At age 93, Lew Duddridge has filled the pages of a book,The Flying Duddridges of Hanley, with reflections of two brothers’ experiences during the Second World War.
Duddridge joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in June of 1940 with his brother, Len, now deceased. Their war experiences and survival are remarkable considering that they were the only two of 13 men from Hanley, Sask., who survived the war.
Duddridge felt lucky to have survived the war, but one near death experience stands out.
It occurred in 1944 on a mission to bomb targets in Essen, Germany. Duddridge said it was an uncomfortable mission.
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“It took forever,” he said.
His plane was off its planned course after being attacked by German fighter planes. While trying to avoid being shot down, he remembered feeling that the aircraft was hit by enemy fire. He nevertheless continued with his mission to destroy enemy targets.
He became alarmed after hearing a loud noise from one of the Wellington aircraft engines. Five minutes later, he heard another loud noise before the engine stopped working.
The aircraft was unable to maintain altitude with only one functioning engine. It began a steady decent into the North Sea below, but Duddridge was able to land the badly damaged aircraft at a nearby Scottish airport.
He attributed the safe landing to ground effect, which allowed the aircraft to maintain enough distance between the sky and water surface to prevent a crash.
That is possible only if a sufficient amount of air is trapped between the surface of the water and the wings of the descending aircraft.
“The fear of water was what made that trip so terrible,” said Duddridge.
Death was a familiar visitor during the war.
He can still remember the first time he witnessed the fiery crash of six air force men in the war.
He was at an air base in Great Britain watching an aircraft take off. Moments after leaving the ground, smoke billowed from the plane and shortly after, the aircraft was engulfed in flames.
He believes it’s important to share these experiences because people need to know the cost of war. Another reason for writing the book is to include his brother’s experiences during the war.
Duddridge called it a privilege to serve in the air force.
