At the time of the summer Regatta he and Nancy took me there in their private car for the day's fun and festivities. This was a very relaxed all-ranks event with greasy pole and other similar aquatic games. These were as well as the actual boat races which, because of lack of wind on this hot day, were all but abandoned. Those who fell in the murky brown water said it tasted like Coca-Cola. They weren't so happy after someone said that it was the flavour of dissolving drowned bodies from the days of wartime RAF bombing raids on the area.
My life became busier with the arrival of Nos. 98 and 118 Squadrons at Jever early in May. They were commanded by Sqn.Ldr. John Smith-Carington and Sqn.Ldr. Gibbs, respectively. 4 Squadron vacated their large hangar on the opposite side of the airfield so as to make room for the new arrivals. No.3 Armoured Car Squadron moved out of their hangar to make room for No.4 Squadron. For a while it was 'all change' until things settled down. There were new faces to get to know, larger parades to take, and a new relationship to be struck up between me and the new Squadron Commanders, both of whom shunned using my nickname and preferred to call me "Adj". Coincidentally, during this move and turmoil, an unexploded 500 lb British bomb was discovered when repairs were being done to the French drain at the edge of the Tech Wing hard-standing. A Bomb Disposal Team was called in. They defused the weapon and I watched as it was hauled out of the ground using a block and tackle and sheerlegs. One of the Bomb Disposal team was Flt.Lt. Amos Moore who I was to meet again later.
I began to get slightly unusual letters from home. Letters which had an increasing emphasis on my leaving the RAF as soon as possible now that I wasn't flying any more, and saying that my headache problem would be diminished at home. My father thought that I was wasting the best years of my life for no purpose, and that it was time for me to leave. He also thought that all I had to do to leave was to give the equivalent of a month's notice, pack by bags, and quit. Although he had been in the Home Guard (as a Private) during the war he had absolutely no concept of what it was like to be a full time serving RAF Officer, or of the responsibilities that that position carried, neither would he listen when I tried to explain. As an example of this, on taking leave during the early summer, my parents met me off the troop-train in London and, instead of taking me home by car as I expected, they drove me to Salcombe in South Devon for a 'holiday'. It was the last thing I wanted. I was in uniform and it was after Germany had regained its sovereignty.7 Officers had then signed confidential orders to the effect that uniform was henceforth only to be worn when on, or travelling to or from, duty. I was both annoyed and very embarrassed. I was travelling light, had no civvies with me, and expected to change later that day on getting home. I was stuck in a situation I couldn't handle. Worse, my domineering father decided that I was some sort of puppet to be gloated over in the hotel bar. I threatened to catch a train home. As I was saying this I noticed a stranger looking hard at me; then he approached me and mentioned my being in uniform. He was a more senior RAF Officer in civvies, and I was up for criticism. Fortunately I was able to use this gentleman to my advantage by getting him to have a word with my father. Only then, but not without prevarication (and very firm insistence from the stranger), did my very miffed father take me home. At last I was able to change and then made a hurried visit to Moss Brothers in Liverpool to buy some new kit. It was not a happy leave and I was glad to get back to Jever.
Additional to the arrival of new Squadrons was their re-equipment with Hunters; 98, 118, and 4 Squadrons were re-equipped first, the latter officially
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7 Germany regained its sovereignty on the 5th of May, 1955. At this time all service personnel in Germany were confined to camp for an extended weekend so as not to provoke antagonism with any German hot-heads there may have been around. As it happened none of us were aware of any change in attitude to us. For our part we could no longer close off a road, hold a train up, or take a convoy the wrong way down a one-way street. It made little difference because, in reality, we were no longer exercising this sort of authority any more.
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