In September 1953 I was advised that I was to be transferred to 1 Fighter Wing at RCAF Station North Luffenham, Rutland County, England - to depart in October. For the next few weeks I was busy doing clearances and going home to Barrie on embarkation leave.
About the middle of October 1953, I reported to the Air Force movement unit at Dorval for my flight to North Luffenham. 426 Squadron was based at Dorval and they flew a variety of aircraft used in various transport duties and they provided the main aerial transport for the RCAF. Our flight departed early in the evening enroute to North Luffenham via Goose Bay and Prestwick Scotland. The aircraft was a cargo version of the North Star with crates and equipment down the middle of the fuselage and passengers sitting on drop down nylon benches on each side of the aircraft. There were about a dozen passengers and since I was the only NCO I was designated NCO i/c of the group. The flight to Goose Bay was uneventful and took about four hours. Our stop in Goose was only for refueling but a malfunction on landing stretched our stay to over four hours. In the wee small hours we departed on a six hour flight to Prestwick. Everyone settled down as best they could. I found a spot on top of a crate where I was able to stretch out and try to get some sleep. We were no sooner relaxed when it started to get very cold in the cabin (we were flying about 10,000 feet). I put on all the clothing I had available but I was so cold that I could not sleep. The crew tried everything they could and finally they managed to get the heat turned on only to have the temperature soar and the passengers were then peeling off their outer clothing. To make a long story short, we alternated between freezing and cooking for the rest of the flight and we were glad to put down at Prestwick for an hour stop over. From Prestwick to Luffenham was only a short haul for which we were all thankful.
1 Fighter Wing at RCAF Station North Luffenham was the first unit of the newly formed 1 Air Division which by the mid 1950s consisted of 1 Wing at North Luffenham, 2 Wing at Grostenquin France, 3 Wing at Zweibrucken Germany, and 4 Wing at Baden-Soellingen Germany with 1 Air Division Headquarters at Metz France. We also had 30 Air Materiel Base located at Langar near North Luffenham. Each Wing had three squadrons of Canadair built F-86 Sabres. 410, 439 and 441 were the squadrons at North Luffenham. Also at North Luffenham was a transport flight consisting of three Bristol Freighter twin engine medium range transports and a number of C-45 Expeditor navigation training aircraft and each squadron had a couple of two seater T-33 Silverstar trainers. The station was commanded by a Group Captain, with an Operations Wing, a Maintenance Wing, and an Administration Wing each headed by a Wing Commander.
RCAF Station North Luffenham had been built in the mid 1930s as a permanent RAF base. The buildings were mostly of red brick construction but a few, such as the Operations building where I worked, were wartime built stucco structures. Most of the brick buildings were two stories. There were six Airmen's barracks situated on two sides of a grass covered parade ground. On a third side was a building which housed the Airmen's Mess, Corporal's Club abd Airmen's Canteen. Each barrack block was divided into four large rooms - two and two down with washroom facilities between the two rooms on each floor. Each room accommodated about 20 persons. One of the blocks was divided into a number of two person rooms for Corporals. The Mess Hall with kitchen was on the main floor of the Mess building with the Corporal's and Airmen's clubs on the second floor. The Station Pipe band also occupied rooms in this building.
I was assigned a room with Maxie Maxwell in the Corporal's barracks. It was rather a small room with a couple of beds. a table and chair and a locker for each occupant. A one inch pipe ran through the room just below the window. It carried hot water and was the only source of heat for the room. An opening measuring about 16 by six inches, covered with a mesh grill, was located on the outside wall. This was open to the elements and was intended to provide fresh air all year round. Each room in the building, including the washrooms, had at least one of these ventilators and with only a small hot water pipe to provide warmth, you can imagine how cold it could get. It did not take us very long to seal the ventilators.
The Officer's and Sergeant's Messes, the Headquarter's building and the Hospital were built in what was known as Georgian styled architecture and these were very elegant looking buildings. The Messes had curved drives to the main entrances with well kept lawns and gardens and they looked like great country mansions.
The station had a total strength of over one thousand plus a small RAF contingent. I was assigned to the Operations Wing as the Intelligence NCO. The Ops building was a one story stucco war time built structure. It contained the Wing Ops room, offices for the Operations staff of about seven officers and airmen, the Wing Briefing room, and the Intelligence offices with a library. Wing Commander Doug Lindsey was the COpsO and Flight Lieutenant Jack Davies was the Wing Intelligence Officer. Jack Davies had a very interesting background. Prior to World War II he had been an Inspector in the Hong Kong-Shanghai police force and during the war he had operated behind Japanese lines in Burma. He was a Brit and had been given a short term commission in the RCAF to be employed as an Intelligence Officer. He was also an excellent organizer of section parties.
Ny duties were not very strenuous except during exercise periods. They included preparing, and if necessary, giving briefings to the pilots, maintaining the Intelligence files and library, organizing Escape and Evasion exercises, planning and building displays such as aircraft recognition aids and escape and evasion gear, and maintaining our order of battle charts and files. During exercises I stood watch as Wing Intelligence. Most exercises were "air defence of the UK" or "NATO air defence". As Wing Intelligence I maintained the situation maps, briefed the Operations staff and if necessary debriefed the pilots on their return from a mission.
As part of the fighter defence of the UK we were under 10 Group RAF with our missions controlled by the Group Operations Center at RAF Horsham Saint Faith in Norforlk. The results of all our missions were reported to 10 Group and they tasked our aircraft and controlled them once they were airborne. The USAF or RAF Bomber Command usually played the role of attacking Soviet bombers using B-45s, B-47s, Valiants and Vulcan bombers. During this period the RCAF Sabres were the most effecive fighters in NATO. The RAF, at the time, was just introducing the Hawker Hunter fighter but the mainstay of RAF Fighter Command at the time were Gloster Meteors, Folland Gnats and Vampires. The USAF fighter squadrons were equipped with some F-86s but mostly F-84s.
On 1 April 1954, I was promoted to the rank of Sergeant. After a monstrous promotion party, which by tradition usually cost each person promoted at least one month's increase in pay, I moved into the Sergeant's Mess where I was allocated my own room on the ground floor of the two story "U shaped" Mess building. There was room for 100 Senior NCOs in the living quarters but at this time the building housed about 35 people. The one building provided all the space needed for sleeping quarters, dining hall, kitchen, TV lounge, bar and main lounge and anti room. Our rooms were about twelve by twelve and contained a bed, dresser, easy chair, cupboard and table and chair. The TV room contained a British large screen (small by todays standards of a large screen) black and white TV and several easy chairs. We were able to receive two channels, neither of which were very good. The dining room contained a number of tables each designed for seating four and for the first time in my Air Force career, I was served a meal by a steward at my table. The meals were excellent.
We were also given some leeway in decorating our rooms - that is, we could arrange the furniture to suit our own tastes and put pictures of our own choice on the walls. One enterprising Sergeant decorated and furnished one of the wartime bomb shelters located just outside the Mess building so that he could entertain his lady friends in private. Just about every weekend a car load of young ladies from Liecester would pull up in front of the Mess late Saturday afternoon. The girls would then spend the weekend with their boyfriends at the Mess. It was not uncommon on Sunday morning to find two sets of breakfast dishes stacked in the hall outside of a room. On occasional Sunday mornings, the Station Warrant Officer "Jimmy St. Laurent" (he lived in married quarters off the station) would arrive at about nine o'clock and go down the hall rapping on doors saying "you have five minutes to get her out".
One of the duties assigned to new members of the Mess, that which I now took over, was the cleaning of the fish bowl lamps. The main lounge of the Mess had six large lamps whose base was a large carboy used in the Maintenance Section to hold acid. These were cleaned and fitted up with a light socket and a shade which was removable. The carboys were filled with sand, water and plants to make fish bowls and several gold fish were added. The cleaning job, which was to be done every six weeks or so, required the fish to be netted and placed in another container, the old water siphoned off, interior of the carboys cleaned and filled with fresh water and the fish put back. Sounds simple enough until you start siphoning off 15 gallons of water without flooding the lounge. It usually took three hours of your own time. The assignment was for a six month period.
An unforgetable character in the Mess was one of the civilian stewards. I don't remember his name but he was a widower who was allowed to live in the Mess. He was in his sixties and had worked most of his life, except for military service, as a "gentlemen's gentleman". He took care of the living in members as if he was employed personally by each of them. In the evenings, he would make tea and snacks for us and he was famous for his toasted beef and onion sandwiches - they were the best.
At this time it was official policy that personnel assigned to 1 Air Division were there for a specific period of time. Single personnel were on a two year posting. Accompanied married personnel had a three year posting and unaccompanied married personnel were there for one year. Extensions or early returns to Canada were available but extremely hard to come by. All single or unaccompanied married personnel were required to live on the station - no exceptions. The majority of the squadron pilots were single except for some of the more senior ones. Most of the Senior NCOs and about half of the junior ranks were married. Since North Luffenham had been a permanent RAF base, there were married quarters available including a very posh Commanding Officers house. These married quarters were alloted on a point basis. A few of the houses were allocated to personnel holding specific positions such as the SWO, Fire Chief and other so called "essential personnel". When the station first opened a number a trailers were obtained and used for temporary married quarters until suitable accommodation could be obtained. We had personnel living in rented houses in the surrounding towns and villages such as Stamford, Oakham and Cotterington.
Every Friday evening a chartered bus would depart from the main gate at 17:00 hours and take you to Peterborough where you could catch trains to most parts of Great Britain. The majority of single personnel usually took off for London on the weekends. I would make this trip at least twice a month. In London we mostly stayed at the Regent Palace - just off Picadily Square or the Cumberland House on Oxford Street near Hyde Park Gate. A room with complete British breakfast and open 24 hour bar and lounge went for between 15 and 20 shillings per night per person. Those same hotels in the year 2000 charged a minimum of 80 to 100 pounds per night per person. On these London weekends, in addition to visiting the tourist attractions, I was able to attend several shows then playing in London including "Guys and Dolls", "Pjama Game" and "Can Can". There was a group of three or four of us who travelled together on these weekends including Maxie Maxwell who was an old buddy from the Coronation Contingent. For longer periods of leave I visited various other parts of England and even spent a week at a Butlin Holiday Camp near Filey Yorkshire. These holiday camps were a favorite vacationing spot for the working class English family. There was lots of organized entertainment and activities. In fact, things were too organized for my liking but there were plenty of single girls all wanting to meet a "rich" Canadian airman. In the spring of 1954 I had gotten quite serious with a young Scottish girl who lived in the nearby industrial town of Corby, near Northampton. This continued for about a year before she moved back to Scotland and we broke up.
F/L Jack Davies was the Wing Intelligence Officer at this time. According to stories, he had been an Inspector in the Shanghai International Police Force prior to World War II. He managed to leave this area just before the Japanese took over and Davies was on their "wanted list". During the war he had spent quite a bit of time behind the Japanese lines in Burma working with the resistance armies and is said to have had many close encounters with the Japanese army. S/L Duke Warren was the OC of 410 Squadron at the time. He had a twin brother who was also a Squadron Leader. Both were World War II fighter pilots. In the three squadrons, the majority of the pilots were young lads who had joined the RCAF after the war. Most of the officers with Flight Lieutenant rank and up had either been fighter pilots in World War II or had served in Korea during the recent conflict. S/L Andy MacKenzie was the OC of 441 Squadron and he was transferred to Korea where he was shot down, captured by the Chinese, and spent many years as a prisoner of war. The majority of the Senior NCOs were veterans of World War II with a few like myself being post war enlistees. Although most of the airmen and airwomen were post war we had a fair number from the war who had re-enlisted in the late 1940s and early 1950s. During this period of time the RCAF was on a big recruiting drive because of the expansion of the Canadian military at the start of the Cold War. Recruiting was being done in England for trained tradesmen and as a result we had several ex RAF members as mechanics etc. Also being recruited in Europe at this time were bandsmen for the various military bands in Canada. These new recruits all came to North Luffenham to await a flight to Canada. At this time 426 Transport Squadron was making use of North Luffenham as the European terminal for trans-Atlantic flights. 30 Air Materiel Base at Langar was just outside of Nottigham and was operated as the main supply depot for the Canadian military in Europe.
One of the highlights in my life occurred during the summer of 1954 when I had my first flight in a jet aircraft. The Wing Test Flight officer asked me if I would like to go up with him in a T-33 Silver Star jet trainer. The Wing had a number of these aircraft available and they were flown mainly by non squadron pilots to maintain their qualifications and get in their required number of flying hours. So, on a bright summer's day, I drew my flying gear from stores - hemlet, oxygen mask, coveralls and parachute - and proceeded to the flight line where I was briefed on various procedures including how to eject in an emergency. I then climbed into the rear seat of the T-Bird, was strapped in, shown the ejection lever and advised to sit tight and enjoy the flight. The take-off was perfect and soon we were flying over the green fields of England at about 20,000 feet. It was a clear day, and the view was fantastic. Our flight took us over the midlands and North Sea coast area and as far north as Newcastle and south until we could see London on the horizon. The pilot received permission to do a couple of aerobatics in the airspace around Luffenham and when completed, my stomach was in my throat - although I was not sick. After one and a half hours of flying we came in for a perfect landing at Luffenham. I have never experienced anything like this.
Fighter bases and fighter squadrons are noted for the high jinks played by their personnel. They were notorious for doing things "close to the line". North Luffenham had its share of weird goings on. One of the most infamous episodes concerned pilots of 441 Squadron who, while partying in Great Yarmouth, were evicted from the entertainment area of the pier. This area was a large glassed over complex at the end of the long pier which stretched out into the North Sea. To retaliate for this inconvenience it was decided by two of the injured pilots to aim a sonic boom at the glass roof and try to crack it. On their next sorties to the Great Yarmouth area they put their Sabres into steep dives and dove towards the pier end. Depending on who is telling the tale the pilots managed to put several cracks in the glass roof and others will tell you that after a couple of attempts which failed, they gave up and went home. At Luffenham a number of personnel drove small English cars or the Volkswagen Beetle. A favorite trick was for a number of people to manhandle the car up the front steps of the Mess and jam it in the front entrance while leaving the poor owner on his own on how to get it out of there. The CAdO would become quite upset with these escapades. Mess dinners always started out as very formal events with many traditions which had to be observed - such as always passing the port to your left and never letting the decanter touch the table until it was empty. Yet another example was never lighting a cigarette or a cigar until after the toasts have been completed and the vice president of the Mess had obtained permission from the senior person present to light up. Only two subjects of converstaion were banned in the Mess - "politics and religion". Inter-Mess and "Inter-Squadron" competitions - especially those held in the Mess buildings, were big items at Luffenham. Not only were there sports events, pool tournaments, darts etc but special games such as Mess Football where the lounge furniture would be pushed against the walls and a no holds barred football type game was played. Also big was "walking on walls". In this event one of the smaller members of the Mess would have his feet covered in duplicating ink and starting at the bottom of one wall with others holding him, he would walk up the wall, across the ceiling with other members supporting him, and down the other wall leaving a trail of black footprints. In a few cases these games might go too far and somebody would end up getting hurt or the damage to Mess property would become costly. Usually the senior member present would step in when we had gone far enough. A big event for all personnel, especially those living in quarters was the Christmas and New Year's dinners for the Airmen. On Christmas Day members of the Sergeant's Mess were invited to the Officer's Mess after which we would all parade to the Airmen's dining hall where the Officers and Senior NCOs would serve dinner to the lower ranks. Then on New Year's Day, the Officer's came to the Senior NCOs for cocktails and again "march" to the Airmen's dining hall to serve dinner. This tradition was carried out on all RCAF units. Also for New Year's Day the youngest airman or airwoman on the station was made CO for the day.
The Messes at Luffenham had very active social calendars probably because most of the personnel lived on the station including a large number of married people who chose to leave their family in Canada in order to qualify for a shorter tour of duty. On special occasions members of the Mess would be invited to functions at nearby RAF and USAF bases and they in turn would visit us.
F/L Davies, the Intelligence Officer, was famous or should I say infamous for the parties he organized for the Operations Section. They were usually held in the Intelligence Section briefing room every month or so with the annual Christmas party being the social event of the year for the station. The parties were primarily for the Operations staff and Squadron Commanding Officers but there were many "gate crashers". Since booze was very cheap (e.g. a 40 oz bottle of Canadian Club was 90 cents and rum, gin and scotch were a comparable price). It flowed like water and getting roaring drunk was the norm. In those days drinking was quite heavy by all ranks and much heavier than in civilian life.
Starting in the fall of 1954, 1 Fighter Wing began preliminary steps for its move to Marville France when the "advance party" moved to the new station. The station at Marville, for all intent and purposes, was of entirely new construction. The three squadrons were stood down from active participation in NATO exercises at this time. Equipment was moved from Luffenham by road, rail and air and included everything under the sun. With the stand down from Operations there was very little work to do around the Intelligence Section except for daily briefings to the COpsO on current affairs. It was at this time that F/L Davies left the RCAF and was replaced as Intelligence Officer by F/L Fox, a navigator with no experience in the Intelligence field. Also at this time I was assigned to work for F/L Sheila Strang an Admin Officer, as NCO i/c the collection, storage, and moving of household items from the married quarters and barrack blocks. For the job, I was assigned a couple of clerks and about 15 Airmen for general duties and three trucks and drivers from the ME Section.
The job was to pick up, store in a hangar, and ship the household articles of personnel to be moved to Marville and various items from the station. A lot of heavier stuff was loaded on trucks and taken to a nearby railroad siding and shipped to Marville. Smaller items were loaded on our Bristol Freighter or on North Stars from 426 Squadron and flown to Marville where the airfield was now open for limited operations. By the spring of 1955 all aircraft from the three squadrons had moved to Marville and, except for transport flights all flying activity had ended at Luffenham. None of my people were trained as aircraft loadmasters so some of the flights would have made a professional loadmaster turn over in his grave. About the only misfortune I can remember was loading a safe into a Bristol and part of the floor giving away under too much weight. I'll just say we loaded those aircraft with just about anything you could think of, including the kitchen sink.
By this time, the RAF were taking over the station at Luffenham which would later become a medium range ballistic missile site and an Intelligence Intercept site. By April 1, 1955, I was the only Canadian NCO living in the Sergeant's Mess. On 31 March the Canadian staff prepared their last meal at the Mess and it was fantastic. Then, on 1 April, RAF cooks took over and you could not believe you were eating in the same place. The rations were the same and the equipment used to cook them were the same but the preparation of the food left, as they would say, a lot to be desired. Life in the Mess became very dreary, so much so that our famous "gentlemen's gentleman" retired. So it was with relief that I got my orders to proceed to Marville. I had one last duty to perform. F/L Strang advised me that I was to carry the remaining classified documents with me. I was given several sealed envelopes and a courier certificate which entitled me to first class accommodations for the train trip to Marville. I travelled by rail to Folkstone, then by ferry across the Channel to Calais, and from there by train to Marville - about 18 hours travelling time.
The move of 1 (F) Wing to Marville France completed the full complement for 1 Canadian Air Division. As previously mentioned, Air Division HQ was located just outside of Metz in France, with other Wings located in France and Germany - all under the control of the 4th Allied Tactical Air Force (4 ATAF). The Air Division was one of, if not the most formidable, intercept formations in NATO.
When I arrived at Marville it was not yet fully operational and would remain so until about July of 1955. The airfield itself had been around for a while but the majority of the buildings were brand new and not completely ready for use. The Intelligence Section was housed in the Operations building close to the tarmac. It was a single storey concrete block structure housing our offices, the briefing room and an Operations room. The three squadrons were dispersed around the airfield in bunkered sites. The entire station was surrounded by a chain link fence topped with barbed wire and was patrolled by heavily armed French National Police, RCAF Air Police and Ground Defence personnel.
All single personnel were billeted on the station and married personnel found rental accommodation in the nearby towns and villages in France and Belgium. Married quarters (PMQs) were still being constructed at the time. The barracks were single storey "H" blocks and were divided into several rooms. All Senior NCOs and junior Officers had single rooms. Airmen and Corporals were two to a room and senior Officers had small suites. The rooms were small but quite bright and airy and were furnished with a single bed, two easy chairs, a table, a night table and lamp, wardrobe closet and a wash basin. The occupant was allowed to decorate to some extent but everything looked quite institutional. Toilets, showers and laundry facilities were located in the central portion of each building.
The Officers and Senior NCOs shared a large single storey building for their respective Messes. Each Mess occupied a wing of the building with a common kitchen occupying the center portion. At this time both Mess facilities were rather basic but as things settled down after the big move they became more inviting. The Senior NCOs Mess was officially opened by Air Marshal Slemon in August of 1955. One of the first problems we had in the Mess was convincing the French police NCOs to place their weapons in a locked facility prior to entering the Mess as no weapons were allowed.
Shortley after arrival at Marville all personnel were issued with weapons, tin hat and respirator. The weapons were to be kept at your place of work and your tin hat and respirator in your room or at work. As a Sergeant, I was first issued with a sten machine gun and later a 7.65 Browning automatic pistol. I kept these locked in a cabinet in the office except during certain exercises when we were required to carry all three items everywhere we went - which was not too often.
During the summer of 1955, 1 (F) Wing at Marville became fully operational as part of 1 Canadian Air Division with Headquarters located in Metz France under 4th ATAF (USAF Command). The mission of the Air Division was the air interdiction of enemy aircraft flying over southern Germany and if necessary over Belgium and France. Flying Operations for 1 (F) Wing were assigned and controlled by Air Division HQ or a Sector Control of 4th ATAF. The major NATO exercise was usually held in September and October when nearly the entire of NATO, land, sea and air forces were involved in the defence of Western Europe against a mock attack by Redland Forces (Soviet and Satellite forces) in accordance with NATO Cold War Instructions.
Marville was equipped to supply all the off duty recreation thought necessary to maintain good morale. We had a theater, hobby shop, sports facilities, station exchange, travel office and of course, the Messes. In August of 1955 Air Marshal Slemon, Chief of the Air Staff, officially opened the Senior NCOs Mess with a formal Mess Dinner and party for members and specially invited guests including Senior NCOs from the nearby French Army Caserne. Through the travel Office we could book holiday reservations at the various USAF facilities throughout Europe be it a ski holiday in the Alps or a beach holiday in the south of France. They also ran all inclusive bus tours to all the famous cities and areas of Western Europe - at very reasonable prices.
We had our own "exchange" where we could purchase duty free articles such as watches, cameras etc. Booze and cigaretts were sold very cheaply (gin, rum and rye at 90 cents a 40 ouncer, smokes at ten cents a pack or a dollar a carton). Personnel off the station with their families could buy their groceries etc at the exchange or from local markets. No station family housing (PMQs) were available while I was at Marville and most families lived in nearby locations in Belgium and France such as Virton, Montmedy, Jametz etc. Official RCAF married quarters (PMQs) were yet to be constructed and available for RCAF personnel and their families. The BX and Commissary at the nearby USAF base at Etain could be used by the Canadians at Marville as could those on just about any US or British facility in Europe. Gasoline prices on the local market were very high but once a month personnel could purchase a book of gas coupons which were good at a great number of authorized service stations all over western Europe. The cost of gas using these coupons was about one third of the local market price but you were rationed as to the number of gallons you could buy at this reduced rate.
The station ran a bus service using RCAF vehicles which would travel around to the various towns where personnel lived and bring them to the station for work in the morning and then return them to their homes after duty. Bus service was also provided to bring the children to and from school. On certain days of the week service was also provided to other nearby Allied bases and to the other RCAF Fighter Wings as well as to 1 Air Division HQ at Metz. Although we had a hospital with full medical and dental facilities at Marville, personnel or dependents requiring long term care or major surgery were sent to a major USAF hospital at Weisbaden in Germany.
At this time each squadron in the Air Division was sent to the French Air Base at Rabat in French Morocco for a month of air firing at the range located there. While on tour at Rabat the RCAF personnel were guests of the French Air Force and were housed and fed according to their standards. This wasn't too bad for the Officers but it left a great deal to be desired for the enlisted personnel. Poor quality of food was the main complaint - mainly because the airmen were not familiar with what was being served. The main courses usually included plain rice, fish or meat (nearly always in the form of stew) and vegetables (mostly cabbage) and rough red wine. The quarters were just very large rooms which contained lots of beds with washing and toilet facilities at one end. I think what put off most of the Canadians was the lack of proper sanitary precautions in the Messes and quarters and the hordes of flies everywhere. I understand that the RCAF ended their training in Rabat and started to use the firing range at Sardinia a few years later.
During the summer of 1955 I took a two week driving vacation around France and Switzerland with a friend, Moe Bodonoff. We took lots of photos at ate some terrific meals. The drive through the Vosges Mountains of France and the Swiss Alps was a once in a lifetime experience for both of us. We particularly enjoyed staying in a beautiful chalet on the outskirts of Lucerne on the lake of the same name in the central mountain region of the country. We liked the place so much that we stayed for almost a week enjoying trips by car, train and boat around the area. I think the highlight was the train trip to the top of Mount Pilatus or the all day boat cruise on Lake Lucerne. A visit to the Benedictine Monestery high above the village of Engelstein is also worth mentioning.
One of the perks awarded Senior NCOs and junior Officers was the job of escorting new personnel and dependents from their port of disembarkation at Brest or Cherbourg to Paris and then onward to Marville. During this period personnel assigned to duty in Europe crossed the Atlantic by Ocean Liner as regular passengers with the same approach being used for personnel returning to Canada. The largest air transport in the RCAF at this time was the Canadair North Star which was used on trans-Atlantic runs primarily for priority cargo. In September 1955 I was assigned along with a young Flying Officer to go to Paris and Cherbourg and escort back to Marville a group of about 20 people, mostly wives and children. We went to Paris by rail where we met and were briefed by the local RCAF Movements office personnel. Hotel accommodation was arranged and the two of us were free to enjoy the pleasures of Paris until the next morning when we were to proceed to Cherbourg to round up our charges. After making sure everyone had all their luggage and belongings we herded them on the boat train for Paris. In Paris, after they had been dined and settled in their hotel, the dependents and escorts were free for a night in Paris. The next morning it was back on the train for a two hour trip to Marville where we delivered our charges into the hands of Administration personnel.
Most weekends, if not on duty, a group of us from the Mess would bike through the surrounding French countryside and visit places of historic or cultural significance. The huge Vauban fortress on a hill just outside of Montmedy was one frequently visited site. Inside the massive walls of the fortress were several homes still occupied by the locals; also a bistro which became very familiar. At least once a month a group of us would drive to the city of Luxembourg which was about 50 kilometers from the airfield. After obtaining a hotel room we would sitesee and have lunch and dinner at one of the many fine eating establishments and invariably each evening we would head for one of the many fine bistros located around the square by the railroad station. There were usually local musicians and vocalists entertaining but the main attraction was the beer and the girls. Most of the places would have five to ten girls hanging out at the bar waiting for us to buy them drinks and invite them to our table. If you were interested and willing to pay the price you could go with them to an upper room for private entertainment. The girls were all quite attractive and would not push you to take them upstairs. One of my Mess mates became quite involved with one of the girls who gave up the business and became a one man girl and started living with him.
The theater on the station was run by the British Military Cinemagrafic Institute which provided the bulk of the films that were shown, most of which were made in England and not very well known. People became very unhappy with the setup and eventually we got on the USO circuit which made available all the latest Hollywood epics very soon after they had been released in the United States. The station was also on the venue of the touring USO variety shows. Every two months or so one of these troops would show up at Marville for a two day stay. The troop was usually made up of singers, dancers, comics etc - some of them semi-famous. While on the station they were usually guests of the Sergeants Mess (except the more famous ones who went to the Officers Mess). Many an excellent party in the Mess was made all the better when the USO Troop was in town. Most of the organized entertainments in the Mess were stags. Not many mixed events were held as very few of the member's wives had arrived as yet and there were not a lot of local girls available for dating and those that were could only speak French.
Close to Marville was located one of the large Maginot Line fortresses. Part of the vast underground complex was used by the Station Ground Defence Section as a storage area for ammunition. While exploring the interior, Ground Defence personnel discovered, on one of the lower levels, a room full of unused artillery shells of various caliber. These were removed by French Army explosive experts. The complex was on several levels with gun enplacements at the top and from what I understand the place was designed to accommodate at least 1,000 troops with barracks, messes, hospitals etc. It had a narrow guage rail system to move people and equipment around. The entrance to the fortress showed signs of having been under fire during the war. In fact, several of the pill boxes in the vicinity showed signs of being under fire probably because they were located at the extreme northwestern end of the line on the blitzkrieg route of 1940.
One of the functions of the Intelligence Section was to organize and run the Escape and Evasion exercises which all pilots were required to take. These exercises were held semi-annually both at North Luffenham and Marville, sometimes in conjunction with the other Fighter Wings or Allied forces. Fall months were the usual time for the training (maybe because the weather was so foul at that time). Intelligence personnel liased with local police and military authorities to provide the security forces to stop the evaders (the pilots) or prevent them from reaching the unit from which they operated. Local authorities would imprison and interrogate any evaders they captured. At the start of the exercise the evaders were briefed on the rules of engagement, stripped of all money (except enough for a phone call), documents (except dog tags) etc and taken in blacked out buses to various locations several kilometers from the station. After being dropped off in pairs they had 48 hours to make it back to their home units using whatever means they could improvise. They were not supposed to break any laws or arrange to meet friends to bring them back. If captured, the pilots could be interrogated by the local authorities using whatever methods currently employed by them in their normal duties. No physical torture was permitted. Prisoners could be handcuffed, hooded and placed in uncomfortable cells and interrogated for long periods. Verbal abuse was allowed. The Royal Military Police in England and the French National Police were notorious for their interrogation techniques which could be humiliating and very uncomfortable. Every effort was made to avoid being taken prisoner by these units. These E&E exercises were of a specific period of time, anywhere from 48 hours to a full week. Some of the pilots, especially for the short exercises, would find a comfortable hiseout and just lay low until the exercise ended or they would contact friends to come and pick them up. They would then be dropped off very close to the station and walk to the Operations building and say they had evaded capture and made it back. Cheating like that was rare and if found out the culprit was subject to disciplinary action.
In September 1955, 1 (F) Wing took part in its first major NATO exercise while operating from Marville. One of our squadrons deployed to Belgium and a Belgian squadron deployed to Marville as a test of the mobility of the units. The Belgian squadron was equipped with F-84 fighters and the majority of the pilots were non commissioned officers and thus members of our Mess. They were also good beer drinkers.
Although I had applied for an extension of my two year tour, this request was denied with the excuse that "there were too many other personnel who needed to be rewarded with a tour in Europe". In September 1955 I received notice that I was transferred to RCAF Station Uplands for a two year tour effective mid October. From then until my departure day, most of my time was taken up with training my replacement and clearing the station.
In mid October, I along with several other people departed by train from Longuyon for Paris where we stayed overnight before boarding the boat train for Cherbourg to board the SS Neptunia (which was a part of the Italian Line) for a six day voyage to Halifax. The trip across the Atlantic was relatively smooth for that time of the year and most of the time was spent partying with other returnees from various units.
Courtesy of Frank "Buzz" Moran
Updated: June 28, 2004