can someone help me

this may sound silly, im just trying to find out what my dad did, i lost him a year ago, and never got to ask him questions i wanted to find out. I know he fought in the fulkands and when i was born in 1986 he was in germnay i know this as i was born in munster, and on my birth certificate there is: HQ BAOR G1 Comp (BMD) written on there and my dad occupation was :24165548 Sergeant R Signals. what was going on in germany at this time.
hope someone can help i miss my dad so much and i wish i could of spend more time with him to find out what he did,and what it was like in army. im properly wasting my time but it was worth a shot.

makkapakka wrote:

this may sound silly, im just trying to find out what my dad did, i lost him a year ago, and never got to ask him questions i wanted to find out. I know he fought in the fulkands and when i was born in 1986 he was in germnay i know this as i was born in munster, and on my birth certificate there is: HQ BAOR G1 Comp (BMD) written on there and my dad occupation was :24165548 Sergeant R Signals. what was going on in germany at this time.
hope someone can help i miss my dad so much and i wish i could of spend more time with him to find out what he did,and what it was like in army. im properly wasting my time but it was worth a shot.

First off, I think I speak for all of us here, when I offer my condolences on the loss of your father such a relatively short time ago. A loss is always painful and we have all gone through it, and will do so again in one way or another.

Now to more cheerful things

With a number like 2416xxxx, I would say that your father joined the Army around about 1978/79 (using my own number as a reference, I joined in October 1979) ( old age getting to me. I meant 1968/69 and 1979, thanks Teabag). I will leave it to our resident Scaleys to bring you up to speed on where he would have gone, and what he would have done first.

Some things that may help us to help you, and I realise you seem to know very little about him. But you may know more than you think. It may seem a little long winded, but who knows??

Most importantly, what was his name?
Do you have any idea at all what his trade was?
Was he with a Signal Regiment/Squadron, or attached to another unit?
When did you leave Germany?
Do you remember anything about Germany?
Where did you go when you left Germany?
When did your father leave the Army?
Where else have you tried to find information (For example, have you tried sending for his Service Record)?
Have you tried the Royal Signals Association
Where you born in BMH Munster, or a civilian hospital?

The fact that you were born in BMH Munster does not mean that he was stationed there. It could have been anywhere within a large radius.

Try taking a look at the site below to see if it jogs any memories:-

http://british-army-units1945on.co.uk/Royal_Signals.aspx

If anything brings back memories, let us know. There are a lot of helpful people on this Forum and we all appreciate the comradeship of ex-service.

Hope this helps,

Paul.

thank you for your help, really apperciated. my dads name was james phillip paine,he was with the signal regiment, we left germany about 3 years after 1986, and moved to aldershot being there for 2 years we then moved to warminster i was born in a bmh.My dad left us when i was 5 whilst living in warminister and my dad moved to seafood he must of left the army by then as i remembered him being in the TA as he could no longer stay in the army due to him throwing a grenade in to this house and had his medals taken of them, he continued in the TA untill 5 years ago. on my birth certificate it says - 2 sqn 21 sig regt (AS) RAF detachment Osnabruck BFPO 36 if that makes any sense to you.

Either stay on line or come back in 30 minutes please

Paul.

makkapakka wrote:

thank you for your help, really apperciated. my dads name was james phillip paine,he was with the signal regiment, we left germany about 3 years after 1986......... on my birth certificate it says - 2 sqn 21 sig regt (AS) RAF detachment Osnabruck BFPO 36 if that makes any sense to you.

That makes a lot of sense. I have cut out the bits that I want, and this does not mean that I care nothing about the other bits.

For a start, 2 Sqn, 21 Sig Regt (AS) means that he was in 2 Squadron of 21 Signal Regiment. RAF Detachment means that there was a deatachment of either the Squadron or Regiment working an RAF Station, or possibly more than one Station in support of Air Operations.

The puzzling bit is the BFPO 36. This is, as you state, Osnabruck but it seems that 21 Sig Regt was based at RAF Wildenrath between 1971 and 1992, moving to Wiltshire in the Summer of '92.

Also puzzling is the use of 2 Sqn as all Signal Squadrons were re-numbered in the 200 Series in the late '50's. Yet there is an entry on this page:- http://baor-locations.com/ScarboroughBarracks.aspx that shows 2 Squadron )One of the Sinals members will probably be able to explain it better than I can). So he would have been in Osnabruck at the time of your birth.

There is a Forum for 21 Signal Regiment here:- http://www.old21sigsmates.co.uk/ Try it, you never know.

If he was in the TA, it is quite possible that he moved across to 43 (Wessex) Signal Squadron (V) who were/are under the command of 21 Sig Regt. They also have their own website here:- http://www.army.mod.uk/signals/organisation/6826.aspx

There is an MOD website for 21 Sig Regt here:- http://www.army.mod.uk/signals/organisation/8964.aspx and it shows the present numbering of the squadrons.

Hope this helps a little more.

Paul.

He must have joined before I did with that number. Mine started 242 and I joined in 1972.

I was also at one time in 2 Sqn 21st Signal Regt strangely enough but that was at RAF Wildenrath. Good luck with the search.

It wasn't a Signal squadron by itself Paul but part of a regiment which were divided into squadrons. The Brigade signal squadrons were changed in 1977. Bit complicated.

Mine is 2444**** and I joined in 78. At that time the Jocks were allocated an earlier batch of numbers. The English lads in my recruit squad were 245*****, so 241***** would be somewhere in the region of the very early 70's, dependant upon however, whether he joined up north or south of the border.

Teabag wrote:

He must have joined before I did with that number. Mine started 242 and I joined in 1972....It wasn't a Signal squadron by itself Paul but part of a regiment which were divided into squadrons

Senior moment with my years there, now corrected

It was the 2 that puzzled me, as I knew that there was a major renumbering of Squadrons in the late 1950's.

Paul.

Rocky wrote:

Mine is 2444**** and I joined in 78. At that time the Jocks were allocated an earlier batch of numbers. The English lads in my recruit squad were 245*****, so 241***** would be somewhere in the region of the very early 70's, dependant upon however, whether he joined up north or south of the border.

Had a senior moment and entered wrong years, now corrected

Paul.

makkapakka,

Have just found that 2 Sqn was the RAF Detachment in Osnabruck. It was closed in 1987 and 2 Sqn returned to Wildenrath, and was disbanded in May 1992, shortly before the Regiment moved to the UK. 3 Sqn was left in Laarbruch and renumbered 220 Sqn in Jan '93.

Where did the "incident" happen, UK or BAOR?

Paul.

Rocky wrote:

Mine is 2444**** and I joined in 78. At that time the Jocks were allocated an earlier batch of numbers. The English lads in my recruit squad were 245*****, so 241***** would be somewhere in the region of the very early 70's, dependant upon however, whether he joined up north or south of the border.

Mines are 243 , I joined in 1974. Numbers were allocated in blocks depending on who/what you joined and not all the numbers were used.Some were re-allocated at a later date.
Nothing to do with North/south joining, block allocation was how it was done.( luck of the draw).

thank you so much for all your help, cant remember where the inccident happened.my dad joined the army when he was 19, that number -what is for? do you get it when you first join?

The 'Regimental' system as was, went out before I joined. It may very well have been around in your time though. Didn't things change in '75, including pay and pensions?

I joined the RAC and all of the Jocks who were in my squad and those squads ahead and behind us had 2444 numbers. The English lad who was joining the same Regt as us, but who did the Sutton Coldfield route (Jocks never had to go through anything like that) had a 245 number, as did the other English and Welsh lads who were joining other capbadges. My cousin, another Jock, joined the RE within weeks of me having joined up and his first four were also 2444.

Makka, every soldier is allocated a service number unique to him. It makes it easier to account for him, his gear, his pay, etc, etc. We all get them, but they are unique to the individual. Strangely enough, you may forget phone numbers, bank account numbers, lottery numbers, but you never forget your service number! You can trace your Dad's service record with that number.

thank you rocky!thats has been a huge help!

The next of kin (your mum?) can apply for his service records. Costs £30 but off hand I can't remember where you apply for them. Probably MOD but could be way off with that. Should be on the net somewhere.

Lists all his postings, medals anything naughty he might have done etc.

2 Sqdn 21 Signal Regiment was definately at Wildenrath 1979 - 1982 i suspect it could have been there for a number of years either side.
I have asked my grandson,who is with the regiment at present,to see what he can find out.

Not sure if they were "Air Formation" or "Air Support" at that time.

Gordon. wrote:

2 Sqdn 21 Signal Regiment was definately at Wildenrath 1979 - 1982 i suspect it could have been there for a number of years either side.
I have asked my grandson,who is with the regiment at present,to see what he can find out.

Not sure if they were "Air Formation" or "Air Support" at that time.

Air Support Gordon. I was there 73-74. I think air formation was the older title?

Service Records:-

http://www.veterans-uk.info/service_records/service_records.html This one gives details.

http://www.veterans-uk.info/service_records/sar.pdf Print off and complete

You will need a copy of the Death Certificate. If there any questions, there is a free helpline here:- http://www.veterans-uk.info/complaints/contact.html

Yep...I suspected it would air support.Shows how old i am.It was "air Formation" in my days.although i was at 19 not 21.i think a much better posting.

Service records info can be found here

http://www.veterans-uk.info/service_records/service_records.html

Well mine is 2407** and I joined in 66 so it all seems like it is between 68-72
Les

I joined in 1967, 2412****, all of us who went Carlisle at that time, from whereever had the same 4 digit leader

The change from 23999999 to 24000000 was 1964 the Junior Leaders Regiment Royal Signals May 64 intake was a mix of both...I joined Sep 64 with 2401XXXX

When I joined we didn't have Numbers, we all knew each other.

Shelldrake wrote:

When I joined we didn't have Numbers, we all knew each other.

Yes, we heard about 51 Bty !

This personal numbers business. I joined in '57 and was blessed with 2351 as my "first four".
I was quite surprised, in the late 70s, when I had a new man posted in with the number 2451. Surely there hadn't been a million numbers issued in 23 years ?