Undistinguished Service by James Stark

Undistinguished Service by James Stark

This book is a fascinating account of how by just one error made by a medical officer at the start of my Father's war service, lead him from Scotland to London and across the seas to India.

How he went from Corporal to Sergeant and then to a Commissioned Officer in just sixty four days Charting his involvement in the top secret orders for operation Overlord the night before the D Day landings to his flight in a Dakota, that without the skill of the plane's crew he would certainly not have survived to tell his tale. This along with many other amusing anecdotes and fascinating stories reads at times as though he is in a parallel war and because he never questions any of the orders he is given, his amazing story unfolds.

My Father's title for this book is Undistinguished Service. Having completed his story it should really have the title of Distinguished Service.

August 1939 war is declared - I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing, playing golf at Turnhouse Golf Club on the outskirts of Edinburgh.

June 1944 Operation Overlord - When the numbers were linked by (Captain) Sto and checked by Major Russell and the order from Overlord Command HQ to open the Top Secret sealed orders, for they would be inside was a manila envelope, again with the number, a red seal and Top Secret printed on it. (Captain) Sto checked the numbers again and handed the envelope to me and I handed it to the CO. The tension was such that little was said

July 1944 V-1 bomb attacks - All I can remember is running like hell and diving arms outstretched in front of my face into the trench and stocky Murray landing on top of me as simultaneously there was a deafening explosion and blacking out. I came to sometime later lying on a stretcher under a tree

November 1945 off to India -A dispatch rider arrived with a message for me from the War Office.... you will be on the midnight train to Glasgow tonight.... I was shown a map of India and discovered Meerut was about fifty miles north west of Delhi.

Where the hell have you been Stark, as you should have reported here a month ago

I had gone from Corporal to Sergeant and then onto Commissioned Officer rank in only sixty four days

April 1946 near death experience - The best way I can describe it is a pendulum motion. We would go banking up to near horizontal on the port side, shudder, then come weaving down through the arc and up we would go to near horizontal on the starboard side, a horrible sensation as we could feel the plane being hurtled along at a terrific speed.

May 1946 the Japanese Scotsman - So you've joined the Japanese Army, to name but two comments. - I must be in the most unique position in the whole of the British Army, having command of a squad of Japanese

1946 back to Blighty - I was amongst the last to go on board.....Between 9pm and 10pm the tugs pulled us very gently away from the quayside.

There was absolute bedlam in the harbour as all the ships including the Navy heavies were blowing and hooting everything at their disposal. What a wonderful never to be forgotten send off.

As you turn each page his amazing story unfolds through his own words and photographs.