Page 9 - Robert Joseph Harding

Sturgate was the last ʿAʾ type bomber airfield constructed for Bomber Command and
was equipped with F.I.D.O. (Fog Investigation and Dispersal Operation) system
where small diameter pipes are laid each side of the main runway. These pipes had
holes drilled in them and aviation fuel was pumped into the pipes, the dripping fuel
was then ignited. The fog would be burnt off and the runway would be accessible to
returning bomber crew’s.

Roberts stay at Sturgate was brief, he staying with 61 Squadron until February 19
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1946 when once again he was packing his suitcase for a new station, RAF Snaith,
10 miles south of Selby in North Yorkshire.

Snaith, a former No.4 Group Main Force airfield had transferred over to No.1 Group
post war as the RAF contracted to its peace time operations. (No.4 Group having
been absorbed into Transport Command). Here he would have met the new Station
Commander Group Captain Boyd Drayton Sellick.

Boyd had been as Wing Commander, 576 Squadron’s Commanding Officer up to his
promotion to Group Captain in February 1945. No doubt the two officers would have
had many conversations on their old squadron. At Snaith Roberts duties were not
clear but records indicate he undertook training with 1665 Heavy Transport
Conversion Unit. This unit appears to have been stationed at Snaith so one must
assume Robert was being trained up for a pilot’s role in Transport Command. On
August 8 Robert was posted to 30 Aircrew Holding Unit, the exact location of this
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unit is not known but most probably was within the former No.4 Group area of North
or East Yorkshire.

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Mary gave birth to third son Derek Paul on October 7 1946, the baptism taking
place at Shirley, Birmingham.

Robert posted once again to 1382 Transport Conversion Unit at RAF Wymsewold in
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Leicestershire on November 5 1946.Here Robert undertook his conversion to the
Douglas Dakota Twin engine Transport.
Conversion completed on February 10 1947 found Robert posted to RAF Dishforth
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in North Yorkshire, part of Transport Command. His duties here where as pilot on
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the Dakota Transport. Roberts stay at Dishforth was brief as on June 11 1947 he
was posted to RAF Syreston near Newark as a pilot on the Dakota.

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Records indicate Robert was posted yet again on July 9 to Headquarters 46 Group
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at Harrow in Middlesex. This posting lasted until July 25 when Robert was posted
to 46 Squadron for pilot duties at RAF Abingdon, Oxfordshire, staying with the
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squadron until November 24 when Robert was posted to 27 Squadron. This
squadron had operated in the Far East during the war years and had been
disbanded in February 1946 under the defence cuts at the time. 27 Squadron was
reformed at RAF Oakington, 5 miles North West of Cambridge in November
1947.This squadron on reforming was involved in the Berlin Airlift were supplies
were flown into Berlin after the Russian authorities closed land access to Berlin. It is
therefore possibly Robert took part in this operation, but no records are available to