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Page 3 Girl.

Our lovely Page 3 girl this edition is Mary Windsor.

Mary says: “I Joined the WRAAF on 20th July 1964 (as Mary Moore) for adventure, travel and to learn new skills. Dissatisfied with my job at Myer Geelong selling wool in winter and haberdashery in summer, I decided it was time to see what else life had to offer. When the big day came, my sister Margaret dropped me at the recruiting centre at Queens Road Melbourne with my one borrowed suitcase and I stepped through the door into a new world and a new life.

A RAAF bus transported the Victorian new recruits to Point Cook where we were clothed, fed, marched, moulded and shaped into service personnel all within four weeks. Point Cook in July is not an inviting place. Wind blew from far south onto the parade ground where we spent many hours trying to coordinate arms, legs and marching in straight lines. The barracks were Spartan, cold and noisy with floor surfaces, which needed polishing with heavy polishers that tended to have a mind of their own.  So far my travels had taken me 51.8 kms from home.

Five of us from 124 recruit course moved to Laverton where we waited for a couple of months before starting on No 22 Tprinop course. Much of the intervening period was spent in a tin hut learning to type with music providing the momentum and played at different speeds. To this day hearing the’ William Tell Overture’ sends chills down my spine. The course finished in March when I was attached to Fairbairn for a couple of months before taking up my first posting at Frognall.

Accommodation varied from base to base. I lived in a wooden block at Point Cook and Laverton, Fairbairn had fibro huts but you had to go outside to get to the ablution block – not all that good in winter. Frognall was something else again! We lived in Nissan huts that were cold in winter and boiling hot in summer. Six bed-spaces semi-partitioned by a wardrobe gave limited privacy while the person opposite you had none.  It was an unusual base because most of the girls worked shift-work. There was always someone sleeping during the day in these less than ideal living conditions. On hot summer days it wasn’t unusual to see that someone had dragged their mattress into the case-room to take advantage of the concrete floor in order to get some sleep before going on duty again.

I arrived from Frognall about mid 1965 and was pleased to see Noreen McCabe, from my Tprinop course, was also there – we’re still good friends. The following year Noreen, Dottie Hodge and I were attached to Radschool to train on No 26 Communication Security course. We had an intense month of learning the inner workings of cryptography. It was an area that I particularly enjoyed. I was promoted to Corporal in November 1967, which would normally mean a posting— but not for me.

I stayed at Frognall as a corporal but I was attached to Edinburgh on a two-week NCO course, where I learned to take a flight on parade, throwing my voice so that everyone could hear my command, basic public speaking, man-management, taking responsibility and delegating where necessary. Having completed the course, I felt empowered to cope with my new rank. Two years later I was promoted to Sergeant.

Patsy Horniman and I were promoted to Sgt the same day. Patsy worked at Victoria Barracks commcen and lodged at Frognall. A recent establishment change created a position at Radschool for a WRAAF Sgt instructor. I was posted to Radschool and Patsy was posted to Frognall. I was back where I’d started. After five years of waiting for a posting I moved to the other side of town. I had no preparation for the instructor position and had to rely on tips from other instructors to get by. I didn’t enjoy it very much. In July 1970 I signed on for another two years and I spent 12 months in the Career’s Information side of Recruiting where I met Ron Windsor who had recently returned from Vietnam. I was posted back to Frognall in 1971 and promoted to Flt Sergeant in November. The only establishment for a WRAAF Flt Sgt was at Frognall so there was no posting to come with the promotion.

My current engagement was nearly up and I took my discharge in July 1972. I loved my years in the WRAAF even though my whole time was spent around Melbourne. Travel hadn’t been a big feature in my service life but it was an adventure and I learned new skills that prepared me to take on the world.

A month after my discharge I boarded the Greek ship “Britanis” and sailed for England on a two-year working holiday. A Year after returning home Ron Windsor, and I were married on 1st March 1975 in Geelong. It seemed I’d joined the Air Force again—in a different capacity!

Ron was at Point Cook when we married, he was promoted to Sqn Ldr in November and was posted to Canberra in January the following year.  We bought a house in Canberra and both studied at CCAE taking advantage of free tertiary education. When I finished studying I joined the Commonwealth Public Service so I could transfer within the organisation when a postings came up. After five years in Canberra Ron was posted to Glenbrook where we spent three years. Whilst at Glenbrook we bought some land in Ballarat, which we intended to build on when Ron retired. Our last posting in Melbourne enabled us to oversee the building of our house on 3 acres of land. We moved up to Ballarat in October 1986 to a civilian lifestyle. Two years later we opened Windsor Park Nursery and closed down after 5 years to travel for 14 months, mostly in Spain and England.

In 2004 we sailed from Melbourne to Yokohama on the QEII, leaving Melbourne on Valentines Day and returning on our 29th wedding anniversary. One month later Ron dropped dead and I had to start another life.

In the last 14 years I’ve completed a Geology degree at Ballarat University, travelled to East Antarctica, the Arctic, West Antarctica, the Kuril Islands and places in between – always looking at the geology. Three years ago I participated in the scootarbor challenge in which 20 seniors rode 50cc motor scooters from Port Augusta to Fremantle and raised $80,000 for BeyondBlue.—but that’s a story in itself.

I’ve lived in Bairnsdale for the past five years. I volunteer at the Tourist Info Centre once a week, play social and competitive croquet, puddle around with family history and take a holiday now and then. In June I go to Sri Lanka.

My Air Force days are special because they gave me adventure, travel (not very much) and taught me new skills and gave me a multitude of friends”.

46 Instrument Course, 1982-83

Terry Devine sent us this.

Radio Section Butterworth, 1986

Rick Smith send us this pic, he could only give us a few names, Ted Washbrook gave us a lot more, but we’re still short a few, if you can help, please do.

Officer Training School.

Sept 1991

48 Clka Conversion.

1981ish

Back in the ‘olden days’, you could enlist as a Clerk (Nothing) and then later on, DPA would decide it's time to re-muster to CLKA so off to Wagga for three months to basically, learn to type 35wpm.

2 Sqn Phan Rang.

Sometime 1968/69

We don’t know the two rows at the back, can someone help.

76 Sqn Macchi.

Throw-back to the early 90’s with 76 Sqn Macchi R3 Servicing’s and Wing Swap Central.

Maintenance Sqn East Sale.

Can someone provide names and time please/

Rookies, Course 1574. 26 Aug - 14 Nov 1980.

The Crew that brought the first Caribou to Australia.

The photo above was taken in January 1964. This crew, (standing in front of the not yet finished A4-162)  brought A4-140 out from De Havilland’s in Canada, landing at Richmond on the 22^nd April 1964   This aircraft above was in the second batch to be delivered to the RAAF, arriving Richmond on the 13^th June 1964. It was crewed by Ron Raymond (Captain), John Staal (Co-pilot), “Red” Jordon (Navigator) with Owen Murrell (Loady).

Cec Robinson, in the pic above, was in Canada, not as crew but learning the radio stuff.

This is the crew that brought A4-164 out to Australia.