After being demobbed, Naval man Len Hurst took to post-war England in search of a suitable new job. When promises of employment within the Merchant Navy fell flat, Len found luck in the field of aviation, gaining his Civil Aviation licence and beginning work as a Radio Officer. 

In this interview he recalls his time with Southend Airways, coinciding with the start of the Berlin Airlift. He describes his own experiences flying with different crews, as well as some pilots who were almost certainly more than three sheets to the wind. Len’s anecdotes include one hair-raising flight, when a problem with the control locks forced his plane to fly at a scarily low altitude, and another lucky escape following a crash caused by the collapse of his plane’s undercarriage.

With Hamburg flattened, Len and his crews helped to deliver goods like butter, coal, and flour. When considering the initial resentment from many Berliners, he reiterates that the Airlift was to “feed” people, something which otherwise might not have happened. 

Similar to many, Len has no regrets, and recalls the Airlift as “a very interesting period” in his life. He has since written a book, detailing his experience.