44 Years Later

Today was another repatriation at RAF Brize Norton for RAF Corporal Steven Wainwright who was killed in a traffic accident in Cyprus. I attended with the RBL Riders, about a dozen of us including my friend Taff a retired RAF policeman.

Yesterday I sent a message to another old friend, Bruce, but didn't hear anything back and I thought he must be on one of his jaunts which he frequently reports about on Facebook.
I was so pleased when he turned up, he lives in Carterton which is less than an hour from Gloucester but this was the first time we'd met for 44 years!
I found a flat in Marsascala bay (See extras, the couple on the veranda are my Mum and Dad who came out for a holiday in Dec 1972). We were both serving in Malta and Bruce moved in to share it with me, cost us a fortune, M£10.00 per month - Each! I promised the landlord (a civilian marine fitter with the RAF marine craft unit) that we'd live there all year round hence the incredibly low rent). That was at the end of 1972 and I left, on promotion, Jan 1974. Bruce lived on there until he left in 1975.
We had some great times in that flat although we were on different shifts and, as you can imagine, we had a lot to catch up on and a lot of reminiscing to do.
So good to see him again, and his little Jack Russell Pixie :-)