 |
Royal Air Force Halton
Aircraft Apprentices |
No 14: February 2008 |
 |
The Journal of the 81st Entry Editor: Mike Stanley |
|
|
Royal Air Force Halton
Aircraft Apprentices |
No 14: February 2008 |
|
The Journal of the 81st Entry Editor: Mike Stanley |
|
|
Welcome to the fourteenth edition 2008 Our 50th year since Pass Out. It will be quite a do at Cirencester in July; I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible. Here are some notices with a reunion flavour: There can be few [or none] of the original entry badges around but replacement badges are available from Tony Birchenough. I have one and it is pretty good. Tony is also having a polo shirt and sweatshirt produced with the entry badge, and will now have samples and prices available. Initially the polo shirt will be a similar blue to that on the badge and the sweatshirt in navy blue, but he says he is open to suggestions for alternative colours if warranted. [Tony can be contacted at tisaeb#supanet.com]
Were you in the same room as Ned Kelly in our first term at Halton? Ned is hoping someone has a copy of the room photo. He thinks he was in Block 2 Room 3. Contact Ned at ww.ekelly#btinternet.com Mike
The
Adventures, or Trials and Tribulations, of Alan England Airframe Fitter
81st Entry Alan England Life After Halton Part 5 -Our Man In Amsterdam Malcolm (Mac) Mason Ned Kelly Around
The World In 80 Delays Part 2 Mike Stanley
|
|
Message from Tony Birchenough
I will add that I personally am not making a penny from
this, not even trying to cover my initial costs for the samples 32 Slade Gardens, Slade Green, Slade, Erith, Kent, DA8 2HT |
A Pen Picture
of
.
John Taylor - (Tubs / Rolo) - K0681088 Airframe Fitter On leaving Halton posted to Cottesmore - Victor Bombers Went into industry as a work-study engineer then promoted
to Production Control Manager. Went back into work-study with local authority
and then moved into civil engineering planning. |
| We have been asked to draw your attention to the remarkable book written by Dave Jackson of the 91st Entry. Maybe this work of art will inspire some of our own entry to seek fame and fortune in a like manner. Some of you have made a good start already in 'First and Last'. Happy reading! |
Book Review by Willie Keays Do you recall that, of many occasions, when you were swinging the lamp or otherwise spinning the odd yarn, friends would remark ' You should put that in a book'. Well Dave Jackson has followed such advice. A-I'm an Armourer B-I'm an Armourer tells the story of his long service in the Royal Air Force. It is a coherent and readable account of his adventures and how he coped with the vagaries of being in blue khaki during the larger part of the Cold War. Being 91st he is not quite contemporaneous with his superiors in the 81st but nevertheless you will find many chords struck that will revive your own memories and bring a smile or two to your lips. The timeline of the book follows his postings, many to stations familiar to us but now serving other purposes; Ballykelly, Bruggen, Luqa, Ouston (Eh? Ouston? Read the book), Belize, Scampton. I found the book useful in telling me what armourers actually did to bring down the Soviet Union, apart from appearing like troglodytes from their underground lairs to remove/insert safety links/pins and to tow heavily-shrouded unmentionables on bomb trolleys behind Davy Browns. Dave worked in Ejection Seat Bays but it must be observed that a constant theme that runs throughout his story is concerned more with ejaculation than ejection. Dave ended his service at the Puzzle Palace at Swanton Morley where is seems that a major effort of the many Chief Techs there was the production of Alphabet Soup, eg LSA, LLLGBPT, SR(2), ICRs, PT, AW WTFTF etc, etc,etc. Who should read this book? Well anybody who would like to look into a mirror of reminiscences and see himself. Who shoud not read this book? Pilots, officers, Northern Irish and any woman who admires constantcy and faithfuness in her beloved.
|
|
 |
A - I'm an Armourer B - I'm an
Armourer is an enjoyable romp through the life, and loves,
of an RAF Armourer through to his retirement after 38 years in 'Her Majesty's
Employ', popularly called 'The Royal Air Force'. When off duty from his part in the defence of the realm and democracy, the author certainly found time to live up to the finest traditions of the armourers when it came to the pursuit of women and beer |
|
| Born at Retford in Nottinghamshire in 1942, Dave Jackson was raised and educated there and at Worksop, before joining the RAF as an apprentice at RAF Halton in the 91st Entry. Having completed his education (A levels and ONC) at Halton, he spent a total of 38 years in the RAF at 19 bases, with 14 years spent 'overseas' if his three years in Northern Ireland is included. When he retired from the RAF, he occupied himself building and refurbishing 'qty 3 properties'. Along the way he has been married three times and has, as he puts it, two/three sons, two official and one unofficial. He now lives in retirement with his third wife, to whom he has been married for 10 years, in Bawdeswell in Norfolk, where his hobbies include driving his sports car and his bubble car, reading and gardening. He also spends a few hours a week pulling silver birch out of Bawdeswell Heath and one day a week as a volunteer in the Sue Ryder charity shop. | ||
|
ISBN: 978-1-906302-01-6
PRICE: £9.95 (P & P £3.00 UK, £4.00 EU, £6.50 RoW) Blenheim Press Ltd, 35 Market Place, St Albans, Herts AL3 5DL Phone: 01727 852016 Fax: 01727 843716 e-mail: blenheimpress @ tiscali.co.uk |
||
|
If you have any comments on articles in the Journals, or just want to say 'Hi!' to old friends please send an email to the address in the image on the right with '81st' in the subject line. It will be published in due course on our Feedback page.
|
 |
