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Paul-Franes

A veteran interview with

Paul Farnes

Paul Farnes is one of the surviving pilots from the Battle of Britain. He was awarded 8 kills and a DFM.

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About Paul Farnes

In this honest interview, Paul talks candidly about his personal experiences of flying for the RAF. Upon Chamberlain’s announcement of war, Paul remembers not feelings of fear or dread, but rather somewhat of a celebration, as he recalls commemorating the occasion by opening a ‘decent bottle of wine’. John would then go on to join the RAF where his first real engagement with the enemy was during the Battle of Britain where he fought with 501 squadron against the Germany’s Luftwaffe. Interestingly, Paul remarks that he actually enjoyed being a part of the Battle of Britain, although it’s clear he felt sorry for the other pilots flying the Fairey Battles. During this interview, Paul reflects on his time serving the RAF, he reminisces about some of the friendships he made and unfortunately, the death he faced at every corner. John emerged from the Battle of Britain a new man, he was awarded 8 kills, 2 probable’s and 11 damaged, yet despite this, Paul remains modest about his achievements. After his time with the 501, Paul would move on to serve with the 229 where he spent 3 years out in the Middle East where he was not permitted to return home once. He later tells his scary and exhilarating story fighting in Malta where he barely survived his encounter with the Axis forces.

Credits

Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
Reviewed by:
Charlie Akhlaq

Copyright:
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Home | Veterans | Paul Farnes

A veteran interview with

Paul Farnes

Paul-Franes

Paul Farnes is one of the surviving pilots from the Battle of Britain. He was awarded 8 kills and a DFM.

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Cite this interview:

MLA Style:
Farnes, Paul. A Veteran Interview with Paul Farnes. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, n.d. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-farnes/. Accessed 18 May. 2025.
APA Style:
Farnes, P. (n.d.). A Veteran Interview with Paul Farnes [Interview by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee. Retrieved May 18, 2025, from https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-farnes/
Chicago Style:
Farnes, Paul. n.d.. A Veteran Interview with Paul Farnes. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee. Accessed May 18, 2025. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-farnes/
Harvard Style:
Farnes, P. (n.d.). A Veteran Interview with Paul Farnes. [Interviewed by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee. Available at https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-farnes/ (Accessed: 18 May 2025)
Vancouver Style:
Farnes, P. A Veteran Interview with Paul Farnes [Internet]. Interview by M. Bisiker. Legasee; n.d. [cited 2025 May 18]. Available from: https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/paul-farnes/
An interview with

George Duffee

Stranded and separated from his crew, RAF Pilot George Duffee travelled a war-ridden Europe, managing to escape enemy territory during World War II.

George Duffee shares his extraordinary journey, serving as a young RAF pilot during World War II. Growing up in East London during the Blitz, he joined the RAF at the age of seventeen and a quarter. After his training, he was sent to an RAF station in Yorkshire where he was assigned to an air crew who were participating in the bombing of Germany. It was here, so early in his service, he witnessed his life flashing before his eyes when his plane was shot down by enemy forces above Holland. He describes feeling a strange sense of calm as the plane plummeted towards the ground, believing that it was already over for him. However, he managed to escape and reach the ground safely before it finally crashed. The next thing he knew, he was all alone in an unfamiliar environment, not knowing if his crew had survived. He would learn much later that he was the only survivor who did not become a POW. This marked the beginning of a long journey, crossing from border to border to escape enemy territory back into the safety of the British Military. After evading German patrols in Holland, he passed into Belgium where he met members of the Comet Line (a resistance organisation) who would be responsible for successfully helping over 700 Allied Airmen by escorting them away from Belgium and France into Spain where the British were occupied. After arriving in Paris, he exercised in preparation for his climb across the Pyrenees mountains into Spain, later taking a ship to Gibraltar where he finally felt a sense of freedom from the enemy. Along his journey, he met many interesting people of different professions or ranks who were willing to help him. This included a Dutch schoolmaster who he would later refer to as his Dutch brother, a French artist who offered him false papers to get through to Paris and a Gendarme who he initially thought was a potential foe but when George was forced to reveal his identity, he was no longer seen as a threat. However, his constant evasion from German patrols caused an inner battle with his morale as it became more compelling to surrender himself and become a POW, yet he managed to always fight back and regain control of himself. Some time later, after returning to England, he resumed his career as a pilot. He worked as a skipper, participating in 39 bombing missions, even after already being shot down and facing a near death experience so early in his military career. He also contributed to the Berlin Airlift, flying 236 flights in a Lancaster over Berlin while supplying food to the German people who were plagued by famine. George's journey is a fascinating example of the bravery, resilience and luck that is required to be an RAF pilot in WWII, especially when things don't go according to plan.
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martyn Cox
An interview with

Michael Wainwright

Gliding to Greatness

Michael Wainwright served with the RAF during WWII; he fought bravely and valiantly in the Battle of Britain, one of the most frightful chapters of the Second World War, and the first time British forces faced the terrifying Luftwaffe. During the interview, Michael recalls the horrifying moment at which war was announced; he joined the RAF in 1936 at the age of 37 where he trained flying a Hawker Fury. Although, in his early career, Michael flew the notorious Bristol Blenheim, a bomber plane. He was later assigned to 64 squadron where he would take up the cockpit of a spitfire in order to defend the English boats crossing to France. He talks about his friend and leader: sub/Lt. Dawson-Paul who was shot down during the conflict, and taken prisoner by a German patrol boat in the English Channel. As his career continued, Michael made the decision to move to 102 glider OTU and take up the role of an instructor, teaching budding new pilots how to safely glide their planes in the event of being shot down or engine failure - he also teaches them how to defuse situations with angry farmers when landing in their fields.
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Service:
Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker
An interview with

Doreen Galvin

Doreen Galvin remembers her experience as an intelligence officer and photographic interpreter for RAF operations in World War Two.

Doreen Galvin describes that as a young woman she was passionate about maps and photography, thus knew when the war broke out that she must apply for intelligence work - not admin. After being firstly involved in photo interpretation, Doreen was then moved to Bomber Command and finally sent to be an Operations Officer at Tempsford RAF base. Doreen recalls how on arriving at Tempsford she was immediately thrown into work and quickly taken to the map room. She remembers that upon looking at the wall of maps, she realised that she was standing face-to-face with all the locations of the clandestine operations by the RAF during the war. In this role she was responsible for receiving, processing and reporting these locations and objectives to the War Cabinet. In this interview Doreen fondly recalls her contribution to the war, reflecting upon the excitement of working with maps and photo interpretation during the war. Doreen gives an interesting account of the war effort from a different perspective than that of the front line soldier, by both originating from a female viewpoint and also the clandestine operations which were happening back in England.
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martyn Cox