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As a 15 year old in 1944 I joined the ATC and kept a flying log — my first recorded entries were to record flights in Stirling’s from RAF Chedbourgh during a week’s camp. These were night flights lasting 20 minutes for the first, and 3 hours 15 minutes for the second. I recorded the numbers of all the aircraft that I flew in, these were LK499 and EF 466. I well remember these flights as on both occasions I occupied the bomb aimer’s position, not only during the flight but also during takeoff and landing. I was unaware at the time of the somewhat fragile nature of the Stirling’s undercarriage! Later on I had flights in Oxfords, Dominies, Ansons and Dakotas.

I also used to visit local US airbases in my ATC uniform and found them more than happy to fly me around the country. Some of the most interesting of these flights took place from Cheddington. In January 1945, I flew in Liberator 250483, a J type from Cheddington to Woodbridge in Suffolk. This was one of the emergency landing airfields with a runway three times the normal width and seemingly enormous length. As we landed and taxied in, a Mustang that had landed in front rolled to a stop beside us, and I could see that the prop was bent back for about 2 feet of it’s length; the vibration must have been tremendous.

At the far side of the airfield was the most enormous pile of wrecked aircraft, a real heap, something that today’s restorers would give their eye teeth for. The purpose of our trip then become apparent; we were collecting another Liberator, this time an H type 25217, for return to Cheddington, and as I write this I see that it was one of the early aircraft. On climbing in via the bomb bay I realised that it still had it’s bomb load, a bit of a shock but all part of the excitement of wartime flying. The flight home, journeying through the tops of the clouds with me occupying the right hand seat rounded off a magical day.

One day as I was leaving Cheddington I was spotted by an ATC Officer and soundly berated for having the audacity to visit a US base unauthorised. Sometimes initiative is unrewarded, but it did not stop my regular visits.

I would finally add that to avoid conscription into the mines or whatever, I volunteered and spent 7 years in the FAA, but that’s another story…

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