-: I remember my first operation
which was
I have to call it an absolute flop.
It was on Calais,
our first operation.
As we were going along
the navigator tells the pilot, he says "we've gone 50 miles
"further than the force, we're 50 miles in front,
"I made a mistake."
So the pilot says "well we can't turn back
"'cause we'll be flying into the other aircraft."
We were the only aircraft flying over Calais,
the only one and funnily enough we never got shot down.
We were flying at 23,000 feet
and their gunnery only reached about 16,000.
We were the only ones flying over Calais alone,
we got there 50 miles in front of the main force.
So,
now the pilot had to decide which way to turn back on
because we couldn't turn back into the force coming around.
We turned back the other way,
coming back they flew around,
flew back again over Calais,
only us.
And we dropped our bombs there, but
fortunately their flack only seemed to reach 16,000 feet
and we were flying at 23, and it didn't reach us
and we got through and we landed safely
but it was a nightmare of a journey.
Being the only crew over, bombing the port of Calais.