Hi, does anybody have any information about Air Crew Rest camps in Tunisia in 1943? My father was based there for 8 months until Dec 1943 and according to his service records he was based at No 2 and No 4 Aircrew Rest Camps. From 1944 until 1945 he was based in Sorrento doing the same. I only have one postcard that he sent to my grandmother from Hammam Liv in Tunisia but can't find any information about the camps. Thanks, any help greatly appreciated!
Was he RAF? I'm afraid I'm not aware of any literature specifically devoted to rest camps, I've only come across references to them in more general memoirs. Thomas O'Reilly, an RAF pilot, mentions a rest camp at Hammam Lif, Tunisia, in this [Imperial War Museum recording] (https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/80017883), recalling a private beach patrolled by Italian prisoners of war (Reel 2, around the 18 minute mark). Maurice Lihou, a Wellington bomber pilot in Italy, wrote a memoir, Out of the Italian Night: Wellington Bomber Operations 1944-45, that includes a chapter about his crew's two week break at the Sorrento rest camp with plenty of walking, swimming, and a trip to Pompeii.
There are Operations Record Books (ORBs) at the National Archives:
[2 Rest and Leave Camp, Sorrento (Italy); includes a menu and monthly returns of officers. With appendices] (http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C7160756)
[4 Rest and Leave Camp, based at Hammam Plage (Tunisia) then moved to Santo Spirito (Italy). With appendices] (http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C7160758)
I'm not sure how illuminating they would be, the amount of detail in ORBs varies; they can be viewed in person, or there are services (e.g. [ARCRE] (https://www.arcre.com/copyservice)) who provide photographic copies for a fee.