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Bob-Brand

A veteran interview with

Bob Brand

Bob Brand had a remarkable career in aviation. Starting out in the RAF he finds himself on Sunderland Flying Boats and on the Berlin Airlift

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About Bob Brand

Bob was in Birmingham when it was bombed during WW2. A love of flying from an early age led him to join the RAF toward the end of the war and he was assigned to Coastal Command. He learned to fly the Sunderland, a four-engine flying boat, but before his training finished, he was sent to Berlin to assist with the Airlift. After qualifying as a pilot, he was assigned to Hamburg on the River Elbe where his squadron assisted in supplying Berlin with food and household goods. On their return trips they sometimes brought back malnourished children for care, as well as German export goods.

He saw the Russians as confrontational, while relations were thawing with the Germans. During the period of the Airlift there was no leave for his squadron, but they were close to the centre of Hamburg where they could relax in the evenings. He thought that the Airlift was an important event but that the role of the Sunderland squadrons has received insufficient attention.

After further overseas duties his squadron was assigned to Korea where war had just broken out. He flew coastal patrols, aiding the US navy in their search for enemy submarines. The Malayan Insurgency was also occurring during this time and the Sunderlands also helped the British army in their battle against communist guerrillas.  On leaving the RAF he spent many years as a flying instructor with various air forces in the Middle East before taking final retirement in 1976.

Credits

Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
Reviewed by:
David Mishan

Transcripts:
Please note that transcripts and closed captions in the video player are automatically generated by Vimeo.

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Home | Veterans | Bob Brand

A veteran interview with

Bob Brand

Bob-Brand

Bob Brand had a remarkable career in aviation. Starting out in the RAF he finds himself on Sunderland Flying Boats and on the Berlin Airlift

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Cite this interview:

MLA Style:
Brand, Bob. A Veteran Interview with Bob Brand. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, 17 Jul. 2013 https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/bob-brand/. Accessed 14 Jun. 2025.
APA Style:
Brand, B. (2013, July 17). A Veteran Interview with Bob Brand [Interview by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee. Retrieved June 14, 2025, from https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/bob-brand/
Chicago Style:
Brand, Bob. 2013. A Veteran Interview with Bob Brand. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, July 17. Accessed June 14, 2025. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/bob-brand/
Harvard Style:
Brand, B. (2013). A Veteran Interview with Bob Brand. [Interviewed by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee, 17 July. Available at https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/bob-brand/ (Accessed: 14 June 2025)
Vancouver Style:
Brand, B. A Veteran Interview with Bob Brand [Internet]. Interview by M. Bisiker. Legasee; 2013 Jul 17 [cited 2025 Jun 14]. Available from: https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/bob-brand/
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