Read Online A Very Unusual Air War by Gill Griffin - Free Book Online
Authors: Gill Griffin
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flying majestically in close VIC formation was a sight to see. Suddenly the situation changed dramatically. The leading machine received a direct hit by an anti-aircraft shell and in an instant it just disappeared; one moment it was there and the next just what looked like dust falling to the ground; the crew must have been killed immediately.
22 July : We patrolled mid-channel to cover return of Blenheims. No engagement. The Spitfire carried only 90 gallons of fuel, enough, with care, for approximately 2 hours 15 minutes flying at maximum economical throttle settings. In combat, this time could be reduced to little more than an hour. It will be appreciated that, on operations like this, we were running it a bit close.
Having arrived at Kenley on July 10th we hardly had time to draw breath before being thrown in at the deep end. In the remaining 21 days of July we flew operations on 11 of them, as many as four flights on the 24th.
We patrolled near the French coast, north of St. Valery; saw no sign of the enemy. Kenley, like other Fighter airfields, suffered badly in the Battle of Britain, many of the permanent buildings were destroyed, including the living quarters of both the Officers’ and Sergeants’ messes. In the latter the kitchen, dining room, lounge and bar area, after extensive repairs, were the only parts usable. Most of the staff, cooksand serving girls were members of the WAAF (Women’s Auxiliary Air Force). These girls, most of them youngsters like ourselves, looked after us pilots with great care and, although warned to avoid close relationships with pilots who might well be shot down and killed, inevitably some friendships, perhaps short-lived, developed. I had a particular friend up to the time of my marriage in September. Elsie, I often wonder what happened to you.
The officers and NCOs of the Kenley squadrons were billeted in large private houses just outside the aerodrome boundaries, the former in Red House and the latter at ‘Hillhurst’. I slept in a large first-floor bedroom that I shared with four others.
When I joined 602 squadron, the commanding officer was S/Ldr Meagher; he was then in poor health and had to leave for treatment. He was replaced by newly promoted Alan (Al) Deere, a New Zealander, who had joined the RAF some time before the outbreak of war. He was a fine man, a first class sportsman and athlete, the pre-war middleweight boxing champion and a keen rugby player. He was one of the Battle of Britain aces, credited with 19 confirmed victories. On operations he was a great leader, brave but not foolhardy; he never led us into a situation where we would be at an obvious disadvantage.
One of the real heroes, we met many years later, after he retired from the RAF with the rank of Air Commodore. He was then living at Wendover, a few houses away from my company’s fellow director, Graham Luff. Knowing of my association with Al, Graham invited him to lunch with us in the boardroom at our group headquarters in Aylesbury. Although during my service with him I was still an NCO pilot, we remained friends until his death in 1990.
24 July : Merston was one of the Tangmere satellites, right on the coast near Chichester used, in this instance, as a forward base.
We escorted 18 Bristol Blenheims from Merston to Cherbourg. Arriving off the French coast we watched a gruppe of ME 109s climbing up behind us, but they did not engage our squadron (they knew I was there). On the return I saw an aircraft plunge into the sea north of the objective; the pilot had baled out. I landed back at Kenley.
‘To Tangmere’. The Cherbourg, Normandy coastal area was almost due south of the point where we left England. If returning at low altitude, the sea seemed to go on for ever and on occasions I started to get a bit worried in case I had set course too far south and missed England.
27 July :
I wonder where I went to show off my skill? Probably Slough.
Summary for: July 1941
1 Spitfire
18hrs
22 July : We patrolled mid-channel to cover return of Blenheims. No engagement. The Spitfire carried only 90 gallons of fuel, enough, with care, for approximately 2 hours 15 minutes flying at maximum economical throttle settings. In combat, this time could be reduced to little more than an hour. It will be appreciated that, on operations like this, we were running it a bit close.
Having arrived at Kenley on July 10th we hardly had time to draw breath before being thrown in at the deep end. In the remaining 21 days of July we flew operations on 11 of them, as many as four flights on the 24th.
We patrolled near the French coast, north of St. Valery; saw no sign of the enemy. Kenley, like other Fighter airfields, suffered badly in the Battle of Britain, many of the permanent buildings were destroyed, including the living quarters of both the Officers’ and Sergeants’ messes. In the latter the kitchen, dining room, lounge and bar area, after extensive repairs, were the only parts usable. Most of the staff, cooksand serving girls were members of the WAAF (Women’s Auxiliary Air Force). These girls, most of them youngsters like ourselves, looked after us pilots with great care and, although warned to avoid close relationships with pilots who might well be shot down and killed, inevitably some friendships, perhaps short-lived, developed. I had a particular friend up to the time of my marriage in September. Elsie, I often wonder what happened to you.
The officers and NCOs of the Kenley squadrons were billeted in large private houses just outside the aerodrome boundaries, the former in Red House and the latter at ‘Hillhurst’. I slept in a large first-floor bedroom that I shared with four others.
When I joined 602 squadron, the commanding officer was S/Ldr Meagher; he was then in poor health and had to leave for treatment. He was replaced by newly promoted Alan (Al) Deere, a New Zealander, who had joined the RAF some time before the outbreak of war. He was a fine man, a first class sportsman and athlete, the pre-war middleweight boxing champion and a keen rugby player. He was one of the Battle of Britain aces, credited with 19 confirmed victories. On operations he was a great leader, brave but not foolhardy; he never led us into a situation where we would be at an obvious disadvantage.
One of the real heroes, we met many years later, after he retired from the RAF with the rank of Air Commodore. He was then living at Wendover, a few houses away from my company’s fellow director, Graham Luff. Knowing of my association with Al, Graham invited him to lunch with us in the boardroom at our group headquarters in Aylesbury. Although during my service with him I was still an NCO pilot, we remained friends until his death in 1990.
24 July : Merston was one of the Tangmere satellites, right on the coast near Chichester used, in this instance, as a forward base.
We escorted 18 Bristol Blenheims from Merston to Cherbourg. Arriving off the French coast we watched a gruppe of ME 109s climbing up behind us, but they did not engage our squadron (they knew I was there). On the return I saw an aircraft plunge into the sea north of the objective; the pilot had baled out. I landed back at Kenley.
‘To Tangmere’. The Cherbourg, Normandy coastal area was almost due south of the point where we left England. If returning at low altitude, the sea seemed to go on for ever and on occasions I started to get a bit worried in case I had set course too far south and missed England.
27 July :
I wonder where I went to show off my skill? Probably Slough.
Summary for: July 1941
1 Spitfire
18hrs
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