[Routine Order] SQUADRON ROUTINE ORDER. NO.69/43 21 SQUADRON, S.A.A.F.

Thursday, 16 September 1943 Other

Document

SQUADRON ROUTINE ORDER. NO.69/43 21 SQUADRON, S.A.A.F.
by
LT. COL. J. F. BRITZ, D.F.C.
Officer Commanding,
21 Squadron, S.A.A.F.,
U.D.F., M.E.F.,
16th September, 1943.
Para. 249. DISCIPLINE - DRESS. Commanding Officers are to ensure that personnel permitted to visit towns are correctly and cleanly dressed, and it is the duty of officers to set an example in this respect.
The R.A.F. and Military Police have been instructed to charge all personnel whose dress is incorrect or dirty. The result of every charge is to be reported to Rear Headquarters, Desert Air Force. Where the only award is admonition the reasons for so limiting the punishment must be stated in the report.
Commanding Officers of Units whose personnel are found to offend against dress regulations with frequency will be called upon to account for their failure to enforce these, and towns will be placed out of bounds to all personnel of those Units.
In future all ranks including Officers, of and below the rank of Lieutenant, when permission has been given to them to visit any town in Sicily, Italy or elsewhere MUST report to the Adjutant correctly dressed before leaving the camp.
(RHQDAF/2009/P.1. d/d 11.9.43.)
Para. 250. CENSORSHIP. The restrictions on mentioning place names and relating personal experiences in private correspondence are now relaxed. In order to clear up any misunderstanding the following are the precise limits which must be observed.
(1) Personal experiences up to 17th August, 1943 may be related, but not with names of places in Sicily or with names of units or formations, or dates.
(2) Places visited, outside Sicily on route, may be named, but without dates or names of units or formations.
(2) Names, numbers and types of shipping, and date and time of sailing must not be mentioned at all.
(ARC.38/307 d/d 10.9.43.)
Para. 251. ROAD TRAFFIC. Drivers and passengers in vehicles are forbidden either to trade with civilians on the roadside or to make gifts to them.
Such practices induce pedestrians and particularly children to run into the roadway in the path of moving vehicles thereby causing serious accidents.
Any personnel wishing to deal with civilians are to dismount from the vehicle before doing so.
(ARC.38/309 d/d 10.9.43.)
Para 252. DISCIPLINE - DRESS. Attention is drawn to all ranks that Mosquito Boots are not to be worn during the hours between sunrise and sunset.
(ARC.38/311 d/d 10.9.43.)
Para. 253. PAYBOOKS. All paybooks are to have a hole punched through the cover at the top left hand corner, a button is to be sewn on the inside of the flap of the left breast pocket of all shirts and tunics and must be carried at all times.
Paybooks to be attached to the above mentioned button by means of a cord 30 inches in length.
(ARC.37/43. d/d 3.9.43)
Para. 254. DENTAL PARADE. The following personnel are to the Orderly Room at 0800 hours on the 20th September.
No. 95645V. Lt. Flinders, B.H. No. 328610V Lt. Harle, J.O.
206915V. F/Sgt. Fineburg, B. 336214V F/Sgt. Allen, L.W.
99745V A/Sgt. Greyling, A.J. 97785V A/Cpl. Millar, H.J.
543456V. A/M. Gilbert, J. 191079V A/M Kember, S.J.
99404V. " Jordaan, J.D.

Transcriber's Notes

Transcriber's Notes
* Expanded Abbreviations:
* S.A.A.F.: South African Air Force.
* U.D.F.: Union Defence Force (the official name of South Africa's military).
* M.E.F.: Middle East Forces.
* LT. COL. / LT.: Lieutenant Colonel / Lieutenant.
* D.F.C.: Distinguished Flying Cross.
* R.A.F.: Royal Air Force.
* F/Sgt.: Flight Sergeant.
* A/Sgt.: Acting Sergeant.
* A/Cpl.: Acting Corporal.
* A/M: Air Mechanic.
* d/d: Dated.
* Observations on Individuals:
* Lt. Col. J.F. Britz, D.F.C.: The Officer Commanding of 21 Squadron. Records indicate he led the squadron during the pivotal move from North Africa to Sicily and finally into Italy. He was a "hands-on" commander who flew operational sorties alongside his crews.
* Lt. B.H. Flinders: Appears on the Dental Parade list. He is also noted in Order 67/43 as a member of a Court of Inquiry regarding a vehicle accident.
* F/Sgt. Fineburg (Finberg), B.: Listed for the Dental Parade. He appears as a Wireless Operator / Air Gunner on the squadron's nominal roll (No. 206915V).
* Location and Historical Context:
* Cuticchi, Sicily: While the town name is not explicitly in this specific order, concurrent records place the squadron at the Cuticchi landing ground near Catania on this date.
* Operation Avalanche: This order was issued during the critical first week of the Allied invasion of the Italian mainland at Salerno. The relaxation of censorship (Para. 250) regarding the Sicilian campaign (ended August 17) highlights the shift of the strategic focus to the new front in Italy.
* Mosquito Boots (Para 252): The restriction on wearing these at night (reversing common practice) was likely related to standardized dress discipline as the squadron prepared for "civilized" occupation duties in Italy, despite the high malaria risk in the Salerno plains.
* Paybook Security (Para 253): The elaborate instruction to sew buttons and use 30-inch cords to secure paybooks reflects a significant problem with lost documentation during the rapid tactical movements of the period.
* Civilian Interaction (Para 251): The ban on trading with civilians while driving was a vital safety measure. In the chaos of liberation, children frequently swarmed Allied vehicles looking for chocolate or cigarettes, leading to many tragic "non-combat" fatalities.

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The target file 276-2__8.jpg does not contain a formal "Date" column; however, the correct image is verified by the date 19th September, 1943 prominently displayed in the document header.