Radio Technical Officers
Foreword
Acknowledgements
Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1: The Early Years
Chapter 2: The Training School
Chapter 3: Equipment Installation Records
Chapter 4: The 'Techs' in Antarctica
Chapter 5: The 'Techs' Tell Their Stories
Trevor Donald Tells It All; Life in the Bureau from 1947 to 1989
Ray Clarke Looks Back
Some Memories from Ralph Bulloch
Peter Copland Works in Meteorological Electronics
Some Titbits from Dave Grainger
A Very Modest Tale from Alf Svensson
Adrian Porter Pulls No Punches
Jack Tait Recalls
Some Stories by Colourful Freddie Soutter
Some Snippets from Noel Barrett
Stephen Courbêt Has His Penny Wworth
And a Flyspeck or Two from Lenny Dawson
Some Interesting Reminiscences from Jannes Keuken
Brief Stories from Phil Black
From Gloria West, Wife of the Late Bob West
The Life and Bureau Times of Graham Linnett
Tales Out of School from Bill Hite
Peter Copland on Cyclone Tracy
Peter Broughton Tells the Story of Maralinga
Appendix 1: 'Techs' Roll Call
Appendix 2: Trainee Intakes
Appendix 3: 'Techs' Who Have Served in the Antarctic Region
Appendix 4: Summary of Major Installation Projects
Appendix 5: Summary of Major Equipment Variously Installed at Sites and Maintained by Radio Technical Officers
Index
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Trevor Donald Tells It All; Life in the Bureau from 1947 to 1989 (continued)
I applied to the Postmaster-Generals Department (PMG) for an amateur radio station license and was duly allocated the call sign VK2FR. In amateur radio circles, Lord Howe was classified as a separate country and being the only amateur station on the Island I had a very busy time whenever I put out a general call. I operated CW on 20 metres into Europe and North America. I was running 100 watts from a pair of 807s in push pull configuration and on the receiving side I had an excellent receiver assembly conceived by Ray Missen, the resident Senior Observer (Radio) at the time.During this period I also enrolled with the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) and completed a television servicing course.
In December 1960 the family made a hurried exit from the Island. Dot was expecting another baby and things started to go wrong. We all departed on the flying boat for Sydney; Dot as a stretcher patient with an attendant nurse and with Peter, Fiona and myself close by. On arrival in Sydney Dot was whisked into Crown Street Women's Hospital. The following morning, 29 December, a Dr McBride delivered our second son, Hugh, by Caesarean section. Mother and child were both well. In due course and after some recreation leave on the mainland we all returned to Lord Howe Island.
In 1961 we received word that I had been selected for an Observer (Radio) course in Melbourne. We had about two weeks to pack our personal effects and head for the mainland. After seven years on the Island it was rather difficult to leave our Island friends so abruptly. We still maintain friendly links with the Island.
I left Dot and the children in Blayney with Dot's parents and then headed for Melbourne. On this occasion the Training School was located in Grants Building, Swanston Street. After I had settled down I started to look for furnished accommodation and, eventually, I managed to rent a summer cottage near the beach at Frankston. Dot and the children joined me within a few days of signing the lease.
There were six of us on the training course; Jannes Keuken, Joe Grey, Neil Davies, Ray Clarke, John Byrne and myself. The instructor was John MacDermott. Something of a coincidence here as John Byrne and myself were both ex-Air Force with a radio background, were both on Observer Training Course No 6 in 1947 and John relieved me in the Solomon Islands when I was transferred back to Australia. Now here we were both on the same Observer (Radio) course. I don't believe our paths ever crossed again.
People in Bright Sparcs - Clarke, Raymond W.
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