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RAOC Gazette - page 122

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Full title RAOC Gazette
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Publication date 1983
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Early date 1983
Late date 1983
Transcription South W e s t District
AFTER months, it seems, of saying good-
bye to Major Bob Bracken he finally left us
on the 1st of July. After browning his body
in Crete and filling temporarily the Combat
Supplies desk his many friends in the Corps
will be delighted to hear of his marriage
on 25th June to his delectable Susie.
Friends of the Griffins will be pleased
to hear that Dorothy is back home and
recovering after a short stay in Wroughton
Hospital.
Our DFA Harry Cooper has been running around in recent
weeks without staff. Mrs Carol Barton, is on extended sick
leave after a major operation and wish her a full recovery.
Harry in the meantime has brushed up on his DIY but was seen
to smile again when his assistant, Barrie Airth, stumbled off the
flight from Ascension muttering ' never again.' After six months
as the first Army Fire Service Adviser in the Falklands, Barrie
was much relieved to get back to the UK.
Mention must go to Private Paul Sugden on his engage-
ment to Janet Murch, followed by a welcome to W02 Steve
Morgans who joined the Headquarters recently from AF'NORTH.
More formally, our congratulations to CVD Ashchurch and
the Petroleum Centre on winning the South West District Minor
Units tug-of-war and athletic championship respectively.
Lieutenant Colonel Don McColl explaining exhibits to the Oxford
and District Safety Officers during a visit to Bicester.
returns to the sleepy Hallowed Halls of the Planning Branch
on the arrival of WOl (SSM) Stu Brierley.
Private Panaro has kissed goodbye to any future police
career he may have hoped for, having had his bobby's helmet
and pullover nicked. Private Fletcher having successfully com-
pleted the Liverpool half marathon, we now await with baited
breath any new excuses for arriving back late from the occasional
weekend break.
We welcome to the Branch W02 (SQMS) Stan Standen,
Lance Corporal Wigg and Private Robinson, also on return from
tours to FILOG Corporal Brown, Privates Dudgeon, Goss and
Proctor. We bid farewell to W02 (SQMS) Chas Hassal. Privates
Pilgrim and Campbell on tours to FILOG and Private Caddick
to Kenya. Our best wishes go with them all. a warm wel-
come awaits their return.
Congratulations to WOs2 (SQMSs) Mellors and Fielder,
Corporal Brown and Lance Corporal Bristeir on provisional
selection to the next higher rank respectively. W02 (SQMS)
Brady on substantive promotion and hopefully by the time this
article goes to press on an addition to his family. Rumour
control has it, if he was not indoctrinated into the traffic system
the stork would have delivered by now.
SUPPLY DEPOT
THE training season is in full swing, as well as the many TA
units who have been drawing rations from the Depot our old
friends from Holland, The Dutch Marines, have been over
savouring the delights of Salisbury Plain.
Private Jock Cairney deserves congratulations on success-
fully passing his Class 1 Sup Spec at Bicester, whilst Sergeant
Taffy Humphreys anxiously awaits the results of his recently
completed EPC(A) Course.
Lance Corporal Alan Robbins is off yet again to Blackdown,
this time on a victualling course.
Central Ordnance Depot Bicester
1 SUB-DEPOT. The Sub-Depot typist,
Mrs Martell Abbs has retired after sixteen
years working in various parts of COD
Bicester. We welcome her replacement,
Mrs McGill. Colonel Jackson from AG9
was our VIP of the month and was
interested to see the major assemblies
block stacks versus seven level high APR
in adjacent storehouses on ' B ' Site. We
insisted that he had a ride to the top level
to inspect the exhaust pipes!
16
BATTALION
BATTALION HEADQUARTERS.
We would like to welcome
Staff Sergeant Chapman from Scotland, who takes over from
Staff Sergeant Thorpe as the MSC; Sergeant Burn from the
busy world of MOD; Corporal Pavey from Northern Ireland
and back from a six months tour in Uganda Lance Corporal
Brownbill. We congratulate Corporal Pavey on his recent
marriage and Corporals Begg and Pavey on their recent pro-
motion.
Staff Sergeant Thorpe is attending an Arabic language course
at Beaconsfield and is due to leave for Kuwait after the course.
2 SUB-DEPOT. We have again been in-
undated with visits this month with the
Anglo American wives club causing the biggest upheaval.
Union flags along with stars and stripes decorate the depot in
general and D2 went mad as usual with pictures all over the
place. Our illustrious leader Lieutenant Colonel Don MacColl
played host to forty of the ladies while the Depot Warrant
Officer guided the other half round 2 Sub. MacColls marauders
were on show with Lance Corporal John Edwards, Privates
Scouse Scott, Phil Baker, Charlie Allen, Lance Corporal George
Bailey all dressed up in various uniforms and paraded for the
ladies.
Congratulations must go to Corporals Bill Brown and
Monty Mountford on their promotions and to W/Private
Lorraine Ewing and Private Smudge Smith on attaining Bl
standards.
We welcome Corporal Ginge Cartwright from F1LOG,
Lance Corporal Rogers and RFN Ellison on detachment from
their respective Regiments prior to transferring to the Corps. To
W/Lance Corporal Aly Bache from Traffic and W/Private
Jackie Emery back from Morocco. We hope the newcomers
stay with us will be pleasant.
We say farewell to Sergeant Ken Ellis-Rijs, Corporal Bob
Headridge, Lance Corporal Kev Brown, Privates Tren Bailey,
Paddy Nethery and Cliss Clissold. W/Privates Lorraine Ewing
is to become a Girl Friday in the Falkland Islands. We wish
them all well.
HEADQUARTERS
COMPANY.
As promised in an earlier
GAZETTE, an exact blow by blow account of events experienced
at the Company Training Camp at Aberdaron North Wales.
Scandal, secrets, temptations, hopes and disappointments will
not be revealed in print as there is insufficient space in THE
GAZETTE to accomplish this heavy task, however, separate copy
will be despatched under a plain brown wrapper on request.
Unfortunately, column inches dictate that the author can
only assassinate a few characters, so here goes: Our arrival
was timely inasmuch as our assistance was requested the first
evening to help a civilian traffic accident immediately on our
doorstep. How can we ever forget (please try fellas) the awe-
some sight of W/Lance Corporal Princess Price, our medic,
galloping across the field towards the accident, in a mud
splattered, pink, see-through flannelette nightdress, waving an
Army First Aid Kit and shrieking in obvious delight " I'm a
Medic, I'm a Medic ", we had to let her through, inertia—and
fear of trample injuries prevailed.
Lieutenant Kim Austin WRAC, our Camp 2IC and Fire
Officer, held an impromptu 5th November celebration during
her only duty as Fire Picquet but we managed to damp down her
enthusiasm. It was only later, on checking her cabin trunk,
TRAFFIC BRANCH.
W02 (SQMS) John Fielder our scribe
during his vacation in the Branch since the Falklands campaign,

101

Book number R0406