The Royal Air Forces Association is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of RAF veteran and Association member Harry Winter at the age of 103.
Harry Winter volunteered for the RAF in early 1941 in response to the first bombing of his hometown of Cardiff by the Luftwaffe and passed out as a Sergeant Wireless Operator (Air).
On his 19th operation over Germany his Halifax was shot down near Hamelin. The pilot and two gunners were killed, and Harry received leg wounds which kept him in hospital for seven months.
On his journey from Hamelin to Dulag Luft near Oberursel for interrogation, Harry was laying on a stretcher on a train station platform when he was confronted by an armed soldier intent on shooting him. It was only the intervention of a German medical orderly Gunter Arf, who had been looking after the injured Harry, that saved his life. Harry then gave his name and address to Gunter and asked that he make contact after the war. After hospital treatment, Harry was sent to a prison camp in July 1944.
In January 1945 the Soviets were pushing westwards and the Germans evacuated the camp. From 19 January 1945 to 8 February the camp’s prisoners were forced to march in minus 25°C temperatures through Czechoslovakia into eastern Germany, finally ending up south of Berlin.
It was here that Harry and his comrades were finally liberated by the advancing Soviet army, though they were kept as hostages until all Soviets in German hands had been returned. Determined to escape, with American assistance Harry crossed the river Elbe which marked the border between the Soviet and American zones. From there he made his way back to England.
Post-war, Harry returned to his job in the paper industry. He met Josie in a dance hall in Penarth, where her family had been sent as evacuees. The pair married in 1947 and had two sons. He also made contact with Gunter Arf, the German who saved his life. The two families often holidayed together, and Harry referred to Gunter as his ‘brother in arms.’
Harry travelled widely, visiting most of Europe, much of America, and traversing Canada twice. For his 100th birthday in 2022 he was flown in a Spitfire from Biggin Hill. After Harry took a turn at the controls, the pilot resumed command and performed a victory roll
“I’m not worried about dying, I did my duty,” said Harry in a 2025 interview with the Telegraph. “Yes, I did my duty.”
