MODEST WAR HERO

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: february 2012 :: RMTnews 27 Bill North, who served the union for over 40 years, has passed away at the age of 89 but he rarely spoke about his bravery and skill during his time at the controls of Lancaster bombers during the war against fascism. His incredible story would have remained untold if it was not for neighbour Chris Keltie who has written a book about his exploits, including landing a bullet-riddled Lancaster in the pitch black on a French hillside in 1944 and saving his crew following an attack by the Luftwaffe. Shortly before he died the Daily Mirror newspaper caught up with him and re-united him in an emotional meeting with Dennis Bartlett, one of the men he saved that night. Bill said that he was never scared of flying but had a fear of letting his crew down. “We had become the firmest of friends as well as comrades and had complete confidence in each other’s abilities. “It would have been a bitter blow if any one of my crew had been killed,” he said. Bill explained that the attack happened after his bomber took part in a mass raid on a Nazi base in St Leu d’Esserent in France and bullets ripped through the plane, wounding Bill. “We lost our port inner engine, flaps and one of our petrol tanks. “I was shot in the left elbow and thigh, my left arm just dropped down useless because the nerve had been severed. “The aircraft was responding to the controls so I gave the order ‘abandon aircraft’. “But then one of our men said his parachute harness had been shot off and he couldn’t jump,” he said. Bill decided that the only option was to crash land as he would not leave anyone behind. He brought the aircraft down over tree tops and landed tail down to stop the engines exploding on impact. “My overriding feeling was one of immense relief and satisfaction my crew survived,” he said. Dennis pulled him from the wreckage and the crew were captured by the Nazis, spending the rest of the war in different POW camps, and the pair didn’t meet until just before Bill died late last year. Dennis said that the memories of that night 67 years ago remained with him. “We all owe our lives to Bill, without a thought for himself and while terribly injured he stayed on board our doomed bomber in order to save us. That still moves me to this day,” he said. Bill was not decorated but pointed out that no-one knew of the crash-landing. “I was only too pleased we survived the war, every night we flew in the shadow of death I think about it every day. Bill commenced employment with the NUR in 1939 as a Junior Clerk before joining the RAF on the outbreak of the war. He went on to hold a variety of posts before retiring as office manager in 1982. Staff who remember him said that though Bill had a limp the rest of his life, no-one thought to ask him about it and he never spoke about the war. M rs Lavinia McPhearson, known as Mrs or Vi, has passed away at the age of 100 in a nursing home in Oxford. She was the landlady for executive committee members before the union built its own accommodation at Clapham, Slater Mews. From the mid-1970s to 2004 many EC members based outside of London stayed at Vi’s lodgings commonly known in the union as the Highbury Hilton. At the time lodgings in London were difficult to find at affordable prices as the lodging allowance fell short of hotel prices. Former EC member Dave Gott said that many union activists will remember Vi and her Dachshund dogs. “I’m sure all those who stayed there will remember her with thanks for her services to the union over the years. “She was a real unsung heroine,” he said. MODEST WAR HERO VI REMEMBERED