Topcliffe next stop
RAF Topcliffe was very near to home in Thirsk and I had served a few detachments there looking after the Air Electronics school and Northern Comms squadron aircraft, a mix of Varsities and old Ansons if memory serves. During one such attachment I forgot where I was and answered “Duty Forecaster Leeming”. The caller knew me as David, was briefed, went back from his coffee to the JP and had a nasty moment of disorientation as he strapped in. Clearly not Leeming.
The staff at Topcliffe were exceptionally good, Jack the S Met. O had a difficult face-twitch having been torpedoed and sunk twice. Fatherly and kind, he was very well-read and achieved high authority. Ken was an alarmingly keen and accurate forecaster. Ken told me that I was coasting: “if you want to be 10% better, you must put in 100% more effort”. Thereafter he was cruel to be kind, and I thank him. Effing George was famously foul-mouthed, as was his six year old son.
Our customers included S/Ldr Tommy, with exquisite greatcoat and scarlet silk lining, and two Poles, who answered approximately to Sh1tslinger and Smackyourarse. For V Force dispersals they flew to Maccrihanish and brought us back boxes of kippers to order.
I was posted to Little Rissington without discussion. Being neither the most recent arrival, nor the most junior, nor alphabetically extreme, I pushed back. We were about to buy the dream 4-bed detached in Thirsk. The posters were obdurate, so I outflanked them by volunteering for RAF Gutersloh, cited my German ‘O’ level, had the right seniority, had a passport and …………….
RAF Gutersloh next
Last edited by langleybaston; 5th Apr 2024 at 15:13.
Reason: for **** read shot