St Edward's Rhubarb - 2018

ST EDWARD’S r h u b a r b

11

SES to RAF to Retirement By Wing Commander Graeme Morgan (G, 1953-1958)

There comes a time, usually when forced to consider subjects to take at A Level, that the choice of a career starts to edge other - and more exciting - teenage thoughts aside. Peter Church (MCR 1950-1987) and Duncan Williams (MCR 1948-1984) had encouraged me towards physics and mathematics which, linked to an RAF family background, directed my thinking towards engineering and aircraft. It was then a small step to an RAF Bursary for the last two years at Teddies (worth, in 1956, all of £39 per term) and to transferring from the Army to the RAF Section for Monday ‘Corps’ afternoons – different coloured blanco but same hairy uniforms. Two particular RAF memories from that time: Douglas Bader taking the Annual Inspection and the unveiling of the Library window presented by the Air Force Board. An RAF Summer Camp at St Mawgan saw a group of us spend several uncomfortable and noisy hours in a Shackleton (a maritime development of the Lancaster) searching for the replica Mayflower making an Atlantic crossing and in whose crew was the unlikely matelot, Jack Scarr (MCR 1942-1980).

After five years at Teddies, it took the RAF another four years until it considered me competent to be let loose as a fully- fledged engineer. One year was spent as a cadet before taking up a place I had previously obtained at university (where I was to come into contact with more OSE than I did in the subsequent years, although I had dealings in the RAF with Tony Leathart (G, 1958-1962), Diccon Masterman (A, 1954-1959), Robin Scott (G, 1951-1955), and David Pugh (F, 1947-1952). At that time (late 1950s), the RAF had expanded and professionalised the RAF engineering branch considerably to take account of the maintenance demands consequent upon introducing the three new V-bombers (the Vulcan, Valiant, and Victor), the Canberra, and a raft of jet fighters (Javelin, Hunter, Swift, and Lightning). Overall, during my 34 years in the RAF, I reckon the RAF operated some 54 different types of aircraft – representing a considerable design, development, manufacturing, and maintenance effort. My first tour took me into the transport world of Britannia and Comets. There were two versions of the latter – the stretched and much improved Mk4 and the Mk2 which was basically the same as the BEA Comets which suffered such disastrous fatigue failure, but which

for the RAF had been modified to have oval, rather than square, windows and strengthened skin. As for the numbers of aircraft that the RAF operated in those days, they seem extraordinarily extravagant compared with those put into service now. For instance, 735 Chipmunks (a basic trainer in which I flew over a hundred hours with the University Air Squadron) were delivered between 1949 and 1953. After the first two tours on transport aircraft, I was involved with designing a deceleration device for testing restraint systems, developing the way the Harrier could be deployed, management training for engineering officers, organising deep level maintenance, and managing the engineering of the Harrier fleet during the Falklands conflict - an interesting array of jobs and more varied than I imagine would be possible now. And so, after 34 years, it was into retirement where, much to the dismay of taxpayers, my ambition is to remain on the retired list for as long as I was on the active list – only eight more years to go. Inevitably, the ethos of the RAF was, and is, different from that of the other two military services. Those who engage in combat do so as individuals, or as part of a small crew, in aircraft demanding considerable pilot and other operational skills, and the majority of non-commissioned servicemen have to be sufficiently educated to cope with complex maintenance. Although there is now a greater involvement of civilian support both for training and maintenance – perhaps in detriment to the ‘all of one family’ spirit that pervaded during my time - the RAF still seeks people with rather different qualities to those which are required by the other services. I was pleased to have had the opportunity to become acquainted with so many interesting people connected with aviation, but there is a regret that I was not bold enough sixty years ago to ask of those who had really been bold

F E AT U R E S

“what is the tale behind those medals?”; I have had to wait and read the obituaries.

Wing Commander Graeme Morgan