FLYING THE ATLANTIC, part 4

By DELL ARTHUR

            Following our short stay at Biggin Hill airport we fired up the engines of the 340 and headed north to Chichester/Goodwood, home of the world famous Festival of Speed race course. It was only a short flight and the countryside changed dramatically from the large area of London and surrounding urban population to a more placid setting. The rolling hills of the countryside punctuated with farms, green pastures and livestock gave off a sense of serenity. It was hard to imagine that during World War II this surrounding area was bombarded by German aircraft in their attacks on the Goodwood airport.  This grass covered aerodrome housed a squadron of Spitfire fighters led by an English fighter pilot named Douglas Bader. It was

Bader and his squadron of Canadian pilots, that played a principal part in the famed Battle of Britain.

            Approaching the field I was astonished to discover it was a “grass trip.” No paved runways. Later I was told that this is exactly how the field was during the war.  The owner of the site, his Lordship Marsh, promised that he would keep the airport as it has always been since World War II, in memory of those horrific times and the heroic men who flew from here. Circling the pattern we got into position for landing and as we passed over the fence and flared out the wheels gently kissed the earth. Taxiing to a parking space we shut down the engines and disembarked. It was like being in the 1940’s.

            Douglas Bader earned his popularity the hard way. He wasn’t your usual pilot. In fact he was nearly rejected for military service as a result of an airplane accident he suffered just seven years prior to the outbreak of war. At that time he was a young pilot in the Royal Air Force and was out doing stunts when he attempted a slow roll just off the ground. This particular airplane was noted for slow responses and heaviness and Bader hadn’t done aerobatics in it before. He was aware of the reputation of the plane but when taunted to do some “trick flying” he wasn’t hesitant to pass up a challenge. The result was a crash that would probably have killed a lesser man.

            When the rescuers rushed to the crash site they had to cut him out of the wreckage. Both of his legs were smashed and arriving at the hospital the doctors had no hope of saving them. Consequently they amputated his right leg above the knee and the left leg just below the knee.

            Following months of rehabilitation and learning to walk on his “tin legs” he was mustered out of the service with a 100 per cent disability. But Bader was a pilot and he knew no other way to make a living but to fly. Going to work with the Shell Company he spent the next seven years behind a desk but always with a desire to return to his first love—flying.

            And then came 1939 and the threats of Adolph Hitler and his Nazi regime. Conquering most of Europe the dictator’s next wish was the invasion of England. Foreseeing the threat the RAF took another look at Bader and after satisfying a medical examination he was allowed to take a flight refresher course. He nailed it! Soon he was back flying Hurricane fighters and was finally promoted to take over a Canadian squadron.

            Taking charge of this recalcitrant group of devil-may-care pilots, he was met with opposition. How, the pilots wondered, could a man with two artificial legs command a squadron behind a desk? Little did they know that Bader had no intention of leading “behind a desk”! Walking out to a parked Spitfire he climbed in, fired up the engine and then proceeded to put on an aerobatic show that dazzled the men watching. From that point on they were “his men.”

            After bringing the group to readiness they were set for combat. And combat they had.

            Daily German fighters and bombers flew overhead. The English were outnumbered by more than 10 to one and the loss of a single English fighter was a major setback. Bader’s group more than equaled the loss of airplanes and he himself accounted for a large number of enemy planes shot down before he himself was shot down.

            What happened was he was leading his group when his radio went out and he was unable to communicate with the others. A group of German 109 fighters were sighted and a vicious “dog fight” broke out. In just minutes it was over and Bader found he was alone over France. Turning towards home base he sighted six German 109’s in front of him and being who he was he couldn’t resist a fight. Tearing into the enemy he downed one before he himself was hit. The shells knocked out nearly all of his flight and engine instruments and also damaged the engine. The cockpit started to fill with smoke and he knew he had to get out of the airplane. Jettisoning the canopy he struggled to get out but his right leg was jammed behind the rudder pedals and he couldn’t get out. In the struggle he was finally able to separate from the tin leg and bailing out he safely opened his parachute and drifted down into a field.

            As he floated down one of the German fighters flew close by him and seeing a man with a single leg drifting down he turned away without firing.

            It was only minutes before German ground solders captured him and turned him over to the Luftwaffe where he was treated as a celebrity. His total count of enemy aircraft shot down was over 22. As an act of mercy the Germans said they would allow the RAF to fly over the prison camp and drop off Bader’s spare leg. When he got it the first thing he did was to attempt to escape!

            He tried other escapes as well and finally the Germans took away his leg until he “behaved.” Finally they transferred him to an escape proof castle in the middle of Germany where he spent the rest of the war as a prisoner of war.

            At the end of the war Bader was released from military service and went back to work for the Shell Company. The company provided him with his personal airplane and, as part of his job, traveled all over Europe on company business. He remained with Shell until his retirement and finally settled down in a small country home where he lived out his life.

            His final takeoff from English soil was from Goodwood and as a memorial of his heroism there is a bronze statue of him next to the green grass airstrip standing on his “tin legs,” and holding his favored pipe in his hands.