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Five teenage chums who readily raised their eyes from Scouting to the skies in 1941 were nicknamed ‘The Maclagans’, although nobody seemed to know why. John Hall, William Hawley and Joe Dawson were founder members of the Town Flight of 610 ATC Squadron; Norman Wilson and Howard Clark, being still at Lady Manners (then Grammar) School were in the School Flight. With 17¼ being the minimum age to join the RAF and 18 to begin flying training, there was nothing for it but to line up on the springboard and be ready to jump when the time came. The ATC and Thimble Hall were their springboard, or at least, the upper floor which they renovated and furnished by somewhat dubious means and equipped with such tools of their intended trade as they could lay their hands on. Access was by a ladder and a trapdoor that was firmly barred to all non-members, particularly female intruders. They taught each other Aircraft Maths, Theory of Flight, Navigation and the Morse Code. A little more than a year later, they were down to four.

Having obtained his School Certificate, Howard was advised to apply for an Engineering Cadetship at Loughborough College prior to a technical commission in the Army. He applied for it, got it and decided he was no longer anxious to slip the surly bonds of earth. He left for Loughborough in mid 1942. Johnny was first to come of an age to volunteer for aircrew duties. He reported for medical tests — and failed! He had made the mistake of admitting to rheumatic fever in childhood which, in those days, it was automatically assumed, left a weak heart. The rejection was a cruel blow and he dropped out. William discovered that the Fleet Air Arm was taking aircrew volunteers for immediate enlistment through what was known as the Y [youth] Scheme. Too eager to let the colour of the uniform stand in his way, he opted for navy blue and off he went in early 1943. He was awarded his wings after training in Canada and saw squadron service before the war ended. Joe and Norman cycled to Derby one Saturday afternoon in May 1943 and volunteered for aircrew. They were classified PNB [pilot/navigator/bomb aimer] at Padgate before being sent home for 10 months deferment. Joe applied for pre-entry training and was sent to Bradford for six months. A disappointment awaited him at the end of it. The RAF was, by this time, running out of air gunners faster than pilots, so he was sent to gunnery school in Scotland to train on Wellington bombers. He was awarded his aircrew brevet and sent to Canada for OTU [operational training unit] on Liberator bombers where, crewed up, they were about to leave for Far East operations when the atom bomb was dropped. They altered course and came home. He was demobbed in 1946. Norman, meanwhile, had been selected for a University Short Course and sent to Queen’s University, Belfast, until September 1944. He was confirmed as a trainee pilot on completion of a spell at an elementary flying school on the Humber and, after two short detachments to bomber airfields in Lincoln and East Yorkshire, he boarded the SS Aquitania for New York and onwards to Oklahoma for basic and advanced training. It ended abruptly a few weeks short of ‘wings’ when the war suddenly ended and they all came home on the SS Queen Elizabeth. He completed his training in Shropshire, but decided to leave the RAF in December 1947, although he continued to fly with the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.

Postscript
Howard gained his diploma at Loughborough and was commissioned in the Royal Engineers in 1946. He returned to Civvy Street in 1949/50 to become Works Manager at DSF, Friden, before moving to a post in Sheffield. Johnny overcame his disappointment, studied for a technical degree in electricity and gravitated to electrical design. William made the Fleet Air Arm his career. He served on aircraft carriers at home and overseas, commanded an airfield and retired as a Captain after 29 years service. Joe studied for a technical degree in mechanical engineering and followed Howard as Works Manager at DSF. Norman returned as a Regular to the RAF following the outbreak of war in Korea, but in crash-landing his burning jet fighter on an exercise, he was disabled and invalided out. Thimble Hall, of course, went on to fame and fortune… but not as a seat of learning.

This story has been added to the site by Alison Tebbutt, Derby CSV Action Desk, on behalf of Norman Wilson and Andrew McCloy. The author has given his permission, and fully understands the site’s terms and conditions

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