Category: 1942/03
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March 31st 1942 – Loiwing, China
I organise a shooting party, but about 50 chaps with rifles come, and naturally we see nought. The guide, a BFF Hawaldar, fires the bush to drive stuff out but I don’t see it. Yesterday we go and examine the landing ground, and I go for a walk up the river above the bridge, and […]
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March 29th 1942 – Loiwing
China! We leave Laskio (Pierce and self and one Merritt of 17 sqn), and drive to Loiwing. We camp on the road the first night, light a fire and broach a case of beer. Bully, cheese and dry biscuits fried on the fire form an excellent meal. Next day on and we reach here. Many […]
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March 28th 1942 – Lashio
We drive on up to Laskio. A beautiful drive and a good river near Hsipaw where I would like to camp for a bit. Laskio has changed a bit. More buildings and its full of the Chinese Army. Prices have soared alot and 50 Players cost at least 6/-. I get a watch for 55/- […]
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March 27th 1942 – Maymyo
I go down to get into my a/c and see them all running for the bushes so I run too, and over comes another raid. It is followed by a dozen ’97’s’ turning and twisting like birds behind one another as they shoot up the ‘drome, their red suns and undercarriages clearly discernable. Like toy […]
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March 21st 1942 – Magwe
45 sqn Blenheims and 17 sqn Hurricanes as escort go off at dawn to bomb Mingaladon. The PRU brought home some pictures showing aircraft all over the runways. They get attacked before their run up and all the way back to Henzada. 45 sqn shoot down a few, drop their bombs and 17 sqn get […]
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March 20th 1942 – Magwe
I go on operations again. Hilton and I fly to Park Lane, the Prome landing ground, and then try an R/T test with the army on milestone 135 (north of Zigon); the R/T fails, so I go off and do my recco of Myogwin railway at 50 feet, with Hilton weaving behind me. He loses […]
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March 16th 1942 – Magwe
We go to Yenangyaung a couple of times to swim, and yesterday hit a black partridge on the way home. Moule arrives from the front to be Paddy’s stooge. On Friday 13th I take off in a Hurricane and wonder why the tail won’t come up. I put the tail trimmer forward a bit and […]
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March 10th 1942 – Akyab
Neil Elliot takes me to Akyab as second pilot on his Lockheed 12a, rather like driving a car. I see 136 Squadron and do (yesterday afternoon and this morning and afternoon) 18 landings on the Mark 1 Hurricane, eventually doing a couple perfectly. A place reminiscent of the Madras coast, and I have a bed […]
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March 9th 1942
Parry-Keene says I am to stay here and that he won’t promote me if India won’t. Some drinking with Lakri Wood, Neil Elliot and Dudley Withers who turns up here. Yesterday Lakri and I drive out to Yenangyaung, the BOC field where there is an American and a British Club. We have some drinks in […]
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March 4th 1942
AOC says I need a rest but I’m not allowed one and have to do silly jobs in the Lysanders. I take one Mr Scott of the Forestry Department to Zigon, a damn small place, and back. I can’t even land a Lysander now. Burt Mann gets shot down by a lot of Jap fighters […]
A Story of War 