MEMORIES OF LIFE AS A TRENCHARD BRAT
By
Rob Knotts
With nearly three
hundred others I joined the Royal Air Force as an Aircraft Apprentice at RAF
Halton on 17th September 1956 as a member of the 84th
Entry. We were some of the many thousands of Trenchard’s Brats that passed
through the hallowed RAF Aircraft Apprentice training grounds of Halton.
Lord Trenchard,
father of the Royal Air Force founded the RAF Apprenticeship scheme which was
launched in October 1919. Selection examinations were held around the country
and in January 1920, the 1st Apprentice Entry comprising 235 recruits began
their three year apprenticeship at RAF Cranwell, whilst permanent accommodation
was being completed at RAF Halton.
The RAF Apprenticeship scheme came
to an end with the graduation of the 155th Entry in 1993. During the 71 years
of Apprentice Training at RAF Halton over 40,000 Aircraft Apprentices
successfully graduated. Among them is a holder of the Victoria Cross, four
recipients of the George Cross, 220 were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross
and 249 won the Distinguished Flying Medal. Approximately, twenty per cent of
Apprentices were commissioned during their service careers, and a
considerable number achieved Air rank.
Whatever their former rank, ex-members of the scheme are very proud
indeed to be known as "Trenchard's
Brats".
Humour was, and
doubtless still is, an essential part of Royal Air Force life. I spent 33 years in the RAF. Throughout my service
career I cannot remember the bad times, only good ones. Humour offset memories
of bad times. The phrase: “If you can’t take a joke you shouldn’t have joined”
was constantly voiced in unpleasant and trying circumstances. Humour was
important for morale. It certainly acted as a bonding force amongst the
apprentices as we adapted to and accommodated the realities of discipline and
service life in our formative years. With gentle humour in mind the following captures
some of my memories of life as a Brat.
How It All Started
When I was born my father
was aged 57. I entered Grammar School at 10 and at 15 gained a sufficient
number of GEC ‘O’ levels, including Mathematics, English and a science subject to
study for ‘A’ levels. However, at the time my father was 72 years old and could
not afford to keep me in sixth form. My uncle had served for 26 years in the
RAF, starting as an Aircraft Apprentice at Halton so we had family experience
of the life. The title page of brochure advertising life as a RAF apprentice is
shown below. I had a great interest in aircraft and opted to join the RAF as a
Trenchard Brat.
Arriving At RAF Halton
I was brought up in
a small village in North Wales. To join the Brats I travelled by train to
London arriving in Euston. From there I transferred to Baker Street to catch
the train to Wendover.
At Wendover we were
met by RAF staff and transported to RAF Halton by bus, similar to the one shown
below.
A tale exists
within Brat circles of would be Brats being met at Wendover by apprentices from
the senior entry who escorted them to Halton, first having collected fares for
the bus journey. It didn’t happen on my journey but it probably had at sometime
in the past!
Medical
My first major
memory is that of the medical. We were measured, weighed, tested and prodded.
Injections were the order of the day with the occasional future Brat turning
green and then temporarily departing this world when faced with the sight of a
needle.
It Took All Kinds
Brats joined the
RAF between the ages of 15 and 17½. They came from all over the UK and parts of
the Commonwealth. At Halton there were apprentices from Burma, Ceylon, New Zealand,
Rhodesia and Venezuela together with RAF apprentices from many Commonwealth
countries. Some cap badges and shoulder flashes are shown below.
Young men between
the ages of 15 and 17½ joined as Brats for a 3 year course; they had a
commitment to serve for 12 years after reaching the age of 18. We faced our
future in different ways. Many were apprehensive, some quietly confident,
others smug. A few were cynical, occasionally aloof, at first quite a lot
worried bordering at times on being frightened of the future. It took all kinds
to be one of Trenchard’s Brats.
Kitting Out
The next event that
made a major impact was ‘Kitting Out’. In the clothing stores, an area that
reeked of mothballs, we were issued with every article of clothing ‘for the use
of’ deemed necessary to sustain and support us through our life at Halton. The Station tailor made precision measurements
of various parts of us that ultimately led to issue of a uniform that was a
precision fit!
If
The Cap Fits
Berets came in all shapes and sizes
when we were first kitted out. It took some time to get them moulded to our
heads.
Wings
and Squadrons
There were three
apprentice wings at Halton, each with three squadrons. Each squadron was housed
in two six-roomed, three-storey barrack blocks. Two blocks were allocated per
squadron to accommodate occupants of numbers 1 and 2 flights.
Members of Number 1
Wing wore a red disk behind the cap badge. Number 2 Wing’s disc was blue and
Number 3 Wing’s yellow/orange. SD Caps sported red, blue or yellow/orange hat
bands.
A coloured disk
behind the Apprentice Wheel Badge, worn on the left sleeve, indicated the Squadron:
red was number 1, green number 2 and blue number 3.
NCO Apprentices
The apprentices had
a NCO rank structure. Basically the Leading Apprentice, known as a Snag, was in
charge of a room, a Corporal in charge of a landing, a Sergeant in charge of a
block and the Flight Sergeant in charge of the Wing. We also had a Warrant
Officer Apprentice in charge of the entry.
Basic Drill
Our first three
weeks in the RAF were spent in the ‘Rook Block’ where the initial efforts were
made to transform us into some form of elementary Aircraft Apprentices. A lot
of the work involved being taught basic drill movements. This involved the
Drill Sergeant armed with a Pace Stick and ‘talking’ to us in a very loud
voice. One instance of being ‘asked’ to be quiet while on parade was deafening.
Saluting
One important
element of drill involved the act of saluting an officer; that is recognition
of the Queen’s Commission. This involved bringing the right arm up smartly with
a circular motion to the head, followed by moving the right hand down smartly
to the side by the shortest route.
On one occasion
within a few days of joining the RAF I witnessed one fellow new Brat facing the
presence of two oncoming officers, one to his left and one to his right. You could
almost see the ‘thinks bubbles’ - “What do I do?” Without hesitation both hands
simultaneously gave immaculate salutes, due respect and recognition was given
to both officers, albeit this particular approach did not fully accord with the
RAF’s drill manual.
Haircuts
The standard
haircut was short back and sides. This was in the time that the Tony Curtis and
DA hairstyles were coming into fashion. The modern world looked to longish hair
on men; the RAF maintained the short back and sides as a fashion statement.
We had one shilling
a month (5p in modern currency) extracted from our pay for haircuts. The drill
sergeant made sure that we got value for money. As we became bolder we used to
bribe the hairdresser with one shilling so as not to have short back and
sides. Life was unfair as the drill
sergeant continued to make sure that we got value for our money!
Marching to the Mess
During the first few weeks as apprentices we had to
carry our mug together with knife, fork and spoon (known as Irons) clutched
firmly in the right hand behind the back.
I witnessed the same action many
years later when, as an officer I had to visit a Young Offenders’ prison (at
one time known as Borstal) where one of my airmen was a guest of the HM Prison
Service. I arrived at lunchtime to see a flight of young offenders marching
with mug, with knife, fork and spoon (collectively known in my apprentice time as
Irons) clutched firmly in the right hand behind the back! To think that I had
volunteered to be a Brat with a requirement to carry my mug and irons in such a
manner; these young people were certainly not volunteers. At times life has
some unusual twists.
Rooms and Pit Space
We lived 20 to a room, with 10 on
each side. Our domain in that room was limited to our bed space; we called our
bed the pit so we only had pit space to call our own. A locker held some
articles of clothing; the draw in it held our personal effects. We used our
locker top as a table top for writing while we sat on the edge of the bed. We
had a wardrobe in which to hang our uniforms. Bed packs were made every morning
with folded sheets forming layers between folded blankets.
Room Jobs
The Leading Apprentice in charge
of the room prepared and issued a list of room jobs against each occupant. They
included cleaning the ablutions, toilets, stairs and landings, the barrack
block surroundings and the shower to name a few. The junior members of the room
had the most unpleasant jobs. The work was carried out each morning before we
left for Workshops or Schools.
Bull Night and Inspection
Friday night was
bull night in preparation for inspection on Saturday morning. Windows were
cleaned by hanging out of the room concerned; such an action would doubtless
not be tolerated in the current HSE climate. Boots were bulled. Dollops of
orange coloured floor polish were spread on the floor, rubbed in and then bumpered
to produce a mirror-like finish on the brown lino. These activities are just a
handful of the overall work undertaken. Come Saturday morning all that we felt
like doing was falling asleep which would not have gone down well during the
inspection.
Physical Training
Every week we were
subjected to the delights of Physical Training (PT). Dressed in RAF shorts,
coloured a very dark blue, we faced the elements in all weathers under the
direction of Physical Training Instructors (PTIs).
On one winter’s day
when snow was thick on the ground the PTIs assembled members of the Wing on the
square; we were dressed in overalls and boots. They took us for a cross country
run, ending up on the playing fields where we held a massive snowball fight.
Gradually two teams developed, one of about 800 apprentices versus the other of
about 8 PTIs!
Sports Afternoon
Wednesday afternoon
was allocated to sports. Opportunities for sport were plentiful; soccer and
rugby in the winter, cricket and athletics in the summer. Swimming, boxing,
judo, fencing. cross-country running - opportunities seemed endless. Of course
if nothing took our fancy and if we could get away with it, a very rare
opportunity on a Wednesday afternoon, we could always resort to Egyptian PT.
Trades
Halton Apprentices
were offered training as fitters in the trade of Airframe, Armament, Engine,
Electrical (Air), Electrical (Ground), Instrument (General) and Instrument (Navigation).
Workshops
Three days of the
week were devoted to Workshops where we had lectures followed by practical
sessions. Each class held about 20 apprentices. The desks were long wooden
structures as shown below. The practical session shown below portray removal of
a jet engine turbine. The lecture session shown covers one of a Hunter aircraft’s
systems.
School
For one and a half
days each week we attended school in what is now Kermode Hall. We were taught
Mathematics, Engineering Science, Mechanics, Engineering Drawing and General
Studies. Some apprentices gained and Ordinary National Certificate, some
studied for City and Guilds while others attained the RAF Educational Certificate
qualification.
We faced lots of theory and then attempted
to put it into practice in laboratory work where we had to unravel the
mysteries of sophisticated equipment and machinery. Also we faced mastering the
intricacies of the Slide Rule.
Marching to and from Workshops
and School
Members of each
Wing marched to and from workshops and the School every day; down in the
morning, back at lunchtime, down after lunch and back in the evening.
Warrant Officer Bollard
One man who doubtless stands out
in the minds of many apprentices of my era must be Warrant Officer Joe Bollard,
the Station Warrant Officer (SWO). He was the discipline king pin at Halton. He
could spot the need of a haircut, pick out an apprentice not swinging his arms
and recognise an un-pressed uniform from great distances. Each selected erring
apprentice had to report to him during lunchtime. This gave the apprentice
concerned time to march to lunch, suffer indigestion eating it in the few
minutes available before hurrying to keep the SWO’s invitation. Always
immaculately turned out, Mr Bollard made a life-long impression on apprentices
under his charge.
Pay Parades
Pay parades took
place weekly. Number 1 Wing split the parade into two sections. Those with
surname initials A to K were paid on the top floor of the NAAFI. Surnames L to
Z were paid in the gymnasium. The procedure was that a name was called, the
person concerned stepped forward stating “Sir” adding the last three digits of
his service number. He saluted and received his pay.
My surname meant
that I was paid at the end of A to K batch; in fact I was the very last to be
paid. I always feared that by the time payment got to me the paying officer
would have run out of money.
Charges and Jankers
Punishment was administered if an apprentice committed a minor breach of
discipline. The process started with someone being placed on a charge. The
alleged offence was entered on a Charge Report (RAF Form No. 252).
An officer heard the charge. The accused was marched into the hearing
without wearing a hat; this could be used as a weapon. He was accompanied by an
escort, who wore a hat. Witnesses were summoned one by one to give evidence. Also
present was the Orderly Room SNCO. Before the officer considered if there was a
case to answer the accused was given an opportunity to make a statement.
If the accused was found guilty the punishment handed out might be a few
days of restrictions, that is ‘Jankers’, a term for an official punishment. The unfortunate on ‘Jankers’ had to wear full
webbing kit and report to the guardroom at various times during the day for
inspection by the Orderly Officer. Restrictions also included a couple of hours
of fatigues, normally cleaning duties, every evening.
Lewis the Goat
The history behind having goats as
mascots at RAF Halton dates back to World War Two when the Royal Welch
Fusiliers left their goat Lewis with the RAF Apprentices when they were sent to
the front. The RAF Apprentices adopted the goat and the history continued until
1993 when the last RAF Apprentice entry graduated.
During the long periods of standing
still while on parade my mind wandered to many things. One thought was what if
Lewis the Goat broke loose, what would happen?
NAAFI Break
We had a break mid
morning and mid afternoon where the NAAFI wagon offered refreshments, including
the famous (in Brat circles) Nelson. It was a square of very solid bread and
butter pudding topped with a layer of pink icing. It was the nearest thing in
the 1950s to a black hole – it was so dense. Inevitably there was always a rush
to get to the wagon.
The Astra
In the days when
Television sets were few and far between on camp the Astra cinema, located in a white 1930s
building, offered film entertainment and an escape from the daily Brat routine.
Always evident was the roar and shouts
of “Good Old Fred” as Fred Quimby’s name came up on the credits for ‘Tom and Jerry’
cartoons.
Another recurring incident was the
response to a notice being flashed on the screen during a film show. Inevitably
it asked the Orderly Corporal to report to the Booking Office. This was always
met with a loud response; “He’s Gone to the Pictures!”
The Court School of Dancing
Quite a few
apprentices in our era were ‘graduates’ of the Courts School of Dancing in
Aylesbury just opposite the Queen’s Head pub. The motive was straight forward.
Being healthy young men we had a natural interest in meeting young ladies. One
sure way of doing so was to learn to dance. So we enrolled at the dancing
school albeit initial efforts were clouded by having parade ground feet which
left many a girl’s toes bruised. However, with patience on the part of the
dance instructors we eventually became passable dancing partners.
At the dancing
school romances bloomed and often faded. However, some flourished. One of our
entry members married a girl he met at the Court School of Dancing. He retired
as a Wing Commander and lives with his wife in southern Germany.
And So to Sleep
Apprentices lived
20 to a room in large three-storey, six-roomed barrack blocks built on the edge
of the parade square. It was a daunting experience living in such surrounds.
The room housed members of each entry; nine entries were resident at Halton.
The senior entry members slept at the end of the room, the junior entry members
near the door. As entries graduated members moved up the room to make way for
incoming juniors. Lights out were at 10.30 pm at which time it didn’t take long
before sleep embraced a room’s occupants, unless Slim Turner exposed us to a
ghost story on the camp radio.
Slim Turner was a SIB
Corporal in the RAF Police. He lived on base. After duty he operated the camp
radio system that was piped through to a speaker in very barrack room. About
once a term after lights out he would read a ghost story. Imagine the scene.
Each barrack room is shrouded in darkness. Twenty apprentices in each room
could not fail to hear the story. Inevitably it related to some ghostly
occurrence purported to have occurred somewhere on camp. One I remember
involved a ghostly occurrence in a barrack block’s ‘drying room’ where under
certain conditions blood could be seen seeping up through the floor while
accompanied by the noise of chains being dragged along the floor. After the
story even the most macho apprentice in a room would not take an after lights
out trot to the bog which was near to the drying room.
Musical Apprentices
Quite a few
apprentices became accomplished musicians. Each Wing had a pipe band and a core
of trumpeters. The Apprentices also fielded a military band.
Daily we marched
from the Wings to workshops or schools and back again; in the morning, back for
lunch and out again led by pipe bands and drums to return in the evening. On
parade days we also marched to the military band.
Summer Camp
In July 1958 we
spent two weeks at RAF Woodvale, on Summer Camp. We marched to the railway
station at Tring from where we transported to Woodvale halt by train. From
there we marched to RAF Woodvale, a coastal airfield in sand dune country,
about 6 miles South of Southport, on the Lancashire coast. Living in 6-man
tents for 2 weeks, we spent the days engaged in various pursuits such as route
marches, map reading, sport, firing rifles and bren guns, military exercises by
day and night and flying around the local area in Ansons. Off duty we chased
the girls in Southport. Liverpool was also nearby but incidents of polio there placed
it off limits. Throughout the day we wore overalls, after duty uniform.
Flying
In the 1950s relatively
few people travelled by air. Flying offered a very new experience to most of
us. My first opportunity came during our Summer Camp at RAF Woodvale when I,
and many others, took to the air for the very first time in a Royal Air Force
Avro Anson, registration VP 509. The Anson is shown struggling to get into the
air and then chugging its way through the sky.
There were also
opportunities to fly at Halton, either by gliding or with flights in DH
Chipmunks based at the airfield.
Airfields
The final part of
our three year training course covered the ‘Airfields’ phase. The airfields
were located near Halton village.
The verb “To Trog”
probably originated at Halton. It describes the act of marching without
swinging arms, really more of a slouch. On reaching this final phase of our
training we were issued with the coveted ‘Trog Mac’, a coat made out of some
black plastic type material that had its own very distinctive smell. It was a memorable day when we were issued
with them. We were the senior entry and the ‘Trog Mac’ was worn with pride to
impress junior entries. The fashion was to have one far too long so that it
almost reached the ground. We marched to and from the airfield without swinging
our arms, that is we trogged in our ‘Trog Macs’.
In the airfield
phase we applied what we had learnt to real live aircraft. The machines faced
removal of propellers and engines; they were inspected, armed, repaired, towed and
pondered over. We moved aircraft, we marshalled them. At long last we were
within the realms of the real live world of aircraft.
Aircraft on the
airfield included Mosquitoes, Meteors, Swifts, a Valetta, a Brigand and a
Lincoln. In the hangars there were Canberras, Hunters and a Javelin.
The riggers had the
opportunity to try their hand at jacking aircraft. For the engine fitters, the
Sooties, there was a cockpit classroom. This was a Beaufighter aircraft nose
fitted to a shed that offered hands on engine testing opportunities on Bristol
Hercules engines. For each run a ‘volunteer’ had to prime the engine by pumping
a ‘Kigas’ fuel pump located in the port undercarriage bay beneath the engine.
The ‘volunteer’ was encompassed in engine smoke as the engine burst into life
and he was then exposed to the powerful airstream. When the engine was running
he had to gently withdraw himself from under the aircraft with a propeller spinning
within a short distance of his head.
During the airfield
phase we had a chance to hone our skills. Armourers removed and fitted ‘bang
seats’, loaded weapons and tested guns. Electricians chased wiggly amps.
Instrument bashers fitted and tested a multitude of sensors and indicators. Riggers patched holes, fixed flying controls and sorted out
hydraulic systems. Sooties changed plugs, removed engines, replenished oil
systems and generally got dirty. The phase showed us that some tasks
were dirty, some mentally challenging, some physically demanding and that some
could lead to frightening situations. In certain cases we made mistakes, and
hopefully learnt from them. A SNCO was always on hand to ensure our safety.
DH Comet
During our airfield
phase DH Comet G-ALYT was delivered to Halton as a training aircraft for RAF
apprentices. Flown in by the famous WW2 ex-RAF night fighter pilot Group
Captain Cunningham it was doubtless a hazardous operation to land the Comet on
a short, grass airfield.
The Future We Faced
In July 1959 we
completed our apprentice training and departed Halton to work in the big wide RAF
world. In those days there were RAF bases all over the World including Aden,
Borneo, Cyprus, Gan, Germany, Gibraltar, Libya, Malaya, Malta and Singapore.
Aircraft were many and varied: Argosies, Beverleys, Britannias, Canberras, Hunters,
Meteors, Swifts, Shackletons, Vampires, Varsities, Valiants, Victors and
Vulcans, to name a handful. As time progressed other aircraft came on the scene
such as Buccaneers, C130s, Jaguars, Phantoms, Tornadoes and VC10s and
helicopters such as the Sea King and Puma.
Some aircraft types
worked on by members of our entry through their service careers are shown
below.
84th Entry Badge
Each entry designed
its own entry badge. Our entry’s badge is shown below.
84th Entry Window
In 1997 Rev Richard
Lee, the RAF C of E Padre at St Georges Church, Halton at the time, suggested
that the RAF Halton Aircraft Apprentices Association (RAF HAAA) encouraged its
members to install stained glass windows in the church to commemorate their
time as Brats. The RAF HAAA bought into the idea and soon windows, depicting entry
numbers, wing colours, entry badges, famous (and infamous!), entry activities
and a host of other events were appearing in glorious coloured glass: each
telling something of an entry’s time at Halton. Our entry’s window is shown below.
The stained glass
window in St George’s church is shown below. Any attempt to paint the window
would not do it justice; a cartoon would lower its dignity. Consequently it’s
shown as is. It really is a magnificent tribute to Trenchard’s Brats.
Website http://www.oldhaltonians.co.uk/pages/rememb/windows/windows.htm
carries a picture of each of the windows installed in St George’s church with
many accompanied by an associated description.
Reunions
Since our days as
Brats many of us have attended a number of RAF Halton Aircraft Apprentice
Association reunions. Group Captain Christine Elliot was appointed Station
Commander at Royal Air Force Halton only a few days before the triennial
reunion held on 25 September 2010. She was the first woman to be appointed
Officer Commanding at RAF Halton.
Facing hundreds of
aged juveniles in the form of ‘Trenchard’s Brats’ must have been a daunting
experience. However, the event was met with extreme grace, a friendly smile and
good humour.
I decided to
capture the reunion march past in cartoon form. I sent the original to Group
Captain Elliot as a memento. It
portrays, with gentle humour, a lengthy march past with some ex-Brats out of
step but still giving their best in respect of the Station Commander, as a
tribute to Halton and to honour those no longer on parade.
The
Last Man Left in the Air Force
Someone recently
sent me the following, written by ex RAF Master Signaller P. I. Fisher (also an
ex Brat) under the nom de plume “Peter Wyton”. I find it extremely amusing.
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