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National Service

  • Thread starter Thread starter RayD
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oldMohawk, I do not know when you served, but I was a regular and whilst serving in Hong Kong (Kai Tak) in 1953 most of the signal section and admin were National Service, in fact I occasionally invited 3 of them back (we were all members of the amateur radio society) to our flat were my Wife would give them a bit of home cooking, they really enjoyed their service in HK, as one pointed out if it was not for national service he would never have seen Hong Kong (they never ticked the days off they enjoyed their service too much) Eric
 
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Hi Willey, with reference to your comment about 'glassy eyed' looks in post#1188, I notice from a mere 2 years service I've managed to push out 116 posts about it in this thread !!
I can bring the memories all back with this !
Sorry folks .... :rolleyes:
 
Eric,

I would say that the bulk of our flight and the one preceding it were National Service. Apparently nearly all the preceding flight did not volunteer to go aboard, but the lot of them were sent, whereas with our flight it was completely the reverse. I just think that was the way the services worked! We also had a chap who, as far as I could tell, spent the whole of his time pining for his girl friend, yet he volunteered to do three years. Perhaps it only got serious after he'd signed on the dotted line!

Maurice
 
Had two mates in the RAF, one requested to be stationed overseas and the other for a home posting.
You've guessed it their requests were reversed, Jimmy the home lover did his time in Singapore and Terry was home every weekend as he was posted to Castle Bromwich (please don't tell me there wasn't a base at C. B., I have a few senior moment issues to cope with!)
Cheers Tim
 
tim, there certainly was a camp in Castle Bromwich, cannot recollect when it closed but the married quarters are still there and occupied. Eric
 
Our Grandson loves to hear all "the tales", especially the time my Husband crashed into the desk because he skidded on his studded boots!
rosie.
 
rosie said:
Our Grandson loves to hear all "the tales", especially the time my Husband crashed into the desk because he skidded on his studded boots!
rosie.
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Hi Rosie - My 7 year old grandson was wide eyed when I told him I had been in the air force but expected me to have been piloting the Typhoon Jet Fighter. I haven't yet shown him pics of the old propellor driven aircraft I worked on ... :)
 
oldMohawk, the old prop driven a/c had far more character and more fun to fly in than the modern sleek line jet That's my opinion any way. I'd much prefer a flight in a 'Lanc' than a B737 or similar
 
Speaking of prop driven aircraft, the R.A.F. gave me my first ever flight - in an Anson! They were obsolete in 1939! It had been sitting on the tarmac all day at R.A.F. Benson, in tremendous heat. When we took off the expanded airframe creaked and groaned alarmingly as it competed with the terrible noise of the engines. It was somewhat distracting to an admin type, to say the least That's another memory still fresh in the head. Regards. willey
 
cookie273uk said:
oldMohawk, the old prop driven a/c had far more character and more fun to fly in than the modern sleek line jet That's my opinion any way. I'd much prefer a flight in a 'Lanc' than a B737 or similar
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Hi Eric, the closest I ever came to a Lanc was at Castle Bromwich in September 1952 and I notice I had mentioned it on the BHF way back in 2007 ... I watched one take off over the Chester Rd. It seems unbelievable these days.
oldMohawk said:
Does anyone remember air displays at Castle Bromwich.
I saw one on the 6th September 1952 (I think).
A Lancaster bomber took off with rocket assistance, and an American F86 Sabre Jet broke the sound barrier, with loud sonic bangs, in a dive at the airfield, passing over the Chester Rd, 200ft up probably doing about 650mph.
I think the date is correct because on the way back into Bham we bought the Mail, and read that John Derry and other people were sadly killed at Farnborough when his DH110 jet broke up.
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When I was in the RAF during 1956/1958 the Valiant 'V' Bomber had just come into service but the only jets I worked on were Vampires. The site linked below shows photos of when Spitfires and Lancasters were built in Birmingham at Castle Bromwich in WW2. I remember it because my dad worked there. We had a 'can do' attitude in those days !
https://spitfiresite.com/2012/07/castle-bromwich-spitfire-and-lancaster-factory-photos.html
 
I flew in various a/c as a w/op during my 1948 to 56 service, including Sunderlands (205/209 sqdn RAF Seletar) but the Lancaster (82PR sqdn) was always my favourite. Being post war it was used for peaceful purposes, in this case aerial survey of African colonies82 Sqdns Lancasters Nairobi 1950.JPG
 
Does any 'old soldier' remember the song "The Quarter Masters Stores"
It starts with something like:
There were rats, rats, big as bloomin' cats, in the stores, in the stores.

Another part of the song was:
My eyes are dim, I cannot see, I have not brought my specs with me, I have not brought my specs with me.

It has been many years since I sang this song, and the old brain has almost forgotten it.

Eddie
 
Not only soldiers, but all servicemen and scouts. I did a bit of digging as to its origin, but nothing definitive. It appears to date from the Civil War - the source didn't say whether English or American though!

Maurice
 
norfolk brummie said:
Does any 'old soldier' remember the song "The Quarter Masters Stores"
It has been many years since I sang this song, and the old brain has almost forgotten it.

Eddie
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I remember some 'squaddies' singing it very loudly on a train going up to Catterick but I never felt like singing during my National Service. There was one occasion when our flight was ordered to sing during our 'gas training' when we had to go into a room full of tear gas wearing gas masks. We were soon ordered to remove the masks and to stop us holding our breath we had to run round singing a song called 'Happy Wanderer' ... a scouts song I think.

Just had a thought ... if I ever start to forget about my National Service I just have to read through this thread ! :)
 
norfolk brummie said:
Does any 'old soldier' remember the song "The Quarter Masters Stores"
It starts with something like:
There were rats, rats, big as bloomin' cats, in the stores, in the stores.

Another part of the song was:
My eyes are dim, I cannot see, I have not brought my specs with me, I have not brought my specs with me.

It has been many years since I sang this song, and the old brain has almost forgotten it.

Eddie
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Eddie,
Yes i well remember that song. Here`s another one that squaddies used to sing ( this is the clean version sung to the tune of Lily marlene ) "Early in the morning when we`re on parade, the sgt/majors whistling the donkey serenade, then some silly person shouts right dress, you should have seen the awful mess, we are the RASC ( or whatever regt ) we are a ruddy shower.
 
I vaguely remember the gas drill, Phil, but can't remember whether we were told to sing. I do remember the coach journey from Cardington Reception Unit to Hednesford initial training camp. We were all singing from the moment we left until about ten minutes before we arrived when it suddenly went quiet and some wag said loudly in a "we're all doomed" voice - "I think we're in for a bit of a shock!".

Sure enough, as soon as the coaches halted at the camp we were met by a bunch of D.I.'s yelling at the tops of their voices for us to get out and look sharp about it! That was very much a "leveller" for all of us except for one recruit who'd previously served in the British Army in Korea and after that he'd done a spell in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He'd joined the RAF because he just couldn't cope with the boring civvy life, whereas most of the rest of us couldn't wait to get demobbed!

Maurice
 
sospiri said:
I vaguely remember the gas drill, Phil, but can't remember whether we were told to sing. I do remember the coach journey from Cardington Reception Unit to Hednesford initial training camp. We were all singing from the moment we left until about ten minutes before we arrived when it suddenly went quiet and some wag said loudly in a "we're all doomed" voice - "I think we're in for a bit of a shock!".

Sure enough, as soon as the coaches halted at the camp we were met by a bunch of D.I.'s yelling at the tops of their voices for us to get out and look sharp about it! That was very much a "leveller" for all of us except for one recruit who'd previously served in the British Army in Korea and after that he'd done a spell in the Royal Canadian Air Force. He'd joined the RAF because he just couldn't cope with the boring civvy life, whereas most of the rest of us couldn't wait to get demobbed!

Maurice
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Ah yes Maurice, that first gleeful meeting of the D.I.`s welcoming you to their world. Actually, after a while you get used to all the shouting & threats & i found (some ) of it quite amusing. " Am i hurting you laddie? I should be, i`m standing on your hair, get it cut" But there was always one poor soul who could never get the hang of military life....he would turn left when everybody else turned right, he couldn`t stop in time when the order "squad halt" was given. I`m ashamed to say that we all took the p... out of him, & he eventually got back squadded so i don`t know what happened to him. I wonder if the D.I.`s today are just as amusing with their banter?
 
norfolk brummie said:
Does any 'old soldier' remember the song "The Quarter Masters Stores"
It starts with something like:
There were rats, rats, big as bloomin' cats, in the stores, in the stores.

Another part of the song was:
My eyes are dim, I cannot see, I have not brought my specs with me, I have not brought my specs with me.

It has been many years since I sang this song, and the old brain has almost forgotten



Eddie, "There were eggs walking round on legs" when I used to sing this at school!! Can't remember any more!
rosie.
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I have made a mistake with the above post, it should read "There were eggs walking round on legs" for Eddie!!!!
rosie.
 
January 17th 1952. Arrived in evening at Catterick Camp. Bitterly cold, snow and ice on the ground. D.I's shouting at us, and herding us into trucks like cattle.

You are right Maurice, we all thought we were doomed!

Eddie
 
They are on Youtube. What about "Kiss me good night Sgt Major, tuck me up in my little wooden bed, kiss me good night Sgt Major, Sgt Major be a mother to me. I am sure there is more.
 
Oh, Happy days, we even sung that song in the early 60's, usually coming back from exercise in the back of an RL, when first introduced to my Guards SDI, I did't know whether to laugh or cry, when he got annoyed, (which was often), he went assort of bright red, and sometimes he broke his pace stick, by throwing it at us, once I am sure he was crying silently as we marched off "Gods Acre". Paul
 
oldMohawk said:
. There was one occasion when our flight was ordered to sing during our 'gas training' when we had to go into a room full of tear gas wearing gas masks. We were soon ordered to remove the masks and to stop us holding our breath we had to run round singing a song called 'Happy Wanderer' ... a scouts song I think.

:)
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I believe that "The Happy Wanderer" was originally a German song but it was probably sung by scouts from various countries. Dave.

https://www.mdvolks.org/freestate/Lyrics to Our Theme Song.pdf
 
Farmer Dave, The "Happy Wanderer" became a hit in this country circa 1952 when it was sung by German school children at the Welsh Eisteddfod at Llangollen. Doesn't seem too long ago now! Regards. willey
 
I did not do National Service (being so young) but have just worked out that in some previous posts a DI is not a Detective Inspector but a Drill Instructor. I'm not sure what a "RL" is (#1224) but assume it relates to some sort of transportation vehicle? Dave.
 
Bedford RL's were the main transport for the Army from around 1958 to 1964, when the TK came in, I would have thought the RASC/ RCT men would have known that.Paul
 
Bedford RL`s were a nice wagon to drive, apart from one flaw... they didn`t have a heater. On one journey to Berlin, my co-driver & i got lost in a blizzard & ended up in east Berlin, & were detained by the Vopo`s ( East German police ) We had to sit in our freezing cold wagon for what seemed an eternity until the powers that be sorted things out. Having a machine pistol pointed at you & demanding your papers which we politely refused. Luckily a Russian officer appeared & things calmed down, but it was an awful long wait for freedom.
 
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