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The
Ex-RAF Aerial Erectors Association was founded as a result of my
trying to trace my old service friends.
I had served as a rigger for 12 years having joined the
RAF in 1956.
I passed the climbing test at RAF Canewdon and successfully
completed the Aerial Erector Course(6B) at RAF
Chigwell in July 1956. I was posted across the road to No. 4 Ground Radio
Servicing Squadron and worked as a part of a small team of riggers carrying out
servicing on RAF bases in the south east of England before being posted to the
Far East Air Force in November 1956.
During my 12 years service I
did 3 overseas tours
The first tour started in Ceylon (Sri Lanka)
at RAF Ekala Transmitter Site working as a station rigger where I was promoted
to Corporal. I was then posted to the Signals Centre, RAF Kai Tak, Hong Kong
in November 1957.
On my return to the UK in June 1959 I served as an
instructor at the Aerial Erector School at RAF Norton and RAF Digby.
In
November 1959 it was back out to the Far East Air Force for a second time.
I was based at the Radio Repair Squadron, 390 Maintenance Unit, RAF Seletar
in Singapore where I carried out the installation, recovery and servicing of
masts, aerial arrays and feeder systems at RAF bases throughout Singapore,
Malaya and Borneo.
In May 1962 I returned to the UK.
From May 1962 I was based at the
Ground Radio Installation Squadron (known as the Gypsy Squadron),
Radio Engineering Unit, RAF Henlow for a while, in charge of a small team of
riggers working on various installation and recovery detachments including a
job at El Adem in Libya.
In December
1963 I was posted to Middle East Air Force for 2 years on the Electronics Repair
Squadron, 131 Maintenance Unit, RAF
Khormaksar (1963-65). Once again I was carrying out the installation and
maintenance of masts,
aerial arrays and feeder systems at the various RAF bases in Aden plus Riyan,
Salalah, Masirah, Sharjah, Bahrain, Perim Island and Eastleigh in Kenya.
This was followed in December 1965 by a
spell at the Ground Radio Servicing Centre,
RAF North Luffenham where I was promoted to Sergeant in August 1966.
On promotion I was posted again to the Ground Radio Installation Squadron,
Radio Engineering Unit, RAF Henlow where I was in charge of various detachments
installing masts, aerial arrays and feeder systems at various RAF bases including
RAF Episkopi in Cyprus, the Central Communications Centre base at RAF
Eddlesbrough,
and Southern Radar at RAF Sopley until I completed my service in 1968.
In
1996 I decided to try and renew old friendships and put an
advert on the, now defunct, "Service Pals" page of Teletext.
I received only
4 replies from riggers , but
they knew the whereabouts of several other riggers and so
my list steadily grew. I put further adverts on the Teletext and
in the RAF Newspaper, "The Airmail" (RAFA) and the
British Legion magazine.
There
are now over 400 riggers in the Association and I am pleased
to say, it is still growing. We have a four monthly newsletter,
The Update, and a reunion is organised every other year.
If you
are an existing or past RAF Aerial Erector and not a
Member of the Association then why not contact me now by using
the contact link above?
Membership is FREE and who knows, you may find some of your old mates here.
Eddie
Edwards (4178312)
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