Boys from the age of 15 took a series of highly competitive exams and tests, and the select few were invited to join the most exclusive boarding school of its time. This was undertaken in parallel with another study into the requirements for trade specialisations and resulted in the 1964 Trade Structure, introduced in April that year. Need more information, contact the General Secretary by email to. 1 Squadron (Engines and Instruments) 78th. This move coincided with the adoption of the rank of Aircraft Apprentice. On airfield, we did engine running on a Blenheim, prop swinging on Tiger Moth. Through war-time and peace-time, being honoured by the Queen and honouring a Prime Minister, welcoming trainees from around the world and moving to bases across the UK since 1920, the RAF Apprentices have been part of significant events in history. Donate and support our work. But the cost issue resurfaced in a Commons debate in 1926 when MP, Sir Frank Nelson, pointed out that 230, which was estimated to be the cost of training an apprentice, is probably more than it costs a parent to send a boy to any of the four or five leading public schools of England. He went on to complain that, these apprentices at Halton get 1s a day pocket money, which, when they number 3,000, will cost the country 55,000 a year, and even now it costs between 30,000 and 35,000 a year. But, once again, the point was not pursued. . May be difficult to read. RAF Halton | Royal Air Force . In March 1920 No 1 School of Technical Training was established at Halton, the future home of aircraft apprentice training. There is a label at the Imperial War Museum which reads;- viruses. Aylesbury One of these, MRAF Sir Keith Williamson, a Cranwell 67 apprentice, became CAS, and several others served on the Air Force Board, including Air Chf Mshl Sir Michael Armitage who was AMSO in the early 1980s and has been the Patron of the RAF Halton Apprentices Association since its foundation in 1980. An Olympian and an inventor, Dam Busters and Great Escapers come and meet the boys who truly took off! Join Date. To keep abreast of changes in RAF engineering practice, four different types of apprenticeships were introduced over the lifetime of the scheme. A site to help anyone submit a Freedom of Information request. Indeed some AETs were married during training, had children and lived in MQs. Scarlett remained in post until 1924 which enabled him to oversee the 8 transformation of a temporary wartime military camp into the beginnings of a permanent RAF station. 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. However, on-going research is continually uncovering hitherto unknown awards. Was she captured by the Germans? Below are just some of our members who have served at RAF Apprentices. Why Forces War Records? I passed out AC1. Dennis died in 1942, in an aircraft accident. They have set and maintained an extraordinarily high standard of efciency. Promoted to substantive Corporals on graduation, after two years satisfactory productive service they could look forward to being promoted to Sergeant. Over 1,000 other 65 gallantry awards went to former aircraft apprentices and some 3000 were Mentioned in Dispatches. The Trenchard Museum aims to preserve and display items that relate to the history of Royal Air Force Halton. Since 1921, airmen had been able to volunteer for training as sergeant pilots and to serve as such for six years before returning to their ground trades, retaining their rank. By the early 1970s, RAF apprentice training had reached a crossroads. The brass wheel badge, introduced in April 1919 and subsequently worn by apprentices on the upper left sleeve. Royal Air Force HAA He trained at RAF Halton as an aircraft apprentice, known as Trenchards Brats. Halton apprentices loyalty and devotion to duty during WW II was recognised by the large number of decorations they received. 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. Bucks HP19 0GF. To help find them, these trips were always in full moonlight and at low level, generally 500ft, so that the parachutes were in the air for the shortest possible time to avoid detection. Most pre-war apprentices soon attained LAC rank but, following the Great Depression, from the late 1920s to the start of WW II, many did not advance beyond corporal, unless selected for flying training. For more information, please see our Privacy Policy, Please enter a password with 6 characters or more. the system and for other lawful purposes. She was brought out to our aircraft just as we were about to take off. He remustered to aircrew as an Air Signaller/Air Gunner in 1953 and was commissioned as an Air Electronics Ofcer in 1959. The 74th Entry Graduation Invitation. A Definitive History of the RAF Aircraft Apprentice Scheme - Min Larkin This scheme, which included Sir Frank Whittle "father of the jet engine", trained . In 1919, Air Marshal Lord Trenchard foresaw the need to produce a pool of skilled aircraft engineers for the RAF. The top rank, normally flight sergeant apprentice, was in effect the head boy of the School. Records of RAF Halton apprentice scheme - WhatDoTheyKnow These are a daily record of events in each Command or Force entered on form 540, often with appendices which contain documents illustrating and expanding the record. They were woken with Reveille at 0630hrs, called on colour hoisting 18 parade at 0730hrs and sent to bed at 2145hrs. Many of the initial Halton transferees were killed in various sea battles during the war; fifteen went down with HMS Glorious at the end of the Norwegian campaign in 1940. Captain Eric Poole was the first pilot to land an aircraft using the system while carrying passengers and Captain Charles Owens was the first to land an aircraft using it with Her Majesty the Queen on board. With an average of 2,000 boys in residence at any one time, the establishment of RAF Police at Halton, known as Snoops to apprentices, was higher than normal. It was, I believe, the largest of its kind in the world. At the end of the war, November 1918 . It was opened by his grandson on the 26 June 1999. Thus in late 1919 the Halton Apprentice Scheme was promulgated to Local Education Authorities, and entrance examinations were held in London and the provinces. The Halton Apprentices Contribution to WW II. 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. General Service Training was an important part of the curriculum, because, once he entered productive service, an apprentice was expected to gain rapid promotion and command men. John Rogers succeeded Richard Martin (6th . The Operation was an Anti-submarine patrol, which took off from RAF Pamanzi, at 04:20 hrs on Tuesday 8 September 1942 but crashed minutes later, with the loss of all crew. One or two of the photos, have all the names on the back, a group, with names, is dated 28th Aug. Cosford. We had lunch on airfield from field kitchens, on 3rd Sept 1939 I heard Mr Chamberlain say we were at war with Germany. This has the added advantage that it will undoubtedly foster the Air Force spirit on which so much depends. Later in the paper, he continues, The training of all these boys will eventually be carried out at Halton Park. We are interested in the apprentice scheme run at RAF Halton No1 Technical Training School from 1922 until closure in 1993. Their success in the air and on the ground pays a finer tribute than any words of mine to the standard of Haltons achievements. Marshal of the Royal Air Force Viscount Portal, Halton throughout the years has made an outstanding contribution not only to the RAF but to the country as a whole., Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Dermot Boyle, One thing is absolutely true, the air battles of Burma were won in the classrooms and workshops at Halton; won not just by knowledge and skill of your maintenance crews, it was won by the spirit that Halton produced. Admiral of the Fleet Earl Mountbatten, Halton has given the Royal Air Force not only its hard core of efficient technical NCOs and airmen but also a magnificent core of officers many of whom are in high rank in all branches of the Service. Air Marshal Sir John Whitworth Jones. On-going research indicates that 1,000 have been awarded State Honours. The Wartime Memories Project will give them a good home and ensure that they are used for educational purposes. We can reunite you with your friends who served at RAF Apprentices and we have a wealth of information on different units, bases and ships in the site. Records Search now. The Imperial War Museum holds all of his documents including his flying log, photographs of his funeral & personal potographs letters etc. Former Halton apprentices were ideally suited to this new challenge and volunteered for it in their thousands. The TA course, although relatively short-lived, offered unprecedented career opportunities for those apprentices who completed it. This scheme produced single-skill fitters who maintained aircraft and associated equipment and could, if necessary, actually fashion small replacement parts themselves. The Apprenticeship Scheme was launched in October 1919, when selection examinations were held around the country. 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. The majority of these pilots became aircraft captains, two making notable contributions to the introduction of the Blind Landing System. Please send me copies of any RAF or Halton Apprentice certificates and other items you think may be of interest to other members or visitors to the Website. He was in Egypt by June 1941. Keith Robinson. 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. CHIEF TECHNICIAN Served from 1969 - 1993 Served in RAF Apprentices. To meet the immediate need for these 61 skills, volunteers were invited from the 35th, 36th and 37th Entries to transfer to the Royal Navy, and 160 of Haltons apprentices answered the call. Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Hospital Halton - Wikipedia photographs, documents or items from the First or Second World War, please do not destroy them. Watermead No.1 Parachutists School. HRH The Duke of Gloucester reviewing the nal graduation parade, that of the 155th Entry in June 1993. please Their success in the air and on the ground pays a finer tribute than any words of mine to the standard of Haltons achievements., One thing is absolutely true, the air battles of Burma were won in the classrooms and workshops at Halton; won not just by knowledge and skill of your maintenance crews, it was won by the spirit that Halton produced., Halton has given the Royal Air Force not only its hard core of efficient technical NCOs and airmen but also a magnificent core of officers many of whom are in high rank in all branches of the Service., 2021 The Old Haltonians | All Rights Reserved. These boys are not only extremely well lodged, fed, and clothed, but are taught trades which will be useful to them in after-life. The Royal New Zealand, Pakistan, Ceylon and Royal Rhodesian Air Forces, and the Burmese, Malayan and Venezuelan Air Forces all sent boys to Halton to train alongside British apprentices. This one marked the graduation of the 20th Entry in July 1932. more so than on Mondays when they were usually faced with a crop of charges resulting from apprentices enjoying themselves beyond lights out on Saturday nights. 1, Pipit Gardens 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). and on 5th June 1943 was posted to RAF Hurn and transferred to 38 Group Airborne Forces. A large number of these men are senior Air Vice-Marshals and Air Commodores running the highest technical ofces in the Air Force. Join | The Old Haltonians The museum also records the background to Apprentice training at the Halton camp through examples of the tools, work and test pieces completed by Apprentices. An introduction to the Aircraft Apprentices Scheme at Halton Halton Apprentice Roll of Honour This is now on the net www.oldhaltonians.co.uk then look in the Tribute section. On the few occasions she spoke about her war service she expressed that they were some of the best times of her life. Workshops entailed basic fitting, lectures on metallurgy, heat treatments etc. 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. On school days we had various subjects including aerodynamics and technical drawing. This website is paid for out of our own pockets, library subscriptions and from donations made by visitors. RAF Halton in the Second World War 1939-1945 - The Wartime Memories It is not just about the quality and depth of professional training but the development of personal qualities and friendships that have shaped the whole of our lives. 81st RAF Halton apprentice - british-genealogy.com Recreational facilities were available in abundance, including a debating society, aircraft modelling and playing in one of the several apprentice bands, in addition a wide variety of sporting facilities was available. He remustered to aircrew as an Air Signaller/Air Gunner in 1953 and was commissioned as an Air Electronics Ofcer in 1959. SocietyWorks Ltd Public opinion over the recent scandals of child sexual abuse in institutions is now demanding that full Inquiries be carried out. Just before reaching her destination, which had been given to our navigator verbally just before take off, he alerted me to go aft, open the rear bottom escape hatch, attach her package to the static line, get her in position to jump (after also attaching her parachute to the static line). However, following a concerted campaign led by the RAF Halton and RAF Cranwell Apprentices Associations, supported by some prominent ex-apprentices serving at air rank, NCO apprentice ranks and the wearing of the iconic wheel badge were reinstated in 1982. However, they soon proved capable of taking on trade supervisory roles. In 1969 a one-year Mechanic Apprentice course was introduced starting with the 401st Entry. On 14th October 1945 she resigned her Commission and left WAAF Service. While serving as a squadron leader in Germany in 1945 he ran the British Forces Network in Hamburgh. Want to know what life was like during the War? SERGEANT Served from 1962 - 1975 Served in RAF Apprentices. is the Royal Air Force's aircraft engineering school. Introduction of the Halton apprentice scheme. If we wish to publish summaries on-line or in print, what are the restrictions? On the 21st of February 1945 she moved to RAF Rivenhall near Witham in Essex with 38 Group. For example, a new training school was set up at Netheravon with 200 men, another was formed at Reading with 1,000, and one in a converted jam factory at nearby Coley with another 2,000, and there were many others, large and small. Medically fit potential recruits were offered training in the trade of their 12 choice, or one the selectors thought more appropriate for them. Many former apprentices who trained as pilots and flight engineers continued to fly with civil airlines. to help with the costs of keeping the site running. During our time HRH Duke of Kent (Prince George) came round workshops to inspect our work. CORPORAL Served from 1959 - 1973 Served in RAF Apprentices. If you can provide any additional information, please add it here. We are interested in the apprentice scheme run at RAF Halton No1 Technical Training School from 1922 until closure in 1993. Among them were Sqn Ldr Ben Bennions, Wg Cdr Taffy Higginson, Flt Lt Geoffrey Sammy Alford and Gp Capt Frank Carey. Notable among them was Sgt Gray of the 20th Entry, an observer, who was, along with his pilot Fg Off Garland, awarded one of the first two air VCs of WW II. (05798215). Some of the rules were reasonable for boys below the age of 18, such as Apprentices are to take a bath twice a week and Apprentices are prohibited from visiting public houses and consuming alcohol. One of the oddest rules was, Females are not to attend the monthly Apprentice dances. This reflects contemporary societys deeply conservative approach to sex before marriage. Interestingly, apprentices were the only people who continued to join the wartime RAF; from September 1939 until 1945. 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. Photographs at RAF Halton 1954 - 1957 Official photographs. In the late 1950s, a study was initiated into the RAFs youth training requirements. If you are not the intended recipient or there are problems The first entry numbering 235 boys were accepted for three-year apprenticeships in January 1920 and began training at Cranwell, as accommodation at Halton had not been completed. The RAF Medic is able to handle ambiguity . What courage! Location. After the re-introduction of the wheel it was paraded for the first time at the Graduation of the 134th Entry on 29th September 1982. British Path video of the Apprentice training scheme at Halton in 1938. This Colour is unique in being the only one to be awarded to a youth training school in any of the armed forces and, having been received from Her Majesty by a sergeant apprentice, a unique custom was established that it may, on occasions, be carried by an NCO. To my mind, the future of this great Service depends largely upon Halton; the boy of today is the fellow who will man the RAF tomorrow. The maximum age of recruitment of apprentices was raised to 18 and, exceptionally, 21. Thirty-eight years later he was promoted to Air Chief Marshal to be a member of the Air Force . 2nd May 2009, . Permanent workshops were constructed to house the RFC's many trades. His name is Ian Henderson cairms and joined the 81st RAF Halton apprentice. Aircraft Apprentice Scheme - Wikipedia The Wartime Memories Project is run by volunteers and the free to access part of the website is funded by donations from our visitors. 6d. These were donated by his mother after the war. 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. Hopefully this site will also be of interest to others who trained as Trenchard's "Brats", and to anyone with an interest in RAF Halton. I can just remember her small white face behind her goggles as she dropped into the night. Halton apprentice pay account sample sheet. Sometimes rifle drill or PT before breakfast, later march to workshops with our own band with bugles, bagpipes, trumpets and drums. Sadly, he would also become one the RAFs youngest casualties when he was killed in an accident while a member of a team salvaging a Dornier shot down at Eaton Socon in the closing days of the Battle of Britain, a month short of his 17th birthday. Details of HLF award to RAF Museum Hendon. Through this website, exhibitions and the media, the story of the boys who were propelled to excellence is relived by those who are proud to call themselves Trenchards Brats. Of the Halton apprentices who achieved air rank, thirteen were knighted. Considering they were the two professions most apprentices had spent three years avoiding at Halton and Cranwell, a surprising number became vicars and policemen. Now with some 4,000 boys on strength Scarlett wanted an additional distinguishing feature on their uniforms to facilitate immediate recognition of the sections (later wings) to which they belonged. A group of dedicated retired service personnel and proud ex-Brats came together to ensure that the story was told of how thousands of boys were trained to levels of excellence which led to them to make huge contributions to the Royal Air Force, to science, and to Great Britain.
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