We spoke to Warrant Officer Donald Campbell about his childhood in Jamaica, life in the RAF, and his new project which highlights the contributions of British African and Caribbean people to the UK.
Warrant Officer Donald Campbell was a Survival Equipment Technician then Training Manager at RAF Cosford and has received two commendations for meritorious service and this is his story.
Can you tell us how you arrived in the UK?
“I was born in St Thomas, Jamaica, in 1951. My father emigrated to the UK when I was four, and my mother when I was seven – I didn’t see them again until I joined them in Birmingham when I was 13.
“They wanted to give the family more opportunities. Growing up I would hear about the UK and its links to the Commonwealth countries, and it was passed down to me as a young child that England was the place to go; the ‘mother country,’ we used to say.
“When I first arrived, my goodness – the climate! In Jamaica the rain on the roof at night was my music, and it sent you off to sleep. In the UK I would look out of the window and see the snowflakes coming down and think “Wow, that’s just like music, only visible.”
Donald, age 18, on basic training at RAF Swinderby, 1969.
The UK of the 1960s is a very different place to today – how were you treated when you arrived?
“I didn’t even know the word ‘racism’ at that point, but when I was out in Birmingham I would notice curtains twitching and people staring out at me. When I looked they would tap their nose. I remember thinking “what does that mean?” I’d never seen anybody do that before. When I asked my mother she said “it means that you’re being nosy,” I explained that they were the ones looking at me, and she just said “well, it’s because of the colour of our skin – take no notice.”
“At school it was almost expected of you to not achieve; despite the fact that in the UK school children were being taught things I had learned two years previously in Jamaica. They put you in the category of “he’s black, he can play cricket, football and athletics; but nothing more.”
“You could also easily find yourself in trouble with the police – I was once arrested, interrogated and searched just for walking down the street. I was a law-abiding churchgoer and it still happened.”
How did you decide to join the RAF?
“From the age of about 15 I knew I wanted to join the armed forces. I don’t know what influenced me; I wanted to see a bigger world.
”I visited the Navy careers office and decided that the sea was not for me. I had subconsciously ruled out the Army so I went to the Royal Air Force careers office. Honestly, it’s been a thousand times better than I thought it would be.
“I was about sixteen when I applied, and it was a very friendly atmosphere from the start. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do; they offered me certain trades, one of which was survival equipment technician. Working with aircraft and travelling the world? That’s for me! But even during training I noticed that I had to be three times as good as the next trainee to get the same acknowledgement.
“I served in Northern Ireland, Gibraltar, Belize, Sardinia, Norway, Denmark, USA and the Falklands. I was lucky to be primarily on operational units, serving with 17, 18, 19, 20 and 617 (Dambusters) Squadrons. The aircraft ranged from Shackletons, Victors, Phantoms and Jaguars, to Tornados and Wessex helicopters.”
Dressing for a flight in a Jaguar, Germany, mid-1980s.
What kinds of survival equipment were you working with?
“The three main elements are assisted escape, life support and survival. The aircrew have to be adequately clothed in their flying suits and other items, including helmet and oxygen mask for communication. They are also equipped with an ejector seat which contains a life raft and a parachute, also maintained by my trade.
“In the event of an emergency they pull the ejector seat handle and out they come; and in most cases they survive. They end up on the ground or in the water with a life raft and life jacket that automatically inflate.”
Did it play on your mind that people entrusted their lives to the equipment you were maintaining?
“Totally. It has to work first time – every time, otherwise the individual very likely dies. It’s drummed in and it doesn’t ever leave you. So, when you’re maintaining the equipment, everything is done by the book.
“I’ve had several experiences where people have ejected, and they’ve come back to say: “Thanks, the equipment worked. Let’s go and have a drink.” And, of course, you have the opposite of that, where for whatever reason, it doesn’t work and there’s a fatality.”
You ended up as Trade Manager at RAF Cosford – how did that compare to being on squadrons?
“Initially I didn’t want to go – because I loved being on operational units. But there was a promotion from Sergeant to Flight Sergeant so of course I went. When I was a trainee I viewed the sergeants and flight sergeants running the school as ‘old boys’, but now I was the one running the school, and every four weeks I had 12 new trainees aged from 16 to 29.
“That was a big adjustment for me. There was no other rank above me in the trade, so I was actually manager of the whole school. You very quickly learn a lot about people. You have to manage the staff – both civilian and service personnel – and the trainees. They’re boys and girls, so my first message to them on the day they arrived was: “Do not forget that I was young as well, so I know the tricks that you’re going to get up to; don’t do it!”
“It was very educational, and very challenging. Being Trade Manager was the hardest thing I ever did, but I knew I had a lot to offer because I’d learned so much over the years.”
Donald meeting the Duke of Kent at RAF Wyton.
Could you tell who would be a good trainee from the start?
“You can certainly see the calibre of the individuals, and I could also judge whether or not they fit in the post, and how they would fit the trade. “If you were the best trainee in your course of 12, you won the Beaufort Prize. But then you get the opposite of that, the people with really bad reports. I’d say “okay, let’s hear your problem,” and there could be many reasons why they weren’t doing well. Sometimes just talking to them and using my own experience, the change would be amazing.
Donald at work as Training Manager.
“However, some people just did not fit. One young man was not good enough to stay in the RAF, despite being given numerous chances. He decided to leave a threatening message on my answerphone. It was full of expletives and commented on my colour and where I was from. He said he knew where my family lived and ended with: “Because of you I’ve got to leave the Air Force. There is a bullet in the chamber of my .45 waiting for your head.”
“I played that message again and again, then called the RAF Police and was placed under armed protection. In no time the whole of RAF Cosford was surrounded with police, and when they went to the trainee’s room and put the handcuffs on him they found two guns.
“He was a one-off though, and generally it was fantastic to see individuals arriving as shy and introverted youngsters and growing into a confident airman or woman.”
Did you experience any racism while in the RAF?
“Often. And I can give you a classic example. I was at the station headquarters filling in the form for a particular overseas posting. The young lady who worked there was watching me, and suddenly said: “Oh, you can’t go there.” “What do you mean?” I asked. “Because you’re black,” she replied. Then she went and got a document and started showing me where it was written that black personnel couldn’t be posted there. Her boss saw what was happening and almost broke her arm as he snatched it away from her.
“I just wanted to serve, as did every other black serviceman and woman, but we were told we couldn’t because of the colour of our skin.
“Thankfully by the end of my RAF career I’d seen a change. And last year I was invited – along with the late Jamaican WWII RAF veteran Albert Jarrett – to the RAF’s annual BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) conference at RAF Hendon as guest speakers. What an eye opener! All the ranks, up to Air Vice-Marshal, had contributions of people of colour. And there’s now a whole BAME network where people can plug into to talk about issues and get advice from people with shared backgrounds and experiences. You can have a mentor, or be a mentee, and it means you have a listening ear.
“The RAF is great now, and even during my career most people were great – we all just got on. It was only certain individuals that were challenging.”
Warrant Officer Donald Campbell, RAF Cosford, 2004.
Recording the everyday experiences of British African and Caribbean people is something you’ve really championed since leaving the RAF. Can you tell us about how and why you chose this?
“I retired as a Warrant Officer in 2006, and went on a few RAF-arranged courses to become a driver as I really wanted to run my own executive chauffeuring company, which I did for the next 16 years. I carried professionals around the country and, whenever they asked me about my past, I spoke about the Falklands, or Belize, they would be fascinated. But when COVID came along and nobody was travelling, my work dropped off completely. I was nearly ready to retire anyway so I just closed the company down.
“However, when one door closes, another one opens. I always knew there were a lot of people in the world – African, Caribbean, British – with stories to tell that weren’t being told. So, I started The Forgotten Generations project in May 2021 to record their individual life stories and experiences.
“I learned about Zoom and quickly began interviewing people of British African and Caribbean descent. These interviews are freely available online. To begin with I especially wanted to talk to WWII veterans as they’re all in their 90s or older. I’ve now interviewed quite a few and it’s the first time many have had their experiences recorded. I think it’s important that they’re telling the story in their own words.
“These people came to the UK to serve, but they didn’t always have an easy time of it. I interviewed one 100-year-old RAF veteran last year from his home in Jamaica. He arrived from Jamaica during WWII along with seven others, and they trained as radio operators. He told me that all eight of them achieved top marks when deciphering what was being transmitted over the radio, but they were told that they could only hear so well because they had come from the jungle, and were used to listening out for lions and tigers.
“It’s so important to record these stories – good and bad – because now we can show the youngsters in our communities that there are people just like them who have triumphed over adversity and become successful in their lives and careers. It also helps to show the diverse variety of avenues open to them, and what they can also achieve if they put their minds to it.”
A thank you letter from the Prime Minister, congratulating Donald on his Point of Light Award in June 2022.
Main image caption: An idyllic beach scene in Jamaica. Courtesy of Andrew Coelho via unsplash.
All other images © Donald Campbell.
Can you tell us how you arrived in the UK?
“I was born in St Thomas, Jamaica, in 1951. My father emigrated to the UK when I was four, and my mother when I was seven – I didn’t see them again until I joined them in Birmingham when I was 13.
“They wanted to give the family more opportunities. Growing up I would hear about the UK and its links to the Commonwealth countries, and it was passed down to me as a young child that England was the place to go; the ‘mother country,’ we used to say.
“When I first arrived, my goodness – the climate! In Jamaica the rain on the roof at night was my music, and it sent you off to sleep. In the UK I would look out of the window and see the snowflakes coming down and think “Wow, that’s just like music, only visible.”
Donald, age 18, on basic training at RAF Swinderby, 1969.
The UK of the 1960s is a very different place to today – how were you treated when you arrived?
“I didn’t even know the word ‘racism’ at that point, but when I was out in Birmingham I would notice curtains twitching and people staring out at me. When I looked they would tap their nose. I remember thinking “what does that mean?” I’d never seen anybody do that before. When I asked my mother she said “it means that you’re being nosy,” I explained that they were the ones looking at me, and she just said “well, it’s because of the colour of our skin – take no notice.”
“At school it was almost expected of you to not achieve; despite the fact that in the UK school children were being taught things I had learned two years previously in Jamaica. They put you in the category of “he’s black, he can play cricket, football and athletics; but nothing more.”
“You could also easily find yourself in trouble with the police – I was once arrested, interrogated and searched just for walking down the street. I was a law-abiding churchgoer and it still happened.”
How did you decide to join the RAF?
“From the age of about 15 I knew I wanted to join the armed forces. I don’t know what influenced me; I wanted to see a bigger world.
”I visited the Navy careers office and decided that the sea was not for me. I had subconsciously ruled out the Army so I went to the Royal Air Force careers office. Honestly, it’s been a thousand times better than I thought it would be.
“I was about sixteen when I applied, and it was a very friendly atmosphere from the start. I didn’t really know what I wanted to do; they offered me certain trades, one of which was survival equipment technician. Working with aircraft and travelling the world? That’s for me! But even during training I noticed that I had to be three times as good as the next trainee to get the same acknowledgement.
“I served in Northern Ireland, Gibraltar, Belize, Sardinia, Norway, Denmark, USA and the Falklands. I was lucky to be primarily on operational units, serving with 17, 18, 19, 20 and 617 (Dambusters) Squadrons. The aircraft ranged from Shackletons, Victors, Phantoms and Jaguars, to Tornados and Wessex helicopters.”
Dressing for a flight in a Jaguar, Germany, mid-1980s.
What kinds of survival equipment were you working with?
“The three main elements are assisted escape, life support and survival. The aircrew have to be adequately clothed in their flying suits and other items, including helmet and oxygen mask for communication. They are also equipped with an ejector seat which contains a life raft and a parachute, also maintained by my trade.
“In the event of an emergency they pull the ejector seat handle and out they come; and in most cases they survive. They end up on the ground or in the water with a life raft and life jacket that automatically inflate.”
Did it play on your mind that people entrusted their lives to the equipment you were maintaining?
“Totally. It has to work first time – every time, otherwise the individual very likely dies. It’s drummed in and it doesn’t ever leave you. So, when you’re maintaining the equipment, everything is done by the book.
“I’ve had several experiences where people have ejected, and they’ve come back to say: “Thanks, the equipment worked. Let’s go and have a drink.” And, of course, you have the opposite of that, where for whatever reason, it doesn’t work and there’s a fatality.”
You ended up as Trade Manager at RAF Cosford – how did that compare to being on squadrons?
“Initially I didn’t want to go – because I loved being on operational units. But there was a promotion from Sergeant to Flight Sergeant so of course I went. When I was a trainee I viewed the sergeants and flight sergeants running the school as ‘old boys’, but now I was the one running the school, and every four weeks I had 12 new trainees aged from 16 to 29.
“That was a big adjustment for me. There was no other rank above me in the trade, so I was actually manager of the whole school. You very quickly learn a lot about people. You have to manage the staff – both civilian and service personnel – and the trainees. They’re boys and girls, so my first message to them on the day they arrived was: “Do not forget that I was young as well, so I know the tricks that you’re going to get up to; don’t do it!”
“It was very educational, and very challenging. Being Trade Manager was the hardest thing I ever did, but I knew I had a lot to offer because I’d learned so much over the years.”
Donald meeting the Duke of Kent at RAF Wyton.
Could you tell who would be a good trainee from the start?
“You can certainly see the calibre of the individuals, and I could also judge whether or not they fit in the post, and how they would fit the trade. “If you were the best trainee in your course of 12, you won the Beaufort Prize. But then you get the opposite of that, the people with really bad reports. I’d say “okay, let’s hear your problem,” and there could be many reasons why they weren’t doing well. Sometimes just talking to them and using my own experience, the change would be amazing.
Donald at work as Training Manager.
“However, some people just did not fit. One young man was not good enough to stay in the RAF, despite being given numerous chances. He decided to leave a threatening message on my answerphone. It was full of expletives and commented on my colour and where I was from. He said he knew where my family lived and ended with: “Because of you I’ve got to leave the Air Force. There is a bullet in the chamber of my .45 waiting for your head.”
“I played that message again and again, then called the RAF Police and was placed under armed protection. In no time the whole of RAF Cosford was surrounded with police, and when they went to the trainee’s room and put the handcuffs on him they found two guns.
“He was a one-off though, and generally it was fantastic to see individuals arriving as shy and introverted youngsters and growing into a confident airman or woman.”
Did you experience any racism while in the RAF?
“Often. And I can give you a classic example. I was at the station headquarters filling in the form for a particular overseas posting. The young lady who worked there was watching me, and suddenly said: “Oh, you can’t go there.” “What do you mean?” I asked. “Because you’re black,” she replied. Then she went and got a document and started showing me where it was written that black personnel couldn’t be posted there. Her boss saw what was happening and almost broke her arm as he snatched it away from her.
“I just wanted to serve, as did every other black serviceman and woman, but we were told we couldn’t because of the colour of our skin.
“Thankfully by the end of my RAF career I’d seen a change. And last year I was invited – along with the late Jamaican WWII RAF veteran Albert Jarrett – to the RAF’s annual BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) conference at RAF Hendon as guest speakers. What an eye opener! All the ranks, up to Air Vice-Marshal, had contributions of people of colour. And there’s now a whole BAME network where people can plug into to talk about issues and get advice from people with shared backgrounds and experiences. You can have a mentor, or be a mentee, and it means you have a listening ear.
“The RAF is great now, and even during my career most people were great – we all just got on. It was only certain individuals that were challenging.”
Warrant Officer Donald Campbell, RAF Cosford, 2004.
Recording the everyday experiences of British African and Caribbean people is something you’ve really championed since leaving the RAF. Can you tell us about how and why you chose this?
“I retired as a Warrant Officer in 2006, and went on a few RAF-arranged courses to become a driver as I really wanted to run my own executive chauffeuring company, which I did for the next 16 years. I carried professionals around the country and, whenever they asked me about my past, I spoke about the Falklands, or Belize, they would be fascinated. But when COVID came along and nobody was travelling, my work dropped off completely. I was nearly ready to retire anyway so I just closed the company down.
“However, when one door closes, another one opens. I always knew there were a lot of people in the world – African, Caribbean, British – with stories to tell that weren’t being told. So, I started The Forgotten Generations project in May 2021 to record their individual life stories and experiences.
“I learned about Zoom and quickly began interviewing people of British African and Caribbean descent. These interviews are freely available online. To begin with I especially wanted to talk to WWII veterans as they’re all in their 90s or older. I’ve now interviewed quite a few and it’s the first time many have had their experiences recorded. I think it’s important that they’re telling the story in their own words.
“These people came to the UK to serve, but they didn’t always have an easy time of it. I interviewed one 100-year-old RAF veteran last year from his home in Jamaica. He arrived from Jamaica during WWII along with seven others, and they trained as radio operators. He told me that all eight of them achieved top marks when deciphering what was being transmitted over the radio, but they were told that they could only hear so well because they had come from the jungle, and were used to listening out for lions and tigers.
“It’s so important to record these stories – good and bad – because now we can show the youngsters in our communities that there are people just like them who have triumphed over adversity and become successful in their lives and careers. It also helps to show the diverse variety of avenues open to them, and what they can also achieve if they put their minds to it.”
A thank you letter from the Prime Minister, congratulating Donald on his Point of Light Award in June 2022.
Main image caption: An idyllic beach scene in Jamaica. Courtesy of Andrew Coelho via unsplash.
All other images © Donald Campbell.
Air Mail
This article first appeared in the October 2022 issue of Air Mail magazine. To receive Air Mail, join the RAF Association and opt for our members’ magazine.
