John Freeborn: 1919-2010
In a 2004 interview, an RAF hero recalled encounters with friends and enemies during the Battle of Britain.
- By Gavin Mortimer
- AirSpaceMag.com, September 03, 2010
John Freeborn, second from right, relaxes with fellow Royal Air Force pilots from 74 Squadron at their base in Hornchurch, Essex, in August 1940. Also pictured: Roger Boulding (with dog) and Henryk Szczesny.
Courtesy John Freeborn
(Page 2 of 2)
I didn’t give a damn about them, though of course I respected their flying skills. They had some good pilots. But they were Germans and they had to go. I sometimes gave pilots who had bailed out a little scare by firing close to their parachutes. It made me so angry to see the Luftwaffe dropping bombs on London, so I did what I could to prevent it. But of course, bombing civilians is the right way to win a war, not killing soldiers.
Describe your first kill.
It was a Messerschmitt 109. As soon as he saw me, he pushed his stick forward, which we [Spitfire pilots] couldn’t do because the engine would stop. So instead I rolled, went through some cloud, and came out behind him. I gave him a squirt or two and down he went straight into the cottage of an old farmer who was out plowing his fields. And I can see to this day the farmer standing there shaking his fist at me.
An image has grown over time of Battle of Britain pilots always in the pub chasing girls when not on duty. True?
We chased the girls all right, but we didn’t get paid enough to be in the pub every night. That’s the reason I never liked [Prime Minister Winston] Churchill; he refused to give us more money than the 14 shillings and tuppence a week. Nor was it true that all the pilots came from privileged backgrounds and went to private schools. We were a mix.
How did you relax off duty?
We played cards, and when we were stationed at Gravesend [in northwest Kent] we were billeted in Cobham Hall, this wonderful house that had once belonged to a wealthy family of aristocrats. They had a big library so we were allowed to borrow their books. But what we loved doing most of all was shooting the pheasants in the grounds of the hall.
What was the secret to successful night flying?
First, you had to have the feel of the airplane and the airplane had to have the feel of you. Landing was always the trickiest part of night flying. You’d come down watching your altimeter and your speed, then you’d see the glim lamps [marking the runway] because there wasn’t much else to see at West Malling [airfield]. Then the wheels come down, reduce speed to about 90 mph, close the throttle, and drop to the ground. Luckily the Spitfire behaved itself very well.
What made a good Spitfire pilot?
Practicing all the time. Sounds daft, but it was hard to get some blokes to practice. I used to tell them, “Get in the air,” but they didn’t want to. But luck came into it, too, particularly in shooting down the enemy. That’s why it didn’t bother me, or anyone else in the squadron, if you weren’t successful during a sortie. You could only do what you could do.
Any other memories that stand out?
It was May 1941 and one of the squadron, Roger Boulding, shot down a Heinkel during a heavy air raid, and it came down intact quite close to West Malling. So the next day we went round to see what we could pinch. Roger took the dingy and I went for the camera that the Heinkel had. I was busy with a hammer and chisel trying to pry it off when I felt a tap on the shoulder. I turned round and said to this fellow, “What do you want?” He explained that he was a flight sergeant from Farnborough sent to retrieve the aircraft for further examination. I told him he was too late, to which he replied: “Hasn’t it occurred to you that the Germans might have put a small explosive charge in the sight to surprise souvenir hunters like you?” I let him have the thing!
Comments (5)
I have a lot of respect for the WW2 pilots. First they trained in a biplane - then (if American) a 600 hp T6.
Then after 100 hours or so a bit of classroom instruction and they'd strap you into a 2,000 hp F4U or a 1,500 hp Mustang - and say "good luck". If that didn't kill you (and some died in training) you got to meet the enemy.
And of this the pilots flying the Spitfires and Hurricanes in 1940 - maybe 300? - held the future of their country in their hands - were exhausted.
And if it weren't for the mistake of a German navigator - unable to find the target because of weather) flying a Heinkel - telling the Squadron leader one night over fog that it was safe to jettison the bombs - the Battle of Britain might have turned out quite differently.
There was a tacit understanding between Churchill and Hitler that no cities would be bombed - and on that night the navigator didn't know they were over London.
The resulting attack on London so enraged Churchill that he sent a small flight of Lancasters to bomb Berlin - which so enraged Hitler and Goring that they changed their entire focus from attacking RAF fields to London - giving the Me109s so little time over London to protect the bombers - (because of their combat radius) - well, the RAF was able to pick off more bombers making the Battle of Britain too costly for the Luftwaffe.
All because of a mistake in navigation, and all dependent on a few hundred British pilots...
Posted by Bill Brandt on September 6,2010 | 03:26 AM
And many of those RAF pilots were Polish Air Force who taught the Brits better tactics to oppose the Luftwaffe.
Posted by Rob Seasock on September 7,2010 | 01:44 AM
Dear Mr Brandt,
I think you'll find that your theory on the Battle of Britain has been largely disproved. The Luftwaffe was never able to inflict enough damage on our airfields to put them out of action for more than a couple of hours, or on the rare occasion, a few days at most. Don't forget, an airfield is little more than a field with some mown grass, hardly difficult to come by in South East England. With this in mind, it didn't really matter what the Luftwaffe chose to bomb, airfields or London, we still knew they were coming. Had they chosen to conduct a few Dieppe style Commando raids on the British coast to knock out the RDF stations, then things might have been different. And Churchill did not retaliate with 'a small flight of Lancasters to bomb Berlin', the Lancaster wouldn't make an appearance in the war until 1942. In 1940 Bomber Command was still stuck with the likes of the lumbering Wellingtons, Hampdens, Blenheims and Whitleys, all of which lacked the height, speed and bomb load which the Lanc would later provide.
Posted by Sam Churchill on October 29,2010 | 11:10 AM
So great to be able to hear from someone who was there and able to tell of the mistakes made in battle. As a New Zealander I am aware of Kiwi pilots in the Battle of Britian, as were many other nations. As a boy growing up reading Battle of Britian Stories in books, Air Ace Comics, War and Battle Comics too and Commando comics. The interest, history, and awareness of what the RAF did during the war, not fogetting the sacrifice and suffering of the air crews and ground staff at the time. Always great to further my interest with stories "Straight From The Horses Mouth" as the saying goes.
Posted by John Dwyer on November 11,2010 | 11:40 PM
It hurts me to think that Sailor Malan was called a liar. I served with 74 Squadron from !940 to 1941 during the Battle of Britain and found Malan to be a true leader, a great administrator, a fantastic pilot and respected by all his men. We admired him so much.
Posted by W.a. Westerhoff on April 7,2011 | 04:42 PM