raf halton apprentice records

Staff appointments involved operations, search and rescue, training and personnel management. Over 1,000 other 65 gallantry awards went to former aircraft apprentices and some 3000 were Mentioned in Dispatches. By the early 1970s, RAF apprentice training had reached a crossroads. Halton Apprentice Roll of Honour This is now on the net www.oldhaltonians.co.uk then look in the Tribute section. We wish to have access to records, manuals, policy statements, annual reports, developments, evolution.. especially with respect to the care and education of the apprentices. After the introduction of a new trade structure in 1951, all aircraft apprentices graduated as junior technicians with some gaining accelerated promotion to corporal. The population expanded and by the end of 1917 some 14,000 air mechanics were trained. He was in Egypt by June 1941. A.C.I/LAC Donald George Porritt MU/MEF 107 B Squadron. The 74th Entry Graduation Invitation. The museum was named in honour of the man who is regarded as the Founding Father of the Royal Air Force, and also who founded the Aircraft Apprentice scheme with which the good name of Halton has often been synonymous. He went on to say that apprentices would form 40% of all ground crews in the Royal Air Force, and 62% of all the skilled tradesmen. These targets were small and did not reveal themselves by searchlight / flak etc, hence accurate navigation was needed. Bombing - apart from the first two, our bombing missions were confined mainly to the near coast of France. Craft Apprentices graduated as junior technicians but without formal academic qualifications, unless taken ex-curriculum. This very deliberate commissioning from the ranks was an outstanding example of social mobility, uncommon for the time. So be careful when telling your RN friends this 62 snippet as they can get very upset to learn that the junior Service, in the form of Halton apprentices, provided an important element of the foundations on which the carrier force developed into a vital arm of the nations capability in WW II and beyond. and on 5th June 1943 was posted to RAF Hurn and transferred to 38 Group Airborne Forces. While ex-Halton apprentices who became high achievers contributed much to its legacy, Trenchards original aim in founding the apprentice scheme was to produce a cadre of wellmotivated, highly trained airmen capable of becoming competent supervisors in the direction of work and control of men. please it gained a reprieve with the introduction of the Apprentice Engineering Technician (AET) scheme. My thoughts on the Stirling - being a very robust aircraft and fitted with Hercules air-cooled engines, it was much the safer aircraft in which to fly. Of the Halton apprentices who achieved air rank, thirteen were knighted. His role was to assist the pilot to manage the complicated systems in these more advanced aircraft. The arranging of individual and entry visits to Halton House, The Trenchard Museum and the Apprentice Archives are other services provided to members of the Association. From the outset of his training he became a member of a society based on the orderly pattern of RAF life in wings, squadrons and flights, where he learned the give and take of community living, and developed a feeling for the customs and traditions of the Service. A pass mark in all aspects of his trade training was an absolute for an apprentice to graduate. These targets were mainly coastal gun emplacements and launching sites for the V-weapons. Thirty-eight years later he was promoted to Air Chief Marshal to be a member of the Air Force . Some of this Entry were only 16, officially still boys but now serving as airmen on the front line. This website is paid for out of our own pockets, library subscriptions and from donations made by visitors. Like this page to receive our updates. To see photographs of our reunions and of ex 78th entry members . The Halton trained men provided the nucleus on which the great expansion of the Air Force was centred surely the efficient maintenance of aircraft has also been one of the outstanding features of the war, and that has been made possible by the Halton training of our men. With many apprentices now older than direct entry airmen, there was no need for any of the rules which governed the lives of their predecessors. However, as the TSR2 on which they were destined to work had not materialised, many after graduation found themselves posted to single-skill posts. Royal Air Force HAA The brass wheel badge, introduced in April 1919 and subsequently worn by apprentices on the upper left sleeve. We never failed to drop our load. He had always intended that the best of each Entry should be awarded cadetships at Cranwell, but were he alive today he would be amazed to discover that well-over 20% were commissioned, with 110 attaining air rank. Aylesbury These boys moved to Halton in the late summer of 1917 where, by the end of the 4 year, 2,000 boys were under training as air mechanics living in Spartan conditions in dilapidated wooden huts previously occupied by infantry troops. This custom continues at RAF Cosford today, 75 the current home of No 1 School of Technical Training, where young men and women are trained as aircraft engineering technicians on a modern apprenticeship course. Considering they were the two professions most apprentices had spent three years avoiding at Halton and Cranwell, a surprising number became vicars and policemen. A site to help anyone submit a Freedom of Information request. Royal Air Force Apprentices were a breed apart, a cut above, a group of boys who went on to become highly skilled craftsmen and airmen. The top rank, normally flight sergeant apprentice, was in effect the head boy of the School. Recently, a member asked if we still accepted bequests or legacies and how he should proceed if he wished to make such an arrangement. Interestingly, at the critical stage of the development of the engine which was to power the first flight of a British jet aircraft, Whittle requested and received the support of four ex-Halton apprentice engine fitters to help out in his workshop at Power Jets. His reason for this was to ensure that boys committing offences both on and off the station could be dealt with expeditiously by the appropriate authority. 6d. Photographs at RAF Halton 1954 - 1957 Official photographs. He had laid firm ground on which Trenchard was able to build his aircraft apprentice scheme. Once you have catered for your loved ones, a generous bequest would help us achieve our Heritage plans. The Army's Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was established in 1912 and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was founded in 1914. This scheme ended in 1972. Initial trade training was carried out in the workshops and later in a mix of workshops and on redundant aircraft positioned on the airfield. He is buried at Diego Suarez War Cemetery, near the town of Antsiranana, on the western shore of Diego Suarez Bay, on the north-east coast of Madagascar in Antsiranana War Cemetery. Maintain the electronic and paper medical records, monitoring the occupational health of Defence personnel. He argued that the best way to ensure that, . In the late 1950s, a study was initiated into the RAFs youth training requirements. Here she met my Grandfather, Squadron Leader William Henry Edwards DFC. In 1922 the school moved permanently to RAF Halton and was fully operational by 1926. If you are not the intended recipient or there are problems The TA course, although relatively short-lived, offered unprecedented career opportunities for those apprentices who completed it. The oldest living member of the RAF Halton Apprentices Association (Old Haltonians) is John Rogers, who was born in October 1908, and who became a member of the 12th entry of apprentices in 1925. The whole estate was purchased by the British Government for the nascent Royal Air Force at the end of the First World War for ?112,000. the training of our mechanics in the multiplicity of trades necessitated by a highly technical Service is to enlist the bulk of our skilled ranks as boys, and train them ourselves. Due to Peters expertise, our crew were given many specialist operations. 2 Wing. 1 School of Technical Training at RAF Halton (see aircraft apprentice) which remained at the Station until it moved to RAF Cosford in the early 1990s. In June 1917 Maj Gen Sefton Brancker, Deputy Director-General of Military Aeronautics, submitted proposals to centralise the technical training of men, women and boys in a new large school to be located at Halton. Engine running was done on the airfield. Thank you. Technical training at Halton was divided into three distinct, but closely co-ordinated departments: Trade, Academic and General Service Training. . Sqn Ldr Donald Finlay, of the 12th Entry, a triple Olympian well known to the public as one of the countrys top athletes, commanded Nos 41 and 54 Sqns in the Battle of Britain shooting down four enemy aircraft and winning a DFC. Our barrack room had 30 boys in it. Super Moderator. From 1919 to 1993, the No 1 SoTT was based at RAF Halton and from 1920 until 1993 the School was the home of the Aircraft Apprentice Scheme. 12-08-2021, 8:00 PM. RAF Halton. christanel. However, they soon proved capable of taking on trade supervisory roles. To meet this requirement a two-year Craft Apprentice (CA) Scheme, with a new numbering series starting with the 201st Entry, was introduced, Hunters, and the occasional Sea Hawk, in Haltons workshops. The BBC soon recognised his talent as a broadcaster and he later co-hosted, with Jean Metcalfe, Two-Way Family Favourites, a radio programme much loved in the UK and those serving in Germany. The 13 year old became a University lecturer with a PhD. Many former apprentices who trained as pilots and flight engineers continued to fly with civil airlines. RAF Malton. On the 13th of January 1931, a month shy of his 16th birthday, my father started a three-year apprenticeship at the Royal Air Force's No. This scheme produced single-skill fitters who maintained aircraft and associated equipment and could, if necessary, actually fashion small replacement parts themselves. and a limited company (03277032). As a member you will have access to the Association membership database (subject to GDPR restrictions) which may well be able to assist you in renewing your friendships with past colleagues of your entry or your time at Halton. We wish to have access to records, manuals, policy statements, annual reports, developments, evolution.. especially with respect to the care and education of the apprentices. AET Prevett, the Parade Commander, was so chuffed, he wore a wheel on both arms. Over the years, some members have made bequests to our Association in their wills in preparation for their final postings. Your Association is determined that the role of ex Halton apprentices in the military history of our great nation is recognised by future generations. When RAF Halton closes (circa 2025), the Association wants to create a Heritage centre in St George's Church where the contents of the . The rear gunner reported seeing both parachutes open but as we were very low and had to fly straight on, that was all we saw. Interestingly, apprentices were the only people who continued to join the wartime RAF; from September 1939 until 1945. For more information, please see our Privacy Policy, Please enter a password with 6 characters or more. The Royal Air Force Apprentice scheme began in 1920, having been devised by Chief of the Air Staff Hugh Trenchard and approved by Winston Churchill. The heavy losses sustained by Bomber Command are reflected in the 2,000 casualties listed in the Apprentices Roll of Honour in St Georges Church at Halton. Until 1951, this mark also governed the rank at which an apprentice graduated. This kind of improvisation could not provide all of the men the RFC needed and rationalisation of the training machine became an urgent requirement. Nevertheless, by combing through the ranks for skilled artificers among those already in uniform and identifying likely candidates among the many volunteers who were joining the colours, most of the shortfalls during the first two years of WW I were overcome. I was confirmed in the station church. World War 2 Two II WW2 WWII 1939 1945. . Most exapprentices did exactly that. Air CmdSecCS-RAFParliBusiness (MULTIUSER), Download a zip file of all correspondence, Employers from which applications originate, IT Apprenticeship and traineeship employers. Whittles final examination results along with those of 40,000 other former 73 Halton apprentices are preserved at the Trenchard Museum Archives at Halton. If the information here has been helpful or you have enjoyed reaching the stories please conside making a donation, no matter how small, would be much appreciated, annually we need to raise enough funds to pay for our web hosting or this site will vanish from the web. For many years this sign was displayed in a prominent place in each of the Workshops Bays. Only five of Haltons Polish contingent elected to return to Poland. If you have already submitted a story to the site and your UID reference number is higher than 261373 your information is still in the queue, please do not resubmit, we are working through them as quickly as possible. This element of the course was replaced in 1977 by the Ordinary Diploma and for most the Higher Certificate awarded by the newly formed Business and Technician Education Council (BTEC). This move coincided with the adoption of the rank of Aircraft Apprentice. On the 17th May 1945 they were married in St Nicholas Church in Witham, Essex. The Origins of Boy Service in the RFC and RAF. It was in the earliest days of the aircraft apprentice scheme that the term Trenchard (or Halton) Brat came into vogue, initially as a term of derision used by old sweats who took a rather jaundiced view of these clever young upstarts who were destined for rapid promotion to corporal. Keith Robinson. CHIEF TECHNICIAN Served from 1969 - 1993 Served in RAF Apprentices. A National Certificate, or at least a B Grade pass in the final school examinations, was sufficient to qualify an apprentice academically for commissioning: a C Grade was the minimum requirement for graduation. Sgt App F M Hines of the 63rd Entry receives the Colour for No 1 School of Technical Training from HM Queen Elizabeth II on 25 July 1952. Although many boys were later transferred to 5 Cranwell, where permanent accommodation was available, several thousand remained at Halton undergoing in equal measure, drill, physical training, fatigues and technical training for which only basic facilities were available. In 1917 there was an expansion of technical training in the Royal Flying Corps (RFC), and Halton became the main training unit for aircraft mechanics. Perhaps the most resented rule, especially by older apprentices in their third year of training, was lights out at 21:45hrs, when their former school chums were still out enjoying themselves with their girlfriends.
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