From last week's blog, Ray had just arrived on Christmas Island from Australia.
As said by Gordon Wilcox’s, the very first thing you do when you have been located your tent, was to scan the beach for driftwood to raise the camp bed off the ground.
I think this one was Oink that had its home behind our cabin at the airfield. You didn’t want one of them nibbling at your toes, to be fair though I never heard of anybody having one in their bed. The whole island was covered by them. It was a nasty time driving over them going to work but there was no choice.
Our first day was spent getting acclimatised to the area. I remember well at lunch time the sun was right over our heads, looking down our shadow was like a round plate at our feet, the humidity was quite high as well.
The runway and aircraft were about a mile away, through the jungle. It was work as usual without the scrubbing at first, the usual pre and after flight checks as some aircraft carried out exercises.
There is always regular maintenance to do on the aircraft to keep us busy. There were over a thousand men on the Island and two women. They were elderly WVS ladies who tried to keep us occupied running a library and games rooms.
I can’t swim but there is a section of the beach that when the Americans were here they drove old vehicles into the sea, about 100 hundred yards apart, to act as a safe swimming area. About 200 yards out from the beach though there was a reef which fell into deep water. It was very dangerous as the waves came in the back flow could carry one out and over the reef. Apparently a few people were lost like that, not when I was there though.
Anyway there were lots of beautiful tropical fish and I could breast stroke under water so I dived off a wreck and swam underwater watching these fish. The water came to chest high when I stood up. It was really great until one day while I was swimming underwater a shark came past me about ten feet away, I stood up quickly and saw three chaps on the beach pulling it in on a line. They only wanted the teeth. I think they took the carcass to the cookhouse.
Further up the coast there was a lagoon where lots of chaps would go swimming. I went one weekend, there was a log about twelve feet from the shore so feeling brave I dived in and did a bit of breast stroke and reached it. I hadn’t thought about what to do when I reached it and clung on panicking a bit. I didn’t know how to tread water so I had to do my breast stroke to struggle to the bank. I was pleased to get out of the water. I don’t know if anybody had seen my predicament. One day at the lagoon, a Manta Ray came close, to see what all the splashing was about.
In May the Nuclear Tests began. Myself, and I think six other personnel, went to the airfield, front line, the rest of the camp were taken to the far end of the Island. We out in white overalls and big white gloves, I’m not certain if we wore enclosed helmet. Our aircraft took off first, two of them, then two Canberra aircraft from 100 squadron, and then a Valiant bomber took off carrying the H bomb. We were watching the take off shouting, GET UP, GET UP. It was heading to, I believe, Malden Island were the bomb was dropped. Our aircraft flew through the nuclear cloud collecting samples in some wing tip samplers and 100 squadron aircraft took photographs of the whole proceedings. After a while our aircraft returned and in our suits etc we saw them back to their parking places then we carried out our usual after flight checks. Some chaps came along and removed the samplers. Once the checks were completed we got out of our white suits and thoroughly washed out hands.
After washing our hands we went in a building where there was a device for testing radioactivity. You put your hands into slots and there was a gauge to indicate any remaining radioactivity on your hands. If there is then an alarm sounds, which means you go through the cleaning process again. A short time earlier a bunch of officers and boffins had turned up. They watched me put my hands in the device and as nothing happened they turned away. I took one had out then put it back in again and the alarm went off. They all turned around I gave a deep sigh and went to wash my hands again.
We got back on the old routine of scrubbing the aircraft that had flown through the cloud but this time we wore dosage meters. If the reading got to a specified figure we had to take ourselves away from the area. It never happened to me.
In early June I was detached to USAF Hickham Air Base, Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands with three other chaps, to service passing through RAF jet aircraft as the RAF contingent were Transport Command. That was an adventure on its own. We flew there in a Shackleton, no seating for passengers just wedge yourself up against something. We only flew at about six thousand feet, no pressurisation. The crew member on his seat at the side of me was smoking, then when he finished his cigarette he opened the porthole and threw it out. I couldn't stop laughing. It was as if we were on a bus. That detachment in itself was quite an experience. The office we reported to was on Pearl Harbour and we spent most of the first day sat outside on the quay. We had a chat to some American navy chaps who had just returned from a trip around Australia.
The mess room was a world of its own compared to ours in the UK. As expected the usual dinner and tea has steak on the menu and if you has eggs for breakfast there were dozens of methods of cooking them offered.
The next day we called in at the office to be told there were no aircraft due for us so we spent the day in town and at Waikiki Beach.
We were there for two weeks and only had three Canberra’s and a Valiant coming through. I could write a book about my time in Hawaii, there was such a lot to see. It’s no wonder the rich spend holidays there, the hotels are enormous and even in those days before being an American state, very plush and expensive. You had to be twenty years old to buy a drink as well. The military police were very visible at night, in pairs, about every fifty yards apart on both sides of the road, and all carrying baseball bats. The size of the blokes would have won any argument with me, and they were carrying guns.
After the two weeks we returned to Christmas Island, but only for two more weeks, because we were returning to Australia.
The whole of our squadron went to Hickham Airbase for three days. While we were there we showed some of them the ropes.
We left Hawaii on a Quantas Super Constellation. I think the in flight drinks were consumed early on, not by me though.
On the way to Fiji were we stopped to refuel, we went through the International Date Line again losing a day, and we all got a certificate for crossing the Equator.
We arrived in Australia at Sydney NSW and stayed in a hotel overnight before returning to Edinburgh Field.
We had to have a look around the City while we were there. Some of it reminded us of London.
Next morning it was back to Edinburgh Field. We didn’t have much plane scrubbing as I think enough had been done already, but we were back to normal work as usual, pre and after flight servicing and regular servicing. In March 1958 we returned to a freezing England.
Conclusion
This was my story as I recollect it, a once in a lifetime opportunity to see the world. I had a lot of good memories to keep and photos. A heck of a lot more had gone on, especially in Australia, but more personal and not for publication, as one might say.
I was posted to RAF Marham, Norfolk, on my return, on 214 squadron Valiant air to air refuelling. I had detachments to lots of countries, carrying out aircraft maintenance as the aircraft carried out refuelling exercises. In 1965 I was posted to RAF Seletar Singapore, accompanied, for two and a half years. So I had a lot of travel experiences.
I was married in June 1961, and a concern was growing that we weren’t having any children. We were living in Kings Lynn Norfolk, and in 1963 I visited a Fertility Clinic in the town. Basically I was informed that I was infertile, I come from a large family, six sisters and three brothers, and every one of them had children. My Wife is a twin and her twin sister had children. We were upset but carried on with our lives. I could not get into my Wife’s feelings but I’m certain she was very upset deep down. She never said anything but at must have been a very deep and soul destroying each month to realise she wasn’t and wasn’t going to be pregnant. I must have been very proud of her strength.
Over the past seven or eight years I looked up several websites for Christmas Island veterans but none appealed to me so I didn’t bother. About August 2023 there was a discussion on TV about the after effects of the Nuclear tests on Christmas Island. My ears pricked up when I heard about the after effects of radiation and Infertility was mentioned. This took my mind back that I was on Christmas Island and I was found to be infertile. A group called LABRATS was mentioned and I have been in touch with them and received my medal.
LABRATS cannot possibly be thanked enough for all the efforts they put in over all the years to get the after effects of the Nuclear Tests accepted by the Government. A medal is a small recognition for the sacrifices that were made. My problem is minor compared with the losses and illnesses of many involved.
I feel quite upset and guilty that I had had such a great time but like everybody else I was unaware of the consequences. But I was a teenager when I went.
For all those years of tireless perseverance I think Alan Owen should be given a knighthood and his team likewise.
Ray Austin