by Tony Criddle
About the Author
Tony Criddle joined a British naval engineering school at age fifteen, and graduated five years later as an Air Electrical Artificer Engineer. A few years after that he qualified further educationally and trained as a helicopter pilot, and later flying instructor.
He reached Central Flying School ‘A’ Category status eventually, and was able to examine and qualify both student pilots and flying instructors. He taught both basic students, and Anti-submarine Tactics in larger helicopters over several teaching tours, as well as search and rescue techniques on the Australian Navy’s SAR Squadron when seconded on exchange to the RAN Fleet Air Arm at Nowra for three years.
Tony taught basic flying on the RN’s Helo squadron on his return to the UK, and also flew for two years with the ‘Shark’s’, the Fleet Air Arm Helicopter display team that performed at the various UK air displays. Tony transferred to the RAN after, and conducted a further twelve years service with the Australian navy. In his time with the RAN he was a safety practitioner, XO and CO of a Fleet Support Organization at Jarvis Bay, and a Naval Projects Officer in Canberra.
After thirty-six years service total, he retired to a sheep and cattle farm he’d built up at Bungarby on the Snowy River.
More recently he moved to the South NSW coast to write down some experiences based on fact, before, to quote him, ‘he’s too bloody old to remember it’.
