600 Praeter Sescentos “THE RIGHT OF THE LINE”

600 (City of London) Squadron RAuxAF Association Newsletter

Patron: The Viscount Trenchard of Wolfeton

December 2010 Editorial

Welcome to another 600 Sqn Association Newsletter albeit this time from a new Editor. I have taken over from Robin Van Geene who stepped down as Editor and would like to thank Robin for all his superb efforts to date. So, as Robin reported in his first newsletter, this is also my first attempt at putting together a newsletter. I have tried to jazz things up a bit, so if things are not as you like them, please do let me know – but please do also tell me if you dont like it! The aim is to pass on all our news and details of our events in a way, which is easy to digest, informative, fun, and most importantly interesting to read. If I miss the plot occasionally, do tell me so I can correct it for next time.

First, a little about me so those of you who have not met me know who I am. I joined the RAuxAF in 1997 as a raw recruit following some time in the late 70’s with 86 (Heston & Isleworth) Squadron, Air Training Corps and then the Royal Engineers in the early 80’s.

I joined 1 MHU as an AC under the then OC Edna Partridge before we were “Rebadged” as 600 Sqn. I reached the lofty heights of Corporal before personal matters prompted me to “retire” early in 2002. In 2007, I assumed the role of Association Standard bearer and late 2008 was appointed committee member.

Unlike many of our readers, I do still have to undertake the demon “work” and my day job as one of Facilities Manager heading up the Group Facilities services across 22 offices for 700 employees for the oldest Property & Construction consultancy in the City of London. Gardiner and Theobald began trading in 1840 are still going strong today.

Married with 4 Children, Julie & I live in Reading and I commute daily into my second home, London to work so close (ish) enough to London to get involved with Association business.

My Standard bearing has taken me all over the country joining some very high profile parades and events, many of which I will report on in this and future newsletters.

It is only 6 Months since our last newsletter, and in that time we have lost some well-known and well-respected members. It is only right and proper that the obituaries of those who have left us follow.

1 Obituries

Wing Commander Norman Hayes

Wing Commander Norman Hayes, who has died aged 98, flew night fighters fitted with top- secret radar equipment during the Battle of Britain; he also piloted the only aircraft to survive an attack on Rotterdam on the opening day of the German invasion of the Low Countries.

(Norman Hayes)

During the early morning hours of May 10 1940 reports reached London that German transport aircraft and paratroopers were descending on Dutch airfields. A strike against the key airfield at Waalhaven near Rotterdam was ordered but, as a result of a Cabinet ruling “to avoid possible casualties to Dutch soldiers or civilians”, bombers were not used.

Six Blenheim fighters of No 600 Squadron were sent instead. It was a disastrous decision: five of the Blenheims were shot down within minutes of machine-gunning the aircraft on the ground.

Hayes was the pilot of the sixth. As he approached the airfield, Junkers Ju 52s were landing and Hayes and his gunner destroyed one on the ground. Then Luftwaffe fighters appeared on the scene and attacked the Blenheims. Hayes’s aircraft was hit and petrol started to flood into the cockpit, but he avoided further damage as his gunner directed him in evasive action.

As he escaped at very low level, another transport was seen preparing to land and Hayes attacked despite being harassed by the enemy fighters. The aircraft went down with one engine on fire.

Departing from the target area, Hayes saw three Heinkel bombers cross ahead of his aircraft and, despite the damage to his own aircraft, attacked them. Return fire forced him to dive away.

At the Dutch coast, Hayes coaxed his badly damaged aircraft to 15,000ft to give himself “some gliding space”. He skilfully nursed his aircraft back to his airfield at Manston in Kent, where he was met by the station commander. When asked to report, he commented simply: “I am the only one to return.” In due course he was awarded the DFC and his gunner received the DFM.

2

"Final Destination Waalhaven" Painting presented to 600 Sqn by Sqn Ldr Kevin O'Shaughnessy QVRM AE on his retirement in 2003. The central ac, BQ-O, was flown by Norman Hayes and was the only ac to return.

Thomas Norman Hayes was born on June 26 1912 at Walthamstow and was educated at Dulwich College. After school he joined Lloyds Underwriters and in July 1936 joined 600 (City of London) Squadron of the Auxiliary Air Force, where he learned to fly Demon biplane fighters.

Together with all other Auxiliary Air Force personnel, he was called to full-time service in August 1939, by which time the squadron had received Blenheim fighters. During the Battle of Britain the role of the squadron was changed to night fighting, when the aircraft were fitted with the then top secret in-cockpit airborne interception radar. But it was a rudimentary piece of kit and little success was achieved in the early days.

After losses during intensive enemy air attacks , the squadron moved to Hornchuch in Essex. Hayes and his colleagues tried to intercept the German bombers during night attacks on London, but with such poor radar equipment success was elusive.

The squadron received the new and much superior Beaufighter in September before moving to Catterick. By the end of the year Hayes had been made a flight commander.

In April 1941 he intercepted a Heinkel bomber over the Pentland Hills and fire was exchanged but the enemy bomber got away. Later in the year he joined the Fighter Interception Unit to conduct further trials on the airborne interception radar and to develop night-fighting tactics, which rapidly improved.

Hayes went on to command a Beaufighter night fighter squadron before commanding the fighter airfield at West Malling in Kent. He was the deputy station commander of Biggin Hill before joining the staff of 85 Group to devise air plans for the invasion of Normandy. He returned to flying duties in August 1944 with a night fighter wing operating from forward airfields in France and Belgium. He was mentioned in despatches.

3 He left the RAF in 1946 and returned to civilian life but rejoined the Auxiliary Air Force and commanded 600 Squadron for two years when he flew Spitfires. He received the Air Efficiency Award.

In 1946, Hayes inherited his father’s furniture business, which was relocated to Hastings. Collins & Hayes became well known as upholstery manufacturers and boasted Harrods as their principal customers.

He was president of the Furnishing Trades Benevolent Association and in 1968 was elected Master of the Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers Livery Company.

A courageous and honourable gentleman, Norman Hayes kept extremely fit playing squash until his late sixties, and golf and tennis into his eighties, when he also still managed to visit the ski slopes. At the age of 75 he bought a 750cc BMW motorbike.

Having done so he happily ignored the serious concerns of his family for his safety. When one of his sons inquired how he was getting on, he replied: “It’s bloody marvellous old boy, but the only trouble is I can’t hold the wretched thing upright when I have to stop at a junction.” So ended his riding career.

He was a staunch supporter of the No 600 Squadron Association and in November 1981 returned to the Netherlands to lay a wreath in honour of his colleagues lost on the May 1940 raid, whose remains had recently been recovered.

Norman Hayes died on July 17. He married Anna Powell in 1942 and she died in 1973. He married, secondly, Mary Sargent in 1975, and she survives him with three sons from his first marriage.

Wing Commander Jack Meadows, DFC, AFC, AE

The Association is sad to report the passing of Jack Meadows, on July 20, 2010.

Jack Meadows was born in India and brought up in the UK. In 1937, as soon as he was old enough (17), he got his Licence (forerunner of to-days PPL). He joined the RAF Volunteer Reserve, flying Tiger Moths and Hawker Hart variants to Wings standard. At the outbreak of war, he waited until January 1940 and was then posted to repeat the SFTS course on the Harvard Mk. I.

Destined for a Spitfire OTU, he was instead diverted to CFS Upavon for an Instructors’ course, then taught on Harvards. In late 1940 he was sent to Canada to instruct on Ansons at Fort Macleod, AB and Carberry, MB. In 1942 he was a Flight Commander at the Flying Instructors’ School at Vulcan, AB. Early in 1943 he instructed on the Senior Officers Refresher Course at Trenton, ON, and was then sent back to the UK on an Empire CFS course.

On his arrival, by lying to Air Ministry, he instead got at long last to a Spitfire OTU then to 130 Squadron on operations at West Malling. Late in the year the squadron was sent north to Catterick and he transferred to 604 (County of Middlesex) night fighter squadron, which was then flying the Beaufighter VI. Soon re-equipped with the Mosquito XIII, 604 moved south to cover the invasion, then was the first allied NF squadron into occupied Europe. In September, he was appointed as a Flight Commander in 219 Squadron (Mosquito NF 30), also in 2 TAF. In 1945, tour expired, he became the Personal Assistant and Personal Pilot to his former AOC in a new SHAEF under Air Command Berlin, which was soon redundant. He finished the war at HQ 2nd TAF.

After joining Unilever in early 1946, on the reformation of the Auxiliary Air Force he joined 600 (City of London) Squadron, had a short spell with 603 (City of Edinburgh) Squadron, returned to 600, and soon to Command of the squadron (the original Spitfire XVIs and 21s had soon

4 been replaced by Meteor 4s, then 8s). In 1955 he handed over the squadron to become Wing Commander (Ops) in Metropolitan Sector until his company sent him in 1957 to South Africa for eight years.

Since then he has only done some occasional light aircraft flying. On his retirement in 1981, after 35 years with Unilever in various senior positions, he and his wife (a B.C. girl he had married in 1942) came to B.C., where both daughters were living. Since then has written at some length for (mainly) aviation magazines and also kept his aviation interest up by involvement with the Canadian Museum of Flight, at Langley. He is also Past Chairman of the Greater Vancouver Air Crew Association.

(Military Cut backs……)

600 Squadron Association News

6 Jun 2010 - The Federation of Old Comrades Annual Parade & Service of Homage

At the Honourable Artillery Companies HQ, Armoury house, City Road, London EC1Y 2BQ

Salute & Inspection taken by Col. B.A. Kay OBE TD DL HM's Deputy Lt. for the London Borough of Islington

After a warm and muggy start to the day, Andy Cameron, the Association Standard bearer was joined by 15 other London Territorial & Auxiliary units and formed up in front of the Royal Exchange. Shortly after, the band of the HAC led a marching contingent of some 100 veterans, air and sea cadets onto the war memorial. Wreaths were laid and then the band led off, followed by the standard bearers and finally the veterans. After a brisk mile long march through the streets, the parade arrived at the HAC HQ where the Salute & Inspection was taken by Col. B.A. Kay OBE TD DL HM's Deputy Lt. for the London Borough of Islington. A service of Homage followed before all were stood down for a splendid lunch

5 Battle of Britain Memorial Day – Capel le Ferne - Sunday 11th Jul 2010

The Patron of the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust, HRH Prince Michael of Kent, was the guest of honour at the annual tribute to the airmen of the Battle of Britain at Capel-le-Ferne, on Sunday, 11 July.

This special commemoration, featuring the 70th anniversary of the start of the Battle of Britain on 10 July 1940, featured flypasts by the iconic aircraft of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

HRH Prince Michael was joined by surviving veterans of the fighting and by the most senior figure in the Royal Air Force, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, Chief of the Air Staff.

Andy Cameron who is quite a regular now, paraded the Association Standard, and had a space front and centre of the parade of nearly 70 Standards.

The open-air service and parade at the National Memorial on the cliff top between Folkestone and Dover was open to the public and free to attend.

Group Captain Patrick Tootal, Secretary of the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust, explained: "We pay tribute every year to The Few, the men of RAF Fighter Command who were at the forefront of preventing a German invasion, as well as to the many men and women whose support in so many ways helped to ensure that we all live in freedom today."

"The trustees are delighted that this 70th anniversary event was supported by a particularly large number of people."

The Memorial Site opened to visitors at 10am and the day included a band display by the Kent Wing Air Training Corps. The parade, supported by music and hymns played by the RAF Central band, was opened at 1.30 pm with a 'general salute' for HRH Prince Michael of Kent and four fly-pasts by the BBMF Spitfire and Lancaster.

After the wreath laying, HRH Prince Michael of Kent inspected the parade and

6 spoke with Andy with some interest about the Squadron Association.

There was a brief commemorative service conducted by Chaplain-in-Chief of the RAF the Venerable Ray Pentland followed by the Act of Remembrance and wreath laying.

At 4 pm the event ended with a Sunset ceremony and music from the RAF Central Band.

70th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain - The Air Forces Memorial Runnymede England - A Service of Remembrance Sunday 15th August 2010

A service conducted by the Reverend Group Captain Nick Berry with music by the Royal Air Forces Association Presidents Band conducted by Mr Peter Stockdale MBE. The lining Party was from RAF Halton, with wreath bearers from 398 Squadron Air Training Corps. Also present were approx 30 Standards including the 600 Squadron Association Standard.

Guests included Chris Wren MBE, Air Commodore Nick Carter OBR MA & Squadron Leader Jimmy James AFC & Bar DFM as well as a Spitfire & Hurricane of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

It was a privilege to meet the only person present at the service who was a combatant during the Battle of Britain. Here at the age of 94 and accompanied by one of his six daughters. Flight Lieutenant Owen Burns - nickname OV; was a 24-year-old Sergeant gunner operating in Bristol Blenheim fighter-bomber's with 235 Squadron. F/L Burns operated with coastal command and was attached to Fighter Command for operations in the Battle of Britain

7 Battle of Britain 70th Anniversary - The City of London Salute - St Paul’s 07 Sep 2010

The Association would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who came to the City of London Salute on 7 September and helped to make it such a huge success, despite the London Underground strike, it was a truly memorable day.

Thousands of people were at St Paul's Cathedral on September 7 for a special City of London Salute in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

A service of remembrance at St Paul's Cathedral was followed by a march through the streets of London by WWII veterans. As well as military personnel from the time, this also included a variety of civilians, for example, London transport workers, ambulance men, fire fighters and nurses - all those who helped ensure the safety and security of the City at the time.

They were joined by current members of the serving RAF and a party of 25 past and present 600 Sqn members for a Royal salute taken by HRH the Duke of Kent and a flypast by a Dakota, Spitfire and Lancaster from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

The salute paid tribute to all those who contributed to the well being of the City of London during the Battle of Britain and the Blitz.

The event's Project Director was Bob Hounslow (the RAF Association's Director of

8

Membership and Areas). He said: "This event recognises the contribution by all of those involved in support of the Battle of Britain. The date chosen was specific as it represents the start of the concentrated bombing of the City of London that became known as the Blitz.

"Accordingly, guests to this occasion included not only those who fought in the Battle of Britain but those supporting RAF personnel and many of those people who fought the cause from within City of London e.g. fire fighters, transport workers, the police force, ambulance and nursing staff.

"We have had tremendous support from the Lord Mayor and the City of London and all of the staff at St Paul's Cathedral. We are greatly indebted to HRH The Duke of Kent for agreeing to take the salute with the Lord Mayor during our parade. Special thanks go to the Chief of the Air Staff for allocating the BBMF to this event and for his support by enabling many serving personnel to help make this such a special occasion. Without the help of all of these people the City of London Salute would not have been possible.

"The membership of the RAF Association asked back in 2008 for a suitably prestigious event to be held in the 70th anniversary year of the Battle of Britain and I firmly believe the plans we have in place will meet their request in a truly befitting manner. I must also pay respect to the team of people within the RAF Association who have worked so hard to make this whole occasion happen.

"Lastly and most importantly, we must pay tribute those people who we are remembering on 7 September by holding this City of London Salute, because without their bravery and sacrifice we would not have the freedom we enjoy today".

9 Battle of Britain 70th Anniversary - Westminster Abbey – 19 Sep 2010

Senior Royal figures, Politicians and Civic Dignitaries joined Battle of Britain Veterans and 100s of Worshipers at Westminster Abbey 19th September to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Following the service a parade of over 300 serving RAF personnel and a flypast by a Spitfire, Hurricane and 4 Tornado jets brought the event to a close.

Members of the Royal Air Force Queen’s Colour Squadron formed the Lining Party as newly qualified RAF Search and Rescue pilot Prince William joined his father and the Duchess of Cornwall for the service of thanksgiving and rededication along with Prime Minister David Cameron, Secretary of State for Defence Liam Fox and Chief of the Air Staff Sir Stephen Dalton.

In a moving and poignant ceremony the Fighter Command silk Ensign was paraded for the last time before being laid up in the Royal Air Force Memorial Chapel.

Chief of the Air Staff Sir Stephen Dalton said, “‘The Battle of Britain continues to inspire the Royal Air Force – not least those who are deployed on operations today in Afghanistan and the South Atlantic. Whilst the current threats Britain faces are very different, the air power that the Royal Air Force delivers today continues to provide the security of our skies and the critical and precise support of our soldiers and marines on the ground. Just as in 1940, the spirit, courage and determination of our airmen and women sustains our success on operations’.”

10 The service led by The Very Reverend Dr John Hall, Dean of Westminster Abbey included an Act of Remembrance during which the Battle of Britain Roll of Honour was borne from the Grave of the Unknown Warrior in the Chapel of St George and escorted to the Sacrarium.

The Chaplain in Chief of the Royal Air Force The Venerable (Air Vice Marshal) Ray Pentland delivered the sermon;

“70 years ago our nation stood on the brink of invasion. Churchill declared ‘I expect that the Battle of Britain is about to begin. Upon this battle depends the survival of Christian civilisation.’

“This turning point in our nation’s history is the story of victory and of salvation. It is the story of Cam’s Hurricane, Mitchell’s spitfire, Dowding’s preparation, Park’s strategy and Churchill’s leadership. It is the story of the thousands who plotted and planned; who engineered and served; who loved and lost; who fought and won. It is the story of victory against all odds. It is the story of the few and the debt we owe. Could they have dreamt that it would really become our finest hour? Could they have imagined that the work of their hands would become the salvation of our nation?”

“Through their Bravery our Freedom was won.”

Wing Commander Bob Foster (Retired), Chairman, Battle of Britain Fighter Association, and former Hurricane pilot during the Battle of Britain read the first prayer:

“Let us thank God for the freedoms we enjoy, recalling with gratitude the courage of those who during the Battle of Britain served the cause of liberty in the Royal Air Force, the Royal Auxiliary Air Force and the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, and especially those who gave their lives so that we might live to the full.”

Following the service 300 personnel marched through the streets of London as His Royal Highness Prince Charles took the salute and a Spitfire, Hurricane and 4 Tornado GR4 from 31 Squadron, RAF Marham in Norfolk flew over head.

11

Hazel Gregory, aged 89, a War Room Plotter in the Uxbridge Operations room during the Battle of Britain said her most memorable experience during her time in service was September the 15th when the battle was at its height and was the main turning point during the war. She said, “We came on duty and it was fairly quiet but the plotters covering France, Belgium and Holland were seeing big numbers formating up and they started coming over. Then it went completely mad for a couple of hours. Towards lunchtime, they were either all home or shot down and then there was a second raid in the afternoon.”

12 Battle of Britain 70th Anniversary - Royal Albert Hall – 03 Oct 2010

The Association Standard “performed” at a special concert to mark the 70th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain. The concert was staged by Raymond Gubbay Ltd to celebrate the gallantry of our heroes in Britain's finest hour with a nostalgic journey through your favourite hits and timeless classics.

Presented by Timothy West, the performers included the Central Band of the Royal Air Force, The London Concert Orchestra, and Claire Moore soprano with Special Guest Singer Flight Lieutenant Matt Little.

Timothy West introduced a stirring programme to commemorate and honour the Royal Air Force, including great British Classics including; WALTON Spitfire Prelude and Fugue, ELGAR Nimrod from Enigma Variations, COATES The Dambusters March & many more

There was a selection of wartime favourites including; A Nightingale sang in Berkeley, Square, Fighter Command March, The White Cliffs of Dover, We'll Meet Again, In the Mood Lilli Marlene & I'll be Seeing You

There were readings from High Flight and speeches from Churchill and Henry V 'St. Crispin's Day Plus a ukulele tribute to George Formby.

During the course of the Evening, £5,548 was taken in bucket collections with the help of the Air Training Corps and Andy Cameron’s participation as Standard-bearer earned the Association a donation from Raymond Gubbay Ltd of £452.00

'Unsung hero' of Battle of Britain, Sir Keith Park, honoured with bronze statue – 16 Sep 2010

Veteran fighter pilots, military figures and politicians gathered to pay tribute to an 'unsung hero' of the Battle of Britain.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Park, a New Zealander, commanded the squadrons that defended London and the South East in the summer of 1940.

Wing Commander Bob Foster, 90, and Sir Keith's great-great-niece Leigh Park, unveiled a bronze statue to the commander in Waterloo Place, central London. The ceremony was attended by 14 of the 80 survivors of the battle.

13

14 Terry Smith, chairman of the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign, said: 'It's taken 70 years to the day since the Battle of Britain to give expression to our collective thanks for what Sir Keith Park achieved.'

He said the campaign for the statue was to 'right a wrong', adding: 'Keith Park was an unsung hero, or at least he was until now.'

He said the statue also recognised the pilots under Sir Keith's command and that it should never be forgotten that Britain did not stand alone in its darkest and its finest hours.

He continued: 'Our friends and allies from the Commonwealth, from the United States and from Europe stood with us.

Poignant: New Zealand Defence Minister Wayne Mapp (centre) joined Wing Commander Bob Foster, 90, and Sir Keith's great-great-niece Leigh Park, at the unveiling of the statue

The statue depicts Sir Keith pulling on his flying gloves, with his goggles on his head and wearing a life jacket. It is in view of New Zealand House and faces the direction pilots in 1940 would have looked towards their enemy.

15

Heroes: The ceremony was attended by 14 of the 80 survivors of the battle

A total of 544 RAF personnel from Fighter Command died defending the UK from the Nazis in the Battle of Britain 70 years ago.

Scores more from Bomber Command and Coastal Command died as Britain's future hung by a thread in the face of the German onslaught during the dark days of the Second World War.

Today's commemorations began with a flypast with a Hurricane and Spitfire soaring overhead.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, Chief of the Air Staff, said: 'Sir Keith Park was a true hero of the RAF and of Great Britain but of course also of New Zealand.'

16

Fly-by: A Spitfire flew over London in tribute to Sir Keith Park on the day his statue is unveiled

He said Sir Keith was a 'man without whom the history of the Battle of Britain could have been disastrously different', adding: 'He was a man who never failed at any task he was given. He gave all to whatever he did. He had the capacity and energy to handle the pressure of command.'

He described Sir Keith as a 'quiet' and 'unflappable' man who once reassured Sir Winston Churchill who was concerned about the number of German planes flying towards Britain.

Sir Keith reportedly told the Prime Minister: 'There will be someone there to meet them all.'

17

Battle: Sir Keith Park (right) stands with Group Captain Douglas Bader DSO DFC (left) and Wing Commander W.G. Glouston DFC (centre)

18

Sir Stephen also paid tribute to the pilots who took part in the battle, saying: 'Their individual bravery, their sacrifice, secured our freedom. Their victory in 1940 dashed the German hopes of a swift end to the war in Western Europe and insured that Britain remained a free and independent nation.'

The ceremony was also attended by Defence Secretary Liam Fox and his New Zealand counterpart Dr Wayne Mapp.

Speaking afterwards, Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: 'Sir Keith Park was an unsung hero.

'Everybody has heard of Winston Churchill but nobody realised the guy who actually got the crews up in the skies to fight the Luftwaffe was this tall, rangy New Zealander.

'He did a fantastic job and it's a very happy occasion today because we are able to celebrate his achievements.' www.sirkeithpark.com

Service of Remembrance at St David 's Forces Nursing Home 12 Nov 10

A short service of remembrance was held in the grounds of St David’s Nursing Home, Ealing. The service was attended by veterans & residents, as well as Sgt Bole and AC Edwards of 600 Squadron. A BIG thank you to Sgt Bole & AC Edwards for their contribution and for the Squadron for allowing their participation. A small number of Association Standards were paraded including Andy Cameron with the Association Standard.

Based in a former Royal residence in the leafy suburb of Ealing, St. David’s home was first established in 1918 by Lady Anne Kerr, daughter of the 14th Duke of Norfolk. The Home is spacious, with pleasant grounds; it has its own chapel and provides a secure and relaxed environment.

The St. David’s Home for Disabled Ex-servicemen and women is a registered charity (Registered Charity Number 220151) providing care for the elderly and rehabilitation of the physically disabled. Whilst priority is given to ex-service personnel and their dependants, St. David’s is willing to care for the needs of those with disabilities, based on a needs/health assessment carried out by qualified medical staff.

Detailed information about the rich and interesting history of St. David's can be found at; www.stdavidshomealing.com

19 Dutch Remembrance service - Mill Hill – Friday 12 Nov 2010

The annual service of remembrance for the Dutch Bond van Wapenbroeders took place at Mill Hill Cemetery after a 1-year break. The Dutch party of 20 joined by members of 600 Squadron and the Squadron Association for a short service of remembrance in the chapel, before marching to the Dutch memorial where wreaths were laid. Many thanks to Kevin O’Shaughnessy, Andy Cameron & John Edisford (RAFA) for providing a taxi shuttle service to the Dutch to & from the train Station. www.westminster.gov.uk/services/communityandliving/burials/millhill

Lord Mayor's Show 13 November 2010

Today Saturday 13th November 2010 the biggest ever Lord Mayor's Show took place in the City of London. The streets were crowed with spectators who were entertained by Zulu Warriors, sultry samba dancers, Territorial Soldiers and cadet forces from all services, in total there was over 6000 participants, 200 Vehicles, 21 carriages, 71 floats 150 horses (91 which were military) and 20 marching bands.

As per previous years, 600 Squadron members participated as well as a number of 600 Squadron Association members lead by the Association Standard.

20

www.lordmayorsshow.org

Remembrance Day - St Paul’s Cathedral – London - Sunday 14 Dec 2010

The annual Remembrance Day service was held at St Paul’s Cathedral in the presence of His Royal Highness, Prince Michael of Kent. During the service, the Association Standard was carried to, and laid upon the high alter. There followed a short march to the Royal Exchange where wreaths were laid by many service leaders and representatives including, Wg CDR Crossman 600 Sqn RAuxAF, Wg Cdr Ahearn & Wg Cdr Lynn. Afterwards a lunch at The Mansion House with the HRH Prince Michael & the new Lord Mayor. LCpl Beharry VC also attended.

Outings of the Association Standard for 2010

Sun 06 Jun 2010 - OCA Parade, London Sat 26 Jun 2010 – National Armed Forces Day, Cardiff Sat 10 July 2010 - BofB Memorial Day, Capel le Ferne, Kent Sun 18 July 2010 - Belgium Memorial Parade, Horse guards, Cenotaph, London Mon 26 July 2010 – Wg Cdr Hayes Funeral, Bristol Thu xx Jun 2010 – Military Music extravaganza – Kneller Hall, Twickenham, Middx Sun 15 Aug 2010 – BofB Memorial, Runnymede, Surrey Tue 7 Sep 2010 – BofB The City of London Salute (BofB 70th) St Paul’s, London Sat 11 Sep 2010 – Blessing of New Standard, RAF Halton, Bucks Sun 19 Sep 2010 - BofB Memorial, Westminster Abbey, London Sun 26 Sep 2010 - Warsaw Air Bridge Memorial, Newark Sun 03 Oct 2010 – BofB Concert, Royal Albert Hall, London Sun 24 Oct 2010 – Trafalgar day Parade, London Fri 12 Nov 2010 – St David’s Nursing Home Remembrance service Fri 12 Nov 2010 – Dutch Remembrance Memorial - Mill Hill, London Sat 13 Nov 2010 – Lord Mayors Show, London Sun 14 Nov 2010 - Remembrance Day St Paul’s, London Sun 21 Nov 2010 - Association of Jewish Ex Serviceman Remembrance, Cenotaph, London

21 The Virgin London Marathon by Andy Cameron - 17 April 2011

At the ripe old age of 47, I am running my first ever Marathon, and its the 2011 Virgin London Marathon 25 April 2011 that I have chosen as my debut. I was supposed to run the 2010 Marathon, but following a car accident in December & the resulting neck injury, I had to defer my place until 2011. I have never even walked 26.2 miles, let alone run it, so this is a BIG challenge for me. I did a 10K run for the British Heart Foundation early in 2009 and raised over £500 - so this one deserves a whole lot more.

So why am I doing this?

22 To raise as much money as possible for a very important, but largely under supported charity that focuses squarely on the 600 (City of London) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force community past and present. I am a great supporter of charity, but the big charities that raise £Millions every year have a lot of support, largely because the issues they promote touch peoples lives personally, with things like Cancer, MS, and help for Children.

These days, everyone has heard of the Royal British Legion, and their poppies, and increasingly, people know Help for Heroes - but the 600 (City of London) Squadron Association numbers amongst the smaller, almost totally unknown charities that perform no less an important role and whose aim is to help and support our veteran airmen & women, as well as currently serving members of the 600 Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force & their families, some of whom have served on active duty in Iraq and Afganistan.

We, all of us owe a HUGE debt of gratitude to our Armed Forces, but, by virtue of my association with the 600 (City of London) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force and my now current association & membership of both the 600 (City of London) Squadron Association and with the Royal Air Forces Associations, I have chosen to run my first Marathon and support the 600 (City of London) Squadron Association.

The Association is very dear to my heart and whilst it is a very important charity, it is extremely undersupported. In last years London Marathon, there were for example around 1500 people running for Cancer Research (a VERY worthy charity) compared with a mere 15 runners for RAFA (a VERY worthy charity) and NONE at all for the 600 (City of London) Squadron Association.

The 600 (City of London Squadron Association is a membership organisation of serving and former members of 600 Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force, their families and dependants and all those supporting the aims of the Association. It is perhaps one of the smallest single- service membership organisations in the United Kingdom and has around 200 members. The Association provides help and advice, assistance, comradeship and, where required, welfare and care for the whole 600 Squadron family.

So please dig deep and donate now.

I am hoping to get set up with on-line donations, but for now, please would all donations (Cheques please payable to A. Cameron) be sent to me at my Home address.

Many thanks.

23 Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust

Bentley Priory sits on a hill commanding spectacular views over London and to the South Downs beyond. It is a spectacular Grade II listed building which became the nerve centre of the Battle of Britain and subsequently the spiritual home of "The Few".

In 2008 planning and listed building consent was granted by Harrow Council and the MOD commissioned VMS Estates to dispose of the property on their behalf. Many were alarmed at the destruction of such a historic site and so the Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust was set up. They took advice from the Prince's Regeneration Trust and negotiated with the contractors asking for their heritage to be preserved. On the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain Day, 15 September, Harrow Council has given an historic green light to the creation of the museum on the site of the spiritual home of ‘The Few’. The Council’s planning committee has approved the application to convert Bentley Priory, into a museum and homes for private sale. In total, 103 homes for private sale will be developed on the site. The developers will contribute approximately £9.5m to create, maintain and run a Battle of Britain museum in the Grade II listed mansion house. The museum will educate future generations about the unique heritage and significance of Bentley Priory to the nation and allow its historic rooms to be open to the public for the first time in 80 years. It will also pay respect to the bravery and sacrifice of RAF pilots and ground staff who helped turn the tide against Nazi Germany during World War Two. The renovation programme for the museum is expected to take about 2 years, during which time the Trust will finalise planning for the museum. They still need to raise at least £1M to renovate their collection and fit out the education centre and displays. You can donate to this cause via the Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust home page. If you would like to see how this fight to preserve Bentley Priory began you can order a DVD...... "A Proud Heritage" - A look at the work and aims of the Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust. Filmed at Bentley Priory on an Open Day in September 2008, it features an interview with Air Chief Marshall, Sir Brian Burridge KCB, CBE. For this DVD (or

24 video), the cost is £8 for residents of Harrow and £10 (incl. packing & postage) for those outside the Borough. Available from the Harrow Cine and Video Society Assistant Secretary, Ken Gale, via email at [email protected] www.bentleypriory.org

Blazer Badges

Several of you have asked about purchasing blazer badges and until now I have been unable to help. However, a supplier has been found. You can get either (or both!) of our crests for £19 each plus £1.50 p & p.

As we are unique and have 2 badges to choose from, I suggest you use their wording (shown below with the 2 crests) in order to find on the web site or to order over the phone.

600 Sqn RAF Aux blazer badge 600 City of London Squadron RAF blazer badge

Please order direct from ......

Robin Finnegan Jeweller and Military Badges, 27 Post House Wynd, Darlington, County Durham DL3 7LP England Tel. +44 (0) 1325 489820

Email [email protected] Website WWW.Militarybadges.co.uk

Information supplied by Eric Davis – Thanks Eric!

25 News from 600 Squadron RAuxAF

600 Sqn Update from Wg Cdr Crossman, OC 600 Sqn

2010 was again a very busy year for 600 Squadron and coincided with the Squadron’s 85th Anniversary of its formation at Finsbury Barracks in the City of London on 14 October 1925. Today, just as then we are proud of the contribution Squadron members make in support of operations.

Wg Cdr Crossman has been in post for a busy 12 months. She has been following the Operational Sponsor’s direction to review the Squadron’s role and make it more focussed towards current operations. She wished to address current operational and manning pinch points but also provide an adaptable, flexible organisation that could meet the requirements of an uncertain future.

The Sqn has been directed to increase our numbers of experienced Reserve and ex Regular personnel. We have also been directed to make provision for other capabilities such as Medics and Chaplains to integrate into our HQ structure and HR support. We have attested our first Chaplain as a result of this work and welcome Flt Lt Matthew Buchan to the Squadron. This level and tempo of change is not easy so we are so grateful for the ongoing commitment and enthusiasm of our personnel particularly during the uncertain times we all continue to face as a result of the SDSR. The Sqn has also relocated to its new buildings but still faces the ongoing challenge surrounding overnight accommodation arrangements.

Our personnel have continued to be mobilised and earlier this year Flt Lt Dawson returned from Afghanistan. His homeward journey being made more challenging by the volcanic ash cloud. WO Earl and SAC Edgerton have been mobilised within the UK and more mobilisations are anticipated in the New Year. Some of our more experienced personnel have also supported a variety of exercises both in the UK and overseas.

An excellent Field Training Exercise was held at RAF Halton and provided personnel the opportunity to consolidate their military skills including live firing on the range. The Honorary Inspector General and Honorary Air Commodore took the opportunity to pay a visit to us during this Exercise.

The Squadron continues to successfully recruit new members. The RAF Reserves target of full manning by 2012 has been put on hold while the future structure and size of the RAuxAF is considered as part of a Tri-Service study. A financial measure has also been placed on the Squadron and we are restricted to 86 personnel and will reduce the number of training weekends we hold. Inevitably this will have some impact on our recruitment activity but numbers have remained constant at about this figure for the past few years so we are not envisaging too much of an issue.

We have had some notable successes. Flight Sergeant Campbell was awarded the AOC 2 Groups Commendation in the 2010 Queens Birthday Honours List. COS Operations conducted his Annual Formal Inspection in Oct 10 and was exceptionally impressed with the Squadron. We also celebrated our 85th anniversary along with a multitude of guests including the Lord Mayor of the City of London at the Butchers Hall. I was privileged to accept the Freedom of the City of London on behalf of the Squadron. This activity culminated in a very successful Lord Mayors Show and Remembrance events in 3 separate locations.

We have continued to foster strong links with the Association through various functions and events. I look forward to this continuing and hope to see you all and update you in person at your annual lunch.

Michele Crossman

26 600 Squadron AFI & Blessing of the new Association Standard – RAF Halton 11 Sep 2010

RAF Halton recently hosted the annual field exercise of 600 Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF). 600 Squadron, based at RAF Northolt, was the highest-scoring night fighter squadron out of all of the allied forces during WW2. Nowadays the squadron, which was reformed in 1999, serves the RAF as a headquarters support squadron. As the Squadron has developed through time it has seen personnel deployed overseas as well as within the UK in support of operations. The RAF is very keen to expand the opportunities available to join the RAuxAF and, as a result, the Squadron is hoping to widen its role. Opportunities are now available to join the Chaplains Flight and hopefully there may also be a Medical Support Flight in the future too.

The training weekend at RAF Halton was attended by Lord Trenchard, the Honorary Air Commodore of 600 Squadron. Lord Trenchard, grandson of the celebrated Viscount Hugh Trenchard, founder of the RAF, is a figure head for the Squadron and was invited 4 years ago to undertake the position. Today he champions the Squadron and its people and highlights the role the Squadron plays in supporting the wider RAF. Lord Trenchard said ‘I am very honoured to have been asked to undertake the role of Honorary Air Commodore. It allows me to show my support for the Squadron and highlight their commitment to the service’.

Additionally, the Honorary Inspector General of the RAuxAF, Air Vice-Marshal Lord Beaverbrook, also attended the training weekend which saw the dedication of the new 600 Squadron Association Standard. Lord Beaverbrook, whose father was the Minister for Aircraft Production during WW2, said ‘We are coming into a time where a huge opportunity exists for 600 Squadron, where they can branch out into trades that are in demand within the RAF, and will see the Unit become highly sought after in supporting operations’.

The Officer Commanding 600 Squadron, Wing Commander Michele Crossman said, ‘It is a huge honour to have the RAuxAF’s Honorary Inspector General and 600 Squadron’s Honorary Air Commodore visit our annual Field Training Exercise. RAF Halton provided an excellent venue for this event and ensured that we were able to maximise the participation of our Squadron members and focus on developing the military skills which are critical for personnel to operate in support of operations.’

27 Association Diary dates

19 Mar 2011 – Association AGM – RAF Club, London

May 2011 – 600 Sqn Annual Act of Homage Service at St Bartholomew the Great. (Date to be confirmed)

Jun 2011 - OCA Parade (Date to be confirmed)

10 Jul 2011 - BofB Memorial Day – Capel le Ferne

Sep 2011 - BofB 71st Annual service, Westminster Abbey (Date to be confirmed)

11 Nov 2011 – Dutch service of Remembrance, Mill Hill (to be confirmed)

12 Nov 2011 - Lords Mayors Show

13 Nov 2011 - Remembrance Day, St Paul’s Cathedral

Trivia - 27 Spitfires in various degrees of repair were found for the film, “Battle of Britain” 12 of which could be made airworthy. Only six Hurricanes where found, three of which were made flyable. The Messerschmitt 109 where all retired from the Spanish Air Force. The production company bought them all, about 50 of them, and put 17 of them back in flying condition. They are in the movie flown by Spanish Air Force pilots, and members of the Confederate Air Force. The 32 Heinkels, with crews, were on loan for free from the Spanish Air Force, where they still were used for transport and target towing. Two of them were eventually bought by the production company and flown together with the 17 Messerschmitts to England for further shooting. The two Junkers 52 were also on loan from the Spanish Air Force.

Captions please?……..…

28 Events

There are no planned Association “events” as yet, although all ideas gratefully received, however, please find here are a small selection of national events that you may wish to attend yourself;

11 May 2011 - Trooping The Colour, The Queen's Birthday Parade on Horse Guards Parade.

The ballot for tickets to attend The Queen's Birthday Parade opens in January 2011 and closes at the end of February. Reviews will be held on the two Saturdays prior to the parade: The Major General's Review on Saturday 28 May 2011. The Colonel’s Review on Saturday 4th June 2011.

Applications to attend the Parade in the seated stands should be sent in January and February only to: The Brigade Major, Headquarters Household Division, Horse Guards, Whitehall, London SW1A 2AX

The processions can also be seen from the Mall. Events begin at approximately 10am; with the fly-past at 1pm. The parade is also broadcast live on BBC television in the UK.

12-15 May 2010 – The Windsor Castle Royal Tattoo

Now in its fourth year, this Military Musical Spectacular event aims to provide support for servicemen and women through entertainment.

This Tri service event has a packed programme of modern and traditional, UK and overseas military acts that will thrill as well as educate. Highlights include the famous Royal Navy Field Gun Run and traditional equestrian favourites the Household Cavalry mounted regiment. Held in the Private Grounds of Windsor Castle, the Windsor Royal Tattoo is not-for-profit with all proceeds going to the Royal British Legion.

Visitors with Tattoo tickets may enter the showground’s from 3pm in the afternoon. There are over 250 shops to browse, selling a range of boutique items as well as all the equestrian equipment you can think of (during the day, at the same venue, the Royal Windsor Horse Show will take place until 7pm). www.windsortattoo.com

Trivia - Over 60% of RAF Fighter Command aircraft during the making of the film “Battle of Britain” were Hawker Hurricanes. Due to the lack of Hurricanes in flying condition when the movie was filmed, the bulk of the air-to-air combat scenes used the more famous (and better fighter) Supermarine Spitfire. During the actual battle, whenever possible squadrons flying the Spitfire would engage the German fighters escorting bomber formations while the lower-performance (but better gun platform) Hurricanes engaged the bombers. Shooting down German bombers was the critical key since the bombers were attacking RAF airfields in the first phase of the battle and cities after the Luftwaffe changed target priorities. The film accurately depicts the British need (and desire) to destroy bombers to protect their air defence infrastructure and later protect civilian targets. For similar reasons (the lack of working aircraft of the right type) Spitfires and Hurricanes are shown flying together in tactical formations whereas in reality RAF squadrons flew one or the other type of fighter exclusively. Due to different performance characteristics, the two aircraft would not fly and fight together

29 8-9 June 2011 - Beat the Retreat

25 Jun 2011 - Armed Forces Day, Edinburgh

TV presenter Lorraine Kelly launches Armed Forces Day events in Scotland

30

Celebrating at Stirling’s Armed Forces Day event

Edinburgh will host the Armed Forces Day flagship national event next year. The announcement was made by Defence Secretary Liam Fox in Cardiff – the venue of this year’s national event. He said: I am pleased to reveal that Edinburgh will be the focus for Armed Forces Day next year, 2011. I am sure that Edinburgh city council, the local community and our forces across Scotland will provide a celebration befitting such a great capital city. There is already a huge amount of support for Armed Forces Day in Scotland, with thousands of people turning out to show their appreciation for the Armed Forces community yesterday. Around 27 towns and cities across Scotland hosted events on and around Armed Forces Day – double the amount of last year.

Armed Forces Day 2011 will take place on Saturday June 25 and plans are already underway in Edinburgh to make the national event extra special. The crowd celebrating this years Armed Forces Day cheered as Edinburgh’s Lord Provost announced the city will be hosting the national event next year. He said: It’s a tremendous honour for Edinburgh to host Armed Forces Day 2011. Plans are already underway to lay on a truly spectacular occasion, and we want the whole city to get behind our troops and veterans – the people, local businesses, schools and community groups. www.armedforcesday.org.uk

31 16-17 July 2011 – RIAT - 40th Anniversary of the Air Tattoo

Join us in 2011 to help celebrate a remarkable milestone – the 40th Anniversary of the Air Tattoo. First staged in 1971 at North Weald airfield with just over 100 aircraft taking part, the Air Tattoo developed rapidly from these small beginnings, fired on by the energy and enthusiasm of the unpaid volunteer team that created it, coupled with its perceived benefits by those air arms that chose to have their aircrew and aircraft take part. It became the International Air Tattoo in 1976, and in 1996, recognition of its unique international status was given by Her Majesty The Queen, when it became the Royal International Air Tattoo. Between 1973 and 1983 the Air Tattoo was held at Greenham Common, before moving to RAF Fairford in 1985. During its 40 years, the Air Tattoo has hosted aircraft from some 51 countries, as well as heads of air arms from many more nations. It is hoped that all those air arms that have helped build the international reputation of RIAT will once again be able to take part in the anniversary of this unique annual gathering of military aviators. www.airtattoo.com

Trivia - Towards the end of the film, “Battle of Britain”, a British Spitfire flyer shoots down a German bomber, which then falls over central London before crashing into a railway station. This actually happened, (although the fighter used in the real incident was a Hurricane, not a Spitfire and the bomber was a Dornier Do17 rather than a Heinkel 111). The RAF pilot didn't shoot the bomber down, though; he had run out of ammo when he spotted the bomber apparently trying to attack Buckingham Palace. In desperation, he rammed the bomber, taking off the tailplane. The fuselage then crashed into Victoria Station. Incredibly, he managed to parachute to safety. His own plane rammed into the ground at 350 mph. It was buried so deep that the authorities just left it there. In May 2004 the former RAF pilot was on hand as the remains of his aircraft were unearthed to make way for a new water main. Remarkably, part of the incident was captured on film, the tailplane fluttering down and the fuselage section (minus the wings outboard of the engines, which were torn off by aerodynamic forces) plummeting towards the ground.

Contacts/Reunions

Do you remember?

Joseph Robert Carney, Number 1101795, 600 Sqn. Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.

Joseph died on 19th October 1941 aged 22. Before the war Joseph worked as a Telegraph Deliverer for the Post Office. He lived at Gateshead with his parents Joseph Daniel and Rose Carney.

That is all I have apart from family legend, that he was stationed in the South West of the country and flew in Bristol Blenheims & Beaufighters.

If anyone can help, please contact either Andy Cameron who can pass on your details, or directly to Jeff Taylor, Nephew of the said Joseph Robert Carney. [email protected]

32

The Blenheim Society – Its formation and aims

During the late 1980's the idea of forming an association or society to focus the attention of the many people who were interested in the history of the Blenheim aircraft and the personnel connected with it had been considered by several people. For many, the catalyst for this renewed interest was the completion of the 12 year rebuild to flying condition of a Mk IV Blenheim by Graham Warner and his team at the British Aerial Museum at Duxford, particularly after the considerable publicity given to the first flight on 28th May 1987.

From mid-1986 onwards, Hugh George held discussions with other like-minded people and found sufficient interest to justify the formation of a society. It had been hoped the recently restored Blenheim would fly at a reunion arranged at Wyton by Hugh and Betty George on 4th September 1987. Regrettably, the aircraft was written off on 21st June 1987 when she crashed at Denham, which attracted more publicity. Graham Warner took the decision to sponsor the restoration of a second Blenheim to flying condition and declared his intentions at a press conference on 28th June 1987 where the Blenheim Appeal was launched and the proposed formation of The Blenheim Society announced. All interested parties came together on 4th September 1987 at the Old Bridge Hotel, Huntingdon where an ad-hoc committee was appointed to formulate the aims of a society and proceed with its formation.

The first public meeting was held on 28th November 1987 at Duxford with an attendance of 300 and it received good press and TV coverage, so The Blenheim Society was launched most successfully. Further public meetings were held at an air display at Duxford on 15th May 1988 and at the RAF Museum Hendon on 24th September 1988. The formal Inaugural General Meeting of The Blenheim Society was held at Hendon on 19th March 1989 when the ad-hoc committee members stood down and were then all elected en-bloc by the members as the formal committee. The three aims of The Blenheim Society, initially adopted at the Huntingdon meeting, were also approved.

33 The formation of The Blenheim Society and the establishment of a Committee to direct its activities and to develop general interest resulted from the very considerable efforts of a number of people, some of who have served in an official capacity, others who have remained in the background. The outcome is a well-established, financially healthy and soundly organised Society with three positive and recognised aims: -

To record the history of Blenheim aircraft and crews in RAF service.

To raise funds and offer expertise to assist in restoring to flying condition the Blenheim (Duxford) Limited's Bristol Blenheim.

To arrange reunions and other events for Blenheim veterans and others with a common interest. http://www.blenheimsociety.org.uk/

The aircraft shown is a Mk IV bomber. This aircraft is the property of Blenheim Duxford Limited. It is currently under repair and will undergo a conversion to Mk I status

Quiz - Which Hollywood sex symbol did RAF pilots get into during World War II?

(Answer - Mae West. The automatically inflatable lifejacket worn by RAF pilots was given the nickname Mae West)

34 Bristol Type 149 Blenheim / Bolingbroke - G-BPIV

Bristol Blenheim G-BPIV is a truly unique British aircraft. As a type, the aircraft’s history is long and formative and an important milestone in the history of British aviation. Although this particular aircraft’s background is fraught it has survived, and is being repaired to carry into the future a lasting flight heritage and living memorial for the nation. Blenheim Duxford Limited is committed to ensuring this important machine will survive.

The History

Built in 1934 as a small airliner, a private venture by the Bristol Aircraft Company, the aircraft was funded by Lord Rothermere. Named ‘Spirit of Britain’, it was presented to the nation and after modification as a bomber became the first stressed skin aircraft accepted by the RAF. It was the fastest light bomber of the day, faster than the fighter aircraft then on order and it became the backbone of the light bomber force. At the start of WWII” the RAF had more Blenheims in service (1089) than any other aircraft. It bore the brunt of the early war bombing effort and its crews paid a heavy price defending the nation. Pressed into roles it was not designed for such as a long-range fighter and night fighter, it became the first multi role aircraft. The crews liked the Blenheims and Winston Churchill paid homage to their bravery comparing them to the ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’.

35

The Project

The first Blenheim project, recovered in a derelict state in Canada, was restored to fly after a twelve year engineering project by a small but skilled volunteer staff led by a full time licensed engineer. It made its debut flight in May 1987 but was tragically wrecked only four weeks after its return to the air. The restoration team determined after all that effort that a Blenheim would fly again and the decision was made to resurrect a new Blenheim. After a five year long restoration, largely undertaken by the same volunteer workforce, this aircraft, in June 1983, became once again internationally known as the only flying example of an early war RAF light bomber. One of only two British WWII bombers flying, the RAF Lancaster being the other, it featured in many air shows, films, television broadcasts and magazine articles. The aircraft flew with great success for ten years with an enviable serviceability record among the vintage aircraft fraternity before once again, in August 2003, suffering significant damage during a landing accident at Duxford. A decision was made to repair the aircraft, but this time to ensure that its longevity is guaranteed a trust is being formed so that the aircraft’s future in the air and on the ground is ensured. The first two projects were successfully completed using large inputs from a small group of volunteers. This time, although volunteers still work on the project, to speed the repair, Blenheim Duxford Limited have engaged the Aircraft Restoration Company at Duxford to supply two full time engineers to work on the project. To ensure that the old aeroplane manufacturing skills are kept alive, many of which are now lost to the nation, apprentices are regularly put through periods of learning on the project. Hundreds of visitors view the work in progress and when flying again, the aircraft will be exposed to very large audiences at UK and overseas air shows.

Progress so far……

Progress on the repairs has been good, with both wings and centre section complete although there is some fitting out to finish. It is intended to return the aircraft to the air as a Mk I Blenheim and work is now concentrated on the nose section. The main area of work is centred around the MK 1 nose which is approaching the completion of the structural and skin repairs this will allow it to be removed from the jig so work can start on the glazing and systems. It is hoped that the nose section will be trial fitted to the fuselage later this year.

36

A number of engine components are being worked on now, the main part being the supercharger blower casing. Other pieces have been sent away for cadmium plating. As with all vintage aircraft, repairs take a great deal of time and money, both of which will dictate when the aircraft finally returns to the air. Sponsorship of this project would be most welcome. Companies or individuals wishing to support this project may request a donation form and further information from: Blenheim (Duxford) Ltd., Duxford Airfield, Duxford, Cambridge. CB2 4QR. Tel: 01223 835313

And just so we don’t forget (and for balance of course)……….

A typical Bristol Beaufighter IF - note the "bow and arrow" style radar transmitter antenna on the nose.

37 A Short Flight – by Desmond J. Peters

January 31 1948 proved to be a nice sunny day at Biggin Hill and it had just the right conditions for me to continue my initial flying training on the Spitfire Mk.XX1. That afternoon, I set out on a cross-country flight, level at 1500 feet on the altimeter, with the intension of heading up to the Wash area then continuing to the Midlands. Just after crossing the Thames, the engine suddenly quit making that beautiful sound that only the Merlin engine can make. I immediately set up my gliding speed and declared a Mayday on the emergency channel.

I dutifully went through the “loss of engine” procedure on the memory list but was unable to restart. The came the disconcerting “engine shut down” procedure. At that point, I thought about bailing out, but by this time, the ground looked awfully close and I glided down and I rejected that possibility. Now I had to land this thing.

As you know, English fields are rather tiny, but I was heading for one and figured that a small S turn to it would take me corner to corner and give me the longest landing run. I had to lift the starboard wing over a wartime concrete gun emplacement in the initial corner and immediately started holding off. I looked forward and was unhappy to see a forest rapidly approaching at the other end of the field about one hundred yards away.

A forward push on the stick had the five propeller blades strike off in all directions as the prop hit the ground and then, to my horror, the aircraft started to stand on its nose to about sixty degrees. It then fell back and I quickly left the cockpit in case the aircraft caught fire. It didn’t and like a wise pilot having had a problem, I rechecked the cockpit to ensure that Board of Enquiry could not say that I’d missed something that should have been done. It transpired that the cause of the engine failure was the result of a tooth on the propeller reduction gear breaking off and separating the drive and its attachments. I could not have restarted, anyway.

There was a row of houses a quarter of a mile away in the village of Shotgate and I set off over the muddy field, knocking on the door of one that had a telephone fitting on her wall. An older lady opened the door and I told her I had just crashed in her field and could I use her phone to call my base. The inevitable tea and crumpet was prepared while I called the Squadron and suggested that a Harvard be flown over to Southend airport to pick me up. Flt Lt. “Togs” Mellersh, a Regular Support Officer on the Sqn. Said he would come over.

Meanwhile, I went back to the Spit to close the canopy and, at this time, saw a Policeman coming over, pushing his bicycle as he slithered through the soft earth. He laid it down and saluted me, which I thought was rather nice as I was only a Sergeant Pilot equivalent (actually a P2), but he couldn’t tell my rank as I was wearing a white coverall flying suit.

Then came the memorable words that surely must have had Churchill as its genesis, “May I please see your flying license, Sir?” (Not quite the level of his talk about “The Few” but it must be up there somewhere). The Policeman was rather nice about it all but couldn’t quite understand why the Headshed in Whitehall didn’t issue its pilots with a flying license.

Return to Biggin Hill was uneventful and the next week I found that I’d got a Commendation in my Pilots Log Book for “crash landing in a very small field following engine failure”

Desmond J. Peters

38 Victory Flypast – by Desmond J. Peters

The “wheels” in Whitehall decided that a Victory flypast over the Palace would be carried out on the anniversary of that earlier important day and which would occur September 15 1948. It would be massive in numbers of Squadrons and aircraft.

Came the day and the leader of the gaggle started up-North somewhere and proceeded down England with the various Squadrons taking off at the prescribed time and joining up with Squadrons in “line astern”. 600 Sqn. Was to be the last Sqn in the formation.

Twelve Spitfires started up and taxied to the East/West runway lining up in vics of three and the prescribed time. I was number three in the last vic. Then a message came over the radio that there would be a five-minute delay because the big formation was late coming down South. Now the Spit does not like to sit on the ground for any length of time and takes its objections out by rapidly overheating the engine as shown by the Glycol temperature indicator. Mine was getting close to the red warning area when the 600 Sqn Leader was eventually give take-off clearance. (Now my Glycol needle was definitely bending further into the red and by rights, I should have shut down). Finally, my section lead and his number two started their takeoff run as a pair. I counted two seconds and released my brakes. Because of the long nose of the Spit, one cannot see ahead until the tail comes up. Since I was so close to the other two, I eased the stick forward just as I felt the wheels go over what I thought was a crack in the runway. I joined up on the port side of my section and 600 Sqn joined the formation as the last Squadron of what was obviously a very large formation.

We then flew down to Brighton, turned left up the coats, up the Thames, then along the Mall and over the Palace. (No, I didn’t see them as I was hanging on to my section). Soon afterwards, the Squadrons broke off to return to their own airfields.

After landing and being marshaled into my parking slot, I shut down my engine and could not understand why the marshaller was staring at my Spit with his mouth wide open. Then I saw. The prop was decidedly smaller. On takeoff, that crack in the runway that I had felt, was actually my prop hitting the surface. I had taken about 6 inches off each of the five blades and although the edges were a bit ragged, the engine performed perfectly and I never noticed any vibration for the whole trip.

So much for the Merlin engine.

Desmond J. Peters

Member letters – Editor comment

Apologies for any errors I may have made when trying to decipher some of our Members hand written letters that follow, and please do correct me if you spot any obvious faux pas.

39 Letter from B.W. Wheeley 800485

“Thank you for the Newsletter of June 2010. Nice to read about “600 Squadron Members”. I thought you would like the photograph (below) of Bert Hawkins, a popular Air gunner in the Squadron who was shot down 10 May 1940 in Rotterdam, Holland. I took this picture in 1938 at RAF Warmel where the Squadron was on Annual camp – “Bert” standing in front of Westland Wallace?”

40 Letter from Mr E. Raybould – July 2010

This letter is prompted by the excellent Newsletter obituary of Alan Owen in your June Newsletter. I had no idea that the quiet, self-effacing Sgt. Owen went onto such fame!

Both he & I joined 600 at the end of ’42. There were no news bulletins as such although there must have been daily routine orders, we didn’t really know what was going on so that one learned of Squadron success. Only through casual chat, most of which one disbelieved as typical “airman’s” optimistic remembrance or downright lies. Added to this, Alan was a Sergeant & I was a Flt Lt, and only whilst flying was there much contact. For instance, when I left 600 at the end of ‘43I had no idea that 600 was the most successful Night Fighter Squadron of the War – a record which few day Squadrons would emulate. I enclose a Squadron photograph (below) of the aircrew in the summer of ’43 taken in Sicily. The details on the scoreboard may be a bit obscure. The reading is; - UK. N. African campaign, Malta, Sicily & Italy. Each symbol is of an enemy aircraft destroyed in action. There are 83+ and still a year of the Mediterranean was at hand.

Most of the faces I remember but the names are gone. Centrally, second row is Paddy Greene, on his left Banger Roberts. On Paddy’s right, Desmond Hughes later AVM DSO DFC etc, next Joe Harris & Geoff, who like me joined from 68 Sqn. The next, Alan Owen. He, like all the other NCO’s is bare headed. I in fact am the only Officer unaddressed. Next to Alan is Bill Armstrong. I am standing behind Bill’s right shoulder – Hat less. To my left and slightly behind is Zult McNulty who flew with Donald Paton (3x DFC’s), died 2004. Other notable characters are Peter Bates (5th from R in second row), inevitably known as “Master”. 2 places to his right, Barry “Ace”Downing who made his name and an instant DFM by shooting down 5x Junkers 52 around dawn off of Sardinia. He went on to get a DFC and sadly died about 10 years ago. His “oppo”, Johnny Lloyd was drowned after bailing out off Anzio. 2 places to my left is Jerry Tate who also got the DFC as oppo to Norman Poole. Next to his left is Jack Waddel who flew with me when Mullaley, my oppo for two years was posted. The 4 engined Italian Bomber mentioned was a Piagio 108, the enemy’s only 4 engine job. The Italians had a very limited production and as fast as they came into service, 600 shot them down.

Eric “Butch” Raybould

41 Letter – Anthony Furse - June 2010

I flew with 601 in 1942 and went back to Cambridge after the War. I moved to 600 in 1950 when I moved to London and finally to 603 when I qualified as a CA and worked in Edinburgh.

I have a great loyalty to 600 and would like to offer copies of the Biography of my Uncle (380 pages). ACM Sir Wilfred Rhodes Freeman, 1st Baronet, GCB, DSO, MS, RAF (18 July 1888 – 15 May 1953).

Anthony Furse. (1999). Wilfrid Freeman: The genius behind Allied survival and air supremacy, 1939 to 1945 (380 pages). Staplehurst: Spellmount. ISBN 1-86227-079-1

Minimum price of £5.

Please contact Anthony on 01352 770360

Air Chief Marshal Sir Wilfrid Rhodes Freeman, 1st Baronet, GCB, DSO, MC, RAF (18 July 1888 – 15 May 1953) was one of the most important influences on the rearmament of the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the years up to and including the Second World War. Having joined the Royal Flying Corps in 1914, he saw active service during the First World War, and continued to serve in the newly formed RAF during the inter-war years. In 1936 he was given the job of choosing the aircraft with which to rearm the RAF, and in 1938 his remit was expanded to include the controlling of their production, which he did with great distinction until 1940. In November 1940 he was moved against his will to become Deputy Chief of the Air Staff. His department, now formed into the Ministry of Aircraft Production (MAP) by the opportunistic Lord Beaverbrook (who took credit for much of Freeman’s work) rapidly stagnated, and after two years Freeman was moved back to MAP which he continued to run with distinction. More perhaps than any other single figure, Freeman was responsible for the RAF ordering the Hawker Hurricane, Supermarine Spitfire, De Havilland Mosquito, Avro Lancaster, Handley-Page Halifax and Hawker Tempest. He played an equally vital role in the development of the Merlin-engined P-51 Mustang, providing North American with the original specification and then installing Rolls-Royce Merlin engines in place of the unsatisfactory Allison V-1710 engines. (Wikipedia).

42 “Jolly Jack” by Flt. Lt D.V. Donnelly RAF (Retd).

By way of being one of many personal experiences in a lifetime of service in the AAF and RAF.

The year was 1952, the month June and the place Egypt. The up and coming keen young Flight Lieutenant, who shall be called ‘Master’ having just booked in at his new Station and deposited his bags, was proceeding smartly along the road bound for his Unit which was situated at the far end of the main runway on this disused airfield. Assaulting his nostrils was the pungent odor peculiar to that country. Lost in reverie, ‘Master’ was summing up his career to date, two staff appointments, promotion examinations ‘C’ and ‘Q’ passed, an executive controller with sector experience, he was going to spend a year with this Unit to gain experience before moving onto another Middle Eastern Country to form and command a Unit of his own. Yes life was good and all this beautiful sunshine too – and the tennis, golf, swimming, sailing and parties – what more could a young man desire? Suddenly, ‘Masters’ fairytale world was rudely shattered by a great voice shouting “Eh Lad”.

Presuming that the owner of the voice was the SWO addressing one of his subordinates, ‘Master’ continued to pad along in his crepe soled shoes and when a repeated “Eh lad” was heard, he paid no heed. A few paces further and this rather insistent voice was again heard calling, but this time “Eh you Flight Lieutenant Lad” whereupon, young ‘Master’ wondered whether it could conceivably refer to him, so looking cautiously from side to side and seeing no others of that rank in the vicinity, looked back to see who the owner of the voice was and he did espy a large Wing Commander waving a black stick and shouting “Yes you lad”. Whereupon, ‘Master’ deemed it politic to walk smartly up to the great man and ‘sling him up one’.

“Allo lad” cried the great man, “Oo are you and what are you doing on my Station?” “I am Flight Lieutenant ‘Master’ Sir, I am posted here” replied ‘Master’. “I can see you’re a bloody Flight Lieutenant lad, come in” was the tart reply. Thinking to himself “what have I got here?” ‘Master’ dutifully followed the great man into his office who, on entering that hallowed place, bellowed “John” and waved ‘Master’ to a seat. After a suitable interval of time, a door opened and in walked an old, distinguished and very superior looking Flight Lieutenant smoking a cigarette through a holder, who in a very cultured voice and with great dignity enquired of the great man “Did you call Sir?” “Yes old John” replied that worthy “two cups and have you met young ‘Master’ here, he’s come to join us”. Eyeing ‘Master’ disdainfully and with a slight quiver of his nostrils the aged one replied in the affirmative.

When the adjutant had withdrawn, the Station Commander turned to ‘Master’ saying “Don’t take any notice of bloody old John, he’s an old fool, been in the Air Force since Pontius was a pilot, all his mates are Air Marshals, not a bad chap at heart”. Without pausing for breath, he continued, “now lad, what ‘ave you come to do ‘ere”. “I’ve come to join No. 007 Signals Unit Sir” replied ‘Master’ “ Oh, so your one of those educated ….s are you; they’re a queer lot up there lad, they blind you with science and think they’re the Almighty’s chosen people”.

After further discussion on general topics, a bemused and somewhat bewildered ‘Master’ proceeded on his way to join his Unit. On arrival there and relating his experiences, he was informed amid much laughter that the great man rejoiced in the name of “Jolly Jack”. Deciding this augured well for an amusing tour ‘Master’ settled down to work.

Some months later, ‘Master’ found himself acting CO of his Unit during the latter’s absence on leave and was preparing for the usual Station Commanders weekly inspection. Having satisfied himself that all was spic and span, he was called away to the main camp on urgent business and left everything to his No.2. Having concluded his business, ‘Master’ was on his way back to the Unit when he was intercepted by “Jolly Jack” and his entourage returning from the inspection. The Great Man’s car stopped and the now familiar “Eh lad” emanated therefrom. Eagerly ‘Master’ sped forward, came to a crashing halt and slinging up the smartest of salutes, smilingly addressed the Old Man with “Good morning Sir” only to be met with the broadside “Don’t you bloody well smile at me lad. ‘Ere do you know lad, it’s fallen

43 down and blown all through the camp”. Crestfallen and bewildered ‘Master’ asked, “What has Sir?” “The bloody ---- house lad, get it cleaned up” cried “Jolly Jack” and drove off amid much heinous mirth.

A happier episode was to occur some weeks later although nonetheless embarrassing to the hapless ‘Master’. At the conclusion of rehearsals for the forthcoming AOC’s parade and before dismissing the parade, the “Jolly” one had called his Officers around him and was haranguing them about their drill and general turn out and threatened that unless they pulled their socks up and were at least as good as the troops, he would have them out drilling on their own. He ended his diatribe with the statement “There’s only one little boy who knows what ‘e’s a doing of and that’s my smart soldier boy ‘ere’ and brandishing his stick promptly dug ‘Master’ vigorously in the ribs “ You just watch ‘im”. Whereas physical violence could not immediately be wrought upon the person of the Flight Lieutenant, at least one Squadron Leader was hear to remark through clenched teeth “Wait ‘till I get off parade, I’ll give him smart bloody soldier boy”.

Having survived sticks and stones and nasty names the day of the final dress rehearsal dawned. There in the wonderful cool of early morning, about 0630 hours, the parade was all lined up looking superbly smart in best khaki, gleaming white belts and revolver holders, glittering medals etc. All went well, and having marched past, the Parade Commander had received permission from the Station Commander to march off and as the former was returning to his post, the Padre was seen to move forward and speak to the Station Commander whereupon the stillness and tranquility of the early morning was shattered by the inimitable voice of “Jolly Jack” with the order “ang on Jack, the bloody Padre wants a word with us”.

“Jolly Jack” was truly a Great man, a rough diamond maybe but completely honest, an able Station Commander much loved by his Airman and highly respected by his Officers. He epitomises the ‘characters’ of the Royal Air Force and it is a sad reflection on our modern service that we are so taken up with technological advance and professionalism that we tend to freeze out these larger than life personalities.

My Life in Uniform – Or get some service in, by old hand, John Rosbrook

The dogs of war were barking loudly in 1940 when I reached my 18th birthday on Sunday 21 January. On Monday 22 January, bright and early in the morning I hung up my POST OFFICE MESSENGERS uniform and attended the wartime combined recruiting office at the dance hall of the Yorkshire Grey Pub, in Eltham, London SE9 to volunteer for the RAFVR. They must have been hard up as they accepted me for training as a Flight Mechanic (Engines) and as I was an experienced cyclist. I was then sent home to await the call to arms, which came, some might say appropriately enough on 01 April, 1940 (April Fools Day!)

On that great day at Cardington RAF Recruiting Base (known for its association with Airships) I became “962110 Aircraftsman 2nd Class, John Rosbrook” sometimes known as “Ginger” (I had hair in those days!). They were hard up for uniforms in those days. The issue consisted of 1 tunic, 2 pairs of slacks, 2 forage caps and 2 shirts plus a greatcoat.

After being sworn in (and sworn at!!) at Cardington, an odd collection of youths were sent to RAF Manston, Kent (Near Margate) to be introduced to the intricacies of square bashing (Foot drill) and general discipline. This course lasted about 4 weeks under the watchful eyes of some hard nit drill Sergeants and two old time Warrant Officers, ‘Pop’ Walters and ‘Suicide’ Gibson.

In those far-off days one could hear the guns of the BEF firing at the German Army in France, or was it vice-versa?

600 Squadron were also serving at Manston with Blenheim aircraft.

44 Square bashing over, we licked our wounds and were posted to RAF St. Athan in South Wales for a course of about 20 weeks to learn the intricacies of being a Flight Mechanic. St. Athan was reputed to be the largest RAF Station in the UK and boasted such delights as a gymnasium, swimming pool and luxurious cinema. The course included instruction on air- cooled and liquid cooled engines, radial and in-line and even how to start an aero engine by swinging the propeller by hand – I cant remember how many arms and legs were lost in the process. The Luftwaffe showed their disapproval of the camp by some low-level air raids. Surprisingly, I passed the course and was posted to No.3 Flying Training School, South Cerny, Nr Gloucestershire, where I met up with the Airspeed Oxford aircraft which were used to teach pupil-pilots (sprogs) how to fly twin engined aircraft after they had passed out on Tiger Moth light biplanes. The Oxford aircraft was equipped with 2 Armstrong-Siddeley radial engines and although fitted with electric starters, shortage of trolley accumulators rendered it necessary to nearly rupture oneself by using starting handles.

After some months practical work at South Cerny (where I had my first flight) I was posted to RAF Innsorth Lane, Gloucester, to undergo a 6 week intensive course to become a fitter grade 2 (Engines), the highest grade of fitter one could reach in wartime. Having passed this course I was posted to RAF Station Bassingbourne, Hertfordshire where I made acquaintance with what was to become my favorite aircraft – The Vickers Wellington medium Bomber, fitted with two Bristol Pegasus 18 Radial engines. The Unit was No. 11 Operational Training Unit where aircrew were prepared for the deadly serious business of dropping bombs on the enemy. At Bassingbourne, I saw my first 4-engined Bomber – a Shorts Stirling.

From Bassingbourne, my next significant posting (in Spring 1942) was to RAF West Kirby (in the Wirral Peninsula of Cheshire) where one was kitted out for overseas service with khaki drill uniforms and given injections, which nearly killed you. We left there by train in the middle of the night in conditions of utmost secrecy and de-trained at Gourock on the River Clyde where we embarked upon the S.S. Pasteur. A captured French Linerjust completed and being managed by the Cunar Company. The conditions on board were pretty terrible as we were berthed in mess-decks in the bowels of the ship and slept on hammocks, on mess deck tables, or on the floor. There was not room to turn in your berth for fear of colliding with your cursing neighbor.

Food was horrible and scarce, extra food could be bought at black market prices from our comrades-in-arms in the Merchant Navy Crew. The Navigators in the passenger list assured us that on leaving the UK, the Pasteur traveled due West and turned around upon reaching the coast of Newfoundland and voyaged East until it reached the port of Freetown, Sierra Leone where the guns of the Convoy of which we formed part, opened up on a poor defenseless aircraft towing a drogue for the target. Fortunately, none of the gunners hit their target. Our stay in Freetown was very brief – the local Bumboatmen were becoming aggressive.

Our next port of call was Durban, Union of South Africa which after the shortages of everything in wartime UK was like the Promised Land. WE stayed in Durban for about 6 weeks and the Imperial Forces Trans-shipment Camp at Clarewood (Near the Racecourse). The local civilians were very friendly and hospitable. A slap-up meal could be bought in the forces canteens for about 6 pence (old currency) and we were invited to return there after the war.

All to soon, it was time to leave this then happy country and the next move started on the S.S. Scythia – a Cunard Liner adapted to be a troopship and originally built for the North Atlantic run, which meant she was like a furnace sailing on the Indian Ocean and Red Sea to Egypt. On this voyage, which terminated at Port Tewfil in Egypt, we ran out of water and added to our misery of overcrowded accommodation. At this port we climbed aboard a train which dumped us in a sandy waste and lorries began to arrive to take us to the Units, which had the distinction of holding us.

Our limousine took us for about an hour to an emergency airfield called Shallufa Satellite near the Bitter Lakes which form part of the Suez Canal where we joined a Unit of the Desert Air Force called 57 Repair & Salvage Unit. The job of this Unit was to perform the major

45 technical inspections for 5 Squadrons of Wellington Medium Bombers and when these aircraft, which were the main night bomber force of the Desert Air Force crashed in the desert between their base and the target areas in North Africa, a small party of technicians would navigate to the aircraft and if possible repair them on site and fly them back to their base. If this was impractical, the aircraft would be dismantled and transported on ‘Queen Mary’ trailers to 57 RSU where they were either repaired or reduced to forming spares for other aircraft. IN cases where the damage was too great or where the crash site was too inaccessible, it was our sad duty to destroy the remains. In some of these expeditions, it was our duty to bury the bodies of the aircrew. We would spend a few weeks at base in Egypt then go out on a crash party and seek crashed Wellingtons, usually known as Wimpeys. (The name came from J Wellington Wimpey, a character in the Popeye cartoon). This was one of the most enjoyable jobs I did in the RAF – the variety of tasks was enormous. During these duties, I visited many places of note - El Daba, Mersa Matruh, Tobruk, Benghazi, Tripoli, Tunis & Algiers to name but a few.

During my time in the desert area, we were invited to volunteer for aircrew duties as Flight Engineer – the chap in a 4-engined bomber who looks after the technical aspects of flying the aircraft. I thought it worth a try and then passed the interviews and technical and medical examinations, which meant I wore the white flash in my forage cap. When the Unit was at Kairouan, Tunisia in late 1942. The C.O. sent for me one bright day and asked me if I still wanted to go on “That bloody flight Engineers Course” when I assented he came back at me with “pack your kit, your going back to Blighty for it!!. This was a great surprise as previously, volunteers for this job were sent to Palestine (Israel) for training.

My homeward journey started on a truck to Tunis and then in a railway goods train from Tunis to Algiers – a journey of some 400 miles, which took 5 days through the Atlas Mountains. The train traveled backwards, forwards and sideways on the trip and we got tired of stopping still for so long and transferred to another train at night. This new train consisted of many trucks filled it appeared, with straw which we thought would make excellent bedding but were somewhat shaken the following morning when we learned the straw was packing for high explosives and bombs! On reaching Algiers we transferred to a transit camp where we were promptly detailed for guard duty. During the night part of the guard duty, it poured torrents and we were thinking our misery would soon be over when 5 rifle shots rang out. They came from the Airman’s mess where a drunken airman was being held by two service Police who told us that the miscreant had been refused a cup of tea during the small hours, whereupon, he had returned to his tent, got his rifle and fired 5 shots through the mess. He was placed in a nice warm cell for the night whilst we resumed our guard duties in the pouring rain.

ON going up the gangway to board the ship to take us back to Blighty, I was surprised to find the ship was the Scythia again, whose appearance had been somewhat altered by a German bomb that had struck her superstructure during the time since leaving her at Port Tewfik. The Mediterranean Sea was more or less open to Allied shipping by this time and we made our way through the Straits of Gibraltar where we survived an attack by a solitary German aircraft. We arrived in Liverpool docks just before Christmas 1943 where a military band welcomed us home. I was taken to RAF Station West Kirby transit camp in the Wirral where I was told I would have to wait about a month for my Flight Engineer’s course, meanwhile, I would be posted to a Unit where I would gain technical experience on 4 engined bombers.

Imagine my surprise when I received my posting notice at home whilst enjoying a spot of disembarkation leave to find that my new Unit was a Hawker Typhoon Squadron. These aircraft were fitted with a single massive Napier Sabre engine with a large number of cylinders arranged in an ‘H’ formation and the aircrew consisted of a Pilot! The Unit was No.3 Squadron and was based at Manston which was boasted as having the worst food in the RAF and it hadn’t improved since 1940!

After short space of time – early in 1944, No.3 Squadron was disbanded and I was posted to 610 Squadron, an embodied Auxiliary Air Force Squadron equipped with Spitfire 14 aircraft, which were fitted with a Rolls Royce Griffon 65 engine and a five bladed propeller. This Squadron was based at Swanton Morley near Dereham in Norfolk and thinking once again of my tum, this was a station where the Airman’s mess justifiably had superb food. The Warrant

46 Officer in charge of the cookhouse was in civvy life a chef with a West End Hotel and the mess was beautifully clean with flowers on the tables. Service (of food, of course) was provided by smartly dressed W.A.A.Fs who were not allowed to be rude to their ‘customers’.

To return to the work of 610 Squadron – it was highly mobile and consistently on the move from one Station to another. During the time I was on this Squadron, it was based at Exeter, Culmhead in Somerset, Harrobier near Plymouh, Devon, Bolthead on the South Devon Coast, West Malling near Maidstone, Kent. Westhampnett near Chichester, Sussex Eastbourne, Sussex and then to Lympne.

During my stay at the Kent & Sussex Stations our aircraft were engaged in combating the flying bombs, which were launched by the Germans from Europe. It was claimed that our Pilots evolved the risky technique of flying alongside the bombs and maneuvering their wing under that of the bombe and tipping the bomb over thus upsetting the gyro. Aircraft were lost in another technique whereby the aircraft fired its guns at the missile, which often caused the bomb to explode, blowing up the attacking aircraft as well.

In the autumn of 1944 601 Squadron was posted to the continent of Europe and we embarked in a landing ship tank (No. JJ104) at Grays, Essex and crossed English Channel landing in Ostend. We had been told that we would have to fight our way ashore but instead, our lines were taken by some charming and efficient ladies of the W.R.N.S. Our first airfield was at Evere on the outskirts of Brussels where we were made welcome by the civil population and where we spent Christmas 1944. We left that airfield on 31 Dec 1944 to follow up the Allied advance and whilst en route, carried in one of the Squadron’s lorries, one of our number said “look at those thunderbolts shooting up this road!”. Those thunderbolts proved to us that they were in fact Focke-Wolf 190s Kites of the Luftwaffe carrying out their last major operation of World War 2. They struck at all the major airfields in the 2nd Tactical Air Force area. When the atmosphere had quietened down, we resumed our journey to Schwartzberg, then onto Charleroi. At one of these towns, we were quartered in an old fort in the centre of the town, which had been a Gestapo barracks. Our next airfield was at Eindhoven in Holland where we were again welcomed by the local population. These fine people tried to show their gratitude fir liberation by inviting us into their homes and to share their meager food supplies. Alas, these people were starving and groups of them waited outside the service messes to eat the leavings from our plates.

Whilst at Eindhoven, we could see rocket firing Typhoon and Tempest aircraft attacking German front line positions. I developed a raging toothache at Eindhoven, no doubt due to the poor diet we had to put up with. The M.O. sent me to a service Hospital somewhere in Belgium to have it attended to on a freezing cold day. As so spare service transport was available I had to hitch hike there and one of my lifts dropped me off on a lonely snow covered road where I could see a lonesome café which I decided I should visit to have a little something ton warm myself up. I was wearing my forage cap and greatcoat with a leather jerkin over the top of it when I entered the Café and in my horrible French asked the lady behind the bar for a “verre de vin rouge, s’il vous plait”. She looked at me a bit strangely and left the room. I thought she was a long time pouring out my simple need when the door was suddenly kicked open and an American soldier stood there with a Tommy gun pointed straight at me with an expression of hatred on his face. My terror made me forget my toothache until I heard the yank shout out “He’s no f---ing Boche”. Apparently, the serving lady had mistaken my shabby greatcoat color for German Field Grey and had called a soldier who was billeted there.

Shortly before Victory in Europe, in May 1945, 620 Squadron was withdrawn from battle and embarked at Ostend, Belgium on the Channel Island passenger steamer “St. Helier” for England, home & Beauty. We were posted to RAF Hawarden near Chester where 610 Squadron was disbanded and most of its technical staff joined No.58 Operation training Unit (Spitfire 12’s). Harwarden’s claim to fame was that it was the birthplace of William Ewart Gladstone, a Victorian politician. We enjoyed Victory celebrations whilst at Harwarden and the 58 OTU disbanded and the staff transferred to 48 Maintenance Unit where we prepared many types of aircraft for destruction.

47 In April 1946 I was demobilized at RAF Cardington where I had joined 6 years previously and where as a demob present, I received a really nice blue suit, a riding mac, a smart trilby hat, shoes etc. I then, after demob leave (about 3 Months) returned to the GPO where I served as a sorter (including a spell on the traveling post office railway) and as a counter clerk.

In early 1950 while walking with my dear wife near Biggin Hill airfield, I happened to mention about the aircraft flying about that area that probably belonged to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. My wife, no doubt wishing to get rid of me and gain a bit of peace suggested that as I had enjoyed service life, I might like to join. Having received the encouragement, I presented myself at Finsbury Barracks, Armoury House, in City Road at the town HQ of No. 600 (City of London) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force (The senior Squadron in that Force).

One or two weekends of each month were spent training at Biggin Hill where they were equipped with Meteor 7’s & 8’s, single and tandem two seater aircraft powered by Rolls Royce Derwent Jet Engines. I duly became, on 03 Sep 1950 number 2682129 L.A.C. J.M. Rosbrook and was soon in the hangar at Biggin wielding my trusty spanner. IN 1951 the Squadron was called up for 2 months embodied service due to the war in Korea which denuded Britain of Home based Squadrons. Although the situation was serious, we couldn’t help enjoying our open-air life – we spent most of this period at Biggin Hill except for a fortnight at Acklington, Northumberland where our pilots fired their aircraft guns on an air- firing course. Although our civilian employers were by law obliged to reinstate us in our jobs after this 3 months, several airmen had no jobs to return to afterwards. A Tragedy occurred during this period when two of our aircraft piloted by FO Sandeman and Sgt Clarkson collided over Biggin airfield and both pilots were killed, the former being interred in Biggin Hill cemetery and the latter in Hither Green cemetery.

Returning to the normal peacetime duties of the Auxiliaries we did a fortnights training annually and these two-week periods were spent at RAF airfields in Germany (Celle, Oldenberg & Wunsdorf) and Malta (Takali). Our HAC was Her Majesty the Queen Mother who visited us at Biggin Hill regularly and took a keen interest in our affairs. On one of Her Majesty’s visits, Winston Churchill, in his capacity of HAC 615 (County of Surrey) Squadron RAuxAF was also visiting Biggin Hill where his Squadron was also based. 600 Squadron held an annual parade at their church, St. Bartholomew the Great in West Smithfield, City of London and each year provided a marching party in the Lord Mayors Show.

In 1953 I was promoted to Corporal – a meteoric rise in status! All good things come to an end and in 1957 all fighter Squadrons of the RAuxAF were disbanded due, we were told, to the fact that our country could not afford to re-equip us with modern aircraft. However, we were given a magnificent ‘funeral’ by the Lord Mayor of London in the Guildhall to celebrate the occasion.

Several spare-time Units of the forces visited us before we disbanded to peck the flesh off the rotting corpse and coming from a Naval family, I became interested in the Royal Marines Forces Volunteer Reserve and in April 1957, I joined the unit based at White City, West London and became RMV 203248 Corporal Rosbrook.

They engaged me as a probationary Corporal for a 1 year period but I was not allowed to wear my chevrons until I had completed my square-bashing and dicip course. After completing this course I opted to become a Landing Craft rating and enjoyed being a seaman. My annual training 2-week periods were spent at Poole, Plymouth, Gareloch, West Coast of Scotland, Isle of White, Lympstone, Devon and in Malta in tank landing ships. Motor fishing vessels and on HMS Isis, and inshore Mine Sweeper.

In 1963 much to my surprise, I was promoted to Sergeant and wore my gilt buttons and red sash with great pride and successfully negotiated the coxswain’s course. My duties included ceremonial and I took part in the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall, also taking part and marshalling for the Lord Mayor’s Show. For about 6 years, my once a week job was as recruiting Sergeant on HMS “ President” where I made many friends and was treated with great courtesy by all ranks of the Royal Naval Reserve who treated me as one of them. I was proud and honored to have taken part in the annual Zeebrugge commemoration

48 ceremony in Belgium. One of my duties in this ceremony was to march to crew back on board HMS Curzon after we had partaken of several jugs of ale! – A most hilarious event.

Just before reaching the ripe old age of 50 in 1972, the Commanding Officer, RMR sent for me to tell me that I had been awarded the bar to my RMR Long Service & Good Conduct Medal. That was good news – the bad news was that when my current engagement expired, I was to be discharged, as I was getting on a bit to be a Commando. To soften this grievous blow, the whole RMR Unit then based at White City, marched past me!

During my service on HMS President, I had met a number of river Policemen from Waterloo Pier Police Station, just up the river from “Pres”. These Coppers got to know of my impending discharge from the RMR and several of them suggested I might like to join the Metropolitan Police Special Constabulary (Thames Division). I liked the idea of continuing in a uniformed service so on 23 April 1971, I became Special Constable No. 52 at Waterloo Pier Police Station. My previous service training helped me to pass the boat-handling course – Police boats were a delight to handle after clumsy Landing Craft.

Thames Division is staffed by some great characters and to serve as a Special Constable was indeed an honour. In due course, I passed the acting Sergeants (Coxswain’s) course and became the part-time skipper of a Police boat but was too old to be a real Sergeant, however, I had my moments of glory. The retiring age was 55 but I was privileged to remain in service until the age of 60 when I was given a grand retirement party and presented with a magnificent tankard and a truncheon mounted on a wooden base with a plaque bearing the MSC crest. Thus on 20 January 1982, I gave up wearing a uniform, although not quite - shortly after my 60th Birthday, being somewhat tired of idleness caused by my retirement from my 30 odd years with the Crown Agents where I finished as a Higher Executive Officer. I took a job as an usher in Southwark Crown Court, but that’s another story.

On the odd occasions when I go on parade wearing my gongs, I wear with pride the following Medals:-

1939/45 Star Africa Star & Desert Air Force Clasp France & Germany Star Defense Medal War Medal RMR Long Service & Good Conduct Medal & Clasp Special Constabulary Long Service Medal

My Royal Marines Sergeant’s uniform is clothing a dummy figure on HMS Belfast in the Commanders Cabin.

John M. Rosbrook

John died 11 May 1998 aged 76, following a long illness borne with great courage and fortitude. His passing was a great loss to our Association

49 Intelligence Flight Down South - By Jon Byrne

In January 2006 a small team of intelligence officers from 600 Squadron met at RAF Brize Norton for their flight to Mount Pleasant, 8,000 miles away in the South Atlantic. After years of spending our Annual Continuous Training in places as diverse as Northwood, Kinloss, Northwood, Gibraltar, London, Northwood, Chicksands, Sigonella and, er, Northwood it was time for us to spread our wings.

Our flight was due to depart at about midnight, and due to maintenance work on the runway at Brize, we were actually flying from nearby RAF Fairford. Our bus entered the USAF base via a crash gate far from any signs of civilisation, and the sight of an unmarked 747 gave rise to anxious murmurs of “extraordinary rendition”. We relaxed when we realised the civilian cabin crew of the charter aircraft were friendly and orange jump suits were not required.

“Welcome to the Falklands” – A Tornado F3 of 1435 Flight greets the incoming trooper

Eight hours later we landed in a sunny Ascension Island to refuel the aircraft and ourselves. It seemed very pleasant there and the suggestion that perhaps Ascension, rather than the Falklands, could benefit from a bit of exercise planning was firmly overruled by the boss, Sqn Ldr Jane Drew.

Another eight hours later we were at Mount Pleasant. The first impression was surprise that it was still broad daylight at 5 on a January evening. Then we remembered that in the southern hemisphere it was summer so we were getting July’s weather. To be precise, Dartmoor’s July weather (think of Willsworthy, but windier).

The reason for our long journey was to assist HQ British Forces South Atlantic Islands (HQ BFSAI) to plan a forthcoming exercise; developing the scenario and events to test the HQ, senior officers and the various units who defend the Falklands from a potential aggressor. Before setting off, we spent a few training weekends getting ourselves fully briefed on the political and military situation in the South Atlantic, through a combination of open source research and briefing materials from MOD and HQ BFSAI. Squadron members who had served in the Falklands as regulars gave us informal briefings on the islands, their weather and the people, giving us valuable insights beyond what the books and websites told us.

By the end of the fortnight we had developed a range of country briefings on the imaginary aggressor country, its armed forces, internal politics and foreign policy. Also prepared was a series of incidents that would be injected into the exercise to challenge the defenders. Needless to say, the entire exercise was based on the real potential threat from the Falkland Island’s near neighbour.

50

The 600 Squadron team visit HMS Dumbarton Castle. Left to right: Sqn Ldr Jane Drew, Flt Lt Mike Grimshaw, Flt Lt Steve Duddy, Fg Off Geoff McBride, Flt Lt Sebastian Nokes, Flt Lt Lois Ford, Sqn Ldr Steve Partridge, Flt Lt Mas Moore, Sqn Ldr Jon Byrne.

And it was here that the wide range of experiences that reservists bring to the regular forces was fully exploited. Flt Lt Mas Moore’s background as a water engineer helped us to develop a chain of events including the sabotage of the sewage disposal system, which would force the exercise participants to move to field accommodation and catering. Fg Off Geoff McBride’s knowledge of commercial satellites and their capabilities were also put to imaginative use. The exercise itself took place a few weeks after our return to the UK and civilian life, but we were pleased (and relieved) to hear that it all worked out very successfully.

On the Chinook to Mount Alice radar site. We got to wear the orange suits after all!

While we there we made the most of a unique opportunity to see as much as possible of the islands. Fortunately for us, and for those on a 4 – 6 month posting, the units in the Falklands were all very keen to show their wares to their colleagues. Flights in Chinook and S-61 helicopters and a VC-10, a dolphin-spotting trip in an RLC landing craft, visits to radar and Rapier sites, a battlefield tour round Goose Green and Darwin, a look round HMS Dumbarton Castle and Tornado F-3s, and Air Traffic Control all contributed to our wider service, and wildlife, knowledge. At all times we fitted in with operational requirements and learned much about the capabilities of units which we were able to factor into our work in exercise planning.

51

We were told not to go to close to the wildlife – but nobody seemed to have told the penguins not to approach the humans!

The eighteen days we spent in the Falklands brought home the benefits of belonging to 600 Squadron. Of course, the opportunity to see somewhere we would have had to pay thousands to visit privately was the most obvious gain. Professionally, we had the satisfaction of contributing with our exercise planning to the readiness of the garrison, and identifying further opportunities for our squadron to assist the HQ. After such an enjoyable and satisfying fortnight, even returning to work on a damp February morning didn’t seem too bad!

An Article by John Le Huquet for the “Northolt Approach”

A few of you may recall an article I wrote a while ago, it was a bit random and whilst I cannot guarantee this will be any different it will at least explain the first article. Unless you are George Lucas the best place to start any story is at the beginning. The trouble is that this story has 2 different starting points, which ran in parallel.

Most will be familiar with the current set up of the Estates Flight however in a galaxy far far away it had a different composition and one of the key figures was Flt Lt Richie Credland. Those that knew Richie will fondly recall him as somewhat of a Northolt legend, so much so that I had even heard of whilst still on 600 Sqn. Apart from his EMF exploits he is best

52 remembered gracing the rugby pitch or participating in any CO’s cup event. As is the way in the RAF, Richie moved on to Southwick Park to become the lead estates instructor within the admin trade school. I moved from 600 Sqn to my current position and was fortunate enough to be one of Richie’s first students. Following this, the estates community being what it is, we were in fairly regular contact from this point onwards. It came as a complete shock therefore to hear one day that Richie had died of cardiomyopathy. In EMF it was felt something should be done to remember Richie, but what exactly?

As my wife hails from Kinloss we often find ourselves on the M6 headed north. It was during one of these trips that she told me about one of her co-workers who with another chap had cycled from Lands End to John O’Groats. Now my immediate thought was bloody fool what does he want to do that for, however by the time I had reached Northolt I was looking at a map and Sandra was cringing as she knew what was coming. Back in the EMF there was a general support until they realised that not only was I serious I was also looking for team mates! The look of horror on various faces had to be seen to be believed as everyone else had imagined a brass plaque being hung from a tree/building as a way to remember Richie. Undeterred I carried on drawing routes on my map until one day I declared that it would take 2 weeks. This assumption being based around my participation in the London to Brighton bike ride. You will notice that for the first time I have mentioned myself and a bicycle in the same sentence. The reason for this is that I am most definitely not a cyclist. The only reason I had ended up cycling to Brighton was because I happened to stand in for someone at a green travel meeting. Prior to this my bike was something that rested in a shed only to come out if the wife had forgotten to buy milk and the weather was reasonable. It most definitely was not a viable form of transport for anything beyond the shops. With a bit of negotiating I found myself with 2 weeks off if I needed it during the school holidays, plenty of time to start a bit of training. So along came the New Year and my new regime. The only snag was the weather, for me it was not cycling weather so I headed down the gym to get some miles in. Now if you had seen me during my first couple of sessions you would have had your doubts about my ability to pull this one off. Still I kept at it and slowly I found that I could sit on a bike for 30, 40 minutes an hour without needing to stop. I then started cranking up the resistance a bit and started to feel that this might get off the ground.

Then came the crunch go, no go moment of the summer leave plot; it was now on if only the weather would pick up I might even get out of the gym. True to form the British winter dragged on a couple more months before June and the better weather came along. At this point I went out on my old bike and realised that if I was going to do this I was going to need a new bike. Not knowing the first thing about bikes I scouted about for a good bike shop until I stumbled upon Northwood Cycles. Fortunately when I explained what I wanted they didn’t laugh at me and guided me through a maze of cycles. Eventually with their guidance I settled on a Bronx Kudos, this for me being a good compromise of ‘cycle stuff’ when set against the money that Sandra was going to allow me. I have been happy with this decision and rapidly started to clock up better and better timings. I also started to extend the rides I was doing on weekends until I was doing a respectable 50 miles or so most Saturdays. This had the added benefit of getting out of doing the weekly shop but it was a price I was prepared to pay because truth be told I was starting to like cycling.

‘So you’re doing the Lands End to John O’Groats thing but which charity are you doing it for?’ was a question I was now asked. Initially I hadn’t thought about this but the closer I got the more friends and family were pledging despite having no idea as to what the cause was. Winding the clock back I recalled that Richie’s family had asked that donations be made for Help for Heroes (H4H) so that was that then, decision made. All that remained was to get the endorsement of H4H, set up the fund raising page, finalise a route and continue training. At this point I need to thank Tracey Hulbert (RPC office) as she became my fund raising manager. She got stickers made up for my car (courtesy of Matt Martin again from the RPC) and took on the guise of Bonnie Grizelda – going into the RPC office was becoming a dangerous venture unless you had backed my cause! Sandra had also taken a big decision for me; she was coming to. Not as a cyclist but driving the support wagon, whilst I had reservations about this initially it made sense to have support and it had the added benefit that route planning did not need to be based on the availability of accommodation.

53

Day -1 Northolt to Lands End. Jenson Button and Vernon Kay were chatting on the radio about doing the London Triathlon. Lots of good tips were coming out, if the going gets tough break the journey down into small chunks, focus on why you are doing it, have faith in your equipment. Now what was the last one... starts mental checklist. Bike, check. Cycle shorts, check. Shoes oh £%^*&*. Yep as I had tried my best to avoid exercise during leave for the past 20 years my trainers were always the last thing to go in my bag. On this occasion they were still resting by my bed and we were on the A30. Still not to worry we are bound to run into a shop on the way and I have my credit card. What I hadn’t counted on was Cornwall; now I’m not sure why but Cornwall does not have any shoe shops. Not the greatest start but fortunately I had a pair of plimsolls so not a complete show stopper.

Day 1 Lands End – Camelford (Boscastle) – 71.30 miles. The day started with the obligatory photo by the signpost. The one thing that was apparent however was that everyone else was in a team, there weren’t any other soloists. General consensus was that I was a bit mad and destined to fail. Anyway not knowing any better I was stuck to my plan and crossed the start line only to be flagged down by an ex marine who at least wished me well and handed me £10 for H4H. After thanking him and setting off down the A30 it was immediately apparent that everything I had heard about Cornwall was true. This was a very hilly county and it was going to be hard graft. This was made all the more challenging as I approached Camborne and saw a sign saying that due to road works all bikes were banned from the A30. Further instructions were not forthcoming until I reached a sign saying that I should use an alternative route – gee thanks for that advise. With my knowledge of Cornwall I quickly found myself unsure of my whereabouts. Not lost as I sort of knew where I was and knew where I wanted to go, I was just unsure about the finer details of getting from A - B. For whatever reason I stopped by a church, the main attraction being a sign saying that Jesus is the way. As I muttered under my breath that I wished he was here now the minister appeared. She was a cheery soul and we started chatting about H4H and wouldn’t you know it she was saying a prayer for me in the middle of the street. After this she gave me directions and sent me off on my way – it seems the lord does work in mysterious ways! When I finally found myself at Camelford I was glad to have a support vehicle for the trip down to my accommodation was via the steepest hill I had seen all day. The reason for heading towards Boscastle was in order to visit Tintagel which was close by. Visiting at dusk was atmospheric and added to the mystique of the site even if walking around an ancient ruin that is slowly falling into the sea was all a bit hairy for me – I don’t do heights.

Day 2 Camelford – Tiverton-Devon (Illminster) – 70.90 miles. It is fair to say I slept rather well and despite the protests from my legs I hit the road bright and early. Cutting across country towards Tiverton was hard going due to the amount of hills. Even after crossing into Devon this was the case but I made fairly good progress until I approached Bow. It was here I saw a sign reading ‘road closed – access only’. This wasn’t in my plans so I just gazed at it for a

54 while before putting my EMF hat on. Reasoning that the local council would like Norwest Holst ensure access for pedestrians and emergency vehicles I ignored the sign. Two miles later I came across a couple of bobbies who stopped me. Where you be goin’ ‘en? Well I was just wondering if you could get a bike down there? What you reckon, ‘e get a bike down there? Where ‘e be going ‘en? Well I’m trying to access the bit of road the other side of the road block. Oh that’s alright ‘en I reckon you could get a bike down there. Ok I’ll give it a try. Reckons you will. It was like some bad comedy sketch complete with outrageous accents. Anyway fortune favoured the brave and I got through the road works and on towards Tiverton. Approaching Tiverton it started to raining, always a bad thing but as I had no signal on my phone I had no idea where Sandra was and as such the lift to my accommodation was in doubt. Passing Tiverton Golf Course I decided I had better pull in and see if I could get help and use of a phone. I was not to be disappointed as not only did I get use of a phone, the lad from the shop even gave me money for H4H. Grateful for his donation and assistance I quickly met up with Sandra who had stopped a short distance away and was rather worried as she hadn’t heard from me all day. In true comedy fashion as soon as we met up I at long last got a signal on my phone.

Day 3 Tiverton – Bristol – 65.25 miles. There is not a lot of good to say about this day it rained all day apart from the last 2 miles, but as you can imagine this made little difference to me. There were 3 other firsts on this day all of which were not particularly good. The first being a puncture and one which was large enough that the air could be heard escaping over the noise of the rain. Punctures are normally easy to fix however due to the spray from the passing lorries this was not the case - my self-adhesive patches were not sticking to anything. Fortunately I had kept hold of some old fashioned patches, glue and chalk and was thus able to fix my tire. Next as I approached Bristol I met my match in the shape of hill which although not marked on my map was steeper and longer than anything else I had encountered. I therefore had to get off my bike and push it, cutting a rather forlorn figure I eventually got to the top but Bristol also marked the first time I didn’t get to where I had intended. In this instance it was the Clifton suspension bridge and the reason was the traffic which was just hellish. I’m afraid I couldn’t be bothered fighting it as I just wanted a warm shower. Following my shower it was apparent things weren’t quite right, I had expected stiff

55 legs or perhaps saddle sores but my pinkies weren’t working properly. This affliction would slowly get worse as the ride went on but for now I had 2 numb fingers.

Day 4 Bristol – Leominster – 69.79 miles. Thankfully a change brought bright sunshine and light winds as I set off. Today was the only day that I would be in Wales and in order to get there I was going to have to cross the River Severn. The only way to do this was via the Old Severn Bridge something that I wasn’t thrilled about. Little did I know that I would experience my first traffic jam mid span. This was not something I had ordered especially as the thing causing the obstruction was a work crew fixing the bridge. Thankfully there were no incidents and the work crew packed up their tools and I headed into Wales. My route took me along the Wye Valley which I must say was picture postcard beautiful, made all the better for having downhill bits that didn’t appear to be linked to uphill bits. Not quite sure how this worked but suffice to say I wasn’t going to complain. Halfway up the valley I was treated to my own personal flypast from the Red Arrows. I don’t know who had pulled the strings but there they were all 10 of them in perfect formation right over my head. In Monmouth I briefly met up with my dad in Lidl’s car park of all places. I had hoped that he would join me for a mile or 2 but this sadly was not to be the case. The car park did produce one of the most memorable moments of my trip however as I was approached by an old boy out walking his dog. On seeing what I was doing he handed over his last pound and told me to get on my bike -not his exact words! It transpired that his son was killed in Bosnia and although happy to donate to H4H many memories came flooding back. The remainder of my trip was uneventful but took me to my favourite English stop off – Leominster. Now I had 4 numb fingers and was concerned enough to look things up on the internet. It appeared that ‘Cyclist's Palsy’ was not an uncommon aliment and would most likely sort itself out after I stopped cycling. This was a comfort especially as I was now starting to drop cutlery and the likes.

Day 5 Leominster – Tiverton-Cheshire (Crewe) - 74.47 miles. This day was split in 2 parts as I was joined by the Station Commander in the morning. He had heard about my plans whilst they were still fairly embryonic and had expressed a desire to join me at some point and here he was promising to act as my wind break. True to his word we set off with me trailing him and what a difference it made. Apart from completing my 2nd fastest 40 miles it was just good to have someone to speak with and to share some of the nicest parts of the English countryside. This included passing Much Wenloch, home of the 1809 Olympic Games not that you would recognise this as the birthplace of this eccentrically British of activities. Having said farewell to the Station Commander at the outskirts of Shrewsbury I continued my way towards Tiverton. I like to think that the wind was stronger in the afternoon but the truth is that without protection from the wind I was once again battling against the elements by myself. The remaining 30 miles therefore took me as long as the first 40.

56

Day 6 Tiverton – Galgate – 65 miles. This was a day of highs and lows for although I passed St Helens I also had to go through Warrington and Wigan. Wigan was particularly bad as I was almost taken out by a pedestrian, how I missed him I don’t know and who could have blamed him; imagine a cyclist on a cycle lane outrageous behaviour. If that wasn’t bad enough I got lost and went though Wigan a second time. This wasn’t entirely my fault as I realised that I had taken a wrong turn. My mistake was stopping to ask for directions, there is a reason men don’t normally do this and it as follows: if you are lost you are likely to find a bigger muppet than you. This was definitely the case in this instance as the directions I was given were just plain wrong. To make matters worse it started raining heavily. I was almost drowned before stumbling across the M6 and sorting myself out. After reaching my destination I quickly changed into the white and red of St Helens RLFC. I was off to watch the Saints take on the Bulls at Knowsley Road Stadium. It was a memorable night with the Saints winning 60-12, hardly a close game but with 9 different Saints scoring I saw all my sporting heroes score on one night.

Day 7 Galgate – Shap (Coniston) – 39.69 miles. Without doubt the hardest day only made worse by a headwind all day. I don’t think that it was particularly strong however it was enough to bring me to a standstill at times. The reason for this for those who have never been to Shap is that from Morecombe Bay to the fells is a 1500 foot climb. To say it was hard going is an understatement; Jenson Buttons advice to break things down into smaller chunks meant looking no further than 10-20 yards into the distance. Even so I eventually found myself pushing my bike again for although my legs were spinning at silly speeds I was barely making 4 mph. With great relief I finally saw the sign for Shap and knew that it was all downhill from here. At this point Sandra and I tried to make a mad dash to Coniston as I wanted to visit the Ruskin Museum in order to hand them some artefacts I have from Donald Campbells final attempt at the water speed record. Unfortunately my progress up Shap was such that I missed the museum by 5 minutes. Still I guess that’s life but with the sight of night falling over Coniston Water it could have been far worse.

Day 8 Shap – Dumfries (Carlisle) - 58.46 miles. After the previous day I really needed a boost to my morale and well the day did not disappoint. Apart from being almost all downhill I had the satisfaction of crossing the Scottish border. Of course the obligatory photographs had to be taken at Gretna Green where I chanced upon an instructor from Shawbury. I then headed off towards Dumfries and for me this was a real bonus as for the first time in my travels I was ahead of schedule. This was particularly important as in a couple of days time I had to catch a ferry and I couldn’t afford to miss this. The evening was spent in Carlisle

57 where I meet 2 young lasses doing a JOGLE as opposed to a LEJOG. As we exchanged stories about our travels and warned each other about particularly hard climbs I couldn’t help but feel pleased that the tales I was hearing about seemed well within my capabilities. As a result I started to believe that this venture might just come off.

Day 9 Dumfries – Patna (Newton Stewart) – 59.49 miles. Today was all about reaching Dalry, this should have been an easy ask however less than ¼ mile after setting off I had my first puncture of the day. With that drama over I was off again only to get another puncture a couple of miles further down the road. Rather worryingly whatever caused it wasn’t visible so it was with some trepidation that I set off again with the weather starting to close in. After Dalry I continued to press on as the wind was getting stronger and I had a feeling it was here for the next couple of days. To say that the countryside here is bleak doesn’t do it justice however as I crested a hill one of my most magical events happened. It only lasted for about 15 seconds but it was something straight out of life on earth. As I started down a hill I was joined by an eagle that had just taken off. I was peddling like a mad man and it was majestically soaring down the slope. Like I say it only lasted a short while but it was looking at me and I was looking at it separated by a couple of feet. It then just tweaked the tips of its wing and was gone; I was still peddling like a mad man.

Day 10 Patna – Lochranza 46.62 miles. Thankfully still ahead of schedule I approached Preswick airport ensuring that I had a suitable Elvis song on my i-pod, before struggling onwards towards the Ardrossan ferry. Thankfully not only did I make the ferry but I was able to catch an earlier sailing. Heading somewhere without peddling felt a bit strange but as the wind was still blowing a gale I was glad to be somewhere warm and cosy. On arrival in Brodick the wind had completely disappeared and looking at Arran it was easy to see why. The centre of the island is made up of domineering mountains that reluctantly have allowed mankind enough land to build a ring road along the coast and not much more. Unfortunately for me as you head north the hills reach closer and closer towards the coast until the road is forced inland and up over the peaks. Once again I was walking but this wasn’t a problem as it allowed more time to savour the rugged landscape of the isle. The decent to Lochranza was one of the steepest of my journey and I managed to pick up some pretty good speed despite the wind. It wasn’t until I met up with Sandra and she told how often she had had to stop for deer that I saw my first one; thankfully I didn’t meet one at over 30 mph.

Day 11 Lochranza – (Glencoe) 86.46 miles. An early start saw me catch the first ferry to the Mull of Kintyre. Unfortunately the winds that had hampered my progress the day before had now been replaced by a big black cloud which I had to climb into. This wasn’t the worst climb but having to go through a fine drizzle was not much fun especially as it continued for the next 2 hours. I was therefore in need of a hot cup of tea when I arrived in Lochgilphead the only

58 problem was that it didn’t seem to possess any cafes. On the way out of town however I saw a sign for a church coffee morning so I figured I’d stop and chance my luck. I’m guessing it has been a while since anyone in their 40s stopped off but that didn’t matter. I was made very welcome and was drinking tea from the finest china and sampling home baking as well. If that wasn’t enough one of the kitchen ladies got up on stage and let everyone know why I was here. In no time at all a sugar bowl was being passed round and ended up in front of me overflowing with donations, about £90 in total. Whilst I could have stayed longer I had to thank everyone and press on as this was going to be my longest day. Picking my way along the coast I made my way to the shores of Loch Linnhe tired but with many happy memories.

Day 12 – Loch Ness 72.01 miles. Today I made my way up the great glen towards Loch Ness where I stopped for the night. On the way you of course pass through mountainous countryside, king of the peaks is Ben Nevis which casts its shadow over Fort William. Zipping past in a car it is hard to appreciate just how big Ben Nevis is, but on a bike you are much more in tune with nature and I felt completely insignificant alongside such a beast. Thankfully there was no need to scale any mountains as my route followed the lochs and Caledonian Canal. As such my route through the highlands of Scotland was completed at sea level which was the whole reason for crossing to Arran. Much to the disgust of Linda Donnelly it also meant I missed Glasgow by about 30 miles which is always a good policy in my book.

59

Day 13 Loch Ness – Dournoch (Inverness) 58.25 miles. Having survived a night on the shores of Loch Ness I continued up the glen towards the Black Isle. At this point your choices of route are pretty limited you either head north or continue along the Moray coast. It was the latter route I chose and my reason was purely so that I could visit Helmsdale, a place which I must admit I hadn’t heard of until I started planning my journey.

Day 14 Dournoch – Helmsdale 36.50 miles. In a stroke of luck I woke up to 30 mph winds pointing straight towards Helmsdale. I could not have asked for better weather and was able to maintain speeds of over 20 mph most of the way. Even going up hills I was able to remain above 15 mph and going down them well 41.2 mph was the record! As a result I had hardly broken into a sweat by the time I reached Helmsdale and well before my lunchtime deadline. The reason for reaching Helmsdale so early was that I had entered the Highland Games. My chosen sport was of course cycling, but this was a completely different discipline, no gears, no brakes and on grass as well. The worst thing though was if the wheels were going round so were the peddles. Not having a bike of this kind I had to borrow one from a young lad, but this wasn’t a problem. It was even decided by my fellow competitors that I should have a head start as I had never ridden one of these bikes before. The clan chief was not quite so happy with this but graciously let me have a couple yards on the rest of the field. I can therefore say that up till the first corner I was in the lead after that I was looking at someone else’s rear tire. This was not important as all I wanted to do was compete in the games and I had done this. After the race I was able to do a whip round for H4H and managed to raise another £200+, once again the generosity of strangers was beyond my wildest expectations.

Day 15 Helmsdale – John O’Grotes 50.60 miles. The final day was rather strange with only 50 miles to go it felt like I was almost there already. Certainly looking at my road atlas and seeing I was on the final page added to this feeling. The only real obstacle in my way now was the Berriedale Brae this is a rather cheeky 15% climb. I managed this without having to step off my bike, no doubt aided by this being a morning hill. The rest of the trip was straight forward the only thing to note being the closer I got to the finish the smaller the trees got until it was like I was in the Falklands. Then all of a sudden there was sea in front of me and beyond that the Orkney Islands – the end was in sight. Now to find some inspirational tune on my i-pod. After I hit forward a couple of times Drive by the Cars came on, not exactly inspirational but after my journey it seemed apt. So I rode into John O’Groats to Ric Ocasek asking ‘whos going to drive you home tonight’. Fortunately Sandra was waiting there with her camera. Thirty minutes later I saw the group of lads that had left 5 minutes before me from Lands End after telling me I probably wouldn’t make it. A moral victory for us forty some things and an opportunity to exchange tales of steep hills bad weather and the likes.

60

As I write this back at Northolt I am glad to say that my hands have now recovered. I am also glad to say that feel that I achieved all I set out to achieve. Putting aside the simple fact that I had indeed cycled end to end I also met some fantastic people, I saw and experienced parts of the country I had never seen previously. All in all a successful and enjoyable couple of weeks for me and a voyage that I feel Richie Credland would have approved of. The added bonus was that I succeeded in raising about £2500 for H4H thanks in no small part to Kemp Construction Ltd, Banbury Builders, GES Ltd, Ruislip Rugby Club as well as the many individual sponsors who believed that I would reach John O’Groats. Whilst I won’t be doing this journey again in the immediate future I can at least say that I will be getting on my bike again. I should also add that I would recommend others to do likewise for if I can do this so can you. Finally I would just like to add that my web page is still open if you wish to sponsor me, it can be found at www.bmycharity.com/johnleh

61 2011 Diaries

Recommended; The 2011 Military Diary

Price: £9.95 (including tax)

Product Description

Get organised with this brilliant high quality Military interest Diary for 2011 in ‘Week-to- View’ format, printed on white pages with gilt-foil edges, bound within black covers with protective brass corners, with a wine coloured ribbon. Features:

 Daily Battle Dates  Historic Military Leaders  Classic Weapons  Wars and Conflicts Since 1900  Military Quotations  Defence Spending Information  War Poems  War – The Human Cost  Notable Military Museums Listing  16 Pages of World Maps in Colour  World Time Zones  UK National Rail Map  London Underground Map  2011 UK ‘Events’ Diary  Weights and Measures Table  Religious Festival Dates  Text Abbreviations for Mobile telephones  Mini Calendars  Personal Notes and Contacts Pages  With Illustrations  https://www.shop.helpforheroes.org.uk/products/Military-Diary-2011.html

All items for sale on this website are sold by Help for Heroes Trading Limited. All profit goes to Help for Heroes.All items for sale on this website are sold by Help for Heroes Trading Limited. All profit goes to Help for Heroes.ll items for sale on this website are sold

62 And if you’re not already a member…………r oes Trading Limited. All profit goes to Help for Heroes.

RAF Association History

It began in the Sergeants’ Mess at RAF Andover in 1929 with the ‘Comrades of the Royal Air Force’ and a conversation between three men, Vernon Goodhand, Joe Pearce and Warrant Officer Bartlett. Their conversation focussed on the numerous small organisations that had grown up since the end of WW1 to keep former members of squadrons and units in touch with each other. They debated whether it was time that one great organisation dedicated to this work and to the welfare of serving and ex-serving RAF personnel should not now be born. By 1930 a provisional committee was formed, the title ‘Comrades of the Royal Air Forces’ was adopted and three months later the first general meeting was held at the Queen’s Hotel, Leicester Square, London. Air Ministry support for the ‘Comrades’ came in 1933 when the Air Council officially recognised the organisation and Lord Trenchard accepted the Presidency. The new Association was to make rapid progress in the early thirties, although membership remained fairly small. Benevolent schemes began and Christmas hampers were sent to unemployed members in those difficult days.

One very important event in the Association’s history came in 1936 when King George V gave his patronage, the Association has been honoured with Royal patronage ever since. The size of the RAF remained modest until the effects of the re-armament programme began to be felt in 1938. However, the strength of the ‘comrades’ never grew beyond 10,000 in pre- war days.

The outbreak of war in 1939 and the re-forming of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force in July of that year, led to the Women’s Royal Air Force Old Comrades Association (that had been formed in 1919) opening its membership to all ranks of the new women’s service. The two old comrades’ organisations for airmen and airwomen were amalgamated in 1941, with a combined membership of nearly 20,000.

By 1943, with more than a million serving in the RAF, it became clear that if the Association were to play an effective role in the post-war era, it would need to be organised on a much sounder basis. The Association’s Central Committee, in studying the organisation’s future role, concluded that its aims and objectives should be extended beyond its original purpose. 1943 also marks the year that the name was changed to The Royal Air Forces Association. A National council, under the chairmanship of ACM Sir John Steel was formed to replace the Central committee of CRAFA. Its first meeting was on 24 August 1943 in a London hotel and Lord Trenchard, as President, gave the address of welcome.

The foundations of the present structure were laid in the remaining wartime years, so that when demobilisation began in 1945 the Association was able to cope with the situation. Welfare officers, employment officials and legal advisers were appointed both at national headquarters and at Branch level and, at the Air Ministry’s invitations, officials went to Release Centres to tell those being demobbed how the Association could help them. The growth of membership reached a peak around this time. In 1947 there were about 200,000 members with some 565 Branches throughout the UK and in some overseas territories. Enrolment of members reached the staggering total of 10,000 a month! There was a danger that the organisation would be swamped and it was decided to distribute much of the administrative work over nine separate areas, each with its own HQ.

Today The RAF Association still has a wide network of over 500 Branches worldwide with a membership of 79,000. However, enrolment has not maintained at the dizzy levels of the 1940’s and we now have a major challenge encouraging serving RAF personnel to support their Association. Much work by our Membership department is being done to talk with all new recruits and sign up new members at the end of the initial training.

63 Our Homes

February 1958 saw the opening at Lytham St Anne’s, Lancashire of the Association’s first convalescent and rest home, named Richard Peck House in honour of Air Marshal Sir Richard Peck, who had become President of the RAF Association in 1949. We continue to run this home today in conjunction with our sister charity, The RAF Benevolent Fund. In 1962 the Association acquired Sussex down in Storrington, West Sussex as part of a plan to have a residential wing as well as providing convalescent facilities. This home has been the subject of a major review and to secure a viable future will change its status from a nursing home to a residential care home and has now been transferred in a long-term lease to a not- for-profit organisation, namely Care South who will continue to provide long term residential care as well as short term respite and welfare breaks. The ex-RAF will receive nomination rights for applications made to the home.

During 1996 a second convalescent and respite care home opened in Rothbury, near Newcastle upon Tyne and in 1998 a third, Flowerdown House in Weston Super Mare, Flowerdown also has a Malcolm Apartment that can be utilised by families. These facilities continue to assist the RAF Family in association with ourselves and The RAF Benevolent Fund.

What We Do

We provide friendship and welfare support to serving and ex-serving members of the RAF and their families. Each year we help tens of thousands of people by offering a wide range of welfare services that include home and hospital visits from a volunteer field force; long-term residential care; short-term convalescent and respite breaks; sheltered housing’ resettlement advice and advice on war pensions.

Continuing to branch out in many directions, the Association is striving to diversify in its support to our members by enhancing the services we provide. New initiatives include the initiation of a new website entitled RAF-Comrade-Contact (http://www.raf-comrade- contact.co.uk/) which will reunite RAF personnel and encourages members to chat and submit stories and information through the website; opening of internet facilities on RAF bases, most recently at RAF Cottesmore called Mokarabia which hopes to encourage a safe and welcoming atmosphere for personnel to meet and talk to loved ones through the internet facilities provided.

The People We Help

There is a widely held perception that we only help airmen and airwomen who fought in World War II. Nothing could be further from the truth! As well as supporting the whole RAF Family we are increasingly supporting those people who are serving and have served in more recent conflicts in Korea, Borneo, the Falklands, the Gulf War, Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Kosovo and the latest conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan.

How We Fund Our Work

The RAF Association receives no Government funding so we are entirely dependant on the generosity of the public and our own members to raise the funds that will enable us to continue our work for the RAF family. The demand on our resources continues to grow. www.rafa.org.uk

64

Personal Details updates.

Please (print off) complete and return the form below (address at end of newsletter) for confirmation and all updates of your personal contact details. It is the only way we can communicate with our members and so would be grateful if you can confirm to ensure we have the correct details on our files. If you know of any member changes that we may not, please do let us know or ask the member to do so.

Personal Details Update Request

Name: Address:

Post Code: Telephone: Mobile: Email address (if applicable): Date:

For the attention of the Secretary, 600 Squadron Association.

Dear Secretary,

I have noticed from your records that you are holding certain information on me that is incorrect. Please find details of how this information should be amended.

Current details held:

Amendments:

I would be grateful if you could acknowledge receipt of my request, and notify me once the necessary amendments have been made. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours Sincerely,

65 Donations

DONATION SLIP – ONE OFF PAYMENT

To help us please print off a copy of this form then complete and return it, along with your donation (in pounds sterling only) to the address below. Please note we do not recommend sending cash through the post and would advise the safer option of a cheque, postal order or Bankers Order. Unfortunately we cannot accept credit card donations.

Andy Cameron, 53 Telford Crescent, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4QT "I would like to make a voluntary donation to 600 (City of London) Squadron Association, Registered Charity No. 248203 ("The City of London Squadron Central Fund") to assist with the funding of the Association.

Title Mr Mrs Miss Ms Other______

(Please circle, as appropriate)

First Name(s) Surname

Full Address

City & Country

Telephone No. (including area codes)

Email Address

Date of Birth Marital Status

Amount Donated

Payment Method Cheque Postal Order Cash

(Please circle as appropriate)

66

67 WW2 Word Search

ALLIED ATOMIC AUSCHWITZ AXIS BATTLE OF BERLIN BATTLE OF BRITAIN BRITAIN CHAMBERLAIN CHURCHILL CZECHOSLOVAKIA DDAY DUNKIRK FRANCE GERMANY HIROHITO HIROSHIMA HITLER ITALY JAPAN MANCHURIA MUNICH NAZI PEARLHARBOR RADAR REDARMY ROOSEVELT RUSSIA SONAR STALIN VERSAILLES

G R C J O R E A Y D G L R L Y M I K J Q F E Q H C I N U M A N C H U R I A K S Q D T S D F Z H A R K O A D Y N A M R E G I E I P N I L R E B F O E L T T A B L G O I K K R I K N U D C R U S S I A R L Z O E J L K C I N Y X W C A C Y T U I I N C A N I A L R E B M A H C N T Q S T A Y N G C C P G R S E P I F Z L C E C A S O C I Z R O B R A H L R A E P R E H I R Q T P L E E Q F I N J U O C P A E W N E N C G E A F Q T E Y A F H H A D M I I V X H F D X T L X K O B U I O I A I T W S G T L E V E S O O R R R X S H R J Z K F Z G T O R T I Z I C O E W L I H O X K Q I R A H R U X T H S V D L O E E K H Z F N C I M O T A I H O U A J V Y M Y G I E X Y L A T I L I U N E R A A L L I E D T R I Z A N L M P F A N M F K P B U Y D E O W F S T A W P X R F Y X I J A F C A Z D B Z C B J Z S R Z N L Z A N W N X Y K C  2010 InfoMedia Inc. Wordsearchfun.com All rights reserved.

601 Squadron Association News

68

Motto:No Motto – It’s a long story! Badge:A winged sword

No.601 Squadron was formed at Northolt on 14 October 1925 as a light bomber unit of the Auxiliary Air Force. A nucleus of permanent staff was posted to the squadron and on 4 December the first Auxiliary personnel were enlisted. Flying did not begin until May 1926 and it was the following year before the Avro 504Ks were supplemented by D.H.9A light bombers. In January 1927 the squadron moved to Hendon, which was its base up to the outbreak of war, apart from a few days during the Munich crisis in September 1938. In November 1929 Wapitis began to arrive and a year later had replaced all the D.H.9As. These were in turn replaced by Harts by June 1933 and on 1 July 1934 the squadron was redesignated a fighter unit. The Harts were retained until replaced by Demons in August 1937. In November 1938, No.601 converted to Gauntlet single-seat fighters, but in January 1939 began to receive Blenheims. It was with these that fighter patrols began when World War Two broke out in September 1939 but in March 1940 the squadron had converted to Hurricanes. During the German invasion of France, a detachment operated from French soil for a week, followed by defensive duties during the Battle of Britain while based in southern England. In February 1941, the squadron began taking part in offensive sweeps over northern France, which continued until August, when re-equipment with Airacobras began. These proved useless and were discarded in favour of Spitfires in March 1942, but after only a few minor operations. In April the squadron sailed for the Middle East and re-assembled in Egypt on 25 June. Fighter sweeps over the Western Desert started a few days later and after the rout of the Afrika Corps at El Alamein, the squadron moved westwards to Tunisia, where it was present at the end of the North African campaign in May 1943. Next month it flew to Malta to cover the Allied landings in Sicily moving into captured airfields in mid-July. In October No.601 moved to Italy, where it spent the rest of the war flying ground attack missions in support of the Allied armies. On 14 August 1945, the squadron was disbanded. On 10 May 1946 the Auxiliary Air Force was reformed and No.601 began to recruit personnel at Hendon in June. In October it commenced flying Spitfires, but moved to North Weald in March 1949 where it converted to Vampires in December. These it flew until re-equipped with Meteors in August 1952. On 10 March 1957, the Royal Auxiliary Air Force was disbanded and No.601 ceased to exist. www.601squadron.com

Let me have your news items please folks………

604 Squadron Association News

69

Motto:Si vis pacem, para bellum - 'If you want peace, prepare for war' Badge: A seax.

No 604, being the County of Middlesex squadron, took part of the armorial bearings of the county, a seax, to commemorate that association. No 604 Squadron was formed on 17 March 1930 at Hendon as a day bomber unit of the Auxiliary Air Force. On 2 April it received its first DH9As and flew these till the arrival of Wapitis in September 1930. On 23 July 1934, it was redesignated a fighter squadron and received Harts as an interim type, pending the delivery of Demon two-seat fighters which arrived in June 1935. Shortly before the outbreak of war, it converted to Blenheims with which it flew defensive patrols and undertook early experiments with airborne radar. When Germany invaded the Low Countries in May 1940, No 604 flew sweeps over the battle areas, but reverted to night patrols in July and became a full-time night fighter squadron, with Beaufighters beginning to arrive in September and by January 1941 the squadron was completely equipped with the type. Early in 1943 the decrease in enemy night raids allowed some Beaufighters to be diverted to intruder operations over enemy airfields in northern France. Conversion to Mosquitoes began in February 1944 and joined Second TAF to help provide cover for the invasion forces during the Normandy landings. In August 1944 it moved to airfields in Normandy, but returned to the UK in September for three months. From January 1945 until it disbanded on 18 April 1945, the squadron was based near Lille to provide night defence for Allied bases in the Low Countries and northern France. On 10 May 1946, No.604 reformed at Hendon as part of the newly reconstituted Auxiliary Air Force and began recruiting in November. As a fighter squadron, it was initially equipped with Spitfires, the first of which arrived in October 1946. It converted to jet fighters with the arrival of Vampires in November 1949. These were replaced in August 1952 by Meteors, which were flown until the Royal Auxiliary Air Force was disbanded on 10 March 1957.

MEMORY OF WARMER DAYS – 604 SQUADRON SUMMER CAMP, TAKALI 1953

70 As the winter weather sets in, 604 Squadron members may like to remember warmer days on Summer Camp at Takali in Malta. The picture below reflects the buzz of activity as planes came back from shooting practice and required refuelling and rearming.

Whilst the plane is being refuelled, the armourers have the panels off the gun compartments, the photographer is replacing the camera gun and the oxygen levels are being checked. A huge amount of work carried out by the ground crew to allow the pilots to practice their shooting. The soot from the gun ports bears witness to number of rounds already fired by this plane.

Hard work but happy days!

M. Allen

A Christmas message from our Chairman

71

Well yet another year has fled by adding credence to the saying “the older you get the shorter the year seems to be”.

You will probably have noticed that this issue of the Newsletter is in a different format to previous ones. This is because Andy has taken over from Robin as Editor and wants to move the Newsletter forward in an attempt to appeal to both our older members and the younger, more recent additions, to our throng. I’m sure you join me in wishing Andy every success.

The last year has been one of upheaval and change. The need for economies in government has spilled over into our domain. I know that Michelle, the present Squadron OC, has been very busy fighting the spectre of disbandment, at worst, and role change, at best. I believe she is making progress and that, for the moment, our Squadron is, hopefully, safe. However, the strategic defence review still rumbles on. I think some modification to role is inevitable. Throughout most of this year it has been known that the squadron will relocate to different offices within RAF Northolt. By the time you receive this Newsletter this task will have been accomplished. A knock on effect of the move has been that the Squadron museum, which was then housed in the squadron HQ, and our memorabilia (photos, uniforms, medals etc) have had to be relocated. In parallel with this operation, RAF Northolt wished to establish a station museum featuring, not only it’s own history, but that of lodger units as well. Manpower, and its utilisation, is now under an intense spotlight so Angie Luddington & Sgt Jim Bole jumped in to assist the squadron with this task. Additionally, we have the added problem of the squadron silver, which is currently under the custodianship of the Officers Mess at RAF Northolt. Debate rages backwards and forwards as to who should keep it, who should pay for a valuation, and who should pay for its ongoing insurance. This lively discussion is still ongoing.

Throughout the year Andy has been very busy parading our new standard, which looks superb. Kevin visited Holland in the spring to join members of our present squadron and our Dutch colleagues in acts of remembrance to those who perished on the Waalhaven raid. Equally, your Association joined in other occasions.

Sadly, this year we have lost some of our cherished colleagues and our thoughts go out their families and friends at this poignant time of the year. It is, also, a time when memories are brought back of the many members we lost throughout preceding years.

Looking ahead, your Association is in good shape and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those members who have given their help and advice throughout the year and made this possible.

Fellow members, families, and friends please have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year.

Terry President Footnote

72 A reminder. This is YOUR newsletter. The new style newsletter is a bit different from previous newsletters and I hope you will both enjoy reading it, and find the content interesting. I would of course welcome your feedback.

The newsletter depends largely on YOUR contributions. Please forward any & all contributions to me (no matter how small). Photographs, articles, memories, funny stories etc – all welcome and appreciated, especially from our older members who may like to share memories, thoughts records, pictures etc that they may wish to share with our younger members of perhaps your War time experiences?

I will endeavour to use all material provided albeit I reserve the right to edit as required.

Please send me all your material at [email protected] if you do not have e mail, post your articles to Andy Cameron, 53 Telford Crescent, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4QT. If you require any originals returned, copies and will be taken and sent back, although please ensure you provide your name & address.

And one final reminder – can I please ask that those of you who have e-mail drop me a quick contact message with your name so that I can keep our records up to date. Remember that if I can e-mail you the newsletter you will get it faster and will save the Association money in printing, paper, envelopes and postage.

Have a great Christmas and a very happy & prosperous New Year!

Andy

NOT me, but one of the three wise men (and his lovely Wife Veronica) aka Wg Cdr S. Ahearn

Newsletter contact;

Andy Cameron 53 Telford Crescent Woodley Reading Berkshire RG5 4QT Email; [email protected] Tel; 0118 962 8118

73