Diary of Garth Edward Sommerville Clabburn - 1942-1944 - Part 4

just after breakfast during my
first day here. Right outside the
canteen tent in the middle of
nowhere I walked right into
dear old friend John Lander.
I had been following him right
around the world, & it was
most fitting that we should
meet in this unexpected way.
We celebrated on Canadian beer
during the evening & both got
pretty shot. He has had endless
successes with No 22 Torpedo Sq.
& was put here to start a series
of attacks against Axis Mediterranean
Shipping. I wish him the best
of good luck & hope he stays
just as well as he was when
I last saw him. He had not
changed from the good old days
we used to spend together in
Melbourne.
[*He has since
gone to Ceylon
after sinking
two 15000 ton
ships in the
"Med", despite
a top cover of
about 80 109's
They lost 5 A/C
in this "do".
1.7.42.*]
At Al Ballah I have carried out
a conversion course on Tomy &
Kitty hawk A/C. Sgt Mervin Baillie
crashed & was killed in a Tomahawk
only two days ago. I fear he
attempted a roll when only at about
500' & spun in. These A/C are
very treachrous & I do not like
the way they handle at any speed.
I find the Kitty hawk a great im-

provement over the Tomy, but even
this at high speeds has to be
watched very carefully & the bad
"Mawing" yoming qualities of this crate
call for very rough & strong handling
by the pilot. It makes one very
tired & a pilot has to be
strong to handle these jobs,
& from my experience to date I
would far sooner fight in a British
Machine.
[*Apart from the
fire power I
would still
sooner fly a
British Spitfire.
A "Spit" with
6.5in guns would
be ideal
1.7.42.*]
One day about the 4^th April I swam
across the Suez Canal & back again
with Sgt White & Sgt Henry Thomas.
Yesterday our flight tent burnt
down & all our log books &
a couple of parachutes went
with it. Macpherson Evatt & Bell
 

[*Sgt Macdermaid
was killed in action
on Sunday 29th May
1942. He was shot down
by 109F which was in 
turn shot down by
the C.O.
Donald was shot in
neck during raid
on Rommell.
1.7.42.*]
left soon after I arrived here,
having completed their conversion
course. They were posted to No 450
Squadron, who are at present flying
Kitty hawks. Sgts MacDermaid
and Sgt Donald left last week for 
Almaza & I am eager to know
where they have been posted to from 
there for we will probably go
in the same direction. I think
at present that I have 10 chances
out of 10 of being sent up to
the "Blue". This is no good to
me for I want to fight the Japs
However air fighting experience in
the desert against the Germans
will be the hardest of all
schools, & if I can get through
that I should have learnt a lot
& will be well fitted to do
a fair job against the comparatively
easy Japs later on.
The instructors here are a fairly
fine bunch but do not show
the same keeness as is found in
[*Have since learned
by experience that 
this surmise was
quite right - The
only trouble is
to get through".
1.7.42.*]
the more elementary flying schools.
Too much of daylight time is wasted,
& there is not the same enthusiasm
one finds, at say, a Canadian School
to keep the A/C in the air. I really
think that the efficiency of a school
such as this, would be greatly increased
if all instructors from the C.O. down
were to give lectures on all phases
of aerial fighting. All instructors
here have seen bags of active
service & even if they endeavored
to tell us all they did here or over
France I am sure we would all
learn a great deal more than we
are doing at present. Grantedly we
are all supposed to have done an
O.T.W. but you cannot learn enough
about air fighting for tactics are
always changing & I know these
fellows here do not talk for
fear that someone will think they
are "shooting a line". If lectures were
insisted upon & made official
they would be of unlimited value
to we new rookies.
 

April 15. 1942. I am 25 years of age this day.
Strangely enough I did not remember it
was my birthday until about 11 A.M.
for I was duty pilot & was doing 
a spot of flying at the same
time & the morning went very
quickly. Fortunately no accidents
occurred during my tour of duty
& the wind stayed steady &
flying continued until 6 P.M.
This day I carried out my first
shadow firing & found it to
be exciting & requiring much
skill. Sgt. H. Thomas was flying
the target A/C & I found it
hard to see shots hitting the
sand. I think I was not
allowing for the time lag of
the bullets leaving the muzzle
of the gun & striking the
ground. However I am sure I
will improve & think I should
hold my fire until close to
the shadow. During the evening
Thomas & I walked the 2½ miles
across the desert to the picture show
at Al Ballah & there had a good laugh
[*The ghost
comes home"*]
at Frank Morgan in a show - I cannot
remember the title for it was written
up in French. Tom & I had a good
old yarn about war & its effects
while trudging across the sand.
[Thomas's brother
was reported as a
prisoner of War &
well on 15^th June 1942.*]
He has just received news that his
brother is missing over France &
naturally enough is anxious for his
safety. I am sure there are 5 chances
in 10 for any fellow being shot
down over there of being taken
as a prisoner of war. I think I
am xx right.
Had an enjoyable lemonade in the
mess at 11:30 & retired healthily
tired a little later. It has
been a very hot interesting &
fairly busy day. Had a great
job keeping the wind T laid
out for the kites would keep
blowing the strips away.
Some people just dont think
when flying & tapping A/C.
 

April 16^th 1942. Another hot & typically desert day.
Did a spot of air to air firing &
managed to get one shot through
to drogue. The second drogue was
lost away from the drome. Eleven
pilots of 229 sq. received their
orders here today to push off for
Malta. They leave tomorrow &
amongst them is my very good
friend F/Lt Dafforn D.F.C. with
whom I came out from England.
They all had a big beer up in
the mess & I left early at
about 11 p.m. & had a feed
of eggs & chips with Mess
officer, at the Wog's across
the camp. P/o Laurence was
one of the two N. Zealanders who
are to push off to Malta tomorrow.
Am concentrating on this air firing
for my life is going to depend on
it in the very near future, & the
more I throw these fast machines
about the less likely I am to
stop a common shell.
April 17^th 1942. No flying during the morning
because the 11 Hurricanes needed all
the fillers & riggers to polish off the
final jobs before taking off on the
first step to Malta. They all took
off without incident & just prior
to this I shook hands with F/Lt Dafforn
& P/o Laurence. At 2:30 I was flown
down to Kasforeet in a Harvard &
there met an Aussie from 450 Sq.
[*It was John Evatt
& not J. Bell who
was killed. J. Bell
was shot down later
on but got back.
He also crashed
& was put into a
Hurricane Squadron,
during the bug push.*]
He told me that both Gordon Macpherson
& John Bell had been killed on their
first operational flight about three
weeks ago. This rocked me back
on my heels for they had been
my two best pals, & I had
been together with them right
from Bradfield Park to Al Ballah.
I had seen them off from this camp
evidently only a few days before
they were killed. It was with
Mac that I had spend all my
leave in England & we had been
very thick for the past 18 mths
& had always shared rooms
& cabins everywhere we
 

had journeyed - & I miss him.
This news immediately pointed out
to me just how close I was to
real air fighting & sudden death,
& I was exceedingly careful in
my cockpit check before taking
off from Kasforeet for Al Ballah.
It was a fine trip back along the
Suez Canal & over Lake Bitter
& I enjoyed seeing a bit of
the country. I practiced a spot
of weaving. Had a few drinks
during the evening & a feed of
eggs & chips with Tom. I forgot -
I flew during the evening in a
Hurricane & did a bit of
ground straffing out over the
sand. Had great difficulty in
raising the W/C but finally got
it up by using my boot
& plenty of force. There was
a notice in todays xxx orders re
Australians going home but it
was rather vague. I must
make inquiries in Cairo but fear
I will have to take Macpherson's & Bells
place.
April 18^th 1944.
Spent the morning of this devilish hot
day having my helmet altered &
generally mucked about getting chintz
for new gauntlet & inners. We
have now finished with the Air
firing school & I am sure they
could have taught us much more
in the time. People in charge are
not nearly as efficient as they might
be here. Flying was stopped at
noon for the engine temperatures
were rising too high. Went
by truck to Ismalia at 2 P.M.
for swim & returned at five.
King Farouk's yacht was lying at
Anchor just off shore. I am
not flying Kitty's until tomorrow
at 8 A.M. when I think I may
work in a good dog fight.
Fearfully hot this day. During the evening
Sgt Thomas & I walked to Al Ballah
across the desert & there saw a very
fine show called "Escape" starring
 

Norma Shearer & Robert Taylor. We
both appreciated the general theme
& thought behind the story, & it
gave us new incentive to fight -
we now realise the score - one
seems to forget what all the fighting
is about when stouging around the
desert for a few long months;
& it does one a world of good
to get back to world affairs
once in a while to refresh your
knowledge of what it is all
about. Sgt Thomas & I decided
that the only thing to do was
to fight with a heated ferocity
& for a principle, just as the
GG's are doing. It is no good
going into a scrap just because
you are a fighter pilot in the
R.A.F. We must realise just what
we are fighting against, - Brutality,
intolerance of the individual,
power is right, glorification of the
most brutal race at the expense
of the more weak, yet more powerful
[*After having seen
pilots from both
sides crash in
a sheet of flame
I have no brutal
feeling but am
sorry for both.
24.6.42.*]
If we realise that these are the powers -
the very powers that are contrary to every
Christian teaching; tha against which
we are fighting, then one will go into
any scrap with much more heart &
with the necessary grim determination,
which just makes the difference between
shooting down or being shot down.
Such was the thread of our conversation
while walking back across the heavy sand
to the distant camp. I sank two
bottles of lemonade on arrival at the
mess, for my mouth was as dry as
a parrot's.
Retired at 11.30 P.M. after listening to a
nice little bright music on the radio.
The reception is always very clear late
at night. This night I slept on a
stretcher & found it far more
comfortable than the hard sand.
April 19^th 1942.
Rushed to the flight at 0800 but did
not take off in a Kitty until about
1100 & then did some Air to ground
firing with the .5" guns for the first
 

 time. They proved very accurate &
easy to handle & to have terrific
hitting power. Climbed to 20000' with
Sgt. Ryan & started a good dog fight.
Sgt Garth Neill joined in & I fear
that before we called it off we
had all been shot down quite a
few times. I was dragged up before
the Wing/C after landing for travelling
too fast & low around the aerodrome.
I was only doing 320 M.P.H. at abut
700' to 100' so perhaps he was
justified. Still we parted the best of
friends. Drew a new pair of gauntlets this
day from stores. George OBrien received a
wonderful batch of Aussie papers today &
I spent a very hot & sticky afternoon
browzing through them. I saw Dick
Darling phographed as best man at some
Corporal's wedding & also Pattie Hamilton
looking very beautiful at some fête in
Beaurepaire's garden.
As very hot day & evening during
which I drank a few bottles of
beer & retired to sleep at 10 P.M.
[*George finally got
to 450 sq &
I met him again 
on Gambut just
before the big
retreat. He was
shot by 109's today
& I saw his A/C hit
the sea. I think
he baled out.
1.7.42.*]
April 20^th 1942. Well this morning the Sq/Ldr (Pike) informed
us that we would complete our course here this
evening. I hope to have one more flip in a
Kitty hawk & that will give me about 11
hours up on the type.
Since Macpherson was killed I have been
thinking of him a great deal. I have
been thinking of what he told me one
night somewhere at sea of the Gold
Coast. He told me of his philosphy of
life; & I will write it down for
it was the same as I had always
thought. Lying on his bunk he said:-
"I believe, that the all Supreme mindx 
or being who created this universe &
all in it; must be able to see
into the past present & future. Time
to them must be a material thing;
therefore He must have known, & been
able to see what purpose I was
going to serve if placed upon the
earth, & if given a certain amount
of reason & will power. Therefore my
time spent here & whatever I achieve
must of necessity fit into the scheme
 

of everything & serve some purpose.
Even if I have to fight, & kill
or be killed; it will not be
without a reason; & my acts will
all fit into the giantic jig-saw
puzzle, in part helping to complete
a full picture of the evolution of
life". I think the same way, but
do wish that I could see the
reason for Mac having to die when
so much lay ahead, had he lived.
He was a fearless man, & his going
has left me a great deal
poorer; for I will never be able
to converse with him again &
glean so much knowledge from
his conversation. However, I hope
to be able to follow his
straight & clean manner, & way
of living; & will endeavour
when my time comes to face
death with the same fire &
fearless outlook. I do not seek
revenge for his death, for all deaths
& births are just part of the scheme
of things; & we cannot change our
destinies.
[*I now think that
we are just
foolish pawns
in a great
game played
by the giants
of the machine
age; who
control our
moves from a
spot well out
of range of
their own
devilish
inventions.
1.7.42.*]
I hope to leave here tomorrow & to
collect any mail that may be waiting
for me at Middle East Hq. If there is
some there it will be the first I
have received since leaving Winslow
on the 26^th January 1942.
The Germans still continue to bomb
Malta & I wonder if all the boys
that took off from here reached
there & if they are having a very
lively time.
In a very hot country such as this it
is amazing how ones interest in food
wanes. In chilly England food
dominated all ones thoughts & there
the stuff was scarce. Not on
the station but anywhere
in civilian life it was hard to
get a square meal. But here the
grub is just grub & we eat it
just to please the cook. It seems
to supply us with all the necessary
things & we are all fit.
 

I think that the great amount
of steady sleep we enjoy has
a great deal to do with us
keeping well under these fairly
hard conditions.
April 21 1942. We rose fairly early packed & boarded
a truck & pushed off for Ismailia.
Luckily the train was still standing
in the smelly station even though
we had arrived ten minutes late;
& we threw in all our gear &
then stood looking out over the
miles of interesting countryside
for the ensuing five hours. Quite
an out of the ordinary trip then
run up to Cairo. Right through
the wheat & general market
garden belt, & it is interesting
to see all these old tillers of the
soil mucking about with their old
wooden ploughs & bullocks their
water wheels & camels. Booked in
at the N.Z Club & met Tom's sister -
Pat & her fiance. Went to
a show called Ziegfield Girl.
in the evening & thought it pretty foul.
Later on visited the Morocco Club with
Tom & had a few beers. The local girls
who hang around for dances & drinks proved
a nuisance, for they are all the time
hanging around your neck & screaming
out for drinks & money. Makes one
very annoyed & it is hard to
enjoy a nice cool beer with these
screaming "Wogs".
[*They are without
blame for their
life from baby-

hood has been
hard & cruel.
1.7.42.]
April 22 I had collected four telegrams from
home yesterday & also a fine letter
from Mother. Enclosed were also
five little snaps taken by Marcus
in the front garden. The telegrams
told me all was well at home
& conveyed birthday good wishes.
P/o Laurence arrived back from
Malta today to ferry another crate
across. Several of the kites they
had taken across on the previous
trip had been blown up. They had
had a terrific air raid every
hour & a half during his
72 hour stay on the island.
 

He told me that he had been
talking to P/o Graves at Gambut &
he had seen P/o Macpherson &
P/o Evatt both spin in. Evidently
P/o Bell is still going strongly &
did not pile up at the same
time as Mac. I dont know the
facts of the case but fear that
Mac tried to tighten up a turn
too much when he had some
109 on his tail & spun into
the deck. I think that you
are asking for it if you do
vertical turns below say - 140
M.P.H. & under 2000' in the
Kitty Hawk. Bags of motor must
be used to keep the kite
in the turn & if she should
spin the throttle must be
dragged off immediately.
With Pat Tom & Jeff went for
a very enjoyable though expensive
swim out at Mena House
It was a lovely day &, we
spent some time wandering
[*There was no E/A in
the crew & both
pilots spun when
trying to climb
too steeply & weave
at the same time.
Mac over corrected his
first spin & went
in on the second.
Evatt did not recover
from the first.
25.6.42.*]
through the blooming formal gardens.
During the evening Tom & I went and
saw a really fine show called "A Yank
in the R.A.F." It was technically correct
& wonderfully done - a good & sweet
little romance story running through
it, & altogether a really fine entertainment.
Each morning & evening we have
visited my friend at Rodesia House
& he has fixed breakfast & supper
for us. He gives good service &
food for little money - so everybody
is happy.
This evening Pat took us to the
Y.W.C.A. for dinner. They have taken
over as it stood, a magnificient
& old Morroccan Palace. It is
the finest & most beautifully
worked & furnished old place
I have ever had the good luck
to visit; & the meal was
finely served by picturesque big
black fellows in white gowns ⇓
turbans & a bright blue
sash.  Gowns