A revealing picture of a time when Britain was losing its empire. It
draws on letters written at the period by an airman, his vivid memories
and experiences from the Canal Zone, Kenya during Mau Mau times, Cyprus
and Jerusalem. His time encompassed conducting church services, being
shipwrecked, numerous wildlife encounters and the formation of many
lifelong friendships. The Canal Zone was no easy life and 50 years later
a medal was awarded when the government was forced to admit it was
deserved and to confess its own political chicanery in the events.
Hamish paints a picture of the highs and lows of RAF life, a station
being run down in Egypt, working in oppressive heat and now and then
being shot at! He saw the Windrush a week before it exploded and sank in
the Mediterranean; both the Windrush story and that of building the Suez
Canal are detailed in an appendix. There is much to find in this story
including background histories to events and the politics of the time.
As a whole it provides a fascinating account of the era.
