Interview with Rodney Carl Saar

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Description

Object description

British officer cadet with Royal Air Force College, Cranwell in GB, 1958-1961; officer served as navigator with 38 Sqdn, Coastal Command, RAF in Mediterranean, 1962-1965; served as navigation instructor at RAF Cranwell, GB, 1965-1967; served as Assistant Defence Attaché in Kinshasa, Republic of Congo, 1967; served as adjutant with Experimental Flying Department, Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, GB, 1968-1969; served with British Commanders'-in-Chief Mission to Soviet Forces in Germany (BRIXMIS) in Berlin, Germany, 1970-1973; student with French Air Force Staff College, Bordeaux, France, 1974-1975; instructor with Royal Air Force Staff College, Bracknell, GB, 1975-1977

Content description

REEL 1 Background in GB and Belgium, 1939-1957 family; father's military service with Pioneer Corps and Royal Ordnance Corps in Second World War; unsettled childhood existence; move to Belgium on father's remarriage; education in Belgium; visits to family in Germany; friction between Flemish and Walloons in Belgium; return to GB, 1951; education in GB; joining Air Training Corps. REEL 2 Continues: interest in aviation; activities with Air Training Corps. Aspects of enlistment as officer cadet with Royal Air Force in GB, 1957: attending pre-assessment interview at RAF Hornchurch; attending selection board at RAF Cranwell; joining Royal Air Force on short term commission at RAF South Cerney, 1957. Recollections of period as officer cadet with Royal Air Force College Cranwell, GB, 1958-1961: accommodation; exercise involving human tower; importance of sport; prior recollections of education; attitude towards military order and influence of his education; confidence of public school educated cadets. REEL 3 Continues: description of 'crowing'; treatment of unpopular/weak recruits; binding together of group through tasks; character of regime; cleaning kit; dangers of inflexible system; pattern of ground training; daily routine during first year; recruit milling. REEL 4 Continues: treatment of American officer cadets; question of need for officer like qualities; mentoring role of second year cadets; attitude of former public school cadets; relations with instructors; lack of recreational time; inter-service experience including period aboard HMS Gambia; reasons for removal from flying training course. REEL 5 Continues: prior recollections of period as schoolboy during Second World War; navigation training in Vickers Varsity; use of Gee and Lorenz navigational systems; principles of navigation; question of choice of role; leave after course. Aspects of training as officer on navigation course with No 1 Maritime Reconnaissance School, Coastal Command, RAF at RAF Kinloss, GB, 1961: obtaining car for training course; attitude of instructors to cadets trained at RAF Cranwell; training on Avro Shackleton Mk 1. REEL 6 Continues: anti-submarine training; method of obtaining wind direction and navigation; scope of training; role of geographical and tactical navigators. Recollections of period as navigator with 38 Sqdn, Coastal Command, RAF in Mediterranean, 1962-1964: squadron routine; compass swings; ship recognition; duration of long flights to Kenya and Aden; squadron funding; visits to Gibraltar; character of Avro Shackleton Mk 2; diversion to French Morocco after turbulence incident at Gibraltar; mess life; start of reconnaissance flights over Cyprus, 26/12/1963; period on detachment to Cyprus; narrow miss with Handley Page HP.67 Hastings; attack on his aircraft by Turkish Air Force North American F-86 Sabre aircraft. REEL 7 Continues: how crew worked together in squadron; photo-reconnaissance and rescue exercises during low-level flights over desert; amusing story of attempting to gain ground communication with Italian unit; learning to drive; low-level flying over Malta; application to do Staff Navigation Course; problem with hung up depth charge; opportunities to drop live weapons; equipment used to detect submarines; six week anti-submarine course at RAF Ballykelly in Northern Ireland; regular crew checks; altitude training; nature of Staff Navigation Course in GB. Aspects of period as navigation instructor at RAF Cranwell, GB, 1965-1967: approach to instruction; character of his students on first course. REEL 8 Continues: assessment of instructors; daily routine; use of Vickers Varsity as flying classroom; instructing in air; commanding station Badmington team; other duties and activities. Aspects of period as Assistant Defence Attaché in Kinshasa, Republic of Congo, 1967: reasons for his posting as French speaker; duties and intelligence gathering; presence of mercenaries imprisoned in Kinshasa; story of mission to free nuns and monks from Congolese general. REEL 9 Continues: role of arms dealers in Congo; reasons for declining request to return to Kinshasa, 1968. Recollections of period as adjutant with Experimental Flying Department, Royal Aircraft Establishment, Farnborough, GB, 1968-1969: opportunities to fly; administrative role; role during aftermath and investigation into crash of French Navy Nord Atlantic at Farnborough, 1968; death of American test pilot in Hawker Harrier at RAF Dunsfold; reorganisation of office. Recollections of operations as officer with British Commanders'-in-Chief Mission to Soviet Forces in Germany (BRIXMIS) in West Berlin, Germany, 1970-1973: attending attaché course prior to posting. REEL 10 Continues: initial tour training; first detainment by Soviets; behaviour during detainments; origins of British Commanders'-in-Chief Mission to Soviet Forces in Germany (BRIXMIS); amateur nature of early mission operations; use of horses during late 1940s; increasing interest in intelligence gathering during 1950s; affects of East German attack on mission house in Potsdam, East Germany, 1957; increase in support staff; description of Royal Air Force touring; deployment of different service and national missions in East Germany; difficulty of targeting air force sites. REEL 11 Continues: intelligence to be gathered from Soviet waste; method of approaching radar sites; incident of narrow escape from guards at radar site; contrast between Soviet and East German ideas of security; narrow escape from guards on Soviet airfield; penetrating range sites during 1971; East German Ministry of State Security (Stasi) tracking of mission vehicle; sight of Soviet Air Force aircraft dropping and firing weapons for first time; collecting cartridges from Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 Fishbed on ranges. REEL 12 Continues: method of ascertaining character of Soviet dispersed grass airfield; acquiring practice bomb from ranges and taking it back to headquarters in West Berlin; pursuit of his tour car by East German police and Ministry of State Security (Stasi); ordering his team to remove mission signs from restricted areas; description of mission signs; question of contrast in suitability of Royal Air Force and British Army personnel seconded to mission; change in attitude of unit during 1980s; attacks on mission personnel. REEL 13 Continues: description of preparations for tour of East Germany; sleeping during tour; crossing Glienicke Bridge; process of checking in and out; procedure on being detained; question of not signing any protocol; attitude of Royal Air Force Headquarters to mission tour being detained; types of vehicles used and modifications made; question of stealing from tour cars. REEL 14 Continues: tailing of tour cars by Ministry of State Security (Stasi); cases of Ministry of State Security (Stasi) forcing mission vehicles of the road; mission's respect for mission signs; approach of French and American missions to touring; Royal Air Force contingent within mission; use of De Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk by mission over area around Berlin; concern over American leaking intelligence to commercial magazine; story of how he was ambushed by Soviet Spetsnaz GRU special forces near airfield, 9/1972; subsequently being made persona non grata. REEL 15 Continues: how he became operational officer; tour report writing; return to GB, 11/1973. Aspects of period as student on French Air Force Staff College in Bordeaux, France, 1974-1975: attending National Police College, Bramshill, GB prior to joining staff; composition of course; college visit to Argentina; clash with French Air Force officer over Royal Air Force bombing in Second World War; question of making comments and suggestions to Royal Air Force commanders. REEL 16 Continues: comments on Royal Air Force hierarchy; decision to leave Royal Air Force. Aspects of period as instructor at Royal Air Force Staff College, Bracknell, GB, 1975-1977: attitude to instructing on course; introduction to computers; search for civilian employment, late 1976; pattern of civilian career; attitude to Royal Air Force career.

Object Details

Category: Sound
Related period: 1990 to the present day (production), 1945-1989 (content), 1945-1989 (association)
Creator: IWM (Production company)
McDonough, Richard (Recorder)
Saar, Rodney Carl (Interviewee/Speaker)
Production date: 2013-07-05
Dimensions: whole: Duration 680, Number Of Items 16
Catalogue number: 33893

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Interview with Rodney Carl Saar

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