Topcliffe September 1953. There were two Neptune Squadrond, 203 and 210. I was crewed up with a very experienced NCO Captain and we took part in the B of B fly past over Buck House. Soon after I was to be co pilot to another very experienced Coastal Captain, and took him up to Kinloss for him to convert and flew together for three months when I was sent with another " newcomer" to the Joint Anti Submarine School at Londonderry for a month. HMS Sea Eagle was a "stone frigate" on the main road out of Derry. Very comfortable. We had many lectures, took part in the School. In the school was HMS Rocker, a frigates bridge on hydraulic rams and we all took part as Navy. People sometimes got sick if the "sea" was too rough. The "submarine" was the size of a telephone box, on intercom to a WREN, Who, if she liked you, would be very helpful as she knew far more than we did. We flew on exercises with the schools tame frigates and submarines, and also went out in them to see what went on from the other side. After exercises we all went to the lecture hall where the captains and navigators plotted our courses and had the wash up in front of the school staff, the submarine and frigate captains and navigators. The crews were in the dress circle with the school staff and the Captain and Group Captain, and we captains of the aircraft would stand on the main floor, announce who we were, and then have to justify our actions. The Captain would say " Move to so and so" and Wrens in bell bottoms, white shirts and white plimsolls would dash nd move various models etc to the next position, stared at by a hundred eyes!! It was all good fun and we did this course every year, and operated our aircraft out of Ballykelly. Sometimes the ships would be from the Home Fleet, and so we were all against the school which was even more interesting. I was given a Captaincy in February 1954. Then our navex's began at Great Ormes Head if we were going south west!! We also went for a month each year to Malta to the AS School there to operate with the Mediterranean Fleet.Gradually we had more people coming from conversion in Kinloss, and so the two Topcliffe Squadrond were poached to form another Squadron 36.
Our operating area was supposed to be the North Sea but we used to take Mail out to the Weather Ships in th North Atlantic, India in the Bay Of Biscay, Juliet 400 miles west of Ireland at 20W, and Kilo in the Denmark Strait west of Iceland.. a popular task. We practiced interceptions in the North and Southwest Approaches, and shadowed our"friends" up the coast of Norway. Sometimes out of Orland near Trondheim. All very interesting, and in Coastal we captains were given a great deal of initiative. A very happy time.