Danny:
But I was in, that was the main thing.
Indeed Danny. You may be facing yet another cut in your pay, you may have worn out kit and little left of your reduced uniform allowance to augment it thanks to Gieves (certain dialect
pronunciations of which have the first letter sounding "th" rather than the expected hard "g" or even soft "j"). But, as you say, you are
in. No mean feat indeed considering that the overall aim was to run the Services down to peacetime levels. Your old Wg Cdr was in the right place at the right time, wasn't he?
You say that the RAF should have trained you for multi-engine rather than fighter types. Perhaps, but your past descriptions of certain airborne "situations", including this latest Harvard one, seem to me at least to show an interest in exploring boundaries more in keeping and in accordance with their airships view. However, as one who kept strictly to straight and level, and tea on the hour every hour, I may be greatly in error.
The Firefly rings bells, for that was the sailing dinghy supplied in hundreds to the RAF by the Nuffield Trust, and found all over the world in RAF Sailing Clubs at Stations on Islands, Coasts, or by Rivers and Lakes, ie everywhere! When RAF Gan indented for a few more I believe they got a rather peevish response from His Lordship's Trust that they could indeed have them as long as they were collected from Christmas Island, recently closed down completely and where everything other than the personnel and their kit had been left behind.
While we are on things nautical, may I make it quite clear that Sperling never foundered, in my time anyway. On the contrary she went like the proverbial, being the thoroughbred that she was. She may have leaked like a sieve and hence kept her crews occupied in returning the "sea to shining sea", but she could show a clean pair of heels to the younger whipper snappers such as the later "touring" boats like Dambuster. The words bomb scows come to mind again!