What a day!!! Who said that it could rain in the Western Desert, it just poured and poured. Work was at a standstill and the jolly old rain poured and poured, soon the desert was one vast lake of water and soon all the roads became impassable poor old "Sandy" Joyner and “Piet” van der Merwe had a field day with their transport – they worked like heroes all day and night and for their pains saw the trucks getting "bogged” with monotonous regularity. Picture "Piet" and the Adj. after midnight consultation with “Sandy” over the route for the morrow getting well and truly stuck in the mud in the middle of nowhere and stayed put their for the night!!
Our first show this morning was over Landing Ground at GAZALA. on dispersed aircraft. There was again 10/10th cloud and the target was completely obscured. Our formation of nine aircraft was attacked by twelve enemy aircraft (G 50's and 109F’s)
Our formation fought their way into cloud where bombs were jettisoned. On emerging from cloud about eight fighters concentrated on one of our Marylands which was seen going down in flames with the fighters on its tail. At the same time a rear gunner in our leading formation shot down a ME 109 in flames, down it went with dense smoke pouring from its fuselage and engines and on hitting the ground was seen to burst into flames.
Here is what Malcolm Jack, the rear gunner and former Jo’burg pirates all round cricketer had to say about his little duel with the jerry"...I sighted an enemy aircraft almost directly astern of the formation, at a range of approximately 800 yards. I reported to my pilot and fired the red Verey light.When I turned my guns towards the Enemy Aircraft it had come within 500 or 600 yards. I fired a burst and saw the tracers passing below the enemy plane. He turned a little to port and I saw the huge yellow spinner and rounded wingtips of a M.E. 109F. I raised the guns slightly and fired a long burst from both guns. Just as I released the triggers a large burst of flame appeared from the E/A. It immediately went into a spin with smoke coming from it. I saw it fall about 500 feet and it disappeared from my view…”
Our remaining aircraft were at about 1000 ft and another was seen to be in trouble. This machine managed to keep going until well over our lines and it made a forced landing at SIDI BARRANI. The remaining seven aircraft landed at L.G. 76.
Yes we have lost another four of the very best and the war is definitely coming to roost. Never will the officers Mess be the same without the ever smiling and popular Hugo Reid with his unfailing good humour and his universal popularity. His observer Dennis Beddy was also a most popular member of the Mess and the two gunners were two of the most popular and efficient members of the Sergeant’s Mess. “Papy” was the well known and popular Free State Cricketer and well do we remember the matches between the Officers and Sergeants when out on the sunbaked and flaky sands he made the ball jump about and caused great havoc amongst the officers wickets!!
Bill Conn was one of the old school, indeed the first gunner to be chosen in the Squadron, a real gentleman, quiet and efficient he was together with Papenfus, one of the steadying influences amongst those firebrands the gunners. All four of them were true blue and a real crew pals one and all, they will be remembered as long as the squadron lives.
What a day and what a night, cold biting winds and sweeping showers of rain made us miserable and the news of our loss made us really miserable.
The second show in the late afternoon was from L.G. 76, our advance striking base, and consisted of three Marylands with Major “Rod” Stewart leading. They were to attack an enemy armoured division around BIR-EL-GUBI. The raid was smashing success at low level and all the bombs fell well within the target area on heavy concentrations of enemy vehicles and tanks.
At L.G. 21 the O.C. and the Adj. decided that the rain had not abated and the road was impassable (witness seven of our vehicles stuck in the mud) the convoy would not move at scheduled time on the morrow but would wait until the road had dried sufficiently to make a passage by heavy vehicles possible. “Little man you’ve had a busy day.”