In 1929 my father joined the Royal Air Force and was posted to Ruislip first, and then Uxbridge. While at Ruislip he met George Unwin, the future Battle of Britain Spitfire Ace, and they became the best of friends. In 1933 my father was working in Air Defence Great Britain, under Air Chief Marshall Brooke-Popham, and was already engaged in the development of the plotting system that was going to prove essential to winning the Batle of Britain. He was the Flight Sergeant in charge of the plotters in Number 3 Watch throughout the Battle of Britain. In 1941 he was posted to the Western Front in Egypt and travelled on convoy WS7, the largest convoy of the war. While on his journey he wrote a letter to my mother, writing something every day, which he posted when he arrived in Egypt. It starts on 21 March and the last entry is on 10 May, a period of seven weeks, nearly all of which was spent at sea.

What follows is extracts from that letter annotated by me to provide further information, and other connected items.