Canal Zoners - RAF Deversoir

As Remembered By Cpl “Pete” Peters RAF Deversoir Signals Section 1953-54

I expect there isn't anybody in the Canal Zoners who cannot remember doing some kind of guard duty. At Deversoir, ss a shift worker I was lucky but one day the luck ran out and I was called for Deputy Guard Commander – Bomb Dump!

The bomb dump was located way across the far side of the airfield and adjacent to an Egyptian village. As most service men and women will know, the duty period was 2 hrs on and 4 off. I was trying to get some sleep in the middle hours when the Guard Commander woke me by kicking my feet and in a very agitated state, “Quick, get up” he shouted waving a .38 calibre revolver a bit too close for comfort. “There’s trouble at the North West post as we cannot raise the guard on the phone”. So grabbing my trusty Sten off we went, the Sgt. was behind me still with the .38 in his hand and I remember telling
him to come along side me or the recce would stop there and then!

I had located the phone line and followed it until we came to a break, that sorted the lack of communication. We then continued and eventually came to the guard whom we had to wake up! I do not know the outcome of that but I thought he was very brave or stupid to sleep in that portion of the airfield.

Another time on the North West guard house I was designated Bomb Dump Guard Commander. This meant that guard duty for me took place inside the bomb dump which was surrounded by a high fence with a guard tower in each of the four corners. I had to patrol at ground level for the 2hr period. One night one of the guards (RAF Regt) fired a round which really got my attention. I carefully made my way around to the tower and asked the lad what the problem was. “It’s OK Corp, I thought I saw a rabbit!”. It seemed instantaneous but the Guard Commander appeared like magic – some fast talking followed and I think there was some trouble ahead for the guard – fortunately the RAF Regt were out of my jurisdiction.

Another night about 0100, I was doing my 2 hr on in the bomb dump and a Land Rover pulled up at the locked gates. I went to see what was going on and there were two men – one officer in uniform and one in civvies. The civvy told me to open the gate in slightly slurred tones to which I replied “identify
yourself”, this went on for what seemed to me to be a long time and the speaker was getting more irate by the second and telling me that he was the Station Commander! The officer was trying to get the man to move on but no, he kept having a go at me. I was not feeling too brave inside but managed to sound confident whilst saying “if you don’t show me some identification , there’s no way you are coming in here!” With that the man jumped into the Land Rover and off they went, when I got back to the guard house I reported the event to the Sgt to which he replied “If you had let him in your backside would not have touched on the way to the guardroom, that was the Station CO and he’s done that before!”

My last experience was in the Main Guardroom as Deputy Guard Commander, this was much more demanding and not so friendly as the North West location. Guard duties were a bit horrendous at Deversoir as there were not a great compliment of men to share this duty. At that time guard duties
were coming round every three days, this particular occasion there was a shortfall of about ten men and it was my job to find some. The Nissen type huts at Deversoir had a door at each end and as I went in one door the occupants went out the other! I managed to reduce the deficit to four and thought the Sgt Guard Commander would let me off, no such luck "“keep at it until you get '‘em all”. Eventually he felt sorry for me as he told me to go to the RAF Regiment lines and see the Cpl in charge, this I did but felt sorry for those lads as the Cpl mercilessly ordered 4 to get their gear and report to the guardroom.

As a final word on Deversoir guards in 1954 the guards were issued with Greener shotguns which were not a weapon for guards working in a tented area. One night on guards parade somebody bumped a Greener butt down and it went off blowing a large chunk out of a veranda pillars – the use of Greener shotguns was discontinued forthwith.

Most of us at Deversoir joined the Sailing Club without the first idea about sailing. One day someone suggested we build a craft and this turned out to be a ‘Catamaran’ which was manufactured from two Gloster Meteor fuel drop tanks that were ‘obtained’. With energetic application, the tops were cut off the tanks and seats were fitted. Then he two ‘hulls’ were joined together with pieces of 4x4 timbers. Initially it was propelled by rowing but then a mast was fitted with a sail and a centre board – thus we had our sailing boat, although not recognised as a serious device by the experts

Our craft before we fitted the mast and sail

One day we set sail towards one of the large buoys close to the shipping lane and not very far from Deversoir Control Point. We made the distance of a quarter mile or so and moored up to the buoy. We had not bothered to check the shipping traffic times and suddenly noticed an oil tanker as it exited the canal and entered the lake – it was riding very high and going like the clappers! The bow wave that started to build up was beginning to look ominious and we decided that we had better weigh the anchor and get back to the island but we did not stand a chance as that wave was really travelling. I remember we decided to turn the ‘Cat’ until we were facing the wall of water which was approaching fast – looking back I don’t think it would have made any difference what way we were facing – somebody screamed “Hold tight!” and then it hit. The ‘Cat’ was picked up like a cork and sent at a frightening speed towards the island and finally deposited on the beach, we had forgotton about the centre board which was now buried in the sand firmly fixing us to terra firma! The ‘Cat’ was full of water, we were deposited in various attitudes on the beach and Hamish, who had been reading calmly sitting cross legged on the stern, still had his book in his hand!