Gaining An R.A.F. Pilots Brevet in WW11
Thank you Chugalug and Geriaviator. I was paired with a Flying Officer at Brize and we stayed together for nearly a year. He had already done two weeks on the Hotspur at Shobden so the emphasis was on him for the Horsa and Hadrian training at Brize. Suffice to say at Brize we had 1 hour 55 mins dual then 25 minutes (two landings) just us. Night flying was 40 minutes dual then 15 minutes and ten minutes just us. Next day 4 dual landingsl and two just us, and that included 2 dual and one us on the Hadrian - 1 hour 35 minutes. Total for Brize was 5 hours and 5 minutes. Hampstead Norris was even less, i hour and five minutes, -not a lot! Then we joined our Glider Pilot Regiment Squadron - "F" at Broadwell.
We were welcomed by our new comrades, most of them had been on D-Day and Arnhem, some on the disasterous Sicily one. They said that they didn't carry passengers, and they trained us in weapons and explosives, taught us to drive jeeps and motor bikes and to generally make ourselves useful to any passengers/ loads we would be carrying.
We were dropped off at night in the wilds and had to evade troops sent to look for us. But the emphasis was on fitness and weapon training.
Broadwell had two resident Dakota Squadrons, 575 and 512. They were heavily engaged in taking supplies in and wounded out fro m the Second Army who were fast approaching the Rhine.
We were issued with khaki battledress, boots and gaiters, Denison Smocks and we wore blue berets and were known as the R.A.F. Element of the Glider Pilot Regiment. We had an Army C.O. at that time who said that we were to wear Army wings and blanco khaki tapes and to wear our battle dress buttoned to the neck. I went to see the Group Captain and he sorted it out, and we were to wear our RAF Wings and tapes and collars and ties. It was no hardship to wear the khaki and smock and it kept us warm in a very cold winter.