(Many Milestones made Rhodesia) March 24 1941 - Arrival of First Airmen at Thornhill - The first two trainloads of young men arrived at Thornhill. They could not have realised that they were the first few in a continuous flood which was to last for four and half years. For these men Rhodesia was a quiet back-water far away from the harsh privations of the European war. One of the major problems to be overcome by the first Station Commander, Group Captain S. S. Chick, was the maintenance of morale in a situation far removed from the glamour and excitement of the front lines. In this he was supported by the warm hospitality extended by the people of the Gwelo district. This was part of the Empire Training initiative to train aircrew for the R.A.F during WW II. Most were from the UK and Commonwealth countries. Rhodesia was to lose over 400 airmen on active/operational services during WW II. Source: The booklet Fighting Forces of Rhodesia by Colin Black and dated May, 1974 and designed, compiled and published by H.C.P. Andersen. P.O. Box 1566, Salisbury, Rhodesia. Printed in Rhodesia by Mardon Printers (Pvt) Ltd., at Salisbury Compiled by: Eddy Norris ORAFs records its thanks to all those mentioned above. Booklet was made available by Lewis Walter. March 24 1977 - Mr. EA Richardson - Belingwe - Farm Murder. Courtesy of ORAFS.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 09:33:51 +0000
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