Receiving Centre), ever been had I. Ive just had a letter from Grandma Dorricott
[Page break]
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I have not got Grandma Comptons address, so I could write them. All of us are sending our “civvies” home tomorrow, but I think I will keep my case as it is handy to keep my cleaning tackle, pygamas [sic], and writing pad in, its such a mess having to hunt in a kit bag every time you want a thing. Several of the chaps in our Flight live in, or have relations near London, so they went home, we are free after Church Parade, so Gilbert and I were about the only two left. I don’t think I told you, but next door we have half a dozen Ex-Met. Policemen, and theyre the best pals you could have. The Corporals in charge of us are very decent, we are supposed to do so many hours drill, but so far we have not done one hour. They tell us to go to our rooms, and do what we like, as long as we co keep [sic] from the windows, in case the Squadron leader sees us. We are having our photos taken in a group, I’ve ordered one and will send it when I get it. There are about 5,000 cadet pilots, and observers here now, and another 1,000 are coming today, we in uniform
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feel like veterans when we see them in civvi [rest of word missing] We might be posted to I.T.W. [Initial Training Wing] this week, but I doubt it, some chaps have been here 8 weeks. Tell ‘Gay Gay, that the A. T. [missing word] kids guard some of the blocks of flats on Sundays. There are about 6 great blocks of flats along Prince Albert Rd, and all are occupied by the Air Force, I bet Gay-Gay wishes he was here. Well I must toodle on now.
Cheerioh,
Len
Tuesday,
I did not have time to post my letter, so I m adding some more to it. About 11 AM I had to go to the Dentist, all he did was fill one tooth, the other two he will probably do tomorrow, up to now I have had no toothache but when he got the drill on, he nearly murdered me. Immediately after I went for
Inoc, etc. it made about 5 fellows faint. There was one right behind me, and I had to hold him up because he was swaying. The whole thing was
[Page break]
7
well organised, we had to walk round several tables, while the doctors jabbed us. I think Dr Brynne Quinne must be here because there was a notice on one of the doors signed, B Quinne H.P. We shall have two more Inocs in 6 weeks time. We get one weeks leave every 3 months while training, but when we get on operational duties we get much more. Also there are 48 hours a month, but it is usually kept till your weeks leave. We’ve got nothing to do all day now but read or sleep, I feel as fit as a fiddle, but two of the policemen have taken it badly, and are in bed sweating it off.
Thursday.
I didn’t half have a rotten time of it yesterday. I kept going hot and cold, and felt so bad, I didn’t have tea, but went to bed at 5.30 pm & slept till 6 AM next morning. I don’t feel too grand today, so am staying in tonight. We got paid today30/-, we might get posted to I.T.W. this weekend, if not we shall go to posting wing here. I’m going to bed now, so Cheerioh, Love, Len.
[Page break]
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P.s. Don’t write to this address again, as I might be moved, I’ll send the next address
Len
“P” Squadron.
Avenue Close, Avenue Rd
London N.W. 8
15.9.41
Dear Mum, Pop, Gay-Gay, Janet and the little Shrimp,
Ow be thee a-g-ettin on, Oi be foine
We have been moved to Posting Wing, and are in another block of flats, about 50 yards from the others. Its like moving from a Mansion to a Corporation house. We are crowded, there are two other chaps in my room, and yesterday afternoon we had to mess about with the wash basin in our room, as it was stopped up. Many Happy Returns of the Day Mum, Ive just remembered its your birthday tomorrow. On Friday night Gilbert and I went to the “State” Cinema, Kilburn, it is at least twice as large as any Cinema I’ve been in. We saw “Great American Braodcast” a Dr Kildare picture, second portion of that captured Nazi terror film, also a film of Air Sea Rescue. We had had a lecture on this
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subject a few days previous, at the Odeon Cinema, by a Wing Commander. On Saturday night, Gilbert, Allen and I went rowing on the Lake in Regents Park, and had a fine time On Sunday, Gilbert and I went to the Zoo again, while Allen went to his relations at Luton. This morning we’ve had a medical lecture at the Odeon, and this afternoon a kit inspection, its bedtime now so I ll close with Love
Cheerioh,
Len.
Avenue Close
Friday
Dear Mum Pop & Niblets
Ta, muchly for the parcel, which I received tonight, the other letter which which [sic] you sent previously with the 5/- has not reached me yet. Thanks so much for the cake, I thought your birthday was the 16th, but we’ll celebrate tomorrow. We leave for Torquay sometime after breakfast, it’s a bit farther from home, but it’ll be a nicer place than London. I’ll be glad to leave here,
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as you can’t go anywhere without spending. From 9. AM Thursday till 3 P.M. this afternoon, we did 30 hours guard, 2 hours on and 4 off, We have to patrol up and down the main Rd, in real “sentry go” manner, so we can’t do much slacking. It wasn’t so bad at night, because providing no-one was coming, you could sit down on a low wall outside the flats. I don’t know our exact address yet, but will write as soon as I get to know it. We’re darn lucky to leave here so soon, usually you have to wait 3-6 weeks. There are 1,700 civvies coming here on Monday, so they have had to clear us all out. On Tuesday night 3 of us went to the Rudolf Steiner Hall, run by the Church Army, for a quiet evening. Then on Wednesday we went to the Odeon to see Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour in “Caught in the Draft” you ought to see it if it comes to W. hampton. Most days this week we have had P.T, and o are the backs of my legs aching! I have not seen anyone from W. hampton here yet. It seems as if I have known the chaps here ages
[Page break]
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We’re C.B. tonight, normally since we were the guard yesterday, we should have had all today off, from 9. AM., so you see it’s a bit of bad luck for us. We have an excellent way of pressing trousers, we damp the creases, and put our ‘biscuits on top of them, and sleep on them, and hey presto! you have a knife edge crease that will last. We’ve got a small Naafi here, buy [sic] you can only buy cleaning stuff, cigs and slab cake. I’m sending a Zoo book for Sylvie, those news-paper cutting [sic]were interesting, send me as many as you like, we only get the London papers here. Most of the shops in London close at 6 pm, except cafes, so we can’t do any shopping. At Avenue Close weve been having brekker at 6.15 AM. , then a break at 10.30 AM. So we could go to a Cafe for something to eat, you begin to get hungry then. The quality of the food is not bad, but the cooking is. Today, for instance, 3 out of 4 of my spuds were bad. They’ve started dishing out suppers now, you get a helping twice what you get for dinner, it’s the left-overs from dinner
[Page break]
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warmed up, sometimes its not too bad, but its mostly the other way round. Anyway when we get to Torquay, the grub’ll probably be much better. Some chaps have come back from Torquay to here for eye training, and they say this is a lousy hole. It will be much stricter at I.T.W. but we’ll get used to it. I can’t understand why the post is held up, I have had your first letter and this parcel, however all the rest should be sent on to us. Well I’m very tired now, and am gonna go to bye byes,
Cheerioh,
Len
Sept 23rd 1941
1230753 A.C 2. DORRICOTT
“A” Flight
No 4 Squadron
Beacon House
No 3 I.T.W.
Torquay,
Dear Mum, Dad, Gay-Gay Janet & Baby Sylvie,
As you see I’ve changes my address again, you could not wish for a nicer place than Torquay. All around the
[Page break]
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bay and harbour are hills, with hotels and boarding houses upon them, and trees and foliage in between. We are in a boarding house 15 yards from the harbour, its only a third rate place but we have beds, and washbasins in each rooms, and a tall locker each, like a wardrobe We have meals in a hotel next door, in a room which used to be a Dance floor. The food is cooked ten times better than at Regents Park, the spuds are either cooked in their jackets or else properly peeled and mashed. When we came yesterday, we had, half a steak & kidney pud, two big roast spuds, some carrots and a saucerful of beetroot, and a big plate of rice pud. This morning we had Shredded Wheat, sugar & milk, pork sausages, fried tomatoes & gravy, and a pint of coffee. Dinner today was a large slice of beef steak, roast spuds, & cabbage, and after prunes and custard, hows that for a start. It took us 5 hours yesterday to get here, its about 2.20 miles from London. Its quite warm today, I wish you could all be here
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to enjoy I shall get through my course in 6 or 7 weeks, if I work hard, and then I shall have a weeks leave. The officers and N.C.Os say that the civilian volunteers mostly go abroad if they pass, while ground staff airmen, who have transferred to Air Crew, or Army transfers have to stay in England. Its going to be jolly hard work, plenty of discipline, but we need that! There’s plenty of drill, P.T, games swimming etc. We pay 2/- for the whole time we are here and can go to the Baths free, use the Recreation room, listen to the Wireless, have some of our clothes washed, and have several odd jobs like that done. The Officers and N.C.Os are very decent chaps, so we should get on O.K, I’m on fire picket tomorrow, I think I stick around, and don’t do anything till the sirens go. We had the “Sirens” last night, but the “All Clear” went into 1/2 an hour [sic] In receiving wing at Stockleigh there were 4 chaps besides me in my room, at Avenue Close, I was in a room with the two oldest, and here I am in a room with the two
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younger chaps. Theres Gilbert the youngest in the Flight (ten days younger than I), and Allen who’s nineteen. Allen is Methodist, so we had to go to the Congregational along with the other Denominations, we are going again tonight. Gilbert is Church of England, so he is going for a walk instead. That cake’s lovely, the five of us have shares in it. We don’t get suppers here, so as I said before it comes in handy. We have to wear white ceremonial belts here, and have to blanco them every day. We have Morse and signals here, navigation, maths, armaments, and Aircraft identification every day. We have to know 90 different planes but the navigation is by far the hardest subject in the whole course, or so the Officers say. We’ve got to learn to swim, and will not be able to play football till we can swim 2 lengths, I don’t mind a bit. We’re not having much time for going out, what with homework etc, its up to ourselves now. We wake at 6. AM, brekkies at 7 AM. – 7.30, lessons start at 9, half hour break about 10, then on
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till 1 o’clock. From 1 till 2 pm. Is dinner, then work till 6 pm, then tea, and we are free till 10 pm, 11 pm Saturdays. We can have a late pass till midnight once a week if we want it. Couldst thou send me one or two of they blue hankies, the white ones show the dirt so easily. I’ve got quite a large sore over my vaccination mark. I’ve got a cold: I’ve got a headache! And my “stitch” has bleeded this afternoon, all the effects of the vaccinations. Even with the hard work, I think I shall enjoy myself here. Lets know all the noos as soon as possible. Tell bruvver Gay-Gay that if he goes in the R.A.F. to go as Pilot, its ten times easier than Observer.
Cheerioh,
Len.
Beacon House,
Dear Mum, Dad & Infants,
Ow be things agoin on at No 10? I’ve just had a p c. from Shrewbury [sic] sent on from London, but that lost letter
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has not turned up. That [underlined] was [/underlined] a nice cake we all enjoyed it & no one refused a slice. Couldn’t send me some peanuts?, if you could get them, we can’t get sweets or chocs here, although we can get cakes at the Naafi. I’ve had some sweet cider, guess the price! 5d a pint. Tell Gay-Gay, if he wants a good Aircraft Identification Book to get Aircraft Recognition, by R. A. Saville-Sneath, it’s a Penguin Special, and only 6d. You can tell how good it is, one morning we were having A./C Recog, when the Officer recommended this book, and asked who wanted it, he counted how many, and then walked to the bookstall at the station, and nearly bought the shop out. He said they were the best 6d worth you could get. Monday morning, we had clay pidgeon [sic] shooting with 12 bore shot guns, Clay discs were skimmed in the Air & we had to hit them, we had 9 shots, standing in three different positions, and I hit 4, the highest was 5, by a copper. We can mostly
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get a second helping of pud but one day I got 3. I already had had two when the cook asked who wanted any more? No one answered as they had had enough, but he caught my eye! And beckoned, and he gave me twice as much as the other helpings. We’ve all had interviews with the C.O, and he wanted to know if we had any objection to going abroad after I.T.W. He said I was very good at Maths & to keep it up. We can sent [sic] our stuff to the laundry here, it should be Ok. We went swimming in the Salt Water Baths, I swam 3 separate widths, more than I’ve ever done before. Were supposed to swim 2 lengths before we leave here. Gilbert’s jolly hard up, he’s only got 7 1/2 d to last him till a week tomorrow. I was on Fire Piquet [sic] Monday night, we are only supposed to stay awake if the sirens go. They went on Sunday and Tuesday, but not on Monday, so I was Ok. My legs are pretty tired today, weve had drill, P.T, Swimming, walked up nearly all the hills in Torquay, besides tramping up and
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down 6 flights of stairs, I’m on the [letter deleted] top story. Lets know all the news as soon as possible
Give my love to thyself, Pop, Gay-Gay, Evelyn Jeanne Althea and Sylvia June
Toodle-pip,
Len xxxxx
Monday Morning,
I have not had time to post this letter yet, but will do so tonight, thanks ever so for your registered parcel, the ten shilling has come in very handy, also thanks for the suck, I can easily manage on 15/- a week, but its unexpectedly having to go another week that’s done it. Gilbert isn’t so well off, hes had to borrow 10/- from his Pop, he’s got no mother, its my lucky day today. I’ve had a parcel from Ede at Shrewsbury 7 blocks of chocs & 2/-, I think its because I went to Chapel twice yesterday. I don’t think I told you, but we heard they gave free teas at the Airmen’s Rest on Sundays, so three of us went. Half way through a bloke got up and said, “We will now sing
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a hymn. It proved that they have a Salvation Army meeting after tea. We waited till 1/2 way through, about 5 to 6 o’clock & then bunked, Allen & I went to the Congregational & Gilbert went to Toc H. Today we went into the Gas Chamber, they use C.A.P. Tear Gas. My nose tickled a bit, but my eyes did not water at all. In Aunty Ede’s letter, she says that although Uncle Ern has not named the day, the wedding will probably come off in the near future. They have asked Ede to be bridesmaid, but she says she does not know where to get the coupons from. It’ll probably be a very quiet affair, what with food and clothes rationing. Well thanks again for your parcel, but don’t rob yourself of sweets, Give my love to everyone
Ta Ta.
Len xxxxx
I’m sending on this photograph, John Hart gentleman farmer, David Anderson, clerk to the Westminster Bank London, Gilbert Fairhead Map maker Chelmsford, and Allen [indecipherable word]
[Photo missing]
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wages clerk, Loughborough
Len
Torquay,
Dear Mum Pop, & Erbs,
As you say I ain’t arf ‘aving a birthday, I got your cake & nuts yesterday, and another letter today. That cake is even better than the last one, if you’d taste them before hand, it would perhaps teach you to keep one for yourself once in a while. When I ask Gilbert or Allen to have a lump they never refuse. Last night the mice nibbled through the Cardboard and silver-paper to get at it, I’m putting it on the top of my locker tonight. Those nuts came in very handy, I was chewing them all through Signals class this morning. I’ll probably be sending another large photo of “A” Flight soon, we had our photos taken on Monday. Tell Gilly Hart that in 6 weeks time, I’ll probably be 4.A.C. with rise in way, if I pass my exams. Then I’ll most likely get two weeks Embarkation leave, before we go abroad. I don’t think we have had any baked beans here yet. You can’t
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grumble at the grub here. One day we had for breakfast fried egg on toast, porridge, bread and butter and jam. The best of it is at dinner, you can mostly get a second helping of fruit or dinner. Tell Padden of the Home Guard, that if he wants to go as Pilot or Observer to swot up Arithmetic, elementary Algebra, Morse (we have to pass out at 6 words a minute), and if possible try and learn to recognise British & German Aircraft, also Antigas Precautions. Its all pretty easy, the Arith & Algebra we did in first and second year at school. We have Maths and Morse every day, and at the end of last week 90% of us could send and receive at 4 words per minute. We had our laundry back yesterday, What a sight! the sleeves of my shirt have shrunk at least two inches, and the starched collars are only just big enough, also half the buttons are off. This afternoon I went to the Baths & swam 2 lengths and several widths They re salt water baths, shallow end 4’10” deep end 7’6”, I think I shall go in the sea next time. We got paid today, I got 34/- but
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there’s still a weeks money to come. We had a lovely tea today, Cheese & potato mash on toast, cake trifle, bread & butter & jam and currant cake & tea, hows that? And its only supposed to cost 1/ 5 1/2 a day to feed an airman. We had our Anti gas Exam yesterday afternoon, 6 questions on Respiration, Effects of gasses & First Aid, decontamination, Gas Defence Scheme & Gas detection. The official questions had not come, so the Gas N.C.Os had to set some. It’s the biggest twist out, they set easy questions that anyone could answer. Our Pilot Officers had to take the exam as well, so we didn’t find it so difficult. I’m writing letters nearly every night, but can only manage one at a time, as we get Arith Homework every night. I’m about the best in our Morse and Maths classes, There are two classes 24 in each.
Cheerioh for now
Love to one an orl
Len xxxxx
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Torquay
Dear Mum, Pop and the three babies,
Thanks very, very, very much for your parcel of sweets, You’ve no idea how pleased I was when I opened the parcel, I’ve been dying for something to chew for the las [sic] 3 or 4 weeks. You can get plenty of cakes at the Naafi, but nowt chewable, Thanks very much for the hanks, also thank Aunty Alice for the sardines and biscuits. I havnt eat [sic] the sardines yet, as I’ve got to get some bread from somewhere I’ll probably be able to slip a slice in my gas mask haversack when I’m up the canteen. I’ve still got two packets of sweets, after giving Allen & Gilbert some, oc [sic] I’ve kept myself well in hand, by not eating them all in a day Ive just had a letter from Loreen & Joyce so I will write them on Thursday when I get my pay. I’m sure weve got mice, because on Friday morning, I opened my locker & pulled the biscuits out. We had one each and then I noticed a little pile of what proved to be bits of paper. And then I found a little
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hole in the cardboard, and I remembered the biscuits had looked a bit crumbly, then one of my hankies had been bitten through in 4 places. When we were at Regents Park I thought it funny I hadn’t had a letter from you for nearly a fortnight. I’ve had a letter from Shrewsbury & one from Loreen redirected from there, but no sign of your two. I reckon there are about 800 Airmen in Torquay, pilots and observers. Weve got our Antigas Exam on Wednesday, and Maths Exams on Oct 8th. The maths Exam is like we did in IIs & IIIs at school, so I should walk the Exam. About laundry, we can send 1 shirt, 1 pair pants, 1 towel 1 vest, 1 pair socks & 3 hanks each week to the laundry, free of charge. Yes we do use sleeping suits, and if you can send another pair its O k by me, anytime will do, no hurry. Thanks muchly for the E & S cuttings, it seems ages since I was in W. hapmton. I’m writing to Grandma Compton & Mr Nicholls as soon as I can, thanks for the addresses. You want to know what woollies I will
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need, Well if were going to be here a couple of months, I won’t need as much, as if I was in Scotland. However, I think socks are the main thing, we get 5 pairs, but they’ve got to last as long as were in the Air Force. Thank Janet for her letter, tell her the innoculations [sic] were in my arm & two in my chest. You ought to see the scab on my vac, its bigger than a tanner. If Gay-Gay wants some girls tell him to come here, theres ‘undereds & fahzends of um. We had a mock gas raid yesterday afternoon. We were doing drill when the gas rattle sounded, we had to rush to shelter put gas masks cap covers & capes on & run back to our billets. Then there was a mock fire in one of the rooms, and we had to go into the street. I’m on the top floor of a four storeyed house, you can guess I puffed and panted. This morning we went to Congregational Chapel, then went & sat on seats on the Prom & swotted our Anti gas stuff this afternoon. By Jove, it wasn’t half hot, I’m quite sunburnt.
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This evening Allen & I went to Congregational, & they invited us to a Table Tennis Club, on Wednesday, I ve got exactly one bob to last me till Thursday, so I shant be able to get drunk this week. Ill write again as soon as I get time Love to everyone at No 10
Ta Ta,
Len xxxxx
PS Janet asked for a long epistle she’s got one
Torquay,
Dear Mum, Pop & Erbs,
Ta ever so for your parcel which I received today. We will be able to have supper of that cheese & biscuits I’ve been just as lucky this monday [sic] as last Monday, Ive had a parcel of choc & a few sweets from Brenda & a letter from Mr Nicholls.
On Saturday afternoon 6 of us went to the Baths, I didn’t do so good as last time, only single widths; we mostly have to go in in football shorts, as we have no trunks or costumes, sometimes we can borrow
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them from the Baths. On Saturday night Gilbert and I went to Toc H, and had a plate of chips sausage, fried bread and tea for 5d. Then we played Darts & table Tennis. If you want any buttons sewing on, or any clothes stitching, you can get it done while you wait at Toc. H. On Sunday morning we went to the Congregational for Church Parade. The following Sunday, however, the service will be held in Union St Methodist. After Church Gilbert and I had a boat out on the sea. There was quite a large swell, and the boat kept rocking up and down. We were out for an hour and I got three blisters on my hands from rowing. Then in the afternoon we went to the Baths, and I did 3 widths straight off, getting quite good ar’nt [sic] I? Gilbert managed 1/2 a width. After tea Allen and I went to Union St Methodist, it’s a lovely place, and so modern, much longer and wider than Bethel. Then we went to Toc. H. and met Gilbert there. We had to order our photos today, so I ordered a big one, and
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I will send it on as soon as I get it. Now that we’ve finished Anti-gas, we are starting on the Vickers Gas-operated Air-Machine gun. We’ve got to know how to take it to bits, & put it together again. We had a Morse and Maths test today. In the last Morse test, I was one of the three in our class who got it all correct. The former test was 4 words per minute, and the latter 4 1/2 words per minute. I think I’ve got everything right in the Maths test as well. We get our Maths Exam on Wednesday, & if we get less than 60% we fail on the whole issue, and have to go ground staff. I should get 100% if I go carefully, as it is very easy stuff, its gets [sic] Gilbert bottled though. Our Officer has been telling us that Torquay I.T.W. is the strictest in England, and that any one from here is supposed to be the goods. If we did so much saluting anywhere else as we do here, everyone would think us batty. However, I’m not browned off yet, and weve
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got the best to come. Air Commodore Critchley the Greyhound Racing and Boxing Promoter is over our Group, and his word’s law.
I think it must be the food, but I feel constipated, I have taken 3 Beecham Pills and a desertspoonful of Andrews liver salts, without effect yet. I had a letter from Auntie Ede, & she wanted to know if you had had those films developed. I weighed myself yesterday, and I was 11st 12lbs, and I’ve put on 3 to 4 lbs. The sun’s been brilliant today, it was as much as we could do to stagger up the hills to lessons. We have Morse at a Place called Rock End, & it’s a darn good name. You have to march 1/4 mile up two steep hills, and then along a rocky footpath, you don’t feel like lessons after that climb. Well I must buzz off and see what I can do.
Cheerioh
Len
Dear All,
I’m just adding a bit more
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to Mondays letter. It was boiling hot yesterday, and we had to march up to Rock End in our Gas-masks. This morning Commander Bullock of the American Navy inspected us drilling. It was quite a big event, they had the band out to serenade him. We had our Maths Exam this morning Its easy enough, and I think Ive got ‘em all right. Gilbert will just about go 60% just enough to pass.
Cheerioh Len,
I’m writing this lunch-time, so you’ll have to excuse the writing.
Torquay
Dear Mum, Dad & Erbs
I’m not sending this letter till tomorrow, as we get the results of our Maths Exams about 11 am. If we pass we should get our flyin [sic] kit sometime tomorrow. Yesterday we had a 6 w p.m. test in Morse with buzzer and I got everything right, I can do 12 words easily sending. Gilbert and I go to Toc H every night for supper. You can get
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sausage, bacon, baked beans, tomatos [sic], chips and fried bread and coffee for 11d, but we don’t usually have so much as that. We went swimming last Saturday afternoon, and I did four widths without touching side or bottom. So I should be able to do two lengths by the time I finish my course. I had to do a bit of sewing yesterday, we have to swing our arms to shoulder height when marching to attention and the seam of my jacket came undone under the armpits. Ask Pop if he’s ever made his boots shine with spit and polish, that’s how we do ours here, and I can almost see my face in mine. On Saturday morning I had a tooth [indecipherable word], and theres still one more to be done.
Monday
Thanks very much for the parcel of sweets. I should be home two weeks next Sunday, whether I pass out or not We had our Vickers gun Exam last Wednesday I thought I had made a mess of stripping the gun, and naming the parts, although I got the stoppages right, but I heard after
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wards that I had 84%. We’ve had our flying kit issued to us, it fills a kit-bag. If we go abroad, we shall have to give it up, but will have another issue on the other side. We have been learning the American Winchester rifle this morning, & will be [deleted] fl [/deleted] firing it next lesson We have not got to pass an Exam on this, so its nothing to worry about. I was on Fire Picquet last Tuesday, & on a guard last Friday, There are four of us on guard, and one has to act as Guard Commander, we had to toss for it, and I lost, so I had to have the job, and all the other chaps were over 25.
Last Thursday I was supposed to go to the Dentist at 12 noon, but the Dentist had too many there, I had to go back, the same thing happened this dinnertime, so I’m still waiting Tell Gay, we have a lot of A.T.C. Officers down here for training, you ought to see them doing drill, its better than going to the “flicks”.
Last Sunday Reg Shaw (one of the cops) and I were going for a row, but we could not get a boat, so we walked to Paignton
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and bussed back just in time for tea. Its getting colder down here, we get plenty of warm sun during the day, but its at night & early morning we feel the cold. We breakfast while the moons still out, and it isn’t very light when we have Inspection at 7.30 am. Some of the chaps are very tired, they go to sleep in Navigation and law lessons, and although the masters are in between. Pilot officers & Flight Lieutenant, they don’t mind, but tell the sleeper to wake up when they have anything important to say. How would you like to do P.T on a cold morning, with only shorts socks & slippers? Sometimes we have to lay flat on the dewy grass, to do some exercises. One P.T lesson last week it was raining, so we put shorts and vests on, then went for a cross country run, I enjoyed it more than P.T. Hows Gay getting on with his Morse and aircraft recognition? If he can’t read more than 6 words p.m, and doesn’t know more than 75% of the planes on the list I sent him, I shall want to know the reason why when I get home.
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Torquay is O.k., the only thing, they. don’t half sting you for food, I spend nearly all my money on coffee and cakes and supper at night. We get plenty of grub at the canteen, but we always seem to be hungry, I suppose it’s the hard work we do (Don’t laugh).
Well I think this is all the news for now, so Ill quit the cackle, love to all at No 10,
Toodle pip,
Len xxxxx
Tuesday Evening,
We don’t know for sure the Maths results even yet, but our officer says we’ve all passed. Monday morning we had a March past Air Commodore Somebody of the [indecipherable word] Air Force, we marched behind the band from Rock End, This afternoon we had to walk up to Daddy Hole plain behind Rock End in our Gas-masks, but when we got there, we lay on the grass for 1/2 an hour and eat black berries. I’ve had stomach ache all day today I think its something Ive eaten. I havent had a letter from anyone since your parcel last
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Monday. Im sending my mac and case home this week, it is only in the way here, we have lockers here, whereas in London we had nowt
Well, I must close now
Love to all
Cheerioh Len
Torquay
Nov 1st
Dear Mum Pop and Nibs,
Thanks so much for the oranges and sweets. They were the first oranges Allen & Gilbert had tasted this year. It’s bitter cold here now, except in the sun, anyway we did P.T in pullovers this morning, instead of stripping. I had a lovely day on Thursday. We should have had games in the afternoon, but I had to have a Medical Exam like the one at Cardington, then I had a tooth filled, and at 5.30 we all had two innoculations [sic] In the arm, it does not hurt as much as when we had it in the chest.
but my left arm is all swollen and red from shoulder to elbow. This morning we had a flying kit parade, and we had to put every
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thing on to see if there was anything that did not fit. It was lovely and warm in them.
Yesterday afternoon we had rifle practice, and had to fire rifles which were almost the same as the Home Guard 300’s. We had small targets at 25 yards and I got 25/25 for grouping, and 24/25 for hitting the centre, which wasn’t bad considering I had to aim 3” below the bull. We’ve had the photo’s dished out, so I shall bring mine when I come home on leave. Our officer says we will probably get only four days leave, which is not so good considering how far some of us have to travel. We take our navigation exam a week next Friday morning, and I believe we catch the train about 12 noon, as soon as we’ve finished the Exam. Our flight are on guard next week, but it’s a good job its not a week later when we take our Exams. You’ll have to excuse my writing, as I m writing this in my bedroom, and my fingers are nearly frozen,
Love to Pop and the nibs
Cheerioh
Len xxxxx
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Torquay
Dear Mum, Pop and Nibs,
How do you like my notepaper We had 6 sheets of paper and 3 envelopes given us [sic] from our Squadron Comforts Funds. That’s all we’ve received so far although we’ve paid a bob into it. I’ve had a rotten sore throat since Monday, it probably began on Sunday when I was walking with another cadet to Babbacombe because my nose started bleeding. I could hardly speak on Tuesday but I did not report sick, as I did not want to miss the party, so I went sick yesterday. All the M.O gives me is [indecipherable word] whatever that is, 3 times daily for 3 days, but I’ve bought a box of Iodised Throat Tablets. I’m writing this letter in Drill lessons, I asked Corporal if I could be excused P.T, and drill, and he said O.K. I should have been on guard on Tuesday, but its been changed to Sunday night. We had a lovely time on Tuesday night, the party took place in a Posh Hotel called the St George, Marychurch near Babbacombe. The C. O, Pilot Officer in
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charge of flight and Corporal Hayton were present, and I think they enjoyed themselves. It wasn’t a dinner, but a running buffet, but I think we all had plenty to eat. One of the cadets made up some verses about different members of the Flight including the C.O. a P.O. who asked for a copy of the song afterwards. It was a Stag Party, so there were plenty of good jokes flying about. We finished about 11.20 pm, so had to walk 3 miles home & got in just before 12. Theyve started having supper now in our Canteen, last night was first night, but I went to bed at 8 and missed it, anyway its only bread and soup.
“A” flight is the best in 4 Squadron, and up to yesterday no one had been put on a charge, and the P.O i/c “B” flight was jealous! Well we were up Rock End yesterday morning, some of us were in a cold room doing nothing while the rest were on the range, firing. We had been told not to smoke, but as no one was taking us, and it was very cold, some of the cadets lit up. That rat of a P.O.
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came snooping round and caught two of them so they got 7 days C.B. [Confined to Barracks] When our Corporal heard, he said he’d make it hot for B. flight.
Dear Mum and etc’,
Thanks very much for the parcel which I received yesterday, we heard yesterday that we definitely have 7 days leave, we had to fill our leave passes up, ready for the C.O’s signatures, and we had to put 7 days leave on from midday Friday to midnight the following Friday. I received the invitation to the wedding yesterday and am replying now. The C.O. told us that we are liable to recall at a moments notice should our Posting come through, but its very unlikely. I saw the corporal yesterday about chit for pygamas [sic], and he told me to see the C.O tomorrow
Reg Shaw (one of the cops) and I went to the pictures yesterday, the first time I’ve been since I’ve been here. We went for tea to Toc. H., then went to the “Regal” to see “Penny Serenade”. It’s the only decent cinema in Torquay. Then we went to the W.V.S. for supper, then to the Marine Tavern for a glass of cider, then to the chip
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stall for some chips. We really enjoyed ourselves Its very windy today, the seas the roughest I’ve seen since we’ve been here, the spray comes up to 20’ to 30’ over the pier. I’m on guard tonight, I hope it is not so rough as now. Then we have Morse Exam tomorrow morning.
Air Commodore Critchley, the chap who makes us wear white belts (were the only 4 squadrons in Brittain [sic] who have to wear them) is coming to inspect us next week, so we’ve got to jump about a bit. We’ll [sic] I’ll tell you all the news when I get home.
Cheerioh,
Len xxxx
The Senior man in our flight has just been round with a form, on which we have to put our destination station, and route for when we go home, 8 days more. I should be doing my navi exam about this time, If I get the 11.55 am train from here, I shall probably be in W ton by 6.45 AM. For the next week we will probably be swotting every night or going to evening classes. Well I cant think of
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anything else to tell you about so give my love to everyone,
Cheerioh Len
I’ll be seeing you soon
Nov 27th
Torquay
Dear Ma, Pa & Nibs,
So sorry I have not written before, but I have been feeling pretty rotten. I went to the M.O., and he told me to bathe my arms in hot permang, and put some ointment on, and also to inhale menthol every day for a week, I’m feeling much better,. although I still cant smell. Well, I’m not L.A.C yet, [indecipherable word] just heard we’ve got to pass everything at 6 [indecipherable word] in Morse, but it won’t take me long to pass that, there are only 8 chaps in our Flight who have passed. Everyone has passed in Navigation, but now have got to take laws or [indecipherable word] again. We look like being here over Xmas according to our C.O. who says everything slows down in winter. He did not say anything about leave, but we are optimistic. We don’t do much work now, the only lessons being Navi, Morse, Drill P.T and Games
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The rest of the time we just hang around. I was on guard on Tuesday from 7 morning to 7 evening [sic]. Its a lot better than night guard, although you have to run a few errands for the N.C.Os. Im on Fire Piquet again on Saturday night, which means I can’t go out. Our Pilot Officer has left us to go abroad. He was a decent chap, and we are sorry to lose him. Allen’s confined to bed today with a cold, he’s got a temp. of 102°F. I had to fetch his tea from the cookhouse tonight. I went clay pidgeon [sic] shooting this afternoon, instead of going swimming. It was drizzling and although it was windy as well, I hit 7 out of 15 pidgeons [sic], the highest score was 8. Although its windy down here, it isn’t very cold, and I don’t have to wear a pullover, I’ve stayed in every night this week so there isn’t any more news.
Give my love to everyone,
Cheerioh
Len
Dec 4th 1941
L.A.C. DORRICOTT
Torquay
Dear Mum, Dad & Little Twerps,
I received the requested
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parcel yesterday, and oh boy! was I pleased with the contents. Allen has got a wallet something like mine, but his is not so big, or such good quality. Thank you for a pukka Christmas present. Thanks also for the photographs, I think they have come out O.k. I’ll see that Grandma, etc. get one at Christmas. Sylvias getting quite an artist isnt she? You will have to send her to the Art School. I was on Fire Picquet last Saturday night and we had to clean out the Flight Sergeant’s and C.Os office. There were four of us on the job, and when we had finished we started nosing round to see if we could get any “gen” about posting. We didn’t find anything about that, but John Deas found a notebook, indexed with names of cadets who could do anything, carpentering and painting etc, in fact anything that could be useful on the station. Under the heading Draughtsman was my name and another cadets. As I have not told the C.O. I could draw, someone else must have told him.
On Monday afternoon we went
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out on the motor boats instead of doing Navigation in classes. The weather was awful: it was misty, pouring with rain, and there was a heavy swell in the bay. We had to plot our courses on a chart, find the current and steer the boat. I stayed outside the cabin all the time and John Deas did the plotting for the 6 of us. Two of the chaps in our boat were sick, both Scots. One of them got a bit muddled with the compass and read it the wrong way round, so that he was steering the boat in the opposite direction he should have gone. It so muddled up the course, that on returning, I had to steer at right angles to the course we had been told to use, else I should have rammed the cliffs. Gilbert and Allen left there [sic] dinners behind, but I enjoyed it, although I got wet through.
I think we must be expecting Gas attack [sic], because we have orders to wear gas. masks for 10 minutes every morning coming back from lessons as well as our usuall [sic] Gas Drills. Well, I have not retaken Morse but an L.A.C. at last. The C.O heard from Wing H. Quarters that all those who took the Morse Test before
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Dec 1st, had only to pass at 4 wp.m., I think we will get our L.A.C. pay from Nov 15th, at least that is the latest rumour. John Deas was one of the chaps who passed Morse at 6 wpm & was promulgated to L.A.C. after we came back from leave. But this afternoon we heard he has got to take the Prop down, because he failed his Armaments. Tuesday afternoon we had to scrub our stairs and landings, as A. C. Critchley was going to inspect us on Wednesday. We practiced March past and Eyes Right, but he did not come yesterday or today. I saw in the paper yesterday that they are going to conscript men up to 51, does Dad come into this? We went on a run with the Flt. Sg.t yesterday, and when he say [sic] run he means Run. Our ordinary P.T corporal lets us run or walk alternately for not more than 1/2 a mile, but the Flt, Sgt. Made us run 1 1/2 miles, and walk 1/6 mile and run 1 1/2 miles back all round Rock End. We all enjoyed it I think, although our muscles ache today. Well I think this is all the news, so I will put a sock in it. Cheerioh
Len.
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Sunday Dec: 14/ 1941.
Torquay
Dear Mum, Pop, and Nippers,
Thanks very much for the parcel you sent, it was a good idea you sending those crayons. I am sorry I have not written before, but over half of our flight have been posted to Eastbourne, on the south Coast They went yesterday, early morning and we have been celebrating. Allen’s one of those going, so we went to the pictures Thursday night, in case they were C.B. Friday night. As it happened we were told they were going Friday midnight, instead of Saturday afternoon, as we had been previously told, so Gilbert and I went out and brought back some lemonade, cakes and chips, and we had a little feast. The Ex-policemen had previously arranged to have a “beano” on Friday night, but that was knocked on the head Reg Shaw, the only copper who is not going away, was fed up so he and Dick Carr went on the booze. They came back just before 11; and you could see Reg had been rolling in the dirt, he was so drunk. He staggered upstairs to where
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we were shaking hands and saying “Good-bye to one another, and when we saw how merry he was, we started joking with him. He tried to walk up the next flight of stairs, but he could not keep his balance, and walked backwards downstairs, bumped into the bannisters, and fell over them, onto the ground, 4 flights of stairs below. It’s a spiral staircase and what saved him was the fact that he struck the other bannisters farther down, which broke his fall a little, and then landed on his side in the dustbin. We raced downstairs, took him into a room, and sent for the M.O. He was quite O.k. and said “I likesh fallin down shtairsh”, and walked upstairs to his room. Then he started dancing a hornpipe, and singing, but when he saw the M.O. he sobered down a lot. All he had wrong with him was a bruised thigh. He’s the first chap I’ve heard of who’s fallen down 25’ and then got up and danced.
Those of us who are left had to join the remaining half of “B” flight, so we’ve had to go into another part of the hotel. Sgt Cleverlys in charge of us and none of us like him.
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I had a parcel yesterday from the “Women’s own There were a pair of socks, packet of stamped envelopes, writing pad, Xmas card, and a nice letter from Mrs Bickley. I’m afraid there are no leaves or postings before Xmas. Those of us left are almost certainly for overseas, so before we go we should get at least 7 days leave. Four out of our Flight have got 17 days leave, as they are going abroad, but they are only to make up another squadron who are posted overseas. A new flight came in yesterday, and all new flights are having their courses extended from 8 to 14 weeks, so they will have to wait longer for their leave. I suppose we will have to do a lot of drill, and gardening up at the R.A.F allotments at Rock End. Its raining “cats and dogs”, and I got wet through looking in shop windows, coming back from Chapel. I think I’ve told you all the news now but I will write again before Xmas
Love to everyone
Cheerioh
Len
50
1230753 LAC. DORRICOTT
“A” FLIGHT
4 SQUADRON
ST JAMES HOTEL
TORQUAY.
24.12.41
Dear Mum Pop & Nippers,
At last I have found time to write and thank you for the parcel of cake and sweets. We have eaten almost half of us [sic], but I am saving the rest for tomorrow. Everyone said the cake was delicious. I‘m on guard today from 7 am to 7 pm, but I don’t mind as I don’t have to do drill or anything. We are going to have a lovely dinner tomorrow, roast turkey, roast pork, baked spuds sprouts & carrots, Xmas pud and plenty of other stuff. Tomorrow morning we have to do a March Past for Air Chief Marshall Sir Arthur Longmore, Ye Gods! If thoughts could kill! Then in the afternoon we can either go to the Good Companions Party, or the R.A.F. Canteen Xmas Dinner, also we have a late pass till midnight, so it wont be so bad after all.
What do you think of this? A week last
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Monday afternoon we should have had games , but as we were Duty Squadron, 24 of us were sent to Rock End to do gardening etc. Well three others and myself had to cart pig muck from the piggeries to the dump, while the others just swept a few leaves from the path. Next day we were told that we would have to go up their [sic] on Saturday afternoon, as we had not given the pigs the swill. We explained everything to the Flight Sergeant, and he got us off. Pretty decent of him wasn’t it? Well Mum, I hope you like the presents, I didn’t have much choice, as we didn’t have much time to get them, I had to do most of the shopping in the dinner-time.
I’ve just received your letter and Xmas card, and Aunty Alice’s purse, also a card from Ede & Gert. I’m getting L.A.C’s pay now, 5/- a day, so Im buying a Savings Certificate every fortnight, and sending a £1 a fortnight for you to get things for yourself, Pop and the Erbs’. Since 1/2 of our flight and half of B flight have been posted to Eastbourne, the rest have been formed into B flight, under Sgt. Cleverly, and P.O. Foley, the
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worst N.C.O. and officer in the Squadron. We’ve now got to leave out the name of the hotel & 3. I.T.W. from our address and just put St James Hotel. Our daily programmes have now been revised , so now we needn’t rise till 7 am. We parade at 8.15 am, break at 10.30 till 11.00. dinner 1 pm-2. 5pm and finish at 5.30. All our new flights have had there [sic] courses decelerated from 8 to 14 weeks, also an hour less lessons every day. We are mostly able to go to the “flicks” two nights a week now, as we have no swotting to do. I don’t think we’ll be posted for a while yet, as this Japanese business has probably knocked American postings on the head, however I should get another leave before
a months out.
Cheerioh, Merry Xmas and a Happy New Years
Len.
Sunday Jan 4th ‘42
‘B’ Flight
4 Squadron
St James Hotel
Torquay
Dear Mum, Pop & Nibs
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Thanks muchly for your letter, which I received on Thursday. I’m so glad you all liked the presents. I received the 10/- P.O. from Shrewsbury and bought a fountain pen with it. The purse I had from Aunty Alice is the same sort of leather as the wallet you sent me. I don’t think I written [sic] since Xmas Eve when I was on guard. Since then I’ve done Squadron Day Guard on Tuesday, St James Armed Guard on Wednesday night, New Year’s Eve, and Squadron Fire Piquet [sic] on Thursday night; so I think I’ve done my fair share of Guards for a bit. Xmas week, I went to the “flicks” 5 times with Gilbert, while he went another two by himself. On Wednesday afternoon we had a “pep” talk from the “Boss”, Air Commodore Critchley, and on Friday morning we had to march past him. There were about 3,000 cadets in the March Past, including Polish and Turkish Airmen. The Old Boy gave us all the day off, so he can’t be a bad old stick. Friday afternoon, Gilbert and I went to the Odeon to see Charles Boyer in “Hold Back the Dawn”, and in the evening to the [indecipherable word] to see “Ships with Wings”
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We saw the latter film twice, it was so good. When it comes to Wolverhampton, Gay-Gay should go to see it. Its about the Fleet Air Arm, and although some of the scenes are faked, its quite good. I’m afraid there will be no leave till we’re posted, which may be weeks or months, unless I can get a 48 hours pass. Critchley told us that while he was in the U.S.A. he had arranged for a greater flow of cadets but that had been knocked on the head with the Japanese attack. Still we’re not doing so bad here, so it won’t hurt us to stay a little longer. I don’t think theres any more news for the present, so I’ll pack up now, Love to everyone at No 10.
Cheerioh,
Len.
24. 12 . 41
Torquay
Dear Mum, Pop & Nippers,
At last I have found [deleted text] time to write and thank you for the parcel of cake and sweets. We have eaten almost half of us [sic], but I am saving the rest for tomorrow. Everyone said the [/deleted text]
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[deleted text] has probably knocked American postings on the head, however I should get another leave before a months out.
Cheerioh, Merry Xmas and
a Happy New Year,
Len.
[/deleted text]
St James Hotel
Torquay
Sunday
Dear Mum
Thanks very much for your parcel which I received on Friday. I ve got a bit of good news in this letter. It’s almost certain we get a weeks leave after we’ve been here 10 weeks, which is a week on Friday I shouldn’t bank on it, but its highly probable. I’m afraid I won’t be able to get any 48 hours leave, as they are only being granted on compassionate grounds. 13 more cadets out of “B” flight were posted to Eastbourne last Friday, leaving the young unmarried cadets. Our officer told some of the boys that there was a big Rhodesia posting in 3 weeks time and that we would probably in it. Gilbert and I are trying to
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get permission to go in Reg Shaw’s room, in place of those boys who were posted. Its on the ground floor, so we won’t have to climb any stairs.
I was on Day Guard on Friday, and on Fire Piquet [sic] at Haldon Manor tonight. We are now allowed to wear great coats on first parade in the morning, when there is always frost on the ground In the afternoon the sun is out and it is quite warm. I don’t think there is any more news this week, so I’ll pack up,
Cheerioh
Len.
ps The boys liked that Flap Jack
Tuesday
Dear Mum & all,
I’ve kept this back till I’ve known something definite about leave. I should be in W. hampton at teatime a week on Friday for 7 days. We might be able to get 9 days, but its not definite, anyway the 7 days is O.k. Last time Scotch boys were granted two days travelling time, but they are not getting it this time. Well, cheerioh for now, I’ll write again later.
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Wednesday morning,
Dear Mum,
Our P.O has just old us that our leave is cancelled & we are being posted to Eastbourne on Saturday. So it will be [indecipherable text – possibly erased] 8 more weeks before we get any more leave. We’re all terribly disappointed, and you want to hear the language some of the boys are turning out. Well, it can’t be helped,
Cheerioh
Len
Jan 21 st
R.A.F.
Eastbourne
Sussex
Dear Mum Dad & all,
I arrived at Eastbourne 11 am Saturday. We left at 10 pm Friday, so it was 13 hours travelling. We had to wait at Newton Abbot for 2 hours, then at London for 1 1/2 hours. At Brighton, Reg, Dickie Gilbert and I got out of the train and walked to the sea front. We are billeted at the best Hotel
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in Eastbourne, and there are a few score here I can tell you. Its called the Grand, and Oh boy, it’s a lovely place. Reg, Dickie Gil & I and 5 others are in a room 3 times as large as the sitting room at home, there are two radiators, one at the side of my bed, and pink satin curtains at the windows. The only thing that’s wrong is that we have no lockers or cupboards, so we have to put our stuff in our kitbags. The grub is about as good as at Torquay, only there is not quite so much. We have a “Naafi” inside the Hotel, so don’t need to go out at night, we have compulsory study 4 nights a week anyway. We work till 5.30 pm Mon to Saturday, and have all day Sunday off, except once a month when there is Church Parade. The Officers & N.C.O’s are all observers and are all pretty decent blokes. Our main subjects are Astro Navigation & Meteorology, we have been dished out with watches & sextants once between 5 cadets, and if they get lost they will cost us £30 each. Its going to be hard work for the next 6 weeks although we have an advantage over the previous 1/2 of our flight as we did a little
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astro-navi. at Torquay. This place is No 1 Elementary Air Observers School, and under a New scheme all air crew cadets have to come to an E.A.O.S. before going abroad for Flying Training. Eastbourne is a big place with scores of Cinemas of which only two are open, so if we had every night off, there would be nowhere to go. I don’t think we will get leave for another 11 weeks, & no 48 hours passes for the next 6 weeks. We can have a pass from 5.50 pm on Saturday till 10.30 pm Sunday, but we can only go 100 miles. I saw Allen & several other fellows of the Old A. flight today, and their hotels are only about 1/2 a mile away along the sea front from us. This morning a German J.U. 88 flew low over our hotels, although the sirens did not go. Well, I don’t think theres any more news, and as I want to get to bed early, I will pack up now
Cheerioh
Love
Len
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Feb 2 nd
Eastbourne
Dear Mum, Dad & Erbs
Thanks very much for the cake which I received this dinnertime. I don’t think we are doing so badly down here except for the grub. We nearly always have cornbeef [sic] or stew for dinner except Sundays. One teatime we had fishcakes made out of Icelandic Cod or Salt Ling and Oh boy! did they stink. We almost made one chap sick, by saying it was made out of pus from a discharged ulcer. Tonight we had cheese and potato and chopped up half cooked beans all mixed together and it tasted vile. The last couple of days, we have come back from lessons to dinner a bit late, and there has been a queue 50 yards long, so yesterday the four of us went to the Violet cafe and had two welsh rarebits, cake and tea, and it cost us 2/7 each. The food is not half so plentiful as at Torquay. At night we can go down to the N.A.A.F.I. which is in one of the ground floor rooms, and have minced steak and onions, or mixed grill, which does not cost us so much as when we go out to supper.
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At Torquay during break between lessons in the mornings, we would go to the Cove cafe, and spend as much as 1/6 on cream buns, etc, but here a NAAF.I. van comes to the College, and also there is a stall inside the Hall, so we only spend 3d or 4d on tea and penny buns. We have lessons in Eastbourne College, so we’re getting quite toffs, aint we? We have 24 hours of navigation a week, including astro-navigations, when we use a bubble sextant to find out latitude & longitude from the stars. We have to measure the altitude of a star to a 1/60 of a degree, and take the time of the observation to the nearest second, otherwise we are miles out in our position. Then we take Meteorology, and have to tell the state of the weather, by the forms of the clouds etc, We learnt the Vickers gun at I.T.W. and now we are doing the Browning machine gun, which is twice as difficult.
Its a lot colder here than at Torquay. From the day we arrived till last Thursday, the roads were 6 inches deep in snow, then it
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rained on Thursday night, and on Friday to Sunday, we had hot hot sunshine all day, now its just as cold as ever. The officers and N.C.Os down here have all got there [sic] observer wings up, and are all good chaps. At I.T.W. it was mostly ex school-masters who took us for Navi and although they could make us understand better than our instructors here, they had no actual experience. Most of them are down here for a rest, after being on operational duties for a few months. Our P/O was the only survivor of a Wellington that crashed. One of the sergeants who has got the D.F.M. is walking about and doing normal duties with a broken neck. One thing if you get injured in Air Crew, you get better medical attention than anyone, plastic surgery, etc, that would cost hundred of £1 [sic] in peacetime.
Dear Mum, I wonder if you could get a new winder put on my watch, as it would be very useful for taking star positions. We have been dished out with £30 watches, one between 5 cadets. They never vary except for 2 & 3 seconds a day. Also we have £50 sextants, so they must trust us.
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We had our photographs taken yesterday, but it will be a fortnight before we get them. I wonder if Gay-Gay would like to go to the Library for me and look for a book on astronomy its a smallish blue one, I don’t know who its by or who are the publishers, but if he sees it, you could perhaps send me the name of the author & publisher etc. We dont get any leave till we have been here six weeks, but I think I can get a 48 hour pass in a week or two, so if I do, I ll get home, if its only for a few hours. We have plenty of fun in our room, there’s not a night but somebody’s bed collapses under them, because someone has put the legs at an angle. Another trick is taking all the springs out of a bed, so that the victim drops thro’ the bottom when he gets in it. A few nights ago Dickie and Terence carted Gilberts bed out to the end of the corridor and left it there, so he pinched George Cators bed, and started to make it. When George came in he pinched it back again and thanked Gilbert for making it! Gilbert thought I’d take
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his bed away, so he tipped me out of mine, I’ll have to do something about tonight, I think. We have inspection only once a week, so we only had to clean our buttons twice a week. Would it be Ok if I sent my laundry home to be washed, as the laundry don’t clean them at all well. My socks are so short that the heel comes under the instep, but I washed a pair myself last week, so they are normal now. Well, I think I have said enough for this letter, so I’ll quit the cackle,
Love to everyone
Cheerioh
Len
P.s
I saw Neville Gardner form the Intermediate in the Barbers’ today, he came down here the same day as I.
R.A.F.
Eastbourne
Feb 10. 1942.
Dear Mum, Pop & Nippers,
Thanks muchly for the reg. letter I received on Friday, the astronomy book you sent was not the one I meant, but it’s a very
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good one, and I’m already half way through it. I’m hoping to have 48 hours leave about 12 pm – 1 am Friday night, I shouldn’t bank on it, as you never know what the powers-that-be are going to do, In any case, I can find my way from the station, so you needn’t wait up for me. Well I’ve been in sick quarters last week, from Wednesday dinner-time to Friday dinner-time with a high temp. The grub was a lot better, we had a roaring fire and plenty of books to read. I’m sending a photograph we had taken in front of Eastbourne College, a week or so ago, it isn’t very good though. [Photograph missing] We had a Meteorology test this afternoon, it was pretty easy, and I think everyone has passed. We had plenty of fun last night. George Cator went out to the “pub” to see his pals who were going abroad, and while he way away [sic], we put his ground sheet in place of his sheet. Then we bent the legs of his bed, and tied them together, so that when he pulled one leg, the others collapsed. Later on, ”Billy” Bennett and the Irish boy nicknamed “Shamus” started talking in their sleep. Then Billy fell out of bed
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and when we put the light on, he was still asleep on the floor. When we woke him up, he accused us of pushing him out of bed. He was asleep 5 minutes later and still talking.
I dont think there’s any more news, so here’s hoping,
Love to all,
Len.
Feb 24 th
Eastbourne
Dear Mum, Pop & Nibs,
I’m so sorry I haven’t written before now, but at present we’re swotting hard for the Exams. We’ve got to get 18 star, sun, moon, and planet sights by next week, also we get Armaments and Morse Exams on Friday & Saturday. I shall most probably be coming home leaving here a week next Saturday or Sunday, Ill let you know the exact time later. We’ve got our ration card that we should have had for our 48 hours, so I’m dating mine for next weekend. Dear Mum, you’ll have to excuse me, as this is a short letter, I’m writing it during Navigation, & I shall be swotting all next week. Anyway, I ll
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tell you all the rest of the news when I get home.
Love to everyone
Cheerioh for now
Len.
Eastbourne
Tue. March 17th
Dear Mum,
The Flight Lieutenant has just told us that we are being posted abroad on Monday next, and that we are getting 48 hours leave from Wednesday to Friday night, so you can expect me Thursday morning. We might possibly be going to Heaton Park before we embark & & [sic] might possibly get extra embarkation leave from there. I’ll tell you all the news when I get home.
Cheerioh
Len
We leave here 2.36 pm Wednesday, so might get home before 10 pm.
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April 9th 1942.
c/o. R.C.A.F.
Ottawa.
[underlined] Canada [/underlined]
Dear Mum, Dad, & Nippers,
As you see Ive arrived safely in Canada. I’m sorry I could not get a letter away at Heaton Park, but we were there only 3 days, and during that time had innoculations, clothing parades, and lectures, as you see, we didn’t get much time for writing. We were billeted at 25 Wellington St. East, Salford, near the Jewish District of Cheetham Hill. The Manchester people made us welcome, and were always willing to help us, exactly opposite to Eastbourne.
We had a very quiet trip across the Atlantic, although the sea was rather rough for 3 days. Gilbert was so seasick, that he ate no food for 3 days. We slept in hammocks, and at night when we slung them, we were packed like sardines. The cigarettes sold on board were very cheap, Woodbines 3d for 10, and Players 4d for 10. What I liked best were the tins of fruit and salmon and blocks of chocolate, which we could buy in
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unlimited supplies. We disembarked at an East coast town, and are now at Moncton, New Brunswick. The scenery we passed through by train was lovely: Blue sky above, fine trees covering the hills, with small wooden houses scattered about. Whatever the size of the villages we passed through, whether they contained 5 or 100 houses, they always had a small wooden chapel or church built in a prominent spot. You don’t see many brick buildings out here, except in the town centre. The food here is marvellous, although pilots who have come back here, after finishing there [sic] course elsewhere, say it is the worst place for food. We get plenty of eggs, butter and jam, and the bread is just like sponge cake, in fact I could make a meal of bread and butter alone. At Eastbourne it was a pain to queue for meals, but here it is a pleasure. The worst [deleted] place [/deleted] thing about this place is that when you go up town, you can’t help spending money. When you see the Restaurants dishing up turkey, steak or pork, you can’t resist going in and sampling some. The price of food isn’t bad, but we were
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staggered when we had to pay 45c/ or 2/- for a hair cut, and 15 c/ extra if you had a little hair oil put on. The “Dead End Kids” thats Reg Gilbert, Dicky, Shamus & I bought a folding camera for 30/-, so we shall take as many photographs as we can. We’ve all bought corn-cob pipes, and yesterday got a railwayman to take a photograph of us smoking them, standing above the cowcatcher of a locomotive. We shall not be staying here long, but will be most probably [sic] posted to where the cadets went who had their photos printed in the “Express & Star”. I would like to write to Mums aunt in Windsor, but I have not got the address.
We’ve had to change our English money into Canadian Dollars, and so far we’ve managed OK with the coinage. Those 12 sided 3d bits are rare over here and in the U.S.A, and cadets often get invited out for the evening if they give a civilian one. The people were [sic] them on their watch chains. Every where we go little urchins pester us for English pennies for souvenirs, Im rather late, but wish Gay Many Happy Returns of the Day
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for me , please. Its nearly lights out now, so I’ll pack up. Tell Grandma I’ll write as soon as possible, but when we get posted, we’ll have to work hard, so there won’t be much time for letterwriting. The next course should last about 6 months, so I should be home again before Xmas.
Cheerioh for now
Len.
Picture Card from New York, written on top of Empire State Building.
Wed 13th May ’42.
Dear Mum,
I’m writing this on the way down to Miami. I m having a fine time so far. At Moncton I met a nice family called MacDonald, & used to stay at their house. Bill & Dorothy are writing Gray & Sylvia. Letter following
Love
Len
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British Cadet Dorricott,
Room 306.
Hotel San Sebastion,
348 Santander,
Miami, Fla.
June 2nd 42
Dear Mum, Pop, & Erbs,
Thanks very much for your very welcome letters, the Air Mail which I received yesterday and the ordinary mail today. I don’t think theres much difference however you send it, although ordinary mail is not censored. That bit about the Home Guard in your Air Mail was censored. Well I’m glad everything is O.k. at home, and that you are getting plenty to eat.
By the way, before I forget, if you send me the sizes of your stockings & the kids, I’ll bring some Nylon ones when I come home, also if theres anything you want, just let me know, and I’ll get it. Theres nothing you can’t get in Miami. Boy, its hot down here, hotter in the shade than it is in the sun on an English Summer Day. My arms & face are getting quite brown
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and at the weekend I’m going bathing at Miami Beach, so I should soon be brown all over. At the University there used to be a lot of fellows & girls taking different courses, but they went last week, so we’ve got the place to ourselves now. While we are down here, we are given the same treatment as an officer. We are waited on at table, have our rooms cleaned out by the maids, and don’t have to clean our shoes even. However, we have to work hard, although so far its been pretty easy, as we did all the stuff Eastbourne, We get plenty to eat, in fact, as soon as one dish of food is finished, the waiters rush up to refill it. Imagine eggs, bacon, chicken etc lying on the tables as the fellows are too full. The national drink down here is “iced tea” but we always have hot tea. Over this side of the Atlantic, the people use there knives just for cutting their food, then transfer their fork to their right hand & drop the knife. It looks funny to us, but I guess we appear just as funny to them. Shamus & I go to Central Baptist Chapel, and we’ve met hundreds of nice people. Its one of the nicest
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chapels I ve been in. We go up in the gallery and the ladies dresses, and waving fans make a lovely sight. After the service people come up to you, and almost fight as to who is to take you home to dinner. Shamus & I have met two very nice girls from the Chapel, his is Kay Porter, chief telephonist and radio telephonist for Eastern Air Lines, she’s pretty rich, and owns a ranch in Texas. I go with her pal Betty Denham, who works at the same place. Last Sunday, Shamus & I went to Chapel with Betty, had dinner at a Cafe, & then she showed us round Miami Beach She works from 4 pm to midnight, so we didn’t have much time. Then we went to the Airport with her, and met Kay as she came off duty. Next weekend we are going bathing, so should have a grand time. I’m sending you a few photos of various places & people [photographs missing] & will send some more in my next letters. I’ve bought 4 shares out of 5 in that camera we bought on the boat, and I’m hoping Shamus will sell me his share. One or two girls who have stayed on for the Summer Session at the University,
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have formed a dating Bureau, the C.O has O’ked it, so its perfectly legal, the entrance fee is a dollar. I’ve not joined yet, although tonight Shamus is out on a “Blind Date” with a girl the Bureau have chosen for him. Gay-Gay would be in his element down here, the fillies are darn good, tell him. Tell him not to go by Betty as she is pretty lousy as regards looks & figure. I cant think of much else to say, its hard work thinking what to put down in this heat, even though I’m finishing this letter at 9. Pm with the windows and doors wide open. Still, I ll keep the rest of the “gen” (“pukka & Duff”) for my next letter, remember me to every one at home, including mrs Pugh, and let me have a letter from you as often as poss. We hang around the post-office 3 or 4 times a day, waiting for letters, So cheerioh.
Love from Len.
Miami Fla’
May 16th
Dear Mum Pop & Nippers,
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MAY 16 1942
Well, as thou seeest, I’ve arrived in Miami at last, We reached here yesterday morning at 7 o’clock, and even at that early hour we were melting with the heat. We left Moncton 3 pm on Tuesday, and out first long stop was St John’s, New Brunswick, where we had tea, or supper as it is called here, in a restaurant. Then we had a walk round the town. Being a seaport, it was almost as dirty as Manchester, and not half as nice as Moncton. We had a very uncomfortable night, as we had no mattresses and only 1 blanket, so we were up at 5 next morning. Our next stop was Boston, Masserchusetts [sic] in the USA., where we changed stations, and had a lovely meal in the large Station Cafe. Then we walked round the town, and took photos of the War Memorial. We only had an hour here, otherwise I would have like to have seen the [indecipherable word] commemorating the Boston Tea Party. However, an old man, who was born in North Devon showed us around the State House. It was a lovely building; it had the flags used in the Civil War. We also visited the House of Representatives,
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and the Senate Chamber. While I was there I bought a Camera, which takes 16 pictures on a [sic] 8 film roll, so I’m taking as many photos as I can. Our next stop was New York (I believe youve heard of it). The first thing we did after tea, was to [inserted] pay [/inserted] a visit to the top of the Empire State Building, the tallest building in the world. It was one of the most wonderful sights I’ve ever seen. We could see the Normandie lying on her side in the harbour, the Statue of Liberty, the Chrysler Building, and other skyscrapers in Manhattan. One thing that amazed me was that all the streets with few exceptions, ran North-South, or East-West. We only had 4 hours in New York, so with the rest of the time, we walked down Broadway and other main streets. We spent an even more uncomfortable night on the train, as we had to sleep sitting up in the train, and as we were farther south, the heat was far worse. The next morning at Richmond, we were coupled to 2 streamlined Diesel engines, the “Florida Special”, and “Vacationers”, and were soon flying along at 70 miles ph. with 24 coaches in tow.
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That night we stopped for an hour and a half at Jacksonville, and as it was too dark to take photos, the “Gang” went into an Amusement Park, and had a game of “bowls” or Skittles as it is called in England. I ve never touched a bowling ball before, but I knocked 81 skittles down our of 100, Norman was next with 55 so I didn’t do so bad. Well. As I said before we arrived here yesterday morning. The food is marvellous, you get more than you want, the meals are served up as good as any hotel (serviettes etc), in fact its better than an officers mess. At every meal we get 5 drinks, water milk, grapefruit, coffee & tea. We have not been in the town yet, but what buildings and scenery we have seen is very picturesque, we are being allowed out to Coral Gables tonight and I shall take some more snaps, and get those I’ve already developed taken.
Now I ll tell you about the Macdonalds. One Sunday in camp at Moncton, the Padre asked for 25 cadets to go to a free supper at Moncton First Baptist Church on the Monday night, so
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[inserted some of us [/inserted] [deleted] and I [/deleted] volunteered. Well we enjoyed ourselves there, and a scout invited me up to his house, so I went the following night, and every evening I was at Moncton. Mr & Mrs M[inserted]acdonald [/inserted] oncton welcomed me as if I had known them for ages, I think they are the most hospitable family I’ve met yet. I went there every night before 7 pm and didnt leave till 11.55 pm on weekdays, and 1.55 am early Sunday morning. If I hadn’t had a tropical kit parade on Sunday morning, they would have made me stay the night. The first night I was doing Bill’s, Murray’s and Ida’s homework. Bill is about 16 years old, and I think he’s already written to our Jeanne. Murray is about 14 & Dorothy nearly 13. Dorothy is the image of Sylvia in her looks and manners, I’ve told her to write to Syls’. Ida is 17, left High School after taking Matric Course, and is now learning Shorthand & Typing at a Business College. She’s a very nice girl indeed. On Monday night before we left, I took my camera to take some snaps, we told Mrs MacDonald we would only be half an hour, but we walked so far
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and were feelish [sic] peckish coming home, so we had supper at a Grill, and didn’t get home till turned 11 pm. Of course, I took some photos, but did my usual trick of forgeting [sic] to wind the film after each photo, but I think at least one photo of Ida will be O.k, so I’ll send you one when I get them developed. When I’ve finished the course here, and go back to Moncton, Mr MacDonald is going to take me deer hunting, so I look like having a good time. After this weekend we’ve got to start working overtime, especially as [deleted] its [/deleted] the hottest part of the season is just starting I don’t think theres much more I can write about without being censored, so I’ll pack up now. Remember me to both Grandma’s in case I don’t get time to write much, Love to all at No 10.
Lets have all the news as soon as possible
Cheerioh
Len xx
July 4th
Miami, Fla.
Dear Mum, Dad & Erbs,
Gee, T’anks for your 3 rd letter which I received last Tuesday. I’m glad
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to see you’re carrying on O.k, & hope you are getting enough to eat. A funny thing happened last Tuesday: Gilbert received a parcel from home with a tin of oxtail soup in! The parcel had been addressed to Eastbourne, so you see how it came about that the British are sending food to America.
I think I ve beaten Graham is [sic] flying , as my first flight was a week yesterday, and I also had a longer flight yesterday. I had a good time, but on the first flight, Gilbert was up to his usual tricks, & was the only one sick on our flying boat. He was O.k yesterday, although it was much bumpier. It was a good job we had that course at Eastbourne, as it has helped us very much, and we mostly manage to get our homework done in class. I think the exams will be easy enough, although we’ve got to get 80% to pass. We had our Met. Exam this morning, and I think I’ve got on O.k. In another few weeks I should be able to put my “wings” up, although I don’t think we get our “stripes” till we arrive
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home. We are now Senior Course down here & shall not have to do any more orderly duty. One good thing, we don’t get any P.T. or Drill down here. We will do our first bit of parading (other than meal or pay parades) tonight. We’ve got to march round Coral Gables to celebrate Independence Day.
I’ve met another nice girl from Chapel, her name is Jackie (short for Jacqueline) Hutto, & she’s good looking, as you can see from the photo [photograph missing]. I’ve introduced Shamus to her blonde pal Mary Jane Fannin, Jackie & I see each other every weekend, but Shamus & I only met Mary last night. After going to the ‘flicks’, we all went & had a game of carpet golf. Up to last night Jackie was champ, but last night I was the winner, did 3 holes in 1. The girls are coming over to watch us marching, & then we’re going to meet them afterwards.
The last fortnight we’ve been almost bitten to death by mosquitos, although they are nearly all gone now. The ones they get down here, are what we call gnats or midges in
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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
Leonard Dorricott's wartime letters to his parents
Description
An account of the resource
Note book containing 84 pages of letters covering the period 1 September 1941 to 4 July 1942. It covers his training in the UK, Canada and the USA. He describes, in detail, his social life and eating arrangements but very little about the actual training he received.
(The notebook is incomplete.)
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Leonard Dorricott
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
84 handwritten sheets
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EDorricottLWVarious41-42
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--Devon
England--Torquay
Canada
Florida--Miami
England--London
United States
Florida
England--Eastbourne (East Sussex)
Florida
England--Sussex
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.
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941
1942
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
entertainment
Initial Training Wing
military living conditions
military service conditions
Navy, Army and Air Force Institute
physical training
RAF Torquay
recruitment
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/201/8347/PBaileyJD1607.1.jpg
d2e2e272e830d018ca52ba02b0e5dcc4
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/201/8347/ABaileyJD161207.2.mp3
3d78aa3a379aecd3a869c35e82fac2d1
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
Bailey, John Derek
John Derek Bailey
Bill Bailey
John D Bailey
John Bailey
J D Bailey
J Bailey
Description
An account of the resource
17 items. Two oral history interviews with John Derek "Bill" Bailey (b. 1924, 1583184 and 198592 Royal Air Force) service material, nine photographs, a memoir and his log book. He flew a tour of operations as a bomb aimer with 103 and 166 Squadrons from RAF Elsham Wolds and RAF Kirmington.
The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by John Bailey and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
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
2016-12-07
2017-01-13
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. Some items have not been published in order to protect the privacy of third parties, to comply with intellectual property regulations, or have been assessed as medium or low priority according to the IBCC Digital Archive collection policy and will therefore be published at a later stage. 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/omeka/collection-policy.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
Bailey, JD
Transcribed audio recording
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HB: This is an interview for the International Bomber Command Centre Digital Archive between Harry Bartlett, volunteer interviewer and Mr John Derek Bailey who is normally known as Derek and in the RAF was known as Bill. Pilot officer. And his service number was 198592 and Derek was born on the 2nd of February 1924. Right, Derek. Obviously, we’re interested in what you did before the war as well. So, you know, what, what, where did you actually live before the war?
JDB: I lived on Railway Farm and Shackerdale Farm at Wigston.
HB: Oh right. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: You’ll know where Shackerdale Farm was.
HB: Yes.
JDB: Because it’s near to where you now live.
HB: Yes. Yes.
JDB: But it’s now gone of course.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Their farm is a housing estate.
HB: Yes, absolutely.
JDB: On both, both sites actually.
HB: Did you, did you go to school in the Wigston area, Derek?
JDB: Yes I did. I went to, I went to school on the Saffron Lane Estate at a junior school and I did the, them days eleven plus exam which I passed and I got accepted to go to the Gateway School in Leicester and then the authorities found or discovered that where we lived on the farm which was then Railway Farm at the time which is up alongside the cemetery.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Was actually in the county of Leicester and not in the city. So they wouldn’t let me go to the Gateway School.
HB: Oh dear.
JDB: So, so I therefore ended up going to South Wigston Intermediate School and there I remained until I passed the, there was a school leaving examination. It was called the EMEU, the East Midland Education Union and I passed that and I was then fourteen and a half and I was supposed to stay at school ‘til I was fifteen but because I’d passed this exam and finished they let me leave school in August and I went to work as a trainee draughtsman which is what I wanted to do, at Constone, in South Wigston and then the war started of course. I left school in 1938 and then I was still working there at Constone and the building materials, the reconstructed stonework that Constone manufactured became a sort of luxury building side, side stream thing and they finished up building air raid shelters mainly which minimised the need for a draughtsman so I, I got a bit fed up and I decided I’d like to leave and you had to go to the Labour Exchange. You couldn’t just do what you wanted in those days and so I went and they allowed me to leave Constone and I was sent to Fred Edling at Blaby to work there and I got on very well with Fred. I did a bit of draughtsmanshiping for him and -
HB: What did he do? What was that firm doing?
JDB: He was road transport.
HB: Right.
JDB: And he was the first, first haulier in Leicester, Leicestershire, to have a low loader and doing what you might call heavy haulage and I got on alright there. Very well. And so on my eighteenth birthday, I’d already made my mind up about this because I was in the Air Training Corps when it was formed in 1941 and I decided I wanted to go into the air force. You had to be eighteen. And on my eighteenth birthday I got on my bike and went down to Ulverscroft Road in Leicester and enlisted in the Royal Air Force and I went home and told my mum I’d just joined the Air Force and she burst in to tears of course.
HB: Yeah. Well you would wouldn’t you?
JDB: Yeah. And anyway so it was now I did the various acceptance tests and all that sort of thing and then they said, ‘Ok, you’re in,’ and I was given, I got a letter actually from Sir Archibald Sinclair who was the secretary of state for something or other, air I suppose and I was given what was called deferred service and so I was sent, I was, I was given a number and everything, sent home to carry on doing what I was doing until they sent for me and so -
HB: So when, when would that be, Derek?
JDB: Well I joined on the 2nd of February of course and they gave me this deferred service to wait until I was called so I was working for Fred and he, he said to me, he had an office in London as well, in Deptford and he said, the manager down there was, got called up, so he said to me, ‘Would you go down and run London office for the time being ‘til you go?’ And I was only eighteen mind.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Anyway, I said, ‘Yes.’ So one Monday morning on to one of his lorries, as a passenger of course and off we went to London and I’d been down there for, I can’t remember a time, a few weeks anyway and I said I’d like to come home for the weekend so he said ok so on one of the lorries again, back home and when I got home there was a letter waiting for me from the air ministry and it was to give me joining instructions to report to Air Crew Reception Centre at Lord’s Cricket Ground.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: On the 27th of July 1942. You can never forget some of these dates can you?
HB: No. No. No. I wouldn’t have thought. Yeah.
JDB: Yeah. The 27th of July.
HB: They’re important.
JDB: I reported, reported to Lord’s Cricket Ground and that started my RAF career then. So do you want me to just go on?
HB: Derek, whatever you want to tell me. I’m, I’m enthralled now. I mean when you went to the, to Lord’s Cricket Ground.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Did you do tests to decide what branch you were going to go in or –
JDB: Oh no.
HB: Did you just get brought in?
JDB: No. I should have told you that. When I joined and I went over to Birmingham for attestation as they called it and medicals and God knows what and I had the medical. They said, I wanted to be a pilot you see and they said, they did the medicals and said, ‘Sorry. You can’t be a pilot but you can be a navigator.’ I said, ‘Well why can’t I be a pilot then?’ He said, ‘Because you’ve got a defect in your eyesight. You -
HB: Oh.
JDB: It’s a convergency problem and you would probably try to land an aircraft about twelve or fifteen feet off the deck.’
HB: Right.
JDB: And so –
HB: Not something you want to do.
JDB: No. No. That’s right. ‘So you, so you’ll have to be, you’ll be a UT navigator.’ So that’s what I went to be. Now then. We got to Lord’s Cricket Ground. There, we were there for I think it was either two or three weeks. It wasn’t long and you got all your jabs for this, that and every other bloody thing and oh this one, I remember one morning we were on parade. Now, I was among those who were one up because we’d already done the drill.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: We could do that.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: We didn’t have to be taught and so on and one morning we were on parade and some sadistic bloody corporal calls out names, ‘Right. One pace forward the following. Bailey JD.’ I went, ‘Yes,’ and that was me and about another two guys and he said, ‘You’ve volunteered to give a pint of blood.’ I said, ‘Oh. Oh thank you very much corporal.’ Oh no. No. That’s alright. You know so, I said ‘What do you want a pint of my blood for?’ He said, ‘Well you’ve got an unusual blood group and they need your blood to group other people’s blood.’ But, now I don’t understand that. But -
HB: No. No but -
JDB: Anyway, that’s -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: What was said.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And that was just one of the things.
HB: Oh right. Yeah.
JDB: Then we were marched off to the cinema to watch gory VD films and -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: You know, keep clear.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And all that sort of thing and then after I think it was about three weeks, they said, ‘Right you’re being posted now to await your next posting. You’re going to Ludlow to a camp until you’re posted to Initial Training Wing,’ and we went to Ludlow which, there were three wings there of all UT aircrew.
HB: UT’s under training.
JDB: Under training.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: UT air crew and there were so many airmen in Ludlow that they only let one wing out on the town each night. Not that that prevented us doing so but anyway that was, that was Ludlow. So it was three weeks at Ludlow and then the posting came through and I was lucky. I got a nice posting to, I’ve forgotten the number of the ITW now but it’s in, it’s in, I’ve got a record of it somewhere and off we went by train to Ludlow and we got, yeah we got off the train, ‘Fall in, pick up your kit,’ kitbag on your back. March down to, I was billeted in the Torbay Hotel on the seafront.
HB: Oh.
JDB: On the harbour. It’s not called the Torbay Hotel now but it, you can still see where it was written on the wall and there we were and we were at Torbay in Paignton until New Year’s Day would you believe and in that time we did various subjects like, well all sorts of subjects. Meteorology, air navigation, armoury, gunnery. The Browning 303 machine gun, the mainstay of nearly everything.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I remember a corporal armourer giving a lecture on the Browning 303 machine gun. He’d got one on the desk in front of him and he said, it was his party piece, he starts off saying, ‘This is the Browning 303 machine gun. It works by recoil action. When the gun is fired the bullet nips smartly up the barrel hotly pursued by the gasses.’ [laughs]
HB: I like it. It was a good description.
JDB: I always remember that Harry.
HB: Yeah. Good description. Yeah.
JDB: It was a party piece that was.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Anyway -
HB: So this, this was New Year’s Day. 19 -
JDB: New Year’s Day 1943.
HB: ‘43 right.
JDB: Yeah and I hadn’t my great coat on up till that day.
HB: Oh.
JDB: And we were posted from there to Brighton and it was like going to the bloody North Pole.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Compared with Paignton and then we were, and Brighton was a holding unit. You’ll hear that word a lot actually.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Holding units while waiting to go somewhere else and we got there and we marched up and down and roundabout and all that and, and one day whoever it was, I can’t remember, probably a sergeant or flight sergeant got us on parade and said, ‘Right, now then, the air ministry have invented a new trade in the air crew trades and it’s called an air bomber.’ Instead of a navigator dropping the bombs as well he hadn’t got time to do that so we now have got a trade called air bomber and the air bomber will be the second pilot, he will be the radar navigator, he will drop the bombs and various other things. The Daily Sketch had a full front page and it said, “This guy’s job is no joke” and it listed our full list of jobs. [laughs]
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Anyway, this guy who had gone on parade said, ‘The air ministry have invented this new trade. Now, anybody who would like to volunteer to move from UT navigator to air bomber we will guarantee a quick posting instead of being sat here for weeks on end,’ And so, so of course Derek Bailey was one of those who stepped forward.
HB: Right.
JDB: Very quickly and within a week we were on our way to Heaton Park, Manchester ready for embarkation to Canada.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: And -
HB: So, how did you, so you went to Heaton Park.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Got booked in there, and then from there you went to Canada.
JDB: Went up to go to Glasgow to board ship.
HB: Oh right. So you went from Glasgow. Right.
JDB: Yeah from Port Glasgow. It was on a ship called the Andes and the minute it left the Clyde I was seasick and I was seasick till I got off in Halifax.
HB: Oh no.
JDB: Nova Scotia.
HB: Oh dear.
JDB: Yeah. Anyway, so then we were in Canada. We went from Halifax, Nova Scotia on the train to Monkton.
HB: Right.
JDB: New Brunswick. Which was a massive camp for all air crew who went to Canada for training. Went through Monkton and came back through Monkton.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: It was a massive place.
HB: So, what, what was its purpose? Just a –
JDB: Just a transit camp.
HB: Just a transit to get you in, get you sorted.
JDB: That’s it, get you with some extra bits of kit.
HB: Right.
JDB: Like, we got there in the winter of course and it was bloody cold you know and if you were to walk around without your ears covered up they’d be frozen.
HB: Oh dear.
JDB: Anyway. So that was it the. Eventually they got us on a train and sent us out to Carberry in Manitoba to another, which was an, which was a training station. Pilot training. And they just sent us there to be housed until they were ready for us where we were supposed to be and we got to Carberry and we, and every so often on the way over through Ottawa and Montreal and where else did we go? Where the train stopped and they took some bodies off with scarlet fever.
HB: Oh dear.
JDB: And we got to Carberry and we’d been there about a day and I got my sore throat and whatever and I’d got it, scarlet fever, along with others and I spent five weeks in hospital just feeling alright and doing nothing but you know. I went from, they took me, took us from Carberry to a place called Brandon in Saskatchewan in an isolation hospital. You know scarlet fever is highly, what’s the word I want?
HB: Contagious.
JDB: That’s it. And, and there we were. Then we got two weeks leave, sick leave, after the five weeks. Myself and another bloke from Manchester we got five weeks, no, two weeks sick leave and all the pay for the five weeks as well had accrued and off we went on the train to Winnipeg and had a holiday in Winnipeg.
HB: Oh dear.
JDB: Yeah. Lovely.
HB: I bet you enjoyed that.
JDB: Oh we did.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: We did. I learned to skate among other things. Anyway, and then eventually we got posted off to Picton, Ontario which was number 31 Bombing And Gunnery School and that’s where we did our first bomb dropping and air firing of, not a Browning, it was Vickers gas operated -
HB: So -
JDB: Machine.
HB: When you got to Picton -
JDB: Yeah.
HB: The, were, were you actually going up in aircraft?
JDB: Oh yeah. When we got to Picton that was the start of the serious business of training.
HB: Right.
JDB: And we were, you were learning bomb aiming and air gunnery.
HB: Right.
JDB: We used to do, the air firing was shooting at drogues towed by Lysanders. I don’t know if you were aware of what they are.
HB: The, the, yeah. Yeah.
JDB: A Lyssie.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah. High wing and over the top.
JDB: That’s it. Yeah. That’s it. Yeah. And -
HB: So where were you firing from? What sort of, were you flying from an aircraft?
JDB: From a, from a Bolingbroke which is a Canadian built Blenheim.
HB: Right. A Bolingbroke.
JDB: Bolingbroke. Yeah. It was the same, same aircraft.
HB: Right.
JDB: But Canadian built as a Blenheim.
HB: Right.
JDB: Oh and the bombing we did from Ansons.
HB: Oh yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Ansons. With ten pound practice bombs.
HB: Right.
JDB: We did eight in an exercise normally.
HB: And how often, how often would you expect to sort of go up and do that in your time there? Would that be every couple of days?
JDB: I count them in my logbook.
HB: Right. It would be sort of every few days would it?
JDB: Oh yeah. Yeah. And then when we finished at Picton, that part of the training, we were moved to Mount Hope which is at the end side of lake, what lake is that one? No, not Erie. Lake Ontario.
HB: Lake Ontario. Yeah.
JDB: Yeah. Of course it is. So Picton is sort of one side of Toronto, in the, Picton [island in the lake].
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And Mount Hope was the other end at Hamilton. Mount Hope is now Hamilton Airport.
HB: Oh right. Yeah.
JDB: And they have, they have, I’ve been there in the last few years. They have there the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum I think they call it and they’ve got a load of aircraft there including one Lancaster.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: Which are all flying examples. They haven’t got any statics. They don’t have, don’t want static aeroplanes. They want aeroplanes that can fly and so that’s at Mount Hope and we did our navigation part of the training there and having completed that we then got our wing, our single wing. It, it was what used to be called a flying arsehole. The old brevvy was. You know.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: And then having got that presented on wings parade I think, I think we were back in England, we got back to England and the air ministry decided that that was going to be abolished, that wing, and we were going to have a single wing like other trades and it would say, it would have a B in it so that’s what I’ve got and -
HB: So when, so you finished your training.
JDB: At Mount Hope.
HB: At Mount Hope.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And then you came back through Monkton.
JDB: Back through Monkton.
HB: And you got back to England.
JDB: Well we got back to, yeah. There were about a dozen of us put on to the ship, the Mauretania, when we came back and we were put on and we were sergeants now. We got promoted to sergeant at the same time as getting the wing.
HB: Right.
JDB: And, yeah that’s right and we were put on the ship and we were sent, well there were, I think about a dozen of us. The OC troops was a squadron leader and we were his crew and we said, ‘What are we here for?’ He said, ‘Well tomorrow we’re embarking a load of American,’ you know, their Pioneer Corps type.
HB: Right.
JDB: You know, engineers or whatever you call them and these Americans all came on board and that was a joke if ever you’ve seen one. We got them all. They didn’t know where they were going. They thought they were going to Iceland and then they said, they were saying to us, ‘Well, where do we pick up the convoy then?’ We should have said, ‘What convoy.’ [laughs]
HB: Oh dear, oh dear.
JDB: Oh dear. ‘Well we just go and nip off smartly and keep out the way of bloody U-boats if any.’ And so that was that.
HB: So was the Mauretania. Was that a liner?
JDB: It was. Yeah. It was quite a -
HB: A big.
JDB: Modern liner.
HB: Right. Yeah.
JDB: That was. Funnily enough a pal of mine who lived in Hinckley and he died recently but he, I told him I’d been on the Mauretania he was an avid cruiser and he produced a photograph of the Mauretania for me.
HB: Lovely. Lovely.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Oh that’s very -
JDB: Yeah
JB: So where, what sort of dates are we talking about you getting back to England then?
JDB: It was not long before Christmas 1943.
HB: Right. Well that’s a good long time then.
JDB: We were there, we were over there nearly a year.
HB: Blimey.
JDB: Within a year.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And I came home. We landed in Liverpool and we went to Harrogate which was a holding unit, another holding unit. Holding unit for air crew returning from abroad.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: After training. Pending posting to the next training unit so there we were at Harrogate, over Christmas actually. But just before Christmas as I say we went home on leave in December and we got, I got, I think we got about a week’s leave so went home in December and I went home and saw my grandad in Wigston in Bushloe End.
HB: Oh right, yeah.
JDB: And, I think he was in Bushloe End still. No they weren’t. They were in Manor Street, they lived in Manor Street then and my grandad he was eighty five and he said to me, ‘Hello boy,’ he said, ‘I’ve been waiting for you to come home.’ And within a week he’d passed away.
HB: Oh.
JDB: And I went to the funeral while I was home.
HB: Oh.
JDB: Amazing. And then we went back, back to Harrogate and we were billeted in the Grand Hotel overlooking Valley Gardens in Harrogate and waiting where to go and then we, we, we got moved to another little holding unit as part of the, I’m trying to think of the name of the place between Preston and Blackpool.
HB: Padgate?
JDB: Who?
HB: Padgate?
JDB: No.
HB: No that was further up wasn’t it?
JDB: No the -
HB: That was Blackpool.
JDB: No that was further down. There was -
HB: Preston. Blackpool.
JDB: There’s a prison there now. I think it might be an open prison.
HB: Oh.
JDB: On the camp where we were and I’ve forgotten the name of it. It begins with K. Oh never mind anyway it doesn’t matter very much. I could easily find out. It’s about half way between Preston and Blackpool.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: And we were stuck there for a few weeks and then got posted to North Wales to near Pwllheli and Ansons. It was a, it was an Advanced Flying Unit and it was equipped with Ansons and we did the bombing in, in the cove off, off the, just off the coast by Pwllheli.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And that was only a few weeks, you know. Went and did a bit of infra-red bombing and one thing or another.
HB: I was just going, I was just going to ask you Derek about the bomb sights because the time you went in for the training they must –
JDB: They were Mark 9 bomb sights up till now.
HB: Yeah. Right.
JDB: Ok.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: If you want to know more about that I can tell you but –
HB: Yeah.
JDB: But they were Mark 9 bomb sights up to that, up to this point.
HB: Right.
JDB: Then when we’d done the bombing bit we went to the 9, number 9 OAFU Observer Advanced Flying Unit. We were split into two parts. The bombing bit was at, just outside Pwllheli at, I forgot what it was called now. Aber some bloody thing. It would be in Wales wouldn’t it?
HB: Abersoch.
JDB: No, not quite as far -
HB: No.
JDB: As that. Anyway, we got moved then to Llandwrog which is Caernarfon Airport as such now and we’d got Ansons again but in the navigation role and we just roamed around the Irish Sea. They had an infra-red target on the end of the pier at Douglas on the Isle of Man and various other places and -
HB: So an infra-red target. What, what would that have been?
JDB: Infra-red, well a camera with, an infra-red camera pointing upwards and if you flew over it with an open shutter camera you get a trace.
HB: Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: You know, you could work out where your bombs would have fallen.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: And various other types of funny targets they used as well and anyway that was at Llandwrog and then they put, one morning we went in and they’d put a list up of various OTU’s, that’s Operational Training Units that you could express a preference for which you went to.
HB: Very nice.
JDB: Would you believe?
HB: Yeah, very nice.
JDB: And so you’d got found, on this list one was Desborough and I thought that’ll do me. That’s not far from home. So I put down for Desborough. When, when we came to be formed up to go and they said, ‘Righto. This group here, you’re going to Peplow aren’t you?’ I said, ‘I don’t know. I thought we were going to Desborough.’ ‘Well. Well, it’s Peplow.’ Anyway, off we went to Peplow and I still thought we were going to bloody Desborough. Anyway, we ended at Peplow which happens to be over by Newport, Salop.
HB: Yeah
JDB: Shropshire.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Where my daughter now lives. She lives just by there. Anyway, we got to, we got, finally got to Peplow. There we were. The next day there was a load of aircrew there just arrived. Pilots, navigators, bomb aimers, engineers, oh no we didn’t have a flight engineer at that stage. Gunners and so on and we were all, all were put in to a hangar, a big hangar and wandering around like bloody lost sheep and he said, ‘Right sort yourselves out, get yourself into crews of seven.’ And that’s how we -
HB: And that was it.
JDB: Formed a crew.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Somebody came to me and said, ‘I’m in George Knott’s crew. Can you join us as a bomb aimer?’ I said, ‘Yeah, ok.’ And that was it. Just so. Just like that.
HB: And these were blokes, you’d not, obviously not met any of these other guys other than the bomb aimers.
JDB: Well no.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: We just met for the first time.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: All of us. So we did and then we had, then we did our training there.
HB: So, so in that hangar from that day.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: You came, all came together as a group of seven.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So that’s your pilot.
JDB: I think we had seven at that stage but we only had one gunner on Wellingtons you see. So that -
HB: So you were crewing up for Wellingtons.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Right.
JDB: Oh that’s what we were crewing up for.
HB: Right.
JDB: I think we only had one gunner. We picked a second gunner up somewhere else and then when we got to Heavy Conversion Unit. Yeah. That was our next move. We went to a Heavy Conversion Unit at Sandtoft up near Doncaster.
HB: Oh right. Yeah.
JDB: Which is, which was, a Halifax, equipped with Halifax 2s and 5s. Merlin engined Halifaxes and the bloody accident record there was so bad that it was named Prangtoft.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Instead of Sandtoft. Yeah.
HB: Because, because it was a while before they changed the engines wasn’t it?
JDB: Well yeah.
HB: In the Halifax.
JDB: Yes and 4 Group which was the only group to operate Halifaxes. They, they got Halifax 3s which were radial engined.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And they were a superb aeroplane but they were useless at the others. Bloody terrible things. They were nice and comfortable for the crew.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: But the performance was, left a bit to be desired.
HB: So when you went to the Heavy Conversion Unit -
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Did you carry on with Wellingtons or did you move to the Halifaxes?
JDB: No. Moved straight to the Halifaxes.
HB: You went into the Halifaxes. Right.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Halifaxes and then when we’d finished on conversion to Halifaxes we then got posted to Lanc Finishing School to do only a week for the pilot to convert from Halifax to Lancaster. And -
HB: Right.
JDB: The Lancaster was a superb aeroplane. Still is.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Superb. We got, went on this and they gave you, gave us a familiarisation flight and, for the skipper and I can always remember going on this flight. We did a ninety degree turn in to two dead engines you know, them down.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Without losing any height.
HB: Blimey.
JDB: Superb aeroplane it was and that was at, and I’ve been trying to think of the name of the bloody place and I can’t at the moment, where we did that but it was about halfway between Lincoln and the Humber.
HB: Would it be in your logbook?
JDB: Yes. It would.
HB: Here you are. Let me have a look and I’ll see if I can find that. So what date are we talking about roughly there?
JDB: I can’t remember.
HB: Oh. This is, yeah this is it this is marked air bomber. Air bomber, navigation. Wow.
JDB: Yeah [laughs]
HB: Yeah.
JDB: We never used the term air bomber really. It was a bomb aimer.
HB: It was, I was going to say it was something I hadn’t come across until I started doing this.
JDB: Well it was a B on the brevvy for starters.
HB: Yeah. Right. Hang on a minute. Where are we? That’s obviously Canada that is. ’43.
JDB: Yeah it would be on a bit Harry.
HB: ‘43 and we’ve got 83 OTU at Peplow.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah. That’s all on the Wellington and then we’ve got Sandtoft at Doncaster.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: You did a bit of night flying at Sandoft then.
JDB: Oh yeah.
HB: Yeah. Where are we now? C flight. Hemswell.
JDB: Hemswell. That’s it.
HB: Hemswell. Familiarisation. Yeah.
JDB: Number 1 Lanc Finishing School.
HB: Yeah. Yes. Yes. I found that now.
JDB: Yeah. And from there we went to 103.
HB: Right. Because you had a pilot there, that was your Lancaster there was SCF2 and BCX.
JDB: There was the one that we got shot up. That was the second trip.
HB: Right. Yeah so that, so that takes you through, that takes you through to August ’44.
JDB: That’s right. Yeah. It was after D-Day.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Just after D-Day.
HB: Yeah. Blimey. Oh right yeah now it really starts doesn’t it?
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Elsham Wolds.
JDB: Yeah. Look at that first operation at Elsham.
HB: Yeah. 11th of August 1944. I’m reading this obviously Derek because, because, you know, your eyes aren’t so clever now.
JDB: I can’t even see it.
HB: And the pilot officer was Knott. Pilot Officer Knott. Air bomber. Cross country. That was, so that was your training flights.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah. Cross country air-sea firing and then, what? There’s one here. I’ve seen this before and I’ve never thought to ask about it Derek. It’s got the 24th of August 1944 and it’s got Knott and your duties as air bomber and it’s got Y cross country. What does the Y mean?
JDB: Y. Oh it was, Y cross country. It was, it was a radar.
HB: Ah.
JDB: Now what were we using ‘cause we were using Gee and -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Y. I think it might have been the start of H2S.
HB: Oh right. Yeah. Yeah, I’ve heard of H2S so -
JDB: Yeah.
HB: That would be like the forerunner then. Yeah.
JDB: Yeah. I think so. Something, something like that.
HB: Blimey and then yeah, you’re right. Then it’s your first operation and you’re straight in to Stettin.
JDB: Yeah. Just look at that -
HB: Stettin.
JDB: First operation. The time.
HB: Nine hours twenty five.
JDB: Nine hours twenty five minutes airborne.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: In a bloody Lancaster.
HB: At night. Yeah.
JDB: At night.
HB: Blimey, that, that is a, is a long -
JDB: That’s a long drag.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Believe me.
HB: Mind you, Stettin, Stettin was always a good -
JDB: Stettin. Yeah we went up over Sweden to get there. That’s why it took so long.
HB: Did the Swedes not complain?
JDB: Yeah they did.
HB: Did they?
JDB: They fired. They opened fire but they’re flak was at about ten thousand feet and we were at eighteen.
HB: Oh right so they did, so the Swedes -
JDB: They were very -
HB: The Swedes actually opened fire on you.
JDB: Oh yeah they were very accomo, they had to you see
HB: Yeah.
JDB: They were very accommodating.
HB: Yeah. What are, now what are you trying to say Derek [laughs] are you trying to say they were either bad gunners or they perhaps the -
JDB: No. I’m saying that they were very accurate gunners.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: And made sure the flak didn’t go up near us.
HB: [laughs] I understand that. Blimey. So that, and that and that was with a five hundred pound LD, seven cans thirty pounds and seven cans four pound incendiaries.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: That’s a good load, that’s a good load. It’s still -
JDB: It is on that maximum range.
HB: Yeah. I was going to say that is on a long one like that.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And then your next one is [Argonville?].
JDB: Yeah. We got shot to pieces.
HB: Yeah and you say it’s shot to pieces right.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: You tell me what you, what you remember of being shot to pieces and I’ll tell you what you’ve written in your logbook.
JDB: Damaged by flak haven’t I?
HB: Yeah. That’s all it says.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: What happened there then?
JDB: Well at [Argonville] it was a flying bomb sight and we, that first trip when we went to Stettin it was, it was a doddle apart from weariness. We didn’t have any opposition apart from anti-aircraft fire which was sporadic to say the least and then we thought oh [Argonville] it’s only in France bloody hell piece of [?] it was. We got, we were briefed to bomb as I remember I think about seven thousand feet and we got over there and the target was cloud obscured. Couldn’t see it at all so the, and it was a master bomber raid so the master bomber called us up and said that, ‘Target obscured by cloud,’ called main force you know.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Descend to, descend to, I can’t remember exactly but say four thousand feet or five thousand feet, descend to five thousand feet or whatever it was. ‘No opposition.’ That was the master bomber who turned out to be, I understand the master bomber was Mr VC himself as a wing commander. What’s his name?
HB: Guy Gibson.
JDB: No.
HB: Cheshire.
JDB: Cheshire.
HB: Len Cheshire.
JDB: Correct.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Wing Commander Cheshire. So anyway we descended, we broke cloud and there were bloody shells bursting around us.
HB: Crikey.
JDB: I was looking out the front of the aircraft and there were two shell bursts right in front of me. And so I was down the front, down the nose, ready to drop the bombs and Paddy the rear gunner shouts, ‘We’re on fire skip,’ and we weren’t on fire. It was all the hydraulic fluid buggering off and we, we sort of over flew the target. I pressed the tit and nothing happened and so we did a circuit and I changed the main fuse and I pressed the tit again and nothing happened again so we couldn’t drop the bombs so we, we left the target area and started to make our way home. We were going to come up the North Sea and drop the bombs so, this was all my job you see. My responsibility. So I got the wireless op to help me and we, once we got over the dropping zone in the North Sea I got with me my piece of wire and dropped all the bombs manually.
HB: Oh.
JDB: Into the North Sea.
HB: Yeah
JDB: And then we then we realised we’d got no hydraulics so we couldn’t, we couldn’t do anything with the undercarriage or the flaps but you could, you could blow the undercarriage down by compressed air.
HB: Oh right. Yeah.
JDB: But you could only do it once and once you’d done it you’d done it, you know and then -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: They were down –
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And they had to stay down so we made our way back to, towards Elsham and we were flying with, I think we put the wheels down at some point. I can’t remember, and we were going to do a flapless landing and, you know, which we did actually.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And we did, we did a bit of a hairy landing, rolled down the runway and hoped we could stop because we’d got no brakes either. No brakes and whatever and eventually we got the aircraft to the end of the runway and rolled it on to dispersal and a shell had burst just under the bloody bomb bay. God, we were near to it you know and all the wiring had gone and the hydraulic pipes had, were fractured and that’s where all the hydraulic fluid had gone and –
HB: That was -
JDB: Well that was that.
HB: Somebody was sitting on your shoulders that day weren’t they?
JDB: Well yeah that’s right. And then George went into briefing and got a right bollocking. He said, ‘You only just missed the bloody sergeant’s mess when you came in to land, Knott.’
HB: That’s George, that’s George. Is that Pilot Officer Knott? The pilot. George
JDB: Yeah. Yeah.
HB: Blimey.
JDB: He was not a happy chappy.
HB: I’m not surprised. So who, who were, what were the names of your crew on that one Derek?
JDB: The crew, there was my, there was George Knott was the skipper.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I was the bomb aimer of course. Ron Archer was the nav.
HB: The navigator.
JDB: Yes.
HB: Oh right. Yeah.
JDB: Wally Williams was the flight engineer. Gus Leigh, I sent him a card today and I hope he’s still alive. He lives, he lives in Ripon.
HB: Right.
JDB: And where was I?
HB: Gus.
JDB: Gus. His name’s not Gus it’s Wilf.
HB: Wilf.
JDB: But we always called him, he was always known as Gus.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: In the air force. Anyway. Wilf Leigh, he was the wireless operator. He was the old man of the crew as well as it happened.
HB: How old was he then?
JDB: Well I was twenty one, I think. No I wasn’t. I was twenty -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: When I did my operations. He was about well I’m not quite sure. I think he was about six years older than me.
HB: Oh a real old fella then.
JDB: Well, yeah. I mean I can account for all of my crew except the gunners.
HB: Right.
JDB: I’ve never been able to find them. Anyway, I’ll tell you about him later.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: But where, where was I? Yeah. That’s it.
HB: So you have Gus Leigh
JDB: Is the wireless op.
HB: Which gunner? He was the wireless op.
JDB: Jock Gregg, John Gregg was the mid upper and a little, little guy called, was the youngest member of the crew actually was Paddy Anderson was the rear gunner. He was only a small chap. Fitted in to the rear turret quite nicely. Yeah.
HB: [laughs] Right. And this was, that, that was, the Lancaster designation for that one was PM Papa Mike.
JDB: Yeah. PM was the -
HB: And then it was.
JDB: Designation letters -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: for 103.
HB: For 103 yeah.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So that, and that was N. The letter N for that. Would that be for Nan in those days?
JDB: Nan, yes. N.
HB: N-Nan. Yeah. Yeah. ‘Cause I’d forgotten ‘cause you’d gone into that and by now.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: You were then posted obviously to Elsham Wolds.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Into 103 squadron then.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So at some stage George Knott between Hemswell and Elsham Wolds he got promoted to pilot officer.
JDB: Yes. That’s right.
HB: So that was, that was another party then was it?
JDB: No. He was, he, it was automatic promotion up to flight lieutenant.
HB: Right.
JDB: George was a, what happened was while we were at Sandtoft George was then a flight sergeant. We were an all NCO crew.
HB: Right. Yeah.
JDB: And George got sent for while we were at Sandtoft to see the station commander and he went in to see him and he said to him, ‘Right. Flight sergeant, you are, you are to apply for a commission. The air ministry have decided that captains of four-engined aircraft shall be commissioned.’ So George said to the station commander, ‘But I don’t want to be commissioned sir. I have an all NCO crew and I’d like to stay with them.’ And he said, ‘It is air ministry policy Knott. You will do as you’re told.’
HB: Blimey. Yeah. I mean that’s, that’s not exactly, that’s not an argument you’re going to win is it?
JDB: No. Are you alright?
HB: Yeah. I’m just, I’m just making sure that we’re on track with the recorder ‘cause it did let me down once so I’m very very cautious of it. Making sure it’s working right. Yeah. It’s working fine.
JDB: And there we are.
HB: Yeah so then, I mean looking at this you’ve got quite a few daylight operations.
JDB: Yes.
HB: And there was one here caught my eye which was Cap Gris Nez.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: The only Gris Nez I know is sort of the Channel Islands.
JDB: No. Cap Gris Nez is near Calais.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah. Right
[Door opens.]
JDB: Hello Henry.
Other: Hello grandad.
JDB: Hello George.
HB: Here’s the boys. I tell you what we can do. We, ‘cause you sound like you need a drink.
JDB: You’re alright Harry.
HB: We’ll just pause it a minute.
[machine paused]
HB: Right. Resuming, resuming the interview.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And we’re looking at, its now round about twenty to four.
JDB: Blimey.
HB: And today is the 7th I forgot to say that at the beginning. It’s the 7th of December.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: 2016
JDB: Yeah.
HB: You see I was getting excited ‘cause you got your logbook out. So, right, so you did obviously things like Le Havre and Calais.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Were all in, all in support of the drive forward in to Europe.
JDB: Yeah. All in support of the troops on the ground.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: ‘Cause if you recall all of those things the channel ports were sort of all bypassed by the ground forces and surrounded.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And sort of tidied up afterwards.
HB: Right.
JDB: And not, not a pretty sight at times, I can tell you.
HB: No. No they must have been quite difficult on that one. So, yeah, so there was, so we’re going through from August the 11th ‘44 when you start with 103 and we get to the 28th, yeah 28th of September ‘44 and that’s, and you summarise that. You’ve done, blimey, one two, three, four. You’ve done well over ten daylight, thirteen, fourteen, fourteen daylight ops there and then we come to the 19th of October and you’re joining 166 squadron now.
JDB: Yes. That’s right.
HB: At Kirmington.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So -
JDB: Well -
HB: What was Kirmington like at that time?
JDB: What do you mean?
HB: Well what was it like as an airfield then? ‘Cause it’s -
JDB: Oh it was a perfectly functional airfield. They had got rid of all of their Wellingtons and were fully equipped with, with Lancs and the reason we went there was because they had to form a new A flight at Kirmington and they pinched two crews from 103 and we were one of the two.
HB: Oh right. So you didn’t volunteer for it obviously you were just -
JDB: Oh no. No. We just were told just do it.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: You know.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And Kirmington was a more pleasant place to be than Elsham because Elsham was up on top of the Wolds you know going towards the Humber and the road from Barnetby up to the Humber Bridge goes through the middle of the airfield.
HB: Oh right. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Yeah. And there’s a water works up there where there’s a big memorial to 103 and 576 squadron. They shared that airfield.
HB: Yeah. ‘Cause I mean here you’re doing, you’re back on doing, well you’ve got a six hour night operation there to Essen. That’s what, that’s October ‘44 and you’ve got, oh you got hit again then on an operation to Cologne.
JDB: Where?
HB: Cologne.
JDB: Oh yeah. Yeah.
HB: Yeah. Again another one of those little simple statements. “Aircraft damaged by flak,” you know.
JDB: Well yeah. Not badly though.
HB: Oh that was a bit better was it that time?
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah. But what’s intriguing me here is -
JDB: Sorry.
HB: What’s intriguing me Derek is there’s another one to Cologne the following night and you’re taking off at twenty seven minutes past five and it’s got, you’ve written in your logbook. “Aborted. Rear gunner unconscious.”
JDB: Yeah. He was. We did a crew check. A crew check. No response from Paddy. Went down to him and he was out cold and I think it turned out to be a trapped pipe, oxygen pipe or some bloody thing.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: I can’t remember exactly.
HB: So that, so obviously that that was abortive. I mean, how far you were in to it? Can you remember?
JDB: No. Not far.
HB: No far. Oh right.
JDB: Didn’t count.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Didn’t count for the count up, you know.
HB: Oh right. Oh dear. Oh right yeah ‘cause yeah that’s I see what you mean two hours fifteen minutes and it was five hours forty for the previous one. So, so then, I mean, blimey you still did some fairly lengthy ops didn’t you?
JDB: Oh yeah once we got over to Leipzig area doing [Moritzburg? Loren?] and things like that.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: They were all a pretty long way.
HB: Got Freiburg, seven, seven hours fifteen.
JDB: Freiburg.
HB: Freiburg. Yeah.
JDB: Yeah. That’s in, down in the south of France. Down near the Swiss border.
HB: Right. Yeah. But you still, I see even you have still got these gardening operations dropping mines.
JDB: Oh yeah. Yeah.
HB: What, ‘cause did they not count?
JDB: Oh yes they counted.
HB: They counted then did they?
JDB: Oh yeah. One of them was a long distance. We went up to Oslo Fjord with one.
HB: I’ve got one here marked it just says operation, ops gardening Norwegian waters. Six one thousand eight hundred pound mines.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And that was six hours forty five, that one.
JDB: Yeah that would be the one up Oslo Fjord.
HB: So, what, what was the threat there, Derek? Do you know?
JDB: What do you mean?
HB: Well you were mining off Norway.
JDB: Well we were mining in the Kattegat and the Skagerrak. We were mining channels, shipping channels which were taking troops and goods from Germany to Norway.
HB: Ah.
JDB: That was the thing. The danger to us there was flak ships mainly.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. [pause] Yeah, Yeah.
JDB: Say nothing Sue. Thanks.
HB: You’re very kind. Thank you. We’ve just had out refreshments delivered. Absolutely superb. Thank you. There’s just one little thing in here just caught my eye and that’s, where are we now? [coughs] Excuse me. November 1944. The 28th. You’re flying AS G-George and you’ve got flying officer Knott, George Knott. And then you’ve got a Flying Officer Yates.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And you’ve got written in there fighter affiliation Y bombing, practice bombing Alkborough.
JDB: Yeah. That was a non-operational. It’s blue.
HB: Yeah. Oh right.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: ‘Cause it just said -
JDB: A training flight.
HB: It just says six bombs and then it says sixty five yards dash twenty thousand.
JDB: Sixty five yards area at twenty thousand feet.
HB: [cough] Excuse me.
JDB: He was George’s buddy.
HB: So what would he just have been?
JDB: He was another pilot.
HB: Yeah. Just for the hell of it or -
JDB: I don’t know why.
HB: Would he be observing?
JDB: I can’t remember why they were both together. I’m sure.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: I don’t even know what we were doing. I can’t remember that.
HB: Right. And then the following, the following day you go to Dortmund and again one of those, “Aircraft damaged by flak again.”
JDB: Oh that was a gaggle flying day.
HB: A gaggle flying day [laughs]. Go on then. You’re all flying in a V formation? No?
JDB: Well, we went in to briefing. I remember this one, we went to briefing and the CO stands up there and says, ‘Right gentlemen today you will be gaggle flying as an experiment.’ We said, ‘Yes. Alright. What’s gaggle flying then?’ He said, ‘Well what you do you all take off as normal then we want one of the squadron aircraft to formate on another one of the squadron aircraft. Say you got two and all form up in twos like that and then all the twos, when you’re all ready, sort of close in together carefully and that’s called gaggle flying and the reason you’re doing that is because we’re having a bit of a charmed life at the moment but we’re going to get bounced if we’re not careful.’
HB: Right.
JDB: So we’ve got to be, we’re practicing some defensive formations.
HB: Ah right.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Right. That, that makes, that makes sense a bit now.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So this was a way of bringing you together.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: To increase your fire.
JDB: That’s it.
HB: Your fire power as a defensive thing.
JDB: Yeah. And it was a bloody disaster I might say.
HB: Was it?
JDB: Yeah. It was on that day.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Because, if I remember, was the, was the target Dortmund?
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Well we got into this gaggle flying thing and we had the lead aircraft had got three, I think, flight commanders probably but they painted the tail fins all bright yellow on the three leaders and they formed up into a Vic.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: To lead the formation. Everybody then packed in behind them you see.
HB: Oh blimey.
JDB: That was the theory.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: So we start off and it was daylight of course. We went over the Rhine and, no we didn’t, before we got to the Rhine we detected that we were I think it was three minutes early, going to be three minutes early on target so the lead navigator ‘cause being in this bloody gaggle we had to follow the leaders you see and the, the leader decided that to lose the three minutes we were going to do a dog leg. A three minute dog leg. You do, if you’re flying there you do a forty five degrees three minutes, forty five degrees back and join up where you were and then you’ve lost two minutes or three minutes whatever it was.
HB: Right.
JDB: So, so we’re doing this dog leg and where does the apex of the dog leg take us do you think?
HB: Oh no.
JDB: Straight over Dusseldorf.
HB: Oh my.
JDB: Bang. Bang. Bang. You know.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And there were bloody aircraft going everywhere you know. I saw, I saw a Lanc go across and take a tail off another one.
HB: Oh no.
JDB: Oh yeah. It was, it was dreadful. You wouldn’t do gaggle flying at night anyway you see would you?
HB: No. Well, it sounds dangerous enough in the daytime.
JDB: So I don’t know whether they did any more gaggle flying. I didn’t.
HB: Yeah. So was that, was that, so that would be your squadron plus -?
JDB: It was probably the whole of 1 Group I should think. At least.
HB: Right.
JDB: I could find out. It’s in the diaries.
HB: Oh no. No. Worry not. Worry not. Yeah. Yeah. Oh right ‘cause -
JDB: While I think about it.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Can I just tell you Harry?
HB: Yeah.
JDB: The “Bomber Command Diaries” which I’ve got.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I’ve told you about.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: It was out of print when we looked. Now the other week Sue and I went to East Kirkby.
HB: Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Right.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And they’ve got a good bookshop in there.
HB: Yes they have.
JDB: As you know I’m sure.
HB: Yes they have. Yes.
JDB: And blow me what did they have there a soft back “Bomber Command Diaries” so it’s in print again.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: But in soft back.
HB: Yeah. Like we, like we were saying earlier on what I’ll do, what I’ll do is I’ll check with Dr Dan Ellin who runs the oral history.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And the digital project. I’ll check with his office and with Peter Jones who you spoke to on the phone.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: But I’m fairly confident that that’s been mentioned before.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So I’m fairly confident they’ll have a copy.
JDB: Sure to have been –
HB: Yeah but if they haven’t then obviously -
JDB: Yeah but they’ve got, they’ve got it in soft back at East Kirkby.
HB: And that’s, yeah, oh right well I’ll point him at that if we’re missing one of them
JDB: Yeah. Anyway -
HB: Yeah ‘cause we’re leading up here we’ve come to December ‘44 and we’re leading up to this business at St Vith.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: For the Battle of the Bulge. I mean, I’m looking at this and you’ve gone what one two three four, you’ve gone four night ops, not too many days apart and I think your last, your last one in your book, in your logbook on that one is -
JDB: [Sights?]
HB: C mining off Kattegat. That was a night flight.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: But you got diverted to Lossiemouth.
JDB: Wait a minute. Oh no that was the, that was the Oslo Fjord one when we got diverted Lossiemouth.
HB: Right.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Right. ‘Cause that again, I mean that’s damn near six hours.
JDB: Yeah. Yeah.
HB: That one and then you had, you had one that you had because you had to fly out of Lossiemouth base obviously.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: But then you had one which was abortive on the 21st of December. You only got an hour in the air on that one.
JDB: Oh that was, that was sea mining.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Yeah it was, the H2S was U/S.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: So we couldn’t do it.
HB: I mean just, the H2S is the, in the aircraft what purpose does the H2S have?
JDB: Well it’s ground mapping radar.
HB: Right. Right.
JDB: It was essential for sea mining because we used to use a identifiable spot on the coast or whatever which was a good return on H2S on screen. You get a good return and you can identify and that’s a datum to start from where to drop your mines.
HB: Right.
JDB: Normally. As it happens that one on Oslo Fjord it was a visual because it was in a channel. An island in the mainland that we were mining. We did it visually.
HB: Right. And then on the 26th we’ve got the Battle of the Bulge going on.
JDB: Yeah St Vith.
HB: Yeah and that’s four hours ten minutes.
JDB: Yeah. Well it was a fairish way you know.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Nearly in the Ruhr isn’t it? Not far from the Ruhr valley.
HB: And this is, this is the, this is the op we were talking about earlier where you’re at Kirmington.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And just take me through it again because this is, this is intriguing to me. You’re actually still lining up and the airfield is covered in fog.
JDB: Yeah. The whole of Lincolnshire was under a blanket of sea fog which had rolled in and it was there for a day or two.
HB: Right.
JDB: And you know we got up on, got out of bed early, very early, like 3 o’clock on Boxing Day being, still being under the influence a bit and I remember George -
HB: You’d had a good Christmas, you’d had a good Christmas.
JDB: Climbing up the ladder to get in to the aircraft. It wasn’t our aircraft actually. It was Alan Yates’ aircraft. Ours, ours was already got some mines loaded on it and once they were loaded on to an aircraft they were not taken off.
HB: Right.
JDB: Until they were dropped. So old George climbed up the ladder to get in and it slipped and he fell and it sobered him up.
HB: So you’d all been on the beer the night before then.
JDB: Well it was Christmas Day.
HB: For Christmas. Yeah.
JDB: We’d got a truce supposedly.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: And then there we were hurtling over frozen France.
HB: So, so you go out first thing in the morning, get the aircraft ready.
JDB: No. Well, it was ready. No -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: We went straight to briefing.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: When you got up, you get a bloke come in, at that time in the morning a corporal come around the hut saying, ‘Wakey wakey get your feet on the deck,’ you know.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Briefing at so and so. And everybody did, you know.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Went and sat in the aeroplane and waited to hear some verey cartridges go off which were white ones. Scrub.
HB: What, what could you on that one, the first one on that day then what could you see from the aircraft?
JDB: Nothing.
HB: Absolutely nothing.
JDB: No, could just, you couldn’t see anything. It was absolutely dense and, but it was only about two hundred feet off the deck you see.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: It was like a blanket had been rolled down.
HB: Yeah. So that one got knocked on the head. That was -
JDB: Well it just scrubbed.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And you go back to the buses would take you back to the, we went back to the mess, I think, not even to the briefing room.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And then they’d say briefing again, re-briefing or, I can’t remember we had a re-brief or we went straight to the aircraft.
HB: Yeah and the second time obviously the aircraft is still bombed up and ready.
JDB: Yeah. All ready to go.
HB: And was that AS B Baker?
JDB: Well it wasn’t our aircraft.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: It was Alan Yates.
HB: Yeah sorry it’s in your book here AS B Baker. Yeah.
JDB: Baker. We considered to be ours was AS Charlie.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. I’ve noticed there’s a lot of AS Charlie in there.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Definitely. Yeah. So, so you’ve gone back to the aircraft and it, and it’s still covered in fog.
JDB: Yeah and we sit there and think are we going to get another scrub? We did have another scrub. We had two scrubs as I remember and then eventually we got there. Eventually we were waiting for the scrub and it came time to start engines and this time there was no scrub so we started the engines and then we see a marshaller with two bloody lamps doing this in front of him, ‘follow me,’ sort of thing
HB: So he was circling his lamps telling you to get in behind.
JDB: Yeah. Telling us to get going and we followed him to the end of the runway.
HB: Oh blimey.
JDB: And set the gyro up to the heading and let it go.
HB: So you’re actually taking off on a compass bearing as opposed to -
JDB: Yeah. That’s right. Absolutely.
HB: Visual.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Blimey. I bet that was a bit -
JDB: Yeah. It all worked alright as it happened. Yeah.
HB: I like that phrase. It all worked alright and there were, there were, I mean obviously no problems for yourself but I presume everybody else got off as well did they?
JDB: Oh yeah. Yeah.
HB: And you say it was only up to about two hundred feet.
JDB: Yeah. You know. Sort of, we got off the deck and started climbing out and we were still on full boost and we were out in clear sky.
HB: Oh lovely.
JDB: Absolutely clear. Wonderful.
HB: So when you looked down all you can see is –
JDB: A blanket of fog.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And then, and then obviously the op starts. You’re off to St Vith.
JDB: Went down over the south coast somewhere. I think we crossed over the coast somewhere round about Brighton I should say.
HB: Yeah. And then what would you do? You’d sort of turn up a bit wouldn’t you?
JDB: Yeah. Yeah we did, we sort of -
HB: Go up to it.
JDB: Yeah. Went across the channel and then sort of turned left and headed towards Belgium I suppose.
HB: Yeah, because you had quite a, quite a good old bomb load on there.
JDB: Yeah. Well it was a short range, you see you used to measure it. If, if we went to the aircraft and we said, we would say to the armourers or the ground crew, say ‘How much petrol have we got on boys?’ They’d say, ‘You’ve got a full load skip.’ And say, oh in that case we’ve not got many bombs and we’re going a long way.
HB: Right.
JDB: If we’d got a full bomb load like seven tons it was a full bomb load and the minimum fuel. You wouldn’t be going very far.
HB: So you, you always had a rough idea.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: What you might expect before you even got to the briefing.
JDB: Well if we’d been out to the aircraft.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: And checked. Yeah.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: In fact the last one, our last raid was to Zeitz, which was right over by Leipzig and you know being your last trip we thought oh bloody hell but then again we were getting well on over that way then.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. Well, I was going to say because it’s pushed on now I mean, I mean St Vith I’ve given you that photograph of the Lancaster actually -
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Involved in bombing St Vith. I mean it looked, it looked fairly clear as a target.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So I’m presuming, it’s like you said, I think you said to me on the phone that it was frosty and bright.
JDB: Oh yes it was.
HB: All the way.
JDB: Yeah. Yeah.
HB: All the way but you still managed to get yourself damaged by flak again.
JDB: Well we didn’t. No.
HB: Which is becoming a bit of a habit Derek.
JDB: We didn’t. No. I’ll tell you what there weren’t much flak at all because any flak that was coming up was a bit sporadic and it would be from their, you know their ATH which could be used as ground artillery or anti-aircraft.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: But, no there wasn’t much at all. It was when we got back we were in the circuit at Binbrook and we were going around and I was looking out of the window and it was on the starboard side and I was looking out the window I said.
HB: On the what side?
JDB: Starboard.
HB: On the starboard side.
JDB: Yeah
HB: Right.
JDB: I said, ‘Hey Skip, there’s a bloody hole in the wing.’ So he said, ‘Where?’ I said, ‘Well, between the two engines.’ And he said, ‘How big is it?’ I said, ‘I don’t know. About six inch across I suppose.’ He said, ‘Oh we’ll have a look when we get down.’ So when we landed we parked on the bloody grass somewhere. They had Lancasters parked everywhere at Binbrook.
HB: And that was because -?
JDB: It was the fog still.
HB: This is the business where Binbrook was sticking up out of the fog.
JDB: Yeah. That’s right. Yeah.
HB: The only one you could get in.
JDB: That’s right.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: So we got out and had a look at this bloody hole in the wing and it was a nice neat hole on top and underneath it was a jagged metal hanging down so obviously a shell had gone up and come down and gone through the wing coming down.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: And it didn’t explode.
HB: Oh that was lucky.
JDB: So we were dead lucky again.
HB: So how far away would that hole be from the fuel tanks then?
JDB: Right between them. It might have been clip on.
HB: Blimey. That’s another -
JDB: I’ve got a model of a Lanc somewhere with the fuel tanks in.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: So –
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I could show you a bit.
HB: Yeah I mean it’s, I mean that’s that’s another one like the other one goes off right next to the bomb bay and that one goes through right through.
JDB: Right.
HB: Right through the fuel tank. Do you want to grab your tea Derek because it will be getting cold?
JDB: Oh yeah. That’s alright. I let it get cold.
HB: Can you reach it? Do you want me to grab it?
JDB: No. It’s alright I can reach it.
HB: Right.
JDB: No problem.
HB: Yeah. ‘Cause that, I mean as I say the bits and bobs I’ve read about the St Vith raid was it, was it was, it was very accurate and it -
JDB: Well it should have been. It was in broad daylight.
HB: [It didn’t stop?]
JDB: At about I think we bombed from about ten thousand feet which was only about half our normal operational bombing height.
HB: Yeah. That’s, yeah that’s, that’s pretty, pretty tight there. And then we’re in to 1945.
JDB: I’ve got some battle orders. I don’t think I’ve got one for that. It tells you. Have you got any battle orders?
HB: I’ve seen them. I’ve seen them and they’ve got, they’ve got quite a few but I mean that’s that’s something, you know like I said we’ll come on to after we’ve -
JDB: Oh some people have got a load of them.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. When we’ve had a bit of a chat I’ll explain to you in more detail what we do about copying stuff and that.
JDB: Fair enough.
HB: But yeah I mean I mean we get to January and it says here this is to certify that Flight Sergeant Bailey JD has completed his first tour of operations.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: At 103 squadron Elsham Wolds and 166 squadron at Kirmington.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Blimey. So that’s what 44.35 hours with 103 and 130 hours 10 minutes with 166. One hundred and seventy four hours.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Which is a fair old time in the air that, Derek.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: What of that, of that as you obviously, you know you’ve come to the end of your tour. What, what was you feeling at that time about how Bomber Command were doing or how things were going?
JDB: Well I don’t know. I didn’t have any particularly hard feelings as far as I recall. I went home on leave and I had my twenty first birthday.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: No. I’ll rephrase that. I went home on leave, indefinite leave pending a posting.
HB: Right.
JDB: Somewhere else and eventually I got a gram, report 90, I think 90 OTU isn’t it at Lossiemouth?
HB: 20.
JDB: 20 OTU.
HB: Yeah two zero OTU.
JDB: Yeah, that’s it.
HB: It says Wellington.
JDB: That’s right.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Report Lossiemouth forthwith and so I spent then my twenty first birthday, all of it, travelling from South Wigston to bloody Lossiemouth.
HB: Oh dear. Well it’s, you know, I mean everybody else has a party. You were on a train. I suppose -
JDB: Well we all did it and I -
HB: Yeah.
JDB: You know, you wonder, well if I’d taken another day nobody would have even known.
HB: No. I was curious Derek because obviously we’ve got to, you know, early 1945.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And D-Day has happened and -
JDB: That’s right while well we -
HB: Heading for the Rhine and everything else. I just wondered how, you’ve done, you’ve done your tour, you know, you, you’ve spent that time in the air, and I was just was wondering how, what your reaction was. Like, you know your tour’s finished and how did you feel in yourself that things were going to go?
JDB: Well a bit of relief I suppose.
HB: Yeah. And what did you think the future held for you at that point? ‘Cause obviously the war’s still going on but -
JDB: Well, well what happened was I went to Lossiemouth as I would say and I was teaching. I was a bombing instructor. I did various courses and all the rest of it and I became commissioned and I was in the bomb plotting office one day and in, one of the flight commanders walked in and said, ‘I’m going back on ops, who’s coming? I want a bomb aimer.’ You know. And I said to him, I stepped forward and joined him and we got a crew together and we went off to Swinderby to join Tiger Force and we were going to Okinawa. That was what I thought at the time.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And then, I must have been bloody mad.
HB: Well I was just going to ask you the question Derek. You know when this, this sorry I’ve forgotten, I’ve forgotten the name your said that came in and said, ‘I need a bomb aimer.’
JDB: Oh you won’t know that. It was one of the flight commanders.
HB: Oh right. So, so nobody actually sort of -
JDB: Well he’s in there actually, as a pilot then when I was at Swinderby.
HB: Right. We’ve got Yates, Lomas, Kennedy, Richards. Oh no. That’s, you’re still instructing there I think.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: I think you’re still instructing there, Derek. Where are we? Hang on. Yeah. Circuits and landings. Ah 1660 Conversion Unit Swinderby.
JDB: That’s it.
HB: Johnson.
JDB: That’s him. Johnson.
HB: Flight lieutenant Johnson. Yeah.
JDB: Johnson.
HB: Because the question I was going to ask Derek was I mean I’ve heard of Tiger Force and I’ve done a little bit of reading about it but this guy comes in and says, ‘I’m looking for a bomb aimer,’ and did you actually, anybody, sort of think to sit people down and say, ‘Look. We’re forming Tiger Force and we’re going to go out to the Far East,’ or was it all just you know well sort of word of mouth. A rumour or something.
JDB: Well I don’t know. I mean it got whispered around I suppose. I mean Tiger Force was basically number 9 squadron.
HB: Right.
JDB: Well, it was, no, start again 5 Group.
HB: Right 5 Group. Yeah.
JDB: 5 Group became Tiger Force and this guy knew. He got to know somehow or other and he decided he wanted to go back on ops.
HB: Right.
JDB: And he was a squadron leader and to go back on ops he had to duck a, duck a rank. He went back to flight lieutenant.
HB: Flight Lieutenant. Oh right so ah that explains it then because it threw me. So he’s, he’s a wing commander.
JDB: No. No.
HB: Sorry a -
JDB: A squadron leader.
HB: A squadron leader but because he wants to carry on operationally.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Right. He then comes down to flight lieutenant -
JDB: Yes.
HB: While you’re at 1660 Conversion Unit at Swinderby.
JDB: Yes.
HB: Blimey because I mean, I’m looking, just looking in your logbook here so it’s all you know back to the trade.
JDB: That was Flight Lieutenant Johnson.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah. Oh that that makes sense now. That makes sense now. Lots and lots of cross country training and night, and a lot of night flying there.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: On that one.
JDB: We had to do that conversion because he did his first tour on Halifaxes.
HB: Yeah. Ah right. Yeah. That explains it then.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: That explains it. Yeah. And that takes you up to the 5th of September 1945 and then we’ve got 7th of September 1945 you’re signing, you’re signing that off and that’s your summary for number 1 course.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: I don’t know. It’s quite a lot of, there’s quite a lot of stuff in there Derek. It’s, I mean, we’re, I’m sort of skating over it a bit because I know, you know, you’ve written various things about your time there. I mean one of the things I’m interested in and the archive is interested in is you come, you come to, you come to the end of your time operationally.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: You’re sitting at, where were you? I’ve forgotten where you were now? You’re still at Swinderby.
JDB: No. Operationally?
HB: Yeah.
JDB: No. I was at Kirmington.
HB: So you went, so, yeah. You finished at Kirmington on your tour of operations.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: You then go to Swinderby to do the conversion.
JDB: No.
HB: ‘Cause -
JDB: After, after Kirmington I went to Lossiemouth as an instructor.
HB: Ah right. Right. Yes. Sorry. Yes I’ve turned, I’ve turned two pages over in your book, in your logbook Derek. Unforgiveable really. Yes. That explains it and then from Lossiemouth you end up at Swinderby. So you come, you come to the end of that time and the war in Europe’s finished.
JDB: Yeah and the Japanese war.
HB: The Japanese, the Far East has finished. What did you, what was your feeling then? You’ve come to the end of it all. You’ve survived.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: How did you feel about all that?
JDB: Well, I wanted, at that point I wanted to stay in the Royal Air Force.
HB: Yeah.
IJDB: I didn’t want to come back to Civvy Street and I applied for a extended service commission.
HB: Yeah. Sorry -
JDB: So -
HB: That’s me knocking the table. Sorry mate.
JDB: It’s alright.
HB: Yeah, you, so you applied for -
JDB: An extended service commission.
HB: Right.
JDB: I was, at the time, when I, when I got to this I was, I became an equipment officer, made redundant aircrew and became an equipment officer. So I applied for an extended service commission and I couldn’t get an answer from air ministry despite being at a command headquarters and having access to the [peace tap?] that I still couldn’t get an answer so I had to make up my mind if I was going back to civvy street or not at that point and I was under threat from my employer who would have been, or my potential employer again, about, you know, saying, ‘You either come now, don’t you dare sign on for any longer. Either you come back now or there will be no job.’
HB: Right.
JDB: So I had to make my mind up and in the end I opted to come out. Yeah.
HB: So that would have been mixed feelings really then wouldn’t it?
JDB: I was, like so many other people Harry, I was confused.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I must say. I was confused.
HB: You know from other people I’ve spoken to it was the majority of people found it a difficult time. I mean in the wider context, I mean you’ve taken part with Bomber Command in, you know, a major part of the European war, and the theatre of war so what was, what were your feelings, what were your feelings about your part in all that?
JDB: I don’t know. I didn’t really consider it.
HB: Right.
JDB: I didn’t feel, are you talking about the guilt?
HB: What, however you felt about it.
JDB: No.
HB: You know, I’ve heard so many different -
JDB: No. I never felt any guilt whatsoever.
HB: Right.
JDB: Because I thought we were doing what was demanded of us to do and what we needed to be done.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And no more than that.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: But I know that some people did have reservations and, I don’t know. It’s a very very difficult question that, Harry.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: It really is.
HB: What, what did you think about any sort of support or the government’s view, after, afterwards?
JDB: Hereafter. Well there was a bit of cheating went on wasn’t there? I mean you’ve not mentioned the dreaded word have you?
HB: No. Go on. You carry on Derek.
JDB: And the dreaded word is, clever of me isn’t it? I can’t even remember the dreaded bloody word. What raised all the Cain about bombing? Where was it? In Eastern Germany.
HB: The target.
JDB: Yeah. The target. Yeah.
HB: Dresden.
JDB: Dresden. Thank you. That’s what caused all the trouble at the end was Dresden. I never bombed Dresden. I finished long before that. But if I’d been given orders to bomb Dresden I would have bloody bombed Dresden. End of story.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: To be honest I didn’t know enough about Dresden at the time.
HB: No.
JDB: I didn’t know enough, much about a lot of the places that I –
HB: No.
JDB: Plastered. But I mean the talk about Dresden and all the rest of it you could equally pick on places like Freiburg, or Freiburg which is in my book.
HB: Yes.
JDB: There was, the casualties in Freiburg were nearly as horrendous as, as Dresden and that was not for the type of place it was but they got it wrong. Somebody got it very very wrong on an intelligence basis because Freiburg was meant to be packed full of troops defending the Rhine.
HB: Right.
JDB: At it’s southern end.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And it proved not to be the case but it was very lightly defended. It was, it was, as far as Bomber Command was concerned it was an easy target really.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: And I do think that some people, including me had certain misgivings about that when we knew but we didn’t know at the time. We didn’t know. It was just another target but it was afterwards when they released information that you thought well that really, really wasn’t quite right you know.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: But what can you do? You can’t put the clock back.
HB: No. That’s, that’s true. That’s true.
JDB: And whether any other places came up like that I really don’t know.
HB: No. I mean it obviously you’ve come to the end of your RAF and you’ve made that difficult decision to -
JDB: Yeah.
HB: To pick up your civilian life again.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: So, what, you come back to Leicestershire to start working for, was it Edling?
JDB: Edling
HB: Yeah
JDB: And then we had nationalisation of the transport industry if you recall.
HB: No. I’m still a bit slightly a bit young for that Derek.
JDB: Yes.
HB: But yes I have read about it.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: And so -
HB: So by now you’re twenty, twenty two.
JDB: What? When I came out?
HB: No. Yeah twenty, just trying to work it out. Twenty -
JDB: I was twenty three.
HB: You were, yeah twenty three.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Sorry. So you’re twenty three. Footloose and fancy free. You’ve got your demob suit and your RAF half a wing.
JDB: [laughs] Yeah.
HB: And what’s, what’s Bill Bailey doing, doing now? What’s he, what were you -
JDB: What? Now, Bill
HB: What were you looking forward to then? You’ve picked up your civilian life again.
JDB: Well I was working in the transport industry. I moved on to another company. I spent forty years with Star Roadways. Over forty years actually and that’s it. What one might call a normal life I suppose.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I spent twenty years in the Air Training Corps.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: After I’d, after a spell. I retired when I was fifty six so, and I did twenty years so I must have been thirty six when I got talked into doing the Air Training Corps.
HB: Because you, ‘cause you got, you got a rank through the Air Training Corps didn’t you?
JDB: Oh yeah. I retired as squadron leader.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I got a letter from the air ministry. Well it’s not the air ministry is it? But thanking me for my service.
HB: Just, just stepping back now into the war just two quick sort of questions for, just for you to have a think about. Tell me. What was, what was the silliest daftest thing you can remember?
JDB: The daftest?
HB: Yeah. In your, in your service, in your operations.
JDB: That I did.
HB: Well whoever, whatever.
JDB: Oh.
HB: As long as it’s clean mind.
JDB: I think, I think [laughs] I require notice of that one.
HB: Well that’s why I don’t tell people.
[pause]
JDB: Oh dear. I don’t know. The daftest thing. There must have been some.
HB: Yeah. Did you, did you all go out as a crew to the pub when you were on stand down?
JDB: Well, we did in, especially up at Kirmington yeah.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Because there was nowhere else to go other than the pub in the village.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Which was called the Marrowbone and Cleaver. Commonly known as The Chopper. And -
HB: How did you get down there? Bike. Bus.
JDB: Well no it was only -
HB: Anything with wheels.
JDB: [a bit?] away from where we, where the huts were. We were in Brocklesby Wood in nissen huts. It was a, what did I, I don’t know.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: I can’t think off-hand of any particularly wild thing.
HB: We’ll perhaps, we’ll perhaps leave that one and -
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Let you come back to that.
JDB: Except when I gave a girl a lift from Barnetby station back to camp on the cross bar of my bloody bike. I got talking to her on the train coming from Lincoln.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And apparently she was going to Kirmington.
HB: Was she a WAAF then or –
JDB: Yeah she was a WAAF.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: She became a good friend and I mean that. Only.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Only that. Wouldn’t have anything else I think.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: The WAAFs were very cagey actually you know.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And rightly so.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And I think it was that you put yourself in the position of a WAAF if you started getting to a very serious situation she’d probably think well Christ I might get pregnant and he might get killed next week.
HB: Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: You know.
HB: Yeah. What was, when you, I mean you moved off Wellingtons and you moved on to lancs?
JDB: Yeah.
HB: What was your relationship with your ground crew like?
JDB: Very very good.
HB: Did you always have the same ground crew?
JDB: Well, when we were at Peplow on Wellingtons no I don’t think we got to know the ground crew hardly at all. Really.
HB: Right. Right.
JDB: On the squadron it was different.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: You were more a team there, there and one of our ground crew was on leave when we did our last operation but he came, he came back from leave to meet us, to see us when we arrived back from our last trip -
HB: Wow.
JDB: That’s the sort of guys they were and funnily enough, where was it I got posted to? Bloody hell.
HB: Was that - ?
JDB: Oh I know. When we got posted to Lossiemouth. That’s right. I and my skipper both got posted to Lossiemouth. When I went up there to be an instructor George went as well and when I got there after that long trip I went down, down the road in the morning and there was an officer coming towards me so I slung one up as you do and then I realised it was my skipper. Yeah.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: And then I met a bloke, a bloke did the opposite to me later on and, an airman, and he turned out to be our bloody engine mechanic.
HB: Oh right he’s air mech.
JDB: And I couldn’t believe it. Ginge we called him.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And he turned out he’d been posted somewhere and he was the bloody camp postman. He’d been made redundant.
HB: Oh right. Yeah.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: Wow yeah.
JDB: I can’t remember where that happened now.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: Oh dear.
HB: Did you, did you manage to keep in touch with your crew after the war?
JDB: Now, that is a very very, what’s the word I want? I don’t know? A funny question because we didn’t.
HB: Right.
JDB: For a, for a long time, no. George, George the skipper he died quite young. He got a DFC by the way, he did.
HB: Did he? Right. Yeah.
JDB: When he’d finished a tour of ops a captain gets a DFC.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And apparently, I didn’t meet him but George died quite young. He was a rugby player rugby league. Played at Wakefield. And he died. I kept in touch with my navigator for quite a number of years. He, ‘cause he emigrated to Canada and he worked in a hospital in Ottawa.
HB: Oh right.
JDB: And I did meet up with him. He used to come over to the UK every year and I did used to meet with him and we used to have squadron reunions up at Hull and I met up with. I’ve got some photographs actually.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: About, how many of us were there? There was myself, Wally, Wally Williams we located and he was my, the flight engineer. He had a bloody hip replacement operation and it killed him.
HB: Oh dear.
JDB: Ron died a few years ago in Ottawa. The mystery is I’ve never, I’ve not been able to find any trace by any means of the gunners. The two gunners. And quite recently I’ve come to a conclusion that it’s possible because during our tour they, I know that Paddy missed a couple of flights with us and we had to take a spare bod and I think it might have applied to both of them. Now if it did when we finished our tour of operations they would have to stay there on the squadron and finish their thirty operations.
HB: Oh right. Yes.
JDB: Spare bodding with somebody else.
HB: Yeah.
JDB: And it may be that they did that and were lost.
HB: Right.
JDB: I don’t, I really don’t know and it’s, I’ve tried all manner of ways of trying to find them and I can’t.
HB: You know, I mean there are one or two bits and bobs now on the internet. We can, we can perhaps have a little look into but well that’s, I thank you for that Derek. Yeah.
JDB: Oh and you know and otherwise, oh Wally Williams we found late on and then he had this hip replacement and died and then his wife lived in Chichester and I’ve not heard from them for a few years so I think she must have passed away as well.
HB: Oh right. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
JDB: Who else was there?
HB: You got -
JDB: Oh Gus I think is still alive. Up in Ripon I think.
HB: Yeah. Yeah. That’s the one you just sent the card to.
JDB: Yeah. Yeah.
HB: What was his name? Wilf?
JDB: Leigh. Wilf Leigh.
HB: Wilf Leigh. Yeah.
JDB: L E I G H.
HB: Right. Wow. That’s made. What, what I want to do Derek is I’m going to finish the actual interview now.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: But obviously there’s some other bits and bobs and I’d like if possible to come back.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: In the future to speak to you again.
JDB: Yeah.
HB: And we’ll record that and we’re just going to have a look through your bag of goodies today. So it’s now twenty to five. It’s, we’re fortunately we’re still on the 7th of December 2016. We haven’t gone around the clock so I’m just going to terminate the interview at this, at this time and then there will obviously be a phase two.
JDB: Yeah. Ok
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 John Derek "Bill" Bailey. One
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Harry Bartlett
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
2016-12-07
Format
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01:57:37 audio recording
Identifier
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ABaileyJD161207
PBaileyJD1607
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Pending review
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Sound
Description
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John Derek ‘Bill’ Bailey volunteered for the Air Force when he was 18 and trained as a bomb aimer in Canada. When he arrived he caught scarlet fever and spent five weeks in an isolation hospital. He flew operations as a bomb aimer with 103 and 166 Squadrons from RAF Elsham Wolds and RAF Kirmington.
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Julie Williams
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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.
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eng
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
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Canada
Great Britain
England--Lincolnshire
Temporal Coverage
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1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
103 Squadron
166 Squadron
83 OTU
Advanced Flying Unit
aircrew
Anson
anti-aircraft fire
Bolingbroke
bomb aimer
bombing
Bombing and Gunnery School
Cheshire, Geoffrey Leonard (1917-1992)
crash
crewing up
H2S
Halifax
Halifax Mk 2
Halifax Mk 3
Heavy Conversion Unit
Initial Training Wing
Lancaster
Lancaster Finishing School
Lysander
Master Bomber
mine laying
Operational Training Unit
perception of bombing war
RAF Elsham Wolds
RAF Hemswell
RAF Kirmington
RAF Llandwrog
RAF Lossiemouth
RAF Sandtoft
RAF Swinderby
RAF Torquay
Tiger force
training
V-1
V-weapon
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/520/8753/ALucasWE170208.1.mp3
80ab136990a1e6cd2bf66c7acb839ff1
Dublin Core
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Title
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Lucas, Bill
William Ernest Lucas
W E Lucas
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Identifier
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Lucas, WE
Description
An account of the resource
15 items. Two oral history interviews with Squadron Leader Bill Lucas DFC (1917 - 2018, 1255396 Royal Air Force), his log book, brief memoir and photographs. He served as a pilot with 9, 15, 139 and 162 Squadrons. After the war he ran in the 1948 Olympics.
The collection was catalogued by Trevor Hardcastle.
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William (Bill) Ernest Lucas was born in Tooting Bec, London on the 16th January 1917, 3 years deep into World War One. Luckily for Bill he was not of age to endure with the fighting in the trenches. However, when Europe was engulfed into another worldwide conflict in 1939, this set way for Bill to become involved with the RAF and IBCC.
Growing up, Bill was an only child and left his school (Bec Grammar School) at the age of 15. He managed to get a job with a printers, which led to his second and only other job at an insurance company called the London and Lancashire. The company’s sports club enabled Bill to find his passion for athletics (especially running) and he was expected to participate in the 1940 Olympics until the war interfered. (https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/30884)
A photo of Bill in his running gear is shown in https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/30865 where he is running down 55 Graham Road in Surrey.
Bill instead competed in the 1948 Olympic Games as the games were also cancelled in 1944 due to World War Two. Luckily the games were hosted in London (https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/london-1948) and Bill had retired from IBCC meaning that he had time to participate.
As seen in ‘Bill Lucas and the 1948 London Olympics’ (1948) https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/document/30866 Bill managed to come 6th in the Second Heat meaning he was one position off of being in the final on the 2nd August 1948! This collection also includes Bill in his older prime wearing his 1948 Olympic Games jacket and the official Olympic Games programme from 1948.
When Hitler invaded Poland on September 1st 1939, Bill was 22 years old meaning that he was eligible to be part of Great Britain’s Army. Combining Bill’s hatred of the sea and his fathers recent experiences in the trenches, the RAF seemed to be the most compatible choice with Bill. (https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/520/30884/B[Author]LucasWEv10001.jpg)
Bill was not involved in Britain’s mightiest air conflict against Hitler’s Luftwaffe however, instead watching ‘The Few’ defeat the Nazi aircrafts and succeed. Being considered to be Nazi Germany’s first ‘major military defeat’, this allowed for Britain to continue fighting in the war (https://www.raf.mod.uk/our-organisation/our-history/anniversaries/battle-of-britain/ and to an extent, allowed Bill to continue his path of becoming an Squadron Leader.
It was November 1940 when Bill started his pilot training, but due to a bomber offensive being the only way to properly counter the Nazis, this was huge not just for Bill but Britain as a whole. There had never been a bomber offensive before in warfare. https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/520/30884/B[Author]LucasWEv10001.jpg
As seen in Bill’s official Pilot’s Log Book: (https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/520/24264/LLucasWE122826v1.1.pdf) his training consisted of being part of 16 Elementary Flying School at RAF Derby from 1940 to 41 , 8 School of Flying Training at RAF Montrose in 1941 and 20 Operational Training Units at RAF Lossiemouth in 1941 . He flew three different types of aircraft during his training, Miles Magister, Miles Master and Wellington I’s.
Bill’s training finally finished in August 1941 and he was posted to his first official squadron, IX Squadron at Honington. Here he flew the Wellington Bomber.
Will Cragg
Record of Service:
4 November 1940- 4 January 1941: 16 Elementary Flying Training School at RAF Derby flying Miles Magisters
9 January- 4 May 1941: 8 School of Flying Training at RAF Montrose flying Miles Masters
31 May 1941- 13 August 1941: 20 Operational Training Units at RAF Lossiemouth flying Wellington I’s
14 August 1941- 4 November 1941: 9 Squadron at RAF Honington flying Wellington III’s
4 November 1941- 30 December 1941: 26 Conversion Fleet at RAF Waterbeach flying Stirling’s
30 December 1941- 1 August 1942: 15 Squadron at RAF Wyton flying Whitley V’s
1 August 1942- 3 August 1942: 218 Conversion Fleet at RAF Marham flying Airspeed Oxfords
4 August 1942- 18 August 1942: 19 Operational Training Units at RAF Kinloss flying Whitley IV’s
19 August 1942- 13 August 1942: 3 Fighter Instructor Schools at RAF Hullavington flying Ansons
17 September 1942- 18 September 1942: 19 Operational Training Units at RAF Kinloss flying Halifax II’s
18 September 1942- 24 October 1944: 19 Operational Training Units at RAF Forres flying Mosquito III’s
30 October 1942- 19 December 1944: 1655 Mosquito Training Unit at RAF Warboys flying Mosquito IV’s
30 October 1944- 19 December 1944: 1655 Squadron at RAF Bourn flying Mosquito XX’s
7 June 1945- 28 June 1945: 162 Squadron at RAF Blackbushe flying Mosquito XXV’S
28 June 1945- 29 January 1946: 139 Squadron at RAF Upwood flying Lancaster III’s
29 January 1946: Station Head Quarters at RAF Upwood flying Mosquito XVI’s
William Cragg
William (Bill) Lucas was born on January 16th, 1917 in Tooting Bec, London. He was educated at Bec Grammar School, and left at the age of 15 to work at a printing company before moving to the insurers London and Lancashire to work as an assessor. While working there, he developed his talent for athletics with the Belgrave Harriers, with his best discipline being the 5000 metres. His goal was to compete at the 1940 Olympic games. However, in 1940, Bill was called up to help the war effort and mindful of his father’s advice to avoid the army and his own dislike of the sea, he chose to join the RAF.
Initially he trained as a fighter pilot on Miles Magisters and Miles Masters, but by the time he had finished training, the Battle of Britain had been won and the need for bomber pilots was more urgent. So, he was reallocated to bombers and trained to fly the Wellington at RAF Lossiemouth. Bill Lucas · IBCC Digital Archive (lincoln.ac.uk)
Following completion of pilot training in August 1941, he was posted to RAF Honington and joined 9 Squadron flying Wellingtons. He flew 14 operational sorties – notably Cologne and Hamburg – before converting to Stirlings at RAF Waterbeach. He then joined 15 (Bomber) Squadron at RAF Wyton, flying the Short Stirling and, by August 1942, Bill had completed a full tour of 30 operational sorties (over 40 operations in total). Bill experienced tense encounters with German defences, having to take evasive action and also getting caught in a cone of five or six searchlights. To get out of the searchlight glare he had to do things with the aircraft which it was never meant to do. Returning from one mission they flew too close to Kiel and the airframe amassed a lot of bullet holes and an alarming loss of fuel. Crossing the North Sea, the tank indicators showed practically nothing and they had to divert into Woodbridge in Suffolk. The groundcrew estimated there was less than twenty-five gallons of fuel left (probably less than 6 minutes of flying time).
He was released from operational duties and was posted to RAF Lossiemouth as a flying instructor. Then in December 1944, he returned to operational flying and was posted to 162 Squadron, part of the Pathfinder force, to fly the Mosquito, an aircraft he described as “a bit quicker and more responsive; a nice aeroplane”. He completed a further 34 operational sorites with 162 Squadron, including missions over Kiel, Berlin, Hannover and Magdeburg. In recognition of his war services, Bill was awarded the DFC and was Mentioned in Despatches.
Squadron Leader Bill Lucas was released from the Service in January 1946 and returned to the insurance job he had left to join the RAF. Eventually, he left the company to become an insurance broker. He also returned to athletics and the Belgrave Harriers; he ran in various internationals and competed for Great Britain in the 5000m at the 1948 London Olympics. Athletics remained with him for the rest of his life and he gave his spare time freely, working in prominent roles in the administration of athletics. He remained a Belgrave Harrier committee member well into his 90s. He became known as “the golden voice of British Athletics” for his many years as stadium announcer at the White City .
In his later years, Bill remained prominent in RAF and Aircrew Associations. He, along with a small Band of Sussex veterans, was instrumental in helping to raise funds for the construction of the Bomber Command Memorial in London’s Green Park and the International Bomber Command Centre.
Chris Cann
1940: Volunteered for the RAF
4 November 1940 – 4 January 1941: RAF Burnaston, No. 16 EFTS, flying Magister aircraft
9 January 1941 – 4 May 1941: RAF Montrose, No. 8 SFTS, flying Master aircraft
31 May 1941 – 13 August 1941: RAF Lossiemouth, No. 20 OTU, flying Wellington aircraft
14 August 1941 – 4 November 1941: RAF Honington, No. 9 Squadron, flying Wellington aircraft
1941: Commissioned into the officer ranks
4 November 1941 – 30 December 1941: RAF Waterbeach, No. 26 Conversion Flight, flying Stirling aircraft
30 December 1941 – 1 August 1942: RAF Wyton, No. 15 Squadron, flying Stirling aircraft
1 August 1942 – 3 August 1942: RAF Marham, 218 Conversion Flight
4 August 1942 – 18 August 1942: RAF Kinloss, No. 19 OTU, flying Whitley aircraft
19 August 1942 – 13 September 1942: RAF Hullavington, No. 3 FTS, flying Oxford aircraft
17 September 1942 – 18 September 1942: RAF Kinloss, No. 19 OTU, flying Whitley and Anson aircraft
18 September 1942 – 24 October 1944: RAF Foress, No. 19 OTU, flying Whitley and Anson aircraft
30 October 1944 – 19 December 1944: RAF Warboys, 1655 MTU, flying Mosquito and Oxford aircraft
19 December 1944 – 7 June 1945: RAF Bourn, 162 Squadron, flying Mosquito aircraft
7 June 1945 – 28 June 1945: RAF Blackbushe, 162 Squadron, flying Mosquito aircraft
28 June 1945 – 29 January 1946: RAF Upwood, 139 Squadron, flying Mosquito and Oxford aircraft
29 January 1946: Released from Service having attained the rank of Squadron Leader.
Chris Cann
Transcribed audio recording
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Transcription
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CB: My name is Chris Brockbank and today is the 8th, Wednesday the 8th of February 2017, and I’m in Cowfold with Squadron Leader Bill Lucas DFC, and we’re gonna talk about his experiences of life, starting with what are your earliest recollections of life, Bill?
WL: Well, I was born on the 16th of January 1917 to poor parents and my father was a bricklayer, er, in Upper Tooting, er, we lived in Upper Tooting all the time. I went to a school, a primary school, and then I went to the Beck Grammar School, as it was then, in 1928 I think it was. I was there until 1942 and, er, that’s it [slight laugh].
CB: So, what age did you actually leave school?
WL: Oh, I was fifteen, was it?
CB: Okay.
WL: Fifteen.
CB: School leaving age was fourteen in those days.
WL: Yes.
CB: What did you do immediately after you left school?
WL: I, um, I worked for a firm down in Surrey somewhere and they were a printing firm, and I was there for about — oh, quite a few months, and then my mother, who had got me introduced to the insurance company, London Lancashire, um, Insurance Company, and I eventually joined them in — oh, don’t ask me the date but I, I did, yes.
CB: Yeah, and during that time you were quite an active, athletic youngster?
WL: Um, whilst I was in the insurance company yes. I was inured into athletics and became a good athlete with Belgrave Harriers, where I’ve just completed eighty-, eighty-one years.
CB: Brilliant. So, you were working for this insurance company and then doing your running in the evenings were you, and the weekends?
WL: Oh yes. Training at weekends.
CB: Training at the weekends.
WL: At weekends and the evenings. Yes.
CB: Yeah and, er, when the war started you were still with the insurance company, were you?
WL: Oh yes.
CB: Now, what made you choose to join the RAF rather than the Navy or the Army?
WL: Well, I was taken to a — or had to go to be seen by a doctor at some school in Croydon, and, er, he said to me, ‘which service do you want to go in?’ I said, ‘well, my father was in the Army and he said — he put me against that. I don’t like water so I’ve got to join the RAF’. So he said, ‘what do you want to do in the RAF?’ I said, ‘well, there’s only one thing to do in the RAF, that’s fly’ see. So he did a few probings around and said, ‘well, you’ll never fly’. I said, ‘oh, why not?’ He said, ‘well, you’ve got a large heart and you won’t pass the [unclear]’. So, you know, I persisted with, with this and said, ‘well, my large heart is because I’ve been an athlete and it doesn’t usually preclude anybody doing anything’. So — but, um, but eventually it worked out that I did.
CB: So, where did you report first?
WL: Oh, er, what first?
CB: For the RAF.
WL: Uxbridge I think it was.
CB: And what did you do there?
WL: Well, I was only just seen there, et cetera. Why did we go there? Now after that, we went down to Torquay.
CB: You didn’t go to Lord’s Cricket Ground?
WL: No, I don’t think so, no.
CB: Okay.
WL: I don’t remember that.
CB: And what happened at Torquay?
WL: We spent time doing ground work and that sort of thing.
CB: This was an ITW was it, Initial Training Wing?
WL: Yes, at Torquay and Babbacombe.
CB: What were the main activities there?
WL: Oh, it was going through ground work, weather, and all that sort of thing.
CB: And at what stage did you know that you were going to be trained as a pilot?
WL: What age was I then? Oh, you’ve got me on a bad day actually.
CB: Okay. Never mind. We can come back to that.
WL: What age was I? Could I have been?
CG: Twenty-one, twenty-two?
WL: Yes, something like that, yes.
CB: So, you joined up in ’39, did you?
CG: ’40.
WL: No.
CB: Not ’40?
WL: No, not ’39, no. I was dragged in in ’40.
CB: Okay. So, after Torquay, then where did you go?
WL: Where did I go?
CG: His log book will help.
WL: Oh, that’s what the log book’s for [slight laugh]. I went to, um, 16 EFTS at Derby.
CB: Right.
WL: That was flying little aeroplanes and then on to AFTS, Advanced Flying School, at Montrose, where we transferred onto a fighter type aircraft. That didn’t last long, and so we finished up at 20 OTU Lossiemouth on Wellingtons.
CB: So, what was your choice, really of — ideally would you have preferred to be in fighters or bombers?
WL: Well, seeing how I survived bombers, definitely that. I don’t think I’d have survived as a fighter pilot, I would probably kill myself.
CB: Too adventurous, were you?
WL: [slight laugh] Something like that.
CB: So, after you start, you did the OTU on Wellingtons. Where was that?
WL: That was in May ‘41.
CB: Yeah.
WL: Three months.
CB: Whereabouts?
WL: Mm?
CB: Whereabouts?
WL: Lossiemouth.
CB: Oh, that was Lossiemouth. Right. Which then took you to —
WL: 9 Squadron at Honington.
CB: What were the bombers there?
WL: We were there three months.
CB: What were you flying there?
WL: What was I flying? Um —
CG: The 1C.
WL: Wellington 1Cs, yeah, and 3s.
CB: But that was fairly short.
WL: Then to a conversion flight at Waterbeach, learning to fly the Stirling and then I went to 15 Squadron at Wyton.
CB: How did you like the Stirling?
WL: Oh, yes, I quite liked it. Bad on the ground, good in the air. Spending time with 15 Squadron at Wyton.
CB: Still on Stirlings, were you?
WL: I was on Stirlings, yes, and then with a conversion flight at Marham, onto Mosquitos.
CB: A bit different.
WL: Yeah. A bit quicker, a bit more responsive, nice aeroplane.
CB: And which role was the Mosquito operating in?
WL: Mm?
CB: Which role was the Mosquito operating in?
WL: Which role?
CB: Was it, was it as a bomber or was it as a anti-shipping or was it a night fighter or —
WL: Night fighter and a bomber, yes. Right. What next?
CB: Yes, I just wondered how you got on with the Mosquito and, er, what sort of raids?
WL: Oh, I got on very well with the Mosquito.
CB: What sort of ops did you do on them?
WL: I did marking for the main force and general, general bombing raids, yeah.
CB: This is before Pathfinders is it? Oh was it actually Pathfinders?
WL: During the Pathfinder period, yeah.
CB: Because Pathfinders gradually worked up, didn’t they?
WL: Oh yes. It was well run. It had a good leader and we did a lot of good work.
CB: On the Stirlings, were you on bombing raids with those or not?
WL: Mm?
CB: When you flew the Stirling —
WL: Yes.
CB: Were you — the raids? You went on ops with that did you?
WL: Oh yes.
CB: Bombing?
WL: Bombing raids.
CB: What sort of height?
WL: Night, night bombing raids.
CB: Yes. Was the Mosquito day and night or only night?
WL: Oh, only night. Yes.
CB: Okay.
Other: Apart from the three thousand bomber raid.
CB: In the thousand bomber raid.
CG: All three of them.
CB: Yes.
CG: In the Stirling.
CB: So what about — in the Stirling, did you go on the thousand bomber raid?
WL: Yes. 30th of May 1942.
CB: Mm. That was quite a busy —
WL: Cologne.
CB: Route.
WL: The thousand, yes. [slight laugh]
CB: To what extent could you see other aircraft when you were flying there?
WL: Oh, always.
CB: And then there were other large raids?
WL: Oh, yes. There were always more.
CB: What did you do after Mosquitos at Marham?
WL: What happened?
CB: Or, or was that a long tour?
WL: Well, it was only a two-day conversion course at Marham.
CB: Yes.
WL: I went to 19 OTU at Kinloss.
CB: Right.
WL: Oh my brain. It’s just not working.
CB: Do you want to have a break?
WL: I don’t think it will be any faster really.
CG: Have a break.
CB: We’ll just have a — stop there for a mo —
WL: I am a hundred years — [background noise] serving on two other four engine aircraft, squadrons, four of us, four squadrons up there doing that, and we were put in a newly built, um, building which was very damp et cetera and that’s where we slept. That was, that was —
CB: This was on operations?
WL: Well yes, yes.
CB: What were you flying then?
WL: I was flying — what was I flying? I was flying the Stirling, was I?
CB: You were flying the Stirling, yeah. And when the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau went through the Channel, what were you flying in order to —
WL: I wasn’t flying. I was just, um, I’d just joined 15 Squadron and on the same day that happened and the CO got everybody on board that could to look out —
CB: Look out for the ships?
WL: Yeah. As Cherry said, we —, I — we said that if we’d been — we did it from low down. If we’d emerged anywhere near them, we’d have been shot out, out of the sky.
CB: And what was the main attack? What aircraft were in the main attack?
WL: Er —
CB: So you were looking out but who was doing the bombing, supposedly?
WL: I was only just looking out, yes. The squadron were doing the bombing, if any.
CB: But this was with Stirlings?
WL: Mm?
CB: This was with Stirlings, was it?
WL: Yes.
CB: Right and the Navy were doing their bit as well.
WL: Oh yes, with what they call —
CB: Stringbags.
WL: Mm?
CB: Yeah. Stringbags, Swordfishes.
WL: Yes. Stringbags.
CB: Yes.
WL: Oh, you’re stretching my mind.
CB: Okay. We’ll stop again. So when you went to Kinloss, you were an instructor on the OTU?
WL: Oh yes, yes.
CB: So, how did that work? You —
WL: Well, you took crews out on night flights and all that sort of thing and cross country flights and, you know, trained them as, as bomber crews.
CB: Yes and, er, how, how dangerous was that?
WL: [slight laugh] Well, you were the passenger without any, any means of flying the aircraft.
CB: Where — so it had a full crew and the pilot, trainee pilot, was the captain —
WL: Well you trained the crew, you see?
CB: And so where would you be? Did it have dual controls?
WL: No, no, no.
CB: So you stood next to him did you?
WL: I sat next to him, yes.
CB: Oh, you sat next to him.
WL: Yes.
CB: Right.
WL: Well, on the step below the pilot’s seat. The pilot up, just up there and you sat down there.
CB: Could you see out, er, fairly well, or was it pretty difficult?
WL: Oh yes, yes. You’re stretching my mind.
CB: Yes. So did you have any hairy moments with the students?
WL: Not that I really recall, no.
CB: And those Wellingtons, were they new and up to date or —
WL: Oh, far from it.
CB: Were they old and knackered?
WL: Far from it. Old 1Cs.
CB: And could you fly on one engine with the, er, Wellington?
WL: Yeah, it flew on one engine. Yes. Most aircrew, most aircraft could fly on lesser engines. They were designed that way.
CB: How did you feel about being an instructor away from the front line?
WL: [slight laugh] I don’t know how I felt. I suppose, I suppose I was a good instructor and that was all they needed of you. [sigh]
CB: I’ll stop again.
CG: You had got a couple of ops more than the rest of your crew, hadn’t you?
WL: Oh yes, yes.
CG: And then his — the rest of his crew were taken on the next operation by another pilot and lost.
CB: This is on Stirlings?
CG: On Stirlings on 15 Squadron.
WL: All but one.
CG: But Bill didn’t know until about three years ago. He thought the whole crew had been lost and then through, um, Facebook and doing our Bomber Command things, somebody in the United States, somebody somewhere got to hear about it, and it transpired that —
WL: Well, I had a picture, I had a picture in one of the Sunday papers, Sunday Telegraph —
CB: Yes.
WL: And they picked it out and, and the boy, the boy said, ‘Oh, that was my father’, and, er, it followed from there.
CG: His — and his flight engineer had survived. He had been ill on this trip apparently and he’d survived and he —
WL: He did another trip. He was a sergeant as an engineer, he survived to do another tour and became a warrant officer and got a DFC.
CG: And Bill found out about three years ago and he was like a dog with two tails [laugh]. He was so thrilled and, and you had lunch with the grandson, didn’t you?
WL: Yes, we did.
CG: Bill, they’ll probably, they’ll want to record that so you’ll need to repeat it, but I just thought I’d jog it because, because this thing about losing your own, your crew. I mean, you was quite upset that another pilot had lost his life for him.
WL: Oh yes.
CG: That —
WL: I’d flown a number of trips with them so naturally to lose them was, was a great harrowing.
CB: What was it that caused you not to be on that particular op and another pilot had to do it?
WL: Because I’d done my stint. I’d, I’d come off, come off and left them to it.
CG: It was the stage when they did second dicky trips so he would do his — or he would do his dicky trips and those counted as ops, so the pilot was often two or three ops ahead of the rest of his crew, you see?
CB: Mm. Yes.
CG: Anyway, they will need to record that probably Bill, so —
WL: Mm?
CG: They’ll need to record it so you’ll have to say it all again [laugh].
WL: What exactly have I got to say?
CB: Okay. So the question — the point here I think is the trauma of —
WL: Of the loss of the crew?
CB: Losing a crew.
WL: Yes.
CB: And so if we could start, please, with why it happened. Is it, was it because you’d finished your tour of thirty ops?
WL: Yes.
CB: And then —
WL: Well bit more than thirty but —
CB: Okay. How many had you done by then, roughly? It doesn’t matter. You’d done your tour but the crew went on.
WL: That’s right.
CB: So what happened there?
WL: At the end of my period of —
CB: This is on Stirlings.
WL: Operational work on Stirlings, I finished my tour and, er, left the crew. The crew still had a few trips to do. Another captain took them over and, er, lost them, all but except the —
CB: The flight engineer.
WL: The — what is he?
CG: The flight engineer.
WL: Flight engineer, um, and lost them and, er, I was very sorry about that because, you know, we got very close together with a lot of trips behind us.
CB: Mm.
WL: Mm.
CB: How did the crew gel in general? So you did the full tour but how well did the crew gel during operations and —
WL: Oh very well, we went everywhere together.
CB: Yeah.
WL: Yeah.
CB: And what about on the social side?
WL: Yeah, and on social side. We all went drinking together.
CB: Yeah, and were — did you have a mixture of officers and NCOs or were, were all the crew at that point NCOs?
WL: No, no. I had a mixed lot, you know.
CB: What — when were you commissioned? Immediately you joined?
WL: When was I commissioned? I don’t know.
CG: May ’42.
CB: Some people were —
CG: May ’42.
WL: May ’42.
CB: Okay. Whilst you were on the squadron. That squadron?
WL: Must have been.
CB: Okay. Right, we’ll stop there.
WL: [background noise] Earlier in the war, um, he was there.
CB: Mahaddie?
WL: I didn’t know him well then but we got to know him very well later. And he remembered me, so he then put me forward to go onto Mosquitos.
CB: Mm. Right.
WL: That’s as how I see it anyway.
CB: And what was, what were, what were the main strengths that Mahaddie had? What was he particularly good at?
WL: He’d done God knows how many, um, bombing trips, early on. One hundred and twenty-odd of them.
CB: Mm and his role in Pathfinders was what?
WL: Mm?
CB: What was his role in the Pathfinders?
WL: Oh, I don’t know. I suppose he must have been second in command to the boss man, whose name I can’t think at the moment.
CB: But was his role to select suitable candidates for being Pathfinders?
WL: Oh, I think, I think he was, yes. That you’ll never know whether they were good, bad or indifferent.
CB: Right. So, in your OTU how did you grade some of these pilots because there must have been various different abilities? How did you find that?
WL: Well, they had to reach a standard before they could move on to go on to squadrons.
CB: Mm.
WL: That’s what we were teaching them to do.
CB: Yes and then you were required to grade between exceptional, good, average and below average.
WL: Was I? [slight laugh]
CB: [slight laugh] And I just wondered how you —
WL: I don’t think I did, I was. I think my, my CO did that. I certainly didn’t do it.
CB: No. I’m just intrigued to know whether you were consulted in that process in order for that assessment —
WL: Oh, no doubt I was but it was a long time back.
CB: Yeah, and some of the people didn’t complete the course, did they, or would you imagine?
WL: Oh, must have been plenty that didn’t. I can’t remember any of that.
CB: That’s okay. That’s okay. So after OTU where did you go then?
WL: Went to 3 FIS Hullavington. What did we do there? Oh, Hullavington was a training thing for, for, um, teaching and I had a course there on being able to fly and talk at the same time. [slight laugh] So —
CB: So was that before you went to OTU? Because you were learning to be an instructor?
WL: That’s right. That was learning to fly and talk.
CB: Yes.
WL: And then I went to 19 OTU Kinloss.
CB: Yeah. So after Kinloss?
WL: Oh, I had two years at 19 OTU Forres, part of Kinloss.
CB: Part of Kinloss, yeah, yeah. What was the accommodation like up there?
WL: It was quite good. We were in nice, nice huts. Yes, up the road from the mess really. We had to walk or we all had a bike and —.
CB: How were the instructors housed? Did you have two in a room or three or how did it work?
WL: Er, certainly more than one, two I think, yes.
CB: Wooden huts or Nissen huts?
WL: Oh, wooden huts.
CB: Suitable for officers.
WL: Now you put Nissen in? [slight laugh], it could, yeah, it could have been Nissen huts.
CB: I was thinking of the comfort.
WL: They were alright, yes, yes. We all had a stove in the middle of the floor et cetera, to keep you warm.
CB: Yeah, and what about the food? What was, what was the quality of the food like when you were at an OTU?
WL: It was acceptable, I suppose you could say.
CB: But on the operational stations it was different?
WL: Oh yes, they treated us well there. Had the expenses of giving you eggs and bacon before you went off and when you came back [slight laugh].
CB: Has that affected your long term interest in bacon and egg? [slight laugh]
WL: Hardly, I love bacon and egg.
CB: I do. Got to have fried bread though.
WL: Mm?
CB: You must have fried bread with it.
WL: Oh yes
CB: So after Kinloss, at the OTU for two years, and Forres where did you go?
WL: I went to an, the MTU at Warboys where I learnt to fly Mosquitos.
CB: Right [pause] and that was a fairly short course I imagine.
WL: Oh yes, a couple of days, that was all.
CB: Followed by?
WL: To be posted to 162 Squadron at Bourn, in Cambridgeshire.
CB: At where?
WL: Bourn.
CB: Oh, Bourn, yes.
WL: Bourn without an ‘e’.
CB: Yeah. Not to be confused with Lincolnshire. And what was your —
WL: And I was there for, er, six months.
CB: Right, and what was your role there?
WL: Oh, I was a bombing and marking pilot.
CB: Right.
CG: Pathfinder.
CB: So could you just talk us through a Pathfinder sortie? So the main force would be following, would be flying along and needing markers. Did you start — did you set off after the main force had already left because of your speed or did you integrate with it at the front? Or how did it work?
WL: Oh, we didn’t see the main force. We had to arrive at a time when we flew H2S on the Mosquito which —
CG: Did you have Oboe?
WL: Had Oboe, yes.
CB: You wouldn’t have had H2S on a Mosquito, would you?
CG: No, it was Oboe.
WL: H2S Mosquito. Yes. Yes.
CB: Oboe.
WL: Where you flew — where you flew — I forget what you did. You flew —
CB: Confluence of the lines.
WL: You flew a beam —
CB: Yes.
WL: Et cetera, and then photographs and et cetera, and you, you dropped the marker on that spot, yes.
CB: Did you have more than one colour marker so that you could go round again, or did you tend to just be in and out?
WL: Oh, in and out. Yes. I don’t think — I don’t remember any bombing raids where you went round a second time.
CB: Right. And I was think — yes. Okay. And was the — your sortie on its own or were there several Mosquitos together doing the marking on a single target?
WL: I can’t — I honestly wouldn’t know. It depended on what, what the bosses said.
CB: Mm. I was thinking —
WL: Funny question that.
CB: I was just thinking of the amount of flares that you’d be using, coloured markers I mean, um, whether your load would be enough?
WL: That’s all we had to do was fly the beam and then drop as instructed, so how many flares went Lord knows.
CB: Mm.
WL: Not within my remit.
CB: Okay. So you did that for six months.
WL: Yeah, something like that.
CB: How many ops were those roughly? Was it as many as when you were doing the —
CG: Forty.
WL: I haven’t a clue.
CG: It was forty Bill.
CB: Forty
WL: Forty-odd, yeah.
CB: Okay. So at the end of that six months, then what did you do after that? Did they think you needed a rest?
CG: It was the end of the war.
CB: Or did the war come to an end in Europe?
WL: Oh yes. It was finished and the, er, aircraft, we were flying did some trips round Europe dropping mail, um, where we landed at Blackbushe, and then I finished up at — you know, the squadron joined 139 Squadron at Upwood before being dismantled in January ’46.
CB: So this was all Mosquito flying was it?
WL: Yes.
CB: Yeah. So compared with the Stirling, which was clearly a different aeroplane, which one did you really prefer?
WL: When it comes to aircraft I love them all. They brought me home.
CB: Mm, people have different affections —
WL: Well —
CB: For different planes for different reasons.
WL: Well, you could hardly compare a Mosquito with a Stirling. So different aircrafts.
CB: Yes but my experience is that people have a huge allegiance to their aeroplanes.
WL: Oh we all loved them. [slight laugh]
CB: Yeah. Yes. Okay, we’ll stop for a mo.
Other: [unclear] Windows stuff.
CB: No, that’s different.
WL: Window was you’d have this strip stuff which —
CB: You didn’t drop Window —
WL: Big aircraft pumped down the chute.
CB: For jamming the radar, yes. You were with Pathfinders, but were you Pathfinding on every sortie, every op, or did you do other sorts of operations?
WL: Oh, I did plenty of others.
CB: And what would they be?
WL: Just dropping a — the cookie, yes.
CB: Yes, so could you describe the cookie?
WL: I can’t.
CB: It’s a four thousand pound barrel.
WL: Four — five thousand pound bomb.
CB: Yes. What’s in it?
WL: Something that explodes.
CB: [laugh] What about locations? What was the worst place to bomb?
WL: I suppose they all were because they were all, they were all protected, yes.
CB: Mm, and how many trips did you do to Berlin?
WL: Fourteen.
CB: What was your reaction to flying there compared with somewhere like Essen?
WL: It’s a target.
CB: The flak?
WL: Oh, well —
CB: The same everywhere, was it?
WL: Yes, it’s all —
CB: Or were they more organised?
WL: If you look at the picture there behind, that is what you see.
CB: Yeah.
WL: That is flak.
CB: Yeah. Were you pleased to move away from Wellingtons to bigger, more modern aircraft?
WL: Well, whether I was pleased or not, I was drawn off of Wellingtons and put on Stirlings, so that’s what the Bomber Command wanted, so that’s what they got.
CB: What were the limitations of the Stirling in your perception?
WL: Well, its speed wasn’t huge and it only had an operational height of about sort of twenty thousand.
CB: With the Mosquito, you could go —
WL: Oh well, you could go thirty-five thousand.
CB: So at what level would you normally fly on a typical Mosquito op?
WL: Oh, twenty thousand or something.
CB: And when you did the marking as a Pathfinder was there — how soon, how far ahead of the main stream were you to do the marking?
WL: Well, whatever the Bomber Command wanted.
CB: I was just thinking of —
WL: I didn’t have any say in it.
CB: No, no, but I wondered whether you could see them arriving almost immediately or there tended to be a, a lag.
WL: Well, it was flying home you could see the bombs dropping and well, you could see the explosions.
CB: Yeah and as the smoke got thicker, did another marker come along to re-set the target?
WL: I haven’t a clue.
CB: So you didn’t have to do that?
WL: No, no.
CB: No. I’m stopping for a mo. [Background noise]. So on a raid, as I understand it, there would be a master bomber. Would he be sometimes in a Mosquito, or always in a Lancaster or a Halifax?
WL: I couldn’t tell you.
CB: ‘Cause he was calling up what —
WL: Well, well you’d hear him but you wouldn’t see him.
CB: Yes. Right. What was your endurance on the Mosquito? Could you hold over the target if it was a long way away?
WL: Mm?
CB: Could you actually circle a target in a Mosquito if it was a long trip, or was the endurance not sufficient? ‘Cause the Lancaster master bomber would be circling, wouldn’t he?
WL: Well, you could. You are asking some impossible questions.
CB: That’s okay. I don’t mind if you can’t answer. I’m just curious because of some of the other bits that have come out. Yes. Thank you. Because we want to know what people’s perceptions were.
WL: It was a very long time ago.
CB: Yeah. I’m stopping again.
WL: [background noise] Scotland.
CB: Right.
WL: The Whitley was the aircraft at, er, Kinloss.
CB: Was it?
WL: Yes.
CB: Yes. So what was the Whitley like in terms of —
WL: Oh, a little worse than the Wellington. A slow aircraft.
CB: Yeah. They’d been all withdrawn from service some time before.
WL: Mm?
CB: They’d been withdrawn from frontline service.
WL: Oh yes. They were replaced by, by the Wellington I think, yes.
CB: Yes. What was the handling like because it was an old design?
WL: Very heavy.
CB: And, um, what about reliability?
WL: Of the Whitley?
CB: Of the Whitley, yeah.
WL: I haven’t a clue.
CB: It might have been its saving grace.
WL: The ground crews would look after them. They always seemed to be flying to me.
CB: Yeah. And on the topic of ground crew, what was your relationship on the — first of all on the Stirling squadrons, squadron, with the ground crew? How did that work?
WL: You had a ground crew, yes.
CB: Yes. How close did you — how closely did you liaise with them?
WL: Well you got quite friendly with the sergeant, yeah.
CB: Yeah, and you talked about the crew being very cohesive and social events as well as in the air. Did the sergeant, your chief, did he get involved in that or did the aircrew tend to —
WL: Not usually, no.
CB: No. Was he not invited or just not thought to be —
WL: Wasn’t protocol.
CB: Right. You also flew the Anson for a bit. Why was that?
WL: The Anson was only a transport aircraft, used when you wanted to transmit somebody or carry something, or, or go somewhere.
CB: Yeah. Now throughout the war people were supposed to be fit. You were a very fit person before you joined. How did you maintain your fitness during the war?
WL: Well, I tried to do a bit of running but I never really found time to do it.
CB: And your running was, um, well recognised before the war. What did the war do to it.
WL: [laugh] what did the war do to me? It deprived me of going to, er, two events 1940 and ‘44.
CG: The Olympics.
WL: The Olympics.
CB: Yeah, so what did you do instead?
WL: Mm?
CB: What did you do instead?
WL: I don’t know.
CB: Retribution.
CG: You bombed Hitler [laugh].
WL: I bombed Hitler instead, yeah. [slight laugh]
CB: So you missed those two Olympics, then what happened in ‘48?
WL: Well, I was in them.
CB: Were you in the Air Force at the time?
WL: No.
CB: Right. And what was it like at the Olympics in 1948?
WL: I don’t remember now.
CB: You — I mean it was a huge achievement to go there.
WL: Yes.
CB: But the winner that time was — in 1948?
WL: The what?
CB: Who was the winner?
WL: The winner?
CB: In your particular speciality in 1948?
WL: Oh —
CB: Emil Zatopek
WL: Zatopek. Yes.
CB: Did you meet him again afterwards? Or was that the end?
WL: Well, it was no good meeting him. He couldn’t speak English and I couldn’t speak Czech so —
CB: Right. [slight laugh]
CG: Bill did actually run against Zapotek in his heat.
CB: Did he?
WL: Yes.
CB: Yes. And after those Olympics did you — you still kept up your running did you?
WL: Good Lord, yes. I did eighty-two years with Belgrave Harriers.
CB: Yeah. Right. And you were running the Harriers, weren’t you?
WL: Well, I wasn’t running all the time, but I was doing administrations.
CB: Yeah. Did you feel after the ’48 Olympics that you would have a go at the next one, or did you think that was one step too far?
WL: After?
CB: 1952 in other words.
WL: Have a go doing what?
CB: At the Olympics, enter the Olympics again in ’52.
WL: Oh, not to perform, no.
CB: No.
WL: I couldn’t possibly, could I? Think of the age I was.
CB: Well, some people go on and on, as you have.
WL: Well, it depends on your event.
CB: Yes.
WL: But you can’t do fifteen hundreds or five thousands unless you’re pretty fit. If you want to run a marathon, then you might do it.
CB: Yeah. And how did you fit in your running and all your activities with Belgrave Harriers with your job?
WL: Oh, it was all evenings and weekend work.
CB: Yes. And the company itself was sponsoring you, was it?
WL: I didn’t need sponsoring.
CB: Your employer? I was thinking for time off and —
WL: Oh no. I didn’t take any time off because of it.
CB: Everything was done in those days differently.
WL: They did indeed, yes.
CB: Yeah. How did you develop programmes with Belgrave Harriers for people in future? As time was moving on, did you run? Did you work out training programmes to improve people’s effectiveness?
WL: Oh no, no. They’d all do their own [pause], oh, um, Belgrave met up at Wimbledon on Saturdays and during the week if necessary. Otherwise you did your, did your work on your own from home, running round roads et cetera.
CB: Right. Changing back to, um, your occupation, you left the RAF at the end of the war or were they — did they keep you on for a while?
WL: You had your option of going on a short service commission, without any assurance that you would be kept at the end of that period so I didn’t.
CB: So your promotion had got you to where?
WL: My?
CB: Your promotions got you to what rank in the end?
WL: In the war?
CB: Yes.
WL: Squadron leader.
CB: Right, and what were your responsibilities as a squadron leader at that time?
CB: I looked after a flight, um, in the Pathfinder Force.
CB: Right. Okay. How many people —
WL: I was OC a Flight.
CB: Right. How many aircraft in the squadron? So how many in a flight?
WL: Twelve probably. There you are. So, twelve I think.
CB: In the squadron or the flight?
WL: The flight.
CB: Yeah. Right so three flights in the squadron or two.
WL: Two usually.
CB: Yeah. Right. So you left because you didn’t feel you wanted to continue your career, is that what you said?
WL: No guarantee to it.
CB: Yeah.
WL: I had a job to go to so I came back to the job.
CB: Mm, and took up where you left off, effectively?
WL: Yes, yes, exactly.
CB: How did it progress from there? Did you keep going with that or —
WL: Oh yeah, I did quite well in it.
CB: Yeah. Good. We’ll take a break. Thank you very much.
CG: What was the equipment you were given? A blazer?
WL: Blazer and, um, shorts.
CB: Who gave you those?
WL: And, er —
CG: A cap.
WL: A cap.
CB: What? The Olympic Committee did that, did they?
WL: Yes.
CG: Just minimal and he got the — didn’t you get the train from home to go and take part?
WL: Oh yes, yes.
CG: There was no Olympic village or anything.
CB: So how did this work then?
WL: I lived in Sanderstead, which is outside Croydon. I had to take a bus down to Croydon, a train to Victoria, Victoria to, to —
CG: White City, was it?
WL: No.
CB: Wembley?
CG: Wembley.
WL: Wembley. Walk in from there.
CB: This is all for the honour of serving your country in the Olympics.
WL: All for the honour of serving my country and what am I getting for it? Sweet —
CG: Carol enclosed those in an envelope [unclear]. [Background noise]
CB: Now just going back a bit. The first thousand bomber raid was an amazing achievement, however you look at it, but was there any significance about some of the aircraft? What about the one you flew? What was that?
WL: Stirling.
CB: Yeah. And did it have a significance in itself on — who had paid for it?
WL: Er, I don’t think so. We had a little bit better navigation equipment.
CG: MacRobert’s Reply. You flew MacRobert’s Reply.
WL: It might have been, yes.
CG: I think you said it was. It’s in your book.
WL: Yes.
CB: So, do you just want to describe that? What was it, the significance of MacRobert’s Reply?
WL: Well, Lady MacRoberts had two sons she lost during the war and in return for that, she bought replacement, um, aircraft.
CB: Right.
WL: That was the sig— significance.
CB: And they were Stirlings?
WL: Oh yes, yes.
CB: Appropriate. Scottish family, Scottish name of the aircraft.
WL: Yes. Bound to have been.
CB: And you flew one of them?
WL: I few one of them, yes.
CB: And it was on that raid was it?
WL: I think it was, yes.
CB: Yes. When you were on a squadron, did you tend to fly the same aircraft all the time or did you move around to different ones?
WL: Oh, you had your own aircraft and you flew it whenever you could, according to availability, you know, whether it was serviceable or not.
CB: Mm, and that would be checked out with you, er, you had to sign for the plane before you took off, did you?
WL: Well, that was part of the ground, um, operation, yes.
CB: Yes, with, and who was the person who handed over the aircraft?
WL: Sergeant.
CB: Of the ground crew?
CB: Yes.
CB: Right and if, if yours wasn’t serviceable they would rustle up another, is that it?
WL: They would try to but if they couldn’t then they couldn’t.
CB: And you didn’t go.
WL: Didn’t go.
CG: Are you sure you haven’t done enough though?
CB: Yes.
CB: This interview was cut short because Bill was clearly was getting too tired. He’s done an amazing job when one considers his recent car accident and also his hundredth birthday celebrations as well as all the media attention associated with that. The interview was in company with Cherry Greveson.
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
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Interview with Bill Lucas. Two
Creator
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Chris Brockbank
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2017-02-08
Type
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Sound
Identifier
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ALucasWE170208
Rights
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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.
Language
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eng
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Format
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00:49:45 audio recording
Description
An account of the resource
Bill Lucas DFC was born on the 16th January in 1917 and lived in Upper Tooting.
He left school at the age of 15 and went to work in an Insurance Company, before joining the Royal Air Force in 1939.
Bill was sent to 16 EFTS at Derby and then to an Advanced Flying School at Montrose, before finally ending up at 20 OTU Lossiemouth in 1941 flying Wellington Bombers.
He also spent time learning to fly the Short Stirling before being posted to 15 Squadron at Wyton, where he transferred to Mosquitos becoming a Pathfinder for Bomber Command.
Bill completed over 40 operations with Bomber Command flying various aircraft and after the war, competed in the 1948 Olympics where he competed against Emil Zatopek.
Bill spent time after the war with the Belgrave Harriers and took part and organised activities for over 80 years.
Contributor
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Vivienne Tincombe
Carolyn Emery
Temporal Coverage
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1940
1941
1942
1945
Spatial Coverage
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Germany
Great Britain
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
England--Cambridgeshire
Scotland--Moray
Germany--Cologne
139 Squadron
15 Squadron
162 Squadron
19 OTU
20 OTU
9 Squadron
bombing of Cologne (30/31 May 1942)
Distinguished Flying Cross
Flying Training School
Initial Training Wing
Mosquito
Oboe
Operational Training Unit
Pathfinders
RAF Bourn
RAF Kinloss
RAF Torquay
RAF Upwood
RAF Wyton
sport
Stirling
training
Wellington
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/623/8893/APayneTP160422.2.mp3
fc4b01b6764969b85edb5037558eebd1
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
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Payne, Thomas Peter
T P Payne
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Identifier
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Payne, TP
Description
An account of the resource
Six items. Two oral history interviews with Flying Officer Peter Payne (b. 1925, 1398674, 199071 Royal Air Force)auto biographies and his log book. He flew as a pilot with 90 and 15 Squadrons.
The collection has been donated to the IBCC Digital Archive by Peter Payne and catalogued by Barry Hunter.
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-02-04
2016-07-06
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.
Transcribed audio recording
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Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
CB: My name is Chris Brockbank and today is the 21st of April 2016 and I’m in Hemel Hempstead with Tom Payne and we’re giving a second interview here. It’s the 20th.
TP: 22nd.
CB: It is. Oh the 22nd. Sorry.
TP: Tomorrow is St George’s Day.
CB: Ah.
TP: Which should be a national holiday.
CB: Yes. Quite right. And so Tom is going, as you gather, is a sprightly man and he’s going to start off, please, Tom by your earliest recollections and then right through to at least the end of the war. Please.
TP: Well, I was born in Marlowes, Hemel Hempstead, in a cottage which had two bedrooms and the rear bedroom was accessed through my parents’ bedroom so we couldn’t stay out late and come in without them knowing. I was born in 1925, in December and I already had two brothers but one was much older being born before the First World War. I had one sister. My earliest recollections are of the building of the Public House at the end of our row because originally it was one of our cottages but they built a new one behind it and then knocked down the cottages that had formed the pub. I’ve got a photograph of the day that pub was closed or I assume it was. A picture of a group of men sitting outside and one of which was my dad. He was obviously a very very regular visitor to it and it was only three doors from home and he wouldn’t have any problems. The front of, frontage of the pub had a drive in and drive out when they moved the cottage and it had a row of small wooden posts with iron chains linked between them. But these chains weren’t just ordinary linked. They also had spikes on them. And I remember trying to skip over them and falling and one entered my knee which was very painful and taught me a lesson that you’ve got to make sure you’ve got enough height when you’re trying to clear an obstacle. I went to Bury Road School which was about a mile away I suppose. No buses there. Had to walk. My brothers also went there. Although my eldest brother had been to Boxmoor School because of the war but the cooperation between our neighbours we all went to school together. No mums took us. We just had to find our own way. And no real major road to cross because Marlowes whilst it was a through road you just kept to one side, down Bridge Street and along Cotterells and we were there. Quite a happy crowd at school. The headmaster was newly joined to us but he had a crash on his motorbike hitting a cow which put him in hospital for some months so I didn’t get to know him too well. But the result in 1936 we all sat the exam. The 11-plus. Well before I was eleven of course but I passed for the Central School as did two of my mates at school. So in 1936 I was over to Two Waters Central School which, that consisted of four classes which took you through ‘til you were fifteen. It was a happy school. Twenty boys and twenty girls of each year from eleven upwards but unfortunately after a couple of years the secondary modern education started and the new school was built in Crabtree Lane which housed all 11-plus children from the boy’s school. Separate from the girl’s school. The Central School had to be amalgamated in to the secondary modern because the staff had all got jobs at the secondary modern and the headmaster became headmaster of the Crabtree Lane School. That was a Mr Barnard. More of him later because our paths did cross when I joined the air force but still [pause] I stayed at school until I was fifteen whereas most of the boys around me left at fourteen. But the three Central School chaps from Bury Road we stayed on ‘til fifteen and went into local businesses. I joined John Dickinson’s as a junior foreman which was just running around with bits of paper and collecting the output from the girls on the production machines making paper bags. It was quite interesting but it was boring. Unfortunately, the war had started and my cousin, who was living in Dorset as an only child of my mother’s younger sister [pause. Someone enters the room], sorry. Come. My daughter. Come in love.
CB: That’s fine. Do you want to stop?
TP: Yeah.
[Recording paused]
CB: Sorry love. She’s captain of Bermondsey Golf Club.
TP: Oh right.
CB: Ladies captain I mean.
CB: So we were just talking about the fact that you left school and went to Dickinson’s.
TP: Yeah. Yeah. I went to Dickinson’s
CB: And it was a boring job.
TP: Yeah. The foreman of course above me was also an ex-Central School chap. We got on well together. But my cousin who joined the air force immediately pre-war was an observer on Blenheim’s and he was with 21 Squadron but he was not very enamoured with the flying and the dangers and he did write a letter to an old school chum of his saying he realised it was only a matter of time before they got the chop. The losses were very high at that period and unfortunately in June 1940 he was posted as missing presumed killed which was a hell of a shock to everybody. But I didn’t find out until after the war exactly what had happened to him and his body is buried in France with his other two crew members and he was actually flying with 15 Squadron which I joined later. But we didn’t know that at the time because the losses on 21 had been so great they had to amalgamate them altogether. Still flying out of Wyton but that was the way it went. So that summer I did try. I took the bus in to Watford. Put my long trousers on and I went to the recruiting office but the sergeant there said, ‘Come back when you can shave. ’ So that rather upset me but it meant that by 1941 I decided that I would approach the ministry, the Air Ministry direct. And I had a separate appointment sent to me to report to Euston in November 1941. I was still fifteen but they thought I was nearly eighteen and I got away with it. I was put on deferred service. Given an RAF VR badge which I’ve still got and wear it very proudly and then had to just wait for my call up. One of the conditions of being on deferred service was to attend ATC. Now, Mr Barnard was the commanding officer of 1187 Squadron in Hemel Hempstead so I arrived there one evening and he welcomed me with open arms and said he wondered how long it would be before I came in and I said, ‘Well I have been committed to come to you.’ And he said, ‘What do you mean?’ So I gave him the documents that I had to pass over and he read them through and looked at me and he said, ‘You’re not old enough.’ I said, ‘Well you know that. I know that but they don’t,’ and he immediately stood up, came around the desk, shook me by the hand and said, ‘Congratulations. I know you’ll do well.’ And so I joined the ATC as a deferred service airmen. No uniform but I did attend their lectures and started to learn aircraft recognition and Morse code and all the other little bits that go with it but in April ‘42 I received my call up papers to report to ACRC at St John’s Wood. And there, with ninety nine others, we formed a flight or rather a shower of people shuffling along the road at first but the corporal was instilling into us the discipline of marching. Tallest on the right and shortest on the left and everything else to be able to form up and show a reasonable body of men and after five weeks of inoculations and vaccinations and uniform issue and getting bits of uniform that would fit you we felt reasonable as airmen. Unfortunately, we had other jobs to do and one of them was scrubbing the concrete floors of our billet in Hall Road in North London. So I was limping when I went on parade one day and the corporal called me out and made me report sick because I’d got a very large swelling on my knees. And the doctor, the MO, looked at them and said, ‘Are you very religious?’ To which I said, ‘No. ’ So he said, ‘Well you’ve got housemaid’s knee,’ and as a result of that a directive was issued to all the corporals to provide kneeling pads in the future but we still had to scrub the concrete floors. After a couple of days I was back on normal duties and looking forward to a posting but there was a big hold up in front of us. We learned much later that the influx of potential aircrew was greater than they anticipated and the losses at the far end weren’t high enough to compensate for the people going through. So they extended all the courses. They put in another course for us so instead of after five weeks of ACRC instead of three we did five and then we got posted to a village called Ludlow in Shropshire. And we arrived there — all still a hundred of us but the field had a slope on it. It was very wet. It was raining. There was a lorry already parked inside the field and inside were thirteen bell tents from World War One. And we were told to erect them in a row and allocated join up. Eight in a tent leaving the corporal to share with only four others at the end. He took the four biggest blokes so that was reasonable and we ended up later that evening lying on mattresses on top of our ground sheets with our feet to the pole and our heads to the outside. But if you wanted to get up in the night and go and relieve yourself it was a question of trampling all over other bodies to get out. And I was fortunate. I’d got the position near the flap opening so it didn’t affect me all that much. We stayed there several weeks. [pause — pages turning] Yeah. It was about a month and it was now late June and we got our postings through to ITW. Ours came. We were sent to Torquay. To the Toorak Hotel. And this was in one of the side streets of the town but it was quite a pleasant place and we soon sorted ourselves out into the rooms and we had sheets, at long last and comfortable beds to get into. The only trouble was you had to make your bed every morning. Fold the sheets square with the blankets folded underneath and wrapped around and have the kit laid out on the bed so it could be inspected. The inspection was quite severe and discipline was really tough and one had to learn that the corporal wasn’t your mate or friend. He was corporal and ruled the roost. The rest of the staff were quite friendly. Our officer was a golfer by the name of Sandy Lyle I believe. Our PTI was Spur’s goalkeeper Ted Ditchburn. Very friendly fella. He was a corporal but got promoted to sergeant while on the course. We did cross country runs. Wonderful going through these apple orchards. Bright red apples. So obviously they lost a few of them but when we tried to eat them of course they were cider apples so we soon learned that was not the thing to do.
[Recording paused]
Whilst at Torquay we had regular visits. This was from late June until the November of ‘42 and most evenings in the summer the Luftwaffe would pay us visits with Messerschmitt 109s and Fokker Wulf 190s coming in low over the sea out of the sun. They weren’t seen until the last few seconds and the gunners on the cliff had no option but to start firing at them while they were pulling up over the town and a lot of the damage in the town was caused by the shrapnel from the guns as much as the cannon from the Fokker Wulf 190. It was very disturbing. And they also carried small bombs and they hit the girl’s school which, luckily, they were empty. They were on holiday. But tragically in the — later in that stay there they actually hit the Palace Hotel which was used as a RAF hospital and it housed a lot of the Battle of Britain fighters that had been, pilots that had been burned in their aircraft and the losses I don’t think were actually known at the time. It was all kept secret and nobody knew but I’ve been to a reunion down there and met the nursing staff that were on duty at the time. I was on the duty at headquarters where we just had a 303 rifle and three bullets. Or five I think it was in the end. But mainly it was fire picket duty but we never had any incidents. No problems at all. But several of my friends got injured whilst in the town. They were queuing up for the cinema and the High Street got shot up but apart from the cannon on the 190 there was also the pieces of concrete that were thrown around as potholes were made when the bullets hit the ground and scattered into the crowd. And one of my mates was working helping the rescue and he felt a bit draughty himself and he found blood pouring down his leg and he was a casualty of a piece of shrapnel which was something about eight inches long which had penetrated his fleshy part of the top of his leg and with the adrenalin running and helping everybody else he hadn’t noticed he himself had been injured. He had that as a souvenir to carry around with him but he was in hospital for quite a while, while his wound healed up. I can’t remember the chap’s name. There was too many of us. I spent a spell down there. I had breathing problems with the heat. I spent, I think it was three nights in the Palace Hotel myself. They certainly looked after us but as an AC2 I didn’t get any sort of [laughs] additional help. Anyway, I passed all the exams and became an LAC and the pay increased from two and six to three bob a day. So that was alright. And was posted immediately from Torquay to 4 EFTS up at Brough in Yorkshire for twelve hours flying on Tiger Moths. This was in November to early December ‘42 and I went solo before my seventeenth birthday. Or nineteenth according to the RAF. Then of course it was a question of getting Christmas leave which I was very fortunate enough to do and was posted to Heaton Park in Manchester which was a holding unit where hundreds of potential under-training aircrew of all sorts, shapes and sizes were held. A lot of us were fortunate enough to get private billet accommodation where I must admit that the locals were very very kind to us and looked after us well. The main thing about Heaton Park was the weather. I think it rained almost every day except if it didn’t it was snow. And we had a few diversionary postings from there to other departments where we did some training. One of them was to Filey over in Yorkshire where we went on a commando course in January ’43. And to say it was cold would be an understatement. Our billets were the boarding houses along the seafront. Three or four stories high with sash windows and the strength of the wind coming straight from Russia was enough to keep them rattling all night although we managed to solve that problem with stuffing and with newspaper. I don’t know how long they lasted but I’m sure they can’t still be there now so. [laughs] Unless Everest have done a lot of double glazing. They certainly needed it. And back to Heaton Park and eventually we had a posting to say — you’re off. Nobody knew where but we had a train and it went north and we arrived up in Scotland and found that there was a troop ship lying out in Scapa Flow which was to be our home for a few days and we assumed being as we was up in Scotland that it was heading across the Atlantic and we were going to Canada. But it was rough crossing the Irish Sea first of all and none of us got our sea legs and there was all the food floating up and down the tables in trays. Slopping around down there. It was a revolting sight but once we’d settled it wasn’t too bad. Then of course we had an outbreak of Scarlet Fever. Who brought it on board nobody’s sure but there was quite a lot on our deck that were affected. The result was that the ship, which was really the Empress of Japan and had been re-named Empress of Scotland, still had the name Japan across, carved in the letters on the back of course. But we arrived and went in New York. Zigzagging across the Atlantic with everybody that was available would be up on deck scanning the horizon looking for U-boats. Icebergs were another danger and we did see one or two. But we docked in New York and the first thing was that the military came aboard and all those that were in the sick bay on Scarlet Fever were taken off and rushed to hospitals. And we were then marshalled onto trains which no locals were allowed to come near. We stopped once. I think it must have been around Boston or somewhere and some more people were taken off to hospital with Scarlet Fever. And we eventually arrived in Canada. Get into Moncton where we were all put in isolation and the following day we all had to be examined medically with a thing known as a Schick and Dick test which saw whether you were subject to Diphtheria or Scarlet Fever. If any of the inoculations proved positive you were put in close confinement but the rest that were negative got their postings. Having been put in close confinement you were then put on a course of injections and — but eventually posted and I got to Neepawa EFTS. Did my flying there in March, April and early or mid-May. Passed the EFTS ok. No problems. And got posted to SFTS on Oxfords at a place called Swift Current. However, got to Swift Current, had my last injection and within a matter of days I was in hospital with Scarlet Fever. In strict isolation so I lost all my buddies. A lot of them got washed off the course anyway. Come around to the window of the hospital to wave goodbye. And eventually the few that remained got their Wings in July and got on their way back to the UK. I, on the other hand, remained in hospital until, I think it was the end of May. About then. Yeah. It was in May and didn’t finish my course as a pilot until October when I got my Wings and then got shipped back to Moncton. We were only there a couple of weeks before we were on the Mauritania at Halifax and heading back to Liverpool. That was quite, quite a journey. We were allowed to go home for Christmas from Harrogate where we were to be stationed and after Christmas reported. This was now January ‘44. Having been a pilot for three months there was still no news of any postings. You got dotted around the country and sent to various courses. A little bit of refresher flying in Scotland at Perth and it was always back to Harrogate until eventually in May I got a posting to Feltwell which was number 3 Lanc Finishing School but it wasn’t Lancs for me. It was merely to be their airfield controller while the weeks passed by before I could get to OTU. I was there of course for the D-day period which was quite an event because Feltwell had a grass airfield but with Summerfield tracking. The hut at the end of the main runway was below the hump in the middle of the runway so you couldn’t see the full length and D-day plus two or three we were advised that our American friends would be dropping in on us because they’d got enemy aircraft over their bases to the, in the east of England. We had a few B17s come in. We had gooseneck flares so they were all lit up. But then there was an almighty crash in the — over the hill.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Heard it. [?] Couldn’t find out what it was. Sent an erk on his bike to have a look and he come back and said that two Fortresses had locked themselves together and were blocking the rest of the runway. So I sent them off to douse the gooseneck flares while I stood on the end of the runway with a verey pistol firing reds in to the air. Couple still managed to get in. How they missed the crash I don’t know. More luck than judgement or perhaps the idea was they couldn’t fly. They had no instrument flying experience and night-time flying to them was a hazard. But the other two got down. Luckily, we learned there was no — nobody killed in the crash. A few of them got some minor injuries but most of them had leapt out as soon as the aircraft had hit but one had run up the fuselage of the other and chewed it right the way through but all the airmen, aircrew that were in the back of the Boeing must have got out pretty smart and missed it all. Went around the wreckage in daylight and was amazed at the comfort that was in the B17 compared to British aircraft. I’d been inside the Lancs at 3 LFS but to go inside a B17 with all its sort of [capod?] filled padding which was clipped on to the walls everywhere and I did find a couple of nice rectangular sections which came in use much later in life as a cot blanket for my first daughter. [laughs] But the wrecks were soon removed and I finished my spell at Feltwell and headed off to Cambridge to have a month’s refresher flying before going on to Kidlington where we had another month getting used to flying Oxfords and during that period we went back to Feltwell for a week because they had the beam approach training facilities there which we hadn’t got at Kidlington or Cambridge. So I was, felt at home when I got back to Feltwell for that week. And then, out of the blue in September after being back at Kidlington and finishing AFU I got a posting to 26 OTU at Wing. Thirteen months after getting my wings I was at last going to fly Wellingtons. And there of course the first thing you did at Wing was get crewed up and it consisted of all the aircrews except — all the aircrew except flight engineers. Put in a hangar and you sort of wandered around looking to see who looked a reasonable sort of chap and chose your crew. I picked up a bomb aimer who had befriended a Canadian navigator and between us, the three of us, we then found a couple of air gunners and a wireless operator. We had the two gunners picked at OTU although you only used one on a Wellington at a time. But tragically one of the air gunners let us down. Totally out of the blue. He’d come to my wedding in December. All the crew came to the wedding because we all had Christmas leave. But then in January whilst flying on a night cross country he suddenly lost it. Went berserk. And I passed a message to the wireless operator to tell base I was aborting. Coming down below oxygen level in case it was a problem of that and straight back to Wing. We were met at dispersal by an ambulance crew. He was frozen in the turret. They had a job to get the turret open but he was taken away and nobody ever saw him again. I presume he was marked LMF which was a great shame because he was a nice guy but thankfully it had happened at OTU and not at —on an operation. But we soon picked up another gunner. Phil. Quite a chubby fella but he was great. Great company. And we all got posted off to — we spent a couple of weeks at Sturgate in charge of the blanket store. But our posting suddenly came through for North Luffenham in the March of 1945. We spent the next two months flying around in a Lancaster doing cross country’s, bombing raids on the ranges. Some nights we were sent on diversionaries which meant us flying towards the enemy but turning away before we reached them, much to our dismay. And it was quite an interesting time. Loved flying the Lancaster. It was beautiful. A beautiful aeroplane. And all seven of us — we’d picked up the flight engineer by then. He was originally a pilot. He’d finished his course and was offered the chance to re-muster either as a glider pilot or as a flight engineer. The majority I understand choose flight engineers. So they went on a separate engineer’s course and then joined us at the Heavy Con Unit. After finishing Con Unit of course during that period we, VE day had arrived and it was quite interesting the discussions that were had in the big hangar after we did a rehearsal until some bright spark suggested to the CO that if the band played a more recognisable tune it might be more suitable and there was deadly silence and the bandmaster said, ‘Sir. That was the march past of the Royal Air Force.’ [laughs] Again, there was silence and everybody accusing everybody else of not being able to do their job but it was quite funny for a few minutes. After finishing Heavy Con Unit we were all sent on leave but I had a recall. A telegram to report to 90 Squadron at Tuddenham and not being on the telephone or in contact with any others I expected to find my crew when I got to Tuddenham. Unfortunately, when I arrived I went in to the CO’s office and I was introduced to my crew who had just lost their Australian skipper because all Commonwealth aircrew were taken off of flying and that’s how I lost my navigator. So I lost my whole crew. A bit annoyed of course but soon got to know the guys. Did a couple of flights with them. A couple of Baedekers over Germany going down the Ruhr showing the ground staff the bomb damage ostensibly as a exercise for them but in reality it was very political for, to let the Germans, particularly the residents in the Ruhr and Cologne was a special one to let them see what the Lancaster looked like in daylight. And there we were at two thousand feet. Any given time there would be fifty to eighty Lancasters circling Cologne at two thousand feet and it must have caused the kids down below to be terrified. But politically it was obviously a good exercise. And I was only there for the month when the CO suddenly decided that he’d got a brother who was stationed at 15 Squadron at Mildenhall and would I like to swap with him? Well I was only a flight sergeant by then and so I went over to Mildenhall to meet the CO. A Wing commander McFarlane. And when I walked into his office, gave him a salute he looked and he said, he was very surprised, ‘Oh. You’re Payne. Sorry,’ he said, ‘But we only have — we don’t have non-commissioned personnel as captains of our aircraft. So you are hereby commissioned and you have a week’s leave to get your uniform. Thank you very much.’ So I was a pilot officer or so I thought but after a week I turned back, I returned back to Mildenhall and I was accused of being incorrectly dressed because I was a flying officer apparently. Immediate promotion. [laughs] Much to my wife’s surprise. She lost her payment book because officers are paid the wife’s money and as a gentleman you are obviously expected to hand it over. It shook me I tell you but — and also of course at the same time I had been giving my mother a tanner a day which was recommended when we joined the air force so that if anything happened to you she would be able to claim a pension of some sort. But of course when I was commissioned that had to stop as well which was — my mum understood but I don’t think the wife really took it very kindly but she enjoyed the increased money anyway. Then as I say I was a flying officer. Settled in at Mildenhall quite well. We did several trips. Mostly things like going to Italy to bring back British troops on to England. Twenty at a time stuck in the fuselage but you had to, you weren’t allowed to use the automatic pilot because there had been one or two crashes which they had assumed had been caused by automatic pilot failure at low level or two thousand feet or so. You didn’t go very high because the troops would have needed — no heating in the fuselage. We also did, a little earlier on we did a, one of the first things we did was a post mortem on the German radar at Kiel where a few hundred of us in daylight approached Kiel and we were all given heights to fly but I found myself being covered in Window so I throttled back a bit because the cloud, I was just in the base of the cloud. Fortunately, I did the right thing at the right time because there appeared a B17 in front where I’m sure that every crew member except the pilot was shovelling out Window and it was smothering my aircraft and blocking up air intakes and God knows what else. So if we’d have carried on we would have run straight into them so we realised that the danger of collision at night when a thousand planes were over the target or large numbers over the target at any one time. The danger of collision was, must have been very great and we understood from later discussions with various boffins that they had calculated that on those raids up to a third could be lost. So that’s two thousand men could have been lost at night just by friendly action of running in to each other without any enemy action taking place at all. And that’s why they trained so many of us and fortunately we had the back up. Fortunately, the losses weren’t as great as they predicted and they were still high enough. I doubt whether we’ll ever know the numbers that were involved of mid-air collisions with friendly aircraft or aircraft being hit by bombs being dropped from planes flying higher. We know that there were instances but how many? Nobody can tell. Well, my period at Mildenhall finished in ‘45. I was sent on an instructor’s flying course. Lulsgate Bottom at Bristol. My wife was expecting our first child at the time so I had more interest in getting home at weekends than stopping and hanging around Bristol. Fortunately there was a chicken farm quite close to the airfield and I was able to take a couple of dozen eggs home most weekends which were gratefully received by the population at home. Finally I was demobbed. Officially at Bruntingthorpe but I don’t ever remember going there but that is my, supposedly the depot where I was discharged from and there I got into Civvy Street. This was the end of ‘46 and my first child was born in the July of ‘46 so it was a family life and a question of trying to find accommodation because I was living with my parents and eventually the council obliged by providing a three bedroom house which was just in time for our second child two years later.
CB: Ok. We’ll take a pause there.
TP: Yeah. [pause] Housing.
[Recording paused]
CB: We’re just restarting. Talking about the perversities of some of these things but the fact that the Germans were well organised.
TP: Yeah well they obviously had planned. They planned the war. They knew the war was going to come and their reactions were all done in the same manner. They had developed the aircraft and the U-boats and the rockets and everything else. The flying bombs didn’t happen by accident. That had been planned years before and so was the V2s. But our biggest disappointment I think in 1940, as an Englishman was the fact that we had to go through Dunkirk. Evacuate our soldiers when there were a half a million French troops under arms. There were only two hundred thousand German troops attacking but half a million just gave in and left us in the lurch because we had to get out with our backs to the wall. And I met some of the troops that were fighting at the time. Not at Dunkirk but further along the coast and I was fortunate enough for the 51st Highlanders to be over in France when they were having their last reunion a few years ago because I was visiting the grave of my cousin. And there were a few of the men there that were there in 1940 and they were captured by the Germans because they hadn’t any ammunition left. They’d fought to the last bullet virtually and that was it. But they couldn’t be evacuated from the port because the Germans were attacking all the while. So it was very well planned by the Germans. They knew exactly what they were doing all through. And it was only the bravery of the guys on D-day that got them on shore. I mean it must have been a terrible thing for those first bods that were coming over knowing they were walking straight into the face of gunfire which they were totally exposed on the beaches, you know. But I did meet one other soldier in Tring and he was injured. He had a bullet through his fleshy part of his leg on his way up to the coast and because of that the Germans were coming so he lay in a ditch for twelve hours while they all went by him and then headed south. Pinched a bicycle and carried on riding until he got down in to Southern France. He was hoping to get on the — that ship that got blown up as it left Bordeaux or somewhere down there and he met a naval force that was in town blowing up various installations and they picked him up and took him with them and he came back on their destroyer.
CB: This was 1940.
TP: In 1940.
CB: Yeah.
TP: So he was absolutely dead lucky because he was in the right place at the right time to get away.
CB: So what was your perception of the German air war and how they conducted it on Britain?
TP: Well. I think, you know, they [pause] if they’d have carried on the attacks on airfields and destroying those they might have stood a better chance but because they then switched to the cities it was a saviour for us. But we had no real defence. We were down to the last few Hurricanes and Spitfires. And the tragedy was that the coordination of the various fighting groups’ — Fighter Command to my mind they, they weren’t concentrating enough on what they should do. Thinking they could get a high wing together of a thousand fighters. By the time they’d got a thousand fighters half of them were out of fuel and had to come down and land. It was, you know, they hadn’t thought it through.
CB: And here you were in Hemel Hempstead which is between London and Coventry and Birmingham. What did you see of the German air force? Aircraft coming over.
TP: Well I —
CB: Before you joined the RAF. As a youngster I mean.
TP: Well when I was still at school —
CB: Yeah.
TP: I saw a Dornier come over one day. A Dornier come over. The air raid sirens hadn’t gone but I recognised it from aircraft recognition. It was a Dornier. And it dropped its bombs over Nash Mills Way. It was like the day war broke out. On a Sunday. There was a gathering of council officials, the ARP warden, the town clerk’s office and others in Marlowes. They were looking at the stone mason’s yard and were wondering whether to send people over to the Princes Arms area where Edney’s had a place where they were making tarpaulins. Should they bring the tarpaulins and cover up the stone mason’s yard. And when I tried to tell them that if an aircraft came over and was going to bomb anything he wouldn’t bomb a cemetery or a yard he would bomb the railway line or the canal [laughs] And they told me to be off.
CB: Yeah.
TP: That was the sort of mental attitude of the adults of the time.
CB: Yeah.
TP: They had no experience of air war. I hadn’t of course.
CB: No.
TP: But I had the intelligence to know that if you’re up there looking for a target you’re going to hit a railway line or a canal or a junction of some sort rather than bomb what looked like a churchyard or a cemetery.
CB: Yeah. I mean it’s difficult to perceive in a way but in 1939 aircraft had only been around for twenty five years.
TP: Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
CB: And people’s perception of what they could —
TP: And of course the speeds of the aircraft. We hardly saw a Spitfire or a Hurricane over Hemel Hempstead. We did, as I say, see German bombers. Two or three times and at night time you heard them go over because you could tell by the way they didn’t synchronise their engines. It was a very identifiable feature. We always synchronised our engines with a Lanc you know.
CB: Yeah. Of course. On a Lancaster. Yes
TP: It meant it was a smoother ride and it was quieter but the Germans had this —
CB: Makes more of a clatter.
TP: Well yeah.
CB: A drone was it?
TP: The engines weren’t synchronised.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And they would be fighting against each other. So you could identify the noise immediately. That it was an enemy aircraft.
CB: That’s interesting.
TP: Whether you would hear that in a fighter I doubt it —
CB: No.
TP: Because you had your own noises but certainly from the ground you knew there was enemy aircraft. And of course in the early days without the radar enemy aircraft would be over here and everywhere the sirens would go but nobody would know where the aircraft was.
CB: And near to here for German targets you had Watford, Leavesden for aircraft production and also Hatfield.
TP: Oh yeah.
CB: So to what extent did you — were you aware of that?
TP: Well, I knew of that. I knew that those places were producing but I think generally we didn’t. There was no news in the newspapers and of course there was no television anyway. They’d had to have been shut down. But the general feeling at school when the sirens went everybody went down the shelters and after two or three hours down there as a senior prefect I went up with the night guy. We went up to get the rations of Horlicks tablets and things like that and the all-clear went. [laughs]
CB: So could you just describe the air raid shelters in a civilian context? So in Hemel Hempstead what were the air raid shelters? What were they?
TP: Well the air raid shelters in Hemel Hempstead. There were a few public ones. The ones in Marlowes were opposite where my mother lived and they used to go over there at night apparently when the sirens were on because of the dangers. You could hear the noise and see the lights from London when London was being bombed. I did a stint when I was — before I went in the air force as a fire watcher in Lower Marlowes where it was organised by the fellow that owned the DIY shop. If anybody wanted some DIY he had all his stall of paints and timbers and everything so he obviously wanted protection. So we had an old cottage that we used as a base for fire watching and that was — we did one night on, two nights off sort of thing. Between us there was enough of the shopkeepers to join in but there were very few private residences down from Bridge Street to the arch. There weren’t sufficient privately occupied houses as opposed to all the businesses which lock up.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And most of them went away but we never had any instances in that area. There were some fire bombs dropped the other side of Marlowes somewhere down in [Sewells?] Road area apparently. And of course there were bombs in Nash Mills. We did have, I wasn’t, I wasn’t around then, I was in the air force — we did have some bombs drop in Astley Road where, opposite to the school I used to go to. Infant school. I think one person died in one of the houses. That house had to be totally rebuilt but it was a clear cut bomb. Another, I think it was more like an oil drum landed at the back of the off-licence at the bottom of the street. And others landed in the park. There were craters in Gadebridge Park which were a pretty sight. [laughs]
CB: Well the Germans used land mines didn’t they?
TP: Yeah.
CB: That’s what looked like an oil drum but actually came down by parachute.
TP: Yeah. Yeah.
CB: Yeah.
TP: But as far as I know the one at the bottom of Astley Road they didn’t find a parachute or perhaps somebody whipped the parachute [laughs] before the forces came. I wasn’t around at that. I was in the forces.
CB: No.
TP: But there was one that landed with the bomb.
CB: Well they were silk so they made good dresses. Nash Mills was where the printing works was it? Of Dickinson’s. John Dickinson’s.
TP: Well John Dickinson’s had got the factories just beyond where they hit a row of houses.
CB: Oh.
TP: And I think two of the houses were destroyed but they were parallel to the canal so whether he was aiming for the canal or whether it was shortfall from the factory you just couldn’t tell.
CB: No.
TP: Because bomb aiming in those days was hit and miss.
CB: Yeah. Yeah. You could —
TP: And it was only area bombing that really could succeed if you []
CB: Yeah. As we are talking about the civilian context here could you describe what was the air raid shelter? What was it? Made especially was it?
TP: Yeah, it was.
CB: And what it was like inside?
TP: Yeah. The public air raid shelter. We didn’t have the private Andersons ones in Hemel. They weren’t issued to Hemel but the one in lower Marlowes at the back of [Tozers?]. I suppose it was about thirty foot long. It was half submerged but well protected and it had benches down each side as far as I recollect. I never spent any time in there. I was in the forces but I know because my mother used to take in evacuees. She had two or three people from London that stayed with us while they found somewhere else to live. She had a couple of, a couple of girls. School age. Teenagers. And then she had one chap who had lost an eye in London. With his son. I think the son played football later on for one of the London teams. Stokes I think his name was. And then she had a family. A couple and their teenage son and they went back to London eventually although the son stayed in Hemel and he lived in St Alban’s Hill.
CB: Right.
TP: Near where Derek’s. Before you get to Derek’s in Lawn Lane itself. Or somewhere near. Eventually.
CB: But the air raid shelter was made of concrete was it? And then covered with earth. How was it made?
TP: Difficult to say. I didn’t see it being constructed.
CB: No.
TP: But it was well protected with earth and everything.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Over the top. Usual shape.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And of course with a door on the side at an angle so there was no blast went through.
CB: Yeah. Changing to your experiences in Canada then. How did you feel about that because you had some spare time as well as study time as it were?
TP: Yes. It was very —
CB: So what were the Canadians Like?
TP: Canadians. They were very friendly. Very friendly. I spent a week in Winnipeg on sick leave. I should have gone to Vancouver. I realise that now but I didn’t then. But I spent a week in Winnipeg and met some friends there. Same as in Neepawa where I did my training because I was a Salvation Army at the time. My religion.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And I visited the Salvation Army homes.
CB: Right.
TP: Of the towns I went to and they were — while I was in Moncton the officer there, we actually visited a local prison to get a, yeah, the band went and I went along with them. I didn’t play an instrument. I was on drums at Hemel. But it was it was interesting talking to the prisoners and they were quite receptive to find that the Brits were there and still fighting, you know. Because as I say it was early ‘43 I got out there and the Americans still hadn’t got involved too deeply in the war even then, you know. They were starting to build up but they had to build the aerodromes first for them and it takes time. But it was a good experience meeting the families. You were nearly always invited out to Sunday tea or something like that, you know because at Moncton you were just killing time. You had nothing to do.
CB: It’s in the middle of nowhere.
TP: Well it was on the eastern seaboard or near the eastern seaboard but it was literally the only thing you could do was go to a cafe and eat. Not having the pubs and things like that.
CB: Quite.
TP: Where you could socialise.
CB: Yeah.
TP: It was a different story, you know.
CB: And in the training how did that work? Did you start early in the morning and go —
TP: Oh yeah. Very often out on the prairie, flying. We started at 6 o’clock and it was interesting while I was at Brough of course on the very early flying. First flying.
CB: Before you went out to Canada.
TP: Before I went out to Canada you had to see —
CB: That’s in Yorkshire. Yeah.
TP: Whether you had any ability to fly.
CB: Yes.
TP: And some people didn’t have and they were wiped out then.
CB: Yeah.
TP: After doing the twelve hours training on Tiger Moths they had taken an aerial photograph of the aerodrome and of course it was Blackburn aircraft were using it as well and whilst it had four gun emplacements there was only one that was in use and of course this showed up on the photograph by the fact that there was no pavement to it, no paths in to it. Snow and everything else had accumulated so instead of taking a coach out to dispersal every morning we had to march around these gunsights and march around them and make them look as though as if they were being used.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Although though they had wooden guns on them.
CB: Oh had they?
TP: Yeah. I don’t think it bothered the enemy because I don’t think they considered Brough was a big enough target but —
CB: No.
TP: Although the Barracuda was being developed by Blackburn at the time which seemed to us quite a formidable aircraft.
CB: Yeah.
TP: You know, but, yeah.
CB: Yes. So just going back to Canada. So you’d start at 6 in the morning. You had flying training but what about the grounds?
TP: Oh then you had other lectures and things.
CB: Yeah. So how did that work?
TP: You went into classrooms and you had sort of an hour and a half, two hours on navigation, on astronomy, on meteorology. Morse code. Aldis lamps, you know.
CB: The weather.
TP: It was all varied. Yeah. Yeah. Meteorology was a very big subject. Of course that was a failing in the early days because the forecasting, you know, was very poor. I mean we had plenty to tell us what was coming in but not what’s over there. It’s passed us but did it go that way or that way. So yeah. It was, it was tough. And very often fog would appear totally unexpectedly, you know. You would come back and find your base covered in fog. You know. It was proper.
CB: In the UK you mean?
TP: Yes.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Yeah.
CB: So you had a big contrast between the weather in Canada —
TP: Oh yeah. Yeah.
CB: And the weather here. So what was the weather like in Canada?
TP: Well we started our stuff our first flying at Neepawa there was sort of six foot of snow around the place and the wind would not be dead down the runway and so you would start take-off and you would get above the snow which was piled high on either side where the snow ploughs had been down and the wind would suddenly take you one way or the other and you had to be prepared for it and be clear of the snowbanks otherwise you were whipped in to those. Quite, quite a problem. But the, my first experience of tragedy was the fact that my instructor was instructing with another pupil. I was with the officer. The senior. On a test as luck would have it and we went out. Neepawa had a subsidiary field for practicing precautionary landings. Low level approach and dropping in and somebody had busted a Tiger Moth out there [unclear] before and the rescue truck was out there loading it and my instructor, Sergeant Smith had got this other pupil with him and he took over control and did a beat up on the truck that was being moved and unfortunately, when he pulled up, his tail wheel, not skid tail wheel hit the crane and he went in and the aircraft burst in to flames. Luckily the pupil, the student, got out from the back but the instructor died. And that was a shock, you know. You think if an instructor could do it what chance do you stand? You know.
CB: Yeah.
TP: So you just don’t fool around.
CB: No.
TP: And they gave him a military funeral, you know, but his remains and he went off. I presume and they shipped him back to England. I don’t know.
CB: Oh he was a British instructor was he?
TP: Yeah. He’d just, he’d only just got his Wings a short time before. He’d trained in Canada. Got his wings. He was so good they kept him back as an instructor.
CB: He was a —
TP: From an instructor’s course.
CB: Yeah.
TP: But he still was juvenile enough to —
CB: Yeah.
TP: Try something.
CB: Now what do you understand by the word “creamy?”
TP: Eh?
CB: He was a Creamy. Well, apparently they called these people who — I’ve interviewed a couple. The people —
TP: They creamed them off.
CB: They were so good they creamed them off.
TP: Yeah.
CB: Because they were so good at flying and instructing potentially.
TP: Well they could be good at flying but not good at instructing.
CB: Indeed.
TP: They can’t impart the knowledge.
CB: They called them Creamies.
CB: Yeah.
TP: I never heard that expression actually.
CB: And it’s a term that continued until relatively recent time. Might have —
TP: Didn’t heard it.
CB: No. Ok. How long, how many hours did you do over there? Quite a lot before you got your wings.
TP: A few hundred hours.
CB: Yeah.
TP: I should think in total.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Yeah. They extended the courses. This is what, how everything got put back. Even ITW was extended by a couple of months. So as you obviously gained more knowledge. Which was a good thing.
CB: Yeah.
TP: I mean when you think that my cousin within six weeks or so he was on operations.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And he was even acting sergeant to begin with. Crazy. The gunner was still an LAC at one time, you know. Promotion to —
CB: I suppose you have to say they did learn from their mistakes.
TP: Oh yeah.
CB: With these things.
TP: Well they learned but what happened to them when they were POWs. That’s what caused the hassle because if they captured an LAC he went to work. Whereas if he was a sergeant he was slightly different. If he was an officer it was even different again you know.
CB: Yes. Fast forward to OTU. So how did that work? The crewing up. Tell me about the crewing up.
TP: The crewing up was very interesting. As I say we were all in a hangar and everybody looking for everybody else. And I met the bomb aimer first. Very smart looking fella. Little tache. He was a real ladies man in the end apparently because — funny story but he had already picked this Canadian observer or navigator and so we three got together and we were then looking for two gunners and the wireless operator. And they all sort of gelled. You met people and had a chat with them. ‘Where do you come from?’ ‘What are you doing here?’ And the bomb aimer came from London so he found, eventually he found the wireless operator who lived quite near to him in London sort of thing. So they thought they’d got a something that anchored them together.
CB: Yeah. Something in common.
TP: It was quite interesting but yeah, Reg was quite a fella. He had a job writing for many of the chaps in the other crews. He could write a “Dear Rosie,” letter sort of thing. [laughs]
CB: Yes. The antidote to “Dear John. ’
TP: Yeah. [laughs] He did quite well at that apparently, you know.
CB: Yes.
TP: Truly grateful was one of his favourite expressions. [laughs] They’ve all passed away unfortunately.
CB: Yes.
TP: Except his widow is still alive.
CB: But that’s an interesting point in a way. In a more serious vein. One of the people I interviewed talked about his CO giving up flying on operations because the lady who he proposed to said, ‘I’ll only marry you if you give up operations,’ because he’d done a tour already. Because the three previous fiances she’d had had all been killed. So what extent did women — the WAAFs we’re talking about?
TP: Well I was already married.
CB: Yes. But —
TP: I married my childhood sweetheart.
CB: Yes. Quite right.
TP: She’s up there.
CB: Yeah. Smashing. But you saw this. You observed this did you?
TP: Oh I see. Yeah. Yeah.
CB: A sequence of these girls, these WAAFs having relations.
TP: Yeah. Yeah. Well as I say my bomb aimer — Reg. He had. He had a girl. She was, I think she was older than him. [unclear] he used to call her and I think she was something to do with fashion or film or something like that but my wife and I thought, no, he won’t marry her, you know. When we got an invite to his wedding it was a totally different. It was an ATS girl he married.
CB: Oh was it really.
TP: And she was a cracker. She was lovely was Jean.
CB: Yeah. Yeah.
TP: Yeah.
CB: You mentioned your own wedding which was in ‘44 when you got back from Canada. Wasn’t it? Was it?
TP: I got back from Canada in ’43.
CB: Oh ’43.
TP: I was home a year.
CB: Yeah. Ok.
TP: And got engaged when I came back.
CB: Oh that was it. Right.
TP: It took a year before I married.
CB: Yeah but —
TP: Her dad was, ‘No. No. You wait my lad.’ [laughs] But she wanted to get married and I said no. I didn’t want to get married at the time.
CB: No.
TP: I said, ‘Well what if something happens to me?’ And she said, ‘Well at least I would have part of that.’
CB: Yeah.
TP: So we got married. Come back from Canada in ‘43. Got married in December ‘44. And all of the crew came to the wedding.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Including the air gunner who went berserk.
CB: Oh he did as well did he? Yeah. He — he’s the one who’d gone.
TP: Yeah. Don’t know what happened to him.
CB: Yeah. Earlier that was.
TP: That was after my wedding.
CB: Oh after the wedding.
TP: Yeah.
CB: Right.
TP: That was January ‘45 when we were finishing at OTU.
CB: Oh I see. That was when he —
TP: On a night cross country.
CB: Yes.
TP: And he just lost it altogether.
CB: Right.
TP: And our worry was he’d start firing guns and draw attention to us which you don’t want when you’re on a diversionary and things like that so you tried to keep as quiet as possible. And you didn’t know whether he was suffering from lack of oxygen because you just couldn’t go to the turret. Couldn’t get into the turret to see him.
CB: So what happened to him?
TP: I’ve no idea.
CB: No.
TP: As I say I passed a note. Didn’t want to let him know. I scribbled a note to the wireless operator, ‘Contact base. We’re returning and tell them briefly why. ’
CB: Yeah.
TP: ‘Problem with rear gunner.’
CB: And what did they do then? The aircraft landed.
TP: Well.
CB: So how were you met? Or did you wait? All get out?
TP: No. We went to dispersal as usual. They put us in dispersal and an ambulance was waiting in dispersal and the ground crew — as I say we had to force open the rear turret in the end because it was iced up as well. Although I’d been flying below, it was wintertime obviously. Weather was pretty chilly. But it gets very cold in the back of a Wellington and he just couldn’t take it. He was still screaming, you know.
CB: Oh. Was he really?
TP: Yeah. He just lost it altogether. Why? We never heard because nobody knew because nobody ever says.
CB: No.
TP: Whether it started with lack of oxygen. It could well have been you see.
CB: Yeah.
TP: But we’ve no means to knowing.
CB: So then the new air gunner comes. Rear gunner comes.
TP: Oh no. He wasn’t the rear gunner.
CB: Oh he wasn’t.
TP: No. Eddie was my rear gunner.
CB: Right.
TP: He was a lorry driver from Worcester.
CB: Oh right.
TP: Eddie was — he was great fun he was.
CB: Yeah.
TP: But he — you know. He was the real rear gunner. It was the mid-upper gunner who was in the rear gun, rear turret and didn’t like it.
CB: So then you go to the Heavy Conversion Unit at North Luffenham. 1653. That’s when you get the flight engineer.
TP: Yeah.
CB: How did he come aboard?
TP: Well they just —
CB: Did you select him or he was allocated or what?
TP: Well I think from memory all of us crews went into the hangar.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And there was probably ten crews went on the course — conversion. And there were ten flight engineers lined up.
CB: Literally.
TP: And then it was take your pick sort of thing.
CB: So you did your selection did you?
TP: I think we did as a team. Yeah.
CB: You personally or the whole team came over.
TP: Yeah.
CB: Yeah. And what was he like?
TP: He was a good lad. He was a butcher from Devizes.
CB: Oh.
TP: Married but no children. And, yes, he was he was very pleasant but as I say he’d been, he’d been through pilot training. Got his pilots wings and then they said sorry there are no more vacancies for pilots. You’ve got a choice. You can be a glider pilot for troop carrying which is a one way ticket.
CB: Yes. Absolutely. Yeah.
TP: Or you can be a flight engineer.
CB: Yeah. So in that circumstance did he keep his flying — his pilot’s wings?
TP: Oh he had his pilot’s wings.
CB: Yes. Because after the war I interviewed somebody — after the war they took them away and you wore the brevet of your specialty.
TP: Oh. I don’t know.
CB: No. But anyway in the war. Yeah.
TP: Yeah. Yeah.
CB: So there were two pilots on the Lancaster.
TP: Yeah. In effect. Yeah.
CB: In effect.
TP: Yeah. Yeah. Well not on every one but you know —
CB: No. No. No. No.
TP: Yeah.
CB: I mean in your circumstance.
TP: But when I went to 90 squadron. He was a flight engineer. He wasn’t a pilot.
CB: Of course. No. Absolutely.
TP: He was a flight engineer.
CB: Yeah. Can I just go on to another point you mentioned on a previous occasion the Stabilised Auto Bomb Sight. Could you explain what that was and how it was different from the one you had before.
TP: Well, this was, this was the bomb sight used by 617.
CB: Right.
TP: It was much easier than the Norton which had, I think, fifty odd adjustments to make it before it was set but the SABS had, instead of the ordinary, the old Mark IX just had wires to track down and you set the thing up and got the pilot to, ‘Left. Left,’ or, ‘Right. Right,’ or, ‘Steady. ’ And if he said, ‘Steady,’ Eddie would say, ‘Yeah. What do you want?’ [laughs] You know, the SABS had like a glass prism with a lighted sword and the cross point of the hilt was for the target and you tracked, tracked it down. Much shorter than the long strings but the sword looked as if it was on the ground. It was in this glass prism but it was where it was projected. It looked like it was travelling on the ground so you could —
CB: So were all the Lancasters being refitted with that?
TP: They were being refitted with them but they only had them on the specialist units at the time.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And they used them — I don’t know whether you saw the article there, there was an article in Flight or Aeroplane?]. You can probably still read it now where after the war —
CB: Yeah.
TP: Lancs went over to America and 15 Squadron was amongst them but we got the proverbial brick in a bucket whereas the Americans were half a mile away.
CB: Even though they claimed to be precision bombers.
TP: Yeah. Yeah.
CB: With the benefit of daylight.
TP: Yeah.
CB: We’ve effectively come to the point where you got to the squadron just as the war finished. So you didn’t get in any operations.
TP: No operations at all.
CB: Right.
TP: No.
CB: So the war finished. Then what?
TP: Well —
CB: We’re talking about 8th of May 1945.
TP: Yeah.
CB: The war ends.
TP: And in June I was in a squadron.
CB: Yeah.
TP: 90 squadron. I’d been home on leave. I’d had a telegram — report to Tuddenham and I naturally thought that’s the whole crew.
CB: Yeah.
TP: I get to Tuddenham and I find I’m on my own.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And —
CB: Why was that?
TP: And I was introduced, introduced to a completely new crew.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Who’d had an Australian skipper and he’d been subbed off back home. Taken off of flying as all Commonwealth aircrew were. So I took over the whole crew. Didn’t know a soul. Took a little while to get used to them of course, you know. Amongst the crew one of the guys was a flying officer already. And that’s how I think the air force changed their attitude to the fact that you can’t have captains of aircraft with lower rank than members of their crew.
CB: Yeah.
TP: But it didn’t affect 90 Squadron. They still hadn’t thought of that. I was a flight sergeant and he was a flying officer. I think he was a bomb aimer. I’m not too sure. Could have been the navigator but the rest were sergeants. They’d done, I think they’d done six food drops or something like that. They hadn’t done anything serious —
CB: This was Operation Manna.
TP: Operation yeah. Because they’d only been on the squadron for a few weeks anyway.
CB: Right.
TP: They were only that little distance ahead but sufficient to have got —
CB: Ahead of you.
TP: Yeah. And it was, we did the Kiel operation. Operation Post Mortem where we were checking the radar. And I think I did one or two Baedekers taking ground staff over Germany when the CO said, ‘I’ve got a brother at Mildenhall. Would you swap with him?’ And [laughs] you know I mean —
CB: With the whole crew.
TP: The whole crew. Yeah.
CB: Yeah. So he moved his whole plane across.
TP: That’s right. Yeah.
CB: In exchange for yours.
TP: Yeah.
CB: Yeah.
TP: As I say I went over there and the CO was McFarlane. He’s still alive I think but he’s got dementia problems in Australia.
CB: Right.
TP: He was surprised to see that I was only a flight sergeant because as he said, ‘All the captains of our aircraft are officers. ’ You know. ‘We don’t have non-commissioned officers. ’ So that’s how I got commissioned. Completely out of the blue but that’s the way it went.
CB: As a pilot officer.
TP: You did as you were told.
CB: Of course.
TP: You went as you were told.
CB: Yeah.
TP: You had no say in it.
CB: No.
TP: You very often thought that there was a little man manipulating. Oh somebody lives in London so we’ll send him to Glasgow. Or that Scot can go down to Cornwall.
CB: Yes.
TP: It happened you know.
CB: It happened to my father. So you became to be a flying officer. A pilot officer. But it didn’t last.
TP: No. I got back to — after a week I went to Simpsons and you know and got my, got kitted out and got told, ‘You’re incorrectly dressed. You’re a flying officer. ’ [laughs] You know.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Crazy.
CB: Had to have it all done.
TP: Yeah.
CB: So what did you do from then on?
TP: Well. I was going to be a school teacher.
CB: No. No. Excuse me just a mo. In the RAF.
TP: Oh in the RAF.
CB: ‘Cause we hadn’t got to —
TP: Yeah.
CB: So you became a flying officer.
TP: Became a flying officer.
CB: You keep flying? Doing what?
TP: I kept flying on Lancasters — doing — went to Italy to bring British troops home.
CB: Yeah.
TP: We did several Baedekers down the Ruhr.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Several — a few other post mortems.
CB: Can we just describe Baedekers? So Baedeker is essentially picking up on the German tour guides.
TP: Well it was called Baedecker but it was you did a trip to the Ruhr.
CB: Yeah.
TP: You went, you know, down to Essen, Cologne, Dortmund. Looked at the canals and things like that. All at two thousand or so and so feet in broad daylight and there were swarms of you, you know and it must have —
CB: Frightened them.
TP: Let the Germans know.
CB: Yeah.
TP: That there was an air force above them.
CB: Yeah. And this was what it had been.
TP: It was more a political gesture although it was sold as showing the ground staff.
CB: What had happened?
TP: What it was. And I had one of the first Lancasters converted to take female passengers.
CB: Right.
TP: It had a curtain around the elsan. [laughs]
CB: [laughs] Right.
TP: But you didn’t take air gunners. I think all we had then was navigator, a flight engineer, wireless op and engineer. Yeah. Navigator. Flight engineer. Not even a bomb aimer. No.
CB: No.
TP: Because you weren’t going to be dropping anything [laughs] But —
CB: And they sat in those stations and then rotated did they?
TP: They sat. Yeah. One would be in the nose in the front turret. One would be in the mid-upper turret, one in the rear. Of course you didn’t have any extra windows so —
CB: No.
TP: They had to be either in the cockpit or in the positions to see. And —
CB: How many people did you take at a time?
TP: Three or five. It wasn’t very many.
CB: No.
TP: Surprisingly, you know. I thought we would take more people. It’s obviously so as to let them have a good look.
CB: But also the ulterior motive was —
TP: Yeah.
CB: Making Germans aware of what was going on.
TP: Aware. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
CB: Yeah. Ok.
TP: That’s all it was done for.
CB: Yeah.
TP: And we did over the dams and that’s another thing. On the dams raid, you know, Gibson came out to Canada in ‘43.
CB: Oh you saw him.
TP: Gave us a lecture and told us all about it. But he couldn’t explain or he wouldn’t explain why there was no follow-up. It needn’t have been low level things like he did. I mean it could have been high level stuff with delayed action bombs. I mean they let them rebuild that. It wasn’t in full use for several years because it wouldn’t have the pressure until it had all settled.
CB: Oh.
TP: But it would have delayed the building.
CB: Yeah.
TP: Just with one or two bombs every week or so.
CB: Yes. Yeah.
TP: I’m sure they thought of it but whether they were in hand with Krupps to say we won’t do any [laughs]
CB: Well they wanted — yeah.
TP: After the war you wanted [back?] production and so — yeah. It’s weird isn’t it? When you think of it.
CB: So —
TP: It would have been the- easiest thing in the world.
CB: Yeah. Absolutely. Where — so after doing a bit of that when did you actually leave?
TP: I think it was November or December.
CB: Forty — ?
TP: ‘46
CB: ‘46. Ok. Right. So what did you?
TP: They didn’t release, you see they learned their lesson from the First World War.
CB: Right.
TP: When they released everybody too soon and altogether. It swamped the country. Couldn’t find jobs. We had a lot of problems. And I think that they thought trickle it out.
CB: Yeah.
TP: But of course most of us as youngsters had gone virtually straight from school so we had no job to go back to or it was a very junior job which wouldn’t have been sufficient after four or five years in the forces, you know.
CB: So what did you do?
TP: Well as I say I got accepted — two things. I first of all got accepted by BEA for training as an airline pilot. But after discussions with my wife [laughs] in those days Paris would have been an overnight stop. And with the dolly birds as usherettes on the aeroplanes she said, ‘No way am I going to let you,’ [laughs] which I suppose made sense you know.
CB: Right.
TP: So I gave up that with BEA. But I did carry on for the strategic and there was a teaching college at [Ashridge?] or there was in those days but you couldn’t get there until you’d been selected for a college anywhere in the country and eventually, after eighteen months, I got a college up in Newcastle upon Tyne. Well, how could I go up there and have a home when I’d got a family in Hemel? No way could we all move up there.
CB: No.
TP: So then you could apply to go to Ashridge but then there was a three year waiting list at [Ashridge]. It was just impossible. So I’d done six months as a bus conductor while I was waiting. And a fellow in Hemel who ran a confectionary shop — I went in and helped him in the shop and made his ice creams and things like that. Then the new town developed and I went up. I was the first male to be employed in a new town factory. I went into engineering. I hadn’t had any engineering experience but I went in as a storekeeper originally but they realised I got a bit more intelligence than what most of the people working for them had and so I ended up I was there eleven years. I became their office manager and ran the place and then I got poached by a firm in London and joined them. Part of the [Ager?] group. And —
CB: What were you doing there?
TP: Machine tools. They were selling second hand but buying new machines from the continent and selling them to distributors in England and that’s when I came in. And I was made a director and we were well away and then after twenty two years or more of that I decided it was time to quit. I was asked to look after the interests of one of the companies for a couple of years in Spain to see what they could do. And so I virtually went into retirement and just worked from home with this guy in Spain. But I don’t regret it, you know. It was a —
CB: At what age did you retire?
TP: I think it was ’86 so I would have been —
CB: So - but your full time work when you gave up working as a director.
TP: Oh when I gave up full time work was — sixty one, about ‘83 or something like that. 1983.
CB: How old were you then?
TP: I was sixty.
CB: Sixty.
TP: Roughly. Because I was born in ’25.
CB: Yeah.
TP: So there you go. Yeah.
CB: Yeah.
TP: I was fifty eight. But —and I spent the last few years helping this guy organise in Spain.
CB: What was he doing?
TP: Selling machine tools.
CB: Oh he was. In Spain.
TP: No. In England.
CB: Oh in England.
TP: You know, anywhere. I sold a few in Europe and beyond and made a comfortable living.
CB: Yeah.
TP: I wasn’t pushed. Didn’t want the hassle.
CB: No.
TP: And I certainly couldn’t bear it today with everybody got the mobile phones and GPS, you know.
CB: Yeah. Nightmare.
TP: Yeah. I ran — when I was working for the firm in London and was a director I also ran their service department.
CB: Oh yeah.
TP: Had five or six service engineers you’ve got to keep tabs on all the while. Well it’s easier now than what it was then of course but in those days if you know send an engineer into Wales and they’d alter all the signposts around and that [laughs] They didn’t want the English in.
CB: No. No. Right. What would you say was the most memorable experience you had in the war?
TP: First solo. That is something which — you’re free.
CB: Yeah.
TP: You’re on your own.
CB: Achievement.
TP: Achievement. Yeah. Yeah.
CB: How many hours? Do you remember?
TP: What?
CB: How many hours had you done to get to solo?
TP: Ten or eleven. Something like that. You only had twelve hours. About that but if you went solo you got extra time EFTS.
CB: Right.
TP: They took that into consideration. But I still remember the guy — he was the pilot of Blackburn Botha.
CB: Yes.
TP: That took me for my flying test.
CB: Oh was it?
TP: And he was a big bloke. Oh he must have been about eighteen stone.
CB: In a Tiger Moth.
TP: In a Tiger Moth.
CB: Crikey.
TP: ‘Don’t forget laddie. Without me being there you’re going to go up. ’
CB: Oh yes. On your own.
TP: I mean Brough airfield had got a — it was sort of almost below sea level.
CB: Oh right.
TP: They’ve got a dyke all the way around it. On the estuary. And you’ve got to clear. So with him in the front you cleared it but without him in the front you were —
CB: Amazing.
TP: You were up to a thousand feet before you reached the front perimeter.
CB: Yeah. Yeah. Well Tom it’s been really interesting. Thank you very much indeed.
TP: 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
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Interview with Thomas Peter Payne. Two
Creator
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Chris Brockbank
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-04-22
Type
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Sound
Identifier
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APayneTP160422
Conforms To
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Pending revision of OH transcription
Rights
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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.
Language
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eng
Coverage
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Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force. Bomber Command
Format
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01:35:11 audio recording
Description
An account of the resource
Tom joined the Air Training Corps as a deferred service airman even though he was under-age. In April 1942 he received his call up papers to report to the Air Crew Reception Centre at St John’s Wood before being posted to Ludlow. He then went to the Initial Training Wing in Torquay. Tom was posted to No. 4 Elementary Flying Training School at RAF Brough on Tiger Moths, and RAF Heaton Park in Manchester. Tom then went to Moncton, Canada, and the Neepawa Elementary Flying Training School, followed by a Service Flying Training School at Swift Current on Oxfords. Guy Gibson gave a lecture about the Eder Möhne and Sorpe operation (16–17 May 1943). After being hospitalised with scarlet fever, Tom eventually returned to the UK.
Harrogate and refresher training in Perth followed. Tom was posted to No. 3 Lancaster Finishing School at RAF Feltwell where two B-17 crashed. He went to RAF Kidlington and, after finishing at the Advanced Flying Unit, Tom was posted to 26 Operational Training Unit at RAF Wing to fly Wellingtons where he crewed up. In March 1945 he was posted to RAF North Luffenham flying Lancasters. Tom then had to report to 90 Squadron at RAF RAF Tuddenham and joined a different crew. He undertook a few Cooks’ tours for ground crew to the Ruhr, and went to 15 Squadron at RAF Mildenhall where he became flying officer. He brought back some British troops from Italy and did Operation Post Mortem, including a German radar at Kiel. With a few hundred aircraft, there was a significant danger of collision.
Tom finished at an instructors’ flying course at RAF Lulsgate Bottom and was demobilised at the end of 1946.
Temporal Coverage
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1942
1943
1943
1944
1945
1946
1942-04
1943-05-16
1943-05-17
Spatial Coverage
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Great Britain
England--Devon
England--Manchester
England--Norfolk
England--Rutland
England--Suffolk
Germany
Germany--Kiel
Germany--Ruhr (Region)
Italy
15 Squadron
1653 HCU
26 OTU
90 Squadron
aircrew
B-17
Cook’s tour
crash
crewing up
Eder Möhne and Sorpe operation (16–17 May 1943)
Flying Training School
Gibson, Guy Penrose (1918-1944)
Heavy Conversion Unit
Initial Training Wing
lack of moral fibre
Lancaster
love and romance
Operation Dodge (1945)
Operational Training Unit
Oxford
pilot
promotion
RAF Brough
RAF Feltwell
RAF Heaton Park
RAF Mildenhall
RAF North Luffenham
RAF Torquay
RAF Tuddenham
sanitation
Tiger Moth
training
Wellington
Window
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/692/9237/PBarnesR1701.1.jpg
3e4f8d44c9f6217fb8174f979017bf4d
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/692/9237/ABarnesR170803.1.mp3
e1632569838eaa6a9f6a2e8d0a0159cd
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
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Barnes, Robert
R Barnes
Description
An account of the resource
Two oral history interviews with Robert Barnes (b. 1923) He flew operations as a flight engineer with 50 Squadron.
The collection was catalogued by IBCC Digital Archive staff.
2 Interviews
Publisher
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IBCC Digital Archive
Date
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2017-08-03
Rights
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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
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Barnes, R
Transcribed audio recording
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Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
DK: Right. So, I’ll just introduce myself. So, this is David Kavanagh interviewing Bob Barnes at his home on August the 3rd 2017. So, if I just put that down there.
RB: Right.
DK: I might occasionally look at it. It’s just to make sure it’s working.
RB: Yeah [laughs]
DK: So, what, what I wanted to ask you first of all was —
RB: Sorry. If I have, if you —
DK: No, that’s ok.
RB: If I don’t hear you properly it’s because I’m hearing a bit —
DK: Ok. Ok. What, what I wanted to ask first was what were you doing before the war?
RB: Well, I was in the last year at school and living in London. We were evacuated to Duke of Sutherland’s place near Guildford.
DK: Right.
RB: Thirty of us. They thought, they were expecting girls but but anyway we had the year and I came back to London. And I joined the ARP as a messenger and I did about a year on that. And then the Home Guard. Both the infantry and rocket sites.
DK: Right. Do you know how old you would have been then?
RB: Well, I left school at sixteen. And so, sixteen to seventeen I went to a Government Training Centre and was on engineering. And then I did a year or so with a machine tool firm who were renovating machine tools. And then 19 — [pause] I actually volunteered in 1943.
DK: Right. Ok.
RB: And I went to Cardington for an initial test.
DK: Was, was there any reason why you chose the RAF? Was there any particular reason?
RB: Well —
DK: Rather than the Army or Navy.
RB: No. The only reason, all my friends had gone in to service. Some had been lost. And I thought, well the Air Force, to be honest I was in a Reserved Occupation and you only had three places to go. As an artificer in the Navy. Which meant below decks.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Which I didn’t fancy. Or down in the mines which I didn’t fancy that either.
DK: No.
RB: So, just left the Air Force. But just really all my friends had gone in the services and I thought it was time I went. Signed on in, at Lord’s Cricket Ground and we had about six weeks in Regent’s Park area. Billeted in flats. We had our meals in the Zoo. And then I had six months, I think it was six months at Torquay.
DK: Right.
RB: And then on to St Athan for the engineering course. And then ’44, I went to Swinderby on the initial introduction to flying. And we were on Stirlings for that.
DK: Right. Had you met your crew at this point?
RB: No. I hadn’t got, I was just coming to that.
DK: Oh. Ok. Sorry.
RB: No. They allocated the engineers to the crew at Swinderby.
DK: Right. Ok.
RB: And —
DK: So, they’d already crewed up then.
RB: That’s right. Yes. And then we went over to — I forget the name now. Over for the transfer to Lancasters.
DK: Right. Was that the Lancaster Finishing School?
RB: More or less. Yes.
DK: Yeah. Yeah.
RB: And I think, I forget how long I was there but then we went to, to Skellingthorpe.
DK: Right. Just taking you back a bit. What did you think of the Stirlings as an aeroplane?
RB: Well, I suppose it’s like every. With the Lancaster I was happy. I’d go anywhere in that. And I suppose to anyone who flew in Stirlings they’d have the same attitude. Although it was a bit more vulnerable than —
DK: Yeah.
RB: And my main memory of the Stirling was if we went to a height where it was cold we had pipes with heating coming through and sticking them down your jacket [laughs] But anyway that was the time when D-Day was going.
DK: Right.
RB: And then from Swinderby we went. I went to Skellingthorpe and stayed there ‘til the end of the war.
DK: And that was with 50 Squadron.
RB: That’s right. Yes.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And our skipper was a flight lieutenant in [pause] He was a flight commander at the time and then he became CO. And of course as a crew we didn’t fly all that many operations. We did eighteen together.
DK: Right.
RB: But if someone was ill on another crew then we did the extra trips.
DK: Can you remember the pilot’s name?
RB: Yes. He was Flight Lieutenant Flint when I, when I joined. And then he went to wing commander and he became CO of the squadron.
DK: So, he was the CO of 50 Squadron.
RB: That’s right. Yeah.
DK: Wing Commander Flint.
RB: Yes.
DK: Oh right. What was he —
RB: I think he was well known although I didn’t realise at the time. He had a George Cross for rescuing a navigator in a Blenheim, I think it was.
DK: That’s what I thought. Yeah. I recognised the name when you said.
RB: Yes.
DK: Yeah. Yeah.
RB: And —
DK: What was he like then?
RB: Sorry?
DK: What was he like?
RB: Well, he wasn’t a person who you made friends with but he was fair. And strict as far as the flying went.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And as a crew we worked pretty well worked together. We were a bit of an odd crowd. One from, the navigator was from Liverpool.
DK: Yeah. Can you remember — can you remember the crew’s name? The navigator’s name.
RB: MacLeod.
DK: MacLeod. Yeah.
RB: Then the two gunners. Tombs and Johnson.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Tombs was a Cockney and I think Johnson came from the Midlands somewhere. And the bomb aimer. He was also from the Midlands.
DK: Right.
RB: He was another Johnson, I think. And myself.
DK: Right. And the wireless operator. Can you remember?
RB: The wireless operator. Yeah. [pause] I can’t remember at the moment. But it might come back as we go through.
DK: Ok. So, so you got on well as a crew then did you?
RB: Yes.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Yeah. Yes. The —
DK: Did you, even though he was the CO of the squadron did you socialise at all?
RB: Various. He didn’t socialise with us but on occasions when we were stood down we’d perhaps go in to Nottingham and have a night out.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And that would be the rest of the crew. Not, not the navigator. But the bomb aimer and the gunners.
DK: So, get — could you just talk a little bit about what your role was as the flight engineer? What your job was?
RB: Well, the training they gave us at St Athan was completely new to me because I knew nothing about engines and that was the main part of the course. But in the air we were responsible for the fuel side and according to the book, in the handbook that we got we were supposed to know everything about the, all the aircraft.
DK: Right.
RB: But I, I don’t think we learned all that [laughs]
DK: But you, you knew the important part about the engines and the fuel.
RB: Yes.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And watching the instruments. See. Keep an eye on them. Make sure they were going alright. We had one occasion when we were running up for, in the morning before going on a raid. And we’d started up the engines. And of course I was looking at the instruments and then I suddenly looked downstairs and the ground crew was jumping up and down. And we’d got steam up from a valve for the coolant that had got stuck.
DK: Right.
RB: So we had to shut that down. But apart from that they [pause] we didn’t really have much problem with the aircraft itself. The ground crew did a good job.
DK: Did you still go on that operation with the coolant problem?
RB: With the —
DK: The coolant.
RB: Oh No.
DK: No.
RB: No. They settled that in the —
DK: It wasn’t fixed for you to then take-off.
RB: No.
DK: No. No.
RB: No. We were ok. And then that more or less happened all the way through. The only time that [pause] I went on a briefing side for one operation and I went out to the runway where they, where they had the waving the aircraft off. And we had the 61 Squadron. One of their aircraft it went off and then it circled around and for some reason something had gone wrong and they landed down. Everything went up. The only, the rear gunner was left on the edge of the crater. So, overall my view of the operations was that it was a bit of a lottery whether you survived or not.
DK: So how many operations in total did you fly?
RB: Eighteen.
DK: Eighteen. Can you remember any of the targets?
RB: The — ?
DK: The targets.
RB: Well, that was a problem really in those days because bombing was not an accurate thing. They’d mark the site.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And if the flares got put out or the wind took them away so you had a creep affect. And whether you hit the actual target or not was a —
DK: No.
RB: You wouldn’t know.
DK: Were most of your operations in daylight or, or night time?
RB: I’ve got a logbook here.
DK: Ah. You’ve got the logbook.
[pause]
RB: That’s all the training.
DK: Right. That’s all — so, you were with 1660 Conversion Unit then.
RB: Sorry?
DK: 1660 Heavy Conversion Unit.
RB: Yes.
DK: 1660.
RB: Yes. Oh sorry.
DK: So, that’s at Swinderby.
RB: Syerston.
DK: Syerston.
RB: Swinderby then Syerston.
DK: Right. Ok. So, Syerston and then Swinderby.
RB: Yes.
DK: Right. Ok. So, there’s your pilot there then. Flint.
RB: Yes.
DK: Flight lieutenant then.
RB: Yeah.
DK: So in green is the war operations then. So, red. Red’s at night isn’t it? And green —
RB: That’s night.
DK: Red’s night and green is daylight.
RB: That’s daylight.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Yes.
DK: So, that’s 19th July ‘44. That’s in France. Creil. C R E I L. That says PFF Pathfinder Force poor.
RB: [laughs] I’ll just get my other glasses.
DK: Ok.
[pause]
RB: Getting blind as well as deaf.
DK: I can, I can read it to you. It’s ok. So, just going through this then we’ve got 19th of July 1944.
RB: Yes.
DK: War operations. And it’s a flying bomb dump near to Creil in France. And it says PFF poor. So, that’s Pathfinder Force poor.
RB: Yes. That’s, that was the, I forget what that was now. PFF. I think that was to do with if enemy aircraft were around.
DK: Right. Was that the Pathfinder Force?
RB: Sorry?
DK: Was that the Pathfinder Force?
RB: The — ?
DK: Pathfinder Force.
RB: I can’t remember now.
DK: You can’t remember. I think it probably is. So, then you’ve got —
RB: Let’s see where that was, shall we?
DK: So you’ve got PFF poor there but the next raid PFF good. I think that’s, that is the Pathfinder Force.
RB: Flying bomb.
DK: Yeah.
RB: That might be the Pathfinders. I’m sure. Yes. Yes.
DK: The Pathfinder. Yes. Yes.
RB: Yeah. That’s right. Yeah.
DK: That’s saying PFF is poor.
RB: Yeah.
DK: PFF good on that one.
RB: Yeah.
DK: So the next raid is 20th July ’44 and it’s the railway marshalling yards in Belgium.
RB: Yes.
DK: PFF good. And then July the 24th.
RB: St Nazaire.
DK: St Nazaire. Oil storage dumps. July the 25th St Cyr Airfield. That’s C Y R.
RB: St Cyr. Versailles.
DK: Yeah. Versailles. Cyr. St Cyr Airfield. July 26th — that’s the railway junction and marshalling yards in France.
RB: Yes.
DK: And the 31st of July war operations.
RB: Reims.
DK: Reims. Reims. Yeah. Good results it says.
RB: Yes.
DK: And carrying on. So August the 16th —
RB: Yes. Stettin.
DK: Stettin. Built up area. So, August the 19th the Pallice. La Pallice.
RB: Oil storage.
DK: Oil storage. And then August the 31st — flying bomb dump again.
RB: I can’t remember where that place was.
DK: All on the French coast somewhere. For the, for the recording —
RB: Yes.
DK: I’m not going to try and pronounce this but I’ll spell it it’s B E R G E N E U S E. That’s somewhere in France.
RB: Yes.
DK: So, you landed back at Ford then. You didn’t get back to base.
RB: Yes. Well, on that operation we had the wing commander’s bomb aimer with us. And we were just coming away from that site and there was a single shot and as luck would have it the bomb aimer caught shrapnel in his head. And that’s why we landed at Ford.
DK: Was it, was he ok?
RB: Well, I didn’t keep up in touch with him. It’s like everything else. People were injured or went on a flight. Once they’d gone.
DK: That’s it.
RB: That was it.
DK: So, you got a replacement bomb aimer presumably.
RB: Well, that was on the way home fortunately.
DK: Right. Ok. Ok. So, then 24th of September 1944. Target — defensive enemy positions at Calais.
RB: Yes.
DK: And that time you were diverted back to Westcott.
RB: Yeah.
DK: So then, 6th of October. Target — Bremen.
RB: Bremen.
DK: Built up area. Yeah. And then the 1st of November. Target — Hamburg. Synthetic oil plants.
RB: Yes.
DK: Then 4th of December. Heilbronn. That’s H E I L.
RB: Heilbronn. Yeah.
DK: H E I L B R O N N. Heilbronn. So, that was the area bombing then. The target area. Then 30th of December —
RB: Yes.
DK: That’s, that’s Germany again isn’t it?
RB: That was when the troops were advancing on.
DK: I’ll spell this for the benefit of the recording. It’s H O U F F A L I Z E.
RB: I think on that because the troops, they weren’t sure where the troops were.
DK: Yeah.
RB: We, we went, we were briefed for the operation and then it was called off. We then had breakfast. Bacon and egg. Brought on again. Back to the mess for another meal.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And this happened three times [laughs]
DK: You had three breakfasts.
RB: Yeah. We were egg bound by that time.
DK: So, so the target was German troops in salient.
RB: Yes.
DK: So it was tactical bombing of the German troops.
RB: Yeah.
DK: Yeah. And just here it says here on the 30th of December operation, it says severe icing conditions.
RB: Yes.
DK: So, did that cause any problems to your aircraft?
RB: Not really. We had the heating system which helped to get rid of it. But you can hear the bits flaking off.
DK: And then 4th of January 1945 war operations. Target — Royan. R O Y A N. South West France. German troop concentrations. And then again, 6th of January German troop concentrations in the salient. They were being hammered a bit weren’t they? So, 13th of January 1945 — Politz. P O L I T Z. Oil refineries. 14th of January — Marsberg. Oil refineries again.
RB: Yeah. They were two long flights.
DK: Politz is in Poland isn’t it? I think.
RB: Sorry?
DK: Politz. Isn’t it in Poland?
RB: I’m not sure exactly where but it was certainly —
DK: Well, in the east. Yeah.
RB: It was in the east.
DK: Yeah.
RB: In the eastern area.
DK: And then on the so that’s the 13th to Politz and then the 14th to Marsberg
RB: Yes. Merseburg.
DK: Merseburg. Sorry. Merseburg. Merseburg. And it mentions here concentrated flak. Diverted.
RB: On that one we were Window crew. So, you went around once dropping the Window and then came back to do the second trip.
DK: So, you dropped, so you dropped your bombs on the second time around?
RB: That’s right. Yes.
DK: So, you had to go over the target twice?
RB: Yes. And then with two long trips.
DK: Yeah. Well the one on the 13th of January. That’s eleven hours five minutes. And the one on the 14th of January that’s ten hours [pause] So, I think that’s all of your operations there, isn’t it?
RB: There was bringing ex-prisoners back.
DK: So, that was your last operation there then. So, then you went on to Operation Exodus.
RB: Yeah.
DK: Do you, do you remember picking up the Prisoners of War?
RB: On that one.
DK: Yeah. The 26th of April 1945.
RB: That one we were actually service crew.
DK: Right.
RB: So we didn’t bring anybody back on that one. But on this one we brought.
DK: So, there’s another trip.
RB: Yes.
DK: Brussels again.
RB: So, we stayed the night at —
DK: Yeah.
RB: Westcott.
DK: So, on the 26th of April ’45 it actually says you returned with twenty four ex-POWs. So, what sort of states were they in?
RB: Well, they were very quiet. We didn’t really have a lot to do with them. We just kept in touch with them. Seeing they were alright on the flight. But they were quiet on the main.
DK: Yeah. So another Exodus then on the 6th of May. So, at this point the war has ended then.
RB: Yes.
DK: You did a trip to Italy then after the war has ended.
RB: Yeah. That was to bring more [pause] more troops back.
DK: Troops back. Yeah. That was Operation Dodge, I think, wasn’t it? Bringing the army —
RB: Yeah.
DK: Back from Italy. And then that’s it. So, that was your last operation here. Well, not operation. Your last flight I should say. 28th August 1945. So, did —
RB: We had, that was one of the few occasions when we had any problem with the aircraft. The wireless operator had smoke coming from his area.
DK: Oh right.
RB: And we thought we were going to have two or three days in Pomigliano.
DK: Right.
RB: But they did the dirty on us and got it ready [laughs]
DK: Would you have liked to have stayed a bit longer then?
RB: Yeah. Well, we went to [pause] because we were near Sorrento.
DK: Right.
RB: And we hitchhiked to a junction. And then we got another hitch to Sorrento. We had a meal there. And I, we had, we didn’t see a lot of Sorrento but the main thing there’s no sand there. It’s as a result of the Vesuvius eruption.
DK: Oh right. Ok. Yeah. Yes. Yeah.
RB: And there was all dust really.
DK: Yeah. Yeah.
RB: But —
DK: So that was on, that was on the 27th of July 1945.
RB: Yeah.
DK: And you come back from Italy then with twenty.
RB: Twenty persons.
DK: Twenty passengers. People on board.
RB: Ex-soldiers.
DK: So, they were soldiers.
RB: Yes.
DK: Coming back from Italy. Yeah.
RB: And I was with another pilot.
DK: Oh right. Yeah. So, that’s Flight Lieutenant Lundy. So had Flint left by this point then? Because you did the Exodus —
RB: Yes.
DK: Once with Flint there.
RB: Yes.
DK: But the Dodge flights were with Lundy.
RB: I’m just looking to see the other pilots we were with. There was one. That was another one.
DK: So you’ve got Groves. Flying Officer Syd Groves, Flying Officer Wells and Flying Officer Boyle.
RB: Boyle.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Yeah.
DK: So it’s eighteen operations.
RB: I think the rest were — there was Flying Officer Wells.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Another. Another officer there.
DK: Arden. Yeah. So you flew with a number of different pilots.
RB: That’s right, yes.
DK: But did you have the same crew and just a different pilot or were they –
RB: Sorry?
DK: Did you have the same crew and a different pilot?
RB: That was at the beginning.
DK: Right.
RB: We did the twelve. Well, yeah the twelve operations with our own skipper.
DK: Right.
RB: And then the rest were these.
DK: Right. Ok.
RB: Odd ones.
DK: So, the first twelve were with Flint.
RB: Yes.
DK: And then the other six with various other pilots.
RB: That’s right. Yes.
DK: Were you, were you ever attacked by German fighters at all?
RB: Sorry?
DK: Were you ever attacked by German fighters?
RB: No. The only time when we took evasion action we weren’t sure. and we had the rear gunner — he gave a warning and we did a corkscrew. But apart from that — no.
DK: And can, can you recall the aircraft being hit by flak at all?
RB: Well, as I say there was that one when the bomb aimer got hit. And I myself because, because we had the blip. The [pause] on the windows we had the, where you could look out and see down.
DK: The blister.
RB: That’s right. Yes. And I was looking out at, we had some flak coming up and I felt a little something going, graze the head. But that was the nearest I had to anything to do with the flak.
DK: So you got hit by a little piece then.
RB: Just a little bit. Yeah. So I was dead lucky.
DK: Yeah.
RB: But after all it was all dead lucky really. I knew you had the — you were given a course in the briefing and you had to turn at certain points etcetera. And some pilots, they get ahead of time so they wanted to lose it and they’d be flying across the stream. No lights at all.
DK: No.
RB: So whether anybody got put down by a crash or —
DK: A collision.
RB: Collision. I don’t know. But it could have happened.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And then we had another. The aircraft had returned from the, from an operation and they still had their bombs on board. And the ground crew were putting this aircraft to bed and something happened. Up it went and the ground crew were killed. So you never knew from the time you took off ‘til the time you got back to bed.
DK: So, that happened at Skellingthorpe, did it?
RB: That’s right.
DK: The aircraft exploded.
RB: Yeah.
DK: And a number of the ground crew killed.
RB: That was the ground crew. Yeah.
DK: So how do, how do you look back in your time in the RAF now then?
RB: Well, it was certainly interesting. But I don’t think bombing as such is the beginning and end of a war. And there’s Johnny Johnson, the bomb aimer, he got the MBE or OBE.
DK: Yes. Yeah. Yeah.
RB: And I thought myself because I’d had the clasp for Bomber Command and I thought that was a better idea because that was for operations.
DK: Yeah.
RB: But I always thought that the MBE and all those Birthday Honours were for services to civil life and of course I had reservations about —because things weren’t accurate. There were probably innocent people getting killed.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And, and there was an aspect that, well you got on with the job. You couldn’t do anything about that but at the same time I didn’t feel it was quite right. And having seen some of the bombing in London when we were living there and some of our friends got bombed. Nothing to do with the war. So from that aspect I’m not sure about bombing at all.
DK: No.
RB: But there we go. It was a job they wanted done.
DK: Yeah.
RB: You did it.
DK: So what was your career? Did you leave the RAF at that point then or —
RB: Yeah. I left. I only did four years. The two years of the war. That’s 1943 to ’45. And then I had a spell at Hereford. And then there was an admin course. And then I got posted to West Africa. And I was there for a year.
DK: Right.
RB: And when I came back the — that was demob time.
DK: And what, what was your career after that? What did you do?
RB: I’ve been a draughtsman for most of the time.
DK: Oh right.
RB: On the electrical side. I joined what was [Bridge Johnson Hewstone?] when I came back. No. I went to Napier’s first of all. And I was doing drawings for design etcetera. And it was then I went to Bridge Johnson Hewstone because Napier’s were getting rid of a few people.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And then I was with [pause] they, they moved to North London. And then they closed that down. They moved up to Blackpool.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And I was redundant then. I went to an electrical. Honeywell Electrics.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And then we were living in Hertfordshire at the time. And the [pause] then I got a job at Luton Airport with Hunting Aircraft.
DK: Oh right.
RB: And then they moved. So, and I finished up with the, an Italian firm Snamprogetti on, they were petrol installations.
DK: Right.
RB: And I was there and that was the finish of work in ‘87.
DK: So, just going back a little bit now if I may. I asked you about the Stirling.
RB: Yes.
DK: And what it was like to fly. What was the Lancaster like to fly?
RB: It was, I suppose one would say it almost flew itself. It wasn’t a comfortable position as far as the engineer was concerned but —
DK: Yes. As a flight engineer did you used to sit down or were you standing up?
RB: Yeah. We had a seat.
DK: Yeah.
RB: That you could fold up from the side.
DK: Right.
RB: You sat beside the —
DK: Pilot.
RB: The pilot yes. And you had the undercarriage and throttles which we helped with the take off.
DK: So, so when the pilot’s taking off then you’re helping with the throttles.
RB: Yes.
DK: And would you raise the undercarriage when you were up or would he do that?
RB: Yes. Yeah.
DK: You’d do that?
RB: As far as the throttles were concerned the pilot did the initial take-off thing, but you followed him up and when he got to the stage he was wanting full blast then you finished it through to the end.
DK: Right.
RB: And after that he, apart from synchronising the engines the pilot had control.
DK: Control. So on your right then you’ve got all the various dials.
RB: That’s right. Yes.
DK: And what are those dials telling you then? Are they —
RB: That was fuel contents. I forget what the rest did. That was the main thing that we were interested in.
DK: So your job is always to make sure you’ve got enough fuel to get back.
RB: Yes. Because you had to transfer fuel through from one tank to another at one stage.
DK: Right. And what about landing though, did you help the pilot land at all? Or —
RB: With the flaps. He’d call for the flaps and you’d operate that one. But apart from that the pilot was in control.
DK: Yeah. So, were your pilots very good then? Were they? Mostly?
RB: Well, some took a few chances I think [laughs] There was one, whether he actually did it or not they reckoned he did the loop the loop in the Lancaster but I take that with a bit of salt.
DK: You mentioned just before I put the recording on about somebody who was smoking.
RB: Yes. But that was the navigator but —
DK: Because you’re not allowed to smoke on the aircraft are you?
RB: Well, certainly not with our skipper.
DK: No.
RB: Well, it was so silly really. I mean, you had this main spar and the navigator sat just forward of it.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And there was a valve. So if you had a leakage goodness knows what would happen.
DK: Oh right. So the pilot smelled the smoke then did he?
RB: That’s right. Yes.
DK: Did he tell him off?
RB: Yes. And he was, he was another flight lieutenant.
DK: But I am correct in saying that regardless of rank the pilot is always in charge isn’t he?
RB: Well, yes. As far as we were concerned. Yes.
DK: Yeah. So you might have other crew that outranks him but the pilot’s still in charge.
RB: Could be. Yeah.
DK: Yeah.
RB: But I don’t think it happened very often.
DK: So you were quite pleased with Flint then. You thought he was a good —
RB: Sorry?
DK: You thought that Flint — Flint was a good pilot.
RB: Oh yes.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Yeah.
DK: I know who you mean. He’s the holder of the George Cross isn’t he?
RB: Sorry?
DK: He’s got the George Cross.
RB: Yes.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Yeah. I only realised that [pause] I was looking at an Antiques Roadshow I think it was and they were at Lincoln Cathedral. And he was there with the, with these medals that he’d got.
DK: Oh right. So did you stay in touch with the crew after the war?
RB: No. The only, I did at one time. They, they were doing a Memorial at Skellingthorpe.
DK: Yeah.
RB: And I offered help but they didn’t take it up. And when they had the actual ceremony I went up there but I didn’t get involved in —
DK: Right.
RB: In anything, and I met the squadron navigator who had been on 61 Squadron as well as 50. And I saw the skipper. He was marching up with the crowd to a meal or something and I waved to him [laughs]
DK: That was —
RB: That was the only time that I actually saw him to speak to.
DK: So you did — that’s Flint you waved to.
RB: That was Flint. Yeah.
DK: Did he wave back?
RB: Yeah.
DK: Oh.
RB: Well, he shouted out, ‘Are you coming up for — ’
DK: Yeah.
RB: But I wasn’t sure whether I was going to make it or not.
DK: No.
RB: But the only other time I saw him, when they did the Memorial in Green Park in London.
DK: Right.
RB: I went up to that.
DK: Right.
RB: And it was quite a hot day and —
DK: Yeah. I was there.
RB: Were you?
DK: Yeah.
RB: And because I was a bit daft really. I didn’t have any hat or anything. And I I wasn’t feeling all that well and in the end so I didn’t get a chance to speak to him but —
DK: That was a shame.
RB: But he was in a invalid chair. A bit hunched up then. And I think it was either that year or the following year that he died. So I didn’t get in to speak to anybody after that.
DK: No. What did you think of the Memorial at Green Park?
RB: Well, it’s quite impressive.
DK: Are you pleased Bomber Command are being recognised now after all these years?
RB: Well, yes. It’s fair enough. I mean fifty five thousand people gone. And —
DK: But obviously there’s the two big Memorials now. There’s the Green Park one.
RB: Sorry?
DK: There’s two Memorials now. There’s Green Park and the new one in Lincoln.
RB: And the one in Lincoln. Yes. Yes. The one, the one I saw in Lincoln my friends were going up to Leeds and I said , ‘Would you give me a lift to somewhere near Lincoln and leave me there and you go on up.’ And they said, ‘No. We’re not going to do that. And they went up to the actual site.
DK: Oh right.
RB: Of course it wasn’t open to the public.
DK: Right. You saw it close up though did you?
RB: Yeah.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Well, it stands right out.
DK: Yeah.
RB: There’s a hotel nearby which —
DK: So, you haven’t actually been yet then to see it close up.
RB: No.
DK: Oh. I’ll have to try and arrange something then.
RB: Because they are running the tours for them.
DK: Running the tours.
RB: Yes.
DK: Yeah.
RB: I might do that at some stage.
DK: Yeah. I’ll have a word with them when I get back. Because obviously we’ve got the main opening in April so hopefully you can come along to that.
RB: Yes.
DK: Yeah. Oh, ok then. I think that’s that’s everything. That’s been very interesting.
RB: No exciting moments.
DK: Trust me it’s all very exciting. I always like the logbooks. How do feel looking back at this thinking that was you?
RB: Sorry?
DK: How do you feel looking back in this logbook thinking that was, that was you? You did that.
RB: I’m sorry?
DK: How do you look feel looking in the logbook knowing that you did that?
RB: Well, I’m glad I did it. If only we sort of remember all the people who I’ve known and lost. And after all you’d have surviving these is a matter, as I say of luck. You can be on the last flight. Gone. Or you can come into the squadron, you do your training, go on the first flight.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Never got to know them.
DK: Yeah. Can I just —
RB: But I may have got some photos of the crew.
DK: Oh right. Ok.
[pause]
RB: Some misguided person sent me that book [laughs]
DK: For the recording it’s, “How To Fly a Second World War Heavy Bomber.”
RB: [laughs] It covers the Stirling, Halifax and —
DK: Yeah. As if you didn’t know.
[pause]
RB: Now, there’s the training flights.
DK: Right. Ok. You’ve got a photo here. It’s, so it’s A flight, 4 Squadron.
RB: That was at Torquay.
DK: Number 21 ITW.
RB: Yeah.
DK: Torquay.
[pause]
DK: Oh, there you are. RG Barnes.
RB: Yeah.
DK: So, you’re one two three four five six seven. One two three four five six seven. Is that you there?
RB: That’s it. Yeah.
DK: Yeah. Oh right. Ok.
RB: That’s the crew.
DK: That is. Yeah.
RB: That’s skipper.
DK: So that’s, that’s your Lancaster there.
RB: That’s right. Near
DK: That’s T.
RB: Well, we flew in different aircraft all the time. There’s no one aircraft allocated.
DK: Because 50 Squadron’s codes were VN, weren’t they?
RB: Sorry?
DK: 50 Squadron’s code were VN.
RB: That’s right.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Yes.
DK: Oh wow.
RB: That’s another one.
DK: [unclear] That one. LN29. Oh, they’re great these photos are. So, can you, can you name the crew here?
RB: That’s the bomb aimer.
DK: Bomb aimer.
RB: Johnson.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Navigator — Macleod. That’s me.
DK: Right.
RB: Skipper.
DK: So, that’s, that’s Flint.
RB: Flint. Yes.
DK: Yeah.
RB: Tombs. That’s Johnson. And I still can’t remember the bomb aimer’s name.
DK: Or was that the wireless operator?
RB: Wireless operator.
DK: Ok.
RB: Yeah.
DK: Right. I know the [pause] Yeah. That’s, that’s T as well isn’t it? The reason I mention this is you know the Royal Air Force’s Lancaster that’s still flying?
RB: Yes.
DK: Well, they’ve painted it in new codes as 50 Squadron’s VN T. So, I think they’ve put it in the markings of your old aircraft.
RB: Oh.
DK: VN T. I’ll ask them.
RB: The only time I’ve had a [pause] we had a neighbour where I was living in, before coming here and he was an engineering NCO at Abingdon. And they were renovating a Lancaster there.
DK: Yeah. It would be the same one.
RB: So, and he said, ‘Would you like to come over and have a look?’ So —
DK: Did you go on board?
RB: [laughs] Yes.
DK: Right. What did you think seeing it again after all these years?
RB: Sorry?
DK: What did you think seeing it again after all these years?
RB: That brought back memories.
DK: Ok. I’ll turn this off now. I think we’ve said enough but thanks very much for your time on that.
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 Robert Barnes. One
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
David Kavanagh
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
2017-08-03
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.
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Sound
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
ABarnesR170803, PBarnesR1701
Conforms To
An established standard to which the described resource conforms.
Pending review
Pending revision of OH transcription
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
00:49:29 audio recording
Language
A language of the resource
eng
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
Civilian
Description
An account of the resource
Robert Barnes was working in a Reserved Occupation and so knew the only way he could join the RAF was to volunteer for aircrew. Before he volunteered he was also a member of the ARP and Home Guard. Robert trained as a flight engineer and was posted to 50 Squadron at RAF Skellingthorpe. Robert’s pilot was James Flint DFC GM DFM who became the Commanding Officer of 50 Squadron.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Julie Williams
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
France
Germany
Great Britain
England--Lincolnshire
England--Nottinghamshire
Germany--Merseburg
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1943
1944
1945
50 Squadron
Air Raid Precautions
aircrew
bombing
civil defence
flight engineer
ground crew
ground personnel
Home Guard
Lancaster
memorial
navigator
Operation Dodge (1945)
Operation Exodus (1945)
RAF Skellingthorpe
RAF St Athan
RAF Swinderby
RAF Torquay
Stirling
training
V-1
V-weapon
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/769/9250/EDexterKIDexterPC410810-0001.1.jpg
afa8bb0aedf55c5549fd43e15be34158
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/769/9250/EDexterKIDexterPC410810-0002.1.jpg
68446436563889837dbffc3697fef923
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
Dexter, Keith Inger
Dexter, Dec
K I Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
33 items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Keith Dexter (1911 - 1943, 127249, 1387607 Royal Air Force ), a policeman before the war, he flew as a pilot with 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds. He was shot down and killed with all his crew on 16/17 June 1943 on operations against Cologne. Collection contains a dozen letters from 'Dec' Dexter to Phyllis Dexter,There is an extract from the 103 Squadron Operational Record Book on the loss of his aircraft and crew, maps of where his aircraft crashed, official Royal Air Force personnel records, Netherlands official documents, document about his aircraft as well as a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln and a crew. There are photographs of his grave as well as a group of people, including Keith Dexter being interviewed as a pilot trainee by the BBC at RAF Hatfield. There are two detailed daily diaries covering his time in the Royal Air Force from from 3 April 1941 to June 1943 which relate activities while training and on operations. There are some memorabilia, a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln, a painting, and an <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/770">album</a>. <br /><br />The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Lieutenant Colonel Monty Dexter-Banks and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br />Additional information on Keith Inger Dexter is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/106139/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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
2017-08-30
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
Dexter, KI
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
1387607 Cadet Dexter K. I.
‘C’ Flight No.2 Squadron.
No.1 I.T.W. R.A.F.
Babbacombe.
Torquay.
10 8/41. Devon.
Dear Phyl.
Here’s my new address for how long I don’t know. I hope you got my message on Saturday – I just had time to hop along grapple with my clothing and dash back without even wrapping up my undies! We left at 12 noon and got down here in the afternoon. We’re in hotels practically overlooking the sea just outside Torquay. Beds – sheets – good grub and plenty of time to eat it. If it wasn’t for damned hard work we’d be just set for a seaside holiday!
[page break]
I’m sorry I didn’t take the socks (sox) because they fealt [sic] so wet so could you send them on with my shirt as soon as the laundry return it. Also could you collect my photos from Pelling & Gross when they’re ready and send them on – I’ll let you have the dough.
It was nice to see Con & you I do hope Con wasn’t too upset on Friday. I’ve just written a quick note to her to give her my address and wish her luck with the cottage, I’m going to try and see uncle (blooming) Billy today and if there’s half a chance I’ll get them to have Con for a few days. I’m sure the sea air would do her good.
Cheerio for the present
All the best
Dex.
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 from Dec Dexter to Phyllis
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from Cadet Dexter to Phyl giving his new address at initial training wing, Babbacombe, Devon. Describes his hasty preparations, before leaving home, items left behind to be sent on, concerns of the welfare of another female friend, standards of accommodation and food experienced since his arrival.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Keith Dexter
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1941-08-10
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Two page handwritten letter
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EDexterKIDexterPC410810
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
Civilian
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941-08
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
David Bloomfield
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
Initial Training Wing
military living conditions
military service conditions
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/769/9253/EDexterKIDexterPC410819.1.pdf
61dd854cff5364a71ed5d14573734133
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
Dexter, Keith Inger
Dexter, Dec
K I Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
33 items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Keith Dexter (1911 - 1943, 127249, 1387607 Royal Air Force ), a policeman before the war, he flew as a pilot with 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds. He was shot down and killed with all his crew on 16/17 June 1943 on operations against Cologne. Collection contains a dozen letters from 'Dec' Dexter to Phyllis Dexter,There is an extract from the 103 Squadron Operational Record Book on the loss of his aircraft and crew, maps of where his aircraft crashed, official Royal Air Force personnel records, Netherlands official documents, document about his aircraft as well as a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln and a crew. There are photographs of his grave as well as a group of people, including Keith Dexter being interviewed as a pilot trainee by the BBC at RAF Hatfield. There are two detailed daily diaries covering his time in the Royal Air Force from from 3 April 1941 to June 1943 which relate activities while training and on operations. There are some memorabilia, a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln, a painting, and an <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/770">album</a>. <br /><br />The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Lieutenant Colonel Monty Dexter-Banks and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br />Additional information on Keith Inger Dexter is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/106139/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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
2017-08-30
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
Dexter, KI
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[postmark]
[postage stamp]
Miss P.C, Dexter
61 Branwin Court.
St John’s Wood.
N.W.8 London.
[page break]
1387607 Cadet Dexter K.I.
‘C’ Flight – No 2 Squadron.
No 1 I.T.W. R.A.F.
Babbacombe
Torquay
19 8/41
My dear Phyl.
Very many thanks for the two parcels I’m awfully sorry to be such a nuisance but think I’ve got most things now! I’m enclosing a cheque in lieu of the £1/5/7 which will have to go thro’ my bank as it was intended to go towards the Gas a/c for 77 N.E. Hse which I think came through just before I left London.
Had a letter from Con the other day saying that Silk had not moved out on Monday when Arthur went round to take possession. The mother-in-law was in command
[page break]
and apparently the [indecipherable word] was on the other [indecipherable word] & she was in a pretty useful dither saying that her daughter was still in bed and that they would be out by Saturday when they could get digs in Haverhill. Arthur finally got her to swear “on her [indecipherable word] that this was so and gave her till Saturday! I would have given her one hour precisely! However Arthur went to see [indecipherable name] the landlord and he has withdrawn his mother and is quite prepared to accept Con as the proper tenant in Arthur’s place – renting the cottage direct from him. In view of the way he’s handled Silk I think it’s best. Seems terrified that there would have been a row. Still with mother as the tenant Silk can’t stay 5 minutes because Arthur has no say in the matter so
[page break]
expect it’s all right this time. Con also tells me that some bombs dropped nearby and killed a woman [inserted] standing [/inserted] near her cottage door – do hope Con will be all right. I’ve told her that I for one will be much happier if she had someone with her. Anyway Con can always let to someone from the aerodrome and go away for a bit. I’m rather glad [indecipherable name] has let it direct.
There isn’t much news we’re still at work and start some exams next week. Saw Uncle Billy on Sunday but nothing was said! I took along three other blokes in my room so there wasn’t a lot of opportunity. I’ve a good mind to ask direct as you say but it would be a rotten snub if they said No – rather
[page break]
like that business with the £100 overdraft.
Con tells me Cheeky is as pleasing as ever and lets Con bath him now. Glad [two indecipherable words] well given him a gentle stroking for me. My love to Nora when you see her hope [indecipherable name] job is secured now. I should like to see those photos when you have time there’s some of [deleted] 29 [/deleted] [inserted] 77 [/inserted] on that reel – so do try & pop in for them. Let me know how much it comes to.
Do hope you’re all right and happy in your flat.
Drop me a line when you feel like it.
All the best – love to your brother
Dec.
P.S. I’ve put on a bob or so for postage.
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 from Dec Dexter to Pyllis Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
Thanks Phyl for parcels and states money sent. Writes about accommodation difficulties for family member. Notes bombs dropped nearby to home. Talks briefly about work at initial training wing and then catches up with family and friends.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Keith Dexter
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1941-08-19
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EDexterKIDexterPC410819
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
Civilian
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--London
England--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941-08
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
David Bloomfield
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
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Four page handwritten letter and envelope
Initial Training Wing
military service conditions
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/769/9256/EDexterKIDexterPC410830.1.pdf
a55c927c6e58e10dcf24bf82ddb5fa16
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
Dexter, Keith Inger
Dexter, Dec
K I Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
33 items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Keith Dexter (1911 - 1943, 127249, 1387607 Royal Air Force ), a policeman before the war, he flew as a pilot with 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds. He was shot down and killed with all his crew on 16/17 June 1943 on operations against Cologne. Collection contains a dozen letters from 'Dec' Dexter to Phyllis Dexter,There is an extract from the 103 Squadron Operational Record Book on the loss of his aircraft and crew, maps of where his aircraft crashed, official Royal Air Force personnel records, Netherlands official documents, document about his aircraft as well as a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln and a crew. There are photographs of his grave as well as a group of people, including Keith Dexter being interviewed as a pilot trainee by the BBC at RAF Hatfield. There are two detailed daily diaries covering his time in the Royal Air Force from from 3 April 1941 to June 1943 which relate activities while training and on operations. There are some memorabilia, a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln, a painting, and an <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/770">album</a>. <br /><br />The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Lieutenant Colonel Monty Dexter-Banks and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br />Additional information on Keith Inger Dexter is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/106139/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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
2017-08-30
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
Dexter, KI
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[postmark]
[postage stamps]
Miss Phyllis Dexter
61 Branwen Court,
ST John’s Wood,
London N.W.8
[page break]
[Royal Air Force Crest]
[page break]
1387607 Cadet Dexter K.I
‘c’ Flight No 2 Squadron.
No 1 I.T.W. R.A.F.
Babbacombe.
Torquay.
30/8/41
My dear Phyl.
Just a short note indeed to thank you for the snaps and ask you to get a copy for yourself of those of 77. I enclose the negatives & a cheque for 6/- to cover the cost.
The “awful child” is Patrick Cole – Charlie’s effort he’s really a jolly little lad.
Matt’s O.K. I think now a navigator which is damned interesting.
Excuse short letter. Glad you’re all right. The compensation folk have
[page break]
offered to pay for all the cost of removal except the bath & the carpet sweeper £13 in all which I think quite reasonable – don’t you? Also [indecipherable word] Flats have accepted my notice to leave as from 1st August. so everything is settling down slowly.
Heaps of regards to home & Libby
All the best – Love.
[underlined] Dec ][/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
Letter from Dec Dexter to Phyllis Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
Catching up with family and friends, money and accommodation.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Keith Dexter
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1941-08-30
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EDexterKIDexterPC410830
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
Civilian
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--London
England--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941-08
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
David Bloomfield
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
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Two page handwritten letter and envelope
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/769/9355/EDexterKIDexterPC410910-0001.1.jpg
ca0fa4a558112bda6a6444d334a47e3e
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/769/9355/EDexterKIDexterPC410910-0002.1.jpg
09df132587f1bec19941ea07b2953c58
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
Dexter, Keith Inger
Dexter, Dec
K I Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
33 items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Keith Dexter (1911 - 1943, 127249, 1387607 Royal Air Force ), a policeman before the war, he flew as a pilot with 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds. He was shot down and killed with all his crew on 16/17 June 1943 on operations against Cologne. Collection contains a dozen letters from 'Dec' Dexter to Phyllis Dexter,There is an extract from the 103 Squadron Operational Record Book on the loss of his aircraft and crew, maps of where his aircraft crashed, official Royal Air Force personnel records, Netherlands official documents, document about his aircraft as well as a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln and a crew. There are photographs of his grave as well as a group of people, including Keith Dexter being interviewed as a pilot trainee by the BBC at RAF Hatfield. There are two detailed daily diaries covering his time in the Royal Air Force from from 3 April 1941 to June 1943 which relate activities while training and on operations. There are some memorabilia, a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln, a painting, and an <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/770">album</a>. <br /><br />The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Lieutenant Colonel Monty Dexter-Banks and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br />Additional information on Keith Inger Dexter is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/106139/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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
2017-08-30
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
Dexter, KI
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
1387607 Cadet Dexter K I
‘C’ Flight No 2 Squadron.
No 1 I.T.W. RAF.
Babbacombe
Torquay
10 9/41
My dear Phyl.
Many thanks for your letter today it was damned good of you to write. I’m awfully sorry to hear you’ve been ill I do hope it was’nt [sic] anything serious. It was bad luck. Anyway I’m glad to hear you’re fit again now. Do hope you managed all right on your own – it was too bad – wish I could have lent a hand.
By the way heaps of happy returns for the 12th. I enclose a few shekels for you to get yourself
[page break]
something with – can’t possibly shop here because all the shops are shut when we finish work and in any case I hav’nt [sic] the foggiest what you would like so feel sure the shekels will perhaps come in handy.
I get a spot of leave after we finish here either week end after next or the one after that. I’ll let you know as soon as I do. I wondered if you could wangle the Saturday morning off and come down to Con’s that week-end? Do hope you can – I’ll do fares etc. and let you know details later. In the meantime could you find out trains to Haverhill on a Saturday for me? Any time after 11 am.
Had a long letter from Con. Do hope she’s all right. As you say she’s doing all the work, it is a shame.
All the best, heaps of love. Dec.
[inserted] P.S. When you see Nora do thank her for me for the great kindness to Con and us all. I’ll try and write
Dec [/inserted]
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 from Keith Dexter to Phyllis Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
Letter from Keith Dexter to Phyllis Dexter. He send congratulations for her birthday and apologies for only sending money as he is unable to shop because of work. He continues with news of his impending leave and about arranging to meet up and of family and friends.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Keith Dexter
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1941-09-10
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Correspondence
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
EDexterKIDexterPC410910
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
Spatial Coverage
Spatial characteristics of the resource.
Great Britain
England--Devon
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941-09
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Tricia Marshall
David Bloomfield
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
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
Two page handwritten letter
military service conditions
RAF Torquay
training
-
https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/files/original/769/9367/YDexterKI127249v1.2.pdf
eaf09649af90b3a0b45e75742d497557
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
Dexter, Keith Inger
Dexter, Dec
K I Dexter
Description
An account of the resource
33 items. The collection concerns Flying Officer Keith Dexter (1911 - 1943, 127249, 1387607 Royal Air Force ), a policeman before the war, he flew as a pilot with 103 Squadron at RAF Elsham Wolds. He was shot down and killed with all his crew on 16/17 June 1943 on operations against Cologne. Collection contains a dozen letters from 'Dec' Dexter to Phyllis Dexter,There is an extract from the 103 Squadron Operational Record Book on the loss of his aircraft and crew, maps of where his aircraft crashed, official Royal Air Force personnel records, Netherlands official documents, document about his aircraft as well as a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln and a crew. There are photographs of his grave as well as a group of people, including Keith Dexter being interviewed as a pilot trainee by the BBC at RAF Hatfield. There are two detailed daily diaries covering his time in the Royal Air Force from from 3 April 1941 to June 1943 which relate activities while training and on operations. There are some memorabilia, a photograph of a Lancaster over Lincoln, a painting, and an <a href="https://ibccdigitalarchive.lincoln.ac.uk/omeka/collections/show/770">album</a>. <br /><br />The collection has been loaned to the IBCC Digital Archive for digitisation by Lieutenant Colonel Monty Dexter-Banks and catalogued by Nigel Huckins.<br /><br />Additional information on Keith Inger Dexter is available via the <a href="https://internationalbcc.co.uk/losses/106139/">IBCC Losses Database</a>.
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
2017-08-30
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
Dexter, KI
Transcribed document
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading.
Transcription
Text transcribed from audio recording or document
[book front cover]
[inserted] Engagements [/inserted]
[page break]
DEXTER.
DIARY FROM JOINING R.A.F.
[indecipherable]
[inserted] Engagements [/inserted]
[page break]
Memoranda
Th. 3 4/41. Attested Euston House.
S. 1 6/41. Holiday. Bolton Abbey with Con.
M. 16 6/41. Con to Stradishall.
M. 28 7/41 joined R.A.F. A.C.R.C. ST. [indecipherable]
28 7/41 – 9 8/41 A.C.R.C.
9 8/41 – To No.1 I.T.W. Babbacombe. Got [underlined] fit [/underlined]. Fairly hard work – interesting.
30 8/41 M.K. Gibbon’s –
12 9/41 Party K.
22 9/41 – 26 9/41 Final exams.
26 9/41 – 29 9/41 leave [deleted] A [/deleted] Party – Stradishall
30 9/41. Travel overnight to No1 E.F.T.S. Hatfield.
1 10/41 Arrive Hatfield. Good grub. Neat [indecipherable]. First sight Tiger on nose in middle of aerodrome.
3 10/41. 1st. trip with instructor. Rather strange at first. Planes seem to go crab fashion below you Ground very hard to read. No ill effects except for bumps. Glad to get back to ground though. Think I’ll like it. Off to Cons. Hitch to Cambs.
4 10/41. Leave - Stradishall.
11 10/41 [indecipherable].
12 10/41 Cons by car with Phyl. Pick up Mary. Chicken lunch – lovely.
[page break]
For Week of Monday [deleted] 12th Oct. 1941 [/deleted]
[deleted] MONDAY [/deleted][underlined] F. 17 10/41. [/underlined] wonderful hitch to Cambs. 3/4 hour. Got soaked from Haverhill.
[underlined] Th. 23 10/41. [/underlined] Went solo.
[deleted] TUESDAY [/deleted] [underlined] F. 24 10/41. [/underlined] could’nt do anything right. Reaction after solo? [deleted] A [/deleted] Party – S. Palace.
[underlined] S. 25 10/41. [/underlined] up & doing.
[underlined] Sun. 26 10/41. [/underlined] B.B.C. broadcast from
[deleted] WEDNESDAY [/deleted] Hatfield. After to see Phyl [indecipherable] & Dora.
[underlined] M. 27 10/41. [/underlined] 1 hour’s solo. Everything O.K. must have been re-action.
[deleted] THURSDAY [/deleted]
[underlined] T. 28 10/41. [/underlined] Rumour we’re leaving. F.F.I.
[underlined] Th. 30 10/41. [/underlined] Regret left Hatfield. C.O.
[deleted] FRIDAY [/deleted] very interested and decent. Very sorry to go. On leave to 5 11/41 repeat A.C.D.C. [indecipherable]. [deleted] A [/deleted] Party.
F. 31 10/41. To Cons.
[deleted] SATURDAY [/deleted]
Sun. 2 11/41 Party W.A.A.F officers mess and Off. Mess Stradishall.
[underlined] Mon. 3 11/41. [/underlined] Flip Wellington. ‘F’ Freddie.
[deleted] SUNDAY [/deleted]
[underlined] Tues. 4 11/41. [/underlined] Left Cons en route A.C.D.C. Saw Phyl & [indecipherable]. Party [deleted] A [/deleted]
[page break]
Memoranda
W. 5 11/41. Arrive A.C.D.C. Manchester. Good homely digs at Wyatts. Fail [indecipherable] Manchester.
F. 14 11/41. Spur of moment party – good.
S. 15 11/41. 7pm. Air. “Fantasia”
Sun. 16 11/41. [indecipherable] lunch (white sauce). [indecipherable] supper.
Th. 20 11/41 – 21 11/41 Overnight to Greenock. Embark H.M.T. [indecipherable] at [indecipherable] bound for Halifax Nova Scotia en route for U.S.A. Grounded rather. Sleep hammocks comfortable. Good grub. Harbour interesting.
Sat. 22 11/41. Weigh anchor. Depart harbour to Sea. 10.30/am through [indecipherable] to off Scottish Coast. Howard Marshall & Julian Huxley aboard. Also [indecipherable] with Fleet Air Arm [indecipherable].
Sun. 23 11/41. 0830. joined by two freight ships and one destroyer. Set sail in earnest 0930. [indecipherable] Pork lunch. Heaps of people sick. Bit queasy – eat good tea then O.K. Grand on deck - [indecipherable] forward. Green faces. Felt rather homesick. Cautious beer flat – queue for dry [indecipherable] Cigs etc. Very cheap.
[page break]
For Week of Monday 24th. Nov 1941
[deleted] MONDAY [/deleted] [underlined] MONDAY [/underlined] 24 11/41.
Green faces – sick everywhere Sea getting rough. Continue O.K. Good grub – now plenty of it.
TUESDAY 25 11/41. O.K. Eating well. Gale terrific pitching and huge seas. Grand fun. Man overboard destroyer – poor devil’s had it. Hove to during night.
WEDNESDAY 26 11/41. 3 days out. Sea still high and boat pitching. Took over Mess orderly to dodge guards etc! Green faces. Freighters left us. Grand fun.
THURSDAY 27 11/41. 4 days out. Lectures in Officer’s lounge – interesting. People recovering – not so much grub – still good. Big seas. Getting colder.
FRIDAY 28 11/41. 5 days out. Snow & sleet. Rumour not far off land – false. Ploughing steadily on. Most people recovered. Food still good. Fully lit ship passes in evening. Destroyer investigates.
SATURDAY 29 11/41. Rumours rife – but all false. Still going ahead. No sign of Jerry yet. Saw “Convey” – good. Played Bridge. Man-o-War crosses bows well ahead – exchanges signals with destroyer.
SUNDAY 30 11/41. Rumours but no Landor Jerry. V.Cold & uninviting. Handed in £10. Enjoyed trip so far. Moving well now.
[page break]
Memoranda
[underlined] Tuesday 2 11/41 [/underlined]
Docked Halifax 8 am. Ashore 1.15pm. Cables sent. Entrained for Moncton for A.C.D.C. 6 hour journey. Arr. 7pm. marched up to barracks. Brand new. Very warm. Most comfortable bed after hammock in tiers of two. Fleet Air Arm still with us. On way here passed through wonderful country. Pines and lakes with shacks seen through trees. Small towns & villages composed of a church always – and houses al in wood. No brick or stone to be seen. Halifax harbour inland a wonderful sight. Good meal served on train and another on arrival. Kitchens on train and A.C.D.C. very open. Strange to see lights again. track single for the most part with passing points. Block of one engine-in-section at a time prevails. [indecipherable] from [indecipherable] to Moncton. [indecipherable] at [indecipherable] dished out apples to troops. Several troop trains going towards Halifax. The [indecipherable] return cargo? Sleep – oh marvellous.
[underlined] N.B. RAILWAYS. [/underlined] Not so safe as in England. Queer system of single line working no tables. Track have double line [underlined] holts [/underlined] used either way. Track circuitry no apparent signalling. Centralised control. Points had worked on [underlined] MAIN [/underlined] line. No tank
[page break]
For Week of Monday 1st. Dec. 1941
MONDAY 1 12/41. Rumour – no land. Not far away now. Cold. Saw shoal of porpoises in afternoon – wonderful. D.R.O says docking tomorrow. Land sighted 10.30pm.
TUESDAY 2 12/41. Can sight land & lights distinctly – marvellous sight. Going well ahead now. Destroyer now left us. Docked 8am. Ashore 1.15pm. see opp. Saw Wallace.
WEDNESDAY 3 12/41. No work as yet. Posted mail & had look round town. People very decent. Good for shops & repair as you wait [indecipherable]. English tobacco – stacks. Disturbing rumours about U.S.A.
THURSDAY 4 12/41. Excellent hygiene here. Drink through straws – paper tissues. Excellent and varied grub at reasonable prices. Restaurants or Grills like “Quality Inns”. People grand though seemingly slow. Evening dinner Town.
FRIDAY 5 12/41. Man found to have hanged himself in drill hall. Bridge. 1250 Photos then down Town. Wonderful mixed grill. Had a look at Railway. We’re in the heart of moose country. Told excellent shooting & fishing. Bridge then bed.
SATURDAY 6 12/41. Paraded us work. Bridge. Thought we’d hitch to St. John – but decided against. Dave & I 5 mile walk. Scenery very same everywhere. Supper at Bennetts – bed. Wet.
SUNDAY 7 12/41. Up late nearly missed breakfast. Nothing to do. Wrote home & cards. Mind everywhere. Snow afternoon. Thick in evening. Drier snow than England. Bridge – bed. JAPAN DECLARES WAR – BOMBS HONOLULU, SINGAPORE ETC.
[page break]
Memoranda
engines. Shunters called “Switchers” and shunting “Switching”. All [indecipherable] carry huge head lights and wonderful drive whistles. Crossings usually not protected by gates. Train uses its whistle continuously to give warning of approach. At crossing a load single gong bell is started when train is 300 feet away and an arm with red lamp swings from a post across the road. All worked by track circuit. All main line engines appear to be 4-8-4 and switchers 0.6.0 or 2.6.0 tender engines. All engines kick up large amount of smoke. All vehicles whether goods or not are bogie. The [indecipherable] have 6 wheeled bogies.
[underlined] R.C.M.P. [/underlined]
A state controlled body – can operate anywhere. Each province I/C of [indecipherable] & sub-divided into Sub-Divisions I/C of [indecipherable]. Organisation very similar to M.P. Better system of forms. Those required in [indecipherable] already stacked up in the required No. with carbon in between – only require to be put in typewriter. Accident reports are completed by ticking off items which apply on a special form – no long winded typing. Far less forms than in the M.P. to cover a larger field of work.
[page break]
For Week of Monday 8th. Dec. 1941
MONDAY Heavy fall of snow overnight. More pleasant than wind. Snow seems more powdery & does not wet so much an English variety. Plenty of snowballing. U.S.A at war.
TUESDAY 9 12/41 no more snow but plenty about. Paid a visit to R.C.M.P. pleasant welcome invitation to go and drink there. See opposite page.
WEDNESDAY 10 12/41 Dodged fatigue’s in morning and in afternoon set out for majestic Hill – found snow too deep. Wonderful scenery. Reports that P of Wales and Repulse sunk by Japs.
THURSDAY 11 12/41. Had a hot shower & grub with Solomon’s [indecipherable]. Met Dennis Moyar on way here from U.S.A. passes O.K. being hit [indecipherable] at 200 mph at 5000’ in cloud! After to town & supper at “Windsor Grill”.
FRIDAY 12 12/41. After pay parade to town to get silk stockings for everyone and no lipstick. Sent home via [indecipherable] in time for Christmas I hope. After exchanged shoes for 3$ in town. Bridge then bed. Saw G. Wilkinson this morning.
SATURDAY 13 12/41. Short parade. Bridge before and after lunch. Too lazy to go out but eventually met Solomon, Charles & Wilkinson. Grub - [indecipherable] – dance – bed. George has failed on landings.
SUNDAY 14 12/41. Told we’re supposed to be moving South on Tuesday. Dodged fatigues – Snow turned to rain and a spot of thaw. Bridge all day.
[page break]
Memoranda
no crime Book – just loose leaf binder to hold one copy of crime Report prepared in quadruplicate. Finger prints taken on similar form to ours. System of working – local towns have their own Police and local bye-laws are practically left to them as a matter of courtesy. Mounties deal with State offences – liquor, game, big crime involving districts, travelling criminals etc. Start work 9 am. Patrol according to what is happening – usually 9 am to 6 pm. but are “on tap” for 24 hours. Uniforms – Scarlet full dress worn at Police Court, special & ceremonial parades, otherwise the un-dress of a bluish khaki is worn with the blue breeches (yellow stripe) and brown knee boots – very smart cut & fit. All recruits receive 6 – 9 months training at Regina which appears to be a 1st. class Training School & well appointed. Certainly the saying seems true that “There are only two Police Forces, the M.P & R.C.M.P.”
[underlined] SNOW [/underlined] Finer & more powdery than in England. Does’nt wet your clothing. Sun shines quite warmly during
[page break]
For Week of Monday 15th. Dec 1941
MONDAY 15 12/41. Moving at 6am tomorrow. Changed all [indecipherable] to American currency. Bath and then down Town for an evening meal. Packing. Frost during night – everything frozen hard – dangerous walking.
TUESDAY 16 12/41. Up 4.30am. parade 6am march station move 7.55am. Grand trip glorious scenery. ST. John, McAdam, Brownsville (Maine U.S.A.) Montreal 2.30am. Stopped [indecipherable] – beer 1st for 3 weeks!
WEDNESDAY 17 12/41. Slept indifferently on seats let back on a slide. Toronto, Ayr 10.30 am, 1/2 hour route march to stretch. Winded through tunnel to Detroit – dirty – Toledo, Cincinnati new [indecipherable] march [indecipherable]. C.P.R. right thro’.
THURSDAY 18 12/41. We are to keep the C.P.R. Coaches right thro’. Awoke at Chattanooga Tennessee. Atlanta – Montgomery then Maxwell Field. Scenery all day like the New Forest only more of it.
FRIDAY 19 12/41. Reveille 5.45 am. Parade 6 am. Heaps of B/S. We are to be drilled U.S. fashion – also U.S. arms drill. Address by R.A.F. senior officer in hanger in the evening. Very tired.
SATURDAY 20 12/41. Up at 6am. more arms drill and U.S.A. foot drill. Told we are to do a ceremonial Sunday parade in public – hence the drill etc. Quite enjoying all this. Grub excellent for climate.
SUNDAY 21 12/41. Up 6am. short church parade after breakfast. Early lunch then a complete rehearsal. 3.30pm. parade proper with band spectators etc. We put up a good show. Union Jack carried.
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the day and slight top thaw occurred. At night as soon as sun goes down it freezes hard & possibly snows also. Makes everything look marvellous. All the local people are at once prepared for it. Cars have chains and the bodies of hand carts etc. are taken off the chassis and put on a chassis equipped with runners – all [indecipherable] a land of snow. In spite of warm days local people wrap up well – they know. During day often an icy wind which makes your ears literally freeze – and ache. When sun is out the snow looks a wonderful colour of blue – reflecting the blue of the sky. Real need to wear tinted glasses if out for any length of time – Snow falls a lot End of November to December and lasts until end of March to April. Never seems to get slushy like good old England. No hills round here for winter Sports – pity.
All sleighs or for that matter horse drawn carts have small bells attached to the traces. Snow ploughs used on roads & footpaths as well as railways. Whether it is reflection or what I don’t know but when the sun is shining the sky is a glorious greeny-blue
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For Week of Monday 22nd. Dec. 1941
MONDAY 22 12/41. Up 6am. as usual! P.T & drill in the morning. Lecture after lunch – fell asleep. Treated myself to a new pen! Spot of bridge. Wrote K.
TUESDAY 23 12/41. A heavy tropical type of thunder storm overnight. Sheets of rain. No outside parades. Re-shuffle of quarters. Still with Dave & Thomas. An evening Christmas sing-song in hanger – R.A.F excelled. Good fun.
WEDNESDAY 24 12/41. Open post cancelled – rumour Japs A/C Carrier in Mexican Gulf. Troops fed up. someone sent telegram to Churchill in Washington! Later allowed open post of camp. Bored. Had walk round. [indecipherable]
THURSDAY 25 12/41. Allowed open post from 9am to 4.30pm. on guard at 4.30pm. To Town beer, turkey at Morrisons – more beer then guard. Fraternised with U.S. Cadets good fellars. Few drinks.
FRIDAY 26 12/41. Guard to 4.30pm – tiring job glad when over. Last tour of duty very hot and heavy on the feet. According to U.S. Regs not allowed to stand – must keep moving! Obviously not complied with.
SATURDAY 27 12/41. Parade thro’ Town in Blue-Grey Festival. 10am. Hard work but good show. After beer & grub at Morrisons Then to ball game at Gampton Bowl – disappointing. Later Blue-Grey Ball – lovely. Tommy Trinder’s band.
SUNDAY 28 12/41. Returned 1.30am. straight to bed tired. Stayed in bed to 9am. Leisurely shave etc. lunch 11.30. Usual Sunday Parade. R.A.F. colours presented. Bridge wrote home. & bed.
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and when sun sets the whole sky is a blaze of colour. Snow and roads etc. soon settles down & becomes frozen hard. There is no slush.
[underlined] FOOD. [/underlined] Not so unlike English dishes as at first one imagined. Different cuts of meat such as ‘T’ bone steak etc. food generally much cheaper. A whole supper @ 45c the same price as one ice cream sundae or fancy effort at the Soda fountain. Method of ordering is to choose the main dish which are priced on the menu and usually grouped together in price order. Menus all in English! Then you choose the soup or tomato juice etc. course, the sweet also the vegetables, for the main dish & last coffee, tea or milk. Having fixed the price of the meal by the main dish the rest is thrown in by the management! Usually lashings of all the kinds of vegetables on the menu and an extra cup of coffee if required. All restaurants are usually “Bennett’s Grill” or “Alison’s Grill” with “Art Bennett. Prop” under the name! some are called restaurants but usually grills. The interior is much the same. Always a soda fountain then snack bar with tall seats, and the rest
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For Week of Monday 29th. Dec 1941
MONDAY 29 12/41. Usual day – parade in the afternoon. At 7.30pm. O.C. Capt. Luper lectured on the U.S.A. “Honor” System in hanger. Troops got and enlightened him on the British code of honour. He was shot down in flames! Cable K.
TUESDAY 30 12/41. Usual day. Rumour that we’re going on the 11th. Shan’t be sorry. [underlined] Japs take Manila. [/underlined] Damned [indecipherable] lectures up to now ore History & Geography (U.S.A) & Aircraft Rec. bridge – bed.
WEDNESDAY 31 12/41. Usual day. We won the Sqdn. Competition! After parade into Town. Drinks – eats – flicks (“Yank in R.A.F. – good) drinks. Got bored at 11pm & returned 11.30pm. Went to bed. Heard New Year come in. Cable from Con.
THURSDAY 1 1/42. Reveille same time. Period of P.T. excused drill owing to winning Competition. Raining. Open post after lunch to 7.30pm. did’nt go out. Rumour we’re going on 6th. Spot of trouble over the [indecipherable] damage. Honour at stake.
FRIDAY 2 1/42. Received five letters & one parcel (Con) all via Heaton Park & [indecipherable]! makes things look a bit rosier. Bridge – prepared room for inspection next day.
SATURDAY 3 1/42. Presentation of American Wings to Advanced Class – lucky devils – address by Gov. Weaver O.C. U.S. Air Corps. Open post 12.15pm – 12.15am. Town. Meal – Tommy Horsfall. Dance Intro. Saxons. Invite next Saturday.
SUNDAY 4 1/42. Reveille usual time. [underlined] Wrote home [/underlined], A.W.Smith, Rly. Mag. Macs. Gilletts, Phyl. Went into Town – just had a look round museum at Capitol – tea & home.
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divided into knife board partitions to hold four – similar to the Quality Inns. Iced water and a plate containing rolls, biscuits or cookies as they are called, with butter are always provided with a meal. To choose a complete meal is cheaper by far than to order a la carte. Incidentally Bennett started in Moncton 5 yrs ago with 50$!
[underlined] HEATING. [/underlined] all houses large or small are “steam heated”. Indoors in Moncton is stifling far too hot. They do not seem able to strike a happy medium. Even the buses are heated by hot pipes. Probably accounts for the T.B. going from humid atmosphere to the freezing cold outside. Still – in each house however small there is a boiler in the cellar. Then according to the wealth of the owners there is a proper radiator system or just pipes lead off to all the rooms blowing in hot air. The wooden houses are much hotter than the brick variety – also wood is cheap and easy to get. The Canadians do not seem to have frost difficulties as in England. They don’t seem to take any special precautions but expect the “steam heating does the trick.
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For Week of Monday 5th. JAN 1942
MONDAY 5 1/42. Received a parcel from Rice with tobacco and one from Con with long letter all via Manchester & Moncton – very nice.
TUESDAY 6 1/42. Find we’re on the move on Saturday. Ring Saxons and re-date for Wednesday. Spot of bridge. No B/S parade.
WEDNESDAY 7 1/42. Definitely going Saturday think its Tuscaloosa. Make date with Saxons – have a good evening. Nice large house with big log grate & logs! First home I’ve been into – for 2 months!
THURSDAY 8 1/42. List definitely up for Tuscaloosa. Leave Saturday 13.15hours. Get out kit bags etc. Glad we’re going. Practice B/S parade for visitation tomorrow.
FRIDAY 9 1/42. Up 5.30am. B/S parade at 9 am for Air Chief Marshall Sir Charles Portal who arrived by a Douglas. Packed kit etc. Open post to 10pm after lunch went down Town.
SATURDAY 10 1/42. Left at 1.30pm for Tuscaloosa by motor coach. Good journey 147m in 3 1/2 hrs. Tuscaloosa a change from Maxwell. Good billets, grub fair, less B/S.
SUNDAY 11 1/42. A day of ‘Pep’ talks & lectures from 6am to 8pm! Settled down in rooms. I rather like the place Similar to Hatfield not so good.
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[underlined] THE JOURNEY SOUTH [/underlined] 16 12/41 – 18 12/41.
C.P.R Coaches with adjustable seats which also swivel so that you can face the window or turn right round for cards, etc. Told we get America state at Detroit. Start at 7.55am. Usual scenery to ST. JOHN. Diners attached and we climb & climb. Scenery very grand and glorious along St. John river. Climbing hard with occasional easy. Changed our Canadian national 4.8.4 for a C.P.R. 2.8.4 at St. John with smaller wheels. [indecipherable] different toned whistle. Stock rides well and silently but terrific jolts on starting. Arrive [deleted] Ma [/deleted] QADAM short 2.30pm and change engines for another of same type. Climbed onto cab but driver said it was against law to give footplate trips – pity. Away again – soon cross a small river by bridge and we are in the U.S.A. – we cross the state of Maine to reach Montreal. Stop at Brownsville – get cigs & chocolate. Playing bridge scenery now rather flatter and covered with small farms. American cottages although of wood do not seem to be so well built as the Canadian version. Coaches are very warm – too hot really although there is plenty of snow about. Continue to climb to majestic
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For Week of Monday 12th. JAN 1942
MONDAY 12 1/42. Lectures to lunch. Flying at 12.30pm. M. [indecipherable]. Power off & P. on Stalls. S & L 40 mins. Stearsman P.T.17’s heavy & clumsier than moths. Decent Instructor. [indecipherable] – does’nt [indecipherable]. 40 mins. Wrote home
TUESDAY 13 1/42. Lectures. Flying at 12.30pm 35 mins. Not good can’t do anything right. P.T.17 heavier to handle than Tiger. Rudder and bank to be put on together! Fair landing. Feel a bit fed up.
WEDNESDAY 14 1/42. Lectures – flying 12.30pm. made a much better job of it. Getting used to the P.T.17. good take off & landing. Felt better and more confident. K.
THURSDAY 15 1/42. Flying 12.30pm. 1 1/2 hours. Made a fair job of it. Did circuits and bumps at faster [indecipherable] of solo. Flick show at the station – quite good. Wrote G.H.W.
FRIDAY 16 1/42. Flying 12.30pm. Only did 2 circuits & bumps – to make up for yesterday. Fair. Wrote to Wilkinson. Open post – did’nt go out. Wrote Sal.
SATURDAY 17 1/42. Flying 12.30pm. [indecipherable] then circuits & bumps Fair [indecipherable] of solo. Open post went down town to Methodist Hall – poor. Snack then beer at Ellis Club.
SUNDAY 18 1/42. Actually allowed to sleep on to 9.30am. what a treat. Wrote home, Sheila, Cyril & Nora, Charlie. Rested rest of day. Did not fly today.
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Stop here for 20 mins. We’re now in the Province of Quebec therefore we dash to an hotel conveniently near the station and grab three bottles of beer each. Had to ask for cigs in French! Beer not bad rather light in colour & on the palate. Was double headed and away we go – through the Town. We now move in two C.P.R. diners with kitchens end to end in relays. Grub excellent and plenty of it. Waiters very obliging. Scenery now much grander and the two engines are working hard to lift us over the hills. No tunnels – just heavy gradients. Engines not suited for double heading and we are going slowly with jerks. Don’t like these central buck-eye couplers. We have crossed the top of the U.S.A. province of Maine to reach Majestic. Darkness falls with glorious colours among the pines, hills, frozen lakes and general splendour. We play bridge until bed time then make ourselves as comfortable as possible for the night on our slide back seats - 3 men to 4 seats sandwich fashion. 17 12/41. Wake up to find a [indecipherable] cold [indecipherable]. The heat is full on and the doors which we opened have been closed. Still better after a
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For Week of Monday JAN 19th 1942
MONDAY 19 1/42. Flying 7.A.M. SOLO 4 [deleted] 3 [/deleted] Circuits & fair landings. Very glad – performed at Tuscaloosa.
TUESDAY 20 1/42. Flying 8.30 am. 2nd SOLO at Rice. 3 circuits & fair landings one wheels first. Feel quite happy on my own. Rice very small “cabbage patch“ – good fun.
WEDNESDAY 21 1/42. Flying 7.30am. 3rd SOLO at Tuscaloosa. 4 circuits & 3 fair one bump landing. Seem to have lost the knack of holding-off. Hope it will come back.
THURSDAY 22 1/42. Flying 7am. Over to Rice to shoot 1st stage. 6 circuits 3 fair landings 3 W.F. Think I must be getting a little stale. Still not too bad. Satisfactory “Stage”. Flick – Alexanders Rag Time Band.
FRIDAY 23 1/42. Flying 8.30am. Bad visibility – no solo. Up to 3000 and stalls etc. Instructor did two slow rolls. Hanging in straps – could’nt stop laughing. Open Post – flicks. Beer in Town.
SATURDAY 24 1/42. Open post after the B/S inspection. Went into Town after lunch. Met Mrs Jones – car ride round & met Foster. Nice people. More beer & bed.
SUNDAY 25 1/42. Up 5.30am. Flying 9.15 am. Bad visibility earlier. Over to Rice shot a “Satisfactory” stage. 7 Circuits. 5 landings O.K. 2 W.F. wrote home & to W/C. Pyke.
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wash and a breath of fresh air on the platform. The coaches – called cars – are heated as usual from pipes running from a boiler and the end. The windows which are as usual [indecipherable] do not open. The coach really gets too hot and everyone is in shirt sleeves. Well we seem to have left the grand woods & lakes for the flat farm country south of Montreal which we passed at 2.30 am. I am told. We are now on the western bank of Lake Ontario which looks just like the sea, with a horizon complete. From the map one does’nt realise the real size of the lakes. Via Brownsville to Toronto where we all pile out. We exchange our 4.6.4 for a C.P.R. 4.6.2 No. 8256 of the same class as No. 8250 which headed the Royal Train. Snow now definitely left us and it seems warmer. Now move to Ayr and stop for a half hour’s route march to get some fresh air and stretch the old legs. Surprised to find some snow all slushy on the road.
On again and we have lunch. Country very flat here – all farming, except for the farm buildings it might be England except the ground has that queer brown colour. We are travelling along the western bank of Lake Erie though we cannot
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For Week of Monday 26th. JAN 1942
MONDAY 26 1/42. Flying afternoon 1hr. dual. Usual exercises. Not to brilliant still a little progress. Good flying weather.
TUESDAY 27 1/42. Flying afternoon – if any. Low cloud 10/10 strong variable wind. Collins had one hour but instructor said it was no good. Gripe committee.
WEDNESDAY 28 1/42. Flying afternoon. Still 10/10 at 3000’. Had 52 mins dual and went above cloud. Glorious at 5,500’. Did some Slow Rolls, Roll off loop, chandelles or rather instructor did. Flick – good. Two letters K.
THURSDAY 29 1/42. Flying afternoon. Good vis. 40 mins dual – pylon eights. 45 mins solo out of traffic. Got used to spins etc on my own. Enjoyed it. [indecipherable]
FRIDAY 30 1/42. [indecipherable] & Ford ([indecipherable]) crashed on Birmingham Road. [indecipherable] died at 8.59pm – poor devil – badly smashed up. Ford two broken legs & crushed foot. Cause not known. Bad luck. Did’nt fly. Open post.
SATURDAY 31 1/42. Usual B/S Inspection. One jig. Believe Ford will lose his foot. No flying – too rough. Open post. Flick then to St. John’s Hall after to Ellis. Thomas & his medal – damn funny.
SUNDAY 1 2/42. Stayed in bed to 9.30 am. oh joy. Wrote home & to Stella, Saxons. Went for a walk with Jack round the hills & woods – quite enjoyable.
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see any of it as we’re too far inland. We pass thro’ stations with names like London, Chatham etc. We reach Windsor, C.P.R. the end of the Canadian part of our journey. The New York Central R.R now hook on two electric locos to take us under the Detroit River – joining to Hudson and L. Eire – by tunnel into Detroit Station. We are still in C.P.R coaches though we lost our Pacific at Windsor. We apparently change coaches at Cincinnati to U.S.A. Stock. A N.Y.C 4.6.4 hooks on and away we go. Different toned whistle again. Detroit is a dirty hole and is in the heart of the industrial area. Country very flat and somewhat uninteresting. We play bridge until tea time.
We’ve collected a N.Y.C. diner at Detroit and find we’ve waited on by coloured servants immaculate in white [indecipherable] set off by their black faces. I’m impressed by their silent service. They never speak unless spoken to or ask if you want this or that – and when doing nothing stand to attention waiting to do the next job as it presents itself. The diner is in charge of an American white head waiter who just supervised. Grub is excellent. The decoration of the diner soft and pleasing. Sitting 4 and 2. You are expected to eat American fashion and have only
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For Week of Monday 2nd. FEB 1942
MONDAY 2 2/42. Met new instructor. Seemed decent chap & satisfied with my 50 mins flying except for rudder fanning! PARCEL OF SOCKS & LETTER FROM Con –great. On the air 7.45 in R.A.F. Cadets broadcast – O.K.
TUESDAY 3 2/42. No flying – bad visibility. Seniors beat juniors at Volley ball. No gripe committee. Wrote letter – thunder a lot we all felt heavy.
K.
WEDNESDAY 4 2/42. Gusty day but went up with Instructor – fair. Stn. flicks in evening – Alice Faye in a most boring picture.
THURSDAY 5 2/42. Fair weather. 30 mins with instr. then out of traffic again for 45. Good fun though a trifle bumpy – good landings.
FRIDAY 6 2/42. Only 15 mins dual. Very gusty & sudden squall. 3 blokes out solo caught in it – all landed O.K. Wind so strong it nearly lifted the plane over. Open post – got roped into rotten party. PARCEL FROM CON. CYCLONE.
SATURDAY 7 2/42. Open post after inspection. Went to see Ford – getting along O.K. though knocked about. Flicks then grub & beer. Tommy quite merry – damned funny.
SUNDAY 8 2/42. Flying this morning. did 6 circuits & bumps solo – Could’nt get a really decent landing – safe. Seem to lose height on glide turn. Wrote to Con.
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a knife, folk and small spoon. Main [indecipherable], potato, carrots, with specially prepared lettuce, hot roll, butter & marmalade. Also fresh fruit salad & cream. Damn good. More bridge then we’re told we’re to change at Cincinnati and to be ready at 10.15pm. after supper – Americans only have three meals a day – I thanked the head waiter who was very decent and told me to come back later for some coffee if I wanted it. I did and one of the waiters very cautiously asked me how we made our tea in England and when I answered him in a normal manner they all seemed relieved that I’d talk to them and became quite chatty. The one with the tea query said he’d seen the film Mr. Chipps and when Chipps makes his tea he seemed to have too many pots round him. Those n***** were interesting.
We arrive at Cincinnati and prepare to change train only to be told that we were to have the C.P.R all the way. We fell out and marched up to the main Hall of the station which is supposed to be best looking station in U.S.A. Certainly a huge arched roof of vast proportions with booking windows on one side and shops round the other. Markey floor and [indecipherable] splendour everywhere. We marched
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For Week of Monday 9th. FEB 1942
MONDAY 9 2/42. Two letters CON. 1 SHEILA. 55 Dual 30 solo. Landings etc. fair. Learnt chandelles – good fun – nice feel I’m progressing a little.
TUESDAY 10 2/42 2 Letters CON. 1 Syd. 1.00 Solo. Stalls, spins, chandelles, etc. eights etc. quite enjoyed it. Fair progress.
WEDNESDAY 11 2/42. No flying – low cloud & bad visibility. Lousy film in the evening
THURSDAY 12 2/42. 40 Solo. 35 Dual. practice for 900 stage. Landings only fair. Made a mess of two at Rice when dual. gripe committee.
FRIDAY 13 2/42. Letter G.W. he sounds fed up – poor devil. Failed 900 stage at Rice. 18 A/C going round at once – hard to pick a spot in which to land. Open post – Town Seniors beat juniors at Soccer.
SATURDAY 14 2/42. 2K. Satisfactory 900 stage at Rice. Just caught 4.30 bus for B’ham Good time. Met Jones, Smith, Mann who took us to Road House. Good fun. Stayed at Bankhead Hotel.
SUNDAY 15 2/42. Slept well – had hot bath – great treat. After breakfast bought tobacco & caught 1.30 bus back. Rather tired but well worth it as a change.
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round in Flights and halted in the main Hall to the admiration of the American people there who clapped their hands in applause when we marched away - they genuinely meant it. We re-embark and a Southern engine hooks on and away we go. We've changed our diner for a Southern one. Getting much hotter and after a spot of bridge turned in again - left all the doors open got nice thro’ draught.
18 12/41. Awoke at Chattanooga in Tennessee where we changed engines. Went along to breakfast in the Southern diner - very similar to N.Y.C. but waiters did’nt seem so efficient. Excellent breakfast. Appears to be some early morning fog but when it cleared we found ourselves in beautiful scenery. Reminiscent of the New Forest undulating country with plenty of timber - fir, spruce, etc. Amazing colours in the brown - red grass and red soil to the dark green of trees and bushes etc. Strange to see leafless trees with an English summer sun and equivalent temperature. Small farms with plenty of cotton fields which are ploughed in S’s. Also some apple orchards. Plenty of darkies and still the houses seem to be rather ramshackle. Getting hotter and we leave off a sweater!
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For Week of Monday 16th. FEB 1942
MONDAY 16 2/42. No flying - bad visibility. Went to ALA University. Morgan Hale and heard Rev. Michael Coleman on “There’ll always be an England”. Very fine speaker. Vicar of All Hallows in the City. Informed I was next G.C.
TUESDAY 17 2/42. Cloudy day but got in 1.15 dual, weather cleared a bit & then 40 solo. Fair.
WEDNESDAY 18 2/42. No flying – bad visibility. Bridge in evening.
THURSDAY 19 2/42. Damned cold. Flying 9 am. 1.35 Solo. Fair – nearly frozen. 25 dual – Satisfactory progress check. Film “Honeymoon in Bali” Madeleine Carroll – good.
FRIDAY 20 2/42. Warmer. 1.45 solo. Unsatisfactory 1800 side stage. W.F. landings – blast. Down Town open post. Beer at Elks – Senior term dance at University – lousy.
SATURDAY 21 2/42 Satisfactory stage (1800 side) at Moody. Also enjoyed lazy eights & pylon eights afterwards. Open post – beer & bowls – good fun.
SUNDAY 22 2/42. Making arrangements for intake of new cadets. Think everything will be O.K. No flying today. wrote Con. New crowd arrived 7 pm. rather rush but K O.K.
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We arrive at Atlanta in Georgia at 10.50am. – put watches back one hour last night. Loose [sic] our Southern 4.6.2 with it’s [indecipherable] crew for a 4.6.2 painted black no [indecipherable]. We cleaned the outside of our windows which had become dirty with the morning fog. A 15 minute wait and away we go. Since the [indecipherable] speed has been good – round the 60 mark. Track with exceptions round the bigger cities is single throughout.
We have an excellent lunch in the well equipped diner same arrangement as before but of course different crew and not quite so quick as the N.Y.C. We rattle along and it gets hotter. We are then told that if we cannot pack our greatcoats we are to wear them! Good old R.A.F same old B/S.
Scenery has’nt changed a great deal since this morning except to get a little more open and this afternoon we went slowly thro’ a station which evidently had a war weapons week. Flags everywhere and at least two brass bands in the most brilliant of Scarlet uniforms!
We arrive in Montgomery and after a pause in the station proceed to some track beside
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For Week of Monday 23 FEB 1942
MONDAY 23 2/42. A day of hard going looking after the Junior Term & getting them to about half a dozen lectures! Everything now O.K. Had a letter from Cherry. No flying bad weather – rain.
TUESDAY 24 2/42. Kept on the go all day – no time for lectures. Everyone wanted me all at once – what a life. No flying – bad weather. B/S parade not bad. I forgot to give Order Arms!
WEDNESDAY 25 2/42. Things getting more normal now. Practice 3600 overhead & liked it. Had “Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” in evening – much better than of late.
THURSDAY 26 2/42. 2.40 hr. solo. good practice – fair progress. Cold & bumpy. Gripe committee in evening. Junior term seem to be settling down O.K. Good B/S parade.
FRIDAY 27 2/42. Unsuccessful 3600 stage (32). Very bumpy & higher wind made judgement difficult. Afterwards solo practice. Slow snap rolls – good fun. After open post. University – for records good & after to Elks.
SATURDAY 28 2/42. Good (considering) B/S inspection & parade. After open post. Bridge in afternoon then to supper & saw “They lived dangerously” – good. To Elks & home. Ran out of beer!
SUNDAY 1 3/42. Satisfactory stage at Foster (24!) one line. Better day & not so bumpy. Stayed in bed to 10.30 am – lovely! Wrote CON.
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Maxwell Field. We disembark overcoats and full webbing – whew! and are met by U.S. Air Corps Officers who lead us to our new quarters.
Forgot to mention that I had a chat with the “Conductor” on the N.Y.C portion of the journey. He corresponds with our “Guard” but has one or two “brakemen” to assist with various duties, such as uncoupling a car, changing points or “Switches”. He said that we were matey compared with the last lot he’d taken along towards Montgomery. They were very quiet and would’nt talk at all. Quite a decent fellow. Also being that one does’nt converse with negros which accounts for the interest of the waiters when they saw I would talk.
[underlined] MAXWELL FIELD, MONTGOMERY. [/underlined]
This is the Cranwell of the U.S. Army Air Corps. A well laid out place with the usual one storey long barracks six to a room with a locker each and wash basin in each room. Comfortable beds. A veranda or “stoop” runs the whole length of one side. Plenty of B/S but I find it rather amusing. Can’t think that in any detail the U.S. armed forces are smarter or a patch on the average British Regiment. think
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For Week of Monday 2nd. MARCH 1942
MONDAY 2 3/42. No flying – rained solidly. Pity because we’re to get 58 hrs in by 14 3/42 – practically 2 hrs a day. No retreat parade. Played bridge. No letters?
TUESDAY 3 3/42. Better day but cold. Got in 2.25 mins solo. When I got back found that the beacon had been on for over an hour! High wing – good sport. Still no letters.
WEDNESDAY 4 3/42. No rain but low mist. No solo. 30 mins dual. leant loops. Polished up hazy lifts. Pass in evening, saw Dumbo – good.
THURSDAY 5 3/42. Raining again – looks [inserted] K [/inserted] like no flying. TWO LETTERS FROM CON. Played bridge in morning as there is no flying. Worried about getting time in.
FRIDAY 6 3/42. Fog & mist all morning no flying for morning class. Cleared away in afternoon. Open post – went into Town, flicks & a beer. Pay day.
SATURDAY 7 3/42. Coiling about 2,500 got in 1.40 solo 50 dual. satisfactory stage 1800 overhead the base! Getting smoother with my air work. Open post saw “Hellsapoppin” very funny.
SUNDAY 8 3/42. Stayed in bed to 11 am – marvellous wrote Con. Went to concert at University. Played Tchaikovsky’s Bb Concerto – good. Saw “Suspicion”.
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arms drill does not help smartness. Many sloppy movements carried out too fast. Same with their fast drill – the executive work of command is the wrong type of word, such as “face” or “Post”, “at ease”, “rest” etc. instead of “take – post”, “stand at – ease” etc. to which we’ve been used. Their dress of the usual tailored shirt and belted trousers does’nt look too smart though must admit that the R.A.F tropical drill we have been issued with is far from well fitting.
The “Field” or aerodrome in English is well laid out. All personnel apparently live on the station and are allocated separate houses which vary in size and design with the rank of the occupier. Each has a yellow metal notice outside giving the No. and rank & name of the occupier. The design of the houses favour the red tiled roof with white walls and a balcony with iron railings. Also includes a veranda. All verandas and windows have fine gauge gauze over them to keep away flies etc.
The standard of flying here which is an advanced school is high. One sees R.A.F. pupils pulling down Howards in prefect 3 pointers. Also some good formation flying.
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For Week of Monday MARCH 9th 1942
MONDAY 9 3/42. Good flying – 2.15 hrs Solo & dual – starting aerobatics good fun but hard work on the stick. A bit awe inspiring upside down hanging in the straps.
TUESDAY 10 3/42. Army & Civilian checks [inserted] K [/inserted] both in the same afternoon! Rather a poor effort on my part for the Civilian one but made up for it on the Army which was good – bumpy. Letter from CON.
WEDNESDAY 11 3/42. More aerobatics – getting used to it now & quite like it. Makes ordinary flying seem a bit tame! Bing Crosby film in evening.
THURSDAY 12 3/42. Still more aerobatics & polishing up my flying generally. Don’t think I’ll have any more checks. Meeting of the troops who decided to have a dinner farewell party. Asked to speak at rally
FRIDAY 13 3/42. No flying owing to rain & bad conditions. Went into Town to fix up dinner at Country Club. O.K. Pusay stood me a lunch. Open post – spot of flick & beer. Prepared speech.
SATURDAY 14 3/42. Good S.M.I. submitted speech but not now required – Col. From Atlanta instead. [indecipherable] & [indecipherable] annoyed – seems rather silly on their parts. Speech will do for Monday night. Date of dinner fixed
SUNDAY 15 3/42. Stayed in bed to 9 am read some Kipling. ([indecipherable]) Did’nt fly – not good weather too much time in. wrote to CON, PHYL, SHEILA, JACKO, B.M.
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Memoranda
We are termed “United Kingdom cadets” and the rank is “Aviation Cadet”. Time off is limited and we are not allowed out of camp except Saturday afternoon and Sunday to 3 p.m. each Sunday there is a drill parade with band to which the public is admitted. Quite a palatial show colours are carried including the Union Jack as well as Squadron guidons. A march past is carried out in “mass” formation – i.e. 12 deep. Mass formation is formed by bringing three squadrons in fours in column alongside each other. Good system of repeating the [deleted] Squadron [/deleted] C.O’s cautionary command by the Squadron C.O. to avoid mistake. The band is not so smart or slick as the British equivalent. No swinging or stick display with exception of the drum major who carries his mace upside down with the other hand on his hip & kind of beats time with it. He also carries a whistle permanently in his mouth with which he signals to the band. Marches mostly [indecipherable]
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For Week of Monday 16th. MARCH 1942
MONDAY 16 3/42. Cross country flight low ceiling. Fixed up for Country Club for our dinner on Thursday. Spoke to A.R.P meeting.
TUESDAY 17 3/42. Solo & dual – good spot mostly aerobatics. Invited everyone to dinner. Arranged menu. Practice blackout.
WEDNESDAY 18 3/42. Went up in front cockpit & “instructed” my instructor – good spot. Went over to Eutaw with him. Simonds for a car load of beer. Supper with Pusay. 500 bottles of beer.
THURSDAY 19 3/42. More front cockpit circuits. To Eutaw with McKindey for whiskey. Dinner a great success – everyone merry. All enjoyed it hugely.
FRIDAY 20 3/42. Somewhat thick headed still finished off my flying. After borrowed Simonds car & return beer bottles paid bills etc. Concert by Cincinnati Symphony Orch. – excellent.
SATURDAY 21 3/42 S.M.I. after on leave to Thursday. Hitched to Birmingham. Jones, O’Neill & I. went to see Elizabeth & Elanise & had drinks. Met Sutcliffe. Colonel – [indecipherable]. Roped in to ladies convention – dreadful. Poor hotel.
SUNDAY 22 3/42 Up at 11 am. lunch. 2 pm. hitched to Bessemer via Steel hills. Then to Demopolis. Then to Livingstone. Pick up with Judge Alexander to Jackson who put us up. marvellous old Southern house.
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Memoranda
[underlined] Blue – Grey Football Game. [/underlined]
Saturday 27th. December 1941. On the whole somewhat disappointing. The game is slow compared with British Rugby on account of its closed play. Only the two ends the centre and the four backs are allowed to handle the ball. Then after each “down” lasting approximately 10-15 seconds there is a pause while the players go into a huddle. There is no scrummaging after a player is tackled the ball then becomes dead and is placed at that spot on the grid for the next down. We rarely saw any real constructive play and short passing is ruled out on account of a rule which prohibits a player who receives the ball from a down passing the ball if he has run more than five yards.
The side consists of 11 players. 7 linesmen – Left-End, Left tackle, Left Guard, Centre, Right Guard, Right tackle and Right End – all heavyweights. A quarter back, two half backs and a full back – usually faster men.
The object of the game is to confuse the opposite side so they do not know who has the ball. The strategy is worked out beforehand and controlled by numbers – a certain number being the executer. The captain
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For Week of Monday 23th MARCH 1942
MONDAY 23 3/42. Hitched to the [deleted] College [/deleted] Camp. Then to [indecipherable] – Kentwood. Via Clinton to Baton Rouge, thence to New Orleans. Met Geo. Taylor & Paul Lansing good booze up. they got us rooms in Roosevelt Hotel. Excellent party all round – street car!
TUESDAY 24 3/42. Up 10.30 am. pick me up – lunch. More drinks then to “Red’s” office – made dictaphone record. Then French Quarter. Grub in French Restaurant – more drinks - [indecipherable] – night club & floor show. Bed 4.30 am!
WEDNESDAY 25 3/42. Up 11 am. feel quite fresh! Had lunch. Found Paul had gone to work. Hitched to Hattiesburg. Had grub then same beer. Took pity on Eugene Plake. All three slept in one double room at Divine Tourist Cabins! Good fun.
THURSDAY 26 3/42. Up 9.30 am. and on at 11.30 to [indecipherable]. From there all the way to Tuscaloosa with bloke towing another car at 50-60 m.p.h. Good leave. Wrote [inserted] K [/inserted] CON.
FRIDAY 27 3/42. Spent the day messing about and waiting, getting packed up etc. somewhat tired after our spot of leave. Had letters from London, CON, & parcel from Phy [sic] containing socks.
SATURDAY 28 3/42. Finished packing & handing in flying kit etc. Last S.M.I. & P.I. – quite good. In afternoon went into Town, had a meal, saw a flick & then bed.
SUNDAY 29 3/42. Up early, checked baggage then at 8.40 left by coach for Gunter Ann 12.45. Looks like Maxwell & is under Army discipline. Don’t seem too bad expect we’ll settle down all right.
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Memoranda
decided on which strategy to use in the huddle. The players then line up. 7 on the line with the centre’s hands on the ball and the backers in formation behind. The numbers are then called out and on the execution the ball is flicked back to one of the backs. All the linemen then “block” which means obstructing the opposite side as much as possible to give the man with the ball as much scope as possible. He can’t pass if he has run more than 5 yards but runs in the direction determined in the strategy performed. For instance to fool the opposition as soon as the ball is out another player may run across just behind him and appear to take the ball from him and continue to run with his arm crooked as though he has the ball. He may draw some of the defence while the bloke with the ball crashes straight on. The defending side are allowed to tackle with their arms but the attackers can only block with their bodies by falling in front of an opponent and bringing him down. [underlined] Note [/underlined]:- the person blocked does not have to have the ball. The object is to keep as many of the opposition out of the play as possible.
The rule for offside appears to
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For Week of Monday 30th MARCH 1942
MONDAY 30 3/42 up 5.30 am – missed Reveille parade. Mostly drill & P.T. B/S seems a bit hectic. Second lot of P.T. & drill in the evening. American Executive Officer a [indecipherable] apparently.
TUESDAY 31 3/42. Up 5.30 – missed Reveille Parade again! Rather same sort of rush as at Maxwell. Flying. American instructor – quite good fun – like the planes especially closed cockpits.
WEDNESDAY 1 4/42 got on Reveille parade at last. Went thro’ the 10 types of stall. Find landing rather strange – expect we’ll get used to it. Meeting of cadet officers. WROTE ALEXANDER, SYD,SOLOMON, WELLS.
THURSDAY 2 4/42. Getting good at getting up! More stalls – fair. Weather excellent but a bit hazy. Find the glare rather trying must get some sun glasses. Meeting of cadet officers with Flt/Lt. Philips – good bloke. [inserted] CNG K. [/inserted]
FRIDAY 3 4/42. STALLS – flying on Maxwell been good fun but did’nt quite get the hang of it. Useful to get you home if you’re lost. Link trainer tonight. LETTER FROM CON, PIKE, MOKE.
SATURDAY 4 4/42. Elementary eights, spin and forced landings. Wish I could get the sequence of the gadgets. But expect it will come. [indecipherable] of solo. open post in Montgomery – bought some glasses.
SUNDAY 5 4/42. Stayed in bed to 10 am – blissful sleep. Wrote to CON & CHARLIE. Went for walk in afternoon – lift to town then stn. flicks.
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Memoranda
be that no player on either side may cross the line of the “line up” until the ball is in play i.e flicked back by the centre. There are also other infringements to do with blocking, “tipping” which is falling across the back of a man’s legs when he is running. The penalty usually is loss of territory by the offending side.
The field is 100yrs. long x 70 yds wide and divided into 5 yd lines – called the grid. The goal posts are 20 yds to the rear of the “goal” line – rather similar to being placed on our dead ball line. A gain of 10 yds in one down is considered good and the game slowly moves towards one end or another. One side kicks off and then commences a series of 4 downs for each side one after another – unless the opposing side recover the ball which has been dropped when the immediately commence the next series of [deleted] touch [/deleted] downs. If a side gains more than 10 yds in 4 downs it continues with the next 4 and so on. The time is divided into 4 quarters – 2 in each half – of 15 minutes each, making the game 60 minutes in all.
At half time players leave the
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For Week of Monday 6th APRIL 1942
MONDAY 6 4/42 WENT SOLO much to my surprise & had 45 minutes out of traffic. Good spot – fly better without instructor nattering. Fell foul of Lieblich for not wearing tunic – a most unpleasant individual.
TUESDAY 7 4/42. Another three circuits & bumps solo then back. Instructor hard to satisfy – says I’m getting sloppy in my work! especially after he made me put the nose down so that she bounced. Shotbolt died after crash last night.
WEDNESDAY 8 4/42. No flying owing to a low ceiling. Instructor seems to be in a better temper however. Very hot & sultry – think there’s thunder about. Shotbolt’s funeral – did’nt have to go. [inserted] W.K. [/inserted]
THURSDAY 9 4/42. Lieblich stopped W/E leave this week – troops a bit livid. Don’t blame them. Rained like nothing on earth but cooler. Wrote to TOM. letter from Phyl.
FRIDAY 10 4/42. Had an hour’s solo then dual. kept Davis waiting for 5-10 mins so he made me walk round the field with a parachute. He was very sarcastic & snotty eventually took me off un-supervised solo. I told him if he did’nt think I could fly to wash me out so that I could fly in Canada. He shut up.
SATURDAY 11 4/42. Two killed yesterday, 1 last night. Davis very sweet & gentle today the hypocrite – still he put me on solo again! Glad I did’nt answer him back yesterday. Think this engine failure is Sabotage. 4 killed in 14 days & [indecipherable]
SUNDAY 12 4/42. Had a wonderful sleep up 10.30 am. Met Kelly in Drill Room last night got some gin re Advanced. In afternoon went to Kings & dosed in sun – very pleasant. Parcel to Con yesterday.
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field and on this occasion a High School band containing both girls & boys with very “gorgeous” uniforms all bobbles & things came on the field. They did perform some extraordinary manoeuvres for a band marching at double quick time and forming themselves into letters such as “DIXIE”, “BLUE”, “GREY” and “U.S.” when they played the “Star Spangled Banner” – U.S. national anthem. Other school bands were stationed in the stands mostly at the corners – including the U.S. Air Corps Band – and throughout the match struck up stirring [indecipherable] marches in turn.
The ball is similar to a rugger ball in shape but smaller and can be thrown long distances. Some of the interesting parts of the game occurred with these passing movements. The ball shot back to a Quarter back who paused a few seconds – being protected by efficient blocking by the linemen – until the Ends or other backs ran up to the opposing goal line. The ball was then thrown to one of them who tried to catch it and touch down, amidst a general scramble.
[underlined] N.B. [/underlined] Only the Ends & backs can handle the ball.
Kicking or [indecipherable] as it is
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For Week of Monday 13th. APRIL 1942
MONDAY 13 4/42. Stalls & spirals this morning [inserted] L.K. [/inserted] – Instructor pleased! Had a letter from Con, Nora.
TUESDAY 14 4/42. Shot a 900 stage – O.K. Spot more instrument flying – fair. Letter from Charlie & Barbara – funny as usual. Can’t keep awake in lectures after P.T – dreadful. Heard about new Budget at home.
WEDNESDAY 15 4/42. Shot another 900 stage. Seniors finish on Friday so should get some time in. Had a plane which kept running into high pitch & would’nt climb – not very pleasant. Saw “Captains of the Clouds” – good.
THURSDAY 16 4/42. Did some stalls and spirals. Good day – Davis quite pleased – must go & spoil it by winding down flaps too soon on base leg! Scorching hot.
FRIDAY 17 4/42. Instrument flying – all went well until I tried to straighten out after glide. Davis bawled – only to be expected. Hoping Sgt. Ridley will be next G.C. – too much of a strain quite willing to assist.
SATURDAY 18 4/42. Got in 3.15 hrs today the Seniors are on leave more planes. Stage – instr – solo. good day all round especially instruments. Open post – in town for a drink. [inserted] PAR K [/inserted]
SUNDAY 19 4/42. Got up at 10 am. Lovely sleep wrote to Con. Went to see some baseball – quite good fun – just like rounders.
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Memoranda
called is long but owing to the handling rules one saw the ball bouncing on the ground with three or four opposing linemen standing round it waiting for someone to come and pick it up – The defence of course blocking the Ends & Backs to prevent them doing so. There is no foot play equivalent to our forward rush.
Each team or “Squad” as it is called is in charge of three coaches who more or less control the players, send out reserves to rest tired men and also give advice as to weaknesses in the opposing side. It is permitted to bring on a kicker to kick goals. A touch down gains 5 points & the goal kick 1 point. A goal kick in play is 3 points. To kick a goal the goal kicker gets ready with another back on one knee ready to receive the ball. The ball is flicked back from the down to the back who places it on the ground almost simultaneously with the kickers foot. The linemen block to stop the opponents charging it down. It is all very quick and in this match was carried out in play. Same procedure after a touch down.
The game is controlled by a
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For Week of Monday 20th.APRIL 1942
MONDAY 20 4/42. Tried a spot of formation flying – not too good. Find it a lot harder than it looks. Still I’ll get the hang of it. Also an hour’s solo. been made Group Adj – hard work – damn. [inserted] L.K> [/inserted]
TUESDAY 21 4/42. One hour’s instrument [inserted] W.K. [/inserted] today – not too bad. Told we’re to have 20 hours instrument at basic – Lordy, Lordy, what a bind. Rumours flying as to change in instruction programme. Don’t believe them.
WEDNESDAY 22 4/42. No solo today. Instructor O.D. so no flying – 1 hr link. Heard of the Saxons thro’ Addington must get in touch.
THURSDAY 23 4/42. 900 stage at Taylor Field. fair got balled at for nearly landing alongside control plane – windy lot these Yanks. Letter from STELLA.
FRIDAY 24 4/42. Cross-country to Columbus & back 73 miles. No difficulty just kept going on course & bobs your Uncle. Letter from Stella Open post into town.
SATURDAY 25 4/42. Open post – rang up Saxons – met them in Town and after a spot of beer went back to their place. Grand in daylight. Letter from CON. [inserted] Seed for Cheeky. [/inserted]
SUNDAY 26 4/42. Flying this morning had a pre-check flight. Instructor balled as usual – think I’ll put in for a change after this 20 hr check. Wrote to CON, BILLY, WELLERS. Night flying. OK
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Memoranda
referee and three assistants each apparently watching a section of the play each.
The players are dressed in the usual jersey with breeches reaching to the knee, similar boots to ours and a crash helmet, painted different colours to show what position he plays in. the shoulders, thighs & back round the kidneys are padded with sorbo rubber for protection. In spite of all this they move quite fast and certainly play hard. It seems to be the rules that are at fault and the restricted play which makes it not half the game to watch as our good old English Rugby.
[underlined] N.B. [/underlined] to illustrate time wasted there is a large clock over the score board showing the exact amount of playing time taken up to one quarter of 15 minutes. This clock is stopped if the ball is dead. The game of 60 minutes playing took 2 hours 15 minutes.
The referees use a system of tick-tack with their hands to indicate what the whistle has been blown for.
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For Week of Monday 27th. APRIL 1942
MONDAY 27 4/42. Spot more instrument flying. Started the system of two cadets taking each other for an instrument ride – one as observer. Good sport.
TUESDAY 28 4/42. Spot of solo – tried stalls & chandelles and lazy eights. Not night flying tonight. Think I got the hang of it on Sunday. Instructors sight from above.
WEDNESDAY 29 4/42. Cross country to Clanton & Atlanta – good sport and managed to find my way correctly. Seniors left for Selma & Maxwell. Went to rehearsal at Huntingdon College
THURSDAY 30 4/42. Observing – formation and spot of team instrument with Fallows. I think I’ll get the hang of formation. Hellish busy afternoon & evening organising the Juniors. Practice Blackout.
FRIDAY 1 5/42. Nothing but instrument with Galer observing – bumpy. Met Saxons in the evening. Woman upset beer over my trousers – had to borrow a car to go back to change. Spent night (Jones & I) with Saxons.
SATURDAY 2 5/42. Up a bit too early went into Town with Saxons. After lunch to Huntingdon College – good show. Evening to dance at the Whitley – we invited the Saxons. Good fun. Parcel to CON.
SUNDAY Did’nt feel much like flying spot of instruments. Spent day with Saxons – grand lunch – such a treat in a house. Watched young Elizabeth ride – nice people. [deleted] WE [/deleted] Mention Socks – Baseball game – letter to Con
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Memoranda
[underlined] Montgomery – Alabama U.S.A. [/underlined]
Can quite imagine the place springing up as at [sic] town of shacks, later consolidated into buildings. Streets – wide and of course laid out in squares. Quite good shops – some of decent size. The ordinary things such as cigarettes, handkerchiefs etc not expensive. Not a big town but of medium size – like Maidstone – with two fair sized hotels, four picture houses and one theatre.
Food is good – definitely. We patronised a cafeteria called “Morrisons”. You wait your turn in a queue along one side collect a tray and then pass along in front of lashings of good food all labelled as to type and price. You help yourself ending up with hot things such as meat etc. The whole is then added up and a slip is placed on your tray. You then go on ahead & select your table while a darkie waiter bring along your tray and puts the things down for you. You are issued with a knife fork &spoon rolled up in a table napkin. You should eat American fashion as your meat is on one plate and all your vegetables are on little round dishes placed round it. The method is to cut a portion of
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For Week of Monday MAY 4th. 1942
MONDAY 4 5/42 did’nt fly – bad weather. B.24 in R.A.F Colours landed overnight – apparently amazed the town who thought a B.T. was coming in. Pilot an interesting man who flew in last war. On way to England – be here tomorrow evening – lucky devil. WROTE CON.
TUESDAY 5 5/42 Only a team ride this morning [inserted] WK [/inserted] bad weather earlier. Passed final morse sending & receiving so now excused from morse class – bags of sleeping hours.
WEDNESDAY 6 5/42 Gave Davis bad instrument ride and he threatened a failing grade! He does’nt know how to settle a student down on a bad day. MacDonald (RAF) & P/O Bolter killed night flying. L.L. [indecipherable].
THURSDAY 7 5/42 Instrument team rides and 900 stage – complimented on landings – not by Davis of course. Got the hang of stalls under the hood. Hear Paddick who was fooling around with Butler is under arrest pending C/N.
FRIDAY 8 5/42 Gave Davis a good ride under the hood today – but he waited after each turn to find something to bind about. Night flying last period – 1.30 am – 3 am. Tired but went up to Control Tower – interesting.
SATURDAY 9 5/42. Did’nt get up until 10.30 am then breakfast. Went to see baseball game which was good and on the way back met the Saxons. Had a drink, meal then to flick to see “The little foxes” – excellent acting.
SUNDAY 10 5/42. Just got up in time to go to flying. Tired but did 2 hours formation & an instrument ride. WROTE CON. Sleep in afternoon – then to town saw “Shadow of the Thin Man”.
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Memoranda
meat with your knife, lay your knife at right angles to you on the further edge of the plate, pick up your fork and eat away, taking forkfuls of vegetables as required. The process is repeated when more meat is required. The same fork or knife or spoon is used throughout the meal. For instance you eat your sweet & stir your coffee with the same spoon & butter your bread and cut your meat with the same knife. The quality & quantity of the food is good. One can have as many varieties of vegetables as desired.
The British Cadets have a club in the Whitley Hotel and the American Cadets ditto in the Jefferson Davis Hotel, where one can drink eat and otherwise make merry.
There are no drinking hours in Montgomery. The only stipulation is that you must drink sitting down. The bars close down when everyone has had enough apparently. One misses the homely atmosphere of an English pub. A bar here being used to supply waiters. You can buy over the bar, but they don’t like it and you have to take it to a pew afterwards. Police quite freely walk into the bars to detect any offence – or to have a quick one.
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For Week of Monday 11th. MAY 1942
MONDAY 11 5/42. Instrument & team rides all morning. Instructors now have every other morning off! Wrote to SHEILA, PHYL & CHERRY. Lecture by S/L. cancelled in favour of accidents talk by C.O.
TUESDAY 12 5/42. No flying – low cloud. Spent morning chatting to the instructors. WROTE TO MACKS ([indecipherable]) Steve. No night flying – bad weather.
WEDNESDAY 13 5/42 No flying again owing to weather – no night flying for same reason. Damned nuisance may cut down leave. Torrential rain & thunder in evening. Wrote to W/Cmdr Pike.
THURSDAY 14 5/42. Still bad flying weather but managed to get in 1 1/2 hours dual instruments – mucked up flying [indecipherable]! A lot of thunder about & cloud.
FRIDAY 15 5/42. Raining when we woke so did not go to flight line until later. No flying. Cleared up during day. Down for night flying. Waited till 1.30 am the did’nt get any – should have been open post – livid.
SATURDAY 16 5/42. Rang up Saxons in the morning met them for lunch & went out for the afternoon with Edwards. Had supper then a few beers – became a Cardinal! Good evening. Weather seems to have picked up. parcel Con.
SUNDAY 17 5/42. Actually got some team instrument in. Night flying tonight. Wrote to CON. Quite enjoyed night flying black out landings not so hard as I thought.
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Memoranda
Transport is provided by single decker buses with pneumatic doors fore and aft and the engine at the back or taxis ranging from the “Dive” taxi to more expensive but better kept taxis. Dive taxis take you anywhere in the city for a dime. Others like the “Black & White” advertise 25c for two miles and [deleted] of [/deleted] are fitted with a meter.
There are three or four “Night Clubs” which are not so good as the English variety – there being no point in going there except to dance. Also there are a fair number of brothels – I’m told Prostitution is more or less legal here and certain parts or streets of the city contain these places. One is not bothered by [indecipherable] in the street – its just there if you ask the policeman the way. Rather sordid and quite naturally the decent blokes don’t interest themselves.
General procedure on “open post” is to amble in to town – hoping to be invited home by some family. If unsuccessful one goes to a flick has some grub then some serious drinking and totter back to camp in a cab, to sleep until lunch time on Sunday. 1st: parade on Sunday is 3.30 pm
N.B. The beer here is light like lager
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For Week of Monday 18th. MAY 1942
MONDAY 18 5/. Had my 40 hour check – seemed to be satisfactory rest of the time on instrument flying.
TUESDAY 19 5/ Supposed to be on a cross country but cancelled owing to bad weather coming up. Did some team & finished off night flying – plane would’nt go into high pitch!
WEDNESDAY 20 5/. More instrument – put Davis right through [indecipherable] of silence twice! He was quite pleased. Changed over to afternoon flying permanently. Weather getting worse.
THURSDAY 21 5/. 3 dead (Lear, Overton & Randall) crashed on night part of cross country. Out of 35 planes only 5 got back 2 baled out & several forced landings including O’Neill. Letter from CON. Given Open Post.
FRIDAY 22 5/ Helped pack up dead mens clothing all yesterday – rotten job. Now 6 dead (Peachell Peattie & Maddick) Love still missing. Got in dual instrument.
SATURDAY 23 5/. No flying this morning – low cloud. Funeral of the six poor lads – everyone attended and large crowd of people light formation flying – good fun. Flew with Wagner – nice chap new here.
SUNDAY 24 5/. Open post at last. Rang up Saxons went out with Edwards for lunch. Motor round in afternoon – made tea for them. Spot of shooting practice in garden Good day.
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and sold in tins mostly or bottles. One cannot get draught beer in any form from a barrel. Its a bit gassy but safer to drink than Rum or Whiskey which is very potent. The whiskey is rye mostly though Scotch such as Johnnie Walker, Black & White, Vat 69 is obtainable, sold in small bottles. The Americans seem to drink either whiskey or mixtures which are iced. They also have a kind of cream drink called an “Egg Nog” which consists of whipped cream & white of egg flavoured with spirits.
[underlined] TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA. [/UNDERLINED]
About 145 miles N.W of Montgomery in the heart of the cotton country. Fair sized town consisting of one main street & fair shops. University town of Alabama. Lacking in entertainment & not so big as Montgomery. One decent hotel, 3 picture houses, a number of café’s and drug stores. Served by three railways, two passenger carrying and one goods only.
In a “dry” county but we can get beer at the Elks Club and there is a rather sordid club called the “Riverview” – not to be recommended.
People fairly hospitable and the
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For Week of Monday 25th. May 1942
MONDAY 25 5/. They’re still searching for Love. A. poor devil. Went to flight line all day – got in 50min. dual instrument this afternoon. Went to Stn flicks – quite good “Rio Rita”. Wrote to CON.
TUESDAY 26 5/. Had final instrument check this morning & third cross country this afternoon. Night flying cancelled – only that to do. LT. Patterson found Also Love – dead – in swamp poor devil. [inserted] L.K. [/inserted]
WEDNESDAY 27 5/. No flying all day but did night cross country tonight. [indecipherable] – 4 lights each way nothing in it. Made good landing – complimented from the Tower. Flying over – thank god.
THURSDAY 28 5/. Messed about all day hoping in vain for open post. The organisation here is foul! Went to Doris’s house for supper & a few beers afterwards to [indecipherable] Room.
FRIDAY 29 5/. No official notice has yet been posted re leave but got a pass to Monday midday. Met Saxons in evening – could’nt fix fishing party so we’re to go out there tomorrow. Slept at Camp. All IN [indecipherable].
SATURDAY 30 5/. Got up late went into Town met the Saxons went out to Elmore lazed around in the sun and thoroughly relaxed. Saxons made us very welcome. We bought a present for [indecipherable]. PARCEL TO CON. [inserted] LK. [/inserted]
SUNDAY 31 5/. Got up at 9.30 am. lazed in the sun – shot a lizard. Young Elizabeth came over in afternoon. We all went into Town & had grub. Played solo to 1 am.
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various churches run entertainments in their church halls or a few post nights dancing, games etc. As in other places in America the girls seem to be either 16-18 or elderly married women & therefore of no interest except the married women who generally can talk sense but are full of how wonderful the Americans are or what they did in the last war & what they’re going to do in this. About time they got going, I think.
The Alabama Institute of Aeronautics or A.I.A for short at Van de Graaf Field is the local airport where we do our training under the auspices of the U.S. Army Air Corps. The C.O. & the [indecipherable] officers are U.S. Army Officers who look after the administration & do “Army” checks. The instructors & the C.F.I. are civilians and are a fair crowd on the whole. Some find others are more persuasive in their methods but they seem to want to get you through. The exercises are different to England though the basic principles are much the same. Took some time to get used to their [indecipherable] technique – not to keep it on in the [indecipherable] – but otherwise seemed to adapt quite well.
The planes are the Steadman P.T.17 heavier & clumsier than the redoutable [sic] Tiger Moth, and need rather harsher
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For Week of Monday 1st: JUNE 1942
MONDAY 1 6/42. Came into Town with Mrs. Saxon, then to camp. Packing – not sorry to leave this badly run camp – still no official notice about leave (Harley won’t cross us the food list so we get no subsistence allowance). Letter CON.
TUESDAY 2 6/42. Had a few beers last night – open post. Up early – got cleared left for Tunisfield. Phillips remarked – “Damn good Adjutant” & shook hands – nice bloke. One of the coaches [indecipherable] & can [indecipherable] otherwise uneventful. Arrived 10.30pm.
WEDNESDAY 3 6/42. Does’nt seem too bad a place rather more B/S and sound worthy. Definitely twin engine stuff. Told we’re not starting flying until Saturday – R.A.F. instructors not ready! Wrote to CON.
THURSDAY 4 6/42. Did’nt get up for Reveille! Medical exam all morning & afternoon. Damn blunt needle for blood test. Very hot & sticky here – seem to sweat glue. Bridge in evening.
FRIDAY 5 6/42. No Reveille again! Lounged all morning & read “Escape”. Paraded for flight line after lunch – usual lectures detailed to instructors – mine R.A.F P/O thank goodness. Sq/Ldr Rothwell keeping eye on things.
SATURDAY 6 6/42. Did’nt get up for Reveille Start flying this afternoon. Went up in twin engine [indecipherable] excellent fun. Found taxiying [sic] difficult on the engines! Saw “Ships with Wings” – poor in station flicks. W.K.
SUNDAY 7 6/42. Flying this morning. Weather good – hot. Went up in Harvard with LT. LOGAN. Not much faster than B.T.13 but narrower undercarriage. Plane would’nt start 2nd period so could’nt do any landings myself.
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use of controls. Good trainers.
The circuit consists of patterns each one being either right or left hand according to whether its away from the hangers. Circuits or patterns are numbered 1-8 and controlled by a moveable Tee, which should point into the wind. You must take off & land into tee which makes it sometimes cross wind. There are also definite methods of entering traffic – 450 downwind leg or straight onto base leg. Supposed to be safer than the Circuit at home – doubtful but you soon get used to it.
B/S not so bad as at Maxwell. Rooms have to be just so & beds correctly made but you soon get used to it. Three nights a week there is a Retreat Parade but that only lasts 10 minutes. Otherwise only marching is to & from lectures.
Cadets do one broadcast a week from local station called “In Camp Tonight”. Usual collection of persons of same interest – George Medallists, Policemen, Soldiers etc.
Open post is good. One night mid-week to 10pm if flying in afternoon & each alternate Saturday of Sunday together with Friday to 10pm or 2 am according to whether you’re flying Saturday morning etc.
Quite a good spot & I think we’re enjoying it here.
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For Week of Monday 8th. JUNE 1942
MONDAY 8 6/42. Flew the 17 this morning. Instr. said fit to go solo. Did circuits & bumps – think I’ll manage all right. Played bridge in evening – wet afternoon.
TUESDAY 9 6/42 Still raining. No flying this morning. O’Neill turned sick. Had to take the poor lad to Hosp. Temp 102! Pulse 108. – said to be flu. Got him some [indecipherable] etc.
WEDNESDAY 10 6/42. No flying – low cloud & thunderstorms. Solo in evening. – not much good. Letter from CON.
THURSDAY 11 6/42. No flying – low cloud until about 11 am. So instructors took up Duncan. Went to see O’Neill – looks a lot better. Usual solo in evening – did’nt do much good.
FRIDAY 12 6/42. 50 mins Circuits & bumps in A.T.17 to make up 5 hours. Now can go solo. got a touch of “Athletes foot” got treatment. Saw O’Neill – much better. Pay day. Solo improved in [indecipherable]. Rain.
SATURDAY 13 6/42. Went up in A.T.6 in front cockpit – made a muck of traffic pattern – let myself get pushed out too much. Saw O’Neill much better. Fed up – no open post. Letter from Mr Wells dated 7/1/42
SUNDAY 14 6/42. Been in A.T. 17 quite good above cloud. Wrote to CON. Lazed about.
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[underlined] LEAVE [/underlined] – 21 3/42 – 26 3/42.
We set out for a hitch party. O’Neill, Jones & I (the Three Musqueteers). First to Birmingham then to New Orleans if we could get that far.
I had 35 dollars, O’Neill 25, & Jones 12 so we could’nt afford to pay much.
We were delayed by official [indecipherable] and got away at 12 Noon on Saturday 21 3/42. Jones & I went to see the “Target for Tonight” once again, met Pat at 3.30 walked a mile out of town on the B’ham road & thumbed. At 4.30 a decent old [indecipherable] of [indecipherable] picked us up in his huge Oldsmobile & took us right into B’ham. He owned a kind of cattle ranch in [indecipherable] and said he might be going to Mobile next day & would give us a lift. This, however, fell through.
In B’ham we had a drink in the [indecipherable] & Pat rang up his friends Elizabeth & Louise. We were promptly invited up for a drink & there met an Englishman, Bill Sutcliffe, from Liverpool, who had been in America for some time. The party was going quite well when [indecipherable] arrived with a pompous American Colonel & fat little man who was his “Yes” man. Colonel, who really suffered from an American inferiority complex, proceeded to take the floor and we were not
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For Week of Monday 15th. JUNE 1942
MONDAY 15 6/42. Visit by Balfour & Air V. Marshall did’nt see them myself. Did a spot of formation in the 17. Quite good [indecipherable] time. 1st. effort a bit rough landing. Feel more like flying. Hope killed – engine on fire! [inserted] L.K. [/inserted]
TUESDAY 16 6/42. No flying owing to rain. Got open post and had 1st. day in town. Went to “Fred’s Office” good spot. S/L Rothwell & F/LT. Judge there & had a chat. Fears of O.T.U confirmed by Rothwell. To be ready by August – damn!
WEDNESDAY 17 6/42. Wet morning but cleared [inserted] L.K. [/inserted] up at lunch. Hope’s funeral – did’nt go – hate [inserted] W.K. [/inserted] funerals. Cross country Eufaula, Butler. Not bad but have’nt got the hang of the approach yet. Letter from CON.
THURSDAY 18 6/42. Spot of inst. Under the cloud fair though you don’t get any feel on the stick Approach still a bit shaky – must show some improvement.
FRIDAY 19 6/42. Got dates wrong. Wednesday was link only. Thurs. cross country & Friday [indecipherable]
SATURDAY 20 6/42. Open post - [indecipherable] managed to get out of it. To Radium Springs had a good swim. After grub in Town and some beer at Freddie’s office. Chat to Rothwell.
SUNDAY 21 6/42. No work this morning Slept to 10 am.! Longest day of year. Spot of instrument flying in A.T.6A. Through care of silence twice! Wrote to CON.
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sorry when the party broke up & they went to feed. We did likewise and went into the [indecipherable] for another drink. There we were pounced upon by a woman in evening dress who made us come upstairs to a kind of women’s convention meeting which had broken up & wanted dancing partners. We soon excused ourselves & made tracks for a bed – picked the wrong hotel and paid through the nose for a mediocre room.
Sunday 22nd. Got up at 11 am. had brunch & at 2 pm started to thumb for New Orleans. First lift was to Bessemer, 12 miles away, but our drive took us via the Steel mills – most interesting. Second was in a big Oldsmobile via Tuscaloosa to Demopolis reached at 6 pm. Grub at a roadside café then short lift of 5 miles & we started to walk in the dark. Several cars passed us but at last one stopped & we reached Livingstone. Here we saw a car with “Mississippi” plates & boldly asked him to take us to Meridian if of course he was going that way. He was. He told us he was Judge Alexander & wife who had been visiting their son in the U.S. Army Air Corps at Maxwell. They were going to their home at Jackson and asked us to go on with them & spend the night there – gladly accepted. The house turned out to be a wonderful old “Southern” home with some lovely old furniture. We
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For Week of Monday 22nd. JUNE 1942
MONDAY 22 6/42. No flying owing to bad weather so Ted went in & we got Open Post. Went in town for a drink ran into S/L Rothwell in Freddie’s Office with P/O [indecipherable] had a good cheery evening. Told we might get back home for O.T.U – good.
TUESDAY 23 6/42 No mail from home thunder heads about so no flying again today. Did’nt ask for open post. Read book called “Mrs Miniver” – jolly well written.
WEDNESDAY 24 6/42 Ted & Duncan off on Cross country as pilot & navigator. I got a spot of link trainer – did good beam work. Started to read “For whom the bell tolls” – about Spanish Civil War queer book.
THURSDAY 25 6/42. Ted & I scheduled for Cross country but when we got out to plane it was cancelled owing to the thunder & we had a bad storm in evening. Played bridge.
FRIDAY 26 6/42. Spot of instrument flying beam – better approach & landing than normal. Should possibly have gone on cross country but weather not too good.
SATURDAY 27 6/42. Ted & I got our cross country at last. Made quite a fair show of landings at the auxiliary dromes. Ted good navigator. Open Post not given so Gabbie & I had a “friend” down from [indecipherable] & had evening in Town.
SUNDAY 28 6/42. Open Post given from 11 am to 2pm ridiculous everyone fed up with B/S & tripe Gabbie & I went into town still to see our friend but we had to get back for [indecipherable] at 4.30pm. What a bind.
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All were given separate rooms with our own bathroom and the most comfortable box spring beds in America. Did we sleep. We had travelled 258 miles!
Monday 23 3/42. Much refreshed, nice real bath, and breakfast at 8.30 am. Judge Alexander was a perfect host & most charming in manner, also Mrs [deleted] Jackson [/deleted] Alexander and made us most welcome – even to making tea English fashion which was excellent. Eggs & bacon toast etc – good breakfast. Hardly had she dropped us on our road when another huge car stopped & a lady & gentleman hauled us in for a lift to McComb, half way to New Orleans.
The country to Demopolis had been similar to our surroundings here but when we saw Jackson in daylight the weather was warmer and the gardens were full of azalias [sic], camellias & magnolia bushes the size of small trees a riot of colour. The country was more green & good farm land and spring seemed to have arrived much earlier. It looked grand with crops beginning to show green & trees in bud & some in leaf.
From McComb where we had lunch we got a short lift to Magnolia and another across into Louisiana to Kentwood. After a short wait we picked up by a Mr D.H. Langins, of Silver Creek, Miss! a traveller who took us via Clinton to Baton Rouge where we cross the Mississippi over a magnificent rail & road bridge
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For Week of Monday 29th. JUNE 1942
WROTE CON
MONDAY 29 6/42. Trouble about that parade yesterday apparently someone was outspoken about the U.S.A. their parades etc. and Air Corps in particular! Duly reported to the Yanks under the honour system. F/L Judge in a rotten position – had to make apology. Inst. Flying. [inserted] LK. [/inserted] Letter from Con dated 26th. Feb!
TUESDAY 30 6/42. Saw Rothwell re O.T.U in England. No one came forward re yesterday’s affair enquiry [indecipherable] remark made outside Post Theatre 4 days ago – informant cannot identify. Yanks obviously jumped too soon. Saw Judge & told him so. Transition on the A.T.9.
WEDNESDAY 1 7/42. Went before the Commissioning board today – they were quite decent – think I’ve got one. I’m to see Rothwell about other matter tomorrow. Spot of transition on the A.T.9.
THURSDAY 2 7/42. No flying today low cloud & [inserted] W.K. [/inserted] thunder – though we were supposed to start night flying. Saw S/LDR and heard that more of us are to stay here for O.T.U. – cheers. Think I’ll get out of Instructor. No open post – this W/E – LIVID.
FRIDAY 3 7/42. CON’S BIRTHDAY – BLESS HER. Wish I could give her a good hug. Started real transition on the 9. Usual talk of lack of judgment – think Instr. must be wrong or have a queer sense of judgement himself.
SATURDAY 4 7/42. More transition and one exam on [deleted] pre [/deleted] flight at 6.45 a.m! Damn fine lecture on ops by S/LDR in afternoon. Wangled Open post if no night flying left us hanging around till 12 midnight!
SUNDAY 5 7/42. Good lay in until 10 am much enjoyed the rest. Wrote to CON Transition with Sandison – no talk of bad judgement. Went up later with Dale & made some car hops!
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with clover leaf crossovers at either end. The river here was about 1/2 mile wide. We were also taken to see the Louisiana State Capital building – a magnificent structure surrounding [sic] by gardens full of azalias [sic] in bloom. From here we picked up a lift into New Orleans down the straightest road I have ever seen. It was straight as far as the eye could see. The scenery was now flatter and produced market produced [sic] (Truck country) – ratter different from the wooded country further North and the farming country around Baton Rouge.
We arrived in New Orleans at 8.30 p.m. having travelled 259 miles. We strolled up the main street of many lights, called Canal Street. The street cars run down the centre of the road and on the outskirts this is grassed over with azalia [sic] & magnolia bushes. The road is lined with palm trees. In the centre there are some large Hotels & bank buildings and masses of lights, near signs etc.
We were tired but intent on seeing if we could get hold of some Southern hospitality so we entered the bar at the JUNG Hotel – no good. We strolled down the street a bit further & ran into some more of the lads, who seemed to be having a good time. So we went into the bar of the largest hotel – the Roosevelt – and bought a drink, stared
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For Week of Monday 6th. JULY 1942
MONDAY 6 7/42. Cross country to Crestview – Pike lost us we nearly reached the Gulf – looked wizard. Found ourselves then on way back P lost his may! So we came back on beam. No night flying – weather.
TUESDAY 7 7/42. Spot of link today. Raised [inserted] 4L.K. [/inserted] subject of Open Post with F/LT. Judge – he could’nt get any satisfaction. We could’nt get passes signed so had a beer in camp. F/LT going to see Col.
WEDNESDAY 8 7/42. F/LT. Judge saw Col re Open Post with S/L. Blank refusal! He’s very fed up. Too bad – guess they were not well received. Link again – spot of night flying in the 9 – fair. Spot of skeet shooting.
THURSDAY 9 7/42. Did’nt fly today. in the evening Gabbie & I pitched a story about buying stuff to take home & wangled two passes! Met S/L & F/LT in Freddie’s Office they were delighted and invited us out to lunch at the Gables – excellent evening. [inserted] L.K [/inserted]
FRIDAY 10 7/42. Somewhat heady today! Did a T & D problem back in formation. Spot of night flying at Liesberg in the 17 – fair.
SATURDAY 11 7/42. Link only today. Open post granted – blow me down! Went into Town – ran into S/L & F/LT – to the Gables again – good evening. Bought some more silk stockings.
SUNDAY 12 7/42. Two Letters from CON – so glad. Spot of team with Edwards & formation later in 9. Spot of night flying at 1.40 a.m. Hellish tired made rotten landings in the 9
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round the bar and stood talking – in hopes. On the way in I was stopped by an American who asked who we were.
We were almost giving up hope when a quiet voice said at O’Neill’s elbow “Drink that one up & have one with me”. From then on we never looked back. He was a bloke named George Taylor & his friend Paul Lansing who had stopped me as we came in. when they heard what we were doing & that we’d made no arrangements to sleep, George disappeared to return later and blandly announce he had got us all a room in the hotel, the best in Town! We went on drinking until about 12 o’clock then we thought of food and went over to a restaurant in the French Quarter for some bacon & eggs. We were hailed over to speak to a Norwegian sailor & when we returned to our table we found our companions had paid the bill & gone! Could’nt find them anywhere until we discovered they had staggered on to Canal Street & in their cheerful condition had tried to drive a street car full of negroes. Very tired – to bed. Marvellous room – two single & a truckle bed with bathroom complete. Wonderful beds – slept like nothing on earth.
Tuesday 24 3/42. Awoke 9.30 – bit of a head. Rang up George & Paul & we all got up & met in the bar over some “O hair” pick-me-ups – quite good. Then we had
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For Week of Monday 13th. JULY 1942
MONDAY 13 7/42. Had the whole morning to sleep – excellent – now flying day & night one day and having the next day as regards flying off. Felt hellish tired went to bed early – saw Stn. flick Chas Ruggles – good. Wrote to CON.
TUESDAY 14 7/42 Cross country then a spot of team formation. Had trouble with a gusty cross wind on landing – rt. Wing stalled about 10’ from ground came in heavy. Night flying in A.T17 – all good landings.
WEDNESDAY 15 7/42. Another morning in bed – very good too. Gabbie & I tried to get out to “do some shopping” but were told we’ll probably get Open Post on Friday – hope so.
THURSDAY 16 7/42 Spot of team T & D – O.K. day [inserted] WK. [/inserted] for All flight though I’ve never soloed in a 6 – cancelled when we returned. Letter from TOM. quite cheery though think the old boy is getting old. Night flying.
FRIDAY 17 7/42 Stayed in bed all morning! Spot of ground school then Open Post. Bought some more stockings & had a good party in Freddie’s Office with S/L & F/LT. Asked to arrange farewell party.
SATURDAY 18 7/42 Flying in the morning and then ground school. Saw F/LT re party arrangements. Info that we’re finishing on 5th. August. Night cross country – 1st. off – in bed by 12.30.
SUNDAY 19 7/42. Up 10 am & Open Post! Went into Radium Springs & lazed all day with a sandwich lunch. Afterwards saw [indecipherable] – excellent acting by Leslie Howard.
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brunch & returned to the bar where we were joined by some more Americans. We drank Gin & tonic – good for us. George left on the 1pm train for the north but Paul announced that our room was ours for as long as we could stay & the party for the day was on him. They would’nt let us pay for a thing the night before.
So we ambled over to the offices of the “Mississippi Valley Barge Line” for whom he worked but found “Red” Rutgar, the boss was not in. So we set about making a rude Dictaphone message for him when in he walked so we finished it off for George & mailed it to him!
In the afternoon Paul got us some tickets for a motor tour round the old French Quarter. We visited the old Cathedral, rather like St. Marks, [indecipherable]. Saw the old [deleted] fre [/deleted] French houses with the patios, containing lovely flowers, behind the French Market, the ruins of a Spanish house and generally got sober. It was most interesting especially as New Orleans was the centre of pirating in the 18th. Century when Pierre Lafitte & his [indecipherable] used to come in there.
Met [deleted] Gales & [indecipherable] & later [/deleted] Paul who had a dinner date but insisted on taking us to a French Restaurant where he at last let us pay for our dinners. We arrived there in a horse drawn [indecipherable] complete with negro coachman
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For Week of Monday 20th. JULY 1942
MONDAY 20 7/42. Flying this morning did a Cross country under the hood – not brilliant. Rumour we’re to finish on 26th. – leave? Night cross country – team. Got 60 hrs in & over 210 total. Sent for Schick bead. WROTE TO CON.
TUESDAY 21 7/42. Mosely killed at Liesberg last night. Reynolds – two cracked knee caps & bruises. Apparently ran into a riggers hut at end of runway – did’nt have enough flying speed to take off – bad luck. Ted, [indecipherable], Gab & I went into [indecipherable] for beer party.
WEDNESDAY 22 7/42. Spot of formation. Mosely’s funeral. Some of the lads got into hot water for missing & being late for Retreat last night. 20 & 10 tars respectively! No night flying – weather not suitable for XC.
THURSDAY 23 7/42 Good nights [sic] rest – got up fairly early. Went with O’Neill to see F/LT re [inserted] 2LK. 1C [/inserted] tars (Americans only given 3 [indecipherable] for same thing). Rained this afternoon – no P.T. or Retreat horay [sic]!) Saw “Take a letter darling” – excellent – Rosalind Russell.
FRIDAY 24 7/42 No flying this morning – low cloud. Had letters from Con (2) Phyl, Syd, Mr. Wells, Billy last night excellent! No night XC tonight storms about so early to bed. Rumour that 11 instructors are to be kept back. seems [indecipherable].
SATURDAY 25 7/42. Edwards & I saw S/L. [indecipherable]. Had a chat that I’ll get back O.K. – they’d rather have volunteers. Went into Radium Springs – to 3.30pm. Rain threatening so returned to town, flick, supper beer – bed.
SUNDAY 26 7/42. We all over slept a bit this morning! Did 4.45 hrs flying excellent – fair effort tho’ formation seriously criticized! Nearly finished my time – got 60.40 in. wrote to CON. Got new razor head – better than old one.
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in a silk hat. At every crossroads the horse shied & had to be led across. An Army Colonel who had hired the affair before us described it as a “Stubborn horse & a stupid n*****”. However Paul kept us in fits of laughter the whole time.
The meal consisted of a seven course dinner for a dollar – excellent. We strolled through the French Market smoking cigars & then returned to the hotel where we met Gales & [indecipherable] & later Paul, who whisked us off with his friend Mac & another bloke to a Bowling match where we drank beer.
Then we came back to a night club for a floor show including a spot of strip tease – extraordinary performance. We also visited the old Absinthe House (before going to Bowling) and tried some absinthe. Queer muck – rather like peppermint and milky white in colour. There was also a fat n***** who had a wonderful touch on the piano. A most interesting relic of pirate days. After a visit to a few more night life spots we went to bed at 4.30 am & soundly slept.
Wednesday 25 3/42. Up at 10.30 found Lansing had got up early! & gone to his office. Went out & had brunch & ran into Paul & thanked him for the whole show. Took cab to road 11 & started to thumb, intent on getting to Mobile. However Bob Southrey stopped in a huge Hudson & picked us up bond for
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For Week of Monday 27th. JULY 1942
MONDAY 27 7/42 Got up fairly late went into see F/LT. re party. Instructors required now 15 – S/L saw everyone, accepted my excuse, also Ted Gabbie & Dai to stay, O’Neill? Rotten luck but thank God I’m going back.
TUESDAY 28 7/42. Spot of instr & formation. O’Neill going home good! Also finished off night flying now have 74 hours in here only inst. to do. Party fixed for Sat. night.
WEDNESDAY 29 7/42 Did’nt get to bed till 4.30 am so not up till 11.30. Gabbie unable to get out of it. Trouble over P.T – due to bad instructions from Ridley – exhibition by him in F/L’s office! Saw rotten flick in Stn. Flicks. Party altered to Sunday.
THURSDAY 30 7/42 Finished inst with fairly good check. Rumour now that we’re to do 10 more landings in the 9! Finish & got wings on Wed. & straight off to Canada – good egg!!! Shall be delighted to go. Night flying
FRIDAY 31 7/42 Party arranged for Sunday night. Assessment in log book – below average – rather disappointed – but S/L said no need to worry – just to indicate to next instructor what I’m weak in. Record O.K. Open post – few beers with Gabbie.
SATURDAY 1 8/42 Finished off my flying. Went in on Open Post met S/L & F/LT went out to Gables – good party. Had chat about assessment – nothing to worry about – he’s had dozens of B.A’s. all get though all right.
SUNDAY 2 8/42. Got up to go to flight line not required so back to bed! Trouble over night flying – can’t put party off! Party fixed. good effort No night flying. Good time was had by all. Barbeque rather disappointing though grub good.
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Hattiesburg so we altered our plans. We had a good run across the edge of the Gulf of Mexico and so north. Country became flat, then wooded and slightly hilly arrived at Hattiesburg at 6 pm. Put up at Dixie Tourist Cabins – three in a double bed[deleted] s [/deleted] three musqueteers with a vengeance and somewhat warm. Had a spot of beer in a bar & supper in town. Sorry to find a girl of 18 working in a bar which is full of soldiers. Found they had to get a job in that particular County or go to jail to keep the women out of mischief. Nice kid named Eugene Plaka who was saving up to get out of it & jet home so took pity on the poor wench. 121 miles.
Thursday 26 3/42. Up at 9.30 then breakfast. Southrey met us at 11 am and on. Stopped for lunch at roadside cabin – good. I drove to Meridian – terrific car nearly hit a wandering car & some line engineers dropped a cable across our wireless aerial. From Meridian we got a lift right to Tuscaloosa by a bloke who was towing a car – they just couple the cars together & let the wheel swing! But travel at any speed. 187 miles.
So home to Camp again. Total distance 879 miles – all hitched!
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For Week of Monday 3rd AUGUST 1942
MONDAY 3 8/42 Open post all day. Went in town. 4 parcels to CON. 3 food 1 cheeky seed. Missed John Bliss who is an Instr. at [indecipherable] – pity. Went out to R/H with S/L. Rothwell – back to Freddie’s for a spot & had party in S/L Hirst’s room. Tried to get arrested by gate guard – no luck!
TUESDAY 4 8/42 Open post till 6pm. Packing. Open post extended to 12 night. Went into town. Saw S/L Hirst & F/L. – to 43B’s B.B.Q. with S/L Rothwell. Then back to Freddie’s with S/L who took me up to his room and gave me a pair of R.A.F. Wings! Best present yet. More fun with Gate Guard – no clink.
WEDNESDAY 5 8/42 Up early – getting squad up. WINGS PARADE. Caught 1.20 train. Said reluctant good bye to S/L & F/L they were sorry too. Route via Atlanta Chatt. Cincinnati where we join rest of party. Rather dirty uncomfortable coaches. Cold at night.
THURSDAY 6 8/42 Did’nt sleep much. Up 6 am. Arr. [indecipherable] 8.30 am. 5hr wait. Into town to Schicks – beer look round station – photos. Dep. 3.10 complete party Arr Detroit 11.30 pm. change to C.N.R. switched coaches. Fiddled sleeper – sheets – comfort!!! Cost $1.50.
FRIDAY 7 8/42 Slept fair – well worth it – a bit cold & stiff – 5 in compartment 6’ x 8’. In Canada passed Toronto at 5 am. (Dai & Co [indecipherable]). Wizard scenery. Stopped Montreal beer good – St. Lawrence – homesteads – all the gang crowded in our cabin – good fun. Slept well.
SATURDAY 8 8/42 Woke at Campbellton – top route all R. St. Lawrence then S.E to Moncton arr. 12.30. Train taken into 31P.D. found we’re potential officers – kind of officers mess. In town to Ellis (beer) – Bunnetts – Ellis. [indecipherable] three fruit machines!
SUNDAY 9 8/42 Did’nt get up till 10.30. After lunch we hitched to Point de Chene [Pointe du Chêne] 20 miles away for a spot of sun bathing – grand. Met the Jones family who very kindly waited to bring us back. wizard scenery – good day.
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[underlined] BASEBALL. [/underlined]
Much the same as rounders though the rules are tightened up to make it harder.
Each team consists of nine players. One team fields the other strikes and goes on until 3 members are out then they change round nine times i.e 9 innings each.
The pitcher bowls, the catcher is the wicket keeper, there is a baseman for each of the three bases and the remaining men field either deep or at short stop. The plate is the home base shaped [inserted sketch] and for a fair ball it must be pitched at a height between the knees and the shoulders & pass over the plate. It is called a “strike” if a foul it is a “ball”. The hitter can have three ‘strikes’ but if he does’nt hit the 3rd he’s out. The pitcher is allowed 3 ‘balls’ on the fourth the hitter gets a free run. The ball must be hit into the field ie between the lines of Home – 1st. base & Home 3rd base. He can never be caught out on a foul strike behind the wicket.
To be out the ball may be caught or thrown to a baseman who has one foot on the base before
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For Week of Monday 10th. August 1942
MONDAY 10 8/. Drew a [indecipherable]! Good sign? Rumour [inserted] L [/inserted] life as usual. Went into town after supper. Wet day – to Ellis – poor luck on machines – foolish but good fun. O’Neill got Jackpot! – after we’d gone.
TUESDAY 11 8/. Went out in the afternoon after cashing cheque for £5 with Wild. Bought powder & some underclothes for myself. Went to a flick met Charlie & Co & stooged back to Camp. More trained personnel in today.
WEDNESDAY 12 8/. Saw [indecipherable] today with wing up on way back. Played bridge in evening – nothing to but! Pay parade for everyone but us on Friday.
THURSDAY 13 8/. Went out to Point de Chene with O’Neill this afternoon. Got a good lift both there & back. good fresh air – excellent. Slept like a log. Saw “The Reluctant Dragon” – jolly good.
FRIDAY 14 8/. Stuck around all day with absolutely nothing to do. Bored with all the hanging around. Played bridge in evening – then drink in the mess.
SATURDAY 15 8/ Sat around reading all day – did nothing. So fed up went for a walk in evening with Edwards then back for drink in the mess.
SUNDAY16 8/. After lunch hitched out to Point de Chene with Bailey & Edwards. Good hitch out – walked down [indecipherable] track. Rather a job hitching back – walked a lot 3-4 miles. Got going just before dark. Pleasantly tired.
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the hitter reaches it, or a runner can be touched by an opponent with the ball between bases.
A hitter who strikes the ball into play must run to 1st. base wherever the ball goes to. If there’s a man on 1st base he must run to second & so on. So that by smart fielding the ball can be thrown to 2nd base and get that man between 1st & 2nd & thrown to the 1st. baseman to catch the hitter who had not yet reached 1st. base. Indeed it is possible to get 3 men or even 4 by quick & hard throwing.
Each man goes in to hit in turn. A home run is one where the ball is hit so far that the hitter gets round in one run. If a baseman (men) runs from one base to another or a ball which is caught he must return to his original base and is often thrown out.
The game as a whole is faster than cricket though totally different and not so [indecipherable]. It is however good fun and quite a good afternoons entertainment especially when runners dive for their bases to beat the throw.
The game is run by an umpire standing behind the catcher and a Referee who looks after the problem of close shaves or getting home to a base before the ball is caught.
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For Week of Monday 17th. August 1942
MONDAY 17 8/. Stuck around as usual. Went down town with Bailey & made enquiries about thicker stockings for Con. Decided to sell two pairs & buy two more here. A few beers in mess. Letter CON.
TUESDAY 18 8/. Hitched out to Point de Chene with Bailey followed by Reas & Gabbie. Got a lift on a sand lorry & had great sport in the water mostly duck fighting. Got an invite on lift back for next week. Met Conner – rumours.
WEDNESDAY 19 8/. Rumour correct draft going [inserted] 2L. [/inserted] tomorrow & Friday – bailey only one of our Crowd going lucky devil – all very broke & disappointed. Have to stay in till Friday – do hope they give us time to get things
THURSDAY 20 8/. Went down with [deleted] Bailey [/deleted] Ted to have beer at Ellis with Bill who is off tomorrow. Met Jim, Bailey’s pal, who took us to his home after billiards at the Ellis. Nice people English settlers, he’s a civil servant. (P.O)
FRIDAY 21 8/. Pay at last! Get $40 went down [inserted] IL. [/inserted] town and got lipstick, face cream & some thicker stockings for Con. Supper at Bennetts & some beer at the Ellis. Rather fed up. started “This above all” – good book.
SATURDAY 22 8/. We thought we’d go to Point de Chene but it was so windy we just lazed around & read until after supper when we went into town for a beer etc.
SUNDAY 23 8/. Did some packing this morning & got things organised. C.O. dropped lists of moving soon – do hope he’s right. Went down to see with Jones and found the [indecipherable] a [indecipherable] – spent evening with them.
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All players wear a glove and the catcher and umpire wear protective padding and a face grill. The pitcher who really works the hardest stands on a little mound of sand in the centre of the arena.
Quite a good game and I believe very exciting between two 1st. class sides – mostly professional. The Americans go nuts over it.
[underlined] THE JOURNEY NORTH. [/underlined] 5 8/42 – 8 8/42.
5/8/42. Up early and got ourselves cleared with flying kit bedding etc. Finished packing but unfortunately my laundry was returned un-washed owing to a mistake of some kind. At 10.30 am we marched up to the Camp Theatre with arms swinging in good old Babbacombe style for our “Graduation Ceremony”, when we received a pair of tin wings and a certificate amidst much band playing and flag wagging. After a photograph and lunch we all boarded trucks for the station – damned glad to be at last on our way home, seems almost too good to be true. I pinned on my R.A.F wings, which S/Ldr Rothwell had given to me the night before and which I prize muchly - damned
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For Week of Monday 24th. AUGUST 1942
MONDAY 24 8/. Stuck around all day played bridge – read “This above all” grand book. Spot of beer in the mess. No gen yet – though hints are coming out. Lecture by C.O.
TUESDAY 25 8/. Lecture by C.O. no gen yet. still more hinting. Spot of bridge. Letter from CON. I wish we could get a move on. Went to see the Jones with Gabbie – all arranged on the spur of moment. Letter CON
WEDNESDAY 26 8/ Did nothing all day until afternoon. Went in to change some stockings for Con. Played bridge in the evening. We’re all damned bored. Beer.
THURSDAY 27 8/ Played a spot of bridge to keep us going. Went out after supper with Gabbie. Saw a spot of amateur soft ball. Came back to the mess for a beer.
FRIDAY 28 8/. Did nothing all day. Went to see the Jones again with Gabbie – quite a cheery evening. Rumour we’re going soon – good.
SATURDAY 29 8/. Gabbie gone to Shediac with Edwards & O’Neill. I joined Whitfield & Clark. Flicks, spot of supper then beer. Good blokes.
SUNDAY 30 8/. Went to Church with same lads & introduced to Mrs O’Dwyer. Out to Shediac with them. Met Guntry’s etc. Very nice people – good breeding – English. Wish we’d met them before.
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decent of him. At the gate of the camp we gathered all our passes together and scattered them out of the back of the truck to the tune of “All coppers are B—ds!!”
at the station we found we had two special coaches & a van for luggage and we were hooked onto the back of the “Flamingo” as far as Atlanta. The coaches were filthy and not too comfortable. We said reluctant good bye’s to S/L & F/Lt and thanked them for all they had done and got on the move at 1.45pm
Scenery typical Georgia with Pecan & Peach trees, farm corn & so on all the way to Atlanta. Track single most of the way with passing loops & automatic sectional signals.
At Atlanta we were shunted from the “Central of Georgia” to the “Southern” up to Cincinnati. We got going at 7.45pm. We had had supper at the C of G before Atlanta. The scenery now began to get more interesting as we climbed up through the Appalachian Mts towards Chattanooga. Soon it was dark and we put down our seats and tried to get some sleep. We were wearing summer kit and had no [indecipherable] or blankets. It was warm at first but soon got
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For Week of Monday 31st. AUGUST 1942
MONDAY 31 8/. Rumour strong – supposed 150 going on Thursday. No ‘gen’ yet. still plenty of time. Went in with the lads to a flick. Nearly got payed [sic] by mistake. Some Blokes did!
TUESDAY 1 9/. Definite gen this afternoon. WE’RE GOING ON THURSDAY At last – gen right for once. Got some pay & bought of stuff got packed. Went to Rockaway with Mrs O’Dwyer. Saw the Guntry’s there. E & G made a four – for me beer.
WEDNESDAY 2 9/. Eldin got it bad. Put out deep sea kit – gen talks – we’re to leave at 5.30AM tomorrow via NEW YORK! Rumour it’s the Queen Mary. Said good bye to Mrs O’Dwyer Spot of beer with Fl/LT Judge who is up here.
THURSDAY 3 9/. Up before dawn away 5.30 am. Via St. John, McAdam, crossed the border at Vanceboro. Proper sleeping equipment this time & good grub. Stopped at Portland in U.S.A. for an hour then bed & a good snore. Clocks back 1hr.
FRIDAY 4 9/. Breakfast at 5 a.m. due at N. York at 8.30 am. Usual business [indecipherable]. New [indecipherable] R.R. electric locos. Arr. Pennsylvania Stn. 8.45 am. To New Jersey by tunnel. Then by tender to the QUEEN MARY!! Saw the Statue of Liberty. [indecipherable] on her side.
SATURDAY 5 9/. Good bunk in stateroom – good sleep. 14,000 U.S. Troops on overnight. Funnels smoking – rumours rife. Good breakfast. Off 2.45pm! passed skyscrapers & out thro’ basin to sea. Then what a bow wave & how wizardly she sails. Grub excellent = 2 meals day
[inserted in margin] Co 1360 to 190 [inserted in margin]
SUNDAY 6 9/. Slept like a log – good breakfast rough guess we’re covered 500 miles already. Going well in huge zig-zags no escort. Plenty of armament on board. Steward says [indecipherable] on Thurs. good egg!!
[inserted in margin] Co 090 [inserted in margin]
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Chilly and we none of us slept much. We got up at dawn.
6/8/42. We arrived at Cincinnati at 8.30 am. Detrained and had a good breakfast in the Station restaurant. We had to wait for the remainder of the 42G [indecipherable] who were due to arrive at 12.30 so Gabbie & I went into Town as did the remainders. Gabbie went for a shave. I went along to Schicks Service to get my razor serviced and had a shave there. After we tried innumerable shops to get Gab a pair of R.A.F wings without success.
On return to the Station we heard that the others were not due until 2.30pm so we had a beer and then Ted & I went down onto the station & took some photos. It is much the same as Carlisle was in pre-grouping days and is jointly owned by the several railways using it. We got some good shots – though the majority of the American engines look much the same in general designs except of course the streamlined ones. The signalling is group controlled from a central signal box with track indicator electric chart. Signals are rather few and the [indecipherable] are placed on track level like [indecipherable], the
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For Week of Monday 7th. SEPT 1942
MONDAY 7 9/ Still moving at a good fast rate. Never seen the sea look so beautifully blue – deep blue marked by white – where our huge wake leaves a pattern. Halfway at approx. 6.30 pm. Getting very excited. (turkey). Saw flying fish last night.
[inserted in margin] Co 090 [inserted in margin]
TUESDAY 8 9/ weather a bit colder & more cloudy – sea rather a swell on and she’s rolling. Later sea quite big and we’re pitching & rolling somewhat – everything creaking. Sea quite heavy towards evening.
[inserted in margin] Co 045 - 000 [inserted in margin]
WEDNESDAY 19[sic] 9/ Lovely rumours – “Tirpitz got out” and “the Q.M sunk 500 miles out of New York. Sea quite heavy with a good deal of spray. Excellent fun. Still going a good lick.
[inserted in margin] Co 045 [inserted in margin]
THURSDAY 10 9/. Rumours yesterday that we’re to be in tonight! No sight of land. Sea still big swell – boat rolling heavily. Gen now that we’re in early tomorrow. Think we’ve taken a round about route.
FRIDAY 11 9/. Up early & behold we [indecipherable] up the Clyde! Scenery looked wizard. Anchored at 9.50. off boat 1.30. Entrain 5.30 & away at 6.00. via Kilmarnock, Dumfries, Carlisle, Crewe [indecipherable], Clapham Jc. B’mouth [Bournemouth]. Rode on footplate from Carlisle – Crewe [indecipherable].
SATURDAY 12 9/. Arr. B’mouth 9.45 & off to billets at Hazlewood Hotel. Good messing. In search of uniform. Starting cold in head. Spot of beer - [indecipherable] – not bad. Slept like a log. Could’nt get thro’ to Con – 2hr. delay.
SUNDAY 13 9/. Rang Con this morning – wonderful to hear her voice. Went to Christchurch this afternoon – concert at Pavilion in evening. Saw Bailey just back from leave.
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latter do not appear to be used except for important crossovers or from sidings onto M/L.
at 2.35 in came the rest of the gang, some riding on the footplate the remainder leaning out of the window – all in good spirits. We spent some few minutes sorting out people we knew & had’nt seen for some time and off we went again. This time the Baltimore & Ohio took us to Detroit & gave us a good lunch, in fact grub on the journey was good.
The scenery was good. Pleasant farm country with the usual hooting for gateless crossings. Bags of corn growing tall and although cooler it was still warm. We rattled along well.
We reached Detroit at 11.30 pm and bye-passed the station to some sidings where we transferred to the C.N.R. Proper old stock with hard seats – three men to a seat so that one had to sleep on the wooden canopy up above – with no blankets or bedding for two days! I did’nt think it was good enough – still we got going at last and went along to the diner for grub. The train had obviously been fitted up specially as a troop train as the diner had been stripped of its chairs & tables and
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For Week of Monday 14th. SEPT 1942
MONDAY 14 9/. Hellish queues for uniforms – decided to go to Gieves – excellent stuff even if more expensive. To flicks in the evening & then a whiskey & bed. Cold rather bad – gone to chest.
TUESDAY 15 9/. Feel better today – cough looser. Still waiting for deep sea kit. Paid £5 went out to Christchurch for a drink.
WEDNESDAY 16 9/ Deep sea kit arrived at last. Went to see Coles at New Milton & borrowed a case.
THURSDAY 17 9/ Collected flying kit & handed in Airman’s kit – got ourselves packed up & ready. On leave tomorrow.
FRIDAY 18 9/ Usual queue for passes arrived in London too late to get down to [indecipherable].
SATURDAY 19 9/ Caught the 11.55 and got a [inserted] K [/inserted] lift to Stevensons Farm on an Army lorry beautiful to give Con & Phyl a good hug & wizard to be home again. Cottage looks fine & still some roses.
SUNDAY 20 9/. Pottered about in the morning Had chicken for lunch. Arthur & Sheila came in. went up to aerodrome for supper at the W.A.A.F’s run in the mess. Met Gibson & S/L Bill Greenslade told all about G.M.R.
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we all sat at long tables placed length-ways with forms as seats. The food was quite good and it was good to see the friendly British faces of the dining car crew.
After grub Gabbie & I went along to see if there were any [indecipherable] where one could sleep (we’d both got the top bunk which was damned hard.) we found a sleeper or rather a day car fitted with proper mattresses between the two diners for the use of the crew. At one end was a kind of smoke room with a long settee with two easy chairs. Just what we wanted! so we tackled the coloured conductor. He said that we could have [underlined] beds [/underlined] in the “drawing room” at the other end as there were five of us – we had been joined by three others. He wanted $2 for the complete but agreed to take $1.50. One bloke dropped out so I went & fetched Charlie Hare – it was a pity we could’nt have got rid of the other two & got Edwards & O’Neill in there as well.
I went along to say cheers to Dai who was in the last coach & was to be slipped at Toronto about 6 am. He seemed alright though somewhat depressed. I was sorry he’s not coming with us.
And so to bed [underlined] between sheets [/underlined]
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For Week of Monday 21st. SEPT. 1942
MONDAY 21 9/ Went up to look round a Stirling & an Oxford. Two sqdns on the camp now – 214 (S) & 101 MkIII Wimpeys. Operate most nights now. Troops don’t like the Stirling much – all [indecipherable]. Up to mess for a drink
TUESDAY 22 9/ Sick & diahaerr [diarrhoea] all night. Spent morning in bed – germ floating about. Lovely quiet evening with Con over the fire. Don’t feel too well – too much excitement perhaps.
WEDNESDAY 23 9/ Better today – over fields to Sheila’s with Con. Flip with Gibson this afternoon in Oxford – good. Tiny [indecipherable] & Jean in to supper – nice girls – chicken supper & spot of beer. Stomach quite recovered.
THURSDAY 24 9/ Off this morning – wish we had another week. Went down to Hammersmith & saw Wadson, Williamson [indecipherable] etc. good evening.
FRIDAY 25 9/ Back from leave – mouldy hole. Don’t seem to have said or done anything I’d planned to do on leave. It was too short.
SATURDAY 26 9/ went out to Mrs Cole to return the suitcases. Her sister at St. Howards missing after bomb hit her flat – bad luck. Met Whitfield & his wife.
SUNDAY 27 9/. Went to concert at Pavilion this afternoon. Out to Christchurch for a drink.
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I slept alongside old Gabbie who tossed about a bit but did’nt snore too much – much refreshed in the morning though 5 in a room 6’ x 8’ was rather stuffy inspite of a fan & the top ventilators open. (We could’nt get the side windows to open).
7/8/42 Found we’d passed through Toronto overnight or rather in the early morning and we were going through marvellous scenery towards Montreal. So much fresher than yesterday’s in America and much better farmed. Lovely firs & hills with trees & little clearings. Now and then we rumbled over a stream all rock strewn & occasionally quite a decent sized river. We were running parallel to the St. Lawrence on our right.
We had a got [sic] breakfast & just after an equally good lunch stopped in Montreal. We had an hour to wait so we all went in search of a beer. Found a pub – quite English looking – called a “Taverne” – and the beer was, I think, the best we’ve had this side of the drink.
It was much cooler then America and the air clean & fresh. Such a pleasant change. We collected a big 4-8-4 with a
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For Week of Monday 28th. SEPT. 1942
MONDAY 28 9/. Posted to No. 6 A.F.u Little Rissington. [deleted] Oxfordshire [/deleted] Glos [Gloucestershire] so not too far from London & Stead. Spent the day messing about – to Kings Head for a drink.
TUESDAY 29 9/. Off to Little Rissington via Reading, Didcot, Oxford, and bus from Kingham. Good station & nice mess. used to be an S.F.T.S. Shared room with Edwards & O’Neill.
WEDNESDAY 30 9/. Damned cold, shivered in lecture room & had “pep” talk – drew flying [indecipherable] etc. Assigned to auxiliary aerodrome at Akeman St. – go out in a bus daily – no grd school. Rang Con.
THURSDAY 1 10/. Up 6 am – phew! damned cold. F/Sgt as Instructor – murky weather – did’nt fly. Did some cockpit drill. Getting 48 over W/E. [deleted] Rang Con [/deleted]. Signed up to get away.
FRIDAY 2 10/. No flying today – got away early. Hitched to Oxford.
SATURDAY 3 10/. Met Con & Phyl & Phyl’s flat [inserted] K [/inserted] – grand to see them again. Saw Davis & later to Hammersmith saw Wadson & later Price & Co at the Signals Mess. slept at Mai’s.
SUNDAY 4 10/. Breakfast at Canteen. Phyl’s for lunch with chicken – wizard. Nora came over in the afternoon so nice to see everyone again – like old [indecipherable]. 8.5 train back.
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wizard [indecipherable] hooter, looked pretty clean & well kept – or just out of the paint shops.
After leaving Montreal we crossed the ST. Lawrence by a long girder bridge and carried on parallel to the river on the east side through wizard country mostly made up of small farmsteads which looked rather like original settlers homes – just a small square wooden shack with about 20 acres of land all laid out in long strips. Grand seems pretty futile and O’Neill said it looked good for farming.
We followed the St. Lawrence along though we could’nt see it and we bye-passed Quebec though we saw the famous bridge standing up there with the “Heights of Abraham” behind. Scenery much the same & we rattle on along the single track. When we went through last December we went through Maine (U.S.A) & did not go thro’ or near Quebec. Also this part of the journey was at night. I can see we missed a good deal. This time we follow the St. Lawrence to “Mont Peli” and turn off there via Campbellton to Moncton.
That night Edwards & O’Neill piled into our “drawing room”
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For Week of Monday 5th. OCTOBER 1942
MONDAY 5 10/.
Fly round – quite like the Oxford. We fly in all sorts of weather.
TUESDAY 6 10/.
Circuits & precautionary landing. Oxford not bad to land but the aerodrome is somewhat bumpy.
WEDNESDAY 7 10/.
No flying – weather awful.
Walked down to Bourton-in-the-Water [sic] and put down & [sic] odd pint in the “New Inn”.
THURSDAY 8 10/. Cross country under the head – then find out where you are & fly home – fairly successful. Flow back to Rissington with Instructor.
FRIDAY 9 10/. Flip with Instr. this morning took S/L to Rissington. Latter pleased with my [indecipherable]. Not a very good effort at landing. Later up with F/LT. Kerridge after Solo (2 circuits) Regaining confidence lost by Pink.
SATURDAY 10 10/. Bad weather this morning. Dual with tight turns & single engine operation then on hours solo – wizard. I feel full of confidence again now. To “New Inn” for a spot.
SUNDAY 11 10/. Did a spot of local map reading Country looks grand from the air – Oxford especially Had one x country as passenger to Hereford & into Wales. Came back over Dick’s place at Alvington.
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really to play cards but when we found the conductor had put the beds down we just lazed around smoking and talking. After a lot of persuasion we got rid of them & turned in.
8/8/42 we woke up after a good night – not so many kicks from Gabbie – at Campbellton on the Gulf of St. Lawrence. I don’t think we covered a lot of ground overnight. Still we had breakfast and got packed up, we were due in Moncton about noon. The scenery all along the Gulf was grand. We kept passing little bays & short views of the sea – it looked grand. We saw inland and into good farming country and on E.T.A arrived at Moncton.
It looked somewhat more civilised without the snow but it was a real pleasure to see the cheery & friendly faces.
This time they backed down passed [sic] some sidings then went forward into a spur which led right into the camp – a new arrangement since we were here last. We went into a Drill Hall and then as potential Officers we were singled out from the [indecipherable] & taken to the Transient Officers Mess.
As we got off the train another
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For Week of Monday 12th. October 1942
MONDAY 12 10/. Nav. test. Hatfield & to Oakham. Went down to 500’ to have a look at the place – grand – just the same as ever. Enjoyed the whole thing very much passed test without much trouble.
TUESDAY13 10/. Our 1st solo cross country to Harwell – [indecipherable] -Alcester & back. got round fine. “shot up” by 9 spits west of [indecipherable] & ran into fog near Alcester good experience – got through O.K.
WEDNESDAY 14 10/. 2nd solo cross country today when I got up found ceiling at 1000’ so went on at 800 – all the way. Found ST. Ives (Hunts) & passed 24 Fortresses on way to Evesham. Got lost in Glos and eventually landed to ask!!
THURSDAY 15 10/. Went as Navigator complete with plotters, charts etc with Hodgkinson as plot XC to Ellesmore etc. Kept accurate log as poss. & Flt Commander very complimentary. Said it was the best he’d seen. Sending it to Stn Nav Off.
FRIDAY 16 10/. Posted to Wattisham for BAT. Near Stead! Bit of a wangle. Had to bring 11 Sgts & [indecipherable]. All arrived O.K. Rang up Bank on way thro’ London – pleasant surprise £83!! Mess here rather quite – full of Yanks.
SATURDAY 17 10/. Link then some beam flying – not bad for an initial effort. Spot of beer in the Mess and so to bed. Invited to Mess Party thrown by the Yanks to-morrow night. Rang Con – bless her.
SUNDAY 18 10/. Flying early this morning – fair. Good party with good beer. Met some nice people. Yanks tight all over the place – knew it would happen. Majority all right though. Rang Con.
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batch of fellars [sic] complete with gas masks came down to get in the train to go on to Halifax – lucky devils. We had apparently just missed a draught – damn, had we been on it I’d have seen Con’s roses by the end of August.
[underlined] JOURNEY HOME [/underlined] 3 9/42 – 12 9/42.
We’re away at last in C.N.R [indecipherable] stock but as officers with pukka beds etc. this time. Journey via St. Johns, into U.S.A via Malden &across the border at Vanceboro & following the coast to New York. We stopped for an hour at Portland and then on. Climbed into my top bunk which was extremely comfortable with mattress & sheets & slept well.
Next morning we were on the New Haven R.R and being hauled by an electric loco. The scenery reminded us very much of good old England, especially when we passed the usual early morning business people waiting for a local to New York. Soon we began to pick up the suburb – not so slummy as London & run into the big arterial roads. Saw some wonderful clover leaf crossovers & of course the usual mass of cars. We crossed the Hudson by a girder bridge & seemed to be skirting the city when we started to go downhill.
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For Week of Monday 19th. October 1942
MONDAY 19 10/. Somewhat sore headed this morning. (11 pints) – thank god not on link ‘till 10 am. Clamp to 50’ Jerry stooging around – alerts one after another. Yanks flying to shelters we made to do likewise interrupted our lunch. Ensa show at Naafi – poor. No flying today.
TUESDAY 20 10/.
Lovely morning got in some flying – poor effort swung too much on beam – Instructor does’nt seem to mind Yorkshire F/LT – clever bloke. Rang Con.
WEDNESDAY 21 10/. Flying coming on O.K. getting the hang of it now. Had a look at a battered Wimpey on the ‘drome.
THURSDAY 22 10/. Finished flying this morning should get away by lunch tomorrow. Rang Con.
FRIDAY 23 10/. F/LT Stevens came over and picked me up just after lunch. Home for tea – lovely supper went up to W.A.A.F Mess collected Tiny then to Ladies Room for some drinks.
SATURDAY 24 10/. Mrs Isaac left this morning. Tiny came in for lunch – nice girl. Had a look at my models. Got lift to Haverhill & so back.
SUNDAY 25 10/. Squared up – believe we’re night flying tomorrow – could have stayed another day.
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Everyone was looking for the skyscrapers but I only got a glimpse in the mist as we dived into a long tunnel coming out into the Pennsylvania Station right under New York.
We were all grabbing at rumours that it was & then it was’nt the Queen Mary & so on, so that when another electric engine backed on and we got going into New Jersey our spirits drooped.
However we piled out at a reception centre on the water’s edge, boarded a tender & chugged up stream. It was quite misty with the sun behind it. Suddenly the Statue of Liberty loomed up looking somewhat green in the strange light. Its a terrific size and one can walk up steps into the torch! We were all straining to see the famous skyline when suddenly one or two skyscrapers loomed out of the mist gradually followed by the rest as we got nearer. It was magnificent. We followed East River round and ran along the big boat piers. Was it the Q.M. on we went – then there was the terrible sad sight of the Normandie on her side. All her upper works have been removed prior to righting her. On the west pier behold the Q.M. For once our ‘gen’ was pukka!
We pushed off next day at 2.45 pm backed out into the River tugs pushed us round & off we went thro’ the basin & out
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For Week of Monday 26th. October 1942
MONDAY 26 10/. Night flying – foul weather back in Mess at 8.30 played darts & billiards.
TUESDAY 27 10/. Got in a spot tonight – easier than in the States. Glide path indicator a great help. Did a spot of A.C.P.
WEDNESDAY 28 10/. Helped to lay out flare path & A.C.P first period. Got in one XC when clamp set in and we went back.
THURSDAY 29 10/. Low cloud & rain. Hung on till midnight – no flying. Going down to see Con for W/E as I can spend Monday travelling.
FRIDAY 30 10/. Went to Akeman St all dressed for flying instead of leave & missed a possible hike to London. Still we were back in the Mess at 8 pm for party with ENSA people
SATURDAY 31 10/. Up early taxi to Kingham 7.49 to London. Via Gieves to 11.55 and then via Army lorry to Con at 3 pm. She was delighted so was I. Walked to Hampstead to order fowl. Sheila home.
SUNDAY 1 11/. Lovely morning country looked [inserted] K [/inserted] grand. Rollo razor seized up – had to take it [indecipherable]. Sheila came in for lunch had to catch the 4.50 back. Rode up in Guard’s van to L’pool [Liverpool] St.
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to sea. We passed & had a last good look at the skyline with its huge buildings. As we went passed [sic] most of the windows of the skyscrapers were full of waving people – we had 17,000 U.S. soldiers on board.
Once out to sea she ramped along at 29k. by day & a bit more at night. It was a wizard trip – eight to a cabin & good food though only 2 meals a day owing to the huge No. The Q.M rolls very badly in the swell – probably as she was not using gyros in wartime – and it was quite amusing seeing some of the Yanks who are not sailors rolling off chairs or sliding about on deck. It was a nice slow sort of roll but she used to go over a dickens of a way. Whilst we were bowling along the Nazi claimed to have sunk us 500 miles out! on the radio!
Friday 11 9/ we steamed up the Clyde & one got some impression of her grace & speed when one saw a destroyer pushing up a terrific bow wave to keep up with us be [deleted] docked [/deleted] anchored at 9.50 & tenders came alongside. It was wizard to see green fields & stone buildings again. we got ashore at 5.30, entrained & off at 6 pm. At Carlisle I was talking to the driver (Starkley of Carlisle) & was asked to ride on the footplate to Crewe! It was wizard, the engine was No.5468 St. Helena, a 5XP, and it was a wonderful experience at night, down Shap & through Westmoreland & [indecipherable]. We arr at B’mouth [Bournemouth], via Willesden & Clapham Jc at 9.45 am
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For Week of Monday 2nd. NOV. 1942
MONDAY 2 11/42. Watch to Moores, Pike to Edward. Bampton flyer to Akeman St. Tiring day. Night black as pitch flew very badly – everyone the same. Two killed at Rissy. Girls.
TUESDAY 3 11/42. Breakfast in bed – good Went down but not flying – grand mist got back by 11 pm. Beer and then bed.
WEDNESDAY 4 11/42. Misty morning – [indecipherable] N/F. No N/F. to New Inn. Walked down with Hodgkinson.
THURSDAY 5 11/42. No N/F.
FRIDAY 6 11/42. Still no N/F. Extremely misty
SATURDAY 7 11/42. Got off solo at last fair effort. Much easier then at Tunis Field U.SA.
SUNDAY 8 11/42. Got in a XC & a spot of solo tonight. Weather conditions seem better. Wrote to Con.
SEE NEW DIARY.
[page break]
[1941 CALENDAR]
[1942 CALENDAR]
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[book inside back cover]
[page break]
[book back cover]
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
Keith Dexter diary. One
Description
An account of the resource
Day by day diary recording events from his joining the Air Force in April 1941 up until 8 November 1942. Covers time at 1 Initial Training Wing and No 1 Elementary Flying School at Hatfield including interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation. Followed by crossing the Atlantic Ocean to Halifax, Canada on route for pilot training in Alabama, United States. Covers training in Tuscaloosa and Montgomery on PT17 and BT13. Award of wings in August 1942, trip back to the United Kingdom and time at 6 Advanced Flying Unit at RAF Little Rissington.
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
104 page diary
Language
A language of the resource
eng
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Text. Diary
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
YDexterKI127249v1
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--Devon
England--Hertfordshire
Canada
Nova Scotia--Halifax
United States
Alabama
Alabama--Montgomery
Alabama--Tuscaloosa
Nova Scotia
Louisiana--Baton Rouge
Temporal Coverage
Temporal characteristics of the resource.
1941
1942
1941-04-03
1942-11-08
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Keith Dexter
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
Steve Baldwin
aircrew
entertainment
Flying Training School
Initial Training Wing
military living conditions
military service conditions
pilot
RAF Hatfield
RAF Little Rissington
RAF Torquay
training