John Evans (1942-). Royal Air Force, Brecon

Description

John Evans was born in 1942 and attended Christ College School in Brecon where he acquired a passion for rugby which served him well throughout his chosen RAF career. As a boy entrant, John underwent supply trade training in RAF Hereford before receiving his first posting as a Senior Aircraftsman at RAF Stafford. In 1963, John was posted to 86 Movements Unit in Dusseldorf on the Rhine, to a unit commanded by a former WWII Air Gunner. It was here that he met Carol, but it was only after a gap of some 40 years that they met up once again and married. Posted to the UK in 1966, John was stationed at RAF Lyneham before being shipped out to Bahrain where he remained for the next 13 months. Promotion to Corporal with postings back to Stafford, then to the Shetland Islands and finally onto Thorny Island including a detachment to Northern Ireland brought John’s 12-year RAF career to a satisfactory conclusion. For the next 31 years, John served in Huddersfield with West Yorkshire Police. John and his first wife Jacqueline had two sons. After the loss of his first wife, John and Carol connected again, and for the past 6 years have lived in Southwestern France. John tells his own story through his audio recording and his written account. Interviews conducted December 2020 to January 2021.