When were selected to form 24 Brigade Pro. Coy. we were interviewed at Figsbury Barracks Salisbury, and I'm sure those MP's selected or omitted will remember the test involved in the interview.
Apart from all the usual questions asked at these procedures the Irish captain threw me a duster and ordered me to dust the table in the corner of his office and after I'd done this was asked to wait outside. All of us apparently went through the same interview and no doubt the table was gleaming by the end of the afternoon.
Decisions were made, and those of us (the chosen few) were called back in, and it appeared the test was thoroughness, and those that missed out hadn't dusted the legs and edges etc.
We returned to Chiseldon Camp near Swindon where we were attached to 1st Inf. Div and had proudly wore the white triangle.
Our move north was to be attached to 150 Coy at Catterick and we commenced training by travelling daily to Deerbolt Camp for airportability instruction. An aircraft body,without wings, was mounted on brick pillars and we had to load Land Rovers, Trailers, other equipment and kit on and off the plane endlessly until we became proficient at maximum pace. We also did similar things at RAF Dishforth and we were the first troops to fly in Blackburn Beverley's, a huge plane we were going to know well in the ensuing months.
Our move into Deerbolt Camp was a bit like coming home but what the Army gives it takes away. Less travelling was good but meant more time available for route marches and PT.
At was at this time our white triangles came off and the new 24 Bde flash went on. The early version was a printed form of stylised wings in red and blue but was disappointing to say the least. Because of it we became known as the 'Flying Kippers' and even our local cafe formerly 'The Silver Slipper' took up the same name. Thankfully the embroidered version shown in your site was much better received and we could wear it with pride again.
We were trained in jungle warfare in Hamsterley Forest and did endless toughening up training at assault courses.
It took some time before we were told we were being trained as a rapid response unit and we continued with our normal patrol duties including escorting convoys daily, bound for Suez, south down the A1 to Nottinghamshire where we handed over and returned for the next one.
We underwent some intense training in riot control, laying airstrips for light aircraft and incessant fitness training. There was not much about this that we could have imagined at a cold draughty Inkerman.
When things happened it was quick. Now we knew why we had different sets of kit in kitbags under our beds. Our Section 1 was involved in our first taste of what the training was all for. Loading parts of several regiments attached to us on to the special train we set off to spend the night at Woolwich Barracks before flying out of Blackbush airfield next morning.We landed first stop at Marseilles and lorded it up at The Hotel Continental. The few residents seemed unperturbed at us dining with them with Webley 38's and Stens at our feet under the table. The French treated us well as Suez was one thing that united us at the time. We then flew out to Algiers and down to Kano, Nigeria, across to Bangui, French Equatorial Africa(then) and to Entebbe in Uganda. We had a slight problem there as the native detail cleaning the plane decided to boost their income by lifting anything not screwed down and we had to spend precious time getting them to put it all back. We were relieved to get moving again until we saw Aden and thought this was the end of the earth. It wasn't, that was still to come. We finally landed at Sharjah. That could be the end of the earth - then. We were about 50 years too early as it would have been good to have Dubai just down the freeway instead of having to go by 3 ton Bedford over the sand dunes to the little mud brick town of poverty.
After completing our task there we returned to U.K. via Lake Habaniya in Iraq, Cyprus, Malta, France.
We also flew to Tripoli for riot control at local elections- not a bad little jaunt for a long weekend and we involved in security at Lancaster House for The Baghdad Pact Conference. We were guests at Knightsbridge Barracks for the period we were there.
Looking back I don't think I could have written a better script for an 18 year old lad than that. The biggest bonus was meeting my wife at Catterick and we married in 1956. I lost her to cancer in May this year but we did return to Dubai in early 2008 and I could still see a few bits of those exciting times.
I hope that the photos for album '24 Brigade' will be of interest.
Regards,
Trevor Margetson.
1st December 2009
I was with 24 Brigade RMP at Fingsbury Barracks, Salisbury and Deerbolt Camp, Barnard Castle, Co.Durham, near Catterick, attached to 150 Pro.Coy.