"We flew to Blida from Fezz (Morocco) in 11th Aug 1943, from Blida to Protville on 8th Oct 1943 and from Protville to Sidi Amor for operations over Yugoslavia. On 1st Dec 1943 we moved to Tokra for operations over Greece & eastern Europe. During this period we had to make two forced landings, one at Grattaglie and the other at Birha. On one trip we had run into an electrical storm which knocked out all the instruments. There was poor visibility as we made our landing approach I looked down out of the turret straight down the funnel of a tramp steamer. We were trying to land in Tunis Harbour.The pilot managed to get the wheels up and we eventually landed safely without any more damage. The navy sent a letter to the squadron complaining about our low flying over their port."
"On 30th Dec. 1943 we flew from Tokra to Brindisi taking with us a pig for a belated squadron Christmas dinner. The pig had been acquired earlier in the year an had been looked after by some of the Canadian members of the squadron.When it came to slaughtering the pig the "butcher", again one of the Canadians, missed with the second blow of his knife and severed the tendons in his own hand. The dinner its self turned into a riotous affair which ended in fighting and the mess tent being destroyed."
"During this period I was detached to 133 Force. on 20th Jan 1944 we were to drop the British Mission to Tito's partisan H.Q. in Yugoslavia. We flew in a DC3 (Dakota) with the members of the mission, the commander, Brig. McLean and seven others including Randolph Churchill: son of the Prime Minister. In addition the mission we carried their equipment. Additional supplies were carried in two Italian Savohy (not sure about the spelling) bombers. These three aircraft were escorted by 36 American Thunderbolt fighters. There may have been other fighters as well but these were the close escort. So close that you could almost walk from the wing tip of one 'plane to the next. In order to get the men and equipment close together in the drop zone the men were dropped in two sticks of four and then the equipment was dropped. This meant making three runs over the drop zone, the Savohys......... only had to make one. After I had pushed out the equipment on the third run and had time to look round three wasn't another aircraft to be seen: we made our own way back alone."
"Near the airfield at Blida was the SOE training camp of Sidi Farouch. Naturally security here was very tight. It was said that even a rabbit couldn't get in, in fact some rabbits were blown up in the minefield that surrounded the camp. Rabbit proof it may have been but it didn't stop the Arabs. One night they broke into the parachute hut and stole the silk from six parachutes concealing the theft by stuffing the parachute packs with old newspapers. Later, six trainees on a practice jump lost their lives when they used these packs."
"One of the worst days in the squadron's history occurred at Blida when four aircraft were detailed to take of in poor weather to drop arms to a large force of partisans that had been trapped by the Germans. All four aircraft crashed on take off or shortly after: there were no survivors. One man to escape death that day was Sergeant Richards, an air gunner in the crew of one of the four aircraft. He had been grounded after receiving an eye injury in a snowball fight earlier that day. Among those killed was his best friend and fellow Canadian. They had trained together as gunners and the man who was killed was engaged the marry Sergeant Richards sister. This event so distressed Sergeant Richards that he refused to fly and there was a suggestion of him being treated as LMF (Lack of Moral Fibre). In Bomber Command LMF was the punishment given to aircrew who were accused of cowardice. They were stripped of their rank and wings but remained on the squadron doing all the dirty jobs on the station. In fact the governments of Commonwealth countries refused to allow this punishment to be inflicted on their citizens in the RAF and it was only applied to British aircrew. In the event Sergeant Richards did fly one more operation and was then posted home to Canada."
"As a special duties squadron more often than not we did not know what our passengers were to do after they were delivered into occupied Europe. Amongst them were spies, saboteurs, even safe crackers and bank robbers let out of prison to rob banks in Europe to finance resistance activities. There were many brave men and women among them but on a couple of occasions aircraft returned from operations without the agent or the dispatcher leading me to the belief that the agent had got cold feet and in a struggle with the dispatcher both had fallen out of the aircraft. After that I rigged up a harness to keep me attached to the aircraft. Some of our passengers were regular customers who seemed to pop in and out of occupied countries as casually as people do nowadays on package holidays. One, to this day the most beautiful woman I have ever met, I took on three trips. I never knew what she did until I saw her in a hotel in Algiers used by SOE. My companion, Gus Goode, an army sergeant attached to SOE,told me to keep clear of her because the other agents disliked her for what she did. Her job - assassin."
"The ease with which some people got in and out of occupied countries is illustrated by the story of one rear gunner. His Halifax crashed into a mountain in Yugoslavia, the turret broke off and rolled down the mountain with him still inside it. He was found by the partisans, injured but alive, and within three days was in hospital in Italy."
"I was, whilst in 624 squadron, Dispatch Leader, not normally a job for flight sergeants as it involves issuing instructions to officers. Eventually I was recommended for a commission but it did not come through until after I left the squadron. I was decorated with the D.F.M. and the French Croix de Gurre. The D.F.M. also did not come through until after I left 624 squadron. The Croix de Guru I did not receive until 1989 after I had sent for my records from the MOD, up until then I did not know I had been awarded it!"