Collected Articles by Charles Jeffrey Gray DFM, L.d’H 1st Edition Collected Articles Collected Articles By Charles Jeffrey Gray, D.F.M, L.d’H. Published by Robert Gray ISBN 978-0-473-39825-5 First published June 2017 Cover Photo - Jeff Gray, Terrell Texas, 1942 Copyright Collected Articles by Charles Jeffrey Gray is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://www.brockhurst.co.nz/collected-articles. Page !2 Collected Articles Contents Modain .................................................................8 First Mission .........................................................................8 Berlin - The Big City ...........................................11 First Published in Fly Past - 1991 ........................................11 The Local Defence Volunteers ...........................17 To Mr. Stephen Wood, Edinburgh Castle ...........................17 Terrell Tales .......................................................23 Early days .......................................................................................................................24 Much later ......................................................................................................................25 Later still ........................................................................................................................26 Last Lap ..........................................................................................................................27 The Trip That Never Was! .................................29 Wartime incident ................................................................29 Where Are They Now ........................................32 Wartime Aircrew Training ................................................32 Cowley’s Unsung Heroes ...................................34 Wartime aircraft recovery .................................................34 Wellington Crash ...............................................36 In The Galant Performance of Their Duties ......................36 Amy, Wonderful Amy........................................ 40 Australia .............................................................................40 Ah, Moon of my Delight ....................................44 Recollections of the Gulf .....................................................44 By the Grace of God ...........................................47 A flight in Africa ..................................................................47 Log Book Entry: ..............................................................................................................47 Page !3 Collected Articles Narrative. ........................................................................................................................47 Gulf Aviation...................................................... 49 A brief history .....................................................................49 In High Places ....................................................52 VIP Transport .....................................................................52 Falling Leaves ....................................................56 Flight Testing ......................................................................56 Leaving their Brains Behind ..............................61 Fog over Europe ..................................................................61 The Judges’ Story ..............................................65 Comments on Erebus ..........................................................65 In Flight Entertainment ....................................69 Passengers ..........................................................................69 The Twain Shall Meet ........................................73 Training aircrew in the Middle East ..................................73 That Doesn’t Count ............................................79 Returning to the UK ............................................................79 1984 ...................................................................83 Opinion ................................................................................83 Mr Forbes I Presume .........................................85 Letter to sister Olive............................................................ 85 Mailly-le-Camp ..................................................87 Wartime Recollections ........................................................87 The Bean 18/50 .................................................90 Importing Vintage Cars .....................................................90 Page !4 Collected Articles A Frog In My Throat ..........................................93 A Brush with the NHS .........................................................93 The Rover’s Return ............................................97 Slough Arts Festival Entry January 1984 .........................97 Out of the Wood ...............................................101 The Rover 10/25 ................................................................101 Transport of Delight ........................................104 The Rover 10/25 ................................................................104 The Eye of the Beholder ..................................106 Discovery of Frank Baker Paintings ................................106 The Brighton Light ..........................................109 History of the Brighton Art Club ......................................109 Frank Baker ......................................................112 Artist 1873 - 1911 ................................................................112 The Booth Water Ram ......................................114 An Old fashioned Repair ...................................................114 The Forgotten Island ........................................119 New Zealand’s Great Barrier Island ................................119 The Rovers' Retreat .........................................122 Where Land Rovers Go to Die ..........................................122 Thunderbolt .....................................................124 Land speed record contender ...........................................124 The Family Bibles .............................................127 Family History ..................................................................127 And so to Patrick Alexander .........................................................................................128 Page !5 Collected Articles A Tale of the Three Cups .................................130 Letter dated May 1984 ......................................................130 The Hollow Tooth ...........................................132 The futility of war .............................................................132 Page !6 Collected Articles Publishers Note Going through my fathers papers after his death in 2016 I found a heap of papers in a box in the wardrobe. Rather than going through them at the time I packed them up to go through later. The papers turned out to be a number of short stories and articles he had written as well as a tatty file labeled ‘It’s Pull To Go Up’ that contained several hundred typed pages, mostly ordered and several old exercise books with my fathers characteristic handwriting. Some of the articles have been published before but I suspect that most have not been and I have collected them into this volume. They range from some of his wartime exploits in Bomber Command through his airline experiences to retirement projects restoring old cars. I have ordered the papers as best I can and resolved some inconsistencies, otherwise the stories are entirely his own. Robert Gray May 2017 Page !7 Collected Articles Modain First Mission When we reported in at Syerston to join 61 Squadron we had very little idea of what lay ahead. We were, however, full of youthful exuberance and confident that we came with a good report from our trainers at Conversion Unit. Why else would they have cut short the final cross country stages and packed us off to a Squadron? Our new Commanding Officer seemed unimpressed. Shortage of Lancaster aircraft might be nearer the mark, he thought, and, before we could commence operations, we would have to make good the shortfall. In addition, he would find us an easy target to start with. This latter requirement was not, as it turned out, a simple one in the winter of 1943 in main force Bomber Command. Another unhappy experience awaited us. The whole station was ordered on parade there to witness some poor wretch being stripped of his rank and flying badges. It seems he had had enough and decided to go home. He made no attempt to run away, he simply went home. The Military Police brought him back to be disgraced. If we had been under any illusions as to the realities of the course on which we were now embarked, we were thus shortly disabused. Then from Bomber Command Headquarters came the call for Maximum Effort and we found ourselves briefed with the others for Berlin. So much for the C.O's easy target. As we waited for the time to start up, I noticed with growing anxiety, the gathering fog shrouding the dispersal. On this still unfamiliar airfield, my first concern had to be finding the way out. At that, the Very lights went