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Where did it go?

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Where did it go?

Old 22nd May 2017, 07:01
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Where did it go?

65 years ago today, on 22nd May 1952, the 16th Entry of Boy Entrants were inducted into the RAF. In my case at RAF Yatesbury.

A motley collection of 15-17 year old youths, all who had their education affected by WWII, from all over the UK and a few from the Republic of Ireland.

They were the 1st Entry to swear allegiance to the new Queen Elizabeth II, and take the 'Queens Shilling.'

I wonder how many of us survive? Did we know what the journey was that we started that day?

Where it would lead us?
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Old 22nd May 2017, 21:13
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Originally Posted by ian16th
65 years ago today, on 22nd May 1952, the 16th Entry of Boy Entrants were inducted into the RAF. In my case at RAF Yatesbury.

A motley collection of 15-17 year old youths, all who had their education affected by WWII, from all over the UK and a few from the Republic of Ireland.

They were the 1st Entry to swear allegiance to the new Queen Elizabeth II, and take the 'Queens Shilling.'

I wonder how many of us survive? Did we know what the journey was that we started that day?

Where it would lead us?
Where did it lead you? Be interested to know.

TN.
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Old 23rd May 2017, 07:58
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Originally Posted by tarantonight
Where did it lead you? Be interested to know.

TN.
For most of us, a sound training both technical and personnel, an RAF career to NCO rank or above, and in my case a civilian career far more successful than my 15 year old peers that were cast out of the same Secondary Modern School in 1952.

Many times I've expressed my thanks that the RAF were leaders in IQ and aptitude tests. They realised that just because I was poorly educated, it did not mean I was stupid, and they could train me and make use of me.

In turn I used that training to my advantage.
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Old 23rd May 2017, 14:44
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Ian16th

I think you speak for many of us.
Belfast to Liverpool on my 16th birthday, signed up 24th May 1960.

S37. Ex 40th St. Athan
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Old 23rd May 2017, 15:36
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Originally Posted by ian16th
65 years ago today, on 22nd May 1952, the 16th Entry of Boy Entrants were inducted into the RAF. In my case at RAF Yatesbury.
A motley collection of 15-17 year old youths, all who had their education affected by WWII, from all over the UK and a few from the Republic of Ireland.
They were the 1st Entry to swear allegiance to the new Queen Elizabeth II, and take the 'Queens Shilling.'
I wonder how many of us survive? Did we know what the journey was that we started that day?
Where it would lead us?
13 Oct 1959 I became a Boy Entrant at Cosford, 38th Entry u/t Telegraphist II. Demobbed 1973 and immediately joined GCHQ as a Radio Officer then spent 30 pleasant years as a civil servant. The Boy Entrant scheme was an excellent character-building experience; one of our DIs, Flight Sergeant Colin Hynd, still attends annual Boy Entrant re-unions (although he did miss one reunion because he'd fallen off his motorbike & broken his leg)
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Old 24th May 2017, 16:37
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40th Cosford May 62

Missed Flight Sergeant Colin Hynd in Ricardians post.
It was he who threatened unspeakable things to the next boy entrant who called him "Chiefy" cue the obvious response, (so they say)

Cliver029

Last edited by cliver029; 24th May 2017 at 16:44. Reason: added a little bit :)
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Old 25th May 2017, 10:52
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65 years ago today, on 22nd May 1952
You are a mere child, my son. I was born on the 21st May 1952.
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Old 10th Aug 2017, 11:25
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Information from the RAF Boy Entrants Association:
A few weeks ago Chiefy Hynd was diagnosed with bowel cancer, but due to age and a heart condition etc., it was originally decided to monitor rather than operate immediately. However, as the side effects of the condition worsened this decision was overturned and the operation was carried out on Saturday. After several hours on the table the prognosis is that all the tumour has been removed successfully and he was placed in the High Dependency ward.
Since then, Chiefy has been moved out of the High Dependency Unit and is now in Ward 53. The main surgeon saw him today and told him he will not be discharged before Mon at the earliest, currently a minor kidney problem and they know he lives alone.
It will soon be his 92nd birthday and though there's probably some ex-boys out there who hate or intensely dislike intensely the Admin and DI staff who administered to us, I'm hoping that you'll still feel it appropriate to send him a birthday card. Someone commented "Think of what you were doing on your 19th birthday because he spent his in a Halifax Bomber over Germany."
PM me for his address and/or phone number

Last edited by ricardian; 10th Aug 2017 at 12:09.
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Old 10th Aug 2017, 16:12
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Ian does not mention his time serving on the RAF's premier tanker squadron.

214 of course
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Old 11th Aug 2017, 11:29
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Originally Posted by Tankertrashnav
Ian does not mention his time serving on the RAF's premier tanker squadron.

214 of course
Well seeing as you asked, yes I was on the Sqdn, twice as it happened. My 1st tour from Feb 59 to Oct 62. This was my longest single assignment of my 13 years service. A great time, as when I was posted to the Sqdn we were still doing the trials of Cobhams' probe & drogue system.
We also had the best CO that I came across in all my service; Wing Co. Mike Beetham DFC.
He went on to much greater things, as Chief of the Air Staff, MoRAF Sir Michael Beethham GCB, CBS, DFC, AFC, DL, FRAes. Definitely a case of the cream, not the scum, floating to the top.
He was awarded his AFC for the successful introduction if the Cobham probe & drogue system of in flight re-fuelling into RAF service. He thanked me for my part in helping him gain the award. Well that was me and the rest of the Sqdn he was talking to.

One other thing about Sir Michael, he was Chief of the Air Staff in 1982, so when he ordered Black Buck to happen, he had the detailed knowledge of what was involved, he knew what he was doing. He had been the Captain of the non-stop Valiant flights to Johannesburg and to Cape Town.

So a sqdn with a unique and interesting mission and a great OC at the helm.
We made the system work and then started finding out what we could do with it. So lots of detachments to exotic places, mainly 'ot and sandy, but for a young single lad, life was great.

We did the 1st non-stop flights to Salisbury, Johannesburg, Cape Town and Singapore. This was the limit for the Valiant, so we got 617 involved and sent one of their Vulcan's on the 1st non-stop flight to Sydney. The Sydney trip was done with full publicity, TV cameras etc., so as a dry run we did one that was a not publicised, we put tankers in Cyprus and Karachi and a Vulcan flew from Scampton to Scampton, via refuelling points overhead Cyprus - Karachi - Cyprus.
I never quite understood that run, when we were planning the Marham - Singapore trip with a Valiant, the dry run was 18 hours around the UK, with refuelling over Marham!

After the Vulcan to Sydney mission, Sir Alan Cobham, a frequent visitor, came to the Sqdn and presented us with a trophy, a silver globe, with the route engraved on it. He was a wonderful raconteur. He told us that a few days earlier he had presented a similar trophy to 617 for their part, and then said, 'But we all know who did the real work, don't we?'

When we became the RAF's 1st operational tanker Sqdn, our mission changed to teaching the rest of the RAF what to do with this wonderful tool. Still interesting and sometimes challenging times.

One exercise that I remember was when we kept a series of Vulcan's on airborne QRA. We had to send up tankers to top up a Vulcan, I think it was every 4 hours, for a week! We of course didn't have any extra a/c or bodies. So we split the manpower into 3 shifts and started with all a/c serviceable. As time went by, a/c were going u/s and with a small shift of bodies, not getting fixed in time for the next sortie. We started Xmas treeing a/c, we worked longer hours. We ended the week proving it could be done, but we needed more a/c and many more bodies.

Ferrying fighters to the Far East was interesting but hard work. Doing pre-flights, seeing off the a/c and then run up the steps of a Brittania with toolbag in hand, catch up with the tankers, do the after flights and de-snag. Supposedly have a night in some grotty transit billet, maybe a NAAFI bar, in Karachi no NAAFI! Pre-flight next morning, see a/c off, run up the steps of the Brit and as soon as the seat belt light went off, recline seat and catch up on sleep.
Repeat as required.
It is a good job we were young and fit.

I was posted off the V-Force during the Cuban Crisis! Oct 62, but that was a quiet time, everyone just hanging about!

I did the next 2 years at Akrotiri and asked to return to Marham for my last 6 months before demob. I got the posting, there wasn't much competition! On taking my Blue Card into Tech Manning a Chief Tech looks at my rank & trade and up at his big board, and say's 214 Sqdn!

This was an amazingly short settling in period, meeting my old mates, but also demoralising. The Valiants now had their fatigue problem and we were simply doing daily 'anti-deterioration' checks. I was demobbed at the beginning of Feb 1965, just a few days before the scrapping of the Valiants was announced. The Valiant & I left the RAF together.

So, yes 214 was a significant time in my RAF life.

But then so was my year in the South of France, that was tough but someone had to do it, and as they say, that is another story.
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Old 13th Aug 2017, 09:53
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Very interesting Ian. I remember seeing that globe in a glass case in Marham Ops in the 70s when I was there. Beetham, by then an air commodore was my station commander at Khormaksar. He was a tough man, I had to attend his orderly room and give evidence about one of my chaps who was up on a charge. He gave the guy such a (well-deserved) tongue lashing when sentencing him that I was pretty scared myself! I thoroughly enjoyed my five and a half years on 214, and thought it was a shame that it was not chosen to be one of the K2 squadrons, and instead was disbanded in January 77.
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Old 13th Aug 2017, 13:05
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It had been assumed that the VC10K squadron formed at Brize Norton was going to be 214 Sqn, but the decision was made that it would be 101.

Nevertheless, many of the early VC10K tools were marked '214' - and many of the diagrams of the aircraft instruments in the Aircrew Manual show a heading or a selected radial of 214°, as do some in the VC10 and TriStar Maintenance School training notes.

Not a coincidence - it's because ex-214 Sqn personnel were involved in creating the original diagrams!
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