The Long Trek

'On the 9th of April, 1941, with nothing but personal kit and the mixed feelings of “Sailing Day”, 450 Squadron took a train to Sydney, a truck to Woolloomooloo Docks and a ferry across the harbour to the Queen Elizabeth, which was officially referred to only as H.M.T. “PP”, 6000 men were aboard. Across the harbour the monstrous sister, Queen Mary, lay at anchor. Dwarfed were the Mauretania, the Ile De France, The Nieuw Amsterdam. Then these ships followed the H.M.A.S. Australia outside the heads on April the 11th at 6.30 a.m. it was the largest convoy Australia had ever farewelled, and the light harbour ships, packed with friends and relatives, treated the occasion accordingly. 

They steam south, around Tasmania, West….to Fremantle, where the two Queens anchored off, full of disappointed troops dying to get ashore. On, to Trincomelli, Ceylon, with no more Hudsons to hover overhead — only the Australia, weaving ahead like an anxious but savage mother. 

At Trincomelli the Mauritania and Isle De France went on to Bombay the New Amsterdam to Singapore. On the 3rd of May the Elizabeth and the Mary met again at Suez, having taken separate routes there from Ceylon. 450 had arrived in the Middle East. 

Drama, for a while, was gone. A barge to Tewfik, a ghastly train to Genifa, a march through the dusk… to a tentless Middle East Pool. Chaos, of course. A cold night in the open. And bully beer. Seven days of the M.E.P. and the boys welcomed a posting to the R.A.F. station Abu Sueir, which had not been bombed. But what follows can still come under the heading of “Long Trek.” 

At Abu Sueir, 450 was given its commanding officer, Squadron Leader Steege, DFC. Also, on attachment, came senior NCOs of all trade under 3 Squadron. Until the 23rd of June they remained at Abu Sueir. On that date they were given squadron transport vehicles and told to proceed to AQIR Palestine, some of the ground-crews going to air. FO Gibbes was sent on attachment to 3 Squadron since 450 just didn’t have anything for him to fly—3 Squadron, as we have seen, has never let him go. 

At Aqir 450 Squadron was given 16 Hurricanes—MK 1. But with no pilots to fly them; the situation was not very satisfactory. So the pilots of 260 Squadron came over to us, since their own ground staff were not expected to arrive from England for three months. The outfit became known as 450/260 Squadron. SL Steege took over the Administration, SL Mount of 260 being 1/C Ops.'