harrym,
Your #6451 was another mine of interest !
Your: "....little doubt that poor handling might have been responsible for at least a few of the losses that occurred....."
Having survived three Monsoons of punching through cumulonimbobumblies, I would say that you are absolutely correct. The greatest danger was of becoming disorientated, losing control and being chucked out at the bottom too low to recover.
As the VV was built like the Forth Bridge, there was little risk of structural damage (and a Dak should do all right), but light civilian aircraft had been torn to pieces before. The only precautions I remember taking were: slow down as far as possible, turn the cockpit lights to 'max' - so as not to be blinded by a lightning flash - and drop your seat right down and tighten the straps - so as not to be knocked out against the canopy above by a big bump.
Then just let the aircraft "ride" the storm, doing the minimum to keep roughly S&L. On no account try to climb or descend or turn round to get back out again ! If the engine(s) keep running, sooner or later you must come out the other side into clear air.
And your:
".... typical day’s work would start about an hour before dawn, being shaken rudely awake by an RAF policeman on his early call round. Following an inadequate, greasy breakfast of ill-tasting powdered egg, beans (if lucky) and one of those detestable triangular soya link sausages....."
This is barbarous ! You should have a gentle tap from your bearer, as he put down a mug of the charwallah's best by your bedside. They
do know about chickens in Burma,
ergo there are plenty of eggs to be had (but no bacon). I think your trouble was: you had RAF cooks, and not a local who could do marvellous things with very little.
As for the soya link, it is an acquired taste which I never acquired (they always seem to have a taste of fish). I suppose it would keep you alive if need be, but a lot of the tins were used to fill-in potholes before putting the mud back ! Just one of the Horrors of War.
And your: ".....''over the coastal mountain range we had to cross......" It would be the Arakan Yomas.
"....heavily loaded aircraft was a different animal from the near-empty ones....".
Heavy or empty, as all the
kutcha strips were rough (and paved and psp runways not much better), it always paid to come in slow with a fair deal of power on, and then dump it down (it was the only way with a VV, anyway).
"....leaving an air-supported amphibious operation as the only alternative. For us this would mean a flight of at least several hundred miles to the most likely area of assault, probably on the mainland near Penang....."
My story about the fiasco of an "invasion" attempt on the coast just south of Phuket Island (Page 251, #5016) was either based on a myth in the first place - or has been airbrushed out of history since - but may interest you. Did you ever hear of anything like that ?
Cheers, Danny.