In the RNZAF, General Service Hands were aircraftsmen & women employed in menial duties (stewards, batmen, messengers, gash hands, storemen, drivers etc...). They were Territorial Air Force and therefore could not be deployed or posted away, but they could also be discharged with 2 week's notice and serve to 65. In effect, a very useful bunch of guys and girls, and almost all of them were ex-Service (quite a few ex RAF).
I recall in 1985, as an Officer Cadet, we ate in the Airmen's Mess at RNZAF Wigram for the first couple of weeks. On one occasion, everyone was in SDs (No 3s, out there) and there were at least two GSHs wearing war-time medal ribbons and one had a Navigator's brevet. He was the Base Messenger, IIRC and I remember seeing him in shirt-sleeves, pedalling around on his delivery bike with a highly polished metal brevet, polished to the point that the letter 'N' was no longer distinguishable. I'm sure that there are one or two PPruners who might remember the chap. Joe, I think, was his name.
Last edited by Whenurhappy; 16th May 2013 at 15:19.