Richard Vass

We are very grateful to Mr Richard Vass for providing this information below. Mr Vass was a cadet at 201 in the 1960s and provides great memories, history and information about 201. The information below is shown as Mr Vass sent it to us.

Jottings from Richard Vass, past cadet and Civilian Instructor.

201 in the 1960s

201 was first formed in the 2nd World War at Kings School Macclesfield and was therefore a ‘school’ squadron. These squadrons were eventually replaced by the Combined Cadet Force in certain public schools. An old photo on the 201 History site shows the staff and cadets posing outside the school pavilion on the upper sports field. The Squadron was disbanded soon after the war and remained dormant until its reformation in 1963.

As I recall 201 was formed out of the ashes of 1210 (Congleton) Squadron when its Commanding Officer, Flt Lt Peter Moulton, decided there was a future for the ATC in Macclesfield. Peter had served as a pilot in the RAF, and had also spent some time as a flying instructor in the Far East. Peter’s brother was a committed RAF officer who rose to the rank of Air Vice Marshal and died in 2006, aged 90. His biography may be found at http://www.rafweb.org/Biographies/Moulton_LH.htm

The Headquarters of 201 was in an old Home Guard building at the back of the Martineau Hall off Jordangate. Martineau Hall was used by the unit for presentation evenings etc. The photo below shows the site today (2020). The hut was on the piece of tarmac just above the centre of this picture with a single grey car parked on it. The Martineau Hall, where we used to have presentation evenings and shows, was to the left and slightly above and is now also a car park.

The Squadron had to move out in about 1966 as the Post Office wanted to develop the land but it looks as though they never did!

The Squadron moved to the TA centre on Bridge Street whilst the new HQ was being built on Somerton Road and had an interesting relationship with the TA and Army cadets!

A ‘good’ outcome was that squadron staff and cadet NCOs enjoyed post parade socialising at the Observer Corps Club which may now be the building occupied by Lennards on Great King Street. The adult staff went to the bar whilst we senior cadets played snooker in the snooker room – and, of course, we didn’t drink - much!!

Squadron Personnel in 1963

Flight Lieutenant Peter Moulton RAFVR(T) - Officer Commanding - Peter was a teacher in the Congleton area and was a great chap who was always smiling and very even tempered. He had to leave the VR(T) for reasons that I won’t go into but I bumped into him in Macclesfield in the late 1970s.
WO Maurice Smith - Squadron Adjutant. Maurice lived in Bollington and held a variety of jobs after he left the RAF, where he was an administrative clerk. Maurice became a good friend and eventually went to work for my father as a delivery driver. When my father went bankrupt I lost touch with Maurice and was saddened by his death in the 1980s. Now seeing the old photos on your site, I had forgotten that he was eventually commissioned and rose to the rank of Flight Lieutenant (rank granted after a certain number of years commissioned service) by the mid-1980. He never commanded the Squadron but he was the ‘engine room’ of it for over 20 years. Remembering his writing brings back all my memories of our times together.
Roger Hall Squadron Warrant Officer (I think) and I do remember him!! He was incredibly strict but only stayed with the unit for a couple of years. He was replaced by George Cotterill, the father of John Cotterill who was a cadet.
Fg Off Brian Hudson – Squadron Officer
Fg Off Lou Pritchard – Squadron Officer - Lou was ex-aircrew and a jeweller by trade. He was well liked by the cadets. Took command in 1967.
Councillor G F Foord – Squadron Chairman - who used to teach Engines to us. He is on the “ATC Presentation” photo. He was probably instrumental in the formation of the Unit in Macclesfield.

Subsequent Staff

Civilian Instructor (later Flt Lt) W H Vass – Bill (my Dad) spent so much time at the squadron dropping me off and collecting me that he was invited to join. He taught Morse code (remember that!!) and had been a signaller in the RAF in Burma during WW2. Was commissioned in 1965 and moved to command the newly formed 2448 (Poynton) Sqn.
WO George Cotterill – a small man with a big voice and heart. Ex-Army and the father of John Cotterill. Smoked like chimney which eventually saw him off.
Flt Lt Norman Wilmot – father of a cadet and had been wartime RAF aircrew. Shot down after flying on a mission in a Lancaster from RAF Melbourne. (He took command after I had left and so his appointment would have been about 1972.) At some stage he attended an airframes course at RAF St Athan and came home with an ejector seat strapped to the top of his car!
CWO Richard Vass (me!!) – Left to go to college in 1967 but realised I could still parade. Returned as a Cdt Flt Sgt which meant I had to retire on my 21st birthday in Feb 1970. (In those days cadets could serve until the age of 20, retiring on their 21st birthday. Cadet WOs could stay until their 22nd birthday). Serving as a CI, I applied for a Commission on my 21st birthday. On appointment I immediately moved to 2448 (Poynton) Sqn as its adjutant, eventually taking command when my father retired. Moved south with work in 1981 and took command of 125 (Cheltenham) Sqn. Promoted to Wing Staff in about 1992 and Sqn Ldr in 1995. I was the Wing Physical Education Officer and was lucky enough to win the Gillan Trophy in the millennium year. I was made deputy Wing Commander in 2006 and retired in 2009.

Cadets of my vintage (1963 – 1970)

Pete Heath – invited myself and Simon Allen to join the squadron. His father was an Air Traffic Controller and Pete followed in his footsteps eventually becoming (I think) Senior controller at Manchester Airport.
Simon Allen (Sye) – His father was sales manager at Cooksons but both he and his dad suffered congenital heart problems, and both died in their late 40’s.
John Cotterill – joined the RAF as a driver. I lost touch with him in about 2009 soon after he retired and bought an ex-quarter at RAF St Mawgan. He retired to Cornwall where he still lives.
Doug Heywood (Doug) – the painter of the Nulli Secundus shield and I can just make out our names on the back. He tried to stay in the squadron after his 22nd birthday but, because he had joined the Communist Party as a youngster, he was barred from further service. He went into youth work.
Angus Broadhurst – Helped with the training in the Girls Venture Corps unit that was started in 201’s HQ in Somerton Road in about 1973. Fell in love with its CO and left with her when she moved away!!
Roger Bentley (Rog) – Always a good fun sort of guy. Caused me a slight problem at the Honington Camp when he stitched the opening of my underpants together!! Became an engineer who also played hockey for Macclesfield hockey club as I did. I finally heard from him in about 2008. He had moved to Singapore and I believe he died out there in about 2017.
Chris Boon (Booner) – Chris was a lovely chap, devoted to his mother. He lived in Sutton and eventually I persuaded him to join me at 2448 as I needed a range officer. Once a month he would drive all the way to Poynton, get the rifles out of the arms chest, and take the cadets all the way back to the Macclesfield TA Hall range for practice. Then it was back to Poynton to return cadets and armaments to their rightful places before he drove all the way back to Sutton in his Bond Bug three-wheeler! When his mother died his main reason for living disappeared and he died a year or two later, perhaps about 1995.
Alan Ratcliffe (Racca) – he is the chap being shown the glider controls on your photo.

Annual Camps

(After 1968 I am a little unsure. However my F3822 shows that I gained an RAF Marsksmanship badge at RAF Marham in Aug 1968)

1963 – RAF Hullavington
1964 – RAF Honington
1965 – RAF Ballykelly
1966 – RAF Thorney Island
1967 – RAF Ouston
1968 – ? RAF Marham
1969 – ? RAF Valley
1970 – RAF Manby

When I was at 2448 we had a camp at RAF Macrihanish when I challenged our (ancient) Wing Adjutant to a game of squash. I was resoundingly beaten!! But I was able to fly with 201 Sqn RAF, who were there on detachment in their Nimrods, and play them at darts! I lost that as well!!

Flying and Gliding

All Air Experience powered flying took place at RAF Woodvale, which is still extant today. As it was so far away it required an early start and a late finish.

In the 1960s there were a few aircraft stored in one of the hangars. One of these was a Spitfire, which was used, so we were told, for meteorological flights.

Gliding was done at two sites. RAF Sealand was the main site and Flt Lt Grey was the CO in my time. The field we used is still there as the original Sealand airfield was an industrial estate although it is being developed. The first job when we arrived was to move the sheep off the field and into a side paddock. It could sometimes take a long time especially as most cadets were not good sheepdogs!!

The northern side of the airfield was flanked by a railway line and, as everyone knew the times of the trains which came past delivering coal to the furnaces of the steelworks to the east of the airfield, we all had great fun trying to hit the trains with bags of flour. It was incredibly difficult and I can’t remember any hits being recorded.

Some gliding was done at RAF Burtonwood, which at the time was a USAF storage facility. As I recall the runway we used was almost always crosswind and in the direction of the M62 Motorway services which many of the staff used for breakfasts if they were staying overnight.

Annual Camps

These were always anticipated with glee by both staff and cadets, and as you can see from the photographs below large numbers of staff and cadets attended.

Most camps followed the same routine which is impossible today. Small groups of the camp went on a ‘cooks tour’ of most of the sections of the station – MT, aircraft servicing, flying clothing etc etc. There was also a visit to a local town for ‘shopping’ as well as an all-day map reading exercise locally. Shooting was nearly always included and long-range shooting where possible and provided the cadet was qualified. And there was always a Church Parade on a Sunday.

All the AEFs moved their aircraft to the occupied station for the summer so that air experience flying could be gained. If we were lucky enough to go to particular stations then flights in other aircraft were available. If you look at my F3822 you will see that I flew in Shackleton, Beverley, Whirlwind helicopter, Anson, Pembroke and Varsity. In later years I added HS125, Hercules and Chinook to my tally.

Unlike the most recent camps that I ran or remember, in the 1960s the ‘duty’ day finished at tea time and then we were all free to do our own thing until roll-call and lights out.