Operation Chicken Kyiv

Operation Chicken Kyiv

So, this is the brief story of a manic 4 days where Geoff and Mike drove across most of Europe and back to deliver much needed aid for the people of Ukraine. Undoubtedly there are bits missed out as the miles blur the memory somewhat, despite an attempt to keep notes en-route. However, as an account of pretty much what happened, this is as good as it gets. We wanted to let you, our family, friends and colleagues who donated know how we got on…

Tuesday 19th April 2022

Geoff arrived at Mike's house around 0830 and after a quick coffee we loaded his vehicle with the supplies for Ukraine. These were several first aid packs, triage equipment, shell dressings, saline solutions, space blankets, adult and children’s clothes and children’s nappies. Once loaded, we set off for the Eurotunnel in Folkestone, Kent. Our crossing was to be a 35-minute train ride (amazing to think we were going under the Channel), at 1440 hours, but after the almost non-existent checks we were able to get on an earlier train at 1420 hours. We were checked by French customs who have a checkpoint there for explosives/drugs testing via a ‘swab’ check, which I felt was minimal, and we were on our way. Half an hour later, we emerged into Calais and onto the first of many motorways bound for Poland. The GPS said an 18-hour drive was in front of us whilst crossing France, Belgium, Holland, Germany and Poland to get to our destination of Lublin, Poland – a sobering prospect…

By 2330 hours we were both feeling the effects of deep concentration whilst driving, as there were many cars overtaking us with aplomb at speeds in excess of 100 mph. Indeed, on the German autobahn where sections are unlimited speeds, we were getting cars travelling in excess of 120 mph – one had to have one’s wits totally focused. Despite many flasks and cups of strong coffee, we both decided that an hour or two ‘shut eye’ in a service station was required. We pulled in just short of Helmstedt, Germany and attempted to sleep in the front of the car. A mixture of bright lights and barking dogs made that a total nonsense, and after an hour of tossing and turning we decided to push on to Berlin and beyond…

Wednesday 20th April

On our way towards Berlin, I was reminded of the days when the Iron Curtain existed, and the only way to Berlin by road was via the ‘Corridor’. A car would enter the border of what was West Germany and East Germany via a West German Checkpoint and thence onto a Russian checkpoint at Magdeburg to check paperwork. Here they would also check your average speed/mileage to make sure that no one had decided to go ‘off route’ to do a little spying! There were large Russian tank and engineer barracks nearby and this was a stark reminder of the hold that the Soviet Union as it was then had in this part of Europe. One final check was done at Checkpoint Bravo on the outskirts of Berlin before then entering the western occupied section of Berlin. Nowadays, of course, it is a straight drive skirting Berlin and onwards to the Polish border – which was what we were doing. Country borders came and went without any passport control (well none that we saw!) as the miles piled by. By early morning we were in Poland and moving towards Warsaw.

Miles continued to fly by, and despite now being very tired, a growing feeling of excitement was slowly but surely building the closer we got to Lublin in Poland. We had been given instructions to take our supplies to the Polish Red Cross there as they are controlling all stocks that go into Ukraine (mainly medical supplies), and other needs were the supplies for refugees arriving in Poland (mainly clothes and food).

Suddenly, our trusty satnav in the car went loopy around Warsaw! The road we were on (a major one) wasn’t there apparently, and according to the map we were crossing forests, lakes and farmland. But amazingly, this brand spanking road took at least an hour off our journey – every 60 minutes counts believe me…

Arriving into Lublin, the signs of a city absorbing war refugees were there to be seen. Cars with Ukrainian flags, buildings painted in the blue and yellow, and posters supporting those arriving across the border, no doubt scared, hungry, confused and worried about the people they had left behind. We saw an Italian registered small van with boxes and kit in the back, and for a moment I wondered if we should follow them – perhaps they were going to the same drop off point? In the end with 4 lanes of traffic darting from lane to lane we decided to trust the address we had been given and head on into the city centre to Puchacza 6 Street close to the main railway station.

After a bit of messing around trying to find the Red Cross HQ, and attempting sign language with the locals, the welcoming big circle with a red cross inside meant we were finally at our destination! We were met by a very bubbly young lady by the name of Ewelina, who with her colleague’s helped us unload. For both Geoff and I it was an emotional moment because we could see that this ‘drop’ of supplies was hugely welcomed and desperately needed. Everyone had tears welling in their eyes!

After a short photo opportunity and a pee, we then said our farewells and jumped back into the Land Rover, turned around and set off on our 1250 miles return trip. We had decided however to get some shut eye in any hotel on the outskirts of Warsaw. Using booking.com search we found one called the ‘Amber’ hotel close to the airport that still had rooms available. We both agreed that this was a hotel still waiting to be finished, with dodgy electrical wires hanging off ceilings and walls, the sound of drilling somewhere inside and very few patrons (those that were there appeared to be builders). A quick meal washed down with a Polish beer called Tyskie, and it was off to bed. We had agreed to get up at 0300 hours so that we could get on the road with the intention of getting to Calais in just under 14 hours driving before last light.

Thursday 21st April

Moving back through Poland reminded both of us of what a very large country this was. However, by mid-morning we had arrived at the Polish/German border, and that’s when we had a little detour. For some reason, perhaps because of the GB sticker, we were very quickly tracked and pursued by the German customs police. Geoff commented, “oh look there are blue flashing lights approaching fast”. Looking in the rear view mirror I could see this and pulled across a lane to let them pass and get after whomever they were after. Oh dear, a fast pull in front of us with a flashing notification of ‘Follow Us’ meant we were the target! So, we dutifully followed them off the motorway and into a largely deserted car park with a couple of large buildings. When we all stopped, we were quickly asked to get out of the car and ordered to produce passports and vehicle documents. I think they were somewhat bemused to see 2 old guys, clearly tired yet driving an empty vehicle apart from two overnight bags. They asked where we had been, and when we told them their eyes widened especially when they learned we had only left the UK two days previously. After a very cursory look at both our passports and the car they asked us if we were carrying, explosives, weapons or controlled substances. Geoff’s forlorn face and denial was all they wanted to hear, and they dismissed us. 10 minutes later we were back on the autobahn and heading to the Dutch border. They did not give us a reason for pulling us over – perhaps they needed to fill up their quota of checks for the day!

Holland came and went, Belgium was largely unmemorable as we struggled around Antwerp in rush hour, and then we were into France. The end was in sight. We had booked into a hotel in Calais for that evening so that we could catch the first Eurotunnel on Friday morning. Arriving at Calais in the early evening was frankly surreal. We had not been there for many years, and we were astonished to see the miles and miles of high fences and razor wire ‘protecting’ the port and ferries from the thousands of illegal immigrants. It was actually quite difficult to get into the town itself, and after a bit of driving confusion we arrived at the Ibis Styles Hotel, exhausted and looking for a decent shower, meal and bed. As it turned out the hotel did not do evening meals, so we wandered into the town and found the first respectable looking restaurant for a decent steak washed down with some local red wine. On our way back to the hotel we paused at a bar opposite for a ‘nightcap’ and were surrounded by locals and Brits alike who got chatting to us and hearing about our tale. It sort of inspired the younger folk we thought, and maybe some of them will go and do a similar journey.

Friday 22nd April

A leisurely start for us, a quick breakfast and onto the 0840 train bound for Blighty and home. The rest is history as I arrived back at my house in Somerset around lunchtime and Geoff took off for the Wye Valley. He called me when he arrived there to give me the final mileage, which was 2556.5 miles. The mission was completed, supplies delivered, and we were back in one piece. We are also pleased to announce that through your generous donations we were able to raise close to ￡6,000 which will be passed onto the Red Cross direct for specific use to aid Ukraine and its people to combat this ridiculous war.

Fun facts:

·????????One game of ‘I spy with my little eye’ lasted close to 4 hours.

·????????We had approximately a dozen coffee breaks

·????????We slept for approximately 9 hours in 3 and half days

·????????We averaged 60 mph (unbelievable!!)

·????????We saw both French and Polish tanks moving to the border, along with logistics heavy vehicles (carrying ammunition no doubt)

·????????We spoke pretty much non-stop for 90 hours – mind you, both Geoff and I, like a bit of banter!

·????????We tried to maintain a 3 hour on/off drive sessions between us, with the intention that the ‘off’ driver could get some kip in the passenger seat – that never happened, as chatting to each other kept us awake when driving.