Personal Recollections

Sheryl Joy English (Stewart)

MEMORIES OF 126 SIGNAL SQUADRON

1971 Was the great year that I went from 3 WRAAC Coy to 126 Signals, as I was the only female going I was encouraged to go to Transport, which was my second preference, but I wanted Signals. It was very intimidating with most of the males seeming to object to having females in the Unit. The girls there were great though. Sgt Margaret Dark, Sue Hamilton, Irene Lovell.

The training was interesting and different, my only regret would be that I could not parachute, but doing the unarmed combat made up for it I suppose, never been so bruised but the training was invigorating, I have since had the opportunity to use my skills to save myself. Thanks to Sgt Joyce & Sgt Hammond

In 1973 Is when we first went to Western Australia, First time in a Herc, I made out my will the night before, we were all seated in the plane and it seemed forever that the engines were running, so I assumed it was a good take off, then someone had us all stand up, turn right and left and march off, all I could see was the person in front of me but I was frantic because I did not have a parachute on and I thought we were flying and being let off at great heights, to my relief when we got to the door way we were still on the ground and due to mechanical failure of some sort we had to board another Herc. Was an adventurous trip, the girls were staying at Karakatta Barracks, home of 22 Construction as I remember, but we worked at Swanbourne Barracks, home of the SAS. The work was great, the friends we made were just as good, and life long ones at that. The girls, being Kris, Ann, Robyn, Marion, Irene and myself. We made up a scrap book for the guys at Parabadoo, with a section for each person, to cheer up their days. If I recall it was this trip that when we came back we all had to do morse training again as they could pick up our idiosyncrasies, was true, we could tell who was sending morse by they way they did it. At times it was comforting to know who was on the other end.

The next year we went back again, to yet more fun. But this time out at Lancelin, where our water supply was stolen, so we got somewhat smelly, we kept on the move, little sleep, walked into a tent one night and found the barrel of a rifle in my stomach, the sound of tanks will always be with me, they way they sound you cannot seem to know their direction, I slept on the front of a land rover one night wrapped around the spare tyre so the tanks would not run over me. The Mackies would fly over and we would have to get out our rifles and shoot at them.
The times spent at Swan Island, the radio shack sending out morse and at times the radio would be on and "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" would echo across the water as we were fishing off the jetty, my problem was I felt sorry for the fish and would put them back in the water, much to the annoyance of the fisherman who caught it. The nights spent playing 500 (although I could never get that game, I was a bystander).

I enjoyed teaching morse to the newer members who were having trouble grasping it, on weeknights in their own time.
The friendships that were formed back then are just as current today, we can pick up after 10, 20 even 30 years like it was yesterday, some unfortunately are not with us any more, but their memory lives on. One such great friend would be Paul Taylor , he was a character and a half and it would not seem right that he not have a mention.

I never realised till recently how important it was the work that we did, it took me by surprise but the defence is in my blood and I seem unable to stay away from it.