| An old soldier has ended 60 years of nightmares after getting back in a tank for the first time since he was blown up in one during an attack that killed the rest of the crew. |
World War Two veteran Ray "Flash" Gordon, now 83, was terribly burned after his Churchill tank took a direct hit in Normandy 62 years ago.
Ever since has suffered from horrible dreams in which he hears the screams of his trapped pals as they burned to death.
But now the humble former wireless operator believes he will once again sleep soundly at night after getting back in one of the few remaining working Churchill tanks.
The last time he had been in a one, on July 10 1944, it was hit by an 88mm shell from a fearsome German Tiger tank.
Ray was forced to jump free while on fire, unable to help the rest of the men whose desperate cries he heard.
The crew of ICENI, as the tank was called, were some of the many casualties that the allies suffered in fighting at the Battle for Hill 112.
With his friend Cyril "Smudge" Smith, a fellow veteran from the 9th Royal Tank Regiment, Ray rolled back the years and took the Churchill out for a spin.
He believes the process of getting back in the vehicle at Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset has finally put his demons to rest.
Ray was a 21-year-old in 1944 when he was sent across the channel as part of the allied invasion of mainland Europe.
He was in "A" division and his pal Cyril was in "B" division - but they had very different wars.
Ray was disfigured and suffered third degree burns and returned home where he underwent plastic surgery and dozens of operations.
Cyril went right through to the end of the war after the Battle of Hill 112, fighting in Germany and Holland.
Ray recalled: "I was called up in September 1942 and went into the 9th Royal Tank Regiment and it was during training that I met Cyril.
"We did lots of training and were finally sent across the channel in 1944 as part of the invasion.
"There was some rough weather and we were in landing craft for about three days and we all landed on the wrong beaches.
"We were sent on July 10 to take Hill 112 - it was called that because it was 112 feet high
"The Germans said that whoever controlled Hill 112, controlled Normandy.
"The action started at 5.30am and was all over by 9.30am by which time 14 of our 18 tanks were out of action.
"I only found this out later because my tank was one that was taken out. Just before we were hit I could hear the 'knock, knock, knock' on the sides from the small arms fire as we were being hit.
"Churchills had a crew of five but we had six on board that morning because we had picked up a man who had come across the grass looking dazed.
"He was called Ted Spight and must have been blown out of his own tank.
"We opened a pannier door and laid him on the driver's tool box. Five minutes later we had blown up and caught fire.
"We were hit by an 88mm shell and I just recall the instant heat; it was very hot, scalding hot, and dry.
"And I remember sitting on my box of ammunition and thinking: "I'd really better go home now." I don't know why I remember that.
"I could open my cupola flap to get out of the turret, but my commander Jock Smith couldn't open his because a sighting vane had been blown over on to it.
"I tried to move a bag of empty cartridges so that Jock could get over to my side to get out, but I couldn't move it.
"And if Jock couldn't get out, his gunner Dickie, below him, couldn't get out. And the driver and co-driver couldn't get out either.
"The turret had turned slightly and that blocked their flaps from opening. And Ted Spight wasn't going anywhere.
"I opened my flap and I got out onto the tracks then onto the floor.
"I turned and saw a hole in the side of the tank the size of a small plate - it was half way along on the side of the turret.
"As I got out I could hear the screams of those trapped and burning inside. You don't forget that, you don't. I saw flames and heard the ammunition exploding.
"Then my officer Shep Douglas came up to me through a field of rape and said "who are you?".
"I thought, "you only gave me orders at 6.30 this morning". But my face was blackened and my beret was burned and my ear was a mess.
"Shep took me through a gap in the hedgerow where there were some infantry - and the look of horror on those men's faces will live with me.
"I was given morphine and sent back to Britain. I had been wearing my right gauntlet glove when we were hit but I didn't have one on my left hand which got badly burned.
"In the hospital they asked me if I had nightmares, and I didn't.
"But they did start. I would wake up in a cold sweat after remembering what happened and the next day I wouldn't be very good.
"Then about seven years ago I had one whisky too many after one of these nightmares and broke down and for the first time in my life spoke about what had happened.
"Riding in the Churchill is the final thing in the healing process and I don't think I'll have any more nightmares now I've done it. After all these years I've finally come to terms with it.
"I have a pacemaker and they can tell from the readings what my heartbeat was at any moment. I think at the time I was in the tank they will find my heart rate was very high.
"It was very exciting."
Cyril, who lives in Stevenage, Kent, added: "It was wonderful to be back in a tank.
"They move in jerky ways and are quite uncomfortable, but it was great to have the opportunity to get back inside one along with my old pal Flash."
The Battle for Hill 112 - also known as the "Verdun of Normandy" - was crucial for both sides and the hill swapped hands several times until the allies held it on August 3.
In the tank Iceni along with Ray were; Jack "Hutch" Hutchinson, Bill Morris, Sgt. Jock Smith, Dickie Knight and the passenger Ted Spight.
Ray, from East Grinstead, Surrey, married Joan, his physiotherapist in hospital, and they had two daughters, one of whom died, and have two grandchildren.
After the war, Ray went back to work in the insurance department of Nestle and stayed at the company until he retired.
Cyril also married a Joan and they have a son and a great grandson. Cyril worked for BAE until he retired.
Nick Wyness, from the tank museum, said: "The Tank Museum is not just here to preserve the vehicles, but to honour the men that fought in them.
"We feel it is important that veterans' stories are told, because men like Ray deserve recognition for what they went through for us.
"We don’t normally allow our visitors to climb aboard a tank for a ride, but when Ray told us his story it was frankly the least we could do - we were delighted and proud to oblige." |
| ENDS |
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