Bill Goldfinch
Encyclopedia
Flight lieutenant
Bill Goldfinch (12 July 1916 - 2 October 2007) was a Royal Air Force
pilot who, with Tony Rolt
and Jack Best
, designed and built a glider in an attic of Colditz Castle
, as part of the most audacious of all the projected escapes from the Second World War's most famous prison camp.
, Kent
. He was a second lieutenant in the Royal Engineers
from 1935 to 1939. After enlisting in the RAF
he began training at RAF Martlesham Heath
, Suffolk
, was then sent to Rhodesia
and completed his operational training in Egypt
.
, he flew Short Sunderland
s where he played an important role during the evacuation of Greece. At Kalamata on 25 April 1941 the plane was overloaded with 72 men and on its second attempt required a five-mile take-off run, and reached Suda Bay, Crete
. Goldfinch and his crew were immediately ordered to return to Kalamata. As the aircraft attempted to land in the dark it hit an object in the water and sank. Goldfinch was one of four survivors from the crew of 10. Badly injured, he was taken to a military hospital, where he met Best, who had also crashed off southern Greece. The hospital was then captured by the Germans
he, Best & Henry 'Piglet' Lamond tunnelled outside the perimeter fence and stole a rowing boat on the Oder
river. Unfortunately they rowed on the wrong side of the river, and were captured. This time he & Best were sent to Colditz. Lamond remained at Stalag Luft III
& later assisted in building the 3 tunnels for The Great Escape.
Whilst at Colditz, Goldfinch & Best headed a team to build a glider that could be launched from the roof of the castle. Known as the "Colditz Cock
", it was approaching completion when the camp was relieved by the Allies on April 16 1945.
The fate of the glider is not known but the castle was in the zone controlled by the Russians who did not co-operate with its reclamation. The only record of its existence was a photograph, probably taken by an American soldier. However Goldfinch had kept his drawings, which enabled a one-third scale model to be constructed. This was eventually launched from the castle roof in 1993.
Six years later a full-sized replica of the Colditz glider was commissioned by Channel 4
and was built by Southdown Aviation Ltd at Lasham Airfield
. The glider was flown successfully by John Lee on its first attempt at RAF Odiham
with Best, Goldfinch and about a dozen of the veterans who had worked on the original more than 55 years earlier proudly looking on. It is currently housed at the Imperial War Museum
in London
. Jack Best died later that year.
The programme was shown in 2000 Channel 4
in the UK as part of a 3-part (150 minute total) "Escape from Colditz" documentary. The Channel 4 material was edited to 60 minutes and shown in the US in 2001 as "Nazi Prison Escape" on the NOVA television series
.
, Dorset
, where he was borough engineer. On retiring as acting city engineer of Salisbury
in 1974, he devoted himself to his love of flying and making aircraft. He built a Luton Minor
in the 1970s, which he flew regularly from Old Sarum Airfield until he was in his late eighties.
Over his last eleven years Bill Goldfinch had worked for five days a week, with secondhand materials, on his version of a seaplane which had been developed for the US Navy in the 1920s. It was to have had its second taxiing trials the day after he died.
Flight Lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...
Bill Goldfinch (12 July 1916 - 2 October 2007) was a Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
pilot who, with Tony Rolt
Tony Rolt
Major Anthony Peter Roylance "Tony" Rolt, MC & Bar, was a British racing driver, soldier and engineer. He won the 1953 24 Hours of Le Mans and participated in three Formula One World Championship Grands Prix without scoring a championship point...
and Jack Best
John William Best
Flight Lieutenant John William Best MBE, was a British Royal Air Force pilot. He was a notable Prisoner of War, who was held captive at Colditz Castle in eastern Germany during World War II...
, designed and built a glider in an attic of Colditz Castle
Oflag IV-C
Oflag IV-C, often referred to as Colditz Castle because of its location, was one of the most famous German Army prisoner-of-war camps for officers in World War II; Oflag is a shortening of Offizierslager, meaning "officers camp"...
, as part of the most audacious of all the projected escapes from the Second World War's most famous prison camp.
Early life
He was born Leslie James Edward Goldfinch, but was always known as 'Bill', was born at WhitstableWhitstable
Whitstable is a seaside town in Northeast Kent, Southeast England. It is approximately north of the city of Canterbury and approximately west of the seaside town of Herne Bay. It is part of the City of Canterbury district and has a population of about 30,000.Whitstable is famous for its oysters,...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. He was a second lieutenant in the Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
from 1935 to 1939. After enlisting in the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
he began training at RAF Martlesham Heath
RAF Martlesham Heath
RAF Martlesham Heath is a former Royal Air Force airfield in England. The field is located 1½ miles SW of Woodbridge, Suffolk.- RFC/RAF prewar use:Martlesham Heath was first used as a Royal Flying Corps airfield during World War I...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
, was then sent to Rhodesia
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
and completed his operational training in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
.
Active service
Posted to No. 228 Squadron RAFNo. 228 Squadron RAF
No. 228 Squadron RAF was a unit that during the greatest part of its existence flew over water, doing so in World War I, World War II and beyond, performing anti-submarine, reconnaissance and air-sea rescue tasks.-Formation and World War I:...
, he flew Short Sunderland
Short Sunderland
The Short S.25 Sunderland was a British flying boat patrol bomber developed for the Royal Air Force by Short Brothers. It took its service name from the town and port of Sunderland in northeast England....
s where he played an important role during the evacuation of Greece. At Kalamata on 25 April 1941 the plane was overloaded with 72 men and on its second attempt required a five-mile take-off run, and reached Suda Bay, Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
. Goldfinch and his crew were immediately ordered to return to Kalamata. As the aircraft attempted to land in the dark it hit an object in the water and sank. Goldfinch was one of four survivors from the crew of 10. Badly injured, he was taken to a military hospital, where he met Best, who had also crashed off southern Greece. The hospital was then captured by the Germans
Escape attempts
At Stalag Luft IIIStalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III was a Luftwaffe-run prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force servicemen. It was in the German Province of Lower Silesia near the town of Sagan , southeast of Berlin...
he, Best & Henry 'Piglet' Lamond tunnelled outside the perimeter fence and stole a rowing boat on the Oder
Oder
The Oder is a river in Central Europe. It rises in the Czech Republic and flows through western Poland, later forming of the border between Poland and Germany, part of the Oder-Neisse line...
river. Unfortunately they rowed on the wrong side of the river, and were captured. This time he & Best were sent to Colditz. Lamond remained at Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III
Stalag Luft III was a Luftwaffe-run prisoner-of-war camp during World War II that housed captured air force servicemen. It was in the German Province of Lower Silesia near the town of Sagan , southeast of Berlin...
& later assisted in building the 3 tunnels for The Great Escape.
Whilst at Colditz, Goldfinch & Best headed a team to build a glider that could be launched from the roof of the castle. Known as the "Colditz Cock
Colditz Cock
|-See also:-External links:*****...
", it was approaching completion when the camp was relieved by the Allies on April 16 1945.
The fate of the glider is not known but the castle was in the zone controlled by the Russians who did not co-operate with its reclamation. The only record of its existence was a photograph, probably taken by an American soldier. However Goldfinch had kept his drawings, which enabled a one-third scale model to be constructed. This was eventually launched from the castle roof in 1993.
Six years later a full-sized replica of the Colditz glider was commissioned by Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
and was built by Southdown Aviation Ltd at Lasham Airfield
Lasham Airfield
Lasham Airfield is located north-west of Alton in Hampshire, England, in the village of Lasham.It was built in 1942 and it was an operational RAF during the Second World War. It was used for recreational gliding from 1951. The airfield is now owned by the world's largest gliding club, Lasham...
. The glider was flown successfully by John Lee on its first attempt at RAF Odiham
RAF Odiham
RAF Odiham is a Royal Air Force station situated a little to the south of the historic small village of Odiham in Hampshire, England. It is the home of the Royal Air Force's heavy lift helicopter, the Chinook HC2, HC2A and HC3...
with Best, Goldfinch and about a dozen of the veterans who had worked on the original more than 55 years earlier proudly looking on. It is currently housed at the Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museum is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. The museum was founded during the First World War in 1917 and intended as a record of the war effort and sacrifice of Britain and her Empire...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Jack Best died later that year.
The programme was shown in 2000 Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in the UK as part of a 3-part (150 minute total) "Escape from Colditz" documentary. The Channel 4 material was edited to 60 minutes and shown in the US in 2001 as "Nazi Prison Escape" on the NOVA television series
NOVA (TV series)
Nova is a popular science television series from the U.S. produced by WGBH Boston. It can be seen on the Public Broadcasting Service in the United States, and in more than 100 other countries...
.
After the war
After the war Goldfinch settled with his wife Pauline and their daughter at PoolePoole
Poole is a large coastal town and seaport in the county of Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester, and Bournemouth adjoins Poole to the east. The Borough of Poole was made a unitary authority in 1997, gaining administrative independence from Dorset County Council...
, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, where he was borough engineer. On retiring as acting city engineer of Salisbury
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
in 1974, he devoted himself to his love of flying and making aircraft. He built a Luton Minor
Luton Minor
-References:* Smith, R. 2002. British Built Aircraft Vol.1 Greater London. Tempus. ISBN 0752427709-External links:* -See also:...
in the 1970s, which he flew regularly from Old Sarum Airfield until he was in his late eighties.
Over his last eleven years Bill Goldfinch had worked for five days a week, with secondhand materials, on his version of a seaplane which had been developed for the US Navy in the 1920s. It was to have had its second taxiing trials the day after he died.