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Pat Butler
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Form 700 No. 58 Winter 2011/2012
INDEX
From the Chair
General Announcements
A Ferry Story Part III
It Started With an Oil Leak
Part II
Flying Scholarships for the Disabled
The Butler-Stillwell Memorial Award
Commemoration of The Battle of Britain
---------- It is always a
pleasure at this time of year after due consideration to be able
to say that it has been a “Good Year” for the Eastern Wing. We have a strong
and dedicated Committee and we will be even better with Cliff
Wesson becoming our new acting Hon. Treasurer. Our helpers’
squad is the best ever, from the youngsters Jemima and Steven to
the very experienced Audrey Morgan. Sadly the late Doug Bland
passing away will be a great loss and he will be much missed. The future of
the Eastern Wing shines brighter than ever and the ethos of the
Spitfire Society remains paramount. There remains
then for me to wish members old and new a very healthy, happy
and prosperous New Year. “Keep the
Faith”. David
----------------------------------- Welcome to Form 700
Committee News
Gerard Crutchley has now stepped down from his role as acting
Hon. Treasurer which he has been doing along with his numerous
other tasks since David Williams relinquished the role about a
year ago. Many thanks for all your work in this respect Gerard;
it has been, along with everything else you do, greatly
appreciated. Welcome on board to Clifford Wesson who has now
taken over from Gerry as acting Hon. Treasurer. Mister Micawber
might advise you thus; ‘Annual income twenty pounds, annual
expenditure nineteen six, result happiness. Annual income twenty
pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result
misery,’ though perhaps ‘Money is better than poverty, if only
for financial reasons’, may be more helpful. Best wishes and
good luck in your new role Cliff. Readers will be
sad to hear of the passing of Doug Bland who has been a familiar
face at our Air Show Stand and other events for many years; a
tribute to him may be found in this magazine. Other items in
this edition of the Form 700 include the continuation of Geoff
Bates fascinating wartime ‘Ferry Story’, a splendid item called
‘Watch Office’ by Sqn Ldr Ian Blair, part two of Peter French’s
‘It Started With an Oil Leak’, the Butler-Stillwell Awards and
much more. Special
congratulations in this issue to our dear friend Audrey Morgan
who in November 2011 celebrated her 90th
Birthday. A former wartime WAAF, Audrey has long been a
dedicated supporter of The Spitfire Society and our region,
helping organise and run the sales stand, committee meetings,
events, activities and much else besides. (An interview with
Audrey may be found in the
Archives section of our Eastern Wing
website, which details one or two hairy moments for Audrey
during the war!)
Happy Birthday Audrey!
It will very soon be time to start thinking about the activities
and events of 2012, and what better way to plan ahead than
with the Spitfire Society 2012 Calendar. With
photography by Darren Harbar and James Wheeler and featuring
Spitfires of numerous shapes and sizes, all airborne, the
calendar follows the same successful format as this year; two
sections, each measuring 20x25cm, one with the days of the month
with room on each day for notes, the other with a beautiful
portrait of everyone’s favourite
aeroplane. An ideal Christmas present, the calendar is priced at
a mere £5.75 including postage and may be obtained from Jason
Amiss - see
Merchandise page.
Wreaths were once again laid at St. Andrews Church, North Weald
and at the Airfield Memorial adjacent to North Weald Museum on
behalf of The Spitfire Society by Squadron Leader Ian Blair DFM
to commemorate Battle of Britain Day and Armistice Day; thank
you Ian. We also extend
our appreciation to Eric Horwood, a steadfast and hardworking
member of this Wing who has dedicated countless hours of his
time and energy to supporting many different aspects of our
activities over the years, and who again obtained the wreathes
for the above commemorative services; many thanks Eric.
Diary Date!
The Spitfire Society Eastern Wing AGM will be held at Old Warden
on Saturday 14th of April 2012.
Your support is always appreciated.
On a trip up to Lincolnshire to visit the aircraft of the Battle
of Britain Memorial Flight recently I was travelling with a
companion to visit Sandilands near Mablethorpe, once the home of
our old friend Alex Henshaw, when I was surprised and delighted
to come upon a recently-built road named after the great man
himself! I daresay there are plenty of people who already knew
about this, but I’m afraid it was news to me. Henshaw Avenue
boasts marble plaques depicting the two aircraft with which he
will always be associated, the Spitfire and the Mew Gull, each
aircraft picked out in gold bordering. The plaques are mounted
in a handsome sandstone setting upon an ornate brickwork wall on
either side of the entrance to the avenue – which itself has
roads such as ‘Comper Swift Close’ and ‘Leopard Moth Close’
adjoining it. Splendid!
PW ----------------------------------- Part III Geoff Bates If you have not read Part I & II, you can find
them here:
In luck again
... A number of us,
and I was one of them, were always on the lookout for a new type
of aircraft to get in your log book. You would find out if it
wanted delivering even if it meant going out of your way. If it
did need delivering you would see the senior NCO in charge
asking him to book it for you to pick up when you had completed
your present delivery. Landing at
Tripoli en route to Cairo I spotted a Westland Lysander which I
learned was awaiting a tail wheel, which was expected within the
next three days. I booked the aircraft, which had to be
delivered to Brindisi in Italy. On return from Cairo there was
no sign of the ‘Lizzie’; my blood pressure was beginning to rise
as Lysanders were a rarity and would have been a prize capture,
when the Flight Sergeant appeared to explain that a couple of
days earlier an Officer, who had night-stopped there, had
quizzed him about the aircraft. On learning it was to be
collected in a day or two he said he would test fly it to save
me a job. The aircraft was gathering speed when it suddenly
swung viciously to starboard before toppling onto its nose and
bursting into flames. Fortunately the pilot escaped unscathed.
Evidently a brake had seized causing the aircraft to veer off
the runway and turn over.
I managed to get
a lift to Tunis on an American Naval Dakota where my luck was in
again; there was a Warhawk there which had to be delivered to a
maintenance unit at Algiers. After an air test I took off for
Algiers. The coastline between Tunis and Algiers is extremely
rocky and it would be impossible to carry out a forced landing
if you lost your engine; the only option would be to bail out,
which didn’t appeal to me! I was about three quarters of the way
to Algiers flying at 5,000ft when my engine cut dead. I dived to
see if I could restart the engine with no joy, but I was in luck
as immediately
below me was a small auxiliary RAF station. I called up for an
emergency landing but was told to go round again as there was a
steamroller on the runway repairing potholes. I told them in no
uncertain terms that I couldn’t go round again without an
engine. I managed to land on a peri track with vehicles and
personnel hurriedly getting out of my way! I often wondered how
I would cope in an emergency and was amazed how calm I felt. I
reported to Flying Control and was greeted with the words “I
expect you could do with this,” and was handed a mug of tea. I
put it down as quickly as I could hoping no-one had noticed my
shakes; I obviously wasn’t as calm as I thought I was! My luck was in
again for had my engine cut a minute earlier or later I would
have been some
four miles away. It would have been impossible for me to make
the runway, leaving me with no option but to bail out. One more
piece of luck. There was a Spitfire there to be taken to the
maintenance unit at Algiers. The only other way to get back to
base would have been for them to send an aircraft to fly me out.
Homeward Bound Much to my
surprise six of us were told one morning that we were to be
posted to Melton Mowbray tomorrow because of the shortage of
pilots in the U.K. to ferry aircraft abroad. So we hastily got
packed and our mess bills etc. paid. We were in for a
busy time; first of all we converted onto Mustangs, Tempests,
Corsairs, Hellcats and Vultee Vengeance Dive-Bombers, which none
of us liked. Fortunately my time on the latter was limited to
the time I spent converting onto them. One of our unit had to
bail out of a Vengeance when it caught fire south of Ajaccio in
Corsica. His body was found on a beach with his parachute which
had failed to open. Ironically he was courting a WAAF parachute
packer. We were kept
busy flying an assortment of aircraft, mainly to Cairo, Karachi
and Nagpur in central India. A one-off was a delivery of a
Corsair to Malta for the Fleet Air Arm. On return from a
trip to India I was greeted by the Flight Commander as I passed
his office, like a lost friend. “Just the fellow I want to make
up a party”, he said. Sounded exciting! “What sort of party?” I
enquired. “Your old unit at Blida in Algeria have a lot of work
on and we are sending six pilots to them for a few months to
help out; I’ve got five and you complete the party”. I
vehemently protested that I had spent all but six weeks of my
service time abroad and that there were several pilots on the
unit who had never been abroad. The reply I got was that all the
other pilots were away on trips and the six of us were urgently
required – “anyhow, it’s only for a few weeks”. I had heard that
all before. No amount of pleading was going to get me off this
‘temporary’ posting. I was handed my rail ticket and told to
report to the Aircrew Holding Centre at Morecambe in Lancashire.
Why if the posting was so urgent were we not being flown
directly out to Blida? One chap was not
happy to be posted home as he was having woman trouble. The five
of us decided to write to our MPs to seek their help. I was the
first to receive a reply and when the Adjutant saw it he nearly
had a fit. “I’m not having my name raised in the House,” he
said and dashed to the notice board and tore down the posting
list with our names on it.
The
outcome was that I and one other were sent back to Filton and
the other three were grounded. This left ‘Lover Boy’. He was so
concerned that he might be taken off the posting that he saw the
Adjutant and within a couple of days he was on his way to Blida.
I don’t know whether the girlfriends ever caught up with him!
To
be continued…
-----------------------------------
Part II Peter
French The following piece was written by former
wartime pilot the late Peter French and originally appeared in a
magazine called ‘The Seadog’ of which Peter was Editor. A
Seadog, as we all know, is a type of small, centre-cockpit
ketch-rigged motor/sailing boat and Peter was an enthusiastic
owner and sailor of one of these handsome vessels. Our thanks to
Mrs French for forwarding the article to us and for kindly
granting permission for its reproduction here in the Form 700. If you have not read Part I you can find
it here:
It was much
darker over the land, and while my eyes adjusted to the fading
light, and my heartbeats returned to near-normal, I flew just
above the tree-tops, half in and half out of the cloud base,
searching for somewhere to put down. The first big field I came
to had been newly ploughed, but another nearby was grass
covered, and at first sight looked promising. But when I flew
nearer, I noticed that its surface was studded with concrete
anti-glider-invasion posts. As I circled in the deepening
twilight to ponder my next move, I glimpsed the distant lights
of vehicles heading in my direction. While a
wheels-up landing on the ploughed field would have been
relatively safe, the resulting Court of Inquiry into the cause
of the damage would have led to a court-martial for me, for
having taken the aircraft without permission. The alternative -
to attempt a landing with the wheels down, in the near dark, in
a field stiff with concrete posts, would be a tremendous gamble,
if not an act of lunacy. With no time for
second thoughts, and convinced that I might get away with it, if
only I could get the aircraft back on the ground in one piece, I
decided to gamble my chances on the field with the concrete
posts. With undercarriage down, then flaps down, as slowly as I
dared, I brought her, hanging on the propellers, low over the
hedge. I chopped the throttles and she dropped like a stone to
the ground. Then using brakes and engines alternately in a
life-or-death chicane, zigzagged violently the length of the
field in the wildest ride of my life and by some miracle escaped
crashing into the posts. My heart raced as the aircraft bucked
and skidded its way to a standstill. Then, quite unable to
believe my good fortune, I sat dazed for a while with the
engines ticking over. My next thought
was, where to leave the aircraft in safety? Nearby was the dark
silhouette of a haystack. My hand was poised ready to blast the
port throttle wide open to swing the aircraft towards it, when I
spotted, only feet away, another of those concrete posts. One
moment more, and I should have smashed straight into it. That
shook me more than all that had gone before - I could have
thrown it all away in one simple act of carelessness just when I
thought the job was done. Sick at the
realisation, I taxied the aircraft past the post to the lee of
the haystack and switched off the engines. Scarcely had I
finished fitting safety locks to the flying controls when a
stream of Army vehicles swept into the field and in seconds I
was encircled by soldiers. The young officer-in-charge treated
me with courtesy, despite having some idea, so I learned later,
that I might be a spy. After brief interrogation, I was placed
under close arrest. An armed guard
was mounted over my aircraft, and I was taken under escort to
the Headquarters of the Searchlight Battery at the village of
Grindale, from which the soldiers had come. Having just flown in
from the North Sea in wartime, unannounced, and in near darkness
late on a foggy winter's day, I was not overly surprised at
being treated with suspicion by the Army. There was a curious
twist to events that night, for when the Army officer telephoned
to check my story, the R.A.F. authorities told him that a pilot
resembling the man he described had been reported killed that
afternoon while flying an Airspeed Oxford in fog over the
Yorkshire Moors. Orders were
given that I was to remain in custody until identified. My overnight
stay at the Army Searchlight Battery was memorable. The kindness
shown to me, and the generous hospitality with which they
welcomed me into their Mess, was exceptional. As the evening
wore on and the drinks flowed, I discovered that the cliffs over
which I had flown were at Flamborough Head, and rise nearly four
hundred feet above sea-level. Next morning, an
officer from my base arrived, and after identification, I
returned with him, wondering what sort of reception awaited me.
Much to my surprise, no disciplinary action was taken - neither
then, nor later. Perhaps there was a feeling that I had already
paid the price for my foolhardiness. Of course, the
Oxford had to be returned to base. Flying it out appeared to be
the obvious thing to do, so men with tractors ripped out all the
concrete posts and smoothed over the holes. Then, because
the Royal Air Force has a regulation which bans pilots who have
made a forced landing from flying their aircraft out again,
another pilot was delegated to do the job. He took one look at
the field and declared that he was not prepared to chance such a
risky take-off. A second pilot was sent. He too refused to fly
the aircraft out. In the end, I was summoned to the Flight
Commander's office and told "You put it in - you get it out!" -
which was, I suppose, a kind of poetic justice. But getting the
Oxford out was not to be a simple matter. Experience had taught
me that landing an aircraft in a small field was easier than
flying it out again. To succeed, everything had to be exactly
right, but here, the odds were all against me. I flew to
Lissett aerodrome just south of Bridlington, then went by car to
the farm at Grindale where my aircraft lay waiting. One look at
the take-off run told me why other pilots had refused to take on
the job. It was short, shorter than I had remembered. This meant
that I should have to await the arrival of strong winds to help
lift the aircraft into the air. When the next weather system
bringing strong winds set in some three days later, I returned
to the farm. After engine and
airframe checks had been carried out, and the aircraft partly
refuelled, I taxied into position for take-off, opened the
throttles and hoped for the
best. Full of promise, the Oxford charged forwards over the
tufty grass, but speed built slowly. Soon it became apparent
that I had not a hope of getting her airborne before reaching
the end of the field. I whipped back the throttles, smacked on
the brakes, and brought the aircraft to a standstill. Nor was
the second attempt any more successful - the drag of the landing
wheels sinking into the soft ground slowed the aircraft as
surely as if the brakes had been applied, and I was forced to
abandon that run also. Determined not
to give up without some sort of a fight, I decided, as a last
resort, to try a tactic I'd used with great success some years
earlier, during experiments towing giant tank-carrying gliders
with equally huge four-engined heavy bombers. So I taxied to the
downwind boundary, swung the aircraft round to face into the
strong wind, then locked on the brakes as hard as they would go. Next, I lowered
the flaps a little, opened the throttles to their widest, and
rammed the control column hard forward. Slowly the tail lifted.
When, everything was thundering and juddering fit to burst, I
suddenly released the brakes. The Oxford leapt
forward, and as she hurtled over the bumpy grass, I hung on, and
with all my might willed her desperately into the air.
To be continued …
----------------------------------- Sqn Ldr Ian Blair DFM
What ever did we do before
Air Traffic Control existed? Simple - we had a ‘Duty Pilot’ (DP)
ably assisted by the ‘Airman of the Watch’ (A of W). In the mid
1930's, I left apprentice training and was posted to 101 Sqn at
Bicester, where I was to become familiar with ‘The Watch Office’
(WO) as an AC2 Arm/AG. The WO was a
small wooden building, right on the edge of the grass airfield
(no runways). It faced outwards towards the vast expanse of the
field with panelled windows (no picture windows in those days)
and the aerodrome usually visible along the maximum length and
width (sometimes there was a dip in the airfield surface and
sight of a landing aircraft could be lost for a moment). The WO usually
had two rooms, a toilet and a small area where the ‘brewing up’
was done. The main room had a desk facing the window where the
DP sat. Opposite, on the window ledge, were an array of items
including an Aldis Lamp and coloured screens, Very pistol,
binoculars and landing compass. Adjacent were 2 x 6ft tables on
which the radio link of the closed circuit weather broadcasts
equipment was located. It was the duty of the A of W to take
down these broadcasts at regular times throughout the day (this
radio link was direct to the forecaster who I think was at
Uxbridge, but it may have been Andover at that time). In addition the
DP gave a local visual on the weather i.e. the horizontal
visibility, wind speed and direction and estimated height of
cloud base. With experience,
this ‘chore’ was delegated to the A of W. Working in the same
location, the A of W logged all aircraft movements IN & OUT in
the Watch Keeping Log. As far as I can
remember the WO hut was on the camp central heating system, so
there was no requirement for the A of W to light any stove. The
only daily requirement was to "bumper" the office floor (Grade 1
lino), open up the WO at about 07.00hrs and take down from the
weather broadcast system the first weather reports. Prior to all
this, the keys of the WO had to be collected from the Guardroom
and the "dry rations" collected from the airmen's mess, all done
on foot or by issue bicycle - you didn't get any transport. At the rear,
inside the building, there was a large steel cupboard built into
a brick wall, part of the WO known as the ‘Ready for Use
Pyrotechnic Store’. It contained a very limited amount of Very
cartridges (various colours), rockets, port fires, signal
projectiles and igniters (friction operated) and a few ground
smoke generators. Because of the
requirement to operate the signal mortar, the A of W was usually
from the Armament Trades. The duty was routine but because of
the requirement, the Armament Trades were excused the extra duty
of Fire Piquet. The A of W did of course carry out the Duty
Armourer duties which were separate to that of A of W duty. Outside of the
watch office was of course the Ground Signal Area, which I am
sure you will all remember - a large square with a large white
"T" and the wind sock. There were other signals, eg dumbbell,
"R" &" L" (circuit indicators), each with their standard
meanings. On instructions from the DP the A of W changed each of
these. There was also the Station Identification Letters which
were permanent. There were two
other features adjacent to the signal area, these were: 1. A six foot
steel pipe about 2” in diameter, set at an angle of about 80°.
This was the firing stance for the rockets. The sticks which
were about 8ft long were inserted into the pipe and the "blue
touch paper" ignited with a port fire. 2. A large
concrete square (3ft sq.) into which was cemented a solid cast
iron base mounting for the barrel of the signal mortar. The
mortar barrel was high tensile steel, 3" diameter and about 3ft
long. At the bottom of the barrel there was a small external
hole at right angles to the centre line of the barrel - into
this hole was inserted the friction igniter. This in turn was
connected to a lanyard some 12ft long. The signal
projectile and propelling charge came in a sealed tin about the
size of a large can of fruit. When required for use the armourer
would fit and secure the barrel to the permanent base plate with
a steel pin, drop the powder bag into the mouth of the barrel
(rammed down with a special ‘ram rod’), then slide the
projectile gently to the bottom (it rested on an internal
ridge). Then he would insert the igniter, run the cable out to
its full length and connect the cable hook to the firing hook on
the igniter. When the DP gave the ok, usually coinciding with
the noise of an aircraft overhead, the A of W would give a
strong tug on the lanyard handle. There was an almighty
explosion and the projectile shot skywards to burst with a bang
and flash at a height of 1500ft. The whole
purpose of course was to indicate to aircraft in the vicinity
that there was an airfield below. In the absence of any
navigation aids, it was then up to the pilot to get himself on
the ground - he didn't necessarily know where he was. The rockets
mentioned were used for the same purpose with the height of the
burst being somewhat lower (800ft), but the same procedure was
used in low cloud conditions. Adjacent airfields would usually
telephone the DP if help was required, that is to say low cloud
base, day or night, and when an aircraft was lost or overdue. You can see a
facsimile of a Watch Office (Northolt) at the RAF Museum Hendon.
How things have changed! IB
----------------------------------- Doug Bland
Sadly in
August of this year we lost a great friend and one of our most
loyal colleagues when Doug Bland died.
For many
years Doug enthusiastically supported us at regional events and
activities and was a dedicated team-mate on the Spitfire Society
sales stand at air shows. His speciality was in the vital role
of selling our raffle tickets, a task at which he excelled and
at which he worked extremely hard though making what to many can
be a tiresome job look easy, greeting the public with his calm,
relaxed conversational style which, along with his engaging
smile soon had people virtually queuing up to buy a ticket from
him. I think this was Doug’s secret and the reason he made it
look easy – he genuinely enjoyed every minute of what he did.
Doug was a
true gentleman, a man of great warmth, kindness and compassion
and working as he did for us in the front line with his great
knowledge of Spitfires and the RAF he was a truly fine
ambassador for The Spitfire Society; we were very lucky to have
him on our team. It was always a pleasure spending time in
Doug’s company, his gentle humour warming our spirits on the
chilliest of Duxford mornings.
The sales
stand will not be the same without Doug; he was our friend and
we shall miss him very much.
We extend
our sincerest condolences to Doug’s family.
PW
-----------------------------------
Steve Williams On the 19th
October 2011 I was fortunate enough to be invited to represent
The Spitfire Society, Eastern Wing, at the official opening of
the "Grandma Flew Spitfires" exhibition at the Maidenhead
Heritage Centre. This is a
permanent display and archive based on the work of the Air
Transport Auxiliary which had its headquarters at nearby White
Waltham airfield. Our Chairman Mr
David Evans, and Mr Chris Brice for the Society's central "Len
Stillwell Bequest" fund also attended. The opening
ceremony was performed by H.R.H Prince Michael of Kent who
demonstrated a considerable knowledge of the A.T.A. in his
remarks. Other dignitaries speaking were Air Vice Marshall
Stephen Hillier for the R.A.F., Commodore of the A.T.A.
Association Mr Peter Garrod and the Mayor of Windsor and
Maidenhead Councillor Asghar Majeed. A remarkable twenty three
veterans were present. Dominating the
whole scene was the Spitfire simulator, fifty per cent of the
costs for which were paid for by the Eastern Wing's charities
fund. This was certainly a major attraction and many of the
guests, including Prince Michael, spent a considerable time
"playing" with this marvellous piece of equipment. I would like to
thank the Chairman Mr Richard Poad and his team of hard working
volunteers for a most memorable day and wish them every success
for the future.
http://www.atamuseum.org/index.html
-----------------------------------
Flying Scholarships for Disabled People
Gerry Crutchley As I’m sure you
all know by now, our friend, the late Len Stillwell, bequeathed
a large sum of money to The Spitfire Society equally split
between HQ and the Eastern Wing. Here at Eastern we have been
carefully looking into worthy causes that we feel Len would have
been happy for us to support. After much consideration, Eastern
chose Flying Scholarships for Disabled People (FSDP), a charity in
memory of Group Captain Douglas Bader ‘dedicated to helping
disabled people to discover their true potential through the
mental and physical stimulation of learning to fly a light
aircraft’. Last year we
awarded FSD a grant of £10,000 which allowed us to sponsor one
of nine students in 2011. Other sponsors included The Red Arrows
Charitable Trust and The Royal Air Force Charitable Trust. The award pays
for the student to have flying tuition, ground school and
supporting exams. Scholarships take place in South Africa as
well as UK flying schools. The selection
process for our student began in February this year and in April
it was announced at RAF Cranwell that our student would be Laura
Branigan. In July 2011
David Williams and I were
invited to RIAT at RAF Fairford where Laura and the other
students were awarded their scholarship certificates by His
Royal Highness Prince Faisal of Jordan. To date, the weather has
not been kind to Laura and she still has some of her 35 flying
hours left to complete, but she tells us she has definitely got
the flying bug and wishes to pursue her training. We wish her
well and look forward to seeing her next year again at RIAT.
http://www.fsfdp.org.uk/index.html
ACM Sir Stephen Dalton, Laura and HRH Prince Faisal
---------------------------------- The Butler-Stillwell Memorial Award Once again the
awards presented to Air Training Corps cadets in the name of
Eastern Region Founder Pat Butler and former committee member
and benefactor Len Stillwell went to two outstanding young
gentlemen; Cadet Warrant Officer Andrew Monk
Andrew Monk joined the Air Cadets in the summer of 2004. He
completed his solo and advanced glider training in February 2008
aged 16 in the Viking glider at RAF Syerston. From there he went
on to join 614 Volunteer Gliding Squadron where he is currently
training as an instructor so that he may help new Air Cadets
towards solo flying. Andrew was
awarded three flying scholarships through the Air Cadets,
becoming the top pilot on the Air Cadet Pilot Scheme in 2009 and
was awarded a further twelve hour flying scholarship through the
Air League. In 2009 Andrew
also gained his Private Pilot’s Licence at RAF Wyton Military
Flying Club and has since achieved the club aerobatic rating.
During his time in the Air Cadets Andrew has also gained the
Gold Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and he was also the first cadet
from the London and South East Region to become a qualified
Aerospace instructor. Andrew’s
ambition is to become a pilot in the Royal Air Force, the
application for which is currently underway. I am certain that
with the drive and determination that Andrew has shown in his
time with the ATC this ambition will soon become realised.
(Andrew flew into Old Warden for the awards ceremony in a light
aircraft, the only cadet thus far, as far as I am aware, to do
so!)
Cadet Warrant Officer Henry Wisdom
CWO Henry Wisdom
is also a remarkable person who has achieved many great things –
including becoming the 1066 Squadron Bandmaster (Henry is a
gifted trombonist) - and was given glowing recommendations for
our award by his Commanding Officers, brief extracts of which
are included below; ‘CWO Wisdom this
year completed his flying scholarship and received a very good
report. He was also picked as one of the winners of the Duke of
Westminster Award through the CVQO. He was one of a group of
cadets who were given a once in a lifetime trip to South Africa
to participate in various charity projects. Wisdom has recently
been selected for his CWO position having passed his interview
due to his high commitment and obvious abilities in being able
to carry out this role. He is respected by both his peers and
staff and is always approachable and an ambassador for the
squadron on community events. I believe that
if he received this award he would be a great ambassador for the
Air Training Corps and is well deserved of being considered this
year for this prestigious achievement.’
Flt
Lt H. Callaghan ‘I have seen CWO
Wisdom evolve from cadet to Flight Sergeant and soon Cadet
Warrant Officer; in his time at 1066 (Hitchin) Sqn he has always
taken on the tasks presented to their highest level and has
always strived to do the best job he could. CWO Wisdom is a very
mature young man who has already planned out his career having
used the ATC to the best of his abilities and will continue to
assist the ATC beyond his ATC time.’
Wg Cdr Paul Mimpress
Two most worthy recipients of the
Butler-Stillwell Awards who clearly represent the spirit of the
Spitfire and whom I am sure Pat and Len would be proud to have
associated with their name and their memory.
May I take this opportunity on behalf
of the Eastern Wing and the whole of the Spitfire Society to
wish them the very best for their future careers; good luck
chaps, and do please stay in touch.
A final note
from Steve Williams: ‘For
some time it has been the Committee's ambition to make an award
solely bearing Len Stillwell's name. The exact parameters are
the subject of negotiations with the Air Cadets, but it will be
distinctly different from the long standing Pat Butler Memorial
Award. The first presentation will take place at the Eastern AGM
in April 2012.’
More information on this award can be found on the
Pat Butler Memorial Award page
PW
---------------------------------- 71 Year
Old Crash Site Found in Lake Muskoka, Canada On a recent trip to Canada I came across
this story in The Muskoka Sun. I know that there has been a fair
amount of discussion on the internet concerning this incident so I thought some of our
visitors might find it interesting. GC
LAKE MUSKOKA — It’s been more than
seven decades since a mid-air collision claimed the lives of
four pilots over Lake Muskoka, but for the families of two of
those pilots the final chapter in their story was never written.
That is until a group of determined local men found what could
be the final resting place of Peter Campbell and Ted Bates
(photo).
“This is our honour and our duty,”
said Al Bacon, a member of the Lost Airmen of Muskoka Project
(LAMP). “These were our servicemen and they’re heroes as far as
I’m concerned.”
Since 2004, LAMP has been
investigating more than a dozen known Second World War-era plane
crash sites in Muskoka, but their focus has been on one crash in
particular.
On Dec. 12, 1940, a training flight
out of Borden went missing in a blizzard, touching off a massive
aerial search the following day.
“They put 50 aircraft in the air the next day from Borden and
they searched from Georgian Bay to Sudbury to Trenton looking
for that one plane,” said Bacon. “Two planes came over Lake
Muskoka and they were making a turn to go into the airport to
refuel when they collided. They both went down.”
One plane was recovered in early
1941 and the bodies of the two pilots, L. Francis of Glamorgan,
Wales and W.P. Gosling of Edmonton, were recovered.
The second plane, an RCAF Nomad
3521, and its passengers became the subject of a massive search
in the weeks that followed.
According to several articles that
appeared in late 1940 and early 1941 editions of the Toronto
Star, the only sign of the accident was an oil slick on top of
Lake Muskoka, but that didn’t stop extensive recovery efforts
that included more aerial searching, dragging the lake, and
sending in a diver who called his seven dives at 120 feet in
Lake Muskoka the closest to death he had ever come.
But with the war raging in Europe,
the crash had largely been forgotten within a few months by
everyone except the families of pilots Peter Campbell, 24, of
Sussex, England and Ted Bates, 27, of Guelph. When the team of
Al Bacon, Matt Fairbrass and Don Ruud began LAMP, the search was
renewed.
“It would give closure to their
families, and that’s what it’s all about,” said Bacon. “If they
don’t find the bodies then those families have no closure, even
though their names are down on Green Island (the Commonwealth
Air Force Memorial) in Ottawa marked as grave unknown.”
The group tracked down archival
records and eyewitness accounts of the crash until slowly they
were able to narrow down the possible locations of the missing
plane.
“We made a discovery of a site of
interest,” said Bacon. “We had what they call a Hummingbird,
which is actually a fish finder, but it showed a plane, or what
we thought was a plane at least.”
That was when LAMP decided to call in the experts at OPP search
and rescue.
“I wrote a letter to Julian Fantino,
who was the commissioner of the OPP at the time, and asked if
they would help us. It went down the chain of command to the
underwater search and rescue team,” said Bacon. “Believe me,
they’ve done a marvellous job. They’re the ones who actually
discovered it.”
OPP said the discovery was
initially located by members of the OPP Underwater Search and
Recovery Unit (USRU) utilizing side-scan sonar technology. A
dive was conducted at the site on July 27, 2010.
Police said evidence clearly
identifies that the aircraft is the Northrop Industries A-17
Nomad that was involved in a mid-air collision over the lake in
1940. Bracebridge OPP confirmed the find on Tuesday, July 26.
Police won’t reveal the exact site of the crash to protect it
from being disturbed or scavenged. But Bacon and other news
reports say it is located somewhere near Browning Island. OPP
said divers have not located any human remains, but have located
artifacts and personal effects. Police said OPP and the
Coroner’s Office believe the remains may not be recoverable.
Police said the families of both
men have now been contacted: Campbell’s nephew in Montreal and
Bates’ brother in Guelph. Tom Bates was 14 when his brother
crashed into Lake Muskoka. The matter is now in the hands of the
Department of National Defence, and Bacon said he expects it
will be conducting a dive of its own in the near future. “We’re
not sure whether the plane will come up or not,” said Bacon.
Nonetheless, the group from LAMP
feels that they have finally cracked a mystery 71 years in the
making.
Story reproduced by kind permission
of Matt Driscoll. Any updates will be posted here:
http://www.cottagecountrynow.ca/news/article/1049268--71-year-old-crash-site-found-in-lake-muskoka
----------------------------------
This address originally appeared in an earlier Form 700. I would like all our visitors to read it and I am
in the process of finding a permanent 'home' for it on our site.
Commemoration of the Battle of Britain
2008 address by the Rev'd Frances Drake
It is a great privilege to be here today - and I thank you for
the Invitation - to share in this Service of Commemoration and
Remembrance - of the Battle of Britain. As the words in the 'Act
of Remembrance' remind us that:
'We are remembering before God ....... those who fought and died
in Service - in the Battle of Britain -
treasuring memories - and pledging to keep alive the memory of
all those who died in the Royal Air Force - and in the Air
Forces of the Commonwealth.'
My own knowledge of the war is very limited - although not
entirely non-existent. I am a war baby - but along with many
others of my generation over the years - I have listened with
interest
and admiration - to accounts of various war time experiences -
including the Battle of Britain.
Living relatively locally to here - at Navestock - with a Father
who was in charge of a 'Home Guard Unit' at Stapleford Abbots -
and living in a family - where my sister Joan - my parents first
child, was killed in 1940 - during the Battle of Britain - and as
the direct result of a jettisoned German Bomb - I have
experienced and heard a great deal about war time events - and
what people lived through - both in the Forces - and in civilian
life.
I almost 'cut my teeth' on what have become immortal words from
Winston Churchill. 'Never in the field of human conflict - was
so much owed - by so many - to so few'
My parents would often speak of Churchill's speech to the House
of Commons in the June of 1940: 'You ask', he said - 'What is
our aim? I can answer with one word - Victory' - and he went
on to say. 'Victory at all costs. Victory in spite of all the
terror. Victory, however long and hard the road may be. We shall
not flag nor fail. We shall defend our island to the end - with
confidence - strength and courage'.
So today - we remember those who led and inspired - as well as
those who fought. And we remember those civilians - who kept on
going - in spite of the pain - the terror - the deprivations -
and death itself.
Each of those who fought - and who are remembered at this time -
has won a glorious grave - not that grave of earth wherein they
lie - but the living grave of everlasting remembrance - wherein
their glory is enshrined. A Remembrance that will live on the
lips - that will blossom in the deeds - of their countrymen -
the world over.
For the whole world is the tomb of heroes. Monuments may rise
and tablets be set up to them in their own land - but on far-off
shores there is an abiding memorial - that no pen or chisel has
traced; because it is graven - not on stone or brass - but on
the living heart of humanity. Let us take these men as our
example.
Let us like them - remember that prosperity can only be for the
free; that in the words of Pericles of the 5th Century - 'freedom
is the sure possession of those alone - who have courage to
defend it'.
We are to take these men for our example. There is always a
danger however - that things - events - memorials - even our own
Christian faith - can become purely nostalgic - a memory of past
things - sometimes becoming distorted and false in our memory
-something that older people do - and young people tolerate -
but the true meaning and value is lost in time.
History can become an empty husk - fragile - and eventually
meaningless. But our celebration today is far from an empty husk - and if we
seek to understand it properly - it transcends a particular time
in history - or even the RAF - or our nationality - because it
is about the men and women who made the history. It is about their
values - their courage - their sacrifice - and their characters.
This is what is valuable. This is what should be our treasure -
not merely as nostalgia - but as an example of
something real and substantial.
For they have lived the values - that should still be relevant today - and everyday after
today.
The values we celebrate in a Service such as this - do not
change.
They are values for every generation and nationality - that
those who wish to live their lives to the full -
will recognize and acknowledge - and take for an example.
This is not nostalgia - but is rather - real and abiding - and
something worthwhile to pass on from one
generation to the next.
The facts of the Battle of Britain are simple.
In 1940 - out numbered, and fighting for their lives - a few
stood up to the many - and said - 'You will not pass. You will
not overcome. You will not break our spirit'.
What we celebrate - what we admire - is the courage and
character of those young men - that gave them the strength - to put
themselves between the enemy and their homes and families - and
achieve the apparently impossible.
And what are these values?
They are sacrifice and service. Values that are also central to
the Christian faith; for Jesus came into the
Some years ago - I was called out to attend to an elderly man who
was dying. It turned out he had fought in the Battle of Britain.
He had been ill for some time, and over the course of three
years - both his legs had been amputated - not in one operation
- but during a number of these.
As I knelt beside him - ready to give him the last rites - just
as he wanted - he could see that I was upset. He took my hand
and said - 'Don't worry Vicar - I've been going to heaven in instalments'.
Sacrifice and service runs through a person's life - just like a thread
through cloth. For that wonderful elderly man - it was there as
he fought in the Battle of Britain. Sacrifice and Service was
there - as he and his wife worked to make a home for their
children. It was there when he nursed his wife through a long
and painful illness. It was there when he arranged her funeral.
And - it was there - as he himself died whilst offering comfort
to a young priest.
So these are the values that we celebrate today.
Courage; Service before self; Integrity and Bravery.
It is all these things - and so many more - but the most
important is Self Sacrifice.
Sadly - they do not appear to be valued very much by the world.
But to me they are everything.
They are the difference between a life well lived - even if it
was cut short - and a selfish life.
They are the gifts of God - what I would call grace - or the
gifts of the Spirit.
They are the values that help us walk beyond our natural desire
for self-preservation - to meet instead - the
needs of the common good - of others.
What we can all agree on is - that they are at the pinnacle of
what it means to be a human being - for they
are the values that we see lived out perfectly in the life of
Our Lord Jesus Christ.
And as we think about them - we see in their reflection - that
the values so dearly loved by this world - are only shadows -
they are like sand that passes through the fingers and is gone
- but that the values we celebrate today - are solid and hard
won. They are often scorned by those who are weak and self
serving - but equally eagerly embraced by those who see beyond
themselves - those who have the courage to sacrifice their lives
for others - who they do not even know. Those men and women are
those - who recognize what is truly good - and who have the
courage to defend it against all odds.
So let us continue to tell the story of the Battle of Britain to
our children and grandchildren. Let us tell them - how the
Luftwaffe had to destroy the Royal Air Force - before it could
invade. Tell them - how at the beginning of the battle - 2,790
German aircraft were sent against 650 aircraft of the RAF - who
struggled day after day to survive. And then - when your
children ask you how they managed and won - tell them that the
adversity had exposed their true character - and it was solid -
and gave them the courage to lay down their lives - not because
they wanted to - but because they recognized that there are some
things - which are more important even than life itself.
'Never in the field of human conflict - was so much owed - by
so many - to so few'
Amen
--------------------------------------- Form 700
is produced by Peter Wesson and Gerard Crutchley. The previous edition of Form 700 (Spring
2011) can be found here:
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