Gosh. As emotional moments go, it’s up there; my son discovered today (after 7 years) that the little girl he carried from Grenfell survived. He now knows her name and has her picture. For seven years he thought she had died. Words are a bit difficult. It’s been a bit of a day.
Andy Saunders 🇺🇦 🇬🇧
28.5K posts
Historic aviation TV & film consultant, author, founder ‘Iron Cross’ magazine and Tangmere Aviation Museum. ‘History is just one f*****g thing after another’
East Sussex
Joined January 2013
- A very happy birthday to Wing Commander John Hemingway, the last known survivor of RAF Battle of Britain pilots and aircrew who is 103 today.
- Sad news from the announcements page of the local newspaper in Hastings:
- Birthday congratulations and best wishes to Wing Commander John ‘Paddy’ Hemingway DFC, the last known surviving Battle of Britain pilot who is an incredible 105 years old today.
- With the Bayeux Tapestry in the news, it’s time to resurrect this absolute classic of historical re/enactments.
- After watching the news about the Somerset House fire, and then discovering I’ve been watching my son fighting the fire from the cage and then clambering along the roof parapet, it’s up there with ‘proud dad’ moments, I guess. (They aren’t paid enough, btw 😡)
- A regular little Yuletide ‘tradition’ is to visit and leave flowers at this lonely grave in Battle, East Sussex, of the youngest female WW2 casualty commemorated by @CWGC She was just 16 when she died in service.
- Hello Twitter and social media, generally. Today, could we mostly talk about ‘Johnny’ Johnson - instead of Harry and Meghan?
- If we must endure re-enactment or ‘living history’ then it should at least be done properly, as here:
- Omaha beach yesterday. I must admit I hadn’t realised the re-enactments were going to be quite so realistic…
- Finding this rather battered tiny lead Hurricane in the garden of my Sussex home gave me a real thrill. I can visualise a young child watching the Battle of Britain from the garden and playing with this. A treasure!
- We visit her lonely grave each ChristmasTheir Name Liveth For Evermore The youngest ATS soldier to die in service during WW2. Private Violet Edith Akehurst Auxiliary Territorial Service Age 16 24 Nov 1941 490(M) Heavy Anti Aircraft HAA Bty. Royal Artillery Commemorated @CWGC Battle Cemetery East Sussex
- Had it not been for those helicopters, though, I doubt they’d have taken Pegasus Bridge…
- Very sad news today with the passing of Peter Arnold; aka 'Mr Spitfire', or 'The Spitfire Pope'. With his prodigious knowledge of all things Spitfire, he will be missed internationally. Having been a friend for over 50 years, I shall miss his unmatched and unique subject



















