Roy was on patrol when news came
PILOT Roy Stansfield vividly remembers the end of the Second World War.
Friday marks 70 years since VE Day and the 90-year-old can still recall the moment he was told of Nazi Germany’s surrender when he was based in Iceland.
He said: “We were out on an U-boat patrol around our base in Iceland.
“We arrived back about midnight and the display of celebration was clear.
“We were taken out for a meal and told the good news.”
Mr Stansfield served in the RAF for 20 years.
He joined up at the age of 18 and by 19 was a pilot.
When the war was over, he remembers how many stayed behind to continue their search for U-boats, in case an unexpected attack occurred, meaning he didn’t arrive home until June 1.
He also joked about his lack of U-boat sightings.
He said: “We never saw any U-boats on our patrols.
“There was a joke among us, that you only saw one U-boat in every 800 flying hours. On one occasion, we thought we had spotted one. However, it turned out to be just a really big whale.”
The veteran, who has lived in Hazel Grove since leaving the RAF in 1962, said a lack of communica- tion meant his base were unsure about the progress of the war.
He said: “We wouldn’t have any signal, sometimes an officer would link the wireless up to see how things were getting on.”
With the VE day anniversary approaching Mr Stansfield, who will be celebrating his 91st birthday in a couple of weeks, spoke of his delight when he finally heard the war was over.
He said: “It created such a big sense of relief.”
“For a long time, we had all started to believe we would never make it home.”
In previous years, Mr Stansfield, who is married with two daughters, has marched in parades which have marked Remembrance Day and VE day.
This year he says his age will prevent him from doing so and he will mark the anniversary by simply ‘thinking about it’.