大象传媒

Serial Number 1717143, LAC Henry John Clifford Elcome.
Euston CRC (Central Recruitment Centre), London, 06/02/1942.
Euston CRC (Central Recruitment Centre) RAF Volunteer Reserve, At Home/Work 07/02/1942.
2RC (No:-2 Recruitment Centre), RAF Cardington, Bedfordshire, 29/06/1942.
11RC (No:-11 Recruitment Centre), RAF Skegness, Lincolnshire, 02/07/1942.
11SoTT (No:-11 School of Technical Training), RAF Credenhill (aka:- RAF Hereford), Herefordshire, 30/07/1942.
10(O)AFU (No:-10 Observer Advanced Flying Unit), "Dumfries"?, Scotland, 13/01/1943.
3204SCU (Servicing Commandos Unit), Sicily (via Algeria and Malta), 27/06/1943.
3204SCU (Servicing Commandos Unit), Egypt?? and Italy, 19/07/1943.
3204SCU (Servicing Commandos Unit) - NWAAF, Italy, 01/10/1943.
1BPD (No:- 1 British Personnel Despatch Centre), Location Still to Find, possibly Algiers??, 29/02/1944.
HE (Home Establishment?) Location Still to Find (Leave ??), 07/03/1944.
No:- 3 PHU (Personnel Holding Unit), Morecombe, Lancashire, 18/03/1944.
RAF Holmesley South ("2TAF" - 2nd Tactical Air Force), Hampshire, 12/05/1944.
RAF Odiham ("2TAF" - 2nd Tactical Air Force), Hampshire, 16/07/1944.
RAF Hartford Bridge (aka:- RAF Blackbushe. "2TAF" - 2nd Tactical Air Force), Hampshire, 23/08/1944.
6025SE (Servicing Echelon), RAF Castle Camps (possibly also RAF Bradwell), Essex, 27/11/1944.
29MU (No:-29 Maintenance Unit), RAF High Ercall, Shropshire, 12/10/1945.
46MU (No:-46 Maintenance Unit), RAF Lossiemouth, Scotland, 23/11/1945.
41 Group Armourers School, RAF St Athans, Wales, 01/04/1946.
46MU (No:-46 Maintenance Unit), RAF Lossiemouth, Scotland, Date Unknow.
101PDC (No:-101 Personnel Despatch Centre), RAF Warton (being "Demobbed"), Lancashire, 01/01/1947.

The bulk of "3204 SCU" seems to have been formed at RAF Martlesham Heath, in Suffolk, in February 1943. Most of their training was completed here, or in the Newmarket area, including some freezing overnight camps on the racecourse! From here they went, via an overnight stop at Paisley (just outside Glasgow), for final training in waterproofing vehicles for beach landings, and the use of landing craft.
Again for the bulk of "3204", this was carried out at "HMS Brontosaurus" - the
No:-2 Combined Training Centre - at Castle Toward, near Dunoon, Argyle and Bute. However, some "3204" members seem to have gone to "HMS Quebec", the No:-1 Combined Training Centre, Inverrary, on Lock Fyne.
Training over, they were off again, this time to the "PDC" (Personel Despatch Centre)
at RAF West Kirkby, just outside Liverpool. They departed the UK from Liverpool Docks aboard the SS Ormande, on June 27th, 1943 to the middle-east, via Algeria and Malta. On the way there, they learned they were to take part in "Operation Bigot Husky" - the Invasion of Sicily.
Algeria was reached on July 10th, and they sailed again the same day for Malta, being
being briefed on the way about the intended landing at Catania (Sicily) on D-Day +6
(i.e. July 16th). The plan being then to proceed to Gerbini airfield, to work with 3232SCU who should already there, on Spitfire servicing.
However, with the operation running behind schedule, D-Day +6 saw 3204 still in Malta!. It wasn't until July 19th that they finally landed in Sicily, between Syracuse and Augusta, and were dive-bombed in the process. Having no transport or equipment, they marched to a transit area at Noto, before going onto Pachino. Air-raids happened most nights, with the one on July 28th being particularly bad, resulting in two 3204 casualties. They were evacuate by ship to North Africa. The transport and equipment was finally landed on July 30th, and 3204 now went to Lentini to work on 152 and 154 Squadron Spitfires. They remained there until the end of that particular "Operation".
From Lentini they moved to Catania for a short time, before moving onto Messina in
preparation for the crossing, via the "Straits of Messina" into Italy, as a follow-on to "Operation Avalanche". This was the invasion of Italy, on September 9th, by USA and UK troops at Salerno. 3204 landed at Reggio di Calabria on September 24th, but didn't stay, instead moving on quickly, via Taranto, to Gioia del Colle four days later.
October 8th saw another move, via Noci, to Lecce, where they worked with 3230 SCU until just after Christmas. The next move, via Brindisi, was to Bari Main Aerodrome, on
January 4th, 1944. With the Germans in retreat, moves to Molfetta, Foggia and Naples quickly followed - the stay in each often being only a couple of days. At this time there were "rumours" they'd be going home - as a Unit - to take part in the European invasion. In the event it turned out to be just that - a "rumour" - and the SCU units then in Italy were told they were no longer required. 3204 were eventually disbanded on January 31st, 1944, and the personel seem to have been deliberately scattered to the four winds!.
Some went to the far east, with the SEAC. A few transferred to other units in Italy
for a short time, coming home again after the fall of Rome. Many of those who came
directly home on disbandment seem to have joined the "2nd TAF", in preparation for
the D-Day landings. However a few were able to make use of their more specialised
training for a little longer, as they joined the two SCU's that actually went to France during the early stages of the invasion.

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