A brief introduction and a nailing of my colours to the rudder - I've been researching this subject, off and on, since I discovered my late father was flown out on one of these Sunderlands, probably "Gert", otherwise known as "O" Orange/DP180 - I'm getting to a point now where it's becoming, dare I say... obsessive...?

One of your regular contributers, Alex Norton, has been most helpful (I passed on your message from your mum that is reciprocated from the Squadron Command, btw) in my research...
As I'm a newbie here I thought I'd post the obvious question first - how much has been posted here before and how much do you know - I have lots of facts and lots of questions to ask...
How many have seen the IWM footage...? I have some of it but have yet to commit to purchasing the rest of it... I have been speaking to one still living Chindit that was flown out but know very little of the crew, excluding Alex' father and a press article emanating from Ray Guertin RCAF - names I have, but little in the way of bios...
Ultimately I intend to try and get published; there will be no money in this for me as I intend to donate anything I might make to a Hebridean hospice where my father spent his last days - I also intend to be awkward as I am going to ask for any potential publisher to donate an equal or better amount to Macmillan Cancer Support - I lost both my parents to cancer and my wife's mother is in the last stages of lung cancer... This started as a bio on my father from his rough manuscripts, written in '97-'98, that were scheduled to be worked into book form by a chap called Norman MacDonald, a Scottish writer (mostly Gaelic language) and life-long family friend but unfortunately cancer took him before he could get past the drafts; the 1st three chapters were published in Scotland in '99, but this since grew into research on the Cameronians and a place codenamed "Blackpool", which grew again and went on to become detailing on 111th Indian Infantry Division and 230's involvement - my present research files sit at 23gb of data and many millions of words...
I'm also an associate member of the Squadron; after all, they're the only reason I'm here writing this...
I look forward to a long association with this forum and also look forward to any assistance that may be offered, regardless of how small or large it may be...
