The story of Squadron Leader Eric FC Thomas who was stationed at RAF Bawdsey in 1942.
During his time at RAF Bawdsey, Pt/O Thomas was an instructor, training new recruits in using the ever-changing radar equipment. At this time, the site was the radar training school, with all those who would work on radar throughout Britain coming to Bawdsey to learn their trade, meaning there were plenty of new service personnel to train!
After his time at RAF Bawdsey, Eric was posted to Burma and India where he was involved in setting up a chain of radar stations. He later established the RAF Radar Training School in Bombay, a site where he remained as the Commanding Officer until he was demobbed. After leaving the RAF, Sdn Ldr Thomas returned home to London, where he ran the family hotel with his mother and father. His connection with the RAF did not end here, however, as he returned RAF Stanmore to attend short refresher courses to keep his knowledge of radar updated should he be needed to return to active service.
It was while he was stationed abroad that he met his future wife, who was a Junior Commander in the Women’s Auxiliary Corp (India).
While at Bawdsey, Eric sent many letters home to his family, which have kindly been shared with us by his daughter Jacky. These letters offer a wonderful insight into the everyday lives of those who lived at worked at the site.
We love sharing Peggy’s story at Bawdsey Radar and were lucky enough to hear her memories of the site as part of our oral history project.
Peggy joined the WAAF in May 1942 aged 18 after working for a publishing company in London during the Blitz. She had planned to join the motor division in order to learn to drive but, as she remembers, she was ‘put up for ‘Clerk, Special Duties’’. Neither she, nor the recruiting officer knew what this meant! Peggy became a radar operator at the site and was tasked with interpreting the cathode ray tube to work out the number and distance of enemy aircraft heading towards Britain. Peggy remembered the diligence with which they carried out their work, making sure that ‘Everything had to be recorded. I was quite hoarse by the time I’d finished because you had to relay the plots to the filter room.’
Peggy was at Bawdsey during VE day in May 1945 and told us her memories of this time:
‘We couldn’t find out what was happening- nobody seemed to know on May 8th 1945 that anything had happened at all. We were listening on night watch and we were tuning in to German stations and they were making me listen because I knew a few words of German, but I couldn’t hear anything – just ordinary conversation and it wasn’t until we got back into the manor that we were told ‘Yes, the war is over’. So, it wasn’t very celebratory really, because by that time, of course, we were well in with the boys from Martlesham….and what were we celebrating? – you know- OK we had stopped fighting but they were going off to the Pacific to fight their war. We were all confined to camp for some reason – which we didn’t take very kindly to – but by the evening the Americans had managed to muster up a lot of beer and they all came over in their trucks – and we did have a dance – because we did have a dance every week in the Manor ballroom which was very nice – and so we did celebrate to some degree’.
Eileen Gray (was Briscoe) was a Bawdsey Girl during the Second World War, serving as a Leading Aircraft Woman.
Eileen told us that there was great friendship between everyone at Bawdsey, ‘they looked after you’, and recalling it never felt like a military camp, more like a second home and that was something you’d never expect in a war’. We were lucky enough to get to know Eileen and she was the guest of honour at the official opening of Bawdsey Radar in 2018.
Eileen went to a dance at Bawdsey Manor on 28 June 1945 to celebrate the sixth anniversary of the founding on the WAAF. We are fortunate enough to have her Dance Card from the event. Eileen is pictured below in the 1940’s as well as in 2018.
The 240-foot timber receiver towers were some of the tallest wooden structures ever built in Britain.
Timber was used for the receiver towers to reduce radio reflections. They were relatively light and to erect a mast under ideal conditions took a gang of about ten men days rather than weeks.
However, they were not rigid. Being timber and bolted, once the height got near the 200ft mark the top swayed a bit!
You’d need a fair few fairy lights to decorate one at this time of the year…
The timber receiver towers can just be seen in the distance behind the tall metal transmitter towers
Arnold ‘Skip’ Wilkins worked closely with Robert Watson-Watt. Indeed, it was Wilkins who suggested that radio waves could be used to detect aircraft, having heard of complaints from GPO radio operators of signal disturbance when aircraft flew overhead. Wilkin’s contribution to the development of radar was immense and his calculations proved the feasibility of radar which was then proved by the Daventry Experiment in February 1935.
This is Arnold Wilkin’s AVO meter, presented to him on his retirement and is one of the very special items in the museum.
On this day in 1973, Robert Watson Watt died. Watson Watt was Superintendent of the Bawdsey Radar Research Station during the development of radar. Along with his team, Watson Watt was vital in creating the radar technology that proved instrumental in the Allied victory in the Second World War.
On the 13th of February 1974, Sir Robert Cockburn delivered a memorial address for Robert Watson Watt, celebrating his many achievements throughout his life. A full transcript of this address is available here on the Bawdsey Radar Website.
Born in 1841, Cuthbert was a stockbroker and, from 1885-1906, an MP for Sudbury, credited with introducing a bill to secure the purity of beer.
In 1896, Sir Cuthbert began work on building Bawdsey Manor, where, in the shadow of the Second World War, the radar technology that proved vital in the Allied victory in the Battle of Britain was developed.
On this day in 1932, Stanley Baldwin delivered his ‘A Fear for the Future Speech’ to Parliament. His speech contained the famous idea that ‘the bomber will always get through’. Baldwin outlined that Britain’s air defence system was not adequate to prevent aerial bombing of Britain.
This speech led to extensive debate about the development of air defence systems in turn leading to significant investment from the government in air defence systems leading to the development of radar, first at Orford Ness and later at Bawdsey.
Eileen in the 1940s and in 2018
Arnold Wilkins
