‘We thought he had died within the battle’: Funeral for wartime pilot brings long-lost household collectively

May 25, 2023 at 10:05 PM
‘We thought he had died within the battle’: Funeral for wartime pilot brings long-lost household collectively

Long-lost relations of one of many final “pilots of the Caribbean” say they believed he had been useless for the previous eight a long time.

Flight Sergeant Peter Brown died final December at his dwelling in Maida Vale, west London.

The 96-year-old was one of many final black RAF pilots of World War Two.

His funeral on the Central Church of the RAF on the Strand in London was attended by lots of of individuals after a marketing campaign for a “fitting” ship off.

An enchantment by Westminster City Council to hint his relations was picked up by historians, army researchers, genealogists and the media.

Natalie Ramsay, a second cousin of Peter Brown, lives in Middlesex, and mentioned she noticed the enchantment in a newspaper.

“We thought he died in the war,” the 87-year-old instructed Sky News.

“The family Brown never knew what happened to him, so my grandmother, Sarah Anne, a Brown, mourned him all her life.”

She contacted 90-year-old Myrtle Gutzmore, whose husband Isiah is his first cousin, and Myrtle travelled 1000’s of miles from Jamaica to attend the funeral.

Flight Sergeant Peter Brown died alone aged 96 in Maida Vale
Image:
Flight Sergeant Peter Brown died alone, aged 96, in Maida Vale
Undated family handout photo issued by Westminster Council of RAF Sergeant Peter Brown, one of the last black RAF pilots to have fought in the Second World War, whose funeral takes place at St Clement Danes Church, in London on Thursday. Issue date: Thursday May 25, 2023.

She described him as a “private man”.

“…if it hadn’t been for (Natalie) seeing it in the paper, then this wouldn’t have happened.”

The funeral additionally introduced an finish to 40 years of looking for relative Rosie Bird, whose father was Peter Brown’s first cousin.

She described studying a British newspaper at her dwelling within the Canadian metropolis of Vancouver a number of months in the past and seeing his title.

“My heart just stopped, and I thought this can’t be… but it must be… and it started the ball rolling for me to call England and to say I believe I am his family and that’s how we went from there.

“If I had by no means referred to as England and I had by no means achieved something I would not know that was our Peter Brown.

“But it was just amazing – it was like the search was complete.

“I used to be simply overwhelmed.”

The funeral of RAF Sergeant Peter Brown at St Clement Danes Church, in London, one of the last black RAF pilots to have fought in the Second World War. Born in Jamaica in 1926, Sgt Brown died alone aged 96 in Maida Vale, London. He enlisted in the RAF Volunteer Reserve in September 1943. A campaign had been launched by a national newspaper to find Sgt Brown's surviving family members. Picture date: Thursday May 25, 2023.

Flight Sergeant Peter Brown was born in Jamaica in 1926.

He travelled to Britain and enlisted with the RAF in 1943 on the peak of WWII.

He flew Lancaster bombers as a radio operator and gunner.

After the battle ended, he labored as an RAF signaller earlier than resuming civilian life.

He is believed to be one of many final, if not the final, “pilots of the Caribbean”.

Originally his funeral was to be a low-key small affair in Mortlake, at a venue with a 140-person capability.

The funeral of RAF Sergeant Peter Brown at St Clement Danes Church, in London, one of the last black RAF pilots to have fought in the Second World War. Born in Jamaica in 1926, Sgt Brown died alone aged 96 in Maida Vale, London. He enlisted in the RAF Volunteer Reserve in September 1943. A campaign had been launched by a national newspaper to find Sgt Brown's surviving family members. Picture date: Thursday May 25, 2023.
The funeral of RAF Sergeant Peter Brown at St Clement Danes Church, in London, one of the last black RAF pilots to have fought in the Second World War. Born in Jamaica in 1926, Sgt Brown died alone aged 96 in Maida Vale, London. He enlisted in the RAF Volunteer Reserve in September 1943. A campaign had been launched by a national newspaper to find Sgt Brown's surviving family members. Picture date: Thursday May 25, 2023.

However, after the council was inundated with requests to attend, it was moved to St Clement Danes Church, the Central RAF Church, which seats as much as 600.

Don Simon, who served in third Battalion, Parachute Regiment, mentioned he felt compelled to go.

“Mr Brown, he’s given, not the ultimate sacrifice, but he’s served his country,” he mentioned.

“We’re here to say: ‘you’re not alone. You never will be alone’.

“And that is the primary purpose why we’re right here right now, to essentially have fun him, his life and what he is achieved for our nation.”

Attending alongside members of the Caribbean group and different army personnel was the top of the RAF, Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Wigston.

Also attending had been celebrities together with actor Colin McFarlane, and Coronation Street’s Ed Bailey.