BOAC Experience

In memor yofBrian Grinterwhosadlypassed away in November2020

Thefollowingarticleisaninsightintothe British Overseas AirwaysCorporation.

Written by Brian Newman Grinterwhostar

tedhis careerwithBOAC inBristol’s old airpor t,Whitchurch,in1944. Laterstationed at Hurn,whenBOACtookoverthe RAF Officer’smesswhen WorldWar 2ended.

“Afterthe war, Hurnbecamethenumberone Internationalairpor tforlongdistanceflights fromtheUK ,including Australia, India, South AfricaandtheUSA.

The‘Kangeroo’servicetoAustraliacatered foramaximumofninepassengersandits royalmailcargo.I ttook twoand ahalfdays ofstopgapflyingonan Avro ‘Lancastrian’, developedfromthefamous wartime Lancasterbomber.I twastheonlyaircraftof thetimethatcouldofferlongdistanceflying without refuelling.With itsfrontand rear gunturrets removedand replaced by pointed streamedfairings.Bombbays wereremoved to accommodate extrafueltanks,makingthis ‘SilverBird’ amuchmoreattractiveaircraft. Thecrewconsistedofthe Captain, co -pilot, navigationand radioofficers.Beforethedays of computersandwithlittleinthe wayof radar agreat dealdependedonthenavigator and radioofficer to keeptheaircraftontrack . In somecases,still relyingonstarnavigation visiblethroughthe ‘AstroDome’ontopofthe plane.Altitude wasusually at amaximum of10-12thousand feetintheLancastrian. If it wasnecessar ytoclimbhigher overpoor weather,oxygenmasks wererequired by both crewandpassengersas compared totoday’s modernaircraftwhich canflyeasilywitha pressurisedcabin at 35,000 feet.

Mostof my trainingas asteward washands on.Just amatterof“there’sthe aeroplane, there’sthe passengers,now getonwithit!”

Afewoftheladsdidtheirfirsttripona trainingflight, wheretwo completecrews wouldfly to Karachi, to familiarisethemselves withthe route.Commercialflights were still intheirearlydays andit wasonsuch aflight thatwelost twotraineestewardsandthe ex RAFcrewwhentheir’Lancastrian’crashednear Paris.

My firstflightwas a12hourhaul to Lydda, TelAviv.OnarrivalatHurnIwasshownwhat foodanddrink wassupplied forthejourney, thenon to theplane.Withthehelpofthe1st Officerweensuredpassengers were safely strappedin, knewwherelifejackets were stowedandhowtousean ox ygenmaskif required.Eachpassengerhad abunk to be erectedaftertheinflightmealofporkchops, potatoesand vegetables.

As youcanimagine,reston a12hourflight in aconvertedbomberwith four Rolls RoyceMerlinengines,wasnoteasy for thepassengers.Myjob wastostayawake spendingmanyhoursinthe ‘AstroDome’ takinginthebeautifulviewsoftheclear Mediterraneanskies.

It is raining. It is cold. I have had Covid-19 over the New Year period. whose son then tested positive. Odds of me contracting the virus? Very slim. vulnerable side, I thought it best to be safe. No one was more shocked than me when it came back positive. My friend then tested negative…it remains

I do credit my recovery to some degree, with maintaining my fitness and illnesses that come to bite, but we can control how we respond to them. It is often very hard to stay motivated in asing blood flow and strengthening up our bodies as best we can promotes the feeling of control and wellbeing. Endorphins are

I have tried to keep a journal of things that I am grateful for, things I can improve upon and amazing things that I have experienced toda laughing at silly happenings, not getting upset by the news- I can’t control it but only how I react to it, the feeling of strength in my body when I completed my exercise class. It sounds daft, but actually e n in an informal way it is very grounding. Try it- you may be surprised how positive it makes you feel.

Physiothe Physiotherapy is so much more than just physical rehabilitation of the body. It is also rehabilitation of the mind.

So, if you are struggling to find motivation and are feeling down in the dumps let me see what I can do to help you. Minimal effort for maximum gain. The first bit is recognising you need a boost. Then a tailored exercise programme to get you going, and some energy from knowing you are being supported may just help you to bounce into Spring! I love that side of my job- we can energise each other, and life seems so much better when not going it alone.