Western Daily Press (Saturday)
PM praises Chivenor – with family connection
THE Prime Minister has praised those stationed at Chivenor barracks for their ‘outstanding job’ of looking after world leaders at the G7 summit.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday, Boris Johnson, thanked the people of Carbis Bay and St Ives for welcoming the leaders of the globe to their area.
North Devon MP Selaine Saxby told Mr Johnson: “My Right Honorable Friend was right on Monday when he said ‘the peace and stability brought by Nato has underpinned global prosperity for over 70 years’. Can he assure me that levelling up our military as part of the new NATO 2030 agenda will encompass the potential of our forces across the whole country, including the excellent Royal Marines at the Chivenor barracks in my North Devon constituency – where I believe his grandfather was stationed for a time – so that NATO will continue to be the bedrock of global defence for future generations?”
Mr Johnson responded saying: “My grandfather was indeed stationed at Chivenor. I thank the Royal Marines at Chivenor, who did such an outstanding job of looking after us all during the G7 summit.
“They will transform into the future commando force that will contribute to a more agile and active NATO alliance.”
Mr Johnson’s grandfather, Wilfred, was recently honoured at the RAF Museum in London which reopened to the public last month.
Flight Lieutenant Wilfred Johnson served as an RAF Coastal Command pilot from 1942 to 1944. He flew Wellington GR.XIV aircraft on patrols over the Atlantic Ocean and attacked several German submarines.
On August 17 1944, Wilfred returned early from a patrol due to a radio fault. His Wellington then suffered an engine failure shortly before landing. He faced the difficult and dangerous task of flying low at night on one engine, in a heavy aircraft still loaded with highexplosive depth charges.
Wilfred dropped these weapons in a safe place, avoiding nearby villages, and returned to RAF Chivenor – but he was seriously injured in a crash-landing on the airfield.
Following his selfless action, Wilfred was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for ‘skill and coolness in emergencies’ and ‘his hard work, thoroughness and keen sense of duty’ as an RAF pilot.
Wilfred’s DFC, along with a congratulatory letter from King George VI and his Medal Group of Four, are now displayed in Hangar 1 at the museum in London.
The museum hosted the Prime Minister’s father Stanley Johnson in May for the event.
Stanley Johnson, Wilfred’s son, said: “My sisters and I, as well as his eight grandchildren, are absolutely thrilled that the wonderful RAF
Museum at Hendon has chosen to display our father’s medals so brilliantly in the new exhibit, including the DFC, and the letter from King George VI.
“Though my father didn’t talk much about his wartime service or about the crash which ended his flying career, I know that in many ways my father’s years as a pilot with RAF Coastal Command, based at Chivenor, in North Devon, were the high point of his life.
“The years he spent at Chivenor were pivotal in another way, since after the war Wilfred became a hillfarmer on nearby Exmoor, in a rugged steep-sided valley on the River Exe where, seventy years later, my family and I are still privileged to live,”
Ian Thirsk, head of collections and research, said: “It is an absolute privilege to display Wilfred Johnson’s medals at the RAF Museum, Wilfred’s story is an inspirational one.”