Land, Sea & Air - Stories from the Armed Forces

Ken Benbow Served in the 7th Escort Group in the Atlantic convoys. With no torpedoes, just guns and depth charges to protect Allied merchant ships from U-Boats, they sailed back and forth through ‘No Man’s Land’, 1,500 miles of ocean with no air cover, being “attacked every hour by the Germans”. Age 17, Ken went from working on a farm to Serving in the Royal Navy and his story is at the very heart of The Battle of The Atlantic.

This podcast is supported by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.

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Catapult-Armed Merchant “CAM” ship pilots flew highly secretive one-way missions. David Wright was one of only a handful and their stories are little known.

Using rockets and catapults mounted on merchant ships, Hurricane fighter planes were launched to shoot down German planes. With no flight deck to land on, pilots had to bail out seconds before the planes sank into the Atlantic.

 We’ll hear two war time stories, Norma Wright’s, who joined the National Fire Service; and David’s, her late husband.

You can also read David's book, Airborne by Rocket

Th...

Atlantic and Arctic Convoy Veteran, Ron Syson, gives us a gritty account of life as a Merchant Seaman. Very early on, he sailed to Iceland, Greenland and New York, and was alongside when the Normandy caught fire and capsized. He was only 15.

 As well as transporting vital supplies across the Atlantic to Britain, Ron braved the Arctic seas in what Churchill described as, “the worst journey in the world.” Added to the Nazi threat were sub-zero temperatures, weeks of constant darkness in winter; snow, ice and for anyone overboard, little chance of rescue. 

Ron’s experien...

Winston Churchill once wrote, “... the only thing that ever really frightened me during the war was the U-Boat peril”. If The Allies had lost, Britain would have been starved into surrender.

 99-year-old John Roberts gives us a fantastic insight into The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest running campaign of WWII.

John left the Royal Navy as a Rear Admiral, having joined-up aged 17 in 1938. When he first went to sea in 1941, The Allies were suffering terrible losses. John explains how the campaign evolved, tactics improved, escorts increased, equipment developed and The Allies gained a greater under...

Paula’s story is about the loss of her husband, Paul Harding, who Served in the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Green Jackets. He joined-up at 18 and was killed in action aged 47, in Basra 2007.

We hear about being under attack, fatality and bereavement. If you feel that you might be sensitive to this, you may prefer not to listen.

This emotional, difficult story “shows the tenacity and bravery of my two sons, and how we've recovered from the loss of their wonderful father.”

“Paul told me...

Tip Cullen, former Royal Marines Commando tells us about losing 8 of his friends in the very first operation of Op Telic 1.

He’s telling this story “...to keep their memory alive” and “...for the families that had to deal with the consequences…” also for “...people to empathise with their sacrifice, or their will to protect what we call freedom…Those people were legends…”

“We deployed as a Brigade Recce Force...mostly Royal Marines Commandos, main disciplines Mountain Leaders or specialists in reconnaissance and snipers…”

“A couple of days before the...

Kirk Bowett Served in The Cheshire Regiment and his deployment to the Middle East began during Op Telic 4, 2004.

We hear about his personal experiences of the realities of war, which includes details of injury and loss of limb. If you feel that you might find this challenging, you may prefer not to listen.

“I was part of the recce element…in Basra City…the infrastructure had failed, no sanitation…We were initially met with open arms…”

They tried to help “...hearts and minds…” But there were problem...

Piers Stacey, aged 17, joined The Corps, “…six days after the Twin Towers were hit…”

Joining 42 Commando late 2002, “...we all went into pre-deployment training for the build-up..it was pretty intense, pretty rapid for a fresh faced 18 year old…”

In Kuwait, “...we landed in the desert…nothing there…over time, defences went up, sandbag walls…” and acclimatisation training, “...we kept our phys up and exercised out in the heat so we could condition ourselves to be able to fight in that way…”

“As we went in…jumping out of the Sea King…I...

Neville Johnson left South Africa and joined the British Army in 2003.

After basic training, he joined the 2nd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers on a cease-fire tour in Belfast, “Those first couple of weeks were a big eye opener for me, definitely paved the way for future operations…”

Neville deployed to Basra in 2005 and 2006, duties including night and daytime patrols, working with special forces units or the parachute regiment during raids, apprehending personnel of interest, long hours in the heat with threats of “...indirect fire on our base…it was the start of the roadsi...

We meet Sarah Davis, Army Air Corps Ground Crew, one of the pioneering women deployed to the frontline during Op Telic 1.

Having joined-up in 1999, a time when the Armed Forces was going through changes - evolving in terms of equality and a time that would mark the start of several years of military campaigns.

We hear about getting ready to go, “I was kind of craving…doing my bit for Queen and Country…”

As well as operational duties in a combat zone, refuelling and rearming attack helicopters and unde...