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Dixie -> RE: THE THREAD!!! (2/12/2015 4:04:29 PM)
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Just got back from another BBMF related outing. We were invited to a veterans' dinner yesterday with a group of mostly Bomber Command veterans. There was a chap who flew 108 missions as a flight engineer on Lancasters, another who took part in the 1948 Olympics who said that Hitler robbed him of the opportunity to get a medal whilst he was in his prime so he got revenge by bombing Hitler!
I was sat next to a gentleman who flew as a bomb aimer/co-pilot in Wellingtons with the Middle East strategic air force in 1944-45 flying missions from Italy to targets in the Balkans, Austria, Romania and Southern France. His crew shot up a German airfield one night when they pretended to be a nightfighter and followed a Ju88 in to land. [:D] After the war he went into the safari business which he described as more dangerous than ops over Europe.
Another guy joined the RAF at 15 just before the war as a boy entrant, he ended up flying Lancasters with the Pathfinders and Neptunes after the war. The president of the ex-PoW association was there and he talked about the long march in 1945 when the Germans moved Allied PoWs away from the advancing Russians. I didn't get to talk to another chap who was actually 'liberated' by the Russians.
The youngest had just turned 90, the oldest was 98 and I swear none of them looked over 70. I can only hope I'm as switched on as they are at that age.
We stayed at a benevolent fund respite home where there were a few older people about. One of those was a Halifax pilot who 'only' managed two ops before he was burnt quite badly in a crash. He was proud to be one of the Guinea Pig club.
It was a great day, and I'm sure none of you need prompting but I'd highly recommend chatting to any veterans you can And not just about the war).
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