Fly Past

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114 FLYPAST May 2018

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Spitfi re memories

I was interested to read about the

Spitfire Mk.22s of the Rhodesian

Air Force (FlyPast, March), as it

recalled a flight made early in

my first tour as a captain on the

Hercules (with 30 Squadron at

Lyneham) during July 1980.

The destination was Harare,

Zimbabwe and it would give two

crews experience in flying to some

unusual destinations. The primary

purpose of the task was for the

VIP-qualified captain and crew to

transfer HRH the Duke of Kent and

General [later Field Marshal] Sir

Edwin Bramall, arriving from the

UK in an RAF VC10, from Harare

to Victoria Falls Airport for a state

ceremony. ‘Vic Falls’ was hot

and high and had a relatively short

runway, meaning it was well outside

the VC10’s performance limits.

My crew was left with three days

to fill and having seen the aircraft

of the Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ)

across the airfield from the parking

stand when we had arrived at Harare

International, I thought it might be

a good idea to visit our opposite

numbers at New Sarum.

My co-pilot, Dave Curties, and I

duly made our way there and were

welcomed by Sqn Ldr Bob d’Hotman

of AFZ 3 Squadron. Over a coffee,

I asked if we could have a look at

one of their [Douglas] Dakotas.

Bob replied, “We can do better

than that”, and promptly rang his

groundcrew and asked for a ‘Dak’ for

an hour, and off we went! He offered

me the left-hand (captain’s) seat,

and with his help, I started up, taxied

out, took off and had a very pleasant

20 minutes flying the aircraft around

the local area. Dave then took

my place and had his turn, before

bringing the ‘Dak’ back for landing.

We returned to 3 Squadron, where

Bob showed us the unexpected sight

of a beautifully restored airworthy

Spitfire. I had seen a few Spitfires

close up before, but, apart from

having not seen a Mk.22 before,

I was very impressed with the

standard of finish and attention to

detail – the colours were perfect,

even the original cannons were

fitted. The maintenance crew,

who told us the aircraft’s and its

restorer and owner Jack Malloch’s

stories, obviously took great pride

in their charge.

This was PK350 (as I found

out from the article) only four

months after its completed

restoration, and I even had the

privilege of checking out the

cockpit. I will always remember the

friendliness and hospitality of the

AFZ personnel, particularly Bob,

and Ian Harvey of the helicopter

squadron, and if you ever read this

Ian, I’ve still got the 7 Squadron

mug you gave me.

RICK HARLAND

PRINCES RISBOROUGH

Tank-busting
relatives
I was surprised to read a detailed
review by Andrew Thomas of the
role the 6 Squadron Hurricane IVs
played in North Africa (FlyPast,
January).
I was even more amazed as
it mentioned my late father’s
name, F/Sgt ‘Roy’ Veal. He is
included in the photo where Sqn
Ldr D Weston-Burt is giving a
briefing. Roy is the one sitting
down reading the maps wearing
unzipped boots.
My father was shot down behind
enemy lines and returned on
foot. For this he was awarded
the unofficial ‘Late Arrivals Club’

badge which is a silver pin of a

flying boot with wings. He was

allowed to wear it on his left breast

pocket, and it can be clearly seen

in his wedding photos.

The day F/Sgt F Harris was shot

down and killed is noted in Roy’s

logbook – he must have been a

friend. My dad was lucky to survive.

After his tour [on Hurricanes] he

flew with 3 Air Delivery Unit all

around the Mediterranean until the

end of the war.

He was called up for the Korean

War and went on to become a

flying instructor training Fleet Air

Arm pilots before leaving in 1955.

STEVE VEAL

BY E-MAIL

Buccaneers
(and a Gannet) from
Ark Royal
In 1972 I was a junior engineer on the
10,000-ton cargo ship SS Patonga,
en route from Panama to Auckland.
It was a 23-day trip with nothing to
look at except for clear blue sky and
a calm sea.
The Royal Navy aircraft carrier
HMS Ark Royal, out of sight beyond
the horizon, asked us if we minded
being [non-destructive] target
practice for their Buccaneers.
We willingly agreed, and spent a
fascinating afternoon watching the
fighters coming in low and whistling
over the top of us.
Our captain, ‘Cautious Claude’,
so-named because of his hesitancy
passing between the two islands of
New Zealand after a bad moment

sometime in his past, came out onto

the bridge for a better view. Because

our ship had no air conditioning, he,

like the rest of us, wore minimum

clothing during the day, although we

dressed for dinner in civilised Red

Sea rig.

‘Claude’ was wearing only ‘Hong

Kong shreddies’; white boxer shorts

with red polka dots, short black

socks and shoes. Embarrassed at

the thought of presenting himself

so attired to the Fleet Air Arm, he

exclaimed, “I’m improperly dressed”,

dived back inside and re-emerged

with his captain’s hat on. The superb

air display was then concluded with

a slow flypast of a Fairey Gannet,

including a wave from the pilot and a

waggle of the wings.

KEITH GULLIFORD,

NORTH BADDESLEY

I thought this picture might be of interest for your continued

celebration of the RAF’s centenary year. It was taken at RAF

Finningley on the 75th anniversary in 1993, and it shows 75 aircraft

on the runway. Finningley was the only RAF base with sufficient

aircraft to stage the event. I authorised the line-up as I was the

Station Commander at the time.

GP CPT ALAN FERGUSON (RET’D).

BY EMAIL