my job, it was when they
airlines were starting again
lines used JU52s
they turned them into
passenger planes
and KLM and their friends
and 1 or 2
along North Africa from Gibraltar
all the way to Cairo and beyond.
And there wasn't
But for this part of,
Cyrenaica, which it was Libya,
I was acting as control between Malta
and Alexandria,
and any civilian aircraft
the North African coast
I would register them in
and they would register with me
and were on the way to the next stage,
And it was quite good because
some days I didn't get very many flights,
regular intervals.
And the because there's no air
and no,
No, pressurized cabins.
They're all really flying
So I used to pick them up.
When they came to me, I'd
I'd pick them up when I picked them up
the first message, towards Alexandria,
that they were on the way and the time,
that's all I was doing.
It was a lovely little job.
I could,
I found an old deck chair.
I'd repaired it.
I got that there. yeah.
I used to go out every morning in a Jeep
driver. Took me out there.
I took reading books, writing material.
I had a sten gun, which I carried, and
pack lunch and plenty of water
, and I’d be out there till 6:00pm,
One day at a job.
I used to carry my deck chair
into of the shady bit and have a sleep.
And this particular day I'd had a sleep.
And I woke up
and I opened my eyes
And all I can see
just over there is a camel,
a huge camel.
and I look a bit closer.
I'd like to see a Bedouin sitting on it,
holding it.
What looked like a blunderbuss
across his chest. So.
And he's just sitting there staring.
And the camel standing there staring
and I’m thinking
I somehow don't like this situation.
It's not very good.
So as casually as I can.
I get up and wander inside the hut,
sling the sten gun around my neck
and sit in the chair
We sit like this for a
quite a few minutes.
The camels not moved.
He's not moved.
They’re just sitting there.
I’m now reaching the stage
“How long’s this going to go on?”
Anyway, goes on a little bit longer.
Then finally the camel spits
and I am not joking
gob of spit comes flying towards me.
It lands short, but it wasn't far away.
Enough to make me jump in my chair.
They, the camel, the Bedouin
looks at me.
He too spits, nothing like as effective
as the camel.
Reigns his camel and off
they go riding that way
across a minefield.
And I'm thinking.
I wonder if he'll survive.
Anyway,
But it
did put me off sitting in my deck chair.
I don't think I did it again after that.
