RAAF veteran tells tale of his youth in service
Being colour blind did not hinder Living Gems Gold Coast veteran Neale Horrocks from embracing an Air Force career, which he credits for helping him find the right path in life.
In December 1951, Neale, a 17-year-old country boy, lived in a city boarding house. He was working at a job that was satisfying but had no future. Suddenly, North Korea decided that they should own all the Korean Peninsula and the Korean War began.
“I received ‘callup’ papers to be at RAAF Station Amberley on 10 December 1951. I was two weeks away from turning 18,” Neale says.
“I was processed, injected, yelled at, intimidated, and taught about the power of authority. It wasn’t too bad, unless you fought the system – and I soon learned that you couldn’t win.”
Neale made the momentous decision to sign on as a ‘regular’ where he was provided with good food, a good bed, good friends, and a chance to see the world.
“It seemed pretty good to me, and I received an excellent rating with my aptitude tests. But I was found to be colour blind, which prevented me from becoming part of the aircrew or being able to do any technical trade.”
He was sent to Melbourne to do a supply clerk course.
“Back in 1952, Melbourne was like a foreign country because it was before we even had TV. I spent almost three days on a steam train finally arriving in Melbourne in early May,” says Neil. “It was raining (as always), and it was colder than I’d ever experienced.
“When I changed to a domestic train for the last leg of my journey, I got off at the wrong station and had to carry my kit bag for a couple of miles in pouring rain and cold weather. I have never forgiven Melbourne for my welcome,” says Neale. “Some 70 years later, I still can’t!”
Several months had passed and Neale was at East Sale in Gippsland where it was even wetter and colder than Melbourne, with frosts like he’d never before seen.
“I made a lot of friends, enjoyed life, played all sorts of sports, and did a bit of serious drinking. But I met my beautiful future wife in that time, to whom I have now been married for 66 years.”
Family obligations saw him retire from the RAAF in 1974 with over 23 years of service under his belt. During those years he had dragged his wife and sons all around eastern Australia and he also served in Malaya during the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation between 1963 and 1966.
“We owned a house in Canberra, and I was quite happy to remain in the RAAF, but my sons were about to leave school and my mother was in ill health, so we packed our bags and came to live on the Gold Coast, in Southport, prior to building our own home at Coombabah where we lived for 36 years,” Neale says.
“We moved into our Living Gems home in Coombabah in 2017, and it has proved to be an excellent choice. We love living here, but I’ll never forget my time in service.”
