Photographs
Bloodhound Groups - RAF Watton
RAF Watton 1962/63 (thanks to Martin Gorner)
B Flt 263 Sqn with Bloodhound 1
1 SAC "wee Mac"
2
3
4
5
6 SAC Tony Fragel
7  
8
9 (not B Flt)
10
11 (not B Flt)
12
13
14
15
16 Cpl "Rocky Parkinson
17
18 (not B Flt)
19 SAC John Brooks
20 (not B Flt)

21 Cpl Tech Pete Lowe
22 Cpl Denis Dorey,
23
24 Sgt "Mac" McKean
25
26
27 Flt Lt Bill Lewis
28 Flt Sgt Downs
29 Ch Tech Jack Creffield
30 Cpl Geoff Jones
31 SAC Martin Gorner

Martin said that those to the rear who are marked as not B Flt personnel may be A Flt, HQ staff or other engineering support staff either having been photographed or waiting to be and just "getting in the way".

On a Norfolk photograph Facebook group Martin spoke of his history with Norfolk; he wrote:

"I have no particular connection with Norfolk except that I worked and lived in the County between 1961 and 1963. I was stationed at RAF Watton with 263 Bloodhound Surface to Air Missile Squadron on the Griston site, on the far side of the airfield. I would occasionally visit Ma Slaughter's shop in Griston village, as did my father, and his colleagues, when he was stationed at the Griston site, as aircrew, in the early '50s. Most weekends, I would visit my wife to be in Cambridgeshire by cycling down to Brandon to catch a train to Ely or Waterbeach. I would cut through the Stanford Battle Area (made famous latterly as the setting for "Dads' Army), somewhat spooky especially on a foggy night. Sometimes, if my working hours allowed I would catch a train from Watton station to Thetford. I learnt to drive whilst there, under the instruction of Barrie Thompson, who had an office in Watton town, his mother also had a shop on the corner of the Thetford Road. At the second attempt, I passed my driving test in Norwich and, in later years, following my departure from Watton, my wife and I would come up from Cambridgeshire to shop in Norwich. A favourite place of a colleague and myself, after we had finished as projectionists at the Watton Astra cinema, was The Flying Fish pub, run by a lovely couple, Cliff and Dorothy. In later years, if in the area, I would make a point of calling in there. Unfortunately, I don't have many photographs taken during my time there, the few that I have are of the Bloodhounds or of Squadron personnel, one of which I include here (I am far right, end of the front row, aged 20) . Hindsight says that I should have taken more of the area but that's hindsight for you, still, I now regret that I didn't."



Please tell us any names you can add