My late father William Peter Brown-Findlay born in Glasgow in 1922 enlisted in the R.A.F. 24/09/1941 No. 25 Aviation Candidates Selection Board in Edinburgh, No. 27 Technical Training CommandI wondered if anyone has any information on this or had a relative who also joined there at the same time. Also, Would there be any group photos of members of the R.A.F. who joined at the same time. He later went to Canada but didn't get his wings as he developed cluster headaches whilst flying upside down but stayed in the R.A.F. He was also in convoy KMF 33 escorting Strathnaver from Liverpool to Bombay in 1944. But I don't know the name of the ship.
Found all this information in Ancestry, it seems to be off the information I posted below this. SCOTLAND 1941 Military 24/09/1941 • EDINBURGH, MIDLOTHIAN, SCOTLAND NO. 25 AVIATION CANDIDATES SELECTION BOARD, EDINBURGH, NO. 27 GROUP, TECHNICAL TRAINING COMMAND 1941 Military 24/09/1941 AIR FORCE CROSS 1941 Residence 24/09/1941 • EDINBURGH, MIDLOTHIAN, SCOTLAND TILL 25/09/41 1941 Residence 25/09/1941 • GLASGOW, LANARKSHIRE, SCOTLAND PLACED ON THR R.A.F. RESERVE LIST & SENT HOME TO AWAIT CALL-UP TO A TRAINING UNIT 1942 Military 01/04/1942 • R.A.F. ABERYSTWYTH, WALES NO. 6 INITIAL TRAINING WING NO. 54 GROUP, FLYING TRAINING COMMAND 1942 Military 16/03/1942 • ABBEY LODGE, NR. REGENTS PARK, LONDON NW1 NO. 1 AIRCREW RECEIVING CENTRE NO. 54 GROUP, FLYING TRAING COMMAND 1942 Military APR. 1942 • TORONTO, CANADA NO. 1 MANNING DEPOT 1942 Military 07/10/1942 • USA 1942 Military 14/07/1942 AIRCREW DESPATCH CENTRE, R.A.F. HEATON PARK, MANCHESTER, NO. 54 GROUP, FLYING TRAINING COMMAND ATTACHED NO. 51 GROUP POOL, FLYING TRAING COMMAND NO. 28 ELEMENTARY FLYING TRAINING SCHOOL, R.A.F. WOLVERHAMPTON, NO 51 GROUP, FLYING TRAINING COMMAND 1942 Military 1942 • R.A.F. HEATON PARK, MANCHESTER, ENGLAND AIRCREW DESPATCH CENTRE, NO. 54 GROUP, FLYING TRAINING COMMAND (BETWEEN 14/07/1941 & 07/10/1942) 1943 Military 01/01/1943 • WASHINGTON, USA R.A.F. DELEGATION (?) 1943 Military 08/01/1943 • STATION HOSPITAL FORT (?) ADMITT ON 1943 Military 22/01/1943 DISCHARGED ARMY AIR FORCES (? ? ? HOSPITAL 1943 Military 25/04/1943 • MONCTON, NEW BRUNSWICK, CANADA NO. 31 R.A.F. PERSONNEL DEPOT 1943 Military 11/12/1943 • R.A.F. MORETON-IN-MARSH, GLOUCESTERSHIRE, ENGLAND NO. 91 OPERATIONAL TRAINING GROUP, BOMBER COMMAND 1943 Military 20/11/1943 50 GROUP POOL NO. 50 GROUP, FLYING TRAINING COMMAND 1944 Military 07/07/1944 • R.A.F. BLACKPOOL, ENGLAND NO. 5 PERSONNEL DESPATCH CENTRE, NO. 28 GROUP, TECHNICAL TRAINING COMMAND 1944 Military 19/09/1944 • S.E. ASIA AIR COMMAND 1944 Military 22/09/1944 • R.A.F. DALBHUMGARH, INDIA NO. 2 STATIC ADMINISTRATION UNIT, NO. 231 GROUP, AIR COMMAND SOUTH EAST ASIA 1944 Military 24/09/1944 • R.A.F. DALBHUMGARH, INDIA NO. 12 FLYING CONTROL SECTION, NO. 231 GROUP, AIR COMMAND SOUTH EAST ASIA 1944 Military ABT. 1944 • CANADA, USA TRAINED AS AN R.A.F. PILOT 1944 Military 1944-1945 SERGEANT IN THE R.A.F. 1945 Military 07/11/1945 • R.A.F. STATION, JODHPUR INDIA NO. 3 INDIAN GROUP, AIR HEADQUARTERS, INDIA 1945 Military 27/07/1945 ADMITTED NO. 9 GENERAL HOSPITAL 1945 Military 1945 • R.A.F. DALBHUMGARH, INDA NO. 2 STATIC ADMINISTRATIVE UNIT 1946 Military 22/09/1946 • R.A.F. KIRKHAM, LANCASHIRE, ENGLAND NO. 1 R.A.F.PERSONNEL DISPERSAL CENTRE, NO. 28 GROUP, TECHNICAL TRAINING COMMAND (HANDLING DEMOBILISATION OF GROUND AIRMEN) RELEASE CLASS 'A'
Found this info. This would suggest he was in Florida in Jan 1943 The Palm Beach Post West Palm Beach, Florida 31 Jan 1943, Sun • Page 16
This is information on the RAF Training schools in the USA under 4 different training schemes. You can see their were a few in Florida 1) The Arnold Scheme — In April 1941, Henry H ‘Hap’ Arnold flew to London and proposed to the Air Ministry the Training of 4,000 RAF Cadets in the US where new Schools would become available in June. This was accepted and the Personnel Pipeline & Administrative Machinery were established. Soon 6 Primary Flying Schools in the Sun Belt and the Pan American Airways Navigation School began to receive cadets; 3 levels of Training took place at different USAAC (later USAAF) Bases – see PAA Map above 2) The Towers Scheme — seems to have been for RAF Training for Coastal Command, and was based in Pensacola, Florida. It was the result of an offer by Rear Admiral John H Towers of the United States Navy to Train British Crews for the Fleet Air Arm. It included Observers, Wireless Operators, Air-gunners as well as Pilots“. Cadets at Pensacola were trained to Fly Catalinas among other Aircraft. 3) The British Flying Training Schools Scheme — All Training all took place at each Base. The 6 BFTS’s were, with opening dates:- BFTS Terrell, Texas 9th June 1941* BFTS Lancaster, California 9th June 1941* BFTS Miami. Oklahoma 16th June 1941* BFTS Mesa, Arizona 16th June 1941* BFTS Clewiston, Florida 17 July 1941 BFTS Ponca City, Oklahoma 23rd August 1941 BFTS Sweetwater, Texas May 1942 but closed August 1942 * All but Sweetwater, started their Training at other Bases until their Permanent Bases were opened in July/August 1941. 4) Pan-American Airways Observer School. Opened to RAF Cadets in March 1941 and operated until October 1942. Initially based at Coral Gables, Florida, the flying was carried out at Dinner Key, South of Miami. The Scheme produced approximately 1,300 Navigators. There are photographs of the obsolete Flying boats used in Florida for Training RAF Navigators. Also perhaps used in the Towers Scheme, possibly at Pensacola. The School started out as a Civil Contract with PAA placed by the British Government and, like the RAF Refresher Schools, rapidly drawn into Lend-Lease account when that funding became available the 1st 10-man course eventually began on 22 March 1941‘ (the US Army had announced the contract with Pan American back on 10 August 1940). ‘The last British Course to use the facilities at Miami Graduated on 17 October 1942, by which time Pan American Airways had trained a total of 1177 Observers for the RAF. These were not the only Observers to be contributed by the USA, however, as a further 538 had been Trained by the US Navy at Pensacola (Florida) under the Towers Scheme. The 1st 30-strong course had commenced at the end of July 1941, the last one graduating a year later.’ 5) Trans World Airlines Aircrew Training Schools at Alberqueque & Kansas City. These seem to have been short-lived but the intention was to convert the 1st RAF Crews onto the Liberator & Fortress prior to Ferrying them across the Atlantic. c.March 1941.
I would suggest, that he may having been training at BFTS Clewiston, Florida at the time. Map below shows that it was very close to Lake Worth
This article confirms he was at Clewiston, Florida The Palm Beach Post West Palm Beach, Florida 03 Feb 1943, Wed • Page 12
Info on the BTFS “system” set up to dispatch and return aircrew to the US for training BFTSs were RAF establishments in that the Commanding Officer, Adjutant, Chief Flying Instructors and Physical Training Instructors were all RAF personnel. The cadets were subject to RAF law and British Flying Regulations were strictly adhered to around the airfield, except on long cross country flights when American Law had to be observed. These schools were unique in WW2 by offering ab initio to wings training at the same airfield. American civilians became instructors trained to RAF standards. Syllabuses for flying instruction greatly reflected the RAF's needs as war progressed and included night flying, instrument flying, long distance cross-country flights and formation flying. No longer concentrating heavily on aerobatics as was previously done. Back in England the would-be pilots made their way to the Aircrew Reception Centre (ACRC) in St. John's Wood, London. They would then be sent on to Initial Training Wings and Grading Schools (GS) located throughout Britain. GS's were thought to have been introduced because of the high rate of elimination being experienced under the Arnold Scheme. They provided the would-be pilot with 10 hours on Tiger Moths, offering a further refinement in the aircrew selection process. If successful, it was on to the Aircrew Despatch Centre (ACDC) at Heaton Park, Manchester. There to be assigned a passage to the US usually from Liverpool or the Clyde. A constant stream of relatively fast unescorted passenger ships crossing the Atlantic, kept the cadets enrolling in 5BFTS at the rate of 100 every nine weeks. The ships had a good safety record made possible by naval intelligence obtained from the ultra secret Enigma code-breaking carried out at Bletchley Park near Milton Keynes. Even so, it required excellent seamanship to avoid contact with the 120 U-Boats operating in the Atlantic on any one day in 1943! One such crossing was dramatic however in May 1941. The "Britannic" was carrying cadets destined for the Arnold Scheme. Unknown to the cadets the ship was being used as bait for the German battlecruisers "Bismarck" and "Prince Eugen". It worked and the German warships sailed into the ambush prepared by the Royal Navy. The air cadets training lasted 27 weeks. PT17A's (Stearman) were the primary trainers with one instructor and four cadets assigned to each aircraft. Early courses until the end of 1942 had a period on BT13A's (the Vultee, nicknamed the Vibrator) as a basic trainer. However, from Course 10 onwards the Vultee was dropped. AT6A's (Harvard) made up the advanced flightline, having more power than the primary trainer and panels suitable for instrument and night flying.
I looked over the records, and note that he was in a “Hospital” called FORT ? I would suggest, that the date is the same as when he was at No 5 BFTS in Clewiston, and the closest “main” Army base was Fort Myers’s (shown on map below. At that time period, the US Army Air Force, was an army organization, so if he was ill, he would most likely have been sent to a US Army Base…….and also Fort Myers had its own airfield
On the line about “Discharge from Hospital”…….the acronym they use on his records is AAFFGS, this means ARMY AIR FORCE FLEXIBLE GUNNERY SCHOOL and they DID have a AAFFGS at Ft Myer’s Florida. (Buckingham Army Air Field, 10 miles outside of Fort Myer’s). So my supposition that he was in hospital at Ft Myer’s is probably correct. COULD this have been where they diagnosed his issues of getting “headaches” when flying upside down, and then probably their was a Flight Surgeon report that is on his records for the reason he was most likely “ceased training” for medical reasons.
I ‘believe’ by his records you posted, it seems that he ‘may’ have become a Air Controller??? If he did, he may have taken this training at RAF Watchfield Airfield Controllers' School (15 Nov 1942 - 1 May 1948) This is a “guess” on my part, as his trade is listed (on his records AFTER he his was “Pilot”) as AFC, which “could be Air Flight Controller”…….also he was stations at 12 Flight Control Unit??? Have you any information on this possibility?? Stations-W
Thank you so much for all the time you have taken & I really do appreciate it. I just wish I had a photo of him in his uniform. As to FCS it stands for Fighter Control School. He was there 24/09/1944. After that it looks as though it says 2 S.A.V. but the V could be wrong followed by adm (admitted) No. 9 General Hospital 27/07/1945 then later he went to Jodhpur. in 1946. He also had a 1st Good Conduct Badge 06/45. There is also something about the Japanese Campaign which is shown as follows. 5/45 WSI 3 years 15/3/45 ww/46 WSI 4 yrs 14/3/46 There is also something about a Defence Medal Authority & date: 2/249 Received: 45
Only indirectly to the Campaign in that that was where he was stationed. The item is a note on his war service increment to his basic pay. Every 12 months of service during the present emergency he would have been due a progressive pay increment so on 15 March 1945 he was granted increment due to 3 years service and received that until 14 March 1946 where his increment was increased to that granted for 4 years service. Ross
Thank you for your message. I have been busy on other things so have only caught up. I have just found the following & wondered if you or anyone can expand on it in respect of the Japanese Campaign. 'Initially deployed as a few field squadrons and small anti-aircraft flights protecting forward airfields, radar and signals stations, by the cessation of hostilities there were ten Wing HQs, eighteen field squadrons and twelve light anti-aircraft squadrons in the field.'
Not sure of where you link the context of this into the above service record. 'Initially deployed as a few field squadrons and small anti-aircraft flights protecting forward airfields, radar and signals stations, by the cessation of hostilities there were ten Wing HQs, eighteen field squadrons and twelve light anti-aircraft squadrons in the field.' This, on the meagre text, describes the growth of the RAF Regiment tasking for a very limited conflict area not a whole Air Command. Ross
