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General => Armed Forces => World War One => Topic started by: bjo on Monday 19 November 18 01:30 GMT (UK)
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I have the attached details for my Grandad William Daniel Daniels.
It is all I have and it looks like he joined up in the army in 1915. Then for some reason then joined the RAF in 1918 and didn't leave until 1920.
Was the transfer done often ? The writing is quite bad and I can't read much of the details
Many thanks
Brenda
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Hi Brenda
I wouldn't be surprised if transfers between forces happened fairly quite often. My grandfather started off with the Canadian Expeditionary Force and then transferred to the tank corps (British Army) about 1916. There was a call for volunteers to do this. He figured he'd be away from the front for at least six weeks' training, which might extend his life, so he volunteered to transfer and survived the war. Like the tank corps, the air force was just starting to develop during WW1, so perhaps there was a similar call for volunteers for the air force. There might be something about early recruitment for it in RAF history books.
Liz
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In a word. YES.
He was actually transfered from the Royal Flying Corps to the Royal Air Force when the latter was formed by the amalgamation of RFC and the Royal Naval Air Service in April 1918.
See the lines marked 'Dates of Entry' near the top of the form. Under 3. Current Engagement in H.M. Forces.
You may find these of interest/help:-
RAF Formation Info (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Air_Force)
TNA Guide to RAF records (http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/royal-air-force-operations/)
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I don't know so am guessing, but I wonder if some of his injuries while in the army made the airforce a possible place where he could continue serving. Less legwork involved perhaps?? As I say, just surmising, and hoping I am not leading you astray.
I notice he sustained some head and internal injuries whilst in the army. The dates for the flying corps and RAF are after two of his army injuries I think . . . . going back for a closer look.
Also I guess you can read that his discharge papers were sent to him in August 1919
Wiggy.
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His injuries are irrelevant. He would have to have a certain level of fitness to remain in any of the services.
To establish the Royal Air Force everyone in the Royal Flying Corps (army) would have been transferred on the 1st April 1918 to the RAF.
This man joined the RFC (Royal Flying Corps) on 11/12/1917 so would automatically be transferred to the RAF April 1918.
The 100th anniversary was celebrated this summer.
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Bit more interpretation of his record, As others have said, he had no choice in transferring, the (Army) RFC (and the Royal Naval Air Service) ceased to be on 1 April 1918. His trade in the RFC was Sailmaker/Upholsterer (planes were covered in fabric mostly) and overnight his RAF trade was upholsterer (on the back of the sheet you have).
Like all RAF records, the detail of previous service is very thin. He joined the army on 2 Jun 1915 and transferred to the RFC in November 1917. In November 1918 it mentions Sedgeford in Norfolk where he becomes Aircraftman Class 2 from AM 3 . His first RAF unit is No 2 SAG (School of Air Gunnery) at Marske near Redcar from which he goes to the dispersal center at Crystal Palace for discharge in 1919.
The scrawls at the bottom are copies from his medical card which show his having been wounded in 1916 entailing stays in hospital in France and UK and later in 1917 a bout of myalgia (muscle pain) also in France although the entries for that are confusing because they appear to have been copied in a random order.
Hope that helps make sense of the record?
MaxD
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His medal records are on Ancestry. They show that he didn't serve overseas until after the start of 1916 and that he served first in the Middlesex Regiment, then in the Army Ordnance Corps before transferring to the Royal Flying Corps in 1917. There are no dates to tell when he moved from one to another or to say which specific units he was with.
MaxD
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I am living and learning - thanks for this info!
Wiggy
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Many thanks to everybody for their replies. It is all very interesting.
I wonder why he served after the war had finished. He had a young wife and son at this time.
This man was my 'adopted' Grandfather as he was my Dad's uncle. My Dad was adopted in around 1921 after his own Father was killed in Flanders in 1917 and his Mother had died in 1921.
I remember that when I was a child this Grandfather made me a leather child's armchair, it was an exact replica of a grown up's one ! So his occupation of an upholsterer during the war must have continued.
He died in 1964 when I was around 14.
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Many thanks to everybody for their replies. It is all very interesting.
I wonder why he served after the war had finished. He had a young wife and son at this time.
. . .
He appears to have volunteered before conscription started so length of service could have been 6/7 years or '3yrs or duration of war, whichever was longer' introduced by Kitchener in 1914.
All conscripts were discharged by 31 Mar 1920.
Enlistment WW1 (https://www.longlongtrail.co.uk/soldiers/a-soldiers-life-1914-1918/enlisting-into-the-army/)
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Poor man ! Volunteered and then wounded in the war and not allowed to leave. I would have thought that volunteers would have left the forces as soon as the war ended if the wanted to, regardless of how long they signed up for.
I bet that his young wife and son had a financial struggle.
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There was a lot of unemployment after the war so maybe it was prudent to remain, for a time at least there was a small wage coming in. No unemployment benefit in those days unless you were in a union, I'm not sure if Parish poor relief still operated at that time.
And don't forget the RAF was only two years old and flying was not even two decades old, it would be considered exciting to be involved with aviation, so maybe that was why he stayed as long as he could until the PTB declared him surplus to requirements.
I'm sure I remember seeing somewhere that there was still opposition to the formation of RAF with demands for their numbers to be reduced as the war had ended.