大象传媒

This story was submitted to the People's War website by Christine Wadsworth of Wakefield Libraries and Information Services on behalf of Bernard Miller and has been added to the site with his permission. The author fully understands the site's terms and conditions.

I was in the South East Asia Command, Motor Transport Section. Before the War I had worked in local shops, including David Haigh Pawnbrokers, South Elmsall, West Yorkshire. I was in the ATC, volunteered at 19 and went to Sheffield for a medical, then Cardington, Lancashire, in June 1942. Christmas that same year I had Christmas Day lunch in Free Town, South Africa, but didn鈥檛 disembark.
In Durban, I spent six weeks in a Transit Camp then sailed for Bombay. From there I travelled by train to Calcutta which took three days and four nights. Serious transport work started at Barackpore, twenty miles north of Calcutta, transporting goods and staff to Dumdum Airport.

One run I remember, I was with a Ford station wagon. There were two drivers and we had a full load and were driving onto a ferry over two planks. A little Welsh man was guiding us on when he disappeared into the water and all we could see at first was his toupe floating on the water.

A second special job was at Camilla, an isolated area with a grass airstrip.We drove the top brass including Mountbatten and also Vera Lynn at times.At one time I was running the Transport Section because the Sergeant was sent home as he never perspired.

The Viceroy commissioned Sikh officers because they knew the area. We drove hundreds of miles to signals units with secret and confidential information. The journeys were often arduous, there were no signposts and although the officers got a week鈥檚 rest the driver went next day on another ten day journey. I did have two weeks hill station leave, first in Darjeeling and then the Himalayas.

At the end of 1944-early 1945, my Unit went by sea to Rangoon. Four of us were left behind to sort out transport in the maintainance area. At Fort Belvedere, Calcutta, we waited until a flight could be arranged to get the four of us to Rangoon.

Our customs were different to the Indian鈥檚. During one, the water celebration, it was legal to throw water over everyone else. This was the only time we were allowed to wear shorts and no shirts. Hosepipes were used.

Rangoon had already been taken. The Japanese Army had given up after Hiroshima and the War was over. It was three months before we were repatriated. We thought that we had been forgotten. There were no W.V.S. out there, but we were near to the American forces and they allowed us use of their PX stores (like our NAAFI) to buy things.

Combat conditions had been poor, with prickly heat and Bengal foot rot.

We arrived home from Rangoon, calling at Ceylon to pick up two hundred WRENS stationed out there, and docked at Liverpool. I was discharged in 1946.

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