Originally Posted by
BEagle
Fortunately you haven't, bluntie me old!!
Indeed so. As for first tours, I had a great time in the '60s. Here is a bit from my book about my first day on my first tour: 'Of course, in 1967, I was the proverbial ‘Innocent Abroad’ and completely gullible. Having disembarked from the Britannia, I was met by two young pilots from my new squadron who handed me a note from the squadron commander. The note explained that promotion exams were being held that very day in the base education centre and that, as I was likely to be away on detachment when the subsequent exams were next held, my young navigator and I should sit those exams that very day. We fell for the jape, hook line and sinker. However, as I had absolutely no idea of even the syllabus let along had done any study, I politely declined what I thought was the first order from my boss.
But the jape continued!
After dropping our bags off at the squadron domestic accommodation (all the operational squadrons, of which there were many, lived in purpose built brick accommodation blocks), we were driven down to our new squadron to meet the key personnel. First to greet us was the squadron ‘Roman Catholic padre’ who ushered us into the squadron ‘chapel’ and proceeded to insist that we signed for our own personal bibles! We started to smell a rat when we noticed a number of handmade posters on the wall stating certain quotation such as ‘Cursed are those who land wheels up’ and ‘Navigators, know thee the way of the Lord’
Following that, we were then taken to the squadron crew room where we came across aircrew playing board games, dressed in winter greatcoats, surrounded by paraffin heaters which had raised the temperature to well in excess of the outside, which already was touching 40 deg. By then both my navigator and I smelt more than a rat.
That evening we attended a dinner in our honour and I was surprised to spot the ‘RC Padre’ smooching with a lady… The penny then finally dropped.'