Gaing an RAF pilots brevet in WW2
TAPHAPPY--On Pay Parades I think we also had to shout out our last three--eg "756"!to receive our stipend.
DANNY---I am sure all of us in the EUAS Short Course had at least the SC and some of us HSC. We really need some ex PACT fellow to give us accurate info on their course.
As my story rolls on there will be more evidence of the officers and gentlemen aspect of RAF life. Am I not correct in thinking that as the war progressed both the USAAC and the RCAF commissioned a much greater %age of aircrew than the RAF?.
But I digress ---In Sept 45 I must have taken the train from YorktonToronto and then made my way to the US border at either Niagara Falls or Buffalo. I was in uniform and my RAF identification was adequate to get me into the US. Times have changed since 9/11 with a passport now being mandatory!Until then a drivers licence was adequate from Canada.
So I hitchhiked --with Larry Martin from Cornwall----to NYC and then up the coast via Boston to Moncton.
After maybe a few weeks in Moncton it was back to Halifax and the UK via the Ile De France.Disembarkation leave and on to Bircham Newton/ Docking.
Welcome to thousands of U/T aircrew coming back from overseas---discipline was lax/non existent and I understand that at ths stage Burton would disappear to London for days to further his stage career. I do remember an aerobatic display there by a DH Hornet---to boost morale?
Eventually several things happened. Those who said they would "sign on" were promised further aircrew training, the rest went in dribs and drabs to Eastchurch---another deadful place--- for remustering.
It was not clear but it appears the signing on "ceremony" was only at brevet time. One of our group tells me that at Bishops Cpurt those who declined to sign on were not given their N brevet.Yet a P who got his wings and commission in Norfolk declined to sign on unless they gave him a better idea of his career path. He spent the rest of his time in ATC until demob in Dec 47.Of those we have traced ,one signed on and became an N on Brigands in Ceylon, another N was invalided out before graduation. One P I have mentioned above and another P went on to Lancasters and Neptunes . He--IWF Terry--- was killed later when Captain of the Vanguard that crashed in Switzerland
I gather demobilisation was MUCH quicker in Canada and the US. Group 63 must have been given to those who went ACRC in October 44. There was also a system known as a Class B early release which could be obtained if you first got accepted by a University.
Now, I am not sure why I didnt take either path but instead was remustered to Clerk-- Personnel Selection. Biggin Hill was the locale for the course and I was made a Corporal.
Clerks PS gave paper and pencil tests to anyone leaving the service who wanted career guidance.We just administered the tests , an officer gave the advice.
Cpl Gerry Stroud and I roamed around the country from a base near Cranwell and this freedom was almost our undoing. We had a batch of travel warrants which we filled in ourselves. Somehow the SWO who was in any case irate at our freedom found out there were anomalies in this warrant area . Actually we had been using them to go home on weekends but had the good sense to always make them out to a destination beyond our homes. "Just breaking our journey" was how we left our home rail station. So when we were put on a charge for --perhaps--misuse of travel warrants --we would not have done ourselves any good by producing the used warrants. The night before we were due to appear on a charge we devised a solution.
We burned all the warrants except for the serial number area. At the hearing we just pleaded that as we panicked and started to burn the warrants we realised we would need them for evidence. The misuse case collapsed and we got minor punishment for something like "destroying Crown property"
And so it went until demob in Dec 47 from RAF??? in Lancashire----at this stage -no brevet--- but I did get an ill fitting suit! But the story isnt over.