Page 6 - Leslie Brown

Completing that course Leslie once again packed his suitcase and headed north to RAF Burn near
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Selby on the 14 September on ground staff duties. His stay at Burn was not long and on the 28
October found himself being posted yet again to RAF lindholme, a No.7 Group (Training)
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Operational Training Unit just outside Doncaster. On 12 December Leslie was posted to RAF
Bicester near Oxford on an equipment course as part of his ground staff duties.
Posted yet again to 58 Maintenance unit, part of 41 Group (Maintenance Command) on the 28
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December as an equipment officer.

Leslie then was posted to Air Command South East Asia, India via No.9 Personnel Despatch Unit
at RAF North Weald, arriving on the 9 March 1946. Initially stationed at HQ Karachi he was
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posted to RAF Vizagapatam, Andhra Pradesh province as the station equipment officer.

At this station he was promoted to Flight Lieutenant and in September 1946 the Station
Commander, a Squadron Leader resigned his commission and returned to the UK. Leslie, as
senior Flight Lieutenant on the station received a telephone call from HQ Karachi and was simply
told ‘Brown, you are now in charge of the Station with the rank of (Temporary) Acting Squadron
Leader, there are no Squadron Leader epaulettes at Group stores so wear two Flight Lieutenant
ones instead. Get on with it’. Leslie was therefore much to his surprise in charge of an RAF Station
with a few hundred personnel. The new Station Commander arriving some two weeks later and
Leslie stepping back into his equipment officer role.

Leslie decided to resign his commission in late November 1946 and returned to the UK reporting
to No.101 Personnel Dispatch Centre at Kirkham from where he was discharged from the RAF.

Returning to civilian life he obtained a position at South Kirkby colliery rising to Time and Motion
Manager, later undertaking consultancy work then finally working once again as a Time and
Motion Manager with Yorkshire water.

Retired, Leslie and Joan live in Hemsworth, West Yorkshire. Leslie passing away after a short
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illness on the 27 September 2017.

One of Bomber Commands lions.