Glan’s plane was called a Fairey Swordfish.

It had two other men in it. 

They helped Glan find his way and used a gun to shoot at any planes which attacked them.

Groups of aircraft were called squadrons. 

Glan’s squadron flew across countries in northern Africa and southern Europe.

Sometimes he had to bomb ships in the Mediterranean Sea. 

He was then moved back to Britain for more training. He was taught how to fly from special ships. 

Now Glan was about to take part in one of the most dangerous missions of the war: an Arctic Convoy.

<table><thead><tr><th scope="col" colspan="2">Tricky Words</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th scope="row">Squadrons:</th><td>Groups of aircraft.</td></tr><tr><th scope="row">Convoy:</th><td>A number of ships moving together, so they can protect each other.</td></tr></tbody></table>

For much of the war Glan flew a plane called a Fairey Swordfish. In the aircraft with him were an observer and a telegraphist air gunner (who worked a radio to contact base and a gun to shoot at any planes which attacked them). All sat in open cockpits.

Groups of aircraft were called squadrons. In January 1941, Glan joined 815 Squadron and flew all around the Mediterranean, to and from countries in northern Africa and southern Europe.

Sometimes he had to ‘dive bomb’ ships. This meant he had to attack at a steep angle and let his bomb go at the last moment. 

In January 1942, he was recalled to the UK to work as an instructor. He flew from Cairo in Egypt to Freetown in Sierra Leone, and then boarded a British ship which took him to Glasgow in Scotland.

For a while Glan worked as an instructor ‒ training other pilots ‒ all around the UK. But he found that a little boring and he wanted to go back on missions.

Now with a new squadron ‒ 825 ‒ he started to learn how to take off from and land on ships specially adapted to take planes. 

His ship was called HMS Avenger.

Glan was about to take part in one of the most dangerous missions of the war: an Arctic Convoy.

<table><thead><tr><th scope="col" colspan="2">Vocabulary Checkpoint</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th scope="row">Convoy:</th><td>A number of ships moving together, so they can protect each other.</td></tr></tbody></table>

For much of the war Glan flew a plane called a Fairey Swordfish. In the aircraft with him were an observer and a ‘telegraphist air gunner’. Their jobs were to navigate the aircraft, communicate with base via a radio, and protect the aircraft with a machine gun. All three sat in open cockpits.

Groups of aircraft were called squadrons. In October 1940, Glan joined 805 Squadron and was sent abroad. 

He went first to what was then called the Gold Coast by the British ‒ it is now Ghana ‒ and then to Egypt. His role was to ‘ferry’ people and equipment from one place to another. He travelled to many countries, including Nigeria and Sudan. He often had to make long flights over the desert.

In January 1941, Glan was transferred to 815 Squadron, which, he said, was considered the ‘best in the navy’. His new friends at 815 had recently carried out a devastating attack on the Italian fleet in the port of Taranto.

Glan flew all around the Mediterranean, to and from countries in northern Africa and southern Europe.

He operated from Crete and later Cyprus, carrying out attacks on shipping and dropping mines into the sea. Sometimes he had to ‘dive bomb’ ships. This meant he had to attack at a steep angle and let his bomb go at the last moment. 

From August until December 1941, he flew missions to support the British 8th Army in the ‘Western Desert Campaign’, attacking German-held aerodromes and armoured formations in Libya and Egypt.

In January 1942, he was recalled to the UK to work as an instructor. Travelling home in those days, with war raging, was not easy. Glan left the banks of the Nile in Cairo on January 11 and made several stops as he flew south-west over the continent of Africa.

He arrived in Freetown in Sierra Leone on January 18, and then got on board a British ship on January 20.

He arrived in Glasgow, Scotland, on February 1.

For a while Glan worked as an instructor ‒ training other pilots ‒ all around the UK. 

But he found that a little boring and he wanted to go back on missions.

Now with a new squadron ‒ 825 ‒ he started to learn how to take off from and land on aircraft carriers ‒ ships specially adapted to take planes. 

One of these was HMS Avenger, an ordinary cargo ship which had been converted to carry aircraft. A flight deck ‒ or runway ‒ had been placed across the ship’s top, running for much of the 150-metre length of the ship. Aircraft were stored in a hanger underneath and moved up the flight deck by a large lift. The wings of Glan’s Swordfish ‒ which was a biplane with two sets of wings ‒ would fold back so that the plane could be stored.

Glan and HMS Avenger were about to take part in one of the most dangerous missions of the war: an Arctic Convoy.

For much of the war Glan flew a plane called a Fairey Swordfish. In the aircraft with him were an observer and a ‘telegraphist air gunner’.

Glan's War

Into Action