First published in Great Britain in 2004 by
Pen & Sword Aviation
an imprint of
Pen & Sword Books Ltd
Copyright Francis Roy Chappell, 2004
9781783409501
The right of Francis Roy Chappell to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the Publisher in writing.
Typeset in 10/12pt Palatino by
Phoenix Typesetting, Auldgirth, Dumfriesshire
Printed and bound in England by CPI UK
The Publishers would like to thank Andrew and other members of the Chappell family for their help during the preparation of this book for publication. Also the many members of the Saville family who have delved into their archives to find photographs and other important reports and memories of Donald Savilles life and career.
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Acknowledgements
I n undertaking a biography one soon becomes aware of the debt owed to the many people and institutions who provide information and help of various kinds during the years of research and writing. While one may intend to acknowledge all such assistance it is almost inevitable that some people are overlooked. To anyone in that position I offer sincere apologies and thanks.
Those who were in at the beginning include Professor Michael Roe of the University of Tasmania History Department and Mr Hugh Campbell, formerly a senior officer in the Tasmanian Education Department, who kindly acted as referees in an application for a research grant from the Australian War Memorial. This application was successful in 1985, some time after correspondence with the manager of the Commonwealth Portland Cement Co. Ltd at Portland, N.S.W., had revealed that members of the Saville family, including two brothers of Wing Commander Donald Teale Saville, DSO, DFC, were alive and living in New South Wales. The manager provided addresses and the first stage of detective work was well in progress.
From this point on Mr Frank Allsopp of Taroona was most helpful as typist and manuscript reader, showing admirable patience and good temper in all circumstances!
In some approximate order of contact I wish to thank:
John and Mollie Saville, Norman and Jean Saville, Peter Phillips, Mrs Judy Bowen, Mrs Peggy de Seriere, Mr Bert Fawcett W/Cdr Dereck French, F/Lt Harry Godfrey, Air Commodore A. E. Mather
F/Lt H. M. Fuller, F/Lt T. Howes, S/Ldr Leslie Manfield, F/Lt John Showell, F/Lt John Stanley, S/Ldr R. J. Ginn, F/Lt S. M. Boylan, F/Lt Colin Corten, W/Cdr G. H. N. Gibson, Air Commodore C. J. Mount, G/Capt Hugh Mansell, S/Ldr P. E. Mackay, F/Lt Leslie Ward, F/Lt Neil Watkins, F/Lt W. McRae
Peter Anderson, F/Lt Eric Lloyd, F/Sgt Dave Rodden
F/Lt W. K. Dunn, Professor David Gumby
John Harrison, Harry Whelan, W/Cdr F. R. Graeme-Evans, Lindsay Millar.
Captain John Presgrave, Captain Arthur Lovell, Captain Peter Gibbes, Mrs Inez Laurie, Mrs Marguerite Pixley
F/Lt W. J. Kenton, S/Ldr Ian Ryall, S/Ldr G. M. Rothwell, S/Ldr L. E. Skan, F/Lt Piper, John Brengelmans, Mrs Cedric Eyre, F. and C. Clitheroe, R. Kent, W/Cdr W. J. Smith
Mrs Margaret Alderson, Mrs I. Benedek, Karen Atherton
Martin Middlebrook, the Australian War Memorial Staff, the RAAF Museum, Point Cook, the RAAF Archives Branch, Canberra, the Air Historical Branch, Ministry of Defence, London, the RAF Bomber Command Museum and Library, Hendon, the Public Record Office, Kew, the Friends School, Great Ayton, Yorkshire.
Dusk is our dawn and midnight is our noon:
And for the sun we have the silver moon.
We love the darkness and we hate the light,
For we are wedded to the gloomy night.
The Night Bombers, Paul Bewsher 1917
BRIEFING
Men in the Briefing Room
Aircrews listening laughing
At Intelligence assessment of target defences.
Pilots sensitive cynical and silent
Envisaging searchlights fighters and flak
Navigators serious and laden with met gen
Bomb aimers bewildered by mission changes
Wops absorbing fresh call signs and channels
Engineers minds switched on fuel tanks and gauges
Mentally checking each engines performance
Gunners grim determined and restless
Eager to test guns early in flight.
Groundwork done and planning over
War in the air and the target ahead.
FRC
Foreword
by
Air Commodore A. E. Mather, DFC, AFC, RAAF (Retired)
A s well as feeling honoured at being invited to write this foreword, I also feel a sense of unique history in that I was a contemporary of both the subject, Wing Commander D. T. Saville, DSO, DFC and also of the biographer, Squadron Leader F. R. Chappell, RAF, having seen service with both during the critical period of the war in the Middle East from the loss of Tobruk and the retreat back to the Delta area to the Allied breakthrough of the enemy-held line at El Alamein.
Don Saville I came to know both personally and professionally over a series of wartime coincidences (although I suspect he had a large hand in arranging some of these). We first met when I and a fellow Australian pilot were posted to 21 OTU, Moreton-in-the-Marsh in August 1941. Don approached us and, introducing himself, threw us the keys of his car with the words: Im going away for the weekend - I guess youve got a drivers licence. Have a look around the local countryside. This was typical of his personal kindnesses and thoughtfulness towards his subordinates. We were brand-new pilot officers and he was a squadron leader at the time; a world of difference in those days. In similar vein I knew him to bring out bags full of goodies for distribution to the troops after special trips to Cairo etc. - all at personal expense and effort to himself.
I next met Don briefly at 12 Squadron, Binbrook, which was my first posting out of OTU. With the advent of Australian squadrons he was posted as Flight Commander to 458 Squadron, RAAF at Holme-on-Spalding Moor. I was subsequently posted to the same squadron in February 1942. After some operations over Europe and two ferry tours to the Middle East, I was again reunited with Wing Commander Saville as my commanding officer at 104 Squadron, RAF Kabrit. This again, I suspect, was the result of Savilles persuasiveness with the hierarchy, as he had recently asked me, How would you like to join me in the war in the desert? From this period on I served under Don Saville as commanding officer of 104 Squadron with Roy Chappell (known to all of us aircrew as Chappie) as our intelligence officer.