Topic: It's all about digging!!

[Lily]

No need to apologise Tim.  You are entitled to a little quality 'me' time after what you have been through.  And I bet it only felt like yesterday.

My Dad was a navigator on the Lancaster Bombers.  I still have the pictures he took during his time in the RAF. I have been researching our family history, all very interesting, and yet another hobby that gets you hooked.  ::)

Lily

[wardy]

Great stuff Tim - you must be very proud  :)

[tim]

Lily - I could never have done what your Dad did - with us it was short & sharp. And it was in your own hands - you could always turn & run if you felt inclined. Thankfully, not many did.

No, wardy - but the family are!

[CotswoldLass]

Humbled to read all this Tim.....will say special prayer for your mate on Remembrance Day. CLx

[redimp]

No need to apologise Tim.  You are entitled to a little quality 'me' time after what you have been through.  And I bet it only felt like yesterday.

My Dad was a navigator on the Lancaster Bombers.  I still have the pictures he took during his time in the RAF. I have been researching our family history, all very interesting, and yet another hobby that gets you hooked.  ::)

Lily

Where did he fly out of?

[moonbells]

Tim - I'm amazed. The war passed by most of my family (grandparents too old, parents still children) apart from the brother of my Auntie Kath who was killed at sea. This wrecked her family (she had to look after their father so never got the chance to marry). It's such things which make us realise the sacrifices that were made by all. Saying just 'thanks' to those of you who stood in the firing line doesn't feel like enough.

The bit that's intriguing me is how does JFD translate to Tim?  ;D ;D

moonbells

[tim]

You're not the first to ask. All I know is that I've never been called anything else - except Johnnie (head-in-air??) by a dear WAAF in 1940!!

Good to mention the 'home' tragedies - they are so often overshadowed by the 'heroics'.

But I often thank God that I wasn't on the ground - in the trenches - or jungle - or.................

Flying - at least for the 'Fighter  Boys' - was a different kettle of fish. Short & sharp.

[Heldi]

Tim you make something deep within burn with pride. I like to hear about your wartime. I'm intensely proud of what you did and of all the grandparents mums and dads who lived through the wars. I have field poppies in my garden because I want to remember.

My Grandpa was in both wars.  He was in the army. Got the side of his face blown off in the 1st.  I was always afraid of him as a child. A very quiet man and quite intimidating. I was just getting brave enough to ask him about his life when unfortunately he died.  I wish I knew more,I get the feeling he was one of those boys who ran away to war but of that I can never be certain. He must have been young though.

My Grandad served in the Royal Navy.  He was a lovely fellow.  Always happy. He was on the Atlantic crossings. I've heard tell that he saved another crewman's  life when their ship was going down. He had to pull the man to safety after he was caught in a door. The man lost his arm. Again I can't ask. I might ask my mum.

My dad always said my mum was posh during the war because she had bananas and loo paper! Brought back by Grandad!

Mum was evacuated.  It has effected her ever since. Something happened which she will not say.  She still has a problem with Germany, which I didn't know about until recently.  Not with German people as individuals you understand...her favourite carer was a German lassie!

Dad was brought up in Newcastle, said he used to scramble about looking for wreckage after a plane came down.  The Vickers plant on the Tyne was a major target but apparently the "Spine" road would often get bombed because it shimmered in the dark and looked like the river.

I have a photograph of my Great Uncle Bill on his way to or from Libya. He has on a "Jerry" great coat.  I will get it scanned and show you.

I hope you don't mind me butting in with these stories.

[chriszog]

Fantastic and interesting thread Tim we owe you and your comrades so much.
Regards
Chriszog

[tim]

Butting in, Heldi? It's not my forum! I'm sure you have a big audience. Wonderful stories.

So sad that so many people refused to talk about their experiencies. I imagine it was too horrible? My father did so much but would never talk about it.

Navy - & Merchant Navy? Wonderful people. God bless them. Russia with the RN in 1941. Home with the Merchant Navy. Canada on CAM Ships in 1942. See photo - a repeat.. India with the Merchant Navy in 1943. Home with them in 1946. Never a dull moment!!

[Lily]

Where did he fly out of?

Not sure where he flew out of, Redclanger, and the photo below doesn't help either.  He served in Italy and North Africa.  He mentioned that there was nearly a mutiny in the RAF at the end of the war because they were not allowed to go home and had to serve out their time in the RAF.

Tim, my dad didn't talk much about the war, but before he died he cried at the thought of all the people that the bombers would have killed during the raids. I'm sure he mentioned Dresdon. The gunners were the first people to get hit during a raid and he lost many a friend through that.

I like to think that as he was a Navigator, he guided the crew safely there and safely back.

(tried to add photo without success) Help please!!


Continue to tell the stories, Tim.  'Lest we forget'

Lily

[tim]

Lily - photos? - try http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/yabbse/index.php/topic,2633.msg24088.html#msg24088. And cry for help!!

1. Mutinies? Bad communication. Like so much in life?
2. Bombing? One or two people - OK. Been there, done it. But mass destruction must have hurt deeply.
3. Gunners? Sadly, of course, they are the ones I always went for first. I don't like being shot at.
4. NAVIGATORS? Long after fighters, I went on to maritime Shackletons. Without my wonderful navigators - in their 20s - where would I be?

[Lily]

Hope this works.  Have had to re-register with photobucket.  Thanks for the link with the gallery Tim.

My dad is on the back row centre (5th from left or right) Not sure when/where the photo was taken.  But he would have been in his early 20's.  He had the nick name of 'Stoney' taken from part of his surname.

Lily

[Merry Tiller]

My Dad was in the FAA, he was on the Russian convoys, Malta, Durban, Ceylon etc. etc.

He was a sparky (like me but I was RAF) and I always remember him complaining about burning his arms on the exhaust pipes while changing the spark plugs on a Merlin engine, 24 of the bu##ers. He also fixed Stringbags & Corsairs.

I never got tired of listening to the old boy’s stories, wonderful, though sometimes very sad

[agapanthus]

Fasinating reading...my father was a bombadier in the artillery in north Africa, he died when I was very young so I did'nt get the chance to talk to him about his war. I do have diaries he wrote from 1941 onwards and am trying to decipher them which is'nt an easy task because he was born in Guernsey and only spoke the patois and it was during the war when he was learning to read and write in english. Also he wrote most of the diaries in pencil which has faded over the years.

[Doris_Pinks]

My Dad was driving tanks, he was one of the first to go into Belsen, never talked about that, but had a couple of amusing war stories that he told, one of which involved getting lost and comming across a  German tank that was also lost, they told them to surrender, which they did, then Dad and his crew spent hours tring to find their own tanks to hand them over! ;D
He also saved his friend Jonny Doul from a burning tank in front of him, got the military medal for bravery, sadly now they are both gone  :'(

[Heldi]

Have mislaid the scanner so OH used my camera to take a photo of a photo. Hope you can see it alright.  This is of my Great Uncle Bill...  he wasn't the one with the great coat on...it was his mate Wally. The other picture is of what is written on the back of the photo.    I don't know what type of gun it is he means...gti? gli?

[Vony]

For Children that lost there fathers during the war whilst serving in the Navy there was a boarding school, were children were taken in free of charge, as parents were unable to afford to bring up there children, of which I was one of them that lost his father on the Convoys.
Vony


http://www.ganderton.net/

[tim]

Fascinating reading!

MT - he wasn't on the one that took us out to Russia in 1941, was he? Furious, Illustrious & Victorious were in Scapa on our way out, but only Vic came with us. She had Grumman Martletts.

[wardy]

lovely pic Heidi.  They all look so happy don't they.  Wonder if they all came home  :'(