Tried most of the Wednesday sports activities, including horse riding at the stables near the train station in Wendover. Never really seemed to take to anything untill I was talked into joining the Pipe Band.

Chf Tech. Dave McCleod was the Pipe Major at Halton. I eventually learned to be a base drummer and spend many journeys banging that drum up and down the hill as we marched to and from the college and workshops. The pipe band led to many a good skive, such as the Royal Tournament, The Sunset Ceremony (RAF Massed bands), making our own record, various visiting dignatories and funerals.

I remember doing RAF Regiment Training with Sergeant Dewsbury (what a tough cookie he was). Searching for the other half of our entry who had hidden in the Downs, Dewsbury threw a thunder flas over the brow of a hill because we heard voices. It turnes out to be an elderly couple having a picknic. Boy were they suprised.

Sitting in the cockpit of a Sea Hawk in the workshops servicing the canopy tracks. Selected canopy close just before Naafi break. The right hand track closed fully, the left hand closed only half way. The canopy split from front to back just as the Naafi hooter went. Everybody left me trapped in there. The Suadron Leader was walking round during break and saw me trapped. "Did you do that?" says he "Yes sir" says I. Off he walked and left me stuck in there.

1971, Halton recieved a batch of Sea Vixens, as apprentices we clambered all over them. Each one had about 20 apprentices switching this and that on and opening this panel and that panel. One of the lads sitting between the booms at the rear of the main body suddenly screamed and hit the deck below. Apparently, one of the apprentices had selected theemergency generator which flipped up and knocked the apprentice off.

The Shoulder Of Mutton near the railway station was one of our favourite haunts. I seem to remember a country and western singer there on friday nights called Jed. His favourite song was called "The American Draft Dodger"

Chipmunk flights over the spot where the Great Train Robbery took place. The pilots taking great delight in flying alongside the passing trains and practising their straffing runs on them.

Getting near passing out, we decided to pull a helicopter up the hill from the workshops. Half way up the hill the snowdrops came so we legged it into the woods, the snowdrops shouting after us "Dont leave this bloody thing here, get it up onto the parade ground"

Summer camp in wales, the Plynlymon (think thats how you spell it) mountain race. Carrying buckets of water up and down as punishment, but being sent back to Halton half way through as Mrs Ghandi was visiting and they neede the pipe bandsmen. Yahoo! The most significant days of my life and glad I was there