大象传媒

(This story was submitted to the People's War site by Paul Bellamy of Falkirk Library on behalf of Margaret Meek and has been added to the site with her permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.)

Grangemouth鈥檚 Central Scotland Airport was designed for both civil and military aircraft. Just inside the entrance of Bo鈥檔ess Road was a curved wall with a pair of wings on it and the inscription 鈥滳entral Scotland Airport鈥� Provost Peddie was the first passenger to fly from there to London and his return ticket cost 拢9 10 shillings.

Because of World War Two the airport became a fighter airfield and later a training school. The ATC from Glasgow and other places visited there. Most of the planes were Spitfires or Hurricanes. Our upper council flat at 7 Rodney street was in line with a runway. We could just see the middle and right hand hangers of the main building from the back bedroom windows.

The airport changed colour from being almost white to camouflage greens and browns. Corrugated hangers were erected with camouflage nets over them. Huts were built. On take off the planes zoomed so low over our flat it was amazing! Sometimes we鈥檇 look towards the airfield and see black smoke followed by explosions, then watch the ambulances and fire engines race to the scene. At one time this was happening so often sabotage was mentioned. I remember one night in particular the sirens had gone and we were in the shelter but Dad stood in the doorway, Mother kept telling him to come in when the drone of a German bomber got nearer and nearer. The ack ack guns were firing the searchlights criss crossing the sky when suddenly there was a loud whistling noise and Bang! There was an explosion which shook the ground and Dad fell backwards into the shelter. A neighbour鈥檚 son who was on his way to his shelter fell to the ground and as he did so he thought he hit someone on the head. So he apologised and talked quietly but got no reply. He thought what on earth I have done here. When the all clear went he shone his torch and found he鈥檇 been talking to a cabbage.

The bomb had fallen at Binnie鈥檚 Farm between the Red Barn and the road not far from the airfield. There was a huge crater in the ground.

I remember running across Wilson鈥檚 cow field when a plane crashed just behind McNies Cottage near Bow鈥檚 Plank over the Grange Burn. For a split second I saw the pilot who looked as though he鈥檇 fallen asleep against the cockpit window then a series of small explosions occurred then whoosh the plane was engulfed in flames. There was nothing anyone could do. The pilot was wearing leathers and a helmet.

One lunch time as I went outside I heard a peculiar noise and on looking up saw two objects falling from the sky. One was like a fire extinguisher but Royal Blue in colour which fell into Mrs McGurk鈥檚 garden opposite. Then I saw him in his Air Force Blue uniform, an airman still chained in his seat, his dark hair blowing in the wind, fall to the ground in the ploughed field beyond.

Quite a few people out for a walk or visiting Grandsable Cemetery stopped by the little white crosses to pay their respects.

In World War Two approximately 3800 aircraft crashed on training missions.

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