JD (c/o BB):-
“I'm sorry Sir, we have dropped the order of battle on an elephant and it has charged off and there is nothing anyone can do about it, nothing at all”
OK BB, you'll just have to run this past me again as I've not quite got it. Were the OoD's free drops or were they attached to small (SEAC) chutes? If the latter then I can well imagine the scene of elephant suddenly festooned with pack, rigging lines, and canopy (high viz colour?) taking great offence at the liberty and charging off into the boondock in protest. If the former then it doesn't quite tally that the pack was still on its back when it finally returned (or perhaps it held it triumphally in its trunk?).
General Messervey is obviously someone to read much more about. He sounds like a soldier's soldier, leading from the front and seemingly unrestrained by his staff officers.
RAF VSO's please take note. I once sent an AQM up to 38 Group for an AOC's commissioning interview as the boss had endorsed my recommendation as O i/c AQMs. "What did he talk about?", I asked on his return, thinking it would be all about officer qualities, etc. "He wanted to know what was going on here", he replied. "He said his staff don't tell him anything and keep him stuck in the office". A bit apocryphal no doubt, but as it was Micky Martin he was probably making a point about RAF bureaucracy. I don't expect General Messervey had much cause to make such comments...