Ugandan /Asian expulsion August 1972
 

Hello
I m new to this forum, usually found amongst the GWF and RAF Command forums! Mods please advise if this is not the correct forum and I will repost under advice

However I am part of a history society that is hosting an event in September for the 50th Anniversary of the expulsion of Asians from Uganda by the then President Idi Amin many of those expelled were initially housed at RAF Stradishall, near Haverhill in Suffolk before being dispersed to the Midlands and North of England. We are putting together an exhibition marking the 50th Anniversary in September of this year and are looking to trace anybody involved.

Were you part of a crew of East African Airways or BOAC VC 10 or Boing 707/727,? Do you have any images we could borrow ?
do you know anybody involved in the evacuation ?
were you part of the evacuation that landed at Stansted and was billeted in Stradishall ?

Waiting in anticipation, thank you for reading

I know Lloyd International Airways 707's to Stansted brought in refugees. I saw TV clips of that.

Thank you, thats a new avenue to explore

I used to have a colleague who, as a teenager, was amongst the Muslims expelled. He ended up being a much respected civil engineer specialising in airfield design. Unfortunately he hasn't yet attended any of our occasional pub reunions though he wasn't averse to an occasional soft drink with us in the pub on a Friday. I suspect he is also circumspect about gatherings at the moment for health reasons but if he attends our next one in a fortnight, I'll try and remember to talk to him about this. I don't have his contact details. We used to chat about East Africa as I lived in Kenya at the time and returned to Blighty shortly after the expulsions took place.

I wuz there !
 

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I was vaguely involved in what was referred to then as the 'Ugandan Asian Airlift', as a lowly first officer in BOAC.

From my logbook - We pitched up very early on Sept 27 1972 - LHR 0615 - Khartoum 1230 BA071 - 707-436 G-APFB - Empty.

It was my annual route check with the legendary Mike Webster. The only member of the crew who had ever been to Africa before (he wore the Africa Star ribbon to prove it) was the Chief Steward, wonderful bloke, but his name to my shame temporarily escapes me.

We were scheduled to spend five or six days at the British Club in Khartoum with a second -436 crew led by the lovely Stan Homer. He had done WWII Coastal Command training on Hudsons in the Canadian Maritimes, when students carried depth-charges on training sorties in case of U-boat activity. I think Stan actually got one while still a student.

So we settled into the local activities (quite permissive in those days) and with enough chaps to form a BOAC cricket team, accepted the Club's challenge for three days hence.

Second or third night - well oiled and late to bed - two hours later, "Wake up ! Wake up !" Someone in London had decided to re-write the plan - we now had two hours to catch the BOAC VC-10 BA049 to Nairobi.

Oct 2nd - G-APFB again - BA072 Nairobi to Entebbe - empty again, two hours on the ground then Entebbe to Khartoum and Khartoum to Cairo with our poor Asian passengers. With my brand new Nav Licence I did two astro fixes just for fun, on the airway to KRT.

After 20 hours in Cairo we continued to Stansted - BA 072, G-ARWD with another full load, arriving 0425 4th October. Then on to LHR empty. Eight day trip - three 'revenue' sectors. I presume it was all on some obscure government budget.

We understood our lot would be accommodated at RAF Sopley in the New Forest - later used for Vietnamese boat people. I think I might be able to contact a chap who may have been one of our many 'customers' as a boy. Give me a day or so please. No photies I'm afraid.

ISTR some fancy news magazine that month carried an interview with President (and last King of Scotland) Field Marshal Idi Amin Dada. The interviewer noted the wearing of a medal that resembled the VC. 'What did you get the VC for, Mr President ?' - 'For the brown worsted' was the alleged reply. Not apparently some heroic colonial battle - it went well with the brown worsted cloth of his uniform. He also awarded himself a DSO and MC to go with the Victorious Cross.

LFH

Adrian

I suggest you contact the Haverhill Local History Group Clicky clicky

Also, try the Haverhill Aviation society which meets at Stradishall Clicky here too.

HTH

There was a Sabena 707 at Entebbe offering an ad-hoc charter to London for £200k - that's £1,000 each. Pictured in an old Flight. Wonder if they got a load. The onetime Belgian colonies of Rwanda and Burundi border Uganda to the south, where Sabena was the dominant carrier to Europe.

I had a business customer who was the finance director of a major company in London, who had arrived in the same manner, had got a place at university and did very well on from there, starting from nothing.

Thank you have made contact

RAF Hemswell MQ were used to house many families
 

Problem was the beggars would wander across the active runway as if they hadn't got a care in the world. The only active flying was by 644GS and I lost count of the number of sideslips, overshoots! (yes if you pull up in a refined manner a T21 will just about clear a pedestrian intent on suicide) skidding low level jinks etc. Eventually the message got through. Big red and white caravan means beware gliders on approach