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1959
In the transport field, later in the year, the ‘Mini’ was launched, priced at about £500.00. A rather basic car, with the engine mounted sideways, but one that appealed to the public, as it was small and could be parked in a town, without too many problems. I decided that I could afford to have one and we became a ‘two car family’. However, as I had expected, my son saw more of it that I did, and I eventually gave it to him. He soon replaced it with a Mini -Cooper ‘S’ which was more in keeping with the status of a young driver.
Britain was still not ready to join the Common Market, and so became part of ‘E.F.T.A.’ (European Free Trade Market )
1960
In February, the first talks were held about the development of a supersonic airliner, and I was intrigued to read statistics, which indicated that the sound barrier would be broken. Over 1500 miles per hour. Later I was taken to see the ‘mock up’ of this remarkable aircraft, which was to be built in collaboration with France. Suddenly, it made the world a much smaller place.
I also went to see the radio telescope which was at Jodrell Bank, and had made contact with an American satellite over a distance of 407,000 miles. I can’t begin to imagine this distance, and I often wonder, how these statements can be checked. I remember, one of my bosses, who used to go to meetings and if he had forgotten the actual ones, would give figures which were not accurate, but said with such conviction that they were never questioned, (except in my own mind.)
At the end of the year, National Service ended, and the last 2,000 men were called up, for the Army and Air Force. Fifteen years after the end of the war, and five million men later. The things I have forgotten. I wonder why we needed so many men ?
Perhaps the rail and dock strikes, the Irish situation, Kenya and the ‘Mau Mau’ terrorists, the Cyprus crisis, the Suez crisis, racial riots in London and Nottingham in 1958. What happened to ‘peace’ ?
1961/62
The year that saw a turn round by the Government, when they applied to join the Common Market.
1963
President DeGaulle of France, objected to Britain’s joining the EEC.
Who needs enemies etc ? We had helped so much during the war and had him living in this country. My Grandma did not like the French students who invaded Hastings in the 1930’s, and told me never to trust the ‘froggies’. You were right Grandma ! Although I didn’t want to join anyway. national feelings etc.
1964
It’s a funny world, for here we are agreeing to build a Channel Tunnel. Why ? I suppose, we could always fill up our end, if we fall out with the French.
At the end of the year, it was decided to end Capital punishment. I still do not agree with this, in cases where murder is witnessed, especially when a policeman is involved, for their job is becoming more and more dangerous, with diminishing law and order.
In the following year, a very different mood engulfed the nation, when the Moors murders took place, the worst aspect was the recording of a child who was later murdered, pleading not to be hurt. The recording was broadcast, and to me, it was the reason why we should keep Capital punishment. Even now, there are periodic suggestions that Brady should be paroled. Not in a thousand years, should we allow these people to become part of society. The ‘do-gooders’ have a lot to answer for, because we are reading increasingly, that people are released only to kill again. Forgiveness is not in my vocabulary, where these persons are concerned.
1965
A sad year as we said good-bye to Winston Churchill in January. A man who was there when we needed inspiration, and the will to go on and win. He lay in state for three days, in Westminster Hall and then after the funeral, he was taken by barge along the Thames to the village churchyard at Blenheim. I have visited the grave and I felt I was saying my own ‘Thank you.’ Many of us, can still hear his stirring speech about the debt owed to the few by so many, referring to the R.A.F. who were involved in the ‘Battle of Britain’
1966
I know I keep returning my thoughts to transport, but it was my life, and one of the most interesting people I met was Freddie Laker. He was a rather unassuming man, but he had the vision of package holidays for everyone. The first time I flew with him, was on a trip to Ostend. Eric, David and I travelled to Luton Airport. It was a very hot day, and we were told there would be a delay. Later on, as we boarded the Dakota, a mechanic got off, and patting the steward who was boarding said ‘The best of luck’. When we were seated, we looked to the rear of the plane, and the back was boarded up from a height of about four feet. One of the stewardesses told us, that a car was stowed behind the panel. As it looked as though it was made of plywood, my imagination ran riot, and I could seeing a flying car coming through the cabin, every time we banked steeply. I wasn’t too happy either, when David pointed out that one of the tyres of the aircraft was looking rather bald. By this time I was ready to swim back. A hovercraft service was running that year, and I certainly wished I could have afforded to divert on to it for the return journey.
1967
Back to transport, when Donald Campbell died trying to break the world water speed record. In many ways, TV revolutionised our world. Whereas in the past, we would hear events on the radio, and read about them in the papers next day, now we saw recordings of accidents, and in the case of the U.S. rocket being put into space, witnessed the explosion and the death of the crew as it happened.
Still with transport, Sir Francis Chichester returns from his round the world voyage. A very courageous man.
The Q.E. 2 was launched. I wished I could have sailed in her. When I saw her anchored in Los Angeles harbour many years later, when we were on holiday, she needed a coat of paint, and I understood that she had been used as a hotel, but this was not very successful. Another time when I saw her, I was on board a ship touring the harbour, and I got everyone on the ship to toast her, and England as well. This was on the occasion when I won the award with the U.S. Army and was flown to Los Angeles. As I was one of the guests of honour at the Convention, I had been offered drinks on a continuous basis on the harbour trip, and this sort of behaviour was very much out of keeping from my general demeanour.
The end of the year saw the end of steam trains, and most interesting of all, the first appearance of the ‘Concorde’. The first flight of this wonderful aeroplane was not until two years later in 1969. I knew I had to fly in her sometime, sooner or later.
There were still objections from DeGaulle, about Britain joining the Common market. It appeared that he felt that true Europeans, could not sustain a close relationship with the U.S.A.
From a personal point of view. my life changed in1967 when Rylands decided to install a computer and asked for names
of people who would like to be trained as programmers. I then found out that they only wanted men, and I was not considered.
By coincidence, the U.S. Army, who had a base locally, at Burtonwood advertised for people to apply for jobs in middle management. When I phoned I found that one of these was Transport Management Specialist. I went for an I.Q. test and managed to come out with top marks. I was offered the post at £6.00 more than I was getting at that time, but I thought I should be straightforward and tell my employers that I had had a better offer. I consulted them and was told that they could not promise that I would be promoted, when the present traffic manager retired. They did say I would probably get a £3.00 rise the following year. They did also warn me, that there was not the same security of jobs with the American Army. Ironically, the office manager who told me this, was made redundant six months later. By this time I had been contacted again by the Base, and offered £12.50 more a week. So I accepted.Life with the Army (American style)
The position meant that I was responsible for all the U.S. Army Depots in the U.K. There was the storage depot at Burtonwood, which was the largest covered and heated warehouse in Europe, and held stocks as a back-up for materials in the European theatre. We stored Ô400 bed hospitals, and everything needed within the hospital. Hospital desks, operating tables, medicine bottles and even the corks. There was also lubricating oils, jeeps and many other types of vehicles. Parachutes, which were tested by teams that came from the U.S.A. to see that they were in top condition and folded correctly. Meals in small plastic bags for emergency rations. Thousands of other items.
There were originally three ammunition depots in the Midlands. When General DeGaulle, turned the U.S. Army out of France in 1967, all the ammunition was loaded up and brought to these depots. Some was stored underground (Fauld, Nr Uttoxeter) and it was very eerie to travel around underground and see all these pallets of projectiles and propellants. When one went down, you were issued with a tin hat and a number. There were quite a few buckets about and I was told that these were to carry back the pieces, if your number came up.
Later on, the ammunition was moved into one depot in South Wales.
A continuous movement of convoys was arranged, and this was to take six months. I would only give the contract for one month, on the understanding, that it would be reviewed at that point, so that the haulage company could find the true running cost. I gambled that the original rate was a little high and that they would reduce rate. This they did, and I saved the U.S. Government 74,000 dollars.
This lead to my trip to Heidelberg, (November 1972) as it was the largest amount saved in the ‘Cost reduction’ programme, and I was asked to attend an award ceremony. It was an unusual trip, as the Commanding Officer came too, and we were asked to go to a ‘Change of command ‘ at one of the bases, and given the places of honour. Everyone assumed that I was the Commander’s wife, which was quite fun, and we both had a laugh. From there, we travelled to Heidelberg and I stayed at one hotel, and the Colonel was booked into another. I was given a sedan and driver, and a lady lieutenant to look after me, but he was not given any transport, so we gave him a lift to the ceremony.
The event turned out to be a memorable one, in more ways than one.
In the front rows, were the top people from the American Forces, all services, and also from the British Services, as I was a British national. There were also people nominated from the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy and we were asked to take our seats on the dais at the front of the large hall. Beside me on my left, was the band, and in front, the Commander in Chief of the American Forces in Europe. To open the proceedings, the band played the Stars & Stripes, and the German National Anthem. I was hoping, that the would play the British one, but apparently, they only played the host nation’s, of the country in which the event took place.
The Commander in Chief, was introduced and stood at a lectern and started to speak. He had spoken only a few sentences, when there was a loud bang. Pandemonium broke out and people were rushing about all over the place. Many were armed, and went to the entrances to block the doors. The main section of V.I.P’s stayed where they were.
At this point, I should explain, that only a week before the Bunder-Meinhof (?) group had planted a bomb at the barracks where American Forces were living, and so the explosion was presumed to be another attack.
However, when things calmed down, it was found that the dais had been formed by a platform being placed on a rubber raft. The weight of the V.I.P’s proved too much, and the rubber ruptured with a bang.
As we slowly sank to the ground, I looked at the startled faces, and thinking back to my childhood days, when the cinema organs used to sink slowly out of sight, I tried to imagine the looks on the faces of the assembled company, if we did the same. This tickled my sense of humour, and I am afraid I laughed. They thought I was keeping cool and was probably mad anyway.
When the Commander resumed his speech, he apologised for the break in the proceedings, and said he would like to see the Chief Engineer immediately after the ceremony. Rather him than me !!
The opening of Caerwent
The movement of all the ammunition from the Midlands location continued over six months, and in fact was accomplished six weeks before scheduled, and we were commended for the movement. It was quite difficult, as we had to move some by road and rail, and this had to be programmed so that we were sure that Caerwent could accept from both modes of transport.
At the commencement, we did hit a snag. I went to down to the base, and when I arrived, I found that there was an outbreak of foot and mouth disease and some of the sheep who were allowed to graze on the pads (mounds over ammunition warehouses) had been affected. I was made to wade through a trough of disinfectant, much to the amusement of the men on the base. I then had to return to the transportation officer at Burtonwood, and tell him that the great American Army machine, could not commence the movement. When I told him that the sheep, were to blame, he lost his temper, and I was told very plainly, that no .......... sheep were going to stop us, and that he would personally go with a machine-gun and mow them down. Luckily, the movement order was lifted and we started the re-location.
Soon after I started to work with the U.S.Army, I had one of the saddest moments of my career. I was sitting quietly in my office, as it was lunch time, reading one of my magazines, when I heard a rush of footsteps, doors opening and shutting and then more and more voices. I hurried out and could not believe what I was hearing.
The helicopter had crashed near London Airport at Crawley, and they thought everyone had been killed. Only a few hours before, I had said good morning to Colonel Grabowski, a friendly man, who always spoke to you when you met in the corridor.
Only four days before, I had travelled to Caerwent in the helicopter, and it was such a bright & sunny day. One of the crew, had opened the door, and stood there looking out, the sun on his blonde hair. He was happy with life and talked about his English girl friend. A little later, I was told to fasten my seat belt, and we came down in a field. Opening up the front, oil was everywhere, as we had an oil leak. We waited until one of the crew, went to a nearby house and phoned to the base. They sent a sedan for me, and I arrived at Caerwent soon after. (Until I worked for the Americans, I always thought of a sedan as a seat carried by four men, and it always amused me, when it was mentioned, as I half expected four men from the motor pool to arrive, with this chair.)
I returned to Burtonwood by train.
Later that day we learnt that all five people on the helicopter had been killed, as the rotor-blade had come off. The B.B.C. news showed a film taken by an amateur camera man, and there we saw the cabin of the helicopter spiralling down, with smoke coming from it, and the terrible crash when it hit the ground. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, and I don’t think I will ever forget the scene.

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