Without in any way diminishing the parts played by at least nineteen Americans and an indeterminate number of 'Canadians' in inverted commas who took an active part in the Battle of Britain in the Summer of 1940, let's all hoist a jar to the memory of one who died today, leaving only three others...

Battle of Britain pilot Maurice Mounsdon dies aged 101 - just 2 hours ago

One of the last surviving pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain during World War Two has died aged 101.

Flight Lieutenant Maurice Mounsdon was one of only four remaining members of The Few - a group of 3,000 airmen who defended the skies above southern England from the Nazis in 1940.

The head of the RAF, Air Chief Marshal Mike Wigston, said Mr Mounsdon's bravery should never be forgotten.

The Battle of Britain led to the deaths of 544 RAF pilots and aircrew.

Their bravery and sacrifice in withstanding the greater numbers of German pilots of the Luftwaffe and a possible invasion was recognised by then Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few," he told MPs.

Churchill's "Few", as RAF crew, who included Polish, Canadian, Czech, and a few 'Canadians' from South of the border, and New Zealand pilots among others, became known, have been celebrated ever since.

Mr Mounsdon was described by his nephew, Adrian Mounsdon, as a "great man" who would be missed by his family, the Daily Mirror reported.

ACM Wigston said he was "deeply saddened" by Mr Mounsdon's death, saying the veteran had "fought for and won our freedom".

"His was a remarkable story, which will continue to inspire this and future generations of the Royal Air Force, his bravery and sacrifice should never be forgotten," he added.

In 2015, Mr Mounsdon told the BBC he was serving with 56 Squadron out of North Weald when he was sent out to intercept some bombers on 31 August 1940.

He managed to shoot at one of them, but then a German cannon shell hit the fuel tank of his Hawker Hurricane.

"I was on fire. There was only one thing to do and that was to get out as fast as possible," he told the BBC.

"I was badly burned, but I rolled the aircraft over and came down by parachute from 14,000ft."

Image caption
Mr Mounsdon suffered terrible burns to his hands and legs
He said it was the first time he had used a parachute and he was "jolly lucky".

Mr Mounsdon, who had terrible burns to his legs and hands, landed in a field in the village of High Easter, Essex, where he was found by local people.

He spent a number of years in various hospitals, where he had skin grafts.

While in hospital, he married his childhood sweetheart Mary.

The couple moved to the Spanish island Menorca in the late 1970s and lived there until she died in 1993.

For Mr Mousdon's 100th birthday in September last year the Red Arrows paid tribute to him with a flyover off the coast of Menorca.

The three surviving members of the Few are Flt Lt William Clark, 100, Wing Commander Paul Farnes, 101, and Flying Officer John Hemingway, 100.

Very sad, but thank you for sharing.

Just started watching the documentary about the Spitfire on Netflix yesterday, and Commander Farnes is in it.

Amazing what they pulled off in that Summer and Fall of 1940. Outnumbered 4-1 by the Luftwaffe fighters...

Yes it is sad that these heroes are slowly disappearing from among us. Those guys were true heroes, placing nation and honor above personal safety.

Godspeed good man.

quote:

Originally posted by Elk Hunter:
Yes it is sad that these heroes are slowly disappearing from among us. Those guys were true heroes, placing nation and honor above personal safety.

16 million served
389,000 alive
294 deaths per day

as of 9/19

https://www.nationalww2museum....i-veteran-statistics

At the school I attended between 1959 and 1964, every man there had served in the Army, the Royal Navy/Fleet Air Arm, the Royal Air Force or, in one case, SOE.

Most had been in WW2, many in Korea, and a few in Malaysia or Kenya.

On Remembrance Day they clanked, especially one of the older guys who had survived FOURTEEN Arctic convoys. The right side of his jacket was covered from bottom to top with Russian medals, and when he died, the Soviet ambassador attended his funeral and caused his name to be inscribed on the monument to the bravery of the men who had kept Russia supplied during those awful days.

Our English teacher had joined the RAF straight from school at age 18, and was flying just before his 19th birthday. He was shot down three times before he was twenty, and his last flight, in a Typhoon, ended up on the beach on the south coast. He left both his lower legs in the cockpit as he was catapulted out. We loved him, and his Douglas Bader impressions ought really to have been recorded for posterity.

They really were made of different stuff than common folks like me.

I will raise a glass in his memory tonight

I often wonder how these men feel about sacrificing so much and then seeing it given away to illegals

Never was there a more true definition of "hero" than those brave souls who literally saved their country from evil.
The world's gratitude follows you.

We all owe him and those like him who sacrificed for the cause liberty to live our best lives in selflessness and service to others. My best to his family.

If interested, here are the names of the 'KNOWN' Americans - all of whom declared that they were Canadians - who flew in the Battle of Britain.

Alexander Roman Zatonski, No. 79 Squadron RAF (KIA)
Andrew Beck Mamedoff, No. 609 Squadron RAF (KIA)
Arthur Gerald Donahue, No. 64 Squadron RAF (KIA)
Carl Raymond Davis, No. 601 Squadron RAF (KIA)
De Peyster Douw Brown, No. 401 Squadron RCAF
Eugene Quimby Tobin, No. 609 Squadron RAF (KIA)
John Kenneth Haviland, No. 152 Squadron RAF
Phillip Howard Leckrone, No. 616 Squadron RAF (KIA)
Vernon Charles Keough, No. 609 Squadron RAF (KIA)
William Meade Fiske, No. 601 Squadron RAF (KIA)

I am certain that there were more.

A toast with my best scotch to your final flight, sir. Thank you for what you and your fellow pilots did for the world.

I raise a light beer for Lt Mounsdon just now. It’s cold and clear and I hope that wouldn’t offend him overmuch. Godspeed, and fair winds.

Godspeed Flight Lt. Hero’s every single one.

I'm sad and yet I'm happy for him. No one wants to lose a hero like this but I'll be damned if thats not a fine run.