VJ DAY AT THE CENOTAPH, 15/8/10

A WWII Burma Star veteran — one of only two surviving members of his squadron — is preparing to embark on a busy period attending various military memorial services marking 70 years since the war ended.

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Albert Bennett, of Tudor Close, Dartford, is due to attend scores of events including the City of London’s Salute to the Battle of Britain and RAF War Veterans at St Paul’s Cathedral on Tuesday and a Battle of Britain service at Westminster Abbey on Sunday, September 19.

The 95-year-old was an instrument technician in 155 Spitfire Squadron and although there were around 700 members in the unit at its height, the only other surviving member is Jim Hamilton, from Belfast.

The pair got in touch after the war and discovered that they were on the same boat, The Corfu, that sailed from Rangoon to Singapore after the war ended in 1945.

Mr Bennett, who was present at the liberation of Changi Prison, said: “Jim’s a great bloke. I can’t remember how we got in touch but it was only afterwards that we realised that we were both on The Corfu. It was a massive convoy of ships on that journey. We found out afterwards that even Lord Mountbatten was on one of the ships that day as well.”

Having joined up in 1942, Mr Hamilton served the last few months of the war with 155 Squadron.

The 86-year-old said: “I didn’t know Albert at the time, because he was ground staff and I was a pilot and we didn’t have much contact with them, though I presume he worked on our aircraft. I haven’t met him face to face, though I’d like to. We’re in contact quite often, he sends me cuttings from his experiences, like meeting Prince Charles and so on.

“The squadron moved to Singapore after the war — we were the first RAF unit to return there when it ended. It was called Operation Zipper and the task was to see through the surrender of the Japanese. It was a rather strange time — they used Japanese planes and pilots to bring back survivors from Sumatra and places like that.”