spent nursing hangovers. Those who decided on 'hair of the dog' treatment did just that. By Monday we were just about ready for work again.
The rest of the month was notable primarily for poor weather. We attended lectures, attended to extraneous duties, and spent time in the gym. I did manage to fly three sorties: one of ciné quarter attacks, one of routine practice ranging and tracking, and one, after a journey by road to Oldenburg, when I flew a Vampire Mk 9 back to Jever to go on Squadron strength. That flight lasted 15 minutes.
My duties as MTO occupied any spare time I had. I had been able to draw from the Air Publications Section several APs dealing with MT, its use, and operation, including convoy rules and regulations. These were of value to me for I had heard that the Squadron would be going on detachment to the island of Sylt for air-to-air live gunnery practice. I would have to take a convoy there, so I needed to have some idea of what was expected of me.
At about this time, too, the Squadron had been allocated a brand new 88" wheelbase Landrover. Its registration number was AA 00 01, which told everyone that it was the first of its type in 2ATAF, if not the RAF. Sqn.Ldr. Allen made sure he had priority use of it as his personal vehicle, and I had to make sure it was kept clean!
Our Met Officer was Arthur Hull.1 He and his team had the unenviable task of trying to forecast local weather. These were the days when weather satellites were just a science fiction writer's dream. Every four hours a synoptic chart was produced using information collated from other weather stations and sent in by teleprinter. Local weather at Jever could be very unpredictable as it was close to the coast. Damp from the North Sea could produce days of haze and poor horizontal visibility, and fog could roll in without warning. When flying, as pilots, it was our duty, and for our own protection, to radio in any changes to the forecast weather. Occasionally we flew special Met sorties. To date there had been much haze and drizzle and some fog but little yet in the way of frost. Arthur Hull was responsible for presenting weather information at each morning's flying briefing in Flying Wing Headquarters which all we pilots had to attend before going to our Squadrons.
As the month changed to December so did the weather improve, but only for a short time. Three sorties were flown on the first day, the usual ciné quarter attacks ending with a QGH, then a dusk flight, taking off in the evening and landing after dark. After this I flew a night cross-country over to Schleswig Holstein and back. All sorties were of 40 minutes duration. I was never keen on night flying unless there was a bright moon. Night IF seemed particularly onerous and stressful. For a considerable part of this cross-country I was out of sight of the ground and had to get several R/T fixes.
Next day the weather was marginal and my morning sortie involved a mock combat mission in very poor visibility. So bad was it that I, and the other pilot, became separated and decided to make our individual ways back to base. I stooged about while the other aircraft started its QGH and landed, then it was my turn. I got as low as 1,000 feet and couldn't see the ground so broke off the QGH to climb up and have another go. This time I risked going down to 750 feet but still didn't see the runway although Air Traffic said they could just see me. Too late. My fuel state was getting low and I was at once diverted to Ahlhorn, the nearest open airfield because Oldenburg was clamped in. I landed there in clear weather, reported to Air Traffic as usual, and waited for instructions. On arrival I found that the Squadron Battle Flight had been diverted there as well. By early afternoon the weather at Jever had cleared enough for me to return. On going to my aircraft I was told that when I had shut down there were only 7 gallons left in my tanks. The engine would have cut out
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1 He was Senior Meteorological Officer and wore uniform only when formality demanded. He usually wore an old brown tweed jacket with leather patches on the elbows. He was employed by the Met Office but attached to the RAF and could be posted anywhere like the rest of us. 71