大象传媒

One Day in August 1941

Soon after the 1939-45 war broke out my brother Cyril volunteered for the RAF but was rejected for aircrew training on health grounds and because his mathematics was not up to the standard required. He sought help from a maths master at a local school and paid for private tuition. He then set about becoming healthier and fitter and did physical exercises and, to toughen himself up, took to sleeping in a tent in the garden through all weathers. He cycled from Sidcup to his office in London.
He re-applied for aircrew, passed the maths test and passed the medical examination by lying about his previous illnesses (he had rheumatic fever as a child).

On the application form a question asked 鈥� 鈥淧lace your preferences for air crew in descending order from the following; Pilot, Navigator, Observer, Bomb Aimer, Flight Engineer, Air Gunner.鈥� Cyril put Pilot, Pilot, Pilot and was selected for flying training as a pilot!

He joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (service number 929898) on 15th June 1940 and, after flying training in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada, and a navigation course at Cambridge he became a Sergeant Pilot. He was killed on August 4th 1941 whilst flying a Spitfire. He crashed at Holwarth Farm, 1 mile south of Overmoigne, near Warmwell, Dorset returning to the airfield following a Solent convoy escort duty with 118 Squadron at that time based at Ibsley.

At Cyril鈥檚 funeral I remember talking to the pilot who accompanied him on his last flight and he told me that as they flew together through low cloud he radioed Cyril and told him that he was losing height. Cyril said that he was OK and that the altimeter reading showed that he was flying level. They flew into denser cloud and that was the last he saw of him.

Probably my most graphic memory was the day we received the telegram from the Air Ministry. My mother was in the kitchen and when there was a knock at the door
A telegram boy handed me the telegram. In those days receipt of a telegram was usually bad news and my mother was visibly shocked. 鈥淥pen it and read it to me,鈥� she said. I read out the message鈥he Air Ministry regrets to inform you that your son Sgt Cyril William Smith 929898 was killed today in Dorset.

I don鈥檛 remember much detail after that except that my mum knelt on the floor and cried for ages. I remember making her a cup of tea and asking a neighbour to come and help.

That day will live in my memory for ever.

Alan Smith

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