Soldier Record

Phil Tuffnel's grandfather's memories of life in the Royal Flying Corps on My Family At War were very different to those of my father, who served from 1912 to 1919.

He enlisted as a driver-mechanic, and was at one time driver to Lord Trenchard - I have a picture of him sitting in the great man's car. While stationed on Salisbury Plain, Trenchard would require to be driven into town to take tea with his friends; on arrival at the chosen hotel he would lean forward and say: "Here is two pence for your tea, Drumm, and three pence for a haircut."

My father went on to train as a pilot, and reached the rank of sergeant. I have photographs of him and other airmen in and beside various aircraft, sadly with only brief captions. He had two periods in France, about which he never said a word.

In 1978 he was invited to attend a parade of RFC veterans to be reviewed by HM The Queen at Holyrood Palace. His response was to throw the invitation on the fire with the comment: "It will be all officers. They would have nothing to do with lower ranks during the war, and I want nothing to do with them now."