ARmy Rumour SErvice

Originally Posted by Cuddles

for those familiar with air trooping this will not sound odd, to those unfamiliar this is god's honest truth. In 1982 I was en route to a summer attachment in Germany. I was instructed to report to Hendon on day 1, for a flight the following day, late in the day (about 1800 hours if my memory still serves) from Luton.

As I was in Luton for sexual operations that summer I suggested that we could save the Army a couple of days pay and I would report to Luton. "Oh no," came the terse reply. "We can't have soldiers just turning up at airports in time for flights to Germany. Be at Hendon by 1430 hours the previous day or you may be bumped from your flight. Oh and you may be bumped from your flight in any case..."

So I schlepped in to Hendon - not the easiest place to reach from Luton bizarrely given their interlocking in the minds of movers. Then spent a grim night in transit accommodation being refused permission to leave the camp unless, presumably I decided to run away from the RAF. I was also informed that as I had an eight figure number I could doss down in the ORs transit accommodation but because I was an officer cadet I had to eat in the officer's mess. Which was fecking miles from the transit accommodation unlike the JR Canteen which was opposite.

I was awoken at 0600 the following morning and evicted from the accommodation and told to report back "after breakfast". This was not available until 0800 in the mess and by the time I had lugged an exercise woth of kit there, eaten a hasty repast and lugged et cetera back I was delighted to be greeted by an RAF Flight Sgt who proceeded to rip me to bits. Well actually it was like being savaged by a dead sheep.

Apparently they expected me "after breakfast" in the ORs canteen - i.e. at 0700. I explained about the messing but was then cut off and told that regardless of my sins I would now be "processed"...which involved him taking a piece of paper from me, putting it briefly in his millboard before giving it back to me. He then continued to lecture me about delaying the "others". We all then sat in a sweltering hot waiting room for five hours before driving to Luton. I gave lunch a miss...

Which is why my service autobiography will be called "I was a prisoner of the RAF."

..........and although the terminology and personnel may have changed the appallingly low standard of service most surely hasn't.

We used to have lads turn up at Luton Airport no problem. It would seem that one of them educated idiots got into the system somwhere and ba**sed it all up after I left in 78? Bloody typical you leave these Rickshaw, Cabs and Taxi drivers alone with the RAF and Regulating Branch of the RN and look what happend?