As I mentioned in my earlier post, Mr Cruickshank is still alive, and I think he lives in Aberdeen; tomorrow (20th May) will be his 100th birhday and, though I never met the man, I have left myself a diary reminder to drink a toast to him tomorrow. I'd be pleased and honoured if anyone would care to join me (figuratively speaking, of course).
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| Photo borrowed from The Scotsman |
I found the following movie on Youtube - I'm sorry about the running numbers in the centre of the picture, but I thought it was pretty good - a dramatised documentary from 1943 about Coastal Command, with a musical score by Vaughan Williams, no less. Much use is made of real Coastal Command personnel, so the acting is fairly lumpy, but it's OK - some good shots of a Sunderland in action, and there are Catalinas and other planes later on. Some of the action shots were filmed on actual missions.
Happy Birthday John & thanks from me too.
ReplyDeleteA great cause for celebration! Happy Birthday to John!
ReplyDeleteA toast for John indeed!
ReplyDeleteProud to join you in that toast, Tony. Congratulations and thanks to John Cruickshank.
ReplyDeleteA wee dram was suitably raised and drank in honour and thanks.
ReplyDeleteThank you all gentlemen! The sun is not yet over the yardarm here, but I shall certainly have a small whisky with my lunch. Happy birthday, Flying Officer John A Cruickshank - thanks for everything!
ReplyDeleteI've just read his Wiki entry and raised a Birthday toast to Flying Officer Cruickshank. A extraordinary gentleman.
ReplyDeleteThanks very much - as you say, extraordinary!
DeleteThanks Tony. I raised a belated toast to FO Cruickshank with some good Canadian rye whiskey last night. I look forward to watching the YouTube video when time permits.
ReplyDeleteThere's a great passage in Nicholas Montsarrat's memoir, Three Corvettes, where he recalls sailors seeing Coastal Command aircraft and thinking, "I wouldn't want to be up in that thing, it's not safe, what if you crash in the ocean" and wondering if the pilots were thinking the exact opposite looking down at their little ship. Flying long range, often at low altitude, in poor weather, in relatively primitive aircraft was dangerous work to be sure.
Best,
Michael
Good man, Mike - well played. The Catalina always intrigued me, even as a kid - it looks like a plane that was designed by a committee, but it seems to have worked OK. The Sunderland, too, was odd - like the bumble bee, it doesn't look like something that could fly, does it?
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