In 1980, the long struggle to prevent an immensely successful country from falling into the hands of political despots, particularly Robert Gabriel Mugabe and his goons, was lost at political level. This was because of relentless international pressure against the white government of Ian Smith in favour of ‘immediate’ black-majority rule. Britain’s ruling parties had not only failed to uphold promises of independence for Rhodesia, they totally disregarded every warning of the calamity that would befall the country and its people if ‘one man—one vote’ was prematurely forced into effect. Now, after more than twenty-five years in power, Robert Mugabe’s ZANU (PF) has exposed Britain’s disastrous folly and proven that Rhodesian fears were well founded. Too late to prevent the appalling mess that exists in modern-day Zimbabwe, our efforts to preserve responsible government have now been fully justified.
However, upon gaining power, Robert Mugabe and his ZANU (PF) cohorts became paranoid about the security of their personal positions. This led to the implementation of laws that ensured white Zimbabweans were denuded of personal weapons, military paraphernalia and any Rhodesian documentation that might be used against ZANU Having handed in my own weapons in 1980, I took the precaution of destroying all my diaries. This book reveals some of the reasons why such hasty action was taken but I have lived to regret dumping twenty diaries into the septic tank of our Salisbury home. In hindsight I realise that I should have buried them deep for later recovery. Nevertheless, the consequence of my error is that Winds of Destruction is, for the most part, written from memory. I offer no excuse for inevitable errors in detail that the ageing mind may have created, because the essence of this book is correct. Nor do I make any apology for naiveté on political issues, as military personnel in my time were strictly apolitical and this may show in my personal opinions.
During the great wars men left their families for months or years at a time. In Rhodesia this was not the case. Typically, many soldiers, airmen and policemen were in the field for periods of six weeks or more and returned home to rest and retraining for no more that ten days before returning to the bush. This cycle imposed incredible strains on men and their families. A two-year stretch in action and six months at home might have been easier to bear because short-duration homecomings tended to cause higher stress levels. From an environment of ‘blood and guts’ a serviceman was expected to instantly revert to the tranquillity and comforts of home life without being able to share his experiences and fears with his loved ones. The family on the other hand, though forced to living a life without ‘dad’, expected him to be the relaxed and fatherly character of a stable family from the very moment he came home. They had no idea of his harboured secrets and built-up tensions. In reality ‘dad’ could not reconcile himself to the normality he encountered away from ‘the sharp end’ and probably drank too much with his friends after a day of retraining. He then became subdued, even difficult, in the last couple of days before returning to the bush. Misunderstandings caused too many marriages to fail or left deep-seated problems in those that survived. Mine survived thanks to my beloved wife Beryl who guided our children through the Tough times.
It is for these reasons that I dedicate this book to my wife Beryl, my daughter Debbie, my son Paul, and to all those wonderful wives and widows of Rhodesian servicemen who kept the home fires burning and sustained our will to fight on for our country.
My thanks go to my friend, Air Marshal Sir John Baird, retired Surgeon General to Britain’s armed services and Queen’s Physician, for very kindly reading my draft work, which helped eliminate many obvious typographical errors. Thank you Sir John. Special thanks also go to Professor Richard and Carole Wood for reading my first draft and giving me the encouragement and direction I needed to complete this book.
Peter Petter-Bowyer (‘PB’)
Norfolk, England
Chapter
1
A short history of the
Rhodesian Air Force
AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE Anglo–Boer War all seven Southern Rhodesian military units, which had participated with the British forces, were disbanded. However, in 1914 at the outbreak of the Great War in Europe, the Rhodesia Regiment was re-established. It served with distinction and remained in force until it was again disbanded in 1920.
A Territorial Force was formed in 1927 with 1st and 2nd Battalions of the Rhodesia Regiment based at Salisbury and Bulawayo. At the outbreak of World War II in 1939 the regular members of these battalions, together with a disproportionately large component of volunteers, were absorbed into British units in many theatres.
A Territorial Force Air Unit had been formed in 1935 and operated out of the commercial airport at Belvedere on the south-western edge of Salisbury City. Six Hawker Hart twin-seater fighter aircraft were received from the RAF in 1937 to add to an existing small communications flight. Combat pilot training commenced immediately, resulting in the first Rhodesian wings presentation to six pilots on 13 May 1938. Later in the year they were to prove themselves by flying the next batch of Hawker Harts from Britain to Southern Rhodesia.
With war clouds looming over Europe, the Territorial Force members of the Air Unit were called up for full-time service in August 1939 and by the end of the month the aircraft were on the move. Ten pilots (among them Lieutenant E.W.S. Jacklin, later to become the first post-war Chief of Air Staff) and eight aircraft left Salisbury on 27 August to fly to Nairobi—constituting the only aerial force available to Imperial Authorities in East Africa.
Nairobi proved to be merely a staging post on the route north, for within two or three days all the Rhodesian aircraft had been moved to the Northern Frontier District on the Abyssinian border. On 19 September 1939, the Air Unit officially became the Southern Rhodesian Air Force, and the flights on service in Kenya were designated No 1 Squadron of that force.
In April 1940, all Southern Rhodesian Air Force personnel were absorbed into the Royal Air Force and No 1 Squadron was redesignated No 237 (Rhodesian) Squadron. As a tribute to its preparedness, it was allowed to adopt the motto ‘Premium Agmen in Caelo’ (The First Force in the Sky).
By November 1941, No 237 Squadron was equipped with Hurricanes and was embroiled in the seesaw battles with the Afrika Korps and the Luftwaffe. In February 1942, it was ordered back to Ismalia in the Canal Zone before travelling yet farther east.
The next year was spent covering the Iraq/Persia sector with the squadron operating from such bases as Mosul, Kermanshah and Kirkuk. In March 1943, it returned to the Canal Zone where its role changed from army co-operation to fighter reconnaissance, flying Spitfires. A long spell of operations across North Africa followed, during which the squadron moved progressively westward.
But with the war obviously coming to an end, the squadron was gradually losing its all-Rhodesian nature. It became increasingly difficult to replace personnel who had completed their operational tour, and after two more moves to Italy and France the squadron was eventually disbanded in 1945.
But 237 was not the only unit to operate as a ‘Rhodesian’ squadron with the Royal Air Force. In 1940, No 266 Squadron was officially designated a ‘Rhodesian’ unit and the decision was made that aircrew from Rhodesia should be posted to it. The following year, No 44 Squadron of bomber command followed suit. In addition to the Rhodesians who fought in these squadrons, there were obviously many more who played their part in other Air Force units and in other theatres of operations.
During the six years of war, the total number of Rhodesians in Air Force uniform stood at 977 officers and 1,432 other ranks. Of these, 498 were killed—a proportion of one man in every five who went to war. But one further casualty of the war was the Rhodesian Air Force itself—certainly as far as Rhodesia was concerned. No 1 Squadron of the Southern Rhodesian Air Force had been turned into 237 Squadron that had then been disbanded. Further, the training element of the old SRAF had been absorbed into the Royal Air Force and had become the nucleus of the huge Rhodesian Air Training Group. But in doing so, it had lost
its identity.
It was not, however, a situation that was to last long, and the vacuum was soon to be filled. In the immediate post-war period, men trickled back to Rhodesia after being demobilised from the British services. Some of them joined the Southern Rhodesia Staff Corps, generally at very low ranks, and it was from this nucleus that the Air Force was to arise again.
Many of the ex-Air Force members of the Staff Corps itched to re-establish military aviation, but prospects were far from promising. There was no money, there were no aircraft, and even the original SRAF buildings had been appropriated for use by new immigrants and for various government departments. However, the enthusiasts cajoled and persuaded, and eventually attracted to their cause Sir Ernest Guest, then Minister of Defence, and Colonel S. Garlake, Commander of Military Forces in Southern Rhodesia. The result was the provision of £20,000 sterling and the instruction to form an air unit. The financial grant was woefully inadequate, but there were almost limitless reserves of enthusiasm and resourcefulness to call upon.
Under the leadership of Lieutenant-Colonel E.W.S. Jacklin, the dozen or so officers and men of the unit set about acquiring some aircraft. The Royal Air Force contributed a war-surplus Anson light transport aircraft, and then a major salvage exercise started. The men went on forays through the old RAF maintenance depots and even scrap dumps. Tools, raw materials, spares, supplies and even trained personnel filtered through to the little unit at Cranborne from all over the country. Eventually, using basic tools and equipment, the unit had rebuilt six scrapped and abandoned Tiger Moths.
On 28 November 1947, the Government Gazette No 945 carried the notice establishing the Air Force as a Permanent Unit of the Rhodesian Staff Corps, and this was the beginning of the Southern Rhodesian Air Force to come. The six rebuilt Tiger Moths were joined by six Harvard trainers purchased from the Rhodesian Air Training Group, and later twelve more Harvards were obtained from South Africa at nominal prices.
The work paid off in progressive expansion—more ex-Air Force personnel joined the unit, and gradually a varied selection of aircraft was acquired. By 1951, a Leopard Moth, a Dakota, Rapides, Ansons and Austers had been collected from a variety of sources, and the unit operated a small regular element with one active auxiliary squadron—No 1 Squadron.
By this time the Berlin Blockade, the clamping of the Iron Curtain across Europe and the onset of the Korean War had made it obvious to all that the preservation of peace was to be more a matter of armed preparedness than of wishful thinking. So once again the Southern Rhodesian Government made a contribution to the defence of the Commonwealth—this time it was in the form of two fighter squadrons.
From Britain twenty-two Spitfire Mk22 aircraft were successfully ferried out in spite of dire predictions and a certain amount of betting from a number of aviation experts. Fulltime training was then re-introduced in the form of the ‘Short Service’ training scheme.
Spitfire Mk22.
In 1952 the Air Force moved from Cranborne to Kentucky Airport, which subsequently became the huge airfield jointly used by New Sarum Air Force Station and Salisbury International Airport. This was the first permanent home of the Air Force, and it was the first time that it had occupied buildings and facilities specifically designed for its purposes.
Increased obligations to the RAF and the need to modernise became issues in making the decision to withdraw the Spitfires from service. Painful though it was for all concerned, single-seater De Havilland Vampire FB9 jets replaced the much-loved Spitfires. Later T11 two-seater jet trainers were added.
In addition to the Vampire fighter/bombers, expansion continued with the acquisition of Provost piston-engined trainers. Seven more Dakotas and two Pembrokes were acquired to replace the Ansons and Rapides, and further aircrew and technicians were recruited. By the beginning of 1956, the Air Force boasted four active squadrons, two Vampire fighter squadrons, a transport squadron and a flying training squadron.
Africa was now being subjected to the first of many political changes leading up to the withdrawal of the colonising nations. The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland was formed in 1953 and, in its turn, caused some major changes within the Air Force.
The title was changed to Rhodesian Air Force, with Queen Elizabeth conferring the ‘Royal’ prefix. As the Royal Rhodesian Air Force, the unit forsook its army ranks and khaki uniforms and adopted ranks and uniforms similar to those of the Royal Air Force.
But the major change of the Federal inception was one of scope and responsibility. From being a minor, self-contained force, preoccupied with territorial defence, the RRAF was now responsible for the defence of the Federation as a whole and was also to acquire wider responsibility as a part of the Royal Air Force’s potential in the Middle East.
At the conclusion of the Second World War, the RAF retained its RTG airfield, Thornhill, where flying training on Harvards continued. This was the largest and best-equipped RTG airbase sited close to the Midlands town of Gwelo. It remained an active RAF base until its closure in 1955 when it was taken over by the Royal Rhodesian Air Force.
With ever-increasing commercial flights in and out of Salisbury Airport, Group Headquarters decided to reduce congestion at the jointly used facilities by moving all Air Force training to Thornhill. Initially this was only possible for piston operations, using existing grass runways. Two years of work during 1956 and 1957 were needed to build a tar macadam runway with taxiways, concrete hard standings and a modern control tower, incorporating radar, before jet training could commence.
In line with RAF practice, the RRAF pilot-training scheme was known as a Short Service Unit (SSU). Successful applicants for pilot training were inducted as officer cadets for a two-year training course. Failure at any point in training resulted in the immediate release of a student with no obligation on either side. However, students who gained their wings and had completed advanced-weapons training had the option of either applying for a medium-service commission or returning to civilian life. Air Headquarters was under no obligation to accept those who applied for medium service.
No 1 SSU was inducted in 1952 with successive intakes occurring at six-monthly intervals. Tiger Moths, Harvards and Spitfires served the training needs initially until Provosts and Vampires replaced them. In 1956, the intake frequency was reduced to one intake a year when No 9 SSU was the first to undergo Basic Flying School (BFS) training at Thornhill.
At the conclusion of BFS in December 1956, No 9 SSU had to move to New Sarum for the Advanced Flying Training (AFS) on Vampires because Thornhill was not yet ready to accommodate jets. The first course to undergo BFS, AFS and OCU (Operational Conversion Unit) at Thornhill was No 10 SSU. This was the course I attended.
Younger days
AT 13:15 ON 2 JUNE 1936, Doctor Ritchken’s regular lunchtime break was interrupted to attend to my mother who was in labour at the Lady Chancellor Maternity Home in Salisbury. No complications occurred with my birth and I was declared to be a strong and health baby.
My father and mother were both from England. Dad was born in Southampton and Mum in Brighton. Dad came from a long line of naval pilots who brought many thousands of ships safely down Southampton’s Water. Not surprisingly Dad had hoped to join the Royal Navy but he was rejected for being unable to differentiate between purple and mauve. So, in 1923 at the age of 17 he set out to see the world as a hired hand on a steam-powered cargo ship. In New York he explored the big city, wearing the only clothes he possessed—a rugby jersey and shorts. After roaming the seas he found New Zealand to be the right place to stay ashore and to try and settle down.
He did well as a lumberman. He also worked on sheep farms and played a good deal of rugby in his free time. There he met his lifelong friend, Alan Martin, who later became my godfather. Alan interested Dad in opportunities being offered by the British Government in far-off Southern Rhodesia; so they moved to Africa together.
Dad was christened Paul Charles Petter Bowyer. The third Christian name was in fact his mo
ther’s maiden name. The Petters were, and still are, well known for their internal-combustion engines and other engineering successes. For instance, William Petter was designer and chief engineer of Britain’s Canberra bomber, Lightning interceptor and Gnat trainer. Prior to this, William’s father had designed the famous short-field aircraft, Lysander, which gave such excellent service to special agents and the French Resistance during World War II.
In New Zealand Dad’s banking affairs were getting muddled up with another Bowyer. All efforts to rectify the situation failed until Dad hyphenated his name—to become Petter-Bowyer. Though this resolved his problem and fitted a fashion for double-barrelled names in those times, the surname has presented its difficulties over the years.
When I joined the Royal Rhodesian Air Force my surname was short-circuited. Nobody could pronounce Petter-Bowyer correctly so I became known as ‘PB’. It is the name Bowyer that seemed to cause problems to many until I explained that my ancestors were men who equated to modern-day artillery-fire controllers. In their own day the Bowyers trained and controlled groups of bowmen in battle. During critical stages when British and enemy forces were closing on each other, it was the bowyers who gave bowmen their orders on aiming angle, draw strain, lay-off and release, for each volley of arrows launched against rapidly changing enemy formations. When BOW of the arrow launcher replaces BOUGH of the tree or BOY of youth, my surname comes out okay!
Winds of Destruction: The Autobiography of a Rhodesian Combat Pilot Page 2
