ForeverMissed
Large image
His Life

My life story as written by Peter Elliott when he retired from the RAAF

November 12, 2015
I have been told that my children will one day want to know some details about my life. So here we go!!  (A few dates have since been added by the family)

I was born at Catrick Army Camp in Yorkshire England on the 17th May 1936.  My mother was Mona Natalie Elliott (born 20 Jan 1898) and my father was George Stanley Elliott (born 3 Sep 1900). I had an older sister Eileen (born 20 May 1924) and two older brothers, Michael (born 13 March 1927) and John (born 6 October 1934).    

My father’s occupation was a grunt in the Army and according to my mother she married below her station!!

I was taken to Egypt so they tell me and I believe I was conceived in India but the first thing that I can remember was back in England at Twikenham during the Blitz.

I can recall that my school had an air raid shelter which was full of water. When the siren sounded the teacher would tell us to sit under our desks and if the bombs did not come straight away she would tell us to run home where we had a shelter in the back yard. One time however, the school took a direct hit and was not there when we returned.

It was all considered a lot of fun. We could see the white lines in the sky from the different aircraft and you could see the Buzz Bomb  (V1) flying by. When the engine stopped you never new if it was going to drop straight down on you or if it was going to glide.  Luckily one never dropped on us.

 I do remember one time playing in a large underground shelter with a friend when the siren sounded and like a good boy I jumped on my bike and rushed home However as I reached home I noticed another public shelter across the road that I had never been in, so I kept going and sat in this nice shelter listening to the bombs dropping outside.

What I did not know was that my mother was worried about me and sent my brother Michel out to look for me and who happened to be passing the shelter just as a bomb dropped down the road and the blast knocked him to the ground. Just at that moment the all clear sounded and I came out of the shelter full of smiles and I could not understand why my big brother wanted to kick me all the way home.

Brother John at that time also scared me, when he took me to the swimming pool and put a rubber ring around me in case I should fall in and then proceeded to push me in. I screamed so much that all the grown-ups scolded John.

We were living in my Grandfather’s house who had also been in the Army. In the hallway was this enormous painting of troops riding into the Valley of Death; with blood and bodies every where. What with bombs falling and this painting, it is a wonder I did not end up being slightly twisted!!!

While living at Twickenham my father came home on leave from the war (this being the first time I can recall seeing him), and because I answered my mother back when she called me for lunch he took to me with a leather belt. He told my mother afterwards that he would rather face the Germans than me because I bit and scratched him.

Much to my disappointment my mother decided to send me out of London to Cheltenham to live with my Aunty Moya.

All I can remember about this time was that I had a governess instead of going to school and I can recall my sister who was in the Land Army and my aunt sitting on me while they squeezed black heads out of my face (more abuse). My schooling at this time was with a governess.

After the war my mother, John and I moved to White Cottage in Nettleton, which was owned by my grandmother. 

My Father visited one day to tell my mother that he wanted a divorce, (this was the second and last time that I met him, He gave John and I 10 shillings each. John gave it back as a protest. I kept mine out of pure greed.

My grandmother was very strange’ she had a room upstairs looking over the front door and if she saw two dogs mating in the garden she would thump the floor with her walking stick. In fact she did the same if she saw me talking to a girl over the fence.

I went to school in the village where the teacher was a Mrs. Emett she wore a long dress down to her ankle and she was the owner of a thin bamboo cane. When I failed the entrance exam to the high school my mother sent me off to a Boarding school in Bristol where I was extremely unhappy and sick with Asthma, I would beg her to take me home with her when she visited me.

In the end she took me out of the boarding School and I went to Cannings College in Bath where they tried to teach me Latin and French.  Instead, I did very well in singing.  

We did not have a car so I would ride my bike every day to school and once a week to Scouts and on weekends I would ride fifty mile round trip’.

I was also booked into an Asthma clinic but got kicked out when the doctor found out about my bike.

My brother John decided to migrate to Australia and departed London on 23 November 1949 (P&O ship Chitral) and arrived in Fremantle on 22 December.  Michael followed shortly after in November 1950.   

My Grandmother (Alice Marion Browne) died on 4 February 1942, and in her wisdom did not leave the house to my mother who had been looking after her which meant we had nowhere to live.  My mother then decided to follow her two boys to Australia, so I was employed at a racing stable, as all ‘Australians’ had to be able to ride a horse.

In 1951, at the age of fifteen my Mother and I went to London to start our journey.  Just to put me in the right mood we went to see a film called Kangaroo with Chips Raffity and Maureen Ohara. It portrayed Australia as a place that had drought, snakes, bush fires, floods and savage natives.  I think if I could, I would have cancelled the trip.

On 6 August, 1952, our first class journey to Australia began on the ship, Orcades.  We docked at Fremantle on 28 August 1952 and I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered the shops full of food and sweets, as we had rationing in England.  I was also impressed when I spotted the Peters Ice Cream signs around the city.

Our final destination was Melbourne and when we docked John and Michael met us with their 1936 Buick. We drove to Tawonga South, Mount Beauty in the Kiewa Valley, where they had rented a house for mum and I.  We upgraded the car to a 1940 Buick soon after arriving.

The house was very basic with an outside toilet which must have been a shock for our mother but she never complained. She was happy that she had her three sons.  Soon afterwards John decided to become a chicken farmer, we were going to make our fortune with day old chicks, and was going to build a mansion for Mum.

I decided to clear the land of trees and blackberry bushes, which covered a small creek at the bottom of the property. It took three days before the black berries decided to burn and then I could not stop them or the mountain behind the creek from burning and I saw my first bush fire which took three days to put out with the help of the local fire brigade.

About the same time I joined the local Scout Group where I was the oldest boy and soon became Troop leader. I found the Scouts helped me settle into my new home. I bought a  bicycle like in Asbury and rode it fifty miles up a dirt rode to Mt Beauty ( I must have been crazy)

It was interesting to note that at Scouts, one of the Laws which we were supposed to live by was “A Scout is a friend to all and a brother to every other Scout no matter to what Country Class or Creed the other may belong” (little did I know how that Law would affect my life later on)

Every Friday night I would go to the local dance where we would dance the Waltz, Gipsy Tap and Pride of Erin. I can recall all the boys would sit on one side of the room and all the girls would sit on the other side. When the band started playing I would stand up, eye up one of the girls, walk over to her bow and say would you like this dance. She would say no and I would slink back to my side of the room like a puppy with its tail between its legs. It was not always like that I did end up with Judith who always danced with me and I actually was her partner at a Deb Ball!!!  I also took her on my motor bike which I bought in Albury, as I was too young to hold a Victorian license.  I had to pretend I had a home in NSW where I could get a license.

It was decided that I should earn my keep. So I found employment on a very small farm in the Kiewa Valley. The farmer told me on the first night that the “Code of the Bush” was that if you saw a snake you had to kill it, because if you did not, it could kill your best mate. Next day I came across a large red bellied black snake minding its own business basking in the sun, but the code had to be observed. So I found a large dead branch and smashed it down on the snake. The branch broke in two the snake went up the hill and I ran as fast as I could down the hill. At that stage I never had a best mate for the snake to bite.

One day in 1954, the boss told me to take the top off one of the trees on the farm. Of course I knew how to chop a tree down, one chop below the other but I was not aware that I should ring bark the trunk before starting. When the top decided to fall, the bark came around where my ladder was and I fell 12 feet to the floor with the axe I was using, landing inches from my head. I laid there for some time before the farmer came home and I was taken to hospital. I had chipped a vertebra in my back and I wore a steel brace for six months. The only good thing about that time was that I met Doris, a nurse at the hospital, who took me to square dancing brace and all. She also taught me First Aid for my Queen Scout Badge.

At aged 18, I decided the big smoke of Melbourne was for me.  So I loaded my motorbike with my worldly belongings and headed to the YMCA in Melbourne.

The first job was in a factory where they made emery wheels and my job was to stick the labels on both side of the wheel and then stamp the label on both sides. I lasted until mid day and left. The second was at Allens Sweet Factory when I soon found out that all the boys of my age had put their age up to receive higher pay. I thought this was unfair, so I fronted the boss saying it does not pay to be honest, he immediately gave me a pay rise and gave me the responsible job of keeping the girls in the packing room happy (making sure they had empty boxes to put the sweets in.)

It was not long before I spotted a recruitment sign in a tram stating full adult wage for all tram conductors.  As I had my body covered in spots from eating too many musk stick lollies, I became a Tram Conductor.

I found the job most enjoyable meeting a lot of people.  We had a system where if you saw a girl you liked you would give her a free eight pence ticket which you would recoup in the city when everyone was in a rush.

During this time I was awarded the Queen’s Scout Award which was presented to me by the Victorian Governor.  Mum was there and of course was very proud.

I also took on a Scout Troop in the slums of Fitzroy, which was an eye opener.

Just when I was about to be promoted to Tram Driver I received a letter from my Mother who was with John on a sheep and cattle station outside Goondiwindi saying there was a job available for me at the sheep Station.

I gave in my notice and caught a DC3 to Goondiwindi to become a ‘Pommy’ Jackaroo. It was very hard work but most enjoyable, I liked the open air and the animals especially the horses and the dogs.         

The road between Goondiwindi and the station was black soil, which meant that as soon as it became wet it would turn into mud and you could not drive or ride on it.  Many a night I would be at Scouts or the pictures and it would start to rain and I would stop what ever I was doing jump on my motorbike and try to get home before I became bogged.

 ohn and I worked well together, and Mum was happy even though it was a primitive life style.

John was up to his old tricks, I can recall a day I was driving a Blitz Truck in a paddock when a brown snake came flying into the cabin. I left the truck which was on open throttle, causing the truck to travel on without a driver until it hit a tree. What I didn’t know, was that John had found a dead snake and had flung it at me as a joke.

I enjoyed the station life until the flood came (1956) when we were in water all day. I even had to ride my horse into town to get supplies (John Wayne style). I also remember a Lincoln Bomber of the RAAF flying low over the homestead to make sure we were all right, I did not realize then how that plane would be connected to my future.

Soon after the flood I decided it was time to move on so I said my goodbyes to my friends and scouts fitted my suitcase to my motorbike, placed a ground sheet around it in case it rained and headed to Brisbane. 

About an hour out from Goondiwindi the ground sheet became loose and wrapped itself around the exhaust pipe and caught fire.  I lost all my clothes and worldly belongings but managed to save my bike even though I burnt my hands and had a hole in my pants. I was sitting on the side of the road feeling sorry for myself when the undertaker from Goondiwindi who I knew pulled up in his hearse and wanted to know if I wanted a hand. I immediately felt better and carried on to Brisbane glad to be alive.  On reaching Brisbane I stayed at the YMCA and realized that I had 300 pounds in the bank and nothing else. 

While I was in Goondiwindi I had met a Priest who told me what a wonderful life he had in the service when he was a Padre I guess that’s how I found myself standing outside recruiting, wondering which door I should walk through.  On 5 December 1956 I joined the RAAF and within 4 weeks I was in Richmond doing recruit training which I did not like. During that time I hitched a ride to Brisbane in my new uniform to see my mother and I spent my weekends in Sydney picking up girls on the Manley Ferry and taking them to Luna Park.  I was asked by my Drill Instructor whether I would I like an overseas posting, and as there were not any bases outside Australia I said yes!!

My first posting was to Townsville (26 April 1957), which took me 5 days by train from Melbourne as we had to change trains at Albury, Sydney and Brisbane.  Being steam trains we were covered in soot.

Wanting to make friends quickly I went straight from the train to the Cathedral still in my uniform and fell a sleep during the sermon. The priest who thought I was a drunk evicted me out when every one else had left (so much for the good impression).  After a bad start, I joined the Church Youth Club and met Pam, who just happened to be a Guide Leader. I also bought my first car, a Singer Sports.  I always thought with a RAAF uniform and a blue Sports Car I could not go wrong when it came to winning hearts.

I spent a very nice 12 months both at work and play but this all ended when that overseas posting I had applied for arrived in a posting to the new RAAF Base in Malaya, Butterworth on 21 April 1958.

I was very upset that the RAAF had upset my social life, but I had no option but to serve my country in the Malayan Emergency!!!!!

On arriving at Butterworth I started a Scout Troop for the children of the RAAF families and made friends with the local Scout Leaders.  It was not long before I was asked to run a Scout Troop at the local Reform School, which was a new experience and a lot of fun. The only snag was that when I explained to the scouts a game they understood me perfectly, but when I tried to teach them about knots and flags etc they could not understand.  One of the teachers at the school and also a Scout Leader named Patham suggested that his sister-in-law, who was a Ranger Leader might help me as an interpreter. I thought it was a good idea and before long this beautiful girl was helping me not only at Camp School but also with my RAAF Scout Troop.  Of course that girl was Kotha.

Over the next year we also started a Scout Troop at the British Army Barracks and also the Church Minister talked me into running the local Boys Brigade in Penang.  When we were not Scouting we were going to the cinema or talking for hours on the telephone - Kotha at the Nurses Hostel and me at the RAAF Base.

After a lot of searching my inner self I decided that Scout Law I had learnt those many years before about colour class and creed included getting married. I proposed over the telephone and was rejected or at least told to think about it for two weeks, before Kotha finally accepted. I then had to ask my Commanding Officers permission to get married.  He then placed me in a room with four Service Policemen who told me all the things that would go wrong with my life if I went along with this marriage.They also looked into Kotha’s past hoping to find that she had been a Bar Girl.  The Service Police Officer told me afterwards that if any mixed marriage was going to work it would be ours, as they could find nothing bad about Kotha.

We were married at St George’s Church in Penang on 4 April 1959, where my Scouts and Kotha’s Guides formed a Guard of Honor outside the Church (secretly organized by my Scouts Parents).  Kotha’s Mum and Dad were not in favour of the marriage. They did turn up to the wedding and this was the first time I met them. My mother, who also was not in favour of the marriage quoted Kiplings “East is East and West is West”. My sister Joan wrote a nice letter. 

We had a very happy time living in Penang first in Fettes Park and then Green Lane. We bought a Scooter. We were so much in love that we did not care about what other people thought and in time, most of Kotha’s  family accepted me as a ‘good guy’!!!!  We seemed to live on knickerbocker glories (a large glass of different ice creams and fruit), and I doubt if many films passed through Penang without us seeing it.  We also did some trips to KL.

Trevor decided we were having too good a time and decided to join us on 2 February 1960. 

He was a very lovely baby and we were very fond of him and in fact he went with us on the scooter.

We found out that as an Englishman I could take Kotha to England but I could not bring her to Australia. So I had to apply to become an Australian Citizen. Our happy lifestyle came to an end when we were told it was time for us to return to Australia.  My Citizenship had not turned up and we had to go to KL to see the Australian High Commission to ask them to let Kotha travel home with me. They agreed and so we left Penang on 3 December 1960 on a ship called the Johan van Oldenbarnevelt.

The trip lasted 14 days and was enjoyable. We even dressed Trevor up in the fancy dress for a parade where he caused quite a stir.  We disembarked in Brisbane on 19 December 1960 where my brother John was waiting to meet us. The Customs shed was very hot so as soon as I spotted John looking through a door I passed Trevor through to him to hold John and Kotha and John liked each other from the start.

The RAAF put us up in an old style PUB in Brisbane, which was not very pleasant, however as I was only a Corporal you put up with what they gave you.  I was officially posted to RAAF Base Amberley from 14 December 1960 – 27 January 1961.   

As we had such a good time in Penang we only had $600 in the bank, which was not much to start life with.    

Our posting to RAAF Base Williamtown was effective from 28 January 1961 to 14 January 1963.  On arriving at Williamtown we stayed at a Caravan Park in Raymond Terrace but as it was Christmas, we decided to drive down to Melbourneto to show Kotha a bit of Australia.

At Gundagai we stayed the night and left early the following day. Kotha noticed the front door of the car was not shut, opened it while I was driving at 60 MPH causing the door to fly open and dragging Kotha with it. She was wearing a dress and I grabbed its back while I hit the brakes, which saved her from leaving the car, even though she scraped her thumb on the road. As Kotha was three months pregnant with Andrew we called in at the next hospital and were relieved to find out that she was fine.

When we were in Melbourne, Trevor decided to escape from the house we were staying at and crawl out on the dual carriageway of the Nepean Highway bringing the traffic to a halt while one of the drivers delivered Trevor back to us. 

On arriving back at Williamtown we found a house in Nelson Bay and my Mum also stayed with us, which  nearly caused a split between us, as in her eyes Kotha was not good enough for her son, but we managed to ride the storm.

On 13 May 1960, Andrew decided to join the family and I had the privilege of witnessing his birth which was a very touching experience. 

I loved my two boys very much but I think I wanted a daughter and Leila arrived while we lived in Windsor on 14 March 1963. I was told by the Nurse to go home and not get in the way.  When we took Leila home, we had a nasty fright one day when Leila had a convulsion and we rushed her to Windsor Hospital and only just got her there in time.

We were very proud of our family every one commented how beautiful the children were  

When I was posted to Perth in January 1966 we drove to Port Perrie in South Australia and put the car on the train to Kalgoolie. It must have been a sight. The car had nappies flying out of the windows.  When we arrived in Perth there was no room in the Inn and we stayed at the beach sleeping in the car and washing in the change room.  We had just bought a Valiant Car on the Never Never, which meant mum had to find a job, which ended up being a Tip Top baker delivery driver. 

Soon after receiving a married Quarters in 14 Quondong Street, Nollamara in June 1966, I was attached to Ubon in Thailand for six months (30 June 1966 – 2 January 1967), which was part of the Vietnam conflict. Poor Kotha had to look after the family and keep her job which of course she managed to do.

On the way up to Thailand I stopped in Butterworth and I bought a walking/talking life size doll for Leila and a train set for the boys. The only trouble was that the doll spent six months at the end of my bed, which caused many a comment.

When I returned home (January 1967), I sent a telegram from Darwin stating that I would be arriving at Perth Airport at a certain time and expected my family to meet the returning hero!!! But no the telegram never arrived and I had to take a Taxi. On arriving home I tried to bribe the family, however all I can remember was Kotha asking Leila “what was it like having Dad home” and her reply was “nice but not as nice as the one that went away.”

In 1969, Kotha decided she would like to see her family in Malaya and I think maybe show off our children, which we were still very proud of. We had booked a ticket from Perth when I spotted at work an English C130 arriving from Singapore every two weeks. I contacted the British Embassy who told me that if the pilot had room he could take Kotha and the kids, so we arrived all dressed up with bags not knowing if the pilot would take us. Thankfully, when I asked the pilot if he had room he said that if he did not he would soon find some. So once again we were separated.

On Andrew’ birthday (13 May 1969), very bad racial riots occurred in Kuala Lumpur where Kotha and the children were staying and on 14 May, a State of Emergency was declared as retaliatory killings continue. Graphic descriptions on the TV were very bad and caused me a lot of concern as in those days you could not pick up the telephone or send an email. I ended up in June 1969 getting approval for Leave without Pay plus recreation Leave and I caught a bus across the Nullabour to Adelaide where I also caught a Royal Air Force (RAF) plane to Singapore.

One of the main reasons for us visiting Malaysia was that I had been promoted to Warrant Officer and there was not a position for that rank in Butterworth as the position was held by an RAF Warrant Officer. However shortly after returning to Perth the English decided not to replace their Warrant Officer and we were again back in Malaysia on 17 July 1971. 

One of the first things we bought was a Volvo car, as we wanted to see the countryside and of course visit relatives. I believe we had a good stay in Butterworth and returned to Newcastle on 16 January 1974 and we were housed in a married quarter at 45 Rathmines Place Williamtown on the southern side of the base. 

I discharged from the RAAF on the 5 November 1978 following a 12-month posting to RAAF Base Glenbrook (Operational Command) as the Command Fire Inspector.  Kotha and the children moved to 13 Park Street, Mayfield while I was in Glenbrook to provide some stability in their senior years of school. 

Following a 5-year break from the RAAF, I joined the RAAF Reserves in 1983 and was posted to 26SQN (RAAF Base Williamtown) where I performed tasking as the Reserve WOFF Fire Inspector.  I spent the next 9-years in the Reserves until finally retiring at age 55 in 1991.

I consider I am the luckiest man alive - I have a wonderful partner in Kotha who I love dearly, I have three great children in Trevor, Andrew and Leila (no one could wish for better friends) and of course Steve and Anita and our wonderful grandchildren who we adore.

From my point of view, I think this brings to an end the story of my life (as written in 2000), however, others might see it from another angle. I hope there are many happy years ahead for all of us, but only time will tell.  I, with my family have had a wonderful life.

Military Honours and Awards:

November 12, 2015

Peter enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force on 5 December 1956.

During this service, he was awarded the following Military honours and awards.                                

Australian Active Service Medal 1945-75 with Clasps ‘MALAYA’ ‘THAILAND’ , Australian Service Medal with Clasp ‘SE ASIA’,  Defence Force Service Medal with First Clasp National Medal Australian Defence Medal, Long Service and Good Conduct Medal, Pingat Jasa Malaysia, Certificate of Outstanding Service


Peter was discharged from the Royal Australian Air Force on 5 December 1977. 

The picture shows Peter proudly wearing his medals at a RAAF Fireman's reunion in 2006.                                 

Peter Elliott, our father as told by Andrew Elliott at Peter's Memorial Service

November 12, 2015

We were fortunate growing up with Peter as our father, not only were we nourished and supported by his outstanding values, our childhood was full of new and wonderful experiences. 

We had a pet monkey; were introduced to exotic foods and driven to every imaginable destination during our school holidays; we made camps in the jungle; hiked on bush trails; wooped at monkeys and laughed with the kookaburras. 

I remember in 1969, he arranged for us, unofficially, an amazing flight on a Hercules transport plane so we could visit our relatives in Malaysia for the very first time. I still remember being allowed to stand behind the pilot while he landed the plane in Singapore.

I loved that our heroic fireman father also had a kind gentle and happy go lucky nature.

One example I remember in Malaysia in the early 70's was going with the family to an outdoor night market famous for its food stalls. One of the stalls was well known for its frogs legs and Dad had decided not only that he was finally going to give it a try, but he was going to make the order himself. In those days, not many stall owners spoke english so everyone was really keen to see if he would be understood.  When he came back we asked him how it went and he laughed and said that he was ok making the order, but when the man pointed to the cage and asked him to pick the frog he wanted, and he saw them all siting there staring back at him, he realised he could't condem one to death and ordered the Kway Teow noodles instead. 

He had such a great spirit for adventure. He seemed to find it at every stage of his life.

Whether it was the Battle of Britain of his youth, his escapades as a stockman in Mount Beauty, charming girls as a Melboune tram conductor, chasing burning planes in the Air Force, man handling shoplifters at the Karika Imports shop in Mayfield, or going down as the captain of his boat on lake Macquarie, Dad not only found adventure but also managed to get a great laugh in the process.

One day when taking the boat out, he saw that the trailer tyre was punctured and ask me to give him a hand to change the tyre. I helped him change it and Dad happily drives off to get the old one repaired. Next time I saw him, he tells how he was driving down Maitland Road and looking over to the left, he notices a tyre over taking him, bouncing up the curb and heading into one of the car lots. It now slowly dawns on him that it's his trailer tyre and that the nuts must have come off and he will be in big trouble it the tyre hits one of those shiny new cars.

To this day, there has been no convincing explanation on how it managed not to hit one of those brand new cars, or who was responsible for doing up the nuts on the spare tyre.

Dad came from a world where it was ok to fly by the seat of your pants, jump in with both feet first, and even rush in where angles dare not tread.

He was a wonderful character, a loving father and a beautiful human being.

Dad, you will be missed and we wish you all the best on your next great adventure.