Between 18 December 1939, when I signed to serve in His Majesty’s Armed Forces and 18 July 1969 on which day I finally left the Indian Air Force, I have crossed and recrossed the length and breadth of India. A year by year and incident by incident description of all places and events that took place throughout this period will be too voluminous to be included here. I shall therefore try to be concise but not omit important events. During this period the service took me from Jammu and Srinagar in the north, to Tambaram near Madras in the south, to Quetta (westernmost point of Pakistan), to Cox’s Bazar southwestern point in Bangala Desh).

My initial training in Indian Air Force began at Ambala on 18 Dec. 1939. Everything began on Army lines. There was no independent Air Force command then. There was no rice in the ration. First it was introduced on payment - a cut of Rs 4/- per month for just one meal a day from the meager allowance of Rs 30/- per month during training. Before I reached Ambala, batches of recruits from Delhi, Calcutta, Bombay and Madras had reached there. There were Malayalees in all these. Army uniforms were issued to them. They raised a hue and cry about a peculiar Army headdress issued to them. Matters moved fast in Delhi and the headdress was soon changed to pith hats by the time I collected my uniforms. But in the shivering cold no woollens were issued to Indians. A cotton khaki overall was to be worn during working hours while the British instructors moved about in warm woollen clothes called Air Force Blues after their colour. Classes were held in the open sun to avoid the cold in classrooms. Britishers had their own separate living quarters and mess and during the hot summer months they would be moved to the cool climate of the hills while the Indians would remain in the plains to be roasted in the 45 degrees C (or more) scorching heat. These show how the Indians were treated in those days.

Training offered no problems to me nor did the daily bath in the ice-cold tap water. Thanks to the hardy life at home the P.T. and parades did not tire my limbs. In the Signals (Communication, in present terms) branch in which I was trained, I stood among the first eight and so was selected for advance training after the summer recess of 1940. An 80% pass would have given me both seniority and higher pay on passing out; thanks again to the Britisher, I passed out with 79.8%! I had hopes of going away from the training school to Karachi and then possibly on leave to home also but the advanced training kept me in Ambala till April 1941.

On passing out I was posted to Bombay where the Air Force Station was in Juhu - then Tata's Airfield from where they were still operating passenger flights. Indians were stationed only in the five coastal cities and the units were known as Coastal Flights. Also we were not treated as regular Air Force personnel but only as Air Force Voluntary Reserves - another example of the ruling British mentality to avoid recognition of the Indians' service for pension benefits. However, the war turned out to be not a piece of cake as they dreamt of it in the earlier days. And before the war ended they were forced to reckon us as a separate regular force and called us Royal Indian Air Force, separating the Air Force from the Army and making it a separate force under its own Commander-in-Chief. Thus there was a mixture of Britishers (Royal Air Force - R.A.F.- personnel) in all Indian Air Force units. All key or commanding positions were with R.A.F. men. I.A.F. men acquitted themselves well in all spheres and yet due to years of prejudice and policy Indians were either not trusted or were considered incapable. Prejudice has a lingering hold and does not die a quick death.

Living out - that is, living out of Air Force camp with one's own family - was permissible and such persons could draw their rations from the ration stand in the camp. So in June/July 1941 I came home on leave and took Aleykutty with me to Bombay. My friends had agreed to hire a suitable place for us to live in by the time I returned from leave.

That was the first time in Aleykutty's life that she moved more than 4 miles (6 to 7km) away from home. Alwaye was the nearest railway station and we had to change at Arkonam and catch the train from Madras to Bombay. There was no direct train to Bombay from Kerala. On the third day we reached Bombay. The travel through the Ghat section was a first experience to her. The hills and valleys were full of all kinds of flowers of different hues and colours. The train winding and climbing and later descending over the hills covered with such flowers was in all respects a feast to the eye. Aleykutty was thrilled at the sight. To add to the beauty were small waterfalls, too. She enjoyed the first train journey.

I had warned her that we were going to live in a very limited area. Our friends met us and took us to the hired two room apartment. Toilet and bathroom were at one end of the building. On seeing the place she exclaimed, "This is not a small place; how is it you told me it would be small". My friends often quoted those words in appreciation of her meekness and contentment. We served them two or three meals on different occasions. To them, all Malayalees, they were feasts in typical Kerala style and a welcome change from the monotony of mess food.

Bicycle was my mode of transportation and it was less than five minutes ride to the place of work. I drew rations. Very little extra was needed for just two of us. Our living was fairly comfortable. Being only two of us we could manage without much furniture. The famous Juhu beach was close by and every evening, except on my duty days, we would go walking. The airfield and its surrounding areas and the beach itself were thinly populated and so it provided a good atmosphere. We used to spend about two hours every day in this open fresh air. Aleykutty loved it and everyday she looked forward to the evening hours.

One day, only a few days after we started living out, after lunch when I returned for work, I was told to go back, pack up a bedding etc. and be back, ready to go on detachment. (A detachment is a small number of men moving out from their permanent station to another place with necessary paraphernalia for a few days stay and work as required, on completion of which they return to their original station. The length of outstation stay is not limited to any fixed period of time). I asked him where we were going, for how long, the time of departure, the nature of our job, to all of which there was only one answer, "I don't know." Finally I asked if it would be enough if I waited on the road, if our route was along that way, and if so at what time? He went to the office, checked up, came back and gave me the time to wait on the road. When within minutes I returned home, Aleykutty was puzzled. When she knew the reason, she asked me the very same questions I asked before and I gave her the very same answer too. She was not disturbed at my leaving. She asked me if I could write to her from the new place. I promised to do it if possible. Duty to her was sacred all her life. She was in a new place all alone amidst unaccustomed surroundings and strange people speaking a strange language. Yet she was not timid but took everything with calm and confidence. It was only a beginning. She had many more such occasions and even worse in store.

That evening and all through the night we drove in a van. The next morning, by 8:30 a.m. we reached Belgaum Cantonment. The Army kindly gave us some breakfast. Having not seen or tasted it before, I did not take corn flakes and I did not like milk too. From there we moved to our designated place - a barren, desolate, isolated, sloping land stretching for a few metres. There was not a drop of water anywhere close by. We had neither any facility nor any arrangement to bring or store water. Within minutes our aircrafts from Bombay hovered over us. We now knew what this was all about. We still wondered how long we would stay. These aircrafts called Wapiti were of 1914-18 war vintage. R.A.F. was not flying them but I.A.F. - yes! The first pilots in I.A.F. all flew that plane. After receiving the aircrafts we pitched our tents (I learned tent pitching thus) and settled down for an unknown number of days.

We slept on the ground over our blankets serving as mattress. Every day early in the morning we would get our ration of just a mug of water. Just enough to wash our faces and mouths. We would see water again only the next day - the same ration quantity. More men came in the aircrafts and we were a mixture of R.A.F. and I.A.F. men, of high and low ranks too. In one of the rare instances all dined together in the mess tent. All had English food. We drank aerated water (soda, lemonade, etc) instead of water. Beer went free to those who liked it. There was wireless communication (that was why I formed a part of the detachment) with the base at Bombay and so Aleykutty knew from our friends where I was. No letter could be sent to her.

Fortunately on the eleventh day, our mission completed, we returned to Bombay. (Later I learned that we were in Belgaum to patrol the sea around Goa to prevent the escape of some German ships which had taken refuge in Goa harbor.) I looked like a red Indian - hair, body, khaki uniform all coated with the reddish brown dust of Belgaum. Even hands were not washed while in Belgaum. I had a long bath to my heart's content after eleven days! Aleykutty had no information about my coming but she quickly prepared something and I ate a home meal. That is a picture of the "comfortable" life of a military man! Sometimes an army man would have to face even worse conditions.

The outbreak of war between Japan and the U.S.A. with Japan joining hands with the Axis powers caused some panic in the coastal town of Bombay and people from South were slowly leaving Bombay for safer places. Aleykutty by this time was expecting and she contracted chicken pox. I had the attack earlier when I was teaching in the school here in Kumbanad (before marriage) and so could attend on her. The attack was rather severe and so we went to a Hindu Mission clinic close by. The doctor was nice to us and the lady doctor of the clinic examined Aleykutty and confirmed that there were no ill effects on the pregnancy. No one, not even the next room neighbours knew anything about her condition and I attended work daily. After she was cured and fit for travel I took her to Ambur where her doctor brother was practising. Returning to Bombay I lived in the barracks. A few weeks later, upon request I got a mutual transfer to Cochin from where a Maharashtrian moved to Bombay. From Cochin, once a month on weekends, I used to go home. Thus I came home one weekend a few hours after the birth of Jose, our eldest son. I knew of it only after reaching home; then went and saw the baby and mother at Maramon. His arrival was three weeks earlier than expected.

Before we could live out again, all of us from Cochin moved to Karachi where for more than six months we lived in tents. Other I.A.F. personnel from Madras, Bombay, Calcutta, and Delhi also arrived and lived in tents. A reorganization and formation of Indian Squadrons was in progress. On paper we were undergoing training on the new aircrafts we would be getting. But the R.A.F. men in Karachi were reluctant to allow us Indians to go anywhere near the aircrafts, least of all near the new types. So using available publications and limited opportunities to see the aircrafts I managed to acquire a fairly good knowledge of all the electrical and wireless systems and gadgets on the aircraft which helped to make me a key person in the squadron when it was later formed. (A squadron is a self-contained unit in Air Force with a certain number of aircrafts and all the men and other paraphernalia required to maintain and fly the planes.) However, during those idle days I learned the game of bridge in cards. It was during this stay that Valiammachi expired in 1943.

From Karachi we moved to Kajamalai in Trichinopoly to form No 8 Squadron. Here I took permission to live out and brought the family. Just two days after we began living out, I was called to the office and told to take the family home because we were moving to an operational area - a war theatre where families are not allowed. I volunteered that the family would travel alone back home and that we be permitted to live out till I was to move out. This was granted and we lived there for another two weeks. My brother George stayed with us for a few days at this time. We were to move to the north and on the day of my departure Aleykutty and Jose (then a crawling baby) left for Kerala. This separation lasted for over a year and Aleykutty stayed on in Kumbanad with Jose.

From Trichinopoly we moved in a special bogie to Phaphamau in Allahabad; after a few days here, again we moved by train to Charrah near Ranchi. At Charrah I was practically in charge of our section. I was originally trained as a mechanic to deal with all electrical gadgets on an aircraft. But as the war advanced there was tremendous advancement in the design and construction of aircraft also. Electrical systems and gadgets on aircrafts improved and increased. However there were not enough trained electricians or instrument technicians and owing to my background skill I was often called upon to attend to work outside any normal duties. That was how I became a key person.

At about 7 p.m. one night our commanding officer came to the mess, called me out of the dining hall and said that the very same night we were leaving; the whole section, bag and baggage, was to be packed and loaded in the train before midnight. All personnel were also to be ready by that time to leave. All these were promptly carried out and the train with men and materials steamed out at 2 a.m. the same night from the nearest railway station called Purulia. True to military style we did not know our destination or even the direction of travel. Tired as we were we all fell asleep soon.

Next morning we reached Howrah (Calcutta) and stayed in a transit camp. By now it was very clear we were heading for the Burma front to fight the Japanese. All the equipment in the train was directly loaded into a ship and after two days we embarked on the same ship - second time I sail on a ship - which after three days at sea, docked at the Chittagong Harbour (now in Bangala Desh). From there we moved to our camp. The barracks were constructed entirely out of bamboo - pillars and roof structure completely of bamboo; bamboo mats as walls and for the floor, and a thick thatch of wild grass. Beds were also entirely of bamboo - bamboo mats spread on a bamboo frame. The huts of the local people were also constructed in the same way. We used water from tube wells. Our air strip was a natural flat piece of land called Double Moorings near the sea coast.

After a short stay there , we moved to another place called Chiringa - an incomplete camp right in the midst of paddy fields. Within a week we moved from there and reached Mambur which was a far better place than both the previous places. These were all unknown villages with few huts surrounded by paddy fields and steep hills covered with thick impenetrable forests. Paddy fields were levelled for air strips while barracks were on the slopes of the hills. Everywhere, tube wells provided water. Food was good and plenty because there were extra rations in operational areas. There was plenty of tinned stuff on the dining table especially meat and fish. Dried egg powder, dehydrated carrots and potatoes, all from U.S.A., came in the rations. In these forms, it saved space and weight for transportation and prevented decay. There were vegetarians as well as orthodox people who shunned tinned foods. To me it was a godsend. Mail came by air because regular postal services were non-existent in these areas. Military operated its own postal service in liason with the P & T department. These were known as A.P.O. (Advance Post Office) and manned by army personnel. To a certain extent it provided security to military operations.

We stayed for some months in Mambur and operated against the Japanese using dive bombers called Vultee Vengeance. These dive bombers were heavy metal built American aircrafts which could dive almost vertically down to release bombs right on target. In all these areas I was on shift duty and had to maintain communication channel operative. At one place I was just 5 miles (8 Km) from the Japanese and all alone on duty at night on duty days, in a tent on the bank of a small stream. Being close to the sea, water in the stream also rose or fell according to the tide. With a gun in hand a Japanese could order me into a boat as prisoner during the high tides or even shoot me down. Not only was I not armed but there was no one else within shouting distance. In later years I have often wondered what a dangerous situation it was. It was good I did not have fears then. Many nights and days I did duty in that isolated place. By the time we reached Mambur I got a promotion and was on supervisory duties on the operation and maintenance of communication equipment on aircrafts.

On certain days we could see our fighter planes in actual dog fight with Japanese fighters right over our heads. Japanese were clever at imitation. They had a front line fighter with radial engine called Zero but when the British brought their latest Spitfire fighters with inline engines the Japanese soon modified their Zeros to resemble the Spitfires. They were so similar that it was difficult to distinguish between the two types.

Once we were engaged in a written examination when suddenly ack-ack guns began to fire. (Guns intended to fire at flying aircrafts from the ground are called ack-ack guns). Our invigilator, a civilian and a malayalee evacuee from Burma, left the hall and ran for his life. The examinees had a merry time with my Maths answer paper. Going out of the hall we could see a dog fight and soon two aircraft were swerving, dodging, and flying zigzag towards the sea. Later we learnt that they were two of the latest Japanese fighters which got mixed up with our Spitfires which were returning from Burma on completion of their mission. When the landing field came in sight the Japanese tried to escape. Only then did our pilots realize that our enemies had been flying with them all that time. They could not chase the Japanese for long, because they were nearing their endurance. However, one of the enemy was shot down while the other escaped. They were flying so low that we all could see the Japanese pilots.

From Mambur we moved to Cox Bazar where the airfield was right on the beach. The Americans had brought a special type of strengthened and perforated iron sheets which could be hooked one to another to form a huge iron mat covering a large area. Any number of them could be hooked lengthwise or breadthwise depending on the size and area to be covered. When spread on sandy, slushy, or soft ground it provided a hard surface for even heavy aircrafts to land. Cox Bazar air strip was one such. Monsoon soon set in making flying difficult. Temporarily built mud roads became slushy. Vehicles either sank down or badly skidded. They were the only means of transportation to bring in daily supplies. So all air operations came to a halt and we withdrew to a peace area.

I shall never forget that withdrawal journey in 1944. From Cox Bazar we walked to the nearest boat jetty carrying our personal belongings. It was on my birthday with a load on my head that I walked to the jetty. All our luggage was dumped on the open deck of the boat and it rained all through the night. Next morning the bedding, clothes, and everything were wet to the core making it too heavy to be carried when we disembarked. We stayed two days in the transit camp. We managed to dry the clothes somewhat. In the process some one took away two of my uniform pants. There were all sorts of people in the transit camp besides us. At Chittagong we got into the train not knowing where we were going. We left behind railway stations like Arrah, Patna, Kanpur, Allahbad and still had no idea about our destination. It was a troop special - a special train meant only for military - half full of R.A.F. and the other half I.A.F. airmen. We were only six Malayalees in a small compartment. As each day passed we were in different places taking different water and food. We left behind Bengal, Bihar, U.P., Rajasthan and finally reached Quetta on the tenth day after leaving Chittagong. From Cox's to Quetta was from the east to the west of India. Has any one done such a long train journey at a stretch or journeyed in the same train for almost ten days? Almost all of us landed in Quetta with diarrhoea. Thanks to the western type of food which I was lucky to get there, I was cured of it without any medicine. Quetta, even after many years, bore the marks of the ravages caused by the severe earthquake of 1934.

While walking through the town with friends I saw something which left a deep impression on me. Three Pathans had a heap of seedless fresh grapes in front of them on a piece of cloth. They put handfuls of it to the mouth and were eating it. It was their meal! Quetta grew a lot of such grapes and so it was cheap. A somewhat similar sight I had witnessed on the ship on which I sailed to Karachi from Bombay. The Muslim crew of the ship had a big tray with a heap of cooked rice in front of them. Four or five of them sat around the tray and began eating, mixing rice with side dishes. They sliced through the conical heap exactly as a knife would do it. Not a grain of rice from one share mixed with the other and each slice was identical too. I wondered what a comradeship these people had.

Although fighting a common war, there was an ongoing silent undeclared war between the R.A.F. and I.A.F. personnel whenever they were together. The R.A.F. men had a hatred and contempt for the Indians. They did not like or even want Indians to advance in any way, so that they could continue as masters. Barracks and messes were separate for the two. Often toilets were different too. Here an anecdote is worth mention. One day an Indian was coming out of a urinal when a Britisher went in. Annoyed at the Indian using it, the other man blurted out something in his usual slang. The Indian did not like either the tone or the words and he quipped, "Chum, if you didn't like it, take your piss with you when you go home." The Britisher was non-plussed. This is an example of the feeling that existed then. But military discipline maintained an outward calm. No trust existed between the two.

The persistent cry for independence for the country in the political scene added fuel to this hidden fire. So, while at Mambur I approached the officer in charge of administration, an Indian, explained my reasons and gave him an application for transfer and posting to a training school which he promptly forwarded with a favourable recommendation. It would take me to a place with less mental tension, give me a fairly settled life, normally for three to four years and put me on a job I liked. Instructors in schools were normally not disturbed. Within two or three days of reaching Quetta my posting to the Signals Training School at Andheri in Bombay came through. I was happy and cleared out of Quetta at the earliest. Unusual rains were falling in those areas then and the vast stretch of sandy desert turned into a vast sea of water flowing haphazardly in different directions. In many places the railway track was under water. Fortunately it was not very deep and the train could run, though slowly. I reached Bombay without any serious problems.

On reporting to the chief instructor at the Signals Training School at Andheri, he was kind enough to enquire about my leave position. I explained that during the past year my leave was sanctioned and cancelled eight times all because of frequent movements and that the last time I missed it by a mere hour. A Britisher, he could appreciate the problems in an operational area from where I was coming and said that I could avail of my leave before I started instructional duties; so I left the very next day. Travelling by train, I got down at Alwaye and reached home to everyone's surprise. I had no time to give any advance information.

The school was on the verge of moving from Andheri to Hakimpet in Secunderabad and so I could not think of living out then. I returned to Bombay after my leave and within days moved to Hakimpet, from where within a few months, we moved to Begumpet, another suburb of Secunderabad. We stayed there for about two years. During this period I underwent a short course of training in an adjacent unit. Though adjacent it was a move similar to a posting. It was during this training that the war in Europe ended on May 8, 1945.

That day I was suddenly taken sick and was in sick quarters for a day. The same day, here in Maramon, Aleykutty was in pains and gave birth to our first daughter Lizzie. When the child was about three months old, we began living out at Begumpet. It was here that Jose, then about two and a half years old, watching a plane flying above our heads, asked me the great question: how did a heavy plane stay in the air without falling down. Giving him a simple answer I said he would learn more of it when he grew up. Those words turned out to be prophetic because later in life he became a pilot and test pilot in the I.A.F. He learned enough about aircrafts. While in Begumpet our daughter Mary was born in November 1946 at the Government Hospital in Secunderabad.

Transfer, posting and movement are inalienable ingredients of, and therefore, very common in military life. Early in 1947 it was known that the school as a whole was moving this time to Tambaram, a suburb of Madras. I was included in the advance party to Tambaram and along with others I moved with family. Mary was then a baby in arms. Living accommodation at Tambaram was neither good nor convenient. There was hardly any furniture. In military you are not to question why and for the sake of living together with family these unpleasant situations had to be overlooked. What few Britishers were there, left soon and Tambaram became manned entirely by I.A.F. personnel. The famous Madras Christian College stood on the northern side of our campus. There was a small chapel building in the camp used by the Britishers and on my initiative, with the active help of professors, both British and Indian, from the nearby college we regularly conducted an English church service. It was well attended by people who hailed from all parts of India. We attended it along with all our children. In one year we held a Carol service and went around houses singing. We held a grand Christmas party too, and distributed eatables and sweets. These were quite uncommon in Air Force camps. I held charge of all these activities.

Signs of independence for the country was looming large in the air for some time and when the final day came on 15 August, 1947 we had special functions and food in the mess. I remember to have sat late in the Air Force mess to listen on the radio (I had no radio then at home) the famous "Tryst with Destiny" speech of Pandit Nehru.

Also in 1947, without any prior information, Johnykutty (my youngest brother) landed at Tambaram to join Degree class in any college. We had neither any suitable accommodation nor any furniture to accommodate him. The situation demanded he should be sent back home by the very next train. So bad or insufficient were the facilities available. But that I did not want to do because education was something which I too valued. At great inconvenience to himself he stayed on with us. I tried for his admission in several colleges and even travelled to Annamalai University. Finally a seat was secured in a college in Madras City. It had a hostel and I moved him into that. He must have felt greatly relieved because the hostel provided many conveniences which we could not provide him then.

Some war time buildings lying unused were being converted to married quarters at Madambakam, a site almost adjacent to the main Air Force camp. These quarters were ready and one of them was allotted to me. We moved into that in 1948 and soon Mathaikutty joined us to study in the Madras Christian College for his degree. Two brothers in colleges in Madras put some strain upon us and I tried my best to bear it. Ben, our second son, was born in March, 1949. Confinement was in the Military Hospital at St. Thomas Mount, a Cantonment area from British times and a suburb of Madras.

By this time I got a promotion and worked in the examining board of the school called S.T.T.B. (School Trade Testing Board). Phase tests (similar to term tests in schools) and final tests at the end of courses were the responsibility of the S.T.T.B. This experience for over two years brought me a transfer to Kanpur to C.T.T.B. (Central Trade Testing Board) which was responsible for the whole of India, to test or examine for promotion, all the airmen in Air Force except trainees. S.T.T.B. could take tests only for trainees and for passing out purposes only. It was from Kanpur that I first went to Bangalore. It was on duty to conduct trade tests.

Very soon (1950) my promotion came through and to our luck, I was posted back to Tambaram where my family stayed on when I went to Kanpur. I had reached the highest possible rank and remained in Tambaram till 1954, partly because I was meanwhile detailed for a specialist job at the same place through a letter from Air headquarters signed by no less a person than the Commander-in-Chief himself. By this time Air Force had an independent command and an Indian Commander-in-Chief. The country moved fast from Dominion status to a Sovereign Republic on 26 Jan. 1950. And on its first anniversary on 26 Jan. 1951, our son Georgie was born at the Maternity and Child Welfare Centre established by then in the Madambakam Camp. Our daughter Gracie was born at the Centre in May 1952. That day remains unforgettable in my memory because perhaps that was the rainiest day I ever saw at Tambaram in about twenty years of our total stay there, though I had been away at intervals. I found it difficult to get out into the rain or even to open the front door to take some food to the Maternity Centre which was less than shouting distance from the house.

In February 1951, seeing an advertisement I took Jose to Lawrence School, Lovedale (near Ooty) to appear for a test for admission to Std VI of that school. He fared very well and was immediately admitted. Except for travelling and pocket money (the school did not allow more than Rs 2/- P.M. per child as pocket money) the school met all other expenses as a boarder. From Tambaram, Air Force transports took children to and from Madras schools and we made use of it to send our children also to English medium schools in the city, a distance of about 30 kilometers one way - a total distance of 60 kilometers a day for even a child of six years! There was no other alternative.

Coming from Kanpur in 1950 to late 1952 I had independent charge of my section (a rare privilege for a person of my rank) when I moved as sole in charge of the special job I mentioned earlier. I handed over charge of my section to my friend and colleague in Ambala (while under training) who arrived from Delhi, in whose place I stood posted out to Delhi. But the specialist job kept me in Tambaram till 1954. The officer in charge of postings made a personal plea that even after two years I did not move to Delhi and that it should not be delayed any further. In my presence, my commanding officer told the visiting officer, "All right, take Thomas away." But he added, "Take B.S.D. also with him." (B.S.D. was where I was on special job). That settled it and I continued in Tambaram.

This long stay at one place - a little over four years - was a great blessing. My children could get undisturbed schooling. There was a children's park in Madambakam Camp where children could meet and play. There was a Ladies' Club too in the Camp where wives of all men, irrespective of rank, could meet, play shuttle badminton and other indoor games. Aleykutty joined the club and was a regular visitor. I liked her getting a change from the drudgery of the house. It was only two minutes walk away from the house. She was very active in the club and was unanimously elected Secretary of the club. In spite of her being a mother of six children, in games she outshone others even much younger, and won the first prize in a singles shuttle badminton tournament.

Then came an announcement from Delhi calling for names from those who wished to take a written test for selection and training for the officer grade (commissioning as it was called). I was stagnating in the rank I held. Officer grade, for a variety of reasons, was highly desirable and not easily obtainable. Getting selected through written tests did not depend on favouritism but on individual merit, on which count I had no fears. I had lost a chance once purely due to favouritism and I was really eager to prove my merit when such an opportunity arrived. This was my chance and perhaps the last too, for age bar would come in the way. But I had other fears. During the training period, and at least for two years thereafter my emoluments would go down considerably. Ration or money in lieu of rations, free quarters, light and water all would not be permissible. I would have to hire private accommodation at my cost where a lot of facilities available in the camp would not be available for the family. Above all, Aleykutty was in advance stages of pregnancy. How could I leave her in that condition? Were she in the Camp she would have had many facilities. Who would help her when help was most needed if she moved with children to a private lodge? The benefit to be derived was a higher pension on retirement. It was a fight between the immediate and long range benefits. A decision was difficult. I discussed the matter on more than one occasion with Aleykutty, giving emphasis on her condition. Every time, with no reservations whatsoever, she not only encouraged but emphatically asked me to sit for the exam. She had no fears about my success nor about all the burdens and responsibilities that awaited her if I left. For the past four deliveries I had availed of my annual leave and relieved her of many of her burdens. She visualized no problems and insisted on my taking the exams. Prayerfully, I submitted.

Out of mere friendship, I persuaded a hesitant Malayalee friend of mine living close by to take the exam. He was particularly scared of Maths. I undertook to coach him. At the Selection Board tests in Dehra Dun also we happened to be in the same group. Both of us were selected and during training also I helped him to go through without having to face any failures. After about six years we met again while working in the same area. We renewed our family friendship too.

Four or five weeks after I joined the training course at Jalahalli near Bangalore, Aleykutty gave birth to our daughter Suzy at the Maternity and Child Welfare Centre. She is the youngest in the family. Since no leave was permissible during training, I had to wait another few weeks to go home and see the child. The family was in a rented house with limited facilities but there was no immediate way out. Every fifth month there were four weeks leave for me. It was most welcome because I could attend to various matters at home and provide a lot of relief to Aleykutty also. Later she got a better house to live in, which itself was a relief to her.

This was perhaps the worst of times for us financially in our family life. It was expected and so we were neither sorry nor worried. We knew we had to face it. Aleykutty suffered most. It was in later years that in bits and pieces she told me about it. The suffering was far more severe than I ever imagined. Yet she moved on as if everything was wonderful. It made me very sad, but I felt a silent pride too at the magnificent way she braved it. It was during this hard period that two of our children, Lizzie and Ben, together fell sick due to typhoid. Being under training I could not get even a weekend to go home. My visit would have been both a relief and comfort to her. With Suzy, a baby in arms, nursing two children sick with typhoid, drawing water from a well, marketing, cooking, and other chores at home when hard pressed financially too, would have made an ordinary woman give up. Aleykutty did not flinch nor was she perturbed by this heap of burdens. Patiently she bore them all. She kept me informed through her regular letters. I had full confidence in her that she would neither fail nor falter, for, I had witnessed her abiding faith and trust in the good Lord. Her strength came from on High. There she was on solid ground. Her faith was far greater and stronger than mine. In this difficult situation, those at home did not even care to write a single word of enquiry or consolation either to me or to Aleykutty. In later years, on several occasions I have thought of this difficult period and could not help but admire her indomitable courage and the patient way she faced it. A silent prayer too has always gone up from a grateful heart.

In February, 1956 I passed out and was commissioned as an Officer. I stood first in my branch. When a batch of people pass out, seniority among them is according to the rank they pass out. My first position earned me first position in seniority also. The specialist job I was doing at Tambaram remained incomplete, no one having been deputed to do it in my absence on training. So I was posted to Tambaram to take up the job from where I left it. Was it a blessing kept in abeyance for me? For, I soon joined my family much to their joy and great relief to Aleykutty. On joining duty, I took permission to live out, hired a better and bigger house and moved in. Since Service married accommodation was not available, I got reimbursement of house rent, etc. After about four months we moved into Service quarters in the main Camp area. Because children had neither any company nor any playing ground there, at my own request, we moved to Madambakam Camp. By now, we were in Tambaram for ten years and our last four children were born there. We stayed in six different houses during this period.

The worship in the Camp chapel had by this time become a casualty of the principle of Secularism. So we began attending the English worship in the C.S.I. church at Tambaram town. All children got English medium education and so English was and still is the only intelligible language to them. An English man was the pastor then. He used to come home and conduct prayer meetings on weekends or on special occasions attended by neighbouring Christians also. Soon I organized a Sunday School class for my children at home because there was no such facility anywhere nearby. Children from other families soon joined. The classes went on till I had to move again on posting. I had at my own cost obtained suitable text books in English from the Sunday School Union at Coonoor for conducting these classes.

On Aleykutty's part, as soon as we occupied our quarters in Madambakam, she began to keep some chicken. Waste from the house and a little chicken feed from the market ensured a regular supply of eggs and meat. She could not only rear but also kill, clean, cut and cook a chicken in no time! More, she relished eating it and chewing its bones while still hot - straight from the cooking vessel. A vegetable garden also was maintained. Digging, raking, etc (along with me) gave her immense pleasure. Soon we had a lot of greens, "payar" (beans), bananas and papayas. One or two years we grew some tapioca too.

If the specialist job kept me at Tambaram, the training branch also had its eyes on me because of my experience as instructor and examiner. My recent first rank was another factor. Thus came a transfer to Signals Training School at Jalahalli. Air Force had expanded and was still expanding and so had a separate school for training in separate trades (subjects). I had an officer friend in Jalahalli and on phone, arranged with him for a family quarters. So I could move with family. But this move raised problems and even loss of precious money. Books, uniforms, etc. all had to be changed for children. Lizzie, Mary, and Ben went to schools in Bangalore City, 12-16 km away on Service transports. Younger children attended Camp School which was one of the English medium schools started on all big Air Force stations. Suzy had not yet joined a school and Jose continued in Lovedale. School admissions were difficult in those days also.

I had settled down and had high hopes of staying on for some time, being in a training school. But that was not to be. I cannot vouchsafe for what happened but I imagine I was being pulled by higher-ups in two different directions. Again the specialist job got the upper hand and I was posted back to Tambaram. Even before I could represent anything, the school tried its best to retain me but was told to relieve me without any delay. So, exactly one year afterwards, in January, 1958, I went back to Tambaram. Again, the requirements of the school going children vexed me. Admission for them was most difficult. Books and uniforms again changed. Suffice it to say the Unseen Hand guided me through. This time, within a few months I had to take over the Signals Section duties also as its head, in addition to the specialist job. Soon a promotion also came through. Meanwhile Jose had appeared for selection to National Defence Academy (N.D.A.) in Khadakvasla near Poona in the Air Force Branch. He stood first in all India and joined N.D.A. in December 1957. Earlier he passed out of Lovedale with the highest rank, winning for himself the President's Medal.

Perhaps at this stage I have to say what this specialist job was. When the war with the Japanese ended abruptly with the dropping of the atom bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, many ships were in the Bay of Bengal carrying a good lot of signals (communication) equipment from U.K. to the war theatre in Burma. The U.K. had no need of these equipment when the war ended, so they simply dumped them in the nearest harbour at Madras and withdrew their ships. These equipments were in specially packed cases or mounted on vehicles which could be self-driven to any desired point. From the harbor the whole lot was removed to a corner of the vast Tambaram airfield and simply left in the open to the mercy of the sun, wind, and rain. This huge quantity of valuable equipment worth in crores of rupees was inherited by I.A.F. by the mere fact of possession. No one knew what the packed cases contained nor was there any inventory at all. I.A.F. was trying to take possession of the unaccounted thrown away stuff heaped in the open through a small staff put on a specialist job. Many valuable items were pilfered. Even the security guards were suspected to be parties to the pilferage. So my job was to remove the cases to sheltered accommodation, open the cases, identify the various items, take them on charge, repack them and thus prepare an inventory; and finally to dispatch them by road or rail to the respective storage depots. The same was to be done for the hundreds of vehicles and the equipment mounted on them. I had about 200 manual labourers and a vehicle with a long trailer, called Queen Mary, in service working under me daily, apart from the necessary office staff and technical personnel. A lot of paperwork was involved. It was a stupendous task and each and every item had to be inspected for suitability too, both physically and technically. Since there was no inventory and a lot of large and small items were involved there was ample scope for easy misappropriation. It was a ripe and open field to make a fortune to any one so inclined. Though not of a very high rank, selecting me for the job, by the commander-in-chief himself in the first instance, and getting me back again and again to Tambaram to complete the job was a testimony for the high reputation I maintained throughout my life in the service. These qualities coupled with my impartiality in dealing with examinees saw me in the examining board in earlier years.

Aleykutty and I were at all times in perfect unison that our children should get the best education possible. With one accord we would go as far and as much as we could to ensure that. Any sacrifice, we agreed, would not be too much. We avoided all luxuries but stuck to all essentials. We gave children good food, milk and fruits, enough clothing in agreement with the fashion of the day, school going facilities, etc. We instilled in them a fear of God, a sense of contentment and self-help. I cannot remember a single instance of their moaning or showing any signs of discontentment. They were happy and knew their boundaries. Both of us spent as much time with them as possible. We were happy with them too. They were encouraged to do things on their own. They spent time in doing various chores at home. Extra reading was encouraged. Except in Hindi, I could help in all subjects and so sat with them during study time in the nights. I was tutor to all of them. But tuition never took the form of regular teaching. Doubts were cleared and problems solved giving just enough explanations. Never was any one of them compelled to become the first in class or scolded if the marks went below expectations. They were always encouraged to score above 80%. Better luck next time was the motto. I have never seen them considering study a burden. They scored good marks ensuring first or second positions in class.

Aleykutty was careful to give them food they liked and prepared in the manner they liked. This ensured that they ate well which equipped them well for the tedious journey to and from school over and above the demands of study. Evening study was around a large common table. In the evenings we had a family worship. We all sang together. Children read Bible portions in turn and Psalm was read alternately. Either Aleykutty or I prayed. Dinner was always after prayer. Mornings were busy. I had to be at work at 7 a.m. Children had to catch the school bus at 7:15 a.m. Not only breakfast but tiffin for all had to be ready in time. Sundays were free. There was no study that day. We all went to church together. Sometimes they read lessons in the church. While in Jalahalli there was an evening service too. Both of us used to get up by 5:30 a.m. I would first go to the kitchen and do something by way of help to my wife and then get ready myself.

After we all left, Aleykutty would be all alone. After breakfast and some other chores she would sit down on the floor with her Bible and hymnbook. She would sing loudly more than one hymn. If she did not know how to sing a hymn she would read through it but not skip it. Then she would read the Bible, chapter after chapter and end with a prayer which was more intercessory. She kept up this daily practice of hers till we came home to settle down, where we had family worship both morning and evening. On holidays, we would join in this prayer which then would be almost like a family worship. Through this daily communion with her Lord and Master she drew her daily strength to face the events of the day. It also gave her the confidence to pray in public. Before coming home, whenever possible she attended Sevika Sangam meetings and she was often called by name to pray. This growth in prayer, faith, and trust in God enabled her to stand in good stead later in life when she became disabled.

This stay at Tambaram lasted two years and was uneventful. The specialist job was nearing its end. Practically all the unaccounted equipment had by now been accounted for and came on inventory charge, so I could devote more time on the Station Communication Channel and the section work. At this time we were asked to set up a Direction Finding equipment at Tambaram. It was a specialist installation to be done by a specialist party specially trained for it and in a specially prepared area and building. And we had none of these. We had to improvise everything connected with it and yet it was made to work satisfactorily. Meanwhile another C.S.I. church was built at East Tambaram closer to our place of living and we now attended the English service there. The Mar Thoma church was in Chetpet in Madras, a distance of about 35 km one way by bus and electric train. It was not easy to go there with children. In 1959, Lizzie joined college and lived in the college hostel.

Yet another posting for me came through and this time it was to Jammu up in the north. I was in the thick of making arrangements to send Mary and Ben to Ketti, a boarding school in the Nilgiris, a few KM outside Ooty. The school year was to begin in February and my presence at Tambaram was essential to complete the arrangements and send the children to the boarding school. My request for cancellation of the posting was not agreed to on the score that I was most of the time in the South only (too true!!) and so should go to Jammu in the north. Then I represented that I may be permitted to stay on until the children were put on the train to Nilgiris and that I would entrain for Jammu the very next day. This was agreed to and I left for Jammu accordingly. Jammu-Srinagar area was then (and I think still is, even after 35 years) an operational area and so family could not be taken there. But the family quarters in the peace area (Tambaram) could be retained as long as the person was in that area. This was a blessing because Aleykutty could continue to stay in the quarters where she was now. This helped the children to continue with their education undisturbed. This was a great relief to me and Aleykutty could avail of the many facilities in the Camp area.

Soon a scheme was introduced by Air Headquarters to help officers for the education of their children. Owing to frequent transfers and movements many of their children had to be kept in boarding or hostels causing great financial strain to them. Every officer was to contribute Rs 5/- P.M. (per month) for which they would get back every month Rs 10/- P.M. per day scholar and Rs 100/- P.M. per child in boarding or hostel. This was a great help and came very unexpectedly. In the first month I drew Rs 210/- for my Rs 5/-. Here it must be mentioned that Mathaikutty, then in Nigeria, supported one child for two years at Nilgiris. Rs 110/- P.M. would then support a child there.

It was at this time when I was in Jammu that Aleykutty had to undergo the agony of our son, George, missing for one night. Both military and civil police were alerted and a wide search was carried out throughout the night. Some boy forgot to pick up his shoes from the school and so he volunteered to go back to school and retrieve it. But by the time he came back to Tambaram, it was a bit late in the night. There was no transport to reach home and it was raining heavily. Walking home in pitch darkness and in the heavy rains was beyond the boy but he managed to reach a friend's house nearby. The heavy rain continued through the night. Neither could the boy reach home nor could any message be sent. Aleykutty passed a sleepless night. Early next morning the boy walked home much to the relief of his mother. I knew of the incident through her letter. Months later when we met she told me she kept praying and had the confidence that the boy was somewhere safe and unharmed.

In 1960 Lizzie appeared in the selection exam conducted by Vellore for admission for medicine. She was offered a sponsorship by the college. To ensure admission we accepted it. She was selected. I was informed by telegram. Reading it, I shed tears of joy - the first person from Theckethil family to study for M.B.B.S.

I spent my spare time at Jammu as quietly as possible. Reading was the only pastime. I used to write, on a weekly basis, to all my children individually, whether at school or at home, and of course to Aleykutty. This kept me busy. Food, lodging, and postage were free in operational areas. Two letters per week in specially printed aerogrammes were allowed. No stamps were needed. I was the only officer in the unit and so was its commmanding officer responsible both for technical and administrative work and wielding authority to try certain offences under Air Force law and award punishments within certain limits. It was a small compact Radar unit on the border with Pakistan (less that 6-7 km) charged with scanning the border skies all the 24 hours for any intruder enemy aircraft and working under the direct control of Delhi. I enjoyed every minute of my work. I could keep the personnel under me also happy.

We worked under canvas tents and one day I saw a movement in a corner of my tent. Before I could make out what it was, it vanished. I called my lascar, a retired Jawan from the Army and asked him to check up. He found a small hole, poured a lot of canal water into it but nothing came out. He dug up the place and a huge Cobra was caught. It was hardly eight feet from my seat.

One year we celebrated the anniversary of the unit with a grand feast to all the Personnel of the unit and the invitees, followed by a variety entertainment by the men under me. Every one enjoyed the evening and praised the organization. This helped to raise the prestige of the unit among others around us. As the only officer I had to toil hard but it was worth it.

In December, 1960 Jose was due to pass out of N.D.A. and he was getting some prizes too. The Passing-out Parade and connected functions are a grand affair. So I availed of my annual leave to go to Tambaram via Poona. I had arranged for Aleykutty and Lizzie also to reach Poona. In fact they reached earlier and received me at the railway station. Lodging and food for all parents and invitees of passing out cadets were free. We witnessed the Passing-out Parade, stayed for two days there and visited some of Jose's Malayalee Professors in their homes. Then we all left for Tambaram. I came home for two days. On the expiry of leave, I returned to Jammu.

While there I visited Srinagar and stayed in the Air Force Mess for two days. I walked around and saw important landmarks like the Dal Lake and the Sankaracharya Peak. On the top of the peak, which stands in the centre of the city, is a temple said to be established by Sankaracharya of Kerala. I saw a number of house boats, both large and small, on the Dal Lake and in the Jhelum river. These boats are miniature houses with all the facilities of a house on land like bedrooms, sitting and drawing rooms, kitchen and other facilities. Door curtains and carpets are also provided. Just like houses, these house boats are let out to tourists. There are hundreds of curios for sale of all shapes and varieties. The locals make a living out of it in the tourist season. I bought an earthen bowl and a walking stick. The bowl looks costly though earthen. The stick is my daily companion now. Kashmir silk sarees are famous. I bought two or three for Aleykutty. Washing them herself she used them for many years.

Many Air Force planes fly between Jammu and Srinagar. One can always get a lift on one of them. Jose successfully completed his flying training, winning top prizes and his first posting was to a unit in Srinagar. I met him when he flew in to Jammu one day. During cold months, flying units from Srinagar move down to Jammu where the climate is milder. So during one winter both he and I were together in Jammu. During my second year in Jammu I was posted to Air Headquarters in Delhi. At that time I had to go to Command Headquarters on some duty. To my boss there, I explained that if I moved to Delhi, I would have to meet two establishments - one at Delhi for myself because I would be paying for my food, lodging, etc and the other in Tambaram where my family was. That would ruin me financially. Immediately, in my presence, he rang up Air headquarters and got my posting cancelled. Both the officers knew me before.

While in Jammu, I had a chance to meet Pandit Nehru, our first Prime Minister. He was visiting Jammu for some reason and the Jammu Airfield was next to my unit. He was given a reception by the Air Force before he proceeded to Jammu City.

Time for my retirement was approaching. Age for superannuation is 52. An officer can get a place of his choice for the last posting. One day, in our mess there was a lunch for the senior most officer in charge of postings, transfers, etc at Air Headquarters who was passing through Jammu after his inspection visit to areas north of Srinagar. Through the local commander, I represented to him that I was nearing the end of my term at Jammu, my retirement was nearby and to transfer me to Tambaram as my last posting prior to retirement. The good man did it and exactly on the seventh day (a double quick time it was) my posting orders were on my table along with the day's mail. I lost no time to move out and join my family at Tambaram. But I am sad to say that that good officer from Air Headquarters, a person much loved and respected by one and all in the Air Force, had an untimely death in an air crash even before I left Jammu. Many senior Army officers also died in that crash. And the news of the shooting of President Kennedy in U.S.A. also came along with this sad news.

I joined duty at Tambaram forgoing my joining time, took permission to live out and was lucky to retain the same house in the camp where my family was staying. This saved shifting of quarters.

After some time, one night, I took a little longer time for children's tuition. Aleykutty was planning to go home alone and some time was spent on packing. I finished my bath then and Aleykutty was in the bath room. Time was about 1 a.m. There was a big noise in the chicken pen. Aleykutty could hear it better from the bath room. As the unusual noise continued she called me and I went out. By this time she also came out. We had some chicks and the mother hen in a wooden box. I had left its lid about a half an inch open for the chicks to get air. The bigger ones were in panic. The noise was from inside the box. I moved the lid and looked in and there was a big Cobra in the box with its hood up and its head less than six inches from mine. The mother hen was fighting the Cobra, causing all that noise. I didn't know what to do. I was only recovering from the shock of placing my head six inches in front of a Cobra. Was it not yet another providential escape and a gracious extension to my life?

The Cobra had already swallowed a chick. The mother was fighting for its young one and the swollen Cobra could not get out through the narrow gap. The Cobra crawled out when the lid was opened and curled itself in another corner. Meanwhile, Aleykutty woke up our neighbours as I stood guard for the reptile. With the neighbour’s help, we killed it.

As planned Aleykutty went home the next day. I had all hopes of spending the rest of my service life of a little over three years in peace and quiet at Tambaram. I had only to look forward to retirement. But that was not to be.

Meanwhile the war in Bengala Desh (then East Bengal and a part of Pakistan) had broken out and Air Force was again on the path of expansion. As part of it another Signals School was opened at Jalahalli. This had quite an unexpected effect upon me and my family. I was granted an acting promotion which but for the war I would not have got. It would give me some benefits as well as greater responsibilities. But I had to move to Jalahalli to get the higher rank. Tambaram could not hold me in the higher rank and I had no choice but to move.

Again I moved with family and lived in Jalahalli under my own arrangements, since no service accommodation was available. This accommodation obtained at very short notice was inconvenient, insufficient, and lacked many facilities. For the sake of children's schooling we had to put up with these for the time being. Fortunately, within a short time, earlier than expected, we could move into a Service quarter. School admission posed problems. It was only by God's grace that Georgie got admission in Bishop Cotton Boys School. (An officer who was posted out withdrew his son and Georgie got that seat). Gracie and Suzy got admission in Baldwin Girls School - both leading schools in Bangalore. Mary was due to enter Degree class in college and again, Divine Grace came to the rescue and Mary got a seat in Mt. Carmel College - a leading women’s Catholic college. All children used Service transports running to schools in the city.

At this time Jose purchased a Lambretta Scooter for me. Soon I learned to drive it and began to move about on it, even carrying some one on the pillion. Later he purchased a car for our use. I learned driving on it and began slowly using it. I kept both the car and the scooter.

Jalahalli was a vast sprawling camp with two main parts - West and East, with a railway line dividing the two. It was the old Italian Prisoners of War camp. I was stationed in the East, a distance of about 3 k.m. from the local headquarters in West area. The big establishments of the Hindustan Machine Tools (H.M.T.) and the Bharat Electronics (B.E.L.) were close by. A branch of the State Bank of India served all of Jalahalli. These three establishments of H.M.T., B.E.L. and Air Force with all their living in and living out personnel made Jalahalli a very big place on the outskirts of the city of Bangalore.

In the West area there was a small church established by an individual on his own land. An English service was held there every Sunday according to C.S.I. rites. We attended it. The car helped us all to go. Mar Thoma Church was away in city about 15 km away. So the Mar Thomites in Jalahalli had a service of their own in a building in the B.E.L. area in the evenings on Sundays. Evening time suited workers on shift duty in H.M.T. and B.E.L. Student Atchens from the United Theological College in the city or the missionary Atchen from Hoskote (about 55 km away) helped in the service. Communion was also celebrated. On many days I assisted the Atchen. We attended regularly. I was elected vice president of the congregation. Many a night those Atchens had dinner with us. Our present Metropolitan was then Bahya Kerala Bishop (Bahya means outside). He stayed with us for one night and took part in our evening family worship. This congregation later put up a church building. Now it is a full fledged parish with an Atchen.

I began my duties at the new school in the higher rank and was placed in charge of "ab-initio" training - training new recruits pouring in by hundreds every month. At a time, I had about 3000 ab-initio trainees under me in various stages of training as well as the necessary staff for training. Their accommodation, sanitation, health, food, welfare, study (training), discipline, and everything else connected with them fell under my responsibility. There is a humorous way it was put by these ab-initios, "you are my father and mother". Though it sounds humorous, in practice it was not far from the truth. Periodical tests were held. Those who passed went forward to the next phase of training. Failures were generally given one more chance to repeat the same phase along with the immediate junior entry. If he failed again in the same phase, he was given a discharge (sent out of service), or in exceptional cases, allowed to remain in service but in another branch or trade often of a lower grade. This ensured quality of training. All failures were interviewed to decide upon one or other of the options and such interviews were also my duty. Recommendations for discharge, change of trade, or sending to a junior entry were all subject to confirmation by the commanding officer (C.O.) after an interview he conducted. A recommendation was made after carefully weighing every aspect and therefore there would be hardly any change after the second interview conducted by the C.O. Since these interviews and recommendations affected a person's career and sometimes life itself, they were a great responsibility. My earlier tenures in Air Force schools and the present tenure had brought me into direct contact with hundreds of young people from all corners of India; there would be hundreds of others who either worked with me or were in the same place as I was. Thus there would be a wide spectrum of people spread all over India who knew me. Courts of Inquiry are very common in the military and I have been entrusted as President of the Court of Inquiry even in some very difficult and complicated inquiries. Some of them involved deaths of airmen either by accident or by suicide.

Jose was in Agra and Aleykutty's elder brother was in Delhi, both with their families. So Aleykutty went first to Agra and then Delhi. At Delhi, she got a chance with a picnic party to visit Chandigarh and Bakra-Nangal Dam site. She also saw Taj Mahal at Agra.

After about eighteen months, I was made in charge of advanced training of airmen called Conversion training. Number of trainees involved was less but all my duties and responsibilities remained the same. Greater emphasis would be given to the study of the trade (branch) subject. The tenure passed off quietly. We as a family too enjoyed a quiet life. Children progressed well in their studies. At last the final day arrived and on 18 July 1966, I retired from the Air Force on completion of 52 years - the age of retirement.

Air Force was short of officers, especially in the technical branches, and so there was a scheme to re-employ retired officers for one, two, or three years. Three months before retirement I had applied for re-employment with a request to keep me in the same unit too. Such officers would draw the same emoluments he drew on the day of retirement, but would get no increments or promotions etc; and would enjoy all privileges such as quarters, travelling, etc. Even before the date of retirement, my re-employment order retaining the acting rank and retaining me in the same unit had been received effective from 19 July 1966 and for a period of two years. In effect this meant that I could continue to work in the same place in the same capacity as before and there would be no loss of privileges or emoluments. Some paper work had to be completed in the office to keep the records straight. I asked for re-employment and stay in the same place to enable our children to continue their education undisturbed. We continued to stay in the same house.

It was now more than three years in the same house. Aleykutty raised some chicken as soon as we began staying in it. Land was very fertile and water available in plenty. So we had a vegetable garden also. We grew cabbage, carrots, beet root, spinach, beans, and greens. Bananas were in plenty and one night more then thirty bunches, both ripe and unripe, were stolen.

One more year of re-employment was possible and my request was approved by Delhi. My acting rank was withdrawn, but emoluments did not change. I was transferred to the Signal School in West area where I had worked for one year in 1957. All this involved no change except that for work I had to scooter down to West from East area where we stayed. This one year also passed by swiftly and on 18 July 1969, at the age of 55 and after three years of re-employment service, I finally bid adieu to Air Force which sheltered me five months short of thirty years.

Throughout this long period I ran into no problems or difficulties and enjoyed my work all along. My re-employment for the full permissible period is an open testimony of my efficient service. In the midst of the hard conditions of military service I had a comfortable life. Except for short intervals now and then, I could live with my family all these years. It was, again, a rare blessing. Neither I nor my family went sick during all these years except for the typhoid which two children contracted which at least, in part, was due to unsatisfactory hygienic conditions under which the family had to live in a hired house when I was away. Hygienic and healthy atmosphere of the Camp kept us, as a family, healthy. Looking back over the years I have no regrets but have many sweet memories and many more that give satisfaction.

During this last tenure in Jalahalli I was detailed for a course of training on some Russian equipment Air Force was getting. It was a mistake because my retirement was so close. However I had to go. It was in Palam at Delhi. Meanwhile I got my release (retirement) order. I showed it to someone at Delhi and pointed out that training me was a waste because I was going out of service within weeks. Realizing the mistake, I was sent back and I came back to Jalahalli.

Mary meanwhile completed her degree in college followed by one year's teacher's training also. Immediately she got a job in Ooty as a teacher. Aleykutty accompanied her to Ooty and left her in the school. Earlier Ben had left Ketti and joined Lovedale. He passed Std XI from Lovedale with distinction; then passed the Selection exam for admission to I.I.T. and got admitted to I.I.T. Madras. He lived in the hostel.

Jose had crossed 25, the age approved by Air Force for marriage. Persons marrying below 25 years would not get any privileges like service quarters etc. till they attained 25 years. His marriage was conducted on Dec. 26, 1968 at the Mar Thoma Church in Madras. The bride was Elsie, whose parents from Chettikulangara (near Mavelikara) had settled down in Madras. After completing her M.B.B.S., Lizzie was doing her bond service at the Vellore Hospital. Her marriage to Raju (Koruth) M.B.B.S., also working then at Vellore, was held at Jalahalli Church on May 1, 1969. Most Rev. Dr. Alexander Mar Thoma Metropolitan, Raju's maternal uncle, officiated. Appachen and Ammachi attended both marriages.

In the hope of working for some more years after retirement, I had joined a relation and some others to float a company to produce fruit juices and allied products. Although the factory was established and a product put in the market, it could not prosper due to various factors, some beyond control, and was finally sold off at a small loss. Immediately after retirement, Suzy was admitted in the school boarding in Baldwin School and we took residence at the company premises. I supervised construction activities as well as production work but left the place to share accommodation in Bangalore City with a relation for a few weeks. Soon we found our own accommodation. Georgie had meanwhile passed his N.D.A. entrance test and was already undergoing training there. Suzy passed her Std X and joined her sister at the Women's Christian College for P.U.C. She also lived in the hostel.

On October 1, 1970 we moved to Madras from Bangalore. A small house had been put up there in a plot of land which had been purchased five or six years ago out of money provided by Johnykutty. I was not in Tambaram then and according to advice Aleykutty received, the documents were registered in my name. She got a well also dug there. The lion's share in the cost of construction of the house was also from Johny. The plot of land was at a commanding position at a junction of roads. It was almost a part of Tambaram which was expanding day by day.

We lived in the house for almost six years. Georgie could not succeed in N.D.A. and he joined us. Gracie passed her B.Sc. (Maths) with a first class and joined Madras Christian College for M.Sc. (Maths). She stayed with us and commuted up and down to college, which was not far, by bus. Ben was already with us having passed his engineering final exam and left for the United States with the intention of continuing there.

I planted some coconut saplings in the land and the rest of the area was tilled for ground nut cultivation. The yield was good and we took a second crop. We kept the lot for a long time and supplemented our food with it. The coconut saplings were a failure in spite of my personal attention.

At this time Raju and Lizzie left for U.K. for higher studies in medicine. She was then an expectant mother. We saw them off at the Meenambakam airport (Madras). Elsie and her parents from the city were also at the airport. The same night, Elsie gave birth to a son, Ranjit, at the St. Thomas Military Hospital. From the hospital she came with the baby and stayed with us for some days before going to her parents living in the city.

We made friends with other Malayalees living nearby. We longed to have a Malayalam Church service somewhere close by. So I discussed the matter with the family friends and decided to start a proper service. A meeting place was the first hindrance. I knew the local C.S.I. pastor because we used to attend the English service in his church. Under his charge was a primary school which would be free on Sundays. I sought his permission to hold our service in the school. He kindly agreed. Then I met the Vicar of the Mar Thoma Church, whom also I knew personally, under whose jurisdiction lay Tambaram and requested two things; to agree to our meeting in the school for worship since a large number of us could not reach Madras for the church service and to help us by celebrating holy communion either by him or by his assistant Atchen. He appreciated our need and readily agreed. So I asked the families to assemble at the school for worship and the Atchen himself inaugurated it. Whenever an Atchen was not present I conducted the service and when Atchen was present I assisted him in the communion service. We conducted the service regularly.

After a year, its anniversary was also conducted in the Madras Christian College premises close to which was the school in which we held the service. His Grace the Metropolitan was the chief guest. He personally expressed his appreciation and pleasure in conducting a service like this and wished it well. Air Force personnel and Mar Thomites from the college campus also began to attend. Attendance increased and the service received greater attention from the Atchens in the city and one of them came regularly to Tambaram for the service. After coming home I learned that a church building was put up on a plot purchased for the purpose and later a parsonage was added to it, both being a combined single building. It stands very close to the Tambaram railway station and the Christian College. A small seed sown in 1971 did grow up and bear fruit.

Gracie secured her M.Sc. and killed her time teaching in a private English medium school conducted by a family friend. While teaching there, Mathaikutty came on leave from Nigeria and volunteered to take her to Nigeria. Accordingly, after the necessary arrangements were complete she left for Nigeria. Georgie, Aleykutty, and I saw her off at the Meenambakam airport. For the only time in all her life, I saw Aleykutty getting concerned and even crying bitterly. Gracie herself tried to console her. She seemed to be unhappy about Gracie’s going. But till that moment she had not shown any unhappiness. What thoughts passed through her mind I do not know. I have not asked her at any time. Never before or after had she shown such open concern. She used to cover all her fears or concerns in silent prayer. Then, why this? Anyway, she did not openly object. Was it only submitting to my wish and Gracie's?

Georgie also succeeded to get his B.Com. from the Venkateswara University at Tirupathi through private study. He joined an auditor's firm for no pay at all but for a certificate of experience. After six months or so he moved into another firm doing audit who paid him something which would just support him.

Entrusting the house to his care we left for home in September 1976. Scooter and other baggage came by lorry service. Georgie soon had a tenant for the house and so he had company. The tenant was one of his cousins from Kumbanad then at Tambaram in the Air Force.