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OVID-19 CORONAVIRUS
During the current pandemic some events might be postponed or cancelled. Please check with the organisers if there is any doubt.
Socially distanced VE Day 75
Brian Francis
1942 Ford GPW in 305th Bomb Group, Chelveston artwork from veteran friend Nick Sanchez, a ball turret gunner on B-17 GI Miss America. He was 18 years old and completed 30 missions. He's still alive and playing golf above ground.
Peter Clarke
1962 Hotchkiss M201 and scratch-built half-scale Jeep. See also video below.
Jim Ragosa
Safely celebrating VE Day on my drive way in Corby. Enjoyed afternoon tea and music from 1940s.
Ian Clayton
We had an end of drive street party. This was taken at a neighbour, four doors away.Bike is a 1937 BSA , non military. Nice period furniture and gramophone !
Steve Gascoigne
Blight's Farm, Devon. It may not be much, but we're doing our bit. PS couldn't find the 48 star flag in time.
(Steve was the founder of the SE Midlands Area before emigrating to the West Country)
Will Needham
Chevrolet, Dodge and 1942 Lend Lease Oliver 80 tractor.
Mike Ford
VE Day 75 at “Ourgate”. Had a little drive around the local roads, flying the flag. Set up my motors and had a great day. Lovely weather.
John and Judith Underwood
East Carlton Park on VE Day. We were very lucky as the village lends itself to socially distant picnics on the front lawn, with the air raid all clear sounding after the two minute silence and the Prime Minister’s speech heard on the Bush wireless, along with the odd spam sandwich and slice of cake. A wonderful day in the sun.
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Obituary
Robert Charles Langton Aran
By Howard Aran
Robert, or Bob as he preferred to be known, was born in 1938 in Leeds. His family moved to Northamptonshire to the small village of Blakesley where he spent his wartime childhood, his mother and father being headteachers at the local school.
Bob married my mother, a local girl, following his National Service which he served in the Royal Air Force. He was stationed at El-Adam air base in Libya, and spent time in Tobruk and Benghazie.
Following National Service, Bob elected to join the RAF and wanted to become a pilot, but due to his colour blindness he was selected for meteorological scientific duties instead.
Bob served as a Senior Meteorological Officer for the Air Ministry and was stationed at RAF and Army bases throughout the UK, performing scientific atmospheric measurements for the military. He worked on the Honest John Nuclear capability deterrent missile for the Army, and the V-bomber Victor, and Vulcan strategic bomber force at RAF Gaydon.
Bob had a keen interest in military planes and in particular those flown during the Cold War, many of which he had flown on, including the Vulcan, Shackleton, Victor and Beverley.
Bob spent the majority of his career in the Government service for the Met office, which was part of the Air Ministry. He held the rank of Senior Scientific Officer, which had the equivalent rank of Navy Commander.
Although serving for the Air Ministry, Bob’s station was in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, being assigned as the officer in command of the ocean weather ships.
Unlike today where we have satellite technologies, in the 1960s, the weather patterns were created by measurements of the upper atmosphere using high altitude balloons carrying sensing equipment.
The weather ship service also acted as part of the Cold War Dew Line early warning system to detect Russian attack forces coming over the North Atlantic routes for nuclear defence. The ships were often festooned with various radio antennas and equipment to monitor above and below the waves for incursions.
The weather ships were all serving vessels having been used in WW2 for the North Atlantic convoys. The ships were ideally suited for spending six weeks at a time stationed in the harsh North Atlantic waters.
On one memorable occasion Dad told us that the ship had recorded the largest ever wave at that time, going off the scale of the recording equipment.
Bob served for nearly 30 years on the Ocean Weather ships, and when they were finally decommissioned in the 1980s he transferred to the Met Office in London, running the London Weather centre until his retirement.
Upon retirement, Bob became a member of the South East Midlands MVT. He purchased a restored RAF Series 109 Land Rover from Rod Siebert at Hack Green Nuclear bunker. Bob performed further restoration on the vehicle, and regularly showed it at MVT events up and down the country together with his display of Met Office instruments. He recreated a display of kit that he would have used as a mobile met office when deployed with forward air and Army artillery units in the Cold War era.
Bob went with myself to the MVT 55th anniversary Normandy tour. We travelled in my restored Willys MB and lived for a week in WW2 uniforms and canvas, eating rations. I said it was his re-initiation into military life. We really enjoyed the MVT tour.
Bob bought his second military vehicle, which was a Willys Necaf M38A1 Jeep. He restored this to represent a USAF vehicle from the Korean War period.
Bob regularly attended military shows alongside our other military vehicles, such as Evesham War in the Vale, Wicksteed at War, Overlord military vehicle show Denmead.
His jeep was used by Jeep UK in their promotions for the anniversary of the jeep and launch of the latest Wrangler model.
Bob really liked talking to visitors about his Cold War experiences, and although he wasn’t the most knowledgeable about the mechanics of his vehicles, he did enjoy working on them and displaying them to the public.
In 2010 Bob, myself and my Brother Duncan ran a large military vehicle event in Greens Norton, Northants, to mark the 70th anniversary of the battle of Britain. We had 48 military vehicles attend and raised over £4,000 for the Royal British Legion.
Bob was also a vice-chairman for the local RBL branch, and always showed his vehicles at the local towns in support of the Poppy collection.
In more recent years Bob sold his military vehicles and re-invested the money into a series of British sports cars of the period which was his other passion.
After being diagnosed with terminal cancer, his health declined, and he was no longer able to actively display his vehicles, but he did attend events such as Stoneleigh Militaria, Wicksteed at War and local RBL events.
Bob succumbed to the COVID 19 virus after being admitted to Northampton General Hospital and passed away on April 21, aged 81
He leaves his wife Patricia, daughter Michell and sons Howard and Duncan Aran.
Bob will be dearly missed many people that he met at shows up and down the country. His service is intended to be commemorated at the National Memorial Arboretum when the COVID emergency has subsided. Bob had been instrumental in the inauguration of the Castle Class Corvette memorial which also honours the service of these ships post war as weather ships.
If you wish to add a tribute or donation to Roberts memory you can do this at https://robertaran.muchloved.com/
To find out more about the ocean weather ships history visit https://www.weatherships.com/
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Wicksteed at War 2020 cancelled
It is with great sadness to report that Wicksteed At War 2020 has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
We have worked closely with Wicksteed Park management and the local authority before making this decision, which has been made in the best interest of the visitors and exhibitors to the show.
We wish to thank the hundreds of vehicle owners, re-enactors and stall holders who had booked in as well as the support of the many thousands of visitors to the show and look forward to seeing you all in 2021.
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VE Day 75 event
As far as we know all VE Day, May 8, events have been cancelled due to the OVID-19 pandemic.
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MVs at Classic Stony New year's Day meet
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Big bang surprise at Remembrance Road Run
There was a bumper turnout of MVs for our Remembrance Day Road Run on November 10. After bacon butties at John Underwood’s house at East Carlton, we headed for Weldon for the traditional Remembrance service by the town’s memorial. Other groups joined us, making an impressive display of around 30 vehicles. John laid a wreath of behalf of past, present, and future members of the SE Midlands Area.
Then it was off to Deenethorpe Airfield where Tim Webster had laid on a surprise … an ex-Czech T55 tank, owned by Neil Whatling, which fired a couple of ear-splitting rounds. We were then led by the land owner around the perimeter track before setting off across Northants, Leics and Rutland before a late lunch back at East Carlton. Many thanks to John and Judith Underwood and their team and Tim Webster for organising another great day.
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Selling poppies for the Legion
This year for poppy selling, we decided to spread our efforts over a wider area, instead of concentrating on Northampton town centre. Above and below are members at the Riverside shopping area, Dobbies Garden Centre (Harlestone Firs) and Kettering town centre. Kevin Lamberth writes: "Poppy Appeal Riverside
figures are in and are as follows: Steve Myles £76.09 and £86.28, total £162.37; Ian £91.38 and £65.72, total £157.10; Brian £60.26 and £53.68, total £113.94; Kevin £132.40 and £145.58, total £277.98; Neil total £21.74; Richard total £51.78; Roy Shakeshaft total £107.45; Guy Voice total £89.49; John Green £121.72 and £171.89, total £293.61. Money raised by the Riverside MVT team £1,275.46, an outstanding effort by all. Well done gents. John Green, although not a MVT member, was quite happy to raise some funds with the MVT at Riverside.
MVT members Heather Bailey, Clara Carlos, Kyle Carlos, ably supported by Charlie the Border Collie, and less ably supported by Penny the sleepy Greyhound, took up station on the Old Market in Kettering, parking in what little sunlight we could find to keep the frost off Luna the staff car. After a great day talking to the public and ex-service personal as well as the cadets leaders, we raised a total of £170.44. However, we had more than that but ran out of space in our tin and had to add it to one of the cadets pots and filled a third of theirs with our spare change!
Proceeds of knitted poppies were handed over to members at Dobbies Garden Centre, Harlestone Firs, Northampton.
Judith Worth and her daughter Susan Northover, from Kingsthorpe, Northampton, raised £56.50 from the woolly wonders. Pictured are are Judith Worth, Susan Northover, Lewis Northover and Tim Cross from the MVT.
And earlier at Weldon
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Woodend Memorial service 06-10-19
On October 11, 1944, the war came to the sleepy hamlet of Woodend, near Blakesley, South Northants, when three Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses collided in bad weather while on a training exercise. One made it back to its base but the other two broke up, scattering debris over miles of countryside. The main part of B-17 “Stingy” crashed in a meadow at Woodend and became the subject of a successful dig by our friends at Sywell Aviation Museum. Later, a roadside memorial was erected near the crash site.
To mark the 75th anniversary of the tragedy, a service was held at the memorial and the names of 11 American airmen who made the ultimate sacrifice were read out. We were proud to provide some MVs at the event; four Jeeps, a Fordson WOT1 and a Land Rover Pulse Ambulance.
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Thurleigh Museum open day 29-09-19
We enjoyed a really successful day at the 306th Bombardment Museum in spite of the rather drab weather. We had a good assembly of 15 military vehicles, some from the SEM but others from far and wide. We estimate 200 visitors came, many for the first time, to this famous airfield and museum. It was a normal opening day with stepped up catering with plenty of home-made cake. A great atmosphere with many enthusiasts and time to stand and chat. Thanks to everyone who attended.
Richard Hall
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Grafton Underwood reunion 21-09-19
A fleet of 19 MVs answered the call to honour Eighth Air Force veterans and their families who visited the former B-17 Flying Fortress airfield at Grafton Underwood, Northants. There were just three bomber veterans making perhaps their last trip to their old base but they were supported by a coachload of relatives of other veterans who are no longer with us.
The current US base at nearby RAF Molesworth provided an impressive colour guard at a ceremony at the roadside memorial and a dozen or so other serving US forces also attended in uniform. After a service with both the UK and USA National Anthems, the visitors were treated to lunch at Grafton Underwood Village Hall before being taken on a tour of the airfield in Jeeps, GMC lorry, Dodge Weapons Carrier, a Land Rover Lightweight … and a Russian UAZ!
Pictures and report by Peter Clarke
More pictures by Kevin Lamberth and Vaughn Glynn
