Would anyone like to share any stories about Group Captain Joe Sim

[old aircrew]

Joe Sim QVS

Hi "rmac", intrigued by your post and subsequent replies and comments which I have only just discovered some four years later. I too am an Old Victorian, school No 1777. Joe Sim was the Monitor of Cunningham House and left to join the RAF about five years ahead of me, although we had played in the pipe band at the same time. He was a tenor drummer, I was a side drummer. We met again at Leeming on the same pilot course in 1966, where he came top, (No 20 I think), not surprising with his Javelin Nav experience and I even used to babysit for Alma and him. They tried to send him to CFS which he avoided by pulling in influential contacts. Used to see him occasionally at Turnhouse in the late 60's and once at W. Raynham after 1 Sqn beat the sh*t out of RAF Watton on the 50th celebration of the RAF. I knew he flew Hunters and Harriers, but not the Jag or Tornado. I did know that he was the first Stn Cdr of Mount Pleasant but did not know that he had been killed in a motor accident. Before going into incriminating tales, what is or was your purpose in asking for them ? I flew heavies mainly from 1966 to 2002 as a regular and again from 2004 to 2007 as a reservist. ADR

[JimWR]

Originally Posted by rmac

"In peace we train for war..don't forget it"!, Joe was an old boy from my school (QVS, Dunblane), but even though I served under him for a short time, I never knew it.

Another old boy from class of '58, who sat next to Joe in school (I was class of '80 so a young whippersnapper), wrote that he worked in Eng/Ops Bruggen 78-82 and Joe walked past him at prayers every day and never said a word to him.

What I do recall as a JO, was that he had a fearsome reputation and was a very accomplished pilot (although the aforementioned old boy, recently posted a photo of Joe as a young Javelin Nav in 1962 before he converted).

I only knew the mature Joe and understand that people change as they get older (don't worry AVM Bagwell, your RAFH Wegberg nurses parties secrets are safe with me :-), and would like to fill in the gaps between our school archive photos and the fearsome station commander !

Also would be interesting to understand what became of him post Bruggen (no hits at all on google)...I don't believe that he is with us any more.

Would like to share any interesting stories on our old school website,I believe that they need to know more than they do about one of their accomplished old boys...

Thanks for sharing if you can..

I was at Bruggen when he took over from Gp Capt Thomson around 1983. His tour was short lived as security was concerned that he frequently drove out of the camp without his driver. The RAF police discovered he was going to the airmen Married quarter and cavorting with the wives. He was quickly sent back to the UK. Heard nothing after that.