Hi Clem,
Please accept my condolences for the loss of your dad.
I worked on the ops desk when he was a staff Nav on STS/57R in the 90s and flew with him many times on TS and route trips. One particular trip I remember was the Arnhem 40th Anniversary 12 ship in very marginal weather- we were number 12 and the SKE kit was u/s which made it quite interesting staying with the others at times, not to mention going IMC over the DZ whilst on the run in to drop 80 paras sim stick at, if I'm not mistaken, 800ft. Your dads language was priceless!
I also remember your dog (Key?) who was a constant companion on the sqn and driving his car (a massive citroen?) over to Malmsbury for him once- although I can't remember why!
The last thing that springs to mind was that he ran the STS tea swindle and was often forced to employ 'menaces' in his own inimitable way to cajole us permanently skint Ops staff to pay up! Also during this time he bought a coffee machine for the sqn- unfortunately the coffee for it was rather expensive and funds became low- his solution was to use the 'spare' coffee satchets from the surplus in-flight rations and we must have spent hours with a pair of scissors cutting the satchets and pouring them into the hopper. I hope these anecdotes bring some comfort.
I did 30 years in the RAF and my time at Lyneham was the best 5 years of my career, both professionally and socially. Your dad helped to play a part in this- he was a larger than life character and a real gentleman.