Don’s 100^th Birthday Skydive Challenge

For his 100th birthday WW2 veteran, Don Keiller, has signed up for an indoor skydiving challenge. Inspired by Captain Tom Moore, Don wanted to do a real parachute jump, to raise money for the Royal British Legion Industries, but his Doctor wouldn’t let him.  He is, therefore, skydiving with the generous support of iFLY indoor skydiving Milton Keynes with 3 generations of his family on Friday 14th August.

UPDATE!! Don has now "flown" with iFLY- who thought he was "a natural". You can hopefully see Don flying on ITV News and Look East, at 6.00pm Today (114th August).

https://www.iflyworld.co.uk/locations/milton-keynes

Don was born on 10th August 1920 and joined the Royal Artillery (Territorial), as a gunner, in 1938. He was called up for Active Service, in August 1939 and immediately ordered to man air-defence guns on the Isle of Grain. In March, 1940, Don was transferred to the Northwest Expeditionary Force (193rd Heavy Anti-Aircraft Battery) and sent to Norway on “Empress of Australia” which was strafed and bombed in Harstad Fjord. By early June 1940 the Germans were advancing, rapidly and his unit was ordered to destroy all heavy weapons and evacuate. Luckily, Don managed to get on a “Puffer” (a Norwegian fishing boat) and was picked up by the destroyer, HMS Beagle, then onto the troopship “Monarch of Bermuda”, which was in convoy to Scapa Flow, escorted by the ill-fated HMS Glorious. Within 4 days of arriving back in the U.K. Don was promoted to Bombardier and posted to Gibraltar, to help reinforce the air defences, sleeping on 3.7” ammunition boxes on the way. Through July and September 1940, Gibraltar was bombed repeatedly by the French in retaliation for British sinking of their fleet at Mers-el-Kébir, to prevent it falling into German hands.  October 1941 saw Don ordered back to U.K., on Battleship “Prince of Wales” and billeted in Woolwich Barracks for 6 months, only getting out once to pick up a deserter from Stranraer.

In February 1942, Don was sent on a heavy weaponry and antitank training course and promoted to Sergeant. He was then posted to Walney Island, where he met his future wife Vicky (now deceased) and was responsible for maintaining coastal air defence batteries in North West England. By June 1944 Don was transferred to the 44th Royal tank Regiment and landed on Gold Beach. As he said, with characteristic understatement, “There was still quite a lot of work to do”. By March, 1945, they reached Antwerp and Don was ordered, by name, not unit, back to the U.K., where he was seconded to the Royal Marines (South East Asia Command) and promoted to Warrant Officer. Later that month saw Don on his way to India, via the Suez Canal. Don says no-one bothered much about celebrating VE Day, as they were all so focused on the expected amphibious assault on Japan. However, much to everyone’s relief, the Japanese surrendered after “2 big bombs were dropped” and in September 1945 Don was flown, by Dakota transport plane and a Liberator Bomber, back to the U.K. Don was demobbed in February 1946; but kept on Active Reserve, which saw him recalled in 1952, during the Cold War Crisis and again, in 1956, for Suez Crisis.

Don passed his £1500 target in 2 days and the £3000 target, in 4 and he now hopes you will help him reach £10,000 for the Royal British Legion Industries, who help Armed Forces Veterans less fortunate than him.

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