大象传媒

These recollections are by Malcolm Ernest Stroud (NCO), talking about his late brother Peter Arthur John Stroud (RIP), a Non Commissioned Officer serving as a weather forecaster.

Peter Stroud joined the Royal Air Force at 17 as a weather forecaster stationed in the north of England. His first memories on joining were having an altercation with a senior forecaster for not wanting to divulge information about an informant he had become involved with. The details are still regarded as an official secret.
Peter wasn鈥檛 sure who he could trust and felt he had to keep quiet, and even his senior forecaster and officer raised some doubt in Peters mind and as 鈥渓oose tongues cost lives鈥�, he would keep his informant secret even though getting into trouble as a result.

Peter sought and found some retribution for the punishment he was given after noticing the officer involved was overfond of sugar in his tea, pouring it in till the tide came in his mug. Peter and his work mates were due 48-hour passes that left the senior forecaster alone on his unit. Peter and the lads with whom he worked decided to get even by lacing the sugar with Epsom salts, a powerful laxative when taken in excess. It worked well, and the officer was too embarrassed to seek a reprimand.

Later in his career Peter transferred to the Army 30 Corps as forecaster. Weather forecasting was important for the artillery as it affected the targeting due to wind direction and use of the guns; even the oil that lubricated the recoil chambers was only effective down to a certain temperature. Weather information Peter supplied stopped our men being injured by our own guns. He got a mention in despatches for this.

Peter became heavily involved with D-Day: his role included setting smoke screens, and detailed knowledge of plans. While waiting to play his part in the evacuations he and his unit were sent to Epsom where it just so happens, Peter鈥檚 family lived. He and his unit would be based there until they were needed and were confined to camp waiting for an all or nothing attempt to save a daunting amount of lives; everyone was so keyed up stress was mounting. Unlimited beer was made available before D-Day, Peter and his companions woke one morning, finding themselves in a regulation army bed in the middle of Crawley village high street with the local policeman directing traffic around them. The Army was sent for and transport took them back and nothing was ever said.

After the ceasefire Peter was billeted in a house in Germany near Lunenburg Heath, where the lady of the house was treating him more as a lost son than a member of the occupying forces. Peter became suspicious of her and conducted a search of the house finding a red Nazi armband with swastika emblem in a sideboard drawer, this lead him onto search further, revealing a Gestapo officer hiding in the attic.

Peter ended his working career in charge of weather forecasting for the South East of England, based at RAF Manson.

Peter and Malcolm鈥檚 father ran the ambulance service for the British Red Cross during the war organising the evacuation of casualties from the Atlantic convoys and battle casualties from Royal Navy ships in Scapa Flow Scotland and after bringing home a New Zealander from the Japanese prison camps and helping him recover their father was awarded the British Empire Medal for services to humanity. He later transferred to the control commission that helped run occupied Germany.

This story was submitted to the Peoples War site by D Schofield on behalf of Malcolm Stroud and the late Peter Stroud and has been added to the site with permission of Malcolm Stroud who fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

漏 Copyright of content contributed to this Archive rests with the author. Find out how you can use this.