大象传媒

This story has been written onto the People's War site by CSV Storygatherer Ceia Bean on behalf of Len Hicks. The story has been added to the site with his permission, and Len Hicks fully understands the terms and conditions of the site.

I had the choice of the army, the navy or the air force. I chose the air force. They said that they would train me as a wireless operator (receiving and sending Morse code) as I had clerical experience. I was called up and went to Blackpool, billeted in a hotel. I did square bashing and learnt Morse code, sending and receiving. I was there a few months and then went on to Compton Basset in Wiltshire to finish training and be passed out. I lived in a Nissan hut. It was a freezing winter. Washed and shaved in cold water!! Different from Blackpool! When I finished training I was posted to St Eval near Newquay(very nice). This was early 1941, and then came the air raids. I could see Plymouth burning from St Eval. Then they came over and bombed the camp. I was on duty one night in April 1941 in operations block when the Jerry鈥檚 bombed us to hell. Fortunately the only place they didn鈥檛 hit was the operations block I was in. As Plymouth was devastated I used to hitch hike home to see how things were. Everybody was badly shaken but safe.

I asked permission to live out in private quarters and have my wife Kath down, this was granted. I walked down to St Mawgan village. Didn鈥檛 know anybody there, walked up the village hill and saw this big stone-detached house, knocked on the door and an elderly lady answered. She was surprised to see a man in uniform. I told her about my wife and the bombing in Plymouth and that I was looking for furnished rooms to bring her down. There were two spinsters in the house. One the owner and the other her companion. The owner said yes. We had twelve lovely months there (lovely lady she was called Nellie Brewer).

During this time Louie and son, Bobby, came down and stayed for several months. Millie(Kath鈥檚 sister) came down for a holiday and I went up and fetched Elizabeth, my sister Beatie鈥檚 daughter, down. Elizabeth was only a few years old but she was as good as gold. The time came in April 1942 when I was posted overseas (where, you did not know!!)

I went to this transit camp near Manchester and was kitted out with tropical gear. I was then sent to Liverpool and boarded this big dark liner, the Empress of Japan. We were herded on board like cattle and given hammocks to sleep on. Thousands of all types, army, navy, air force, and no women, but us. I did not belong to any squadron or group. I was a loner, going where they wanted wireless operators.

We set sail in a convoy, our liner in the middle, destroyers circling around us all the time as u-boats were around us. We were weeks at sea, going in all directions, sirens going all the time. We had to put lifejackets on and get on deck when u-boats were around. Some smaller ships sunk. Destroyers had to stay with us, as there were thousands of us. Some men had never been to sea before and were really ill. Being used to the sea I was okay all the time. I had plenty of food but most of the men could not eat anything. There were hammocks strung up almost next to each other. If you had to go to the toilet in the night you had a job to find your hammock, crawling on hands and knees as the place was in complete darkness. You had to fold the hammock up during the day. I spent most of the time playing cards. Finally we saw land and anchored in Freetown harbour for a short time. All the natives came out in boats, selling fruit. We set sail again, still going this way and that way, and finally came safely to dock at Durban, South Africa. Transport was ready to take RAF people to tented camp outside of Durban. A place called Clairwood. Then onwards by a short train journey to Durban. The people there were marvellous, free meals and dances for us. The people there were mostly English. I stayed a month but wished it were for longer. Still did not know where I was going, either India or Egypt. We were told to get ready as a ship was waiting for us. We got to the docks and saw this new liner called 鈥淣ew Amsterdam鈥�. Apparently it got out of Holland just before the jerries arrived. We got out in the open sea and were surprised that there was no convoy or escort. The liner then opened up full speed up the coast of Africa and on to the Red Sea. We landed at Port Tewfik, Egypt. Now I knew that we had to go all the way round as we could not go through the Suez Canal. I was taken to Cairo and I was told that I was going to work in headquarters, Egypt.(a big hotel taken over in the centre of Cairo) I was billeted out in a private guest house(waited on, laundry done, very nice). During which time I went on leave. As I knew all about Cairo and I had also heard other RAF chaps had hitchhiked to Palestine(Israel), myself and another fellow decided to try it. We knew there was a Toc鈥檋 hostel in Jerusalem but no way of booking so we had to chance it. Also no buses or cars so had to rely on service lorries going that way.

We got on the road early one morning when an open top army lorry came along going all the way to Jerusalem(what luck). It was a terrible journey across Sinai, sand blowing. Anyway we got there and they dropped us off on top of a hill overlooking Jerusalem(lorry was going further on). The walled garden of Jerusalem was very impressive. We walked down the hill and through one of the gates and found the Toc鈥檋 hostel. Yes, there was room for us!(lucky again) Whilst there I visited, Bethlehem, Nazareth, the Dead Sea and into Jordan. There were boneshaker buses running so I was able to get about and finally went to Tel Aviv. Stayed there a few days and we were lucky again to get a lift back to Cairo.

Monty (Eighth Army) had won the battle of Alamein. This was the Autumn of 1942. We could hear guns in Cairo when he advanced. An operations building was built(just a shell) to keep radio links and aircraft ops going as Monty pushed on. This was some miles in from Tobruk on a sort of hard shoulder of the western desert. I was sent there in the Spring of 1943 and when I arrived I was given a ground sheet and blanket and I had to sleep with just that. No bed!! Six wireless operators had to share a ridge tent, very hot, hardly any water and no toilets or showers. The food was just basic. We had a bottle of beer once a month. Throughout the war things had to be manned twenty- four hours. Trying to sleep after night duty here was very difficult. I stayed there for twelve months. The place closed as Monty pushed on so I was sent back to Cairo awaiting for the next move. It came and I was sent back to an RAF staging post about twenty miles from where I had just come. It was just the same, sand blowing everywhere, hot, terrible food, little water, no toilets. I was stuck there until early 1945 when my three years overseas was up and soon I was going home (married men did three years and single men four years). I came home through the Suez Canal (Jerry had gone). I landed in Scotland and went home on leave in May 1945. After my leave I was sent to Mountbatten and then to Roborough. I lived out with Kath in her parent鈥檚 house in Vanguard Terrace in Keyham.

I was demobbed in December 1945.

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