Just a Survivor

Born and raised in Luton, Bedfordshire, the author was among the many young British boys who stepped forward to volunteer for the armed forces during World War II. Although too young to enlist in 1939, he contributed as a civilian in the Air Raid Precautions (ARP) and later worked as a fireman at Percival Aircraft, where he was employed.

Once he reached the appropriate age, he passed a series of tests and was accepted into the RAF for pilot training. Following basic and initial training, he was assigned to a ship bound for Canada, where his flying training would take place at Bowden and Edmonton.

Though he did not qualify as a pilot, he distinguished himself as an exceptional navigator, earning his coveted one-winged brevet in 1942. Upon returning to the UK, he underwent further training and eventually joined an operational squadron – No. 103, stationed at RAF Elsham Wolds in Lincolnshire – in late 1943.

Regrettably, his flying career was to be short. During only their fourth operational sortie, he and his crew were shot down in their Lancaster bomber while targeting the V2-rocket launch sites at La Nieppe near Calais, shortly after D-Day. While three crew members, including the author, managed to parachute to safety, three others perished with the aircraft: the pilot, Wop/AG, and tail gunner.

This marked the abrupt end of the author's flying career and the start of a different ordeal as a prisoner of war. Captured shortly after landing, he underwent the usual interrogation process before being transported by train to Upper Silesia and Stalag Luft 7 at Bankau. 

He remained there until winter when, to prevent the camp from being liberated by the advancing Russian army, the POWs were forced to march 100 miles in miserable freezing conditions to Lukenwalde, a large POW camp near Berlin, where they spent the remainder of the war until finally liberated by the Russians.

It’s a captivating tale of an ordinary lad navigating extraordinary times—well-written and free of exaggeration. Ultimately, after numerous misadventures, Phil Potts was enormously grateful to be ‘Just a Survivor’.

Publisher - Woodfield Publishing Ltd

Language - English

Perfect Bound

Contributors

By author

Phil Potts

Published Date - 2000-06-01

ISBN - 9781873203446

Dimensions - 23.4 x 15.6 x 0.7 cm

Page Count - 118