One year to go!
Another rail warrant. This time the journey was from the very south back up to east of Scotland where training had started.
This time with a new wife so had to look for accommodation off the “concrete ship”. Found a nice little place with our own bedroom, living room and shared kitchen and a lovely landlady by the name of Mabel. Reminded me very much of my Auntie. Mabel’s beau had gone off to WWII and never returned.
I was now elevated to the rank of “leading hand” or killick. The arm badge can be seen below:
The final year of training was basically refining all the things we had learned over the previous years and preparing us to enter the world as newly hatched “non-coms”.
My rank was to be Petty Officer and we were destined to be the engine of the Fleet Air Arm along with Chief Petty Officers.
MY dress uniform was almost identical to the PO’s in this picture:
On conclusion of the final year we were then told where we would be going tp protect our country and citizens. As it happens I was being sent even further in to the wilds of Scotland.
This new concrete ship was the real thing. Front line strike aircraft on 24 hour standby basically pointed at Russia!
The Buccaneer:
One interesting point when I was promoted to Petty Officer. At just 19 years of age I was the second youngest Petty Officer ever in the Royal Navy. I was beaten to the post by ERA Tiffy by just one day!
