Jack Birbeck
| Jack Birbeck | |
|---|---|
| Born | c 1921 |
| Died | 2 September 2010 (aged 89) |
| Education | Boston Grammar School (1932-37) |
| Occupation | Telephone Engineer, Bomb Aimer |
| Employer | Post Office, RAF |
| Spouse | Sylvia |
Jack Birbeck was educated at Boston Grammar School (1932-37). After school he joined the Post Office as a Trainee Telephone Engineer. He joined the RAF on 15 September 1941 and went on to flying training. He failed the flying training, unable to judge the height during landing because of a sight defect, and became a bomb aimer on Lancasters.
His pilot on Lancaster PMD2 was Cliff Annis, another BGS alumnus. They were shot down when nearing their target on a mission to Nuremberg on 27 August 1943. Jack spent the rest of the war in Stalag Luft III and, after the long march, Stalag Luft IIIa.
After returning home and being discharged from the RAF in December 1945, Jack returned to the Post Office in Boston as an engineer. In 1959 he moved to Leicester, where he stayed until his retirement in 1983. His wife, Sylvia, died in 1998, and he moved to a care home. Despite being very disabled, Jack lived through his computer, appearing very lively to anyone who was in touch with him by email, and he wrote his biography which was privately published.
Bibliography
- (2009) "Birbeck's War" - Printed by Welland Print Ltd
External links
- Memoirs typed using one finger, BBC News