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Corporal Ernie Lomas, Royal Army Service Corps, 5oth Northumbrian Division.

Ernie volunteered in 1939 to be a driver with the RASC. In 1939 he landed in France with the British Expeditionary Force.

During the evacuation from Dunkirk Ernie had to help push a small boat out to sea, against the tide, in an effort to reach a larger naval vessel that could carry him and his comrades to safety. He later discovered that his driving license and papers had been in his trousers map pocket, soaked during the evacuation, and the impression and ink of his driving license had left a permanent mark on his military papers. He still has this poignant reminder of the evacuation today.

Ernie was later posted with the 50th Division to the Middle East where he saw service in Iraq and travelled close to the border with the USSR. At Habbania, a huge military base near Kirkuk, Ernie had a chance reunion with his brother-in-law who served with the RAF Regiment. He remembers being involved in a huge convoy of trucks taking supplies South towards Egypt and the terrifying attacks of German Stuka dive bombers. He remembers being chided by his commanding officer for diving for cover instead of firing at the attacking planes.

In Egypt, he remembers being involved with a diversion at the time of El Alamein into the Qattarra Depression, an area of impenetrable salt marsh in Southern Egypt. He also remembers seeing Montgomery address the troops of his division.

Ernie was with the 50th Division when they entered Italy via Sicily and Sardinia. He has fond memories of winning a 拢20 bet to see which unit could get a FMC (Food Marshalling Centre) established first.

After his time in Italy, Ernie shipped back to Britain to prepare for D-Day. He remembers practising disembarking landing craft at Inveraray in Scotland. When D-Day finally arrived Ernie was to drive a Rhino fuel vehicle ashore on Gold Beach. His landing craft, LST 345, was due to land on Gold Beach at midday on D-Day, but was delayed until 6pm. Ernie recounted that he could not see much of what was going on, but could hear the fighting from the landing craft. Following D-Day, Ernie recalls that his unit did not move very far from Gold Beach for about two weeks and that they had a terrible problem with German snipers.

He remembers seeing the massed Allied air forces on there way to annihilate the Germans as they retreated from Normandy through the Falaise gap.

At the end of the war Ernie remembers that he was in Germany with his unit and that everyone was very happy to have survived.

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