The following article is from RCAF Radar 1941-1945 (Royal Canadian Air Force Personnel on Radar in Canada During World War II) and is used with permission of the author, WW McLachlan
On August 6th 1942, a group of us went to Sydney from Halifax by train and then to Louisbourg by truck. I arrived late as I had missed the train in Halifax. I went to make a phone call to Margaret Brittain thinking that the train left at 7:10 pm but it left at 6:50 pm so I had to take the next train. I arrived at Sydney RCAF base without a tie, I lost mine enroute, however a friendly security guard obtained one for me.
The now famous "Fort" was unknown, at least to the general public, at that time. The town was small, and as I remember, had only one gravel road from one end to the other. The buildings were drab and unpainted, probably because of their proximity to the sea-side. Our station was at the far end of town, somewhere in the woods, but no mosquitoes thank goodness, as our abode was a windowless and doorless building under construction.
We slept on the floor with one blanket below and one on top, there were no bunks or mattresses, but we slept regardless of conditions, as we were so tired each night. F/L Robert L Margeson was our leader, he was from Berwick, Nova Scotia, and a graduate of the Nova Scotia Technical College, which is now part of Dalhousie. He ws a very fine gentleman to work for. Bob Tilbury, Skinner and another chap arrived from the USA to help us. They wore American uniforms as they had been in Panama by the canal to install the dozen Canadian radar sets produced by REL and shipped to the USA along with the RCAF radar technicians, to protect the Panama Canal.
We ate our meals at the Dun Donald Inn in downtown Louisbourg. The meals were great with plenty of home-cooked fresh fish and vegetables, but we each had to pay for them. We also had to take turns serving the tables and washing the tables. Apparently the local clergy had advised the young ladies of the area to beware of the 'boys in blue', and so were not employed as waitresses, or for that matter not visible to us. We however were so tired each night that we were not on the 'howl' and couldn't care less of their existence. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. We were paid for our expenses when we arrived at our home base Halifax Y Depot.
We had two trucks; one a half-ton pick-up, the other a two-ton stake body type. The trucks were used to haul the equipment from the guarded box cars to the station, as well as transporting the tired airmen to and fro. The job of installation required unloading the box cars, a piece at a time, on to the trucks. The heavy diesel electric sets, the radar receiver and transmitter, all under secrecy, the antenna gear and the gantry, had to be man-handled as we had nothing but block and tackle and youthful energy to move them. About ten of us worked from sun-up till dark every day. One of the difficult tasks was to inflate the truck tires which were deflated in order to allow the stake truck, loaded with gear, to pass under the wooden railway bridge which was situated between the box-cars and the station. The loaded truck was about two inches too high for it to pass so the choice was, lower the road bed or deflate the tires. The latter course was taken, but then we had to hand-pump the tires to the required pressure.
We set the diesel-electric units on their bases, bolted them down, checked the oil in the base, turned them over by hand, to ensure freedom of movement, put in some diesel fuel and gave them a general inspection. We than gased the pony-engine and after routine inspection and connection of the checked out battery, engaged the electric starter and ran the motor for a run in check. When all was well, or appeared to be, the clutch for the diesel was engaged and it was brought up to speed. The generator indicated the frequency and voltage of it's output and after running for a time, it was shut down. The same procedure was followed for the three units, and when the third unit was checked we closed the main switch which gave power and light to the station. We of course had to check the synchronizing lights between the two running lights, to provide for their parallel operation. They were synchronized on the dark of the lights, and when all had been checked, we shut two down.
The operation of the diesel units was closely monitored for some time, checking their temperature as well as possible oil leaks. The pony motors were of course shut down when the diesels fired. As a point of interest, the fuel consumption of each unit was about a gallon for a 24 hour period. When the radar transmitter and receiver were installed and the antenna with turning gear checked, we fired up each unit at that time. We adjusted the shorting bars and using a neon light, removed the standing waves, then checking and rechecking the operation, our job was complete.
When the permanent crew arrived on the 21st of August, we left the station in an operating condition. In just 15 days we had completed a monumental task and were sincerely thanked by the CO. We left on a sunny morning, which was fortunate as we drove in the back of the stake truck, with the sides now on, to Halifax. The trip was most interesting as we drove through rural Cape Breton, on gravel dusty roads, where poverty was quite apparent. There was little if any traffic, at least till we arrived at the ferry to the mainland. This was before the causeway was built. We were pleased to reach the Halifax "Y" Depot, our home until our next move, where many of us volunteered to go, Cape Bauld, Newfoundland.
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Updated: August 28, 2003