Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Service profile of Allan VIAL, as published in the Australian Gold Coast Branch of the Aircrew Association around 2009. Copy held in the RAAF Museum at Point Cook.

Allan John Vial DFC, PFF, OAM, Chev LH [Fra], OPR [Pol], COM [Pol], MRIN served in the Royal Australian Air Force from December 1941 to September 1945, graduating as an Observer on 3 February 1943.

DFC Distinguished Flying Cross
PFF Permanent Award of the Pathfinder Badge
OAM Medal of the Order of Australia
Chev. Ld’H [Fra]
Chevalier French National Order of the Légion d'Honneur
OPR [Pol] Officers Cross Order of Polonia Restituta
COM [Pol] Gold Cross of Merit with Swords
MRIN Member Royal Institute of Navigation

On his journey through the Service, Allan trod the path of many aircrew both before and after. For the record, his progress on No. 30 Course began at No. 4 Initial Training School (ITS) Victor Harbour, SA; followed by No. 2 Bombing and Gunnery School (BAGS) Port Pirie, SA; No. 2 Air Navigation School (ANS) Nhill, Victoria; No. 4 Embarkation Depot (ED) Hazelwood Park, SA; No. 2 ED Bradfield Park, Sydney; via USA to UK and the familiar movement from 11 PDRC Brighton home base to the UK 'toughening-up' course at Whitley Bay, near Newcastle in England's north; then on to No. 10 (O) Advanced Flying Unit (AFU) Dumfries, Scotland; and No. 20 Operational Training Unit (OTU) Lossiemouth, Scotland. From No. 4 Battle School, Driffield, Allan went to 1256 CU Marston Moor and was then posted to PFF, joining No. 35 (RAF PFF) Squadron at Graveley, England, on 18 May 1944, after spending 10 days at Pathfinder Navigation Training Unit (PFNTU) Warboys. He was also at Catterick for a short period.

He operated in the European theatre of war with Path Finder Force (PFF), completing 64 operational sorties as a member of No. 35 (RAF PFF) Squadron. During his operational time with PFF he was a Bomb Aimer and Radar Navigator, and was one of the few PFF Navigators who held a dual endorsement as 'Primary Blind Marker' and 'Primary Visual Marker' in a Master Bomber Crew.

During Allan's service, aircraft types in which he flew were Avro Anson, Airspeed Oxford, Wellington 1C & X, Halifax 3, and Lancaster 1 & 3.

In recognition of the large number of operational sorties he flew, and his prowess in his category, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Returning to Australia in mid-1945 via Panama on SS Rangitata, Allan was transferred to the RAAF Reserve of Officers from No. 5 PDRC Springbank, SA.

06 JUN 44. Tue. Our attack at 14,000’ opened the Second Front. Whizzo. Gee, was everyone happy. On the way home, great masses of barges were visible on the H2S screen and visible to the naked eye through wisps of thin stratus clouds. Kites all over the sky, Bombs everywhere. Brenda got a job in Hunts. (Brenda was a lass I had met at a dance in Cambridge. Her fiancée was a 35 Sqn Navigator; he had been shot down and was a PoW of the Germans. Thus we were good friends. Everyone happy. Oh Boy, will be home with Pat soon. A/g 380. We went out on that raid not knowing this was to be part of the second front. Thus, I was amazed to see the scene develop on the H2S screen as we turned away from the target on the planned exit route which was well planned to allow all of the other bombers to access the sky over their particular enemy coastal targets. Also we did not realize it would be nearly a year before peace was in place.

My Log Book records: -

6.6. 44 0045 TL-B F/O Roberts 6 Red 10x500 lbs Ops Lounges 3.20 Night.

The actual bomb load amazes me as it shows we were supposed to have six Red Target Indicators. A much better load for us would have been HC (hard case) 1000 pounders.

Debrief: - 11 x 1000 GP (General Purpose). 4 x 500 lbs GP dropped at 0422 hours from 11,000 feet on a heading of 202ºM at a speed of 155 knots. Weather: 8-10/10ths thin stratus cumulus, up to 11,000 feet. Target identified and bombed on GEE and ‘Y’. Good picture. No markers seen but large red glow and occasional bomb flashes seen through cloud.

SQN Records: - Shortly after midnight sixteen aircraft took off to attack Coastal Gun Sites, five aircraft at Maisy and nine at Longues. (ed Note - the Longues sur Mer battery is these days one of the 'must see' sites of Normandy. ) All returned safely reporting successful attacks. Fourteen aircraft were detailed for operations but the number was later reduced to four. Two aircraft acting as Master Bomber and Deputy Master Bomber respectively took off at 2310 hours to attack the Rail Head at St. Lo. Both returned to base reporting a reasonably successful raid. Thus only two crews were fully operational on that day, when the call went out for 14 aircraft to be “on line”.

07 JUN 44. Wed, Very happy that the Second Front is on and that all is going well. Wish that we could fly every night and bomb them to hell where he deserves to go. He will really get in the neck this time. #381 Flying.

My Log Book reads: -

7.6.44 2345 TL-B F/O Roberts Set Opr Ops Foret de Cerisy Supporters 3.40 Night

Debrief: - 18 x 500 GP (General Purpose) dropped at 01.49 hours from a height of 8,500 feet, on a heading of 100ºM, at a speed of 175 knots. Weather: - no cloud – slight haze. Smoke. Target indicators seen for several minutes on run up to target. First green and then red backing up. Target could not be visually identified. On run up, two red target indicators on ground backed up by two other greens followed immediately by two green. Also large column of smoke rising up to approximately 6000 feet. Very numerous bomb bursts. Target indicators and bombing very concentrated. Master Bomber could not be understood, only instructions, heard, “Bomb greens”. Approximately 5/6 miles east one red and one green indicator seen on ground at 0146 hours. One stick of bombs seen to burst in this area.

SQN Records: - Soon after midnight two aircraft set out to attack Chateaudun, carrying out duties as Master Bomber and Deputy Master Bomber. Also sixteen aircraft took off shortly before midnight to attack an ammunition Dump at Foret-de-Cerisy. All the aircraft returned safely and reports indicated fairly concentrated bombing.

POST-WAR TECHNIQUES OF A NAVIGATOR

Leaving school the year after World War 2 started, my first job was as a clerk, then as a
survey cadet with the South Australian Department of Lands.

At age 18, I joined the RAAF, and on graduating from ITS, I was the only volunteer from a
course of 200, to train as an Observer (later ‘Navigator’). At the time, it seemed to me to
be a logical extension of my training in survey work, and could be of advantage to me in
my survey career post-war. That instinctive decision was to lead me to my life’s work as
you will see.

My Member’s Profile records my experience in the RAAF, and upon demobilization, I
returned to my pre-war occupation, but the ‘flying bug’ was well and truly resident in my
veins. I realized that I had a creative capacity within me which became a strong and
enthusiastic desire to develop and improve the standard of navigation in aerial photo
surveying, thus combining both of my interests.

Choosing as a ‘trial horse’, a DH Fox Moth with an open cockpit and an enclosed cabin in
the nose, I designed and supervised modifications appropriate to my requirements.
A demonstration to the South Australian Department of Lands proved its effectiveness,
and I was asked to set up an aerial survey unit. Funds were provided to charter an Avro
Anson, and to purchase the latest Wild aerial survey camera and allied navigating
equipment.

Although photo survey had been performed for some time by the RAAF and private
companies, South Australia was the pioneer in raising the standards in this field. Later,
because of my experience, I was consultant to the Departments of Lands in NSW, WA
and Tasmania when those Departments decided to set up similar units. In addition, I
educated students under the Colombo Plan of training.

Being fascinated by by the art of precise and accurate navigation, I was self-driven to
research and develop techniques to improve tracking standards and to eliminate gaps.
Those gaps had been regular features of survey flying for many years, and they required
costly additional flying to fill the missing detail necessary to provide complete photographic
coverage.

In those early days, I was navigator, radio operator (using a Morse key), and camera
operator.

The survey flights were made at 18 500 feet, and despite fur-lined flying suits and boots,
both the pilot and I froze on each flight.

At that height, old explorer tracks, not visible to the naked eye at ground level, could be
picked up by the camera and recorded on film. Aerial photography was, and still is, of
great use in archaeological exploration.

For twelve years, up to 1962, I stayed with the Aerial Survey Unit. During that period,
Trans-Australia Airlines (TAA) had won the contract with a DC3, so I was now flying in
shirt-sleeved comfort and operating at 27 000 feet. Expert overseas comment was made
at that time, that the particular DC3 was the best-set-up aerial survey aircraft in the world.
It was complete with darkroom and an array of sophisticated navigational equipment,
installed to my design and layout.

However, after that period of time, I felt that my creative ability was being stifled by the
bureaucracy, so I resigned to set up a private consultancy in survey techniques.
Some time later, I accepted the position of Operations and Sales Manager with Aero
Service Corporation, an American survey company involved in photographic and
geophysical surveying. Having not previously been involved with mineral search using
airborne magnetometers, I found that the same stringent parameters for flightline control
applied. That situation provided a further challenge, as operations were at heights of
between 150 and 500 feet. New problems had to be solved!

In 1966, I was appointed by HUPL to the position of Field Manager for the Bureau of
Mineral Resources helicopter gravity survey contract in the remote Cape York Peninsula
area.

The contract began in April, continued until the wet season just before Christmas, then
recommenced the following April and ran until July.

During that time, I was not only administrator, but also airstrip and helipad builder, doctor,
cook, handyman and ‘father confessor’.

The constitution of the work party varied, but was usually of the order of 3 to 4
helicopters, 2 fixed-wing aircraft, 5 vehicles and up to 32 people. Food and fuel had to be
flown in, airstrips surveyed and prepared, and camps broken and set up again in different
areas throughout that vast and lonely land.

Pre-planning was detailed, vital and never-ending. The responsibility was great and the
problems were diversified and many. Decisions had to be made on the spot and justified
in retrospect, as reference back to Sydney Head Office was time-consuming and
sometimes impossible due to lack of adequate communication.

On completion of that contract,I returned to Sydney and joined the Marketing Division of
‘Airfast’, becoming the Director of that Division. The company represented a number of
overseas companies which manufactured a wide range of items associated with the
Aviation Industry. In fact, we covered all of the Aviation Industry and all of its peripherals.
In that position, I spent a considerable time overseas, visiting the principals of the firms we
represented, or selling their equipment, much of which was very complex, successful
sales often being very lucrative to my firm.

Mentally, I have changed the expression ‘Sydney or the Bush’ to ‘Sydney AND the Bush’,
for I was at home in either place. Developing an intimate knowledge of Australia’s
virtually uninhabited interior through my work, has given me a unique understanding of the
nexus between the ‘Dreamtime’ and the present.

I surveyed and cut airstrips with the help of the Central Australian Pitjantjara tribe, of
which I am a blood brother, and some of those airstrips are still usable in an emergency.
Having flown over 15 000 hours as aircraft aircrew, I have never held a pilot’s license, nor
have I wished to. As an aside, my ability to pilot an aircraft once saved my life - but that’s
another story.

In the retired aviation fraternity, there are many who, when asked what their role in life
was, will reply ‘Pilot’. In my case, when asked that question, I reply simply (with a degree
of pride) ‘Navigator’.