大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People鈥檚 War website by Marie on behalf of Sheina and has been added to the site with her permission. Sheina fully understand the site鈥檚 terms and conditions.

It was November time - to the best of my memory - a very windy, dark and damp night.
The place was RAF Bolt Tail - a Radar Station - which lay between Hope Cove and Bolberry Down. RAF Bolt Head was the adjacent aerodrome. This aerodrome was not blessed with an overgenerous runway (at the end it dropped over the cliff edge towards the sea below!).
Our Watch -"C"- was on duty that evening from 1800 to 2300. Because of the gusty weather we were obliged to lash (secure) our large rectangular (normally revolving) aerial which meant that there was limited radar coverage of the area which we monitored. This was part of the French coast west of Cherbourg and the Channel.
The evening went smoothly until later we picked up a larger than average plot (blip) on our screen. On enquiring from Filter Room at Plymouth we learned that it was an American Flying Fortress converted into an ambulance bringing wounded back from France. Now the amazing thing was that the plane was flying dead centre in our limited beam and kept on course, all the way, until it was half-way across the Channel,when, it took an 180* turn and headed straight back where it had previously been! There was a stunned silence among us - broken only by one WAAF operator praying "Oh God, please turn them around!". We watched our plotting table, with despair.
Meantime there was a further phonecall to Plymouth Filter Room - explaining the situation. They gave us permission to use the search-light which we had on site and told us to check with the aerodrome and give them details immediately.
RAF Bolt Head responded to the emergency - they told us the procedure - with a severe warning not to use the search-light beam any longer than 5 seconds - because it could be traced. They were putting their landing lights on intermittently - for the same reason
Hopefully, we watched and waited and - just as suddenly - saw the "blip" turn around and head straight for home. It was a miracle to watch! Then a little later we heard the roar of those mighty engines passing overhead - and we all hoped for a safe landing!
The aerodrome very thoughtfully telephoned the news that the plane had landed and all was well.

That is not the ending of this story, however -
I was posted a few weeks later to Cornwall, so I can only pass this part on by hearsay.
Some months later (before V.J. Day) the Captain and crew of that aircraft came to Bolt Tail because they wanted to thank the people who were on watch at the time. They saw the Operations Block and the aerial, and the inside, and shook hands with all the Watch on duty, thanking them and telling them that the injured were all now safely home.
It must have been a great moment.

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