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"WAS IT ALL A DREAM"
The memories of a Wartime Bomb Aimer
Bill Bailey
with No. 1 Group Bomber Command. February 1942 to April 1947
These things really happened. I now have difficulty in
remembering what I did yesterday but happenings of
Fifty-odd years ago seem crystal clear, or
Was it all a dream

Chapter 1. Enlistment - Royal Air Force Training Command.

The story begins on 2 February, 1942, my 18th. Birthday, when I rushed off to the recruiting office in Leicester and enlisted in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as potential aircrew. Being a founder member cadet (No.6) of 1461 Squadron Air Training Corps was a help. I passed the various medicals, etc and was sent to the aircrew attestation centre in Birmingham for the various tests for acceptance as aircrew. Like most others I wanted to be a pilot but on the day I attended I think they had that day's quota of pilots. It was said my eyesight was not up to pilot standard but I could be a navigator. I was said to have a 'convergency' problem and would probably try to land an aircraft about ten feet off the deck.. I was duly accepted for Navigator training. The procedure was then to be sent home, attend ATC parades regularly and await further instructions. This was known as 'deferred service' and with it came a letter of welcome to the Royal Air Force, from the Secretary of State for Air, at that time Sir Archibald Sinclair, and the privilege of wearing a white flash in my ATC cadet's forage cap which denoted the wearer was u/t (under training) aircrew.
So it was that on the 27 July 19421 was commanded to report for service at the Aircrew Reception Centre at Lords Cricket Ground, St. Johns Wood, London. I was now 1583184 AC2 Bailey, J.D., rate of pay two shillings and sixpence per day. We were billeted in blocks of flats adjacent to Regents Park and fed in a vary large underground car park at one of the blocks or in the restaurant at London Zoo. Talk about feeding time at the Zoo!! A hectic three weeks followed, issue of uniforms and equipment, dental treatment, numerous jabs, endless square bashing — the ATC training helped. Lectures on this, that and everything including the dreaded effects of VD, the latter shown in glorious Technicolor at the Odeon Cinema, Swiss Cottage.
Not that this was of much consequence at that time because we were reliably
informed that plenty of bromide was put in the tea.
One day on first parade I and one other lad from my Flight were called out by the Flight Corporal, a sadistic S.O.D., who informed us we had volunteered to give a pint of blood. Apparently we had an unusual blood group and some was required for what purpose I have never really understood.

'This story was submitted to the People's War site by Rod Aldwinckle of the CSV Action Desk on behalf of John Derek Bailey and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions

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