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that I boarded the plane. First the pilot gave me a
very thorough lesson in the art of using a parachute,
and then crammed me into a narrow space which
was ordinarily the bomb bay, but which I was now
to occupy. ”It is best that you stay quiet”, explained
the pilot with a smile, lest the bomb bay doors on
which you are sitting should open. I would hate to
loose you.” Then I was given an oxygen mask, as
the plane was forced to fly very high, and we took off.
If I remember well, we left the Bromma airport
about eleven-thirty in the evening. Four hours later
our journey was over. Because of bad weather we
were unable to land at our destination, St. Leuchars
airdrome in Scotland. Instead we had to land on one
of the RAF fields near Lean Loss.
I spent the night there, very well cared for by
Squadron Leader Slade, and in the morning I shared
breakfast with the young RAF pilots. As always in
the case of English messes, especially those of the
RAF, a very informal atmosphere, typical of the
English, prevailed. In these messes, there is no
stiffnes between officers and men. They are all
comrades. They know how to be human beings
without violating service discipline. In such a group
of young aviators the mood is carefree, superficially
at least. They have become accustomed to living close
to death. When a comrade dies there is little said.
When I arrived in London the following morning,
I soon noted that there was much less destruction
there than in Berlin, and that the situation was not
as terrible and depressing. The cheerful atmosphere
I had encountered in the RAF messes in Scotland,
was to a certain degree, characteristic of the popu-
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