Matthew Murray

Matthew was in born at Baybel on the Island of Lewis on the 29th of July 1925 but was brought up as a youngster at Beauly in Ross-shire. Although doing well at school he left at the age of fourteen to become an apprentice grocer, as his father was an invalid. However, the war intervened.

Matthew had lived through the days of the Battle of Britain and although there were no television pictures to impress his young mind there were thrilling reports on the wireless and in the press of the daring exploits of the RAF pilots who in their ‘greatest hour’ saved the nation from certain invasion. Like many youngsters of his day an interest in the RAF could be traced to those days. There was no desire to join the Navy or the Army it had to be the ‘Brylcream Boys’. They were the ‘Glamour Boys’ of the forces. So at the age of eighteen and a half he joined the RAF.

Before gaining an entry in the RAF he had to go to the Aircrew selection board in Edinburgh and was subjected to exams in Arithmetic and Geography and had to undergo medicals and a hearing test. One of the tests was to be put in a chair and swung round and round and then made to walk along a white line on the floor to see if he was dizzy. They also had a ‘ linked trainer’, which was a model of an aircraft (an early day type of simulator). After the instructors had explained the controls they then expected him to fly straight and level.

Matthew passed these entrance tests with flying colours and after his two days in Edinburgh he was taken before the selection panel and they told him he was to put in for PNB, which was RAF speak for Pilot, Navigator or Bomb Aimer (PNB) training. However, to their surprise, he told them he didn’t want to be a pilot, navigator or bomb aimer for earlier in the war Matthew had had the sad experience of losing a brother and he felt the need to do something to avenge his death. Therefore he carefully explained to them that the war was drawing to a close – it was 1944 – and if he went P N B he would have 18 months deferred service, the waiting time before he was called up and 18 months training and that would take 3 years and by that time the war would be over. Little did he realise that the war would be over the following year. They therefore asked him what he wanted. He replied, ”An air gunner – 6 months deferred service and 6 months training then I’ll get into a squadron and get going.”

Despite the fact that they told him their preference was that he trained as a pilot and that’s what they’d put down, he was granted his wish and was selected for training as an air gunner. For gunnery training he had to travel to Andreas on the Isle of Man but first was a stay in London for 3 weeks

where he undertook what was called ‘ your initial training.’ That was in Bridgenorth, Shropshire, here he learnt aircraft identification, a little Morse code, how to strip and assemble a browning machine gun and other useful skills.

Matthew’s Air Gunner badge

However, for some unknown reason he was also taught Arithmetic. Fortunately for Matthew this was ‘a piece of cake’ because it had been his favourite subject in school. The first day the education officer gave them a paper and he was finished in about 5 minutes. The education officer looked over and enquired, “ Cadet Murray, can you not do it?”
Matthew replied,” I’ve done it”.
With unbelief he asked Matthew to let him see it. Obediently he took it out and showed it to him.
“No use you sitting there,” he says, ”Go through next door and get a brush and sweep the floor.”
So Matthew, being quick to learn thought to himself, “Oh well! I' m not going to finish early the next day.”
But when the next day came Matthew couldn’t help himself and finished early again. Once more the officer enquired, “Finished?”
“Yes,” Matthew dutifully replied and imagined more floor brushing. However, this time his endeavours were rewarded in a more pleasing manner.
“Oh well. Go away and get into the queue for the NAAFI van.” ordered the Officer.

They say pride comes before a fall. On the final exam Matthew was too sure of himself and as the education officer came round he looked over Matthew’s shoulder and pointed at his paper. Every one of them had a mistake. The officer just lifted the paper away and came back with another and said, ‘Now do it properly.” Matthew didn’t need two tellings and he did it properly. However, after the exam was over the Officer says “Cadet Murray, I want to speak to you.”
Naturally Matthew thought it was because he had done the sums wrong. But no, he had placed the RAF in a predicament.

“You’ve put me in a spot.” The Officer tells him, “You’ve got 100% in your test paper but I can’t give you 100%. The RAF says nobody can prove 100%, so I’ve got to knock marks off somewhere and I can’t do it off your calculations. The only thing I could do it for is untidiness but I can’t really do that either it’s too tidy. Would you blame me if I knocked 1 point, 1 mark off you for untidiness?”
Matthew relieved it wasn’t for having made the earlier mess of his paper was quite happy to tell him, “You do what you want.” So he got 99% instead of 100%. Nobody was 100% perfect in the RAF if you dropped dead at 10o’clock in the morning you were A1 at 9o’clock. They didn’t make allowances that you were ill or anything like that.