World War II Veterans

[YoungWillz 21,081]

Report that Flight Sergeant Norman Shepherd, tasked with flying hundreds of children who survived the Holocaust to England, has died aged 98/99: https://x.com/TrevorAvery10/status/1792645711596486678

 

Apparently the last survivor of the air crew. Documented in the film The Windermere Children.

[Hurri Khan 36]

On 18/05/2024 at 13:09, drol said:

He was something more than just a veteran. He was one of the last flying aces of WW2, and the last living American triple ace. 

 

German ace Hugo Broch, born exactly a week before him, survives him, and still seems to be doing well. I can't think of other notable aces from WW2 left at the moment, though surely someone more is still there.

 

EDIT: Perry J. Dahl (wiki) minor but still alive at 101.

 

I think Broch, Dahl and Colonel Richard G. Candelaria, born in 1922, are the last three surviving aces.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_G._Candelaria
https://valor.militarytimes.com/hero/385402
http://veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.php?recordID=2325

Edited May 24 by Hurri Khan
mistake

[Whitehouse 872]

Not only are we losing living links with WW2 in verterans, today the number of surviving Spitfires is also minus one...

 

No word yet about the pilot.

[JQW 283]

If it's at RAF Coningsby then the aircraft is likely to be from the RAF's Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

[JQW 283]

This seems to be the particular Spitfire involved in today's incident:

 

https://www.memorialflightclub.com/blog/bbmf-spitfire-mk-lf-ixe-mk356-75-years-old

[Sleepiestpeep 158]

5 hours ago, Whitehouse said:

Not only are we losing living links with WW2 in verterans, today the number of surviving Spitfires is also minus one...

 

No word yet about the pilot.

The pilot now sadly confirmed dead, although not named. 

[alt obits guy 3,372]

Kenneth Lett, a member of the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame who flew Spitfires on D-Day, has died. He was 100.

 

https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/obituary-kenneth-lett-pilot-who-flew-spitfires-at-d-day-supersonic-jets-in-cold-war-8822469

[One shot Paddy 1,206]

22 hours ago, Sleepiestpeep said:

The pilot now sadly confirmed dead, although not named. 

Named as Squadron Leader Mark Long.

[YoungWillz 21,081]

On 08/12/2023 at 08:00, The Immortal said:

So December 7th has happened and I do have some Pearl Harbor Survivor updates for you.

 

Ike Schab ended up making it to Hawaii after all, as did Freeman Johnson, Herb Elfring and two survivors I weren't aware of, Harry Chandler and Ken Stevens. There were apparently another man expected (not named), but he wasn't feeling well so he missed the ceremony. Lou Conter didn't attend either. https://www.kcra.com/article/survivors-of-pearl-harbor-attack-returning-to-honor-those-who-perished/46063789 

 

There's also 106 year old Bill Monforte, who's most definitely the oldest living survivor. I can also confirm Sterling Cale is still alive. Not counting the anonymous survivor who missed the ceremonies, here are the remaining survivors.

 

Louis Conter (102)

Ike Schab (103)

Freeman Johnson (103)

Bill Monfort (106)

Harry Chandler (102)

Herb Elfring (101)

Ken Stevens (102)

Sterling Cale (102)

Herb Elfring being reported dead: https://x.com/goc970/status/1795557965526634574

 

and

 

https://x.com/TedNugent/status/1795211745092624773

[Sinbabad 1,128]

Several others Pearl Harbor survivors have died over the past few weeks/months :

 

James W Kimmerly died on 6 January aged 100

 

Cedric Stout died on 17 January aged 102

 

Richard Schimmel died on 3 February aged 101

 

Marvin Emmarson died on 11 February aged 102

 

Edward Caroll died on 12 February aged 99

 

Leonard Crofford died on 16 April aged 103

 

George Blake died on 8 May aged 103

[Ulitzer95 12,690]

Albert Price, "one of the last" surviving D-Day veterans, dead at 98.

I believe there may only be less than a dozen left now. 80th anniversary is in a few days. Will be interesting to see how many turn out for the commemorations. I have been invited along to one of the main events, though I have not registered to attend yet. Going along for form spotting would probably be in poor taste.

[Comped 533]

45 minutes ago, Ulitzer95 said:

Albert Price, "one of the last" surviving D-Day veterans, dead at 98.

I believe there may only be less than a dozen left now. 80th anniversary is in a few days. Will be interesting to see how many turn out for the commemorations. I have been invited along to one of the main events, though I have not registered to attend yet. Going along for form spotting would probably be in poor taste.

You could go around anyway for normal reasons and just form spot on the side? (I think my uncle's been invited to some events in Ottawa, but I'm not sure yet.)

[Ulitzer95 12,690]

1 minute ago, Comped said:

You could go around anyway for normal reasons and just form spot on the side? (I think my uncle's been invited to some events in Ottawa, but I'm not sure yet.)

That's the plan!

Would be pretty awesome to meet a WWII vet. Not had that honour in years as all the ones in my family are now sadly gone.

[Comped 533]

53 minutes ago, Ulitzer95 said:

That's the plan!

Would be pretty awesome to meet a WWII vet. Not had that honour in years as all the ones in my family are now sadly gone.

When I still went regularly to a local church, I never got it confirmed, but apparently the gentleman who sat in the row opposite mine dealt with supplies during the war (so i overheard from some other members after one service while eating pastries). Still around the church as well apparently, the last time I heard, in his mid-90s. My grandpa (who passed about a decade ago) on my mother's side served in WWII, Korea, and possibly Vietnam (though details are sketchy, possibly involving Canada's aircraft carriers, but his records burnt in fires decades ago). And of course, as a kid, I knew more than a few, from church or singing in nursing homes from school choirs throughout elementary/middle school (year 1-9 for our UK friends). I am almost certain there may have been a WWI vet or two among those crowds, though obviously I'll never know for sure.

[Summer in Transylvania 2,193]

9 hours ago, Ulitzer95 said:

I believe there may only be less than a dozen left now. 

David Teacher MBE (Wiki), 100, lowers the numbers further.

 

The only obituary that I can find at the moment is from the Daily Hate Mail, but the interview linked above was published a few days ago and notes his death since it was filmed.

[time 8,641]

19 minutes ago, Summer in Transylvania said:

David Teacher MBE (Wiki), 100, lowers the numbers further.

 

The only obituary that I can find at the moment is from the Daily Hate Mail, but the interview linked above was published a few days ago and notes his death since it was filmed.

Manchester Evening News report. (David Teacher)

[I.R.Baboon 221]

On 31/05/2024 at 01:50, Ulitzer95 said:

Albert Price, "one of the last" surviving D-Day veterans, dead at 98.

I believe there may only be less than a dozen left now.

William Cameron (100) dies the day before flying over to France. But there are still 13 Canadian veterans (99-104) in the delegation. 

[alt obits guy 3,372]

Robert "Al" Persichitti, a World War II US Navy veteran travelling to France for an event marking the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings, has died. He was 102.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqlle8dljnno

[Commtech Sio Bibble 2,063]

On 31/05/2024 at 01:38, Ulitzer95 said:

Would be pretty awesome to meet a WWII vet. Not had that honour in years as all the ones in my family are now sadly gone.

In my lifetime I've met three that I know of, when I was incredibly young there was a man who went to the same church as me who had served in the RAF during WWII he died in 2012 aged 105 and is now buried about in the cemetery near my house, somewhere I have a picture of the two of us as the oldest and youngest members of the congregation at the time. Then at secondary school I had a teacher who was really into the world wars he organised a fundraising event for a trip to Normandy for some of the students, he had D-Day veteran Jack Mortimer (here on BBC News yesterday) to come in a speak with us. The third one is my great uncle who I have only met a few times in my life and isn't very well at the moment, but he was in the RAF during the war. I feel incredibly lucky to have had even those brief encounters.

[Toast 16,161]

I was at the 40th D Day anniversary commemorations in Normandy.  Believe it or not, at the time it was being touted as the last big anniversary as there wouldn't be many left by the 50th!

Utter nonsense, as I thought at the time.  Many of the D Day veterans were only about 60. 

I can't believe it was 40 years ago.  Feel old no, I don't.  I feel just the same as I did then.

[Comped 533]

1 hour ago, Toast said:

I was at the 40th D Day anniversary commemorations in Normandy.  Believe it or not, at the time it was being touted as the last big anniversary as there wouldn't be many left by the 50th!

Utter nonsense, as I thought at the time.  Many of the D Day veterans were only about 60. 

I can't believe it was 40 years ago.  Feel old no, I don't.  I feel just the same as I did then.

Someone doesn't understand average lifespans...

[Ulitzer95 12,690]

ITV news just confirmed that 23 D-Day veterans attended the event in Normandy today. The youngest was 96 and the oldest was 104.

Still not seeing any reports speculating on total numbers, but by contrast the 75th anniversary in Normandy in 2019 was attended by 225 veterans.

[En Passant 3,743]

Years passing, fewer vets shocker.

[roaming_comrade 471]

1 hour ago, En Passant said:

Years passing, fewer vets shocker.

well a 90% attrition rate is quite heavy over 5 years

[The Watcher 319]

Online stats about WW2 veterans appear somewhat strange. Whereas there are a few links that state that the UK has less than 100 D -Day veterans still alive, there are more than one sites that state that the US still has about 119500 (!) WW2 veterans still alive. The oldest WW2 veteran still alive is a Romanian, Ilie Ciocan who is 111. (b 28/05/1913)