Danny packs his bags again.
The weeks passed and the question of the next Summer Camp started to loom large in our thoughts.
In March we were told that we'd picked a real plum this time. We should be flying to Gütersloh (but employed and quartered at Sundern) at the end of April. This caused a real flurry of excitement. You must remember that at that time very few "ordinary" people had ever gone, or would ever hope to go "abroad" in their lives - excluding, of course, the large numbers of us who'd spent past years "abroad" at Government expense. "Abroad" was were the "foreigners" lived (ie all those who had not "won first prize in the lottery of life" - by not being born British). There they spoke strange languages, used strange currency and had all sorts of strange un-English habits. Here be Dragons. Better not go there.
Coupled to this was the fact that we were going to fly out and back, courtesy of RAF Transport Command. As I've mentioned before, this would be an equally novel (and for some, terrifying) experience. IIRC, the airmens' Pay Books included a Will Form (do they still ?) and many were carefully completed, usually leaving all their possessions to Mum and Dad.
Now I can't remember whether they had to have Passports or not. On balance, I don't think so. In those days we were going out to BAOR (British Army of Occupation on the Rhine), and it was still clear who was the Chief and who the Indian. It was different in the sixties, when I was on standby for Borneo, and the RAF bought me one of the last big, blue and gold "proper" British Passports. I have it still.
I have no record of the exact dates of our 14-day Camp, but it was in school term-time, instead of the previous years in which it had always been in the summer holidays. This immediately caused trouble. Several of our officers were teachers and the local Directors of Education were wholly opposed to the idea of releasing them at this time for their two weeks of R.Aux.A.F. training (and you can't really blame them). The North Riding of York Education Committee was fairly co-operative, but its next-door neighbour in County Durham dug its heels in.
It was time to bring up the big guns. Brigadier Fairweather mentioned the problem to our Lord Lieutenant and he had a chat with his counterpart over the border in the course of some well-fed official function. It was subtly hinted to Alderman Foodbotham, (the "iron watch-chained, grim booted Perpetual Chairman of the Education and Tramways Committees") that Mrs Alderman Foodbotham might find that the invitation to the Garden Party that year (on which she had set her heart and for which she had already bought her outfit) might unaccountably be lost in the post. The Director of Education, who had his sights set on the OBE which (he felt) was long overdue, might have to wait a year or two yet.
There was an agonising reappraisal in Durham County Hall: they found that they could release our people after all, the noble public servants were granted their hearts' desires, everyone was happy except the Headmasters, who had to dash about a bit and take a few classes themselves.
I am not sure what Transport Command had on its inventory at that time, but the best they could offer us was two Valettas. As we would be taking out almost exactly four Valetta loads, we would have to split our troops up. One load would travel on the Saturday morning and the second on the Sunday. It would be a full day's work for the crews. They would have to start from base (down South somewhere), come up to Thornaby, take us to Gütersloh, load the previous FCU (if any ?), take them home to wherever and go back to their Station.
Apart from a few faint hearts who cried off for various reasons, the rest had to be brought up to date with kit and inoculations ready for the great day. The count-down started.
And how will it all work out ?
Good afternoon, chaps,
Danny42C
All Present and Correct.