Winston James
DSC
b.1941
Pilot
RAN Helicopter Flight Vietnam
HMAS Melbourne, Jun 1965 - Jun 1965
HMAS Sydney, May 1967 - Jun 1967
Dong Tam, Sep 1970 - Jun 1971
Excerpt from Story Board
I’d always wanted to be a pilot. My mother saw an ad in the paper, saying that the Navy was looking for pilots. She told me I should apply, which I did. In August 1958 I put on the uniform for the first time, and commenced 24 years of service in the RAN. Best time of my life. I sure as hell would do it again.
My longest day was 15 and a half hours, mainly strapped in. Often the rear-seat crew had to work even longer. It became very rough for the ground crew because they were working in very primitive conditions. It was unbelievable what they could do with those aeroplanes.
Service No. O1901