Deep behind enemy lines, p.35
Deep Behind Enemy Lines, page 35
His own wound had been attended to whilst Darren slept, so he left and disconsolately made a situation report to his superiors.
Now he had to address a personal issue telling Mo the bad news. Should he write or try and get a call through on the forces telephone system? In the end he opted for the telephone and booked the call. Of course, when the call was finally connected her first response was ecstatic and for a few minutes he let her bubble on with joy. Then at last she drew breath and he told her what had happened.
She didn’t speak for several seconds. ‘Oh, my darling, I am so, so sorry about Darren. But selfishly I am utterly relieved you’re still alive.’ He could almost see the tears cascading down her cheeks.
‘Of course, sweetheart I’ll be out of action for a number of weeks to come, so I’m going to put in for my accumulated leave.’
‘Will they give you leave for a few weeks?’
‘Well I’m due some, so I’ll put in a request and let you know. I’m sure there won’t be any objection. I need to let my mum know too.’
Trying for a measure of levity she said, ‘what am I going to do with you? You didn’t have to go and get shot up just to get a date with me.’ Relief flooded through him and, for the first time in quite a while, he laughed and loved her even more.
‘Hold the thought. I’ll call you back with details. I’ve missed you so much and I’ll break the captain’s arm if he says no. Speak soon, darling,’ and cut the connection.
In the event, the answer was affirmative and the date and length of leave agreed, which he duly relayed to Mo. On her part the response was, ‘I’ll get to it. I’m sure there won’t be any problem at my end.’ She went straight to her superior, told a little white lie about her fiancé being seriously wounded in action, and called Bill back with the news.
In early June 1964, back on post at Kuching after convalescence, Bill and Seth bade farewell to Tuki and Aslam and thanked them for all their loyal support during the campaign. They were going back to the scout lines at Kuching. Bill and Seth also took the time to say goodbye to Captain McBride, Major Birtwhistle and Lieutenant Colonel Kemple-Scott, all of whom thanked them for their efforts and professionalism, wishing them good luck for the future.
Bill and Mo took compassionate leave and indulgence flights to meet at RAF Changi in Singapore and to say their reunion was something out of a Hollywood film was a serious understatement. The three weeks they spent together could almost be termed a honeymoon and during it, Bill proposed to Mo on bended knee in the middle of a crowded Singapore restaurant to resounding applause. More tears flowing from her lovely eyes, Mo said yes. They were engaged and then he really was her fiancé. When he reminded her, that when they were married she would have to resign from the RAF, she laughed delightedly. ‘No competition!’ The following day was occupied shopping for the engagement ring and eventually they found the exact loving endearment.
Bill and Seth were temporarily assigned to 216 Signal Troop under the command of Captain Roberts and assisted by Mr Reeves, where they monitored Indonesian military communiqués. This work was an important factor in the containment of the Indonesian forces, which required accurate and informative intelligence gathering and, thus, the Royal Signals were able to intercept significant data. This was decrypted by the Intelligence Corps and reported to Reeves and GCHQ listening stations in Singapore, one of which was RAF Chia Keng, where Bill’s team operated. This was linked directly to RAF Headquarters at Changi, where the planning of some aspects of Sandstone cross-border operations may have taken place.
During this period Bill was promoted to Warrant Officer First Class and Seth and Darren were made up to Staff Sergeants. Seth was next seconded to the FO Global Wireless staff, the unit, which Bill now controlled at the GCHQ Section in Singapore.
Darren had been temporarily hospitalised at RAF Changi as planned and then evacuated back to the Royal National Orthopaedic and Prosthetics Hospital in Stanmore, Middlesex which was the specialist orthopaedic centre for further treatment of wounded military personnel.
Bill’s mother, sister and Mo’s family were told of the engagement and ecstatic about the news. The wedding was planned for February 1965, taking place during Bill’s posting in Singapore and, of course, Seth accepted Bill and Mo’s invitation to be their Best Man. There was no doubt that Bill’s mum and sister, together with Mo’s parents, would all be taking the long journey to be with them on such a wonderful occasion.
Both families had booked their return flights to Singapore, and were met at Changi Airport by Bill and Mo and after a rapturous welcome they were driven to the famous Raffles Hotel, which was part of the old British heritage in downtown Singapore, where they had been booked in. Even the sun blazing from a clear blue sky conspired to make it the most joyous of days and one that would be etched in their memories for the rest of their lives.
After the wedding the visitors spent an enjoyable week taking conducted tours of the island and then reluctantly Bill and Mo said farewell to their families at Changi Airport with the aim of getting on with their newly married life.
Mo was no longer permitted to remain in the armed forces after their marriage so she applied for, and trained to be, qualified as a teacher with the Army Education & Schools Service.
It was during this time that Seth was requested to meet with Captain Roberts and Mr Reeves. On arrival at the office Seth knocked and entered saluting the OC and acknowledging Mr Reeves’ presence.
‘Good day, Sir, I’m reporting for a meeting as ordered’ commented Seth.
‘Good day Staff Stevens. Please take a seat.’ the OC greeted and the three men took chairs at the conference table.
‘I think you should take this one Brian.’
‘Certainly’ replied Reeves.
‘As I am sure you are aware, the British Government has an ongoing problem with the UDI situation in Rhodesia which commenced as a Civil War in July last year. The conflict has pitted three forces against one another: the Rhodesian government, led by Ian Smith (later the Zimbabwe-Rhodesian government of Bishop Abel Muzorewa); the Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army, the military wing of Robert Mugabe’s Zimbabwe African National Union; and the Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army of Joshua Nkomo’s Zimbabwe African People’s Union.
The British Government and our Foreign Office are extremely dissatisfied with the situation there and do not support any of the entities involved. Clearly and politically, decisions will eventually have to be made by our government, and to this end the FO has requested me to assign a specialist to this theatre to monitor and report actions being undertaken, especially regarding the progress or otherwise of the Rhodesian Government Forces. As such, Captain Roberts and I have decided that because of your excellent track record with the events in Kenya and Borneo, you are the right person for such an assignment. Any questions so far?’
‘Yes, of course. First of all I thank you both for your confidence in me and I am interested to know when this is to take place and how am I to get there, Also, how do I enter Rhodesia, who do I report to, where will I reside and for what length of time? I understand there is considerable hostility towards British persons due to our government’s stance on the Civil War.’
‘In answer to your questions in chronological order, if you accept this assignment, which is a covert, reconnaissance and intelligence gathering mission, you can expect to be departing from Singapore in about three weeks to give us time to get your credentials in order. You will travel clandestinely as part of the British Consular Mission where your particulars will not be seen. You will report to a Mr Nettles who is my GWS colleague at the British Embassy and all communications with/for the FO will come via him, You will fly into Salisbury and be met by a British Consular vehicle after bypassing Customs Control, which we will arrange, and we will also arrange fully furnished accommodation for you in your name in Salisbury and finally, the duration will be for about six months. Further questions?’
‘If I’m stopped and questioned at any time, I have a British Passport how do I explain my presence and reasons for being in Rhodesia?’
‘We’ll take care of all the administrative arrangements together with the Home Office and an audit trail will show that your grandparents were farmers outside Bulawayo and your parents emigrated to Britain where you were born.
A dual passport status will prevail and we will get the Home Office to produce a Rhodesian Passport for you based on ancestral application. Being sympathetic to the Rhodesian Government’s cause, you are looking to sign up as a military mercenary with considerable experience from your British Army Service days. They are extremely short of white combatants and officers. You should have no problems. ‘All your surveillance materials and equipment will be provided locally by Mr Nettles.
This will be a good and prestigious opportunity for you Staff. Please go away and think about it and let us know your decision within two days’ instructed Captain Roberts after thanking Mr Reeves for his address on the subject.
Again Seth thanked them, assured them he would give the assignment very careful thought and would let them know his decision in the morning. Then he stood, saluted and left the office.
‘Well Joseph what do you think?’
‘What I think Brian is that he will go for it and we’ll know soon enough.’
The following morning after a short discussion and encouragement from Bill, Seth called the OC to inform him he accepted the assignment.
Bill wished his old comrade all the luck in the world. With such an operation in Salisbury, Seth’s sights were now aimed at promotion to Warrant Officer Class Two.
Not surprisingly in March 1966 heralded the arrival of Bill and Mo’s firstborn, a son whom they named Julian. The little bundle announced his arrival with great gusto into the happy couple’s lives and in May 1968, their daughter Edwina joined them with equal gusto. There were no more children, but their family was complete and contented.
After his commissioning from the ranks to Captain Traffic Officer in late 1968, Bill and his family were posted to 1 Squadron 14 Signals Regiment at Robinswood Barracks, Gloucester, comprising HQ COMCAN, where he worked in the traffic hall with TARE (the Traffic Automatic Routing Equipment). This coincided with the development, installation and commissioning of the latest state of the art AMSTRAD (Automatic Message Sending Tracking Receiving and Distribution) equipment, a high-speed system at Norton Barracks, Worcester. With this specialist background he was assigned to the FO Global Wireless Section at GCHQ in Cheltenham as the Royal Signals/FO liaison officer and simultaneously responsible for both the TARE and AMSTRAD development projects.
It was doubtful that Bill would rise any further up the promotion ladder so in 1978, at the grand old age of 44 and after 22 years of military service, he was demobbed.
He retired as a Captain (TO) with a substantial Major’s pension and his GSM and a LSGC Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct. His large financial gratuity enabled him to establish and run an outward bound training centre in the Brecon Beacons National Park in Wales close to the village of Hay-on-Wye where, over a few years, Bill and Mo had the foresight of purchasing a beautiful listed cottage. The children, Julian now 12 and Edwina 10, were enjoying school and country life in this beautiful rural setting, after spending their previous educational years at a variety of forces overseas and UK schools. They loved the more stable and settled way of life, and were able to make some permanent friendships. Mo applied for and was accepted at a local junior school, which she settled into, relishing each and every day.
Bill’s Brecon outward-bound training centre was hard work and occupied much of his time, keeping him away from home for lengthy periods. However, he was running excellent fitness programs ably assisted by his old comrades Seth and Darren. The latter had learned to overcome his disability, despite having a prosthetic leg. Indeed, he’d developed great skill in its use. Neither could believe their luck when Bill invited them to join him. Furthermore, a month later Josh Baines who was also now demobilized from the Corps unexpectedly contacted him. He had finally married Angela and they had a young son. Josh had heard about Bill’s venture and asked if there was any chance of joining his old friend. He very much wanted to set up home for his family in his native Wales. He felt the need to be closer to his ageing parents now but he was aware that the employment stakes in South Wales were not very promising for his particular skill sets. Bill was delighted to hear from him and once they’d had a get-together to discuss his ventures since their last days together in Kenya and Josh’s potential contribution to the centre, happily accepted him. Mo of course, was beside herself when she heard the news and couldn’t wait to catch up with her old friend Angela and to meet their son.
The centre ran character and personal development programs which included survival courses, commercial management, government indentured apprenticeship schemes, officer and cadet training programs together with fitness training for invalids with prosthetics.
Despite Bill’s advancing years, he maintained his physical fitness at the centre, even achieving the distinction of being named one of the UK’s top squash players. Together with Josh and Seth, he would often accompany the training groups on grueling exercise regimes, his motto being lead by example. It was important they exhibit no ageing weaknesses.
Sometimes, when wakeful during the nights away from home, he would reflect on how time had moved on. It was now 1988 and he was 52 years of age. His two children would soon be off to university and life was pretty damned good; at least for him. He had of course, always kept abreast of the politics of the day and what was happening on the international stage, particularly in his area of experience. Rather than being eliminated or even contained, terrorist factions continued to morph and grow across the globe, the problems stemming from the on-going issues of Islamic Fundamentalism to the present day. The big question that always nagged him was, were my and my dedicated colleagues’ efforts back then worth it, when he relived their own actions on behalf of Queen and country. Darren had paid a heavy price by losing his leg and then there was, sadly, the death of their dear friend and Josh’s action companion in Aden, Sergeant Smith, who paid the ultimate price during the Radfan Affair.
He always came to the same conclusion there had been very little change in fact things were getting worse, in his view. Over the last ten years, millions of innocent civilians had lost their lives, homes and their children. Displaced and more often than not having to flee to other places or countries just to survive. Then there were the hundreds of young allied soldiers who would never see their own homes and loved ones again. And all this for power, domination and some misplaced religious bias. The cost and time involved spoke of the utter incompetence and failure of politicians and heads of state who themselves determined to maintain dominance in one respect or another. The horror and terror were escalating exponentially with no end in sight. Man’s inhumanity to man, eh?
Bill could recite chapter and verse the Islamic Fundamentalist conflicts.
It was interesting, although frightening, to note the different factions emerging and the terrible incidents morphed over the recent years. He mused on some of the more notable international incidents perpetrated by Islamic Fundamental terrorists.
Nevertheless, time moved on and in 1988, during quiet moments, Bill indulged in reflections of just how much he needed to think about, regularly sitting in his lounge with Mo after supper to catch up on TV with the national and international news. They often discussed the way the world was going with the continued terrorist problems and the progression of factions that were morphing from the time of al Shaabab to the present and the seemingly losing battle of containment, much less elimination.
Generally Bill was very upbeat and positive, but on the rare occasion when he allowed himself to go down this road it usually ended with Sod it! The world’s gone to hell in a bucket!
Although he worried for his children’s future it seemed there was very little else he could contribute, other than perhaps train young men in the arts of soldiering and perhaps, at some time in the future, put his own experiences, thoughts, opinions and sentiments in writing. He doubted very much that whatever novel he wrote would hold sway with the likes of politicians, heads of state, terrorist factions, nor indeed the general civilian populations at large; but by god it would make him feel better. The global cancer was growing. Just maybe he would be a small scalpel in some intelligent surgeon’s hand.
However, positivity always won out and he knew once again just how much he had to be thankful for. A beautiful and much-loved soul mate for life, two brilliant children, a successful army career, three stalwart friends-cum-workmates and a burgeoning business; all from a weedy, chesty, fatherless and not very educated working-class boy with little prospects in a post war-torn Britain.
Yes, it was a wonderful, fulfilling and very settled life for him and his family, far removed from the life-threatening activities of ‘Above the call of further Military Duties.’ This was civilian life at its best, and after all his special service covert reconnaissance responsibilities, he was thoroughly grateful to still be alive to enjoy it. He had reached the end of his military career and was now embarked on his civilian and family journey. His, no amend that, their future looked good.
THE END
The Chindits
A Brief History and Background
The following information is a summary of the Chindits’ modus operandi during World War II in Burma from 1942 to 1945, and is intended only to highlight the analogy between the training in the two campaigns: the Chindits (1942-1945); and this novel’s timeline and the activities of a Special Forces Global Wireless organization in Kenya (1962 to 1965).
