And I confessed to the C.O. He was a good fellow and,
whilst pointing out the possible penalties for misappropriating one of Her Majesty’s aeroplanes, quietly congratulated me on having the cheek and spirit to have done it. He signed my log book to make it official.
In 1991 RAF Woodvale celebrated its 50th anniversary and I returned as a guest to join the party. By chance, also there was the Spitfire Association, among its members was Tom Neil, a Battle of Britain Spitfire (and Hurricane) pilot who had been my C.O. on 208 Squadron in the Middle East.
“Hello,” he said,“what are you doing here?”
“I was an instructor on the University Air Squadron,” I said.
I did not mention my one and only Spitfire flight. It seemed a little insignificant against his record! Today PS915 still flies proudly with the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Tom Neil at 95 is one of the very few remaining of ‘The Few.’ And me? I have retired and hung up my flying helmet long since, but in a quiet moment I look back with much satisfaction and pride, able to claim: I flew a Spitfire! Thank you George.
This article first appeared in the 2017 Newsletter.
