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Ron Witcombe, my late father, came from Shepton Mallet and joined the RAF even though he had an exemption. This, he said, was because his landlady let him know that she did not like him being at home whilst her son was away in the Navy. I was told that after he joined the RAF and the exemption lapsed, Police turned up at his Father’s house because he had not reported for the Army. After some time as a ground engineer he was sent to the Bristol Aircraft Corporation at Filton to work on the Brabazon. He hated this job as he did not think his engineering skills were up to the task, he was convinced the aircraft would never fly but I think, most of all because he had to wear overalls with BAC on them. In Bristol this meant “Bastards Avoiding Conscription” unfair in his case he thought.
He volunteered to fly and went on to Lancasters as a Sgt Flight Engineer. His skipper was a New Zealand sheep farmer called Ross Simpson who used to make the crew perform the Haka (moari war dance) before each mission. Ground staff would line the runway to see them off at which Ross apparently always commented, “ Wave you bastards. You aren’t going” It became a family saying, as did “There we were. Nothing on the clock but the maker’s name. 26.50 plus 6 and still climbing” (A 'lineshoot'referring to the fact that all the instruments have failed) They served on 617 squadron flying one of the “gutless wonders” used for the Dam Buster operations. These were so called because of the modifications made to accommodate the special bombs. Dad referred to Guy Gibson as “Flack Happy” a term apparently used for someone who no longer saw the dangers.

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