大象传媒

The storyteller was serving aboard H.M.S Eagle at the outbreak of war when he was thirty one years old. The aircraft carrier had just docked at the Suez Canal when war was declared.He felt totally unprepared for war.

He was disembarked from the ship and sent to help defend the airfield at Ismailiya. There were six inch naval guns there and they set about making wooden replicas of anti-arcraft guns to fool the enemy. He repaired and maintained aircraft during this time. His unit had no steel helmets so had some made in Cairo but the metal was too thin and would not have given protection. Eventually equipment began to arrive at Christmas time and the situation eased. There were no proper beds at the airfield and only one rifle for every ten men.

The base feared German parachutists might be deployed following their use in other wartime locations. Units were sent into Ismailiya, two miles from the base, to round up fifth columnists and spies. Many Egyptians resented the British presence in their country and had German flags ready to display if a German invasion proved successful. Railway firemen were known to open the fireboxes on their trains as a signal to enemy bombers if they were near the airfield. Only three people were killed during the storyteller's time at the base when a trench they were digging fell in on them. Native people were employued in the airfield workshops. Sudanese workers were found to be the best employees.

The storyteller was able to visit historic sites in Cairo, Luxor and Paestine during his leave times. He generally enjoyed his time in Egypt before returning home in 1941.

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