大象传媒

I was an officer pilot in a fighter squadron during the Second World War, first of all in France when we were driven back by the Germans and eventually came back to England with our tail between our legs. Then we were reformed as a fighter squadron at Croydon and we went over to Gravesend where we were stationed during the Battle of Britain. During that time we did daily sorties, sometimes five times a day, to intercept the incoming raids from the continent of bombers and Stuka dive bombers. We had engaged nearly every day and had heavy casualties. We were reinforced by Poles coming from France after they had escaped from Poland and various continental pilots and some fleet air arm pilots to make up the numbers. We had about 15 pilots, usually with 12 flying every day. Any casualties had to be immediately replaced in order to bring the squadrons up to strength.

I myself was shot down in the middle of August and wounded and only got back to the squadron in September when the battle was beginning to die out. After that I went to fighter training school to train new fighter pilots and subsequently I was sent to Africa to join the Royal Air Force there in the desert. They were flying War Hawks and Kiddie Hawks American aircraft. I was engaged in the battle for El Alamein and the subsequent retreat of the German troops. Finally, I was given a squadron of hurricanes myself again and then flying from Eladam in North Africa I led a major attack on Crete leading 109 air craft into the beaches there to strafe any enemy transport or troops we could find. Unfortunately on the beach, I was coming out again, I was shot down, I had to crash land and then I was confined in the German prison camp for the rest of the war.

Certainly much better that being in a Japanese prison camp, the Germans were very crude and very correct, but never did anything out of line, they treated officers as officers. With the Red Cross parcels we lived quite well. We would have starved to death if we had been confined to the German rations.

Being shot down was quite a regular occurrence for me, I was shot down in France and then again in England and both times got out by parachute. The last time I had to crash land, of course you only crash land if there is no alternative and I had to get down on the beach there at Crete, between two rows of olive trees, which the Germans couldn鈥檛 believe I got down there safely.

I was in Stalag Luft 111, the big camp where the great escape occurred and where the escapees were massacred by the Germans. The camp committee for escaping was very strictly run, no one was allowed to escape without permission. Unless you came up with a very good idea of your own, you had to comply with the regulations regarding the escaping, which meant we all had to help in carrying out the sand from the tunnels and standing security to keep the Germans away from discovering the tunnels. Everyone participated but only a few got out but of those 75 that did get out 50 were killed

We didn鈥檛 have to work at all, days were not long enough for the activities that were available, any kind of study, any subject under the sun, language, economics; you could study and pass exams using the services of the Swiss Red Cross.

I did the cooking for the room of the eight officers I was in and played cricket and handball and other sports and then took a degree in economics through the Red Cross service. The main ration was black bread, which was almost indigestible but lasted for days. We also got ample supplies of boiled barley which, with the Red Cross parcels milk and sugar, you could turn into a decent porridge or with a tin of salmon you could make into kedgeree. So you could make yourself quite interesting but the German rations meant you got meat once every three months and artificial jam and hot water.

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