While at Abu-Suier, near Cairo, and having a perfectly valid medical reason not to, he volunteered to fill in for a sick WOP on #108 Squadron - and was promptly shot down,. Later while convalescing in Cairo - and bored - he made the acquaintance of members of a transport unit. On the false assumption that Howard could drive, he accepted the offer of a trip over the desert with a British captain and his batman. They set out in two vehicles on a trip 400 kms. behind enemy lines. He then learned the purpose of the trip - to lay out a landing strip at Siwa Oasis, on the border of Libya, for Spits and Hurricanes to intercept German a/c bombing oil depots at Suez. They missed their objective and blundered into an Italian-held area of Jahrabub, Libya. In an exchange of fire, Howard had one bullet ricochet off his head before being rescued by members of the Long - Range Desert Group.
Howard says that he “evaded” posting to #5 ADU and was posted instead to the UK., boarding Niew Amsterdam at Suez(with ACA member Jack Kelly) for Durban, South Africa. The trip from Cape Town to Gourock, Scotland took 29 days in convoy on HMS Almazora - a veteran of the Battlle of Jutland.
Howard was posted to instruct at #23 OTU, RAF Pershore, with mostly Canadians on course. First he had heard of 6 Group! A proposed second tour did not materialize for medical reasons and Howard returned to Canada in August 1943. Went to #6 B&G at Mountain View, then to 1 Air Command, HQ, Trenton filling a variety of personnel roles. He was granted his permanent commission on October 1, 1946

First day on drive to Siwa Oasis - 1942

Memorable Op 2