The last remaining pilot who took part in the Battle of Britain in the Second World War has passed away at the age of 105. John A. Hemingway, the last known survivor of the Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots who were pivotal in the fighting, passed away in Dublin, Ireland, the RAF announced.
Known as Paddy, Hemingway flew Hurricane fighters during the crucial air campaign that occurred from July 10 to October 31, 1940. The battle was a turning point in the war as RAF pilots prevented Adolf Hitler’s Operation Sea Lion, a planned invasion of the British Isles.
The RAF had just 749 fighter aircraft against the German Luftwaffe’s 2,550. Despite being outnumbered, the British pilots succeeded in holding off German bombers and securing the air space above Britain.
Winston Churchill, the then-Prime Minister of Britain, acknowledged the valor of the RAF pilots during an address to the House of Commons in August 1940. In his tribute, Churchill stated, “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”
Throughout World War II, Hemingway flew missions over France, Britain, and Italy, surviving being shot down four times between 1940 and 1945. In July 1941, he was awarded Britain’s Distinguished Flying Cross for his bravery in combat.
The death of Hemingway comes as some fear the potential of a Third World War amid the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. President Donald J. Trump aims to end the conflict and has explicitly told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky he is gambling with World War Three by resisting a ceasefire.
Image via Royal Air Force.