Announcement

**Paddy** · April 23, 2004, 08:55

13 December 1941

My name is Charles Arthur Stuart. I am 22 years of age, from a small country town called Picton. Picton is an old colonial farming community just south of Sydney, in the New South Wales Great Dividing Range. Growing up here was a delight in so many ways. Peace, sunshine, happiness and fresh milk.

A little to our north is another such community called Camden. It was here on a converted farm that our Dad taught my brother Jimmy and I how to fly. Just the thought of those days brings back such a smile to my face. Looming and zooming standing the Sopwith Camel on her nose and freefalling in the stall of her engine, just to feel the frame vibrate and shake so hard as the 130 hp Clerget engine came back on line, wow pure exhilaration. Dad flew Camels in the RAF during the Great War, so it was only fitting that he and some of his mates here at Camden would buy them, recondition them, and get back into the Great Blue. Thus sharing the passion with Jim and I. Some of my earliest memories revolve around dropping out of clouds into pure sunshine.

So it was only natural that I would end up here in the RAAF, as a junior Flying Officer. Actually the CO is from Camden, so I am in good company. Not that this brings me any favours, Squadron Leader Owen is a strict and distinct leader.

Today we await word of a transfer. As you could imagine the lads imaginations are going wild – are we going to Europe at last, to the Middle East, off west to Perth, or is north to Asia… There are just so many different theatres of operation. My thoughts are that we will head to Port Moresby for escort duty, and Long Range Patrol. See we are fitted out with the new Mark I Mustang, armed with four .30's and four .50's and 180 gallons in self sealing tanks. This Escort Fighter is a dream to fly and such a pleasure to stand on its nose.

17 December 1941

When word came down that we were to move out, the squadron moved fast. Yes many things were already to go, but there was still much to do.

Singapore, not Moresby, not Europe, not even the sands of the Middle East, no we were off to the tropics.

Tonight as I write these scant lines we are bivouacked next to a dirt runway on a Dutch Indies Island out side of Waingopoe. This is a place I never imagined, the heat, the mosquitoes, the heat, the rain, the heat, the adventure, oh, did I mention the heat. We are here for the night, and should be flying out in the morning. A few fuel hops and we may even make Singapore by night fall.

The ground crew here are made up of a mix of Australians, Dutch, and Brits. Word is the 4th RAAF Fighter Squadron were through here two days ago, yet no one is saying where they are going.

Well sleep is here.

21 December 1941

We have landed in Singapore. It was not quite the quick hop I had hoped. I have now seen quite a few small dirt strips, seemingly cut from the very jungle.

The flight in was very interesting, there are so many islands in this area of the world. We spotted a great many naval units moving through the waterways. At one stage we over flew two great Battleships, the Prince of Wales and the Repulse. They stand like island themselves; I sure would not like to be under the pounding of their guns.

Here in Singapore the airport is a busy place. I count seven squadrons operating out of here, four of fighter and three of bomber. We are sharing facilities with the Flying Tigers, Singapore Squadron.

Our orders are to regroup, and tomorrow we start combat air patrols.

Attached Files

**ChrisiusMaximus** · April 23, 2004, 11:18

Great start

**SKILORD** · April 23, 2004, 18:08

Yes, nice start.

**unscratchedfoot** · April 24, 2004, 01:54

Your story takes off like a freshly tuned up Flying Tiger.
Looking forward to the joyful start of war.

I like fresh milk too! I used to drink 2 litres everyday but Koiwaii Gyunyu stopped selling low fat kind

Also milk in Japan only sell in 1 L or 500 mL, not 4 L jugs like in western countries so the price here is about 3 times more expensive!

**Paddy** · April 24, 2004, 10:10

13 January 1942

Christmas was a blur of patrols.

New Years was spent sound asleep.

Battalion after Battalion have been airlifted in. Then they regroup and move up the Malayan peninsula. These fields sure have been busy. Not even at the air regattas back home have I seen so many touchdowns in the one day.

Word is that a new strip is being built for us up that way and we are moving soon. So far this has been nothing but rumour.

19 January 1942

Patrols continue.

This evening a group of us headed into town to hit the bars. It is not very often that we have the next day off from flight ops. While drinking we got chatting with a group of diggers who were rotating out of Bhuket for some R&R.

They told some gruesome stories of Japanese Light Tanks hitting the positions hard.
Yet as there trials sounded bad, they stopped and spoke reverently of the lads who are further up the line, in Rangoon, Mandalay and as far north as Myitkyina. These far flung outposts of the Empire cut off by the Jap in Bangkok.

5 February 1942

Packing the Squadron up today. We are moving, but we do not know where yet.

17 February 1942

Kudat, what a small township. We have three strips operating at over capacity.

Yesturday two fighters clipped wings, causing one to spiral into the trees, another good pilot gone.

You could here the CO’s clearly across the fields. They sure were having a heated conversation.

11 March 1942

Time is moving fast.

The Navy has a massive built up of ships to the south of here; we have strict orders to keep all Jap recon planes out of that area. This has been quite an operation. Yet the Mustang sure is up to the challenge.

The Bomber crews seem to be growing very restless over on the overside of the field. There machines do not seem to have been on any missions in the time we have been here. Yes they have been flying, and some good sights have been had in watching the 3 squadrons forming up, yet they have not had us out for an escort duty. 7th squadron has been the only squadron used in this fashion so far. It would be my opinion, that if they were to be doing any major attacks, then they would take more than one squadron for escort duties.

Tommy Jones, another Flying Officer in my flight feels that something major must be coming very soon. What with the fleet build up and the bomber squadrons on these possible training flights.

Throughout this we continue to fly regular patrols throughout this region of the South China Seas.

Every now and then we have mixed it up with Jap. Yet these skirmishes have been far and few between to date.

The Mustang is one fine flying machine.

Attached Files

**ChrisiusMaximus** · April 24, 2004, 11:19

Excellent

**vovan** · April 24, 2004, 17:02

Heh. Been a while since I last found time to sit down and read something. Mostly just had a few minutes to put in another guess in Hangman.

Any ways, just read through this. Good stuff, Paddy.

**Paddy** · April 24, 2004, 22:59

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Thanks Lads

I appreciatte the encouragement

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**Sava** · April 25, 2004, 20:34

good stuff

**unscratchedfoot** · April 26, 2004, 00:16

Mustangs in the Pacific war? I thought the US used P-38's mostly. I read a book about how the japs downed hundreds of P-38's around Port Moresby cause the japs had their best zero aces working the area. I'm not a history buff so I don't know much about it though.

**Paddy** · April 26, 2004, 03:25

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The Mustang was of British design and made to British order for the Royal Air Force

The company that made them happened to be in the US of A.

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**Kaos XIII** · April 26, 2004, 13:46

Great start.

BTW, if for some reason you stop updating this story, we can just assume that Charlie was shot down, or something. Thus unable to continue.

**Paddy** · April 26, 2004, 13:54

Originally posted by Kaos XIII
Great start.

BTW, if for some reason you stop updating this story, we can just assume that Charlie was shot down, or something. Thus unable to continue.

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Superb

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**unscratchedfoot** · April 28, 2004, 04:44

I smell burning oil. Is this story being continued or is Charlie already in a tail spin?

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