IT is often said that real heroes tend to be humble and that is certainly the case when it comes to former Royal Air Force pilot, Flight Sergeant Roy Oldcorn.
A special 100th birthday celebration was held for Roy, who lives in Bexhill, at the Albatross Club in Channel View West on Thursday, February 22 with family, friends and dignitaries in attendance.
During the winter of 1944/45, Roy then aged just 20, was the pilot of a Lancaster Bomber and involved in “Operation Manna”.
By this time during the Second World War, most of Holland (what is now known as the Netherlands) was in Allied hands. However, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and other cities, were still occupied by the Germans.
They were starving the Dutch people to death in reprisal for the assistance they had given to the Allies following Operation Market Garden (the parachute and glider borne landings near Eindhoven. Nijmegen and Arnhem in September 1944).
Operation Manna was therefore initiated to fly tonnes of food in heavy bombers and drop it to the starving Dutch in the occupied areas.
Roy flew several sorties to the area of Rotterdam where he had to pilot his Lancaster at 300 feet, and as slowly as possible, by lowering the undercarriage and flaps to be able to drop the food to the people below.
Roy also took part in other missions such as repatriating POWs from Belgium and Italy.
In recognition of his involvement in these operations, the Dutch Military Attaché, Captain Gerrit Nijenhuis from the Netherlands embassy in London, attended the party to present Roy with a “Thank You Liberator” medal on behalf of the Dutch nation.
Captain Nijenhuis said that Roy, along with other Allied pilots, not only saved the people of Netherlands from starvation but they gave them hope for the future.
He added: “On behalf of the Dutch people I want to pay tribute and say thank you for what you did. and we will be eternally grateful.
“I am honoured to be here today. To fly a Lancaster bomber at such low altitudes and at such a young age was remarkable and we salute you.”
Also present at the birthday celebrations was the Lord Lieutenant for East Sussex, Andrew Blackman, who presented Roy with his birthday card from King Charles.
Councillor Lynn Brailsford, mayor of Bexhill town, was also be present and said: “Roy is a remarkable man and showed incredible bravery when flying those missions.
“Like everyone gathered here it is an incredible honour to meet and pay tribute to a real hero as he celebrates his 100th birthday.”
Ten members of Roy’s family were also present to mark the special occasion, including his wife Sue and daughter Karen.
“It was all such a long time ago,” Roy said as he proudly showed off his flight logbook, his birthday card from King Charles and the special commemorative medal which had been pinned to the lapel of his jacket by Captain Nijenhuis on behalf of the Dutch people.
Daughter Karen added: “It should be remembered that my dad was only 20 at the time and it must have been absolutely terrifying, especially flying at such low altitudes.
“But he has always been upbeat and full of optimism and enjoyed so many varied interests. He is a truly remarkable man.
“In fact, he was still swimming well into his 80s and actually flew a plane again when he was 86. But that just sums him up.
“He is an amazing man. Despite all his adventures he has never broken a bone in his body and isn’t on any medication.
“Even after he left the RAF, he continued to pursue many other interests. He particularly loved driving… and driving fast. In fact, he was nicknamed Fangio after the famous racing driver.
“It is an honour and a privilege to be here with my Dad and it is wonderful to see so many people gathered here to honour him.”
Roy was in the RAF from the age of 19 until he was 23, having trained to fly Lancaster bombers in Canada. As Roy excelled in mathematics, this gave him an advantage and he was quickly selected to be a pilot.
His wife Sue said: “We are all so very proud of him. He was so young at the time of the missions he flew but was absolutely committed to serving his country.
“If it hadn’t been for Roy and so many of his equally brave colleagues in 153 Squadron, thousands of Dutch people would have undoubtedly starved to death.
“At that time more than three million Dutch people were still under the control of the Germans and the dropping of essential supplies was desperately needed.”
With serving Air Force Officers from RAF Odiham, together with some RAF Air Cadets from 2262 (Bexhill-on-Sea) Squadron, members of the Royal Air Forces Association, the day ended with a rousing round of applause to honour a quite remarkable man.
As the manager of the Albatross said: “Even the contractors and others working outside of the venue made sure their vehicles were temporarily moved to ensure there was adequate parking and access for those attending. We were very grateful for their cooperation.”
But the final words must go to Roy himself. He said: “We did what we needed to do. It was as simple as that.”
