A personal sadness

Certain events are stuck in my mind, I was 8 years old at the time so it’s all a bit hazy now, but.

The tremendous thump when a Me109 went into the hill a few hundred yards in front of our bungalow.
My mother making us go inside as we were watching a block of German bombers grinding across us, the guns were going and there was a little tinkling noise coming from the road in front of the garden where we stood.
A German pilot in his parachute drifting across near the church, I thought his chute would get snagged on the spire but he was the far side of it from me.
Watching the remains of German aircraft being unloaded in the yard across the road from us, and begging the troops guarding the place for “souvenirs”. I didn’t know what the word meant, I thought it was some special part.
The strange smell of crashed aircraft.

Thanks, Ross, that’s a really interesting addition, and a magnificent effort by the RNLI. I wonder whether that had any bearing on his decision post war to become a Coastguard?

As you can imagine Kent was a busy spot at the time, and he saw a lot. There was a Wellington crash near the pier, that Graham Pitchfork has written about in Flypast, and in February 1942 he watched six Swordfish fly over on their way to Manston, for “…the mothball attack of a handful of ancient planes, piloted by men whose bravery surpasses any other action by either side that day”. I don’t recall him ever mentioning he’d seen it, but I cannot imagine that the low-level flying by Lancasters at Reculver in Spring 1943 went unnoticed, either.

As soon as he could he joined the Home Guard, and was on the cliffs between Herne Bay and Reculver when an anti-aircraft rocket battery mistook a Typhoon for a German aircraft – luckily they only scared seven shades of it out of the pilot! Then there was the night when someone in the tin shed on the cliffs dropped his Sten gun on its stock and the entire magazine discharged… again, only scaring seven shades! On a sadder note, there was the Home Guard exercise when someone stumbled over a live grenade and was killed…

Adrian

Hi Adrian,

This is the record from the RNLI Records of Service 1939-46

HERNE BAY, KENT.
Shortly after mid-day on the 26th August, 1940, aeroplanes were seen to crash off Reculver and Herne Bay, and three parachutes to be coming down.

About four in the afternoon another aeroplane crashed off Herne Bay, and another man came down in the sea by parachute. Five men from Herne Bay put out in three motor boats and a rowing boat and rescued three British and two German airmen. – Rewards, £2 15s. and 7s. 6d. for fuel used.

The bit about the rewards is that when war broke out the RNLI Charity took the decision that any act of lifesaving at sea by anyone was to be treated in the same way that the charity rewarded it’s volunteer lifeboat crews. A massive undertaking for an independent society but one that it faithfully undertook for the entire war.

Regards
Ross

Thank you for that story of an august day that forever now will be part of history to share.
RIP Sir.

TA

Amen to that.

Thanks for sharing this Adrian.

Paul

Thanks, gents. Right now I’m having a “small” glass of port for him. His preferred measure was about an inch of port in a brandy glass like a goldfish bowl on a stalk, so I think I will sleep well tonight. Sleep the sleep of the just, my friend.

Adrian

RIP 🙁

Thanks for sharing. First hand memories are getting fewer.

Indeed, a great share.

We can only guess at the excitement mixed with fear he would have felt as a youngster in those dark days, and the joy of eventual victory

RIP

Moggy

Lovely to share this…thanx and RIP, duty done.

Thanks for telling this story. I hope your friend rests in peace.

Adrian

Thank you for sharing this account.

R I P they lived in exciting times for a youngster ,hope the sort of times we won’t need to see.