Cyflyer,
Good morning to you, on St Patricks day, also the day when all three teams are in action. I hope many will think about one of the greatest No8's in Rugby, Mervin Davies, who passed away yesterday , he was the last captain to be in charge of Wales when they won the "Grand Slam"
My old Dad, by trade was an Electrical engineer, when he joined up as a volunteer, he was processed to be navigator, it seems most of my older rels were all pretty good at reading maps and stars, with one Uncle also a Nav in 617 Sqdn albeit at the end of the WW11, and one who was killed in an aircraft crash, but it seesm from what I have gleaned from Dads Diaries , pictures with comments written on and various letters to my Grandmother(his mum) and his sister(my Aunt) that he was posted to 213 Sqdn, he served in Cyprus,Malta, Crete, Sicily and Sardinia have all been mentioned quite a few time after Egypt, Edku, and Kalbrit then was posted to 148 Sqdn at Kalbrit( thats what it looks like in his Diary) which he write "left Edku at o730hrs with others in a wagon via Cairo to Kalbrit about 250 mils arrived at 1730hrs, But I am unsure of what he did there for he makes comments about struggling for electricl stores and then makes ref to going out and straffing and sinking a gun runners Ketch, but then talks of going out with a pilot called or nicknamed "Wally" at which time they shot down an Itiy(Italian) near to Alex( I presume Alexandria) this kill was not confirmed until several days later.
Not long after 148Sqdn he seems to have been posted as a Flight Serjeant to 272 Sqdn, where he was navigator to a highly decorated Pilot called Robert Bannahn,.. they led a flight of 272 Sqdn Beaufighters to attack and sink the italian Liner "The Rex"
It seems a very disjointed way of making entries into a daily record, but I sit here typing this in my little office without any possibility of sudden death, perhaps my old Dad possibly was busy with other things along with all his pals, but it does seem that nearly daily pilots and crews were missing or confirmed KIA, he writes about these boys as though they were very good friends, I see a sort of depression comming through in some of the wordings that he is using in his entrys at this stage he was 22 years Old.
I will PM you with the names of the pilots who he writes about as being missing, for somewhere there may just be a son or daughter, who may read this and I dont feel it would be right to print such info,
My regards
Peter R-B
Lancashire