Now that Christmas and the New Year celebrations are a very dim and distant memory, I
wanted to write to the Membership with news of a few events, both past and future and to
bring you all up to date with Association Business.
In Memoriam

First some sad news; you will hopefully have seen the posts on the Association Website or
on social media of the recent sad loss of two of our Servicing Commando Veterans. On 8 th
of December, we lost Jim Hogan (3207 SC) aged 99. Jim served as the Chairman of the
Servicing Commando Association for a number of years before the formation of our current
combined association. Jim was a staunch supporter of the Association and a true
gentleman and I had the pleasure of working when I was the TSW Liaison Officer. Then on
21 st December, we also lost Ronald Trigger (3205 SC) aged 100. Ronald had only recently
become known to the Association after his son discovered our website. Both funerals took
place in January and were attended by members of both the Association and TSW.

Association Silver

Following the passing of Des Spruce, another of our Servicing Commando Veterans, his
family decided to make a very generous donation of £2000 towards Association funds. As
one of our last surviving Servicing Commando members, we wanted to use the donation in
memory of Des but also to celebrate the contribution made by all our Servicing Commando
members who served during WW2. Having given the matter a great deal of thought, we
have decided to commission a piece of silver to be used at Association and TSW functions.
The piece of silver will be a scale model of the Association Memorial Stones mounted on a
wooden base. The cost of the piece means that we will need to match the amount donated
by Mick and his family. We are currently exploring potential sponsorship of the President’s
Dinner as one option to raise the money. The other option will be to pay for the silver from
profits that have been generated through the sale of merchandise, commemorative coins
and beer on the Battlefield Tours.

Commemorative Coins

Over the last few years, the Events Member has commissioned a number of commemorative
coins to mark the London Cenotaph Remembrance Parades, Op BANNER and most
recently, the Coronation of King Charles III. In addition to the annual Remembrance Coins,
we are also planning to commission coins for all the operations that TSW have taken part in.
Hopefully these coins will appeal to the collectors amongst you. If you haven’t already
ordered your King Charles III’s Coronation Coin and you would like to, please do so soonest!

Future Events

Service of Commemoration for Flt Lt Dick Stubbs DFC DFM, 75(NZ) Sqn
Association member are requested to support a service of commemoration for Flt Lt Dick
Stubbs DFC DFM, 75(NZ) Sqn on Sun 23 Feb 2023, on the 80th anniversary of his death.
Flt Lt Dick Stubbs was the son of Noel and Rachel Stubbs of Stone, Staffordshire. From
1940 to 1941, he was a Sergeant pilot in Bomber Command. He flew Wellington bombers
with No 75 (New Zealand) Sqn from RAF Feltwell, completing thirty operations and being
awarded a well-deserved DFM. He was then commissioned and, after training new crews at
20 OTU at RAF Lossiemouth, moved to No 9 Sqn at RAF Honington where he flew
Wellingtons and then Lancasters (at RAF Waddington), completing another thirty operations.

With his huge experience he then joined the Air Fighting Development Unit, working with
trainee bomber crews to develop their air-fighting skills. Tragically he was killed when the
Lancaster in which he was demonstrating evasive manoeuvres to a new crew suffered a
serious structural failure. He managed to get the crew to bale out, but before he could bring
the aircraft back safely to RAF Elsham Wolds, in Lincolnshire, the Lancaster crashed into the
woods near Elsham Hall. Stubbs was aged just 22 and never received from the hands of
King George VI the DFC that he had also been awarded.
Commemoration Details:

• Sun 26 Feb 23, Christ Church, Stone (ST15 8ZB), starting at 1500 hrs.
• The Mayor of Stafford Borough and the Mayor of Stone will be attending the service
  along with other representatives including TSW, RAFA, the local Air Cadets,
  Birmingham UAS, No 9 Sqn Assoc and Stone Historical and Civic Society.
• Standards will be paraded, there will be a wreath laying at the memorial in Christ
  Church, and the Quintet of the RAF Regt Band will be playing.
• The Service will be followed by refreshments in the adjacent Christ Church Centre.
  Reunion Dinner, AGM and TSW Families Day
  The Association Dinner will be taking place on Fri 7 July 23 in the WO & Sgts Mess, Beacon
  Barracks, followed by the AGM and TSW Families Day on Sat 8 th July. Please check your
  emails, social media and the Association Website for further information and booking details.
  President’s Dinner
  The President’s Dinner will be taking place on Sat 19 th August 2023 at the National Memorial
  Arboretum. The dinner will be preceded by a short service at the Association Memorial
  Stones. Please check your emails, social media and the Association Website for further
  information and booking details.

And Finally…

I have decided to stand down as Association Chairman at the next AGM in July, due to an
increasing work load in my role with Oshkosh Defense. To ensure a seamless transition to
the next incumbent, I am making this public knowledge now to allow any willing volunteers to
make themselves known. So, if you fancy taking over as the Chairman, please email me
with stating your interest to: chairman.rafscdotswassn@gmail.com Expressions of interest
are requested NLT 30th Apr 2023.