大象传媒

An item on the Anglian news tonight with the above title reminded me of when I was in the RAF. I joined up just after my 18th birthday and ater the initial 8 week square bashing was sent on a 6 month course at the end of this in early 1946 I was made redundant and sent up to Cairnryan to dump bombs. The camp was awful and maily staffed by those who had been in the glasshouse. There was no disciplin and one could wear more or less what one wanted. We all recieved 1 schilling a day in kind danger money but the food was the worst I have ever had mainly because the MT Sargent did the cooking and the Cook did his job

The bombs came in by train and the army loaded them onto LCTs crewed by Merchant Seamen who took them out of Lock Ryan into the middle of the Irish Sea where we Airmen dumped them, For the He's.which were maily 500 and 1000lbs packed in wooden cases we lowered the front of the craft and rolled them out, for the incenderies which were packed four to a metal case we threw them over the side, two men to a case. The amount of hardware that wentinto the sea was incredible and included many U boats which were scuttled there.

The detonators were dumped seperatly and on one ocaision a skip of these exploded whilst being unloaded. It destroed 17 railway trucks and 22 solgers lost there lives.During the summer it was quite pleasant there. Plenty of good swimming and fishing and excellent walking. In the hut that I was resposible for we had 12 Irish lads who had been sent there for going AWOL and they were always good for a laugh so it wasnot all bad by any means but I could never find out why I was sent there! I understand that the Bomb dumping went on for many years, long after I left

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