DISCIPLINE AT AIR FORCE . BASE CRITICISED

Greymouth Evening Star, 20 October 1948, Page 3

DISCIPLINE AT AIR FORCE . BASE CRITICISED

(P.A.) PALMERSTON N., This Day Strong criticism of the alleged lack of discipline at the Royal New Zealand Air Force station at Ohakea was made by Mr Justice Gresson and the Crown Prosecutoi’ (Mr G. I. when Kevin William John Jeffrey, aged 19, faced charges of wilfully setting fire to Shed 70 at Ohakea on Febuary 13 and 16 1947. His Honour said that the evidence in the case, if true, disclosed a deplorable state of affairs, and that at a military establishment, where one would *at least hope for efficiency, there appeared to have been in existence a fire crew with a sergeant who was not in the picture, and second in charge who, on his own admission, was quite unfitted to hold the position. The fire crew was free to go to bed with no one to answer the telegraph and, more than that, among the fire crew there seemed to have been an atmosphere of desire to create fires, and an expectation that there would be fires. There was a great deal of drinking on the fire station, and a climax, a fire was deliberately lit by one member of the crew, added his Honour. This was a fire in which many hundreds of pounds’ worth of State property was lost. Mr McGregor said that the deputy firemaster (Corporal A. L. Mclntosh) had failed in his duty. As soon as he had ascertained that something was wrong he should have reported to his superior officer. Jeffrey was found not guilty on the first charge. He admitted the second and was remanded in custody for. sentence.___,