Shrospshire war hero pilot remembered
Shropshire war hero Ernest Trumper’s memory lives on – after his family discovered his flying kit when they were clearing out his house.
Mr Trumper was part of the RAF bomber crews who risked their lives in missions over Germay in the Second World War.
Today his son Nigel, of Hinstock, described how he found his flying helmet, uniform and logbooks in the family home.
They have now been donated to a museum at RAF Montrose, where as an 18-year-old his father learned to fly.
As he listened to callers to a late night radio talk show deriding the wartime exploits of RAF bomber crews, Nigel was moved to ring in himself.
"It was at the time when they were fighting to get a memorial put up in London for the bomber crews. They had all these people phoning in and saying they were murderers and had killed too many people," said Nigel.
"I phoned the Steve Nolan show and gave them a piece of my mind. It really annoyed me. At the end of the day they were only doing what they were told to do.
"I'm very proud of what my father did in the war. I think what happened in the war affected him for the rest of his life to a great extent."
His father Ernest Trumper, who died five years ago, rose through the ranks to be a Squadron Leader and took part in bombing missions over Germany and then in the North African campaign and later in Burma. A pilot, he mostly flew Wellington bombers, and then Liberators, although in all he flew nearly a dozen types.
Joining the RAF at the age of 18, he had trained at RAF Montrose.
"When my mother died we were cleaning out my parents' house and found all sorts of things like his flying helmet, his uniform, and his logbooks and various other bits and bobs. We were aware that there was going to be this museum dedicated to the training of pilots at Montrose and asked if they would like them.
"There's now a bit of a corner at Montrose for my father to recognise Bomber Command pilots who trained there."
The family has kept the cherished logbooks, which were found in a box after a big hunt, giving the heritage centre at Montrose copies.
Another treasure is Ernest's own account.
"My father started to write his memoirs before he got dementia. I think he was probably planning to get them published."
Those memoirs are titled Smilin' Thru', which is how Ernest used to sign off his letters to wife Margaret, whom he married in 1943.
"I think it would be fair to say that those five years were not five years to my dad, but most of his life, if you know what I mean. It definitely affected him for the rest of his life. He had a breakdown in the 1960s.
"I started researching because above the fireplace at home was a big picture of a Wellington bomber, and there was a model of a Wellington in the living room.
"He never told us very much about what he had done. It is since he died that I have found out more about my father in the RAF."
During training he had crashed twice in Fairey Battles, and had some other close shaves. In one episode he became lost in the dark and his Wellington hit the cable of a barrage balloon, swinging it round, but the damaged aircraft was able to fly on.
Ernest discovered later they had been over Birmingham, which he regarded as his home city. The family had a plastering contractors business at Acocks Green, and lived at Water Orton.
And by cross referring his logbook entries to records of Bomber Command losses, Nigel has pieced together how he took part in missions in which friends died.
Ernest, who was born on April 14, 1920, flew missions with 108 Squadron during the North African campaign and later for a time flew for BOAC, flying mainly Lodestars. Nigel thinks he was probably taking military personnel to various places in Africa. Then he was posted to 99 Squadron based in north east India, flying missions over Burma, and then had a non-flying role with 224 Group.
In total he flew 50 or so operational missions and accumulated 2,000 flying hours.
His rear gunner, Alex Kyle, is still alive, aged 94, living in Sunderland. Ernest and Alex did get back in touch, and Nigel has himself met Alex several times.
"He told me: 'I would not be here but for your father. He got me back home again.'"
