Veteran: William Clark
Seventy-five years on from the Battle of Britain, RAF veteran William Clark finally received his World War Two medals on his 95th birthday, 15 September last year.
Mr Clark, originally from Kent but now living in Nottingham, only applied for his medals last year in order to wear them at the unveiling of a Memorial to World War Two aircrew at RAF Debden. It was the Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Andrew Pulford, who presented the former fighter pilot and prisoner of war with the African Star, 1939-1945 Star and War Medal on the steps of St Paul’s Cathedral. Mr Clark said he was delighted to be awarded his medals by the most senior Officer in the RAF, rather than being presented them by the postman in a little cardboard box. ‘It was a very exciting and proud moment!’
William Clark enlisted with the RAF in April 1940 aged nineteen years old, and was under training during the height of the Battle of Britain. He welcomed the chance to pay tribute to RAF veterans who took part in the Battle, describing himself as ‘just one of the many, who followed ‘the Few’.
The former fighter pilot learned to fly Battles, Ansons, then Hurricanes before being posted to Malta, then on to 274 Squadron Amriva in Egypt on 13 July 1941; where his Unit flew Hurricanes and Gladiators on fighter sweeps against the Nazis over the African desert.
Just after his 21st birthday, his aircraft was shot down and he was taken prisoner by the Germans. He saw ‘little balls of fire’ approaching him
fired by anti-aircraft guns on the ground, and still distinctly remembers the shock of a crashlanding after his plane was hit. Surviving the crash, he then trudged in the desert’s midday sun wearing fur-lined flying boots, in heavy desert battle dress as he tried to evade the enemy.
“It wasn’t a very pleasant experience and, of course, there was the shock. I was only just 21 and suddenly I wasn’t in my normal environment – in the sky, in an aircraft. Here I was, wandering about all on my own in a vast expanse of rock and sand. It was very, very lonely. I’ve never been so lonely in all my life.”
William was captured and made a PoW, spending the rest of the war being moved between prisoner of war camps in Italy, Austria and Germany, during which time he was promoted from Sergeant Warrant Officer. He recalls the boosting food parcels, concert parties and escape plans as well as the hunger, boredom, lice and fleas.
“Morale in the camps used to go sky high whenever the Red Cross food parcels were available.
When they weren’t, things were pretty grim because the food was very, very meagre.”
William arrived home in the UK on 8 May 1945 – VE Day! His first glimpse of home was from the cockpit of a Dakota, when he saw bonfires being lit beyond the white cliffs of Dover. It was to be later that year when he demobbed, moving on to become a Head Teacher, to marry, and in time have two children.
He never bothered asking for his medals as he couldn’t see when he was ever going to wear them … until he was asked, last year, to unveil a Memorial and told to wear his medals in memory of all those people he had flown with and who would never fly again. The Minister in the House of Lords, Earl Howe, said of him:
“It’s a privilege today to pay tribute not only to ‘The Few’ but also to other veterans, like Mr Clark, who courageously served in defence of our nation during the Second World War. I am pleased that Mr Clark has been presented with medals to reflect both his wartime RAF service and his country’s enduring gratitude.”
The Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Andrew Pulford, added:
“It was a pleasure to meet William today and I was delighted to present him with his medals for his service in Africa on both his 95th birthday and the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain. It is wonderful to see so many veterans here today; the modern day Royal Air Force is proud to continue to serve the nation now as they so valiantly did then.”
This article is from the Autumn 2016 issue of Confound and Destroy
