Withington war hero's wonderful walk (From Hereford Times)
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Withington war hero's wonderful walk
8:00am Saturday 12th January 2013 in News
A FORMER RAF officer has returned from a sponsored walk in France commemorating one of the most daring Second World War raids.
David Packman from Withington, with son Julian and a number of locals, set off to walk the 160km escape route used by a party of Royal Marines.
The walk was in memory of Major Herbert ‘Blondie’ Hasler and marine Bill Sparks, the two survivors of Operation Frankton that saw marines canoe up the Gironde estuary in France to attach limpet mines to German ships in 1942.
Mr Packman, aged 74, who served between 1956 and 1987 in the RAF’s supply branch, said the walk was the best way to ‘honour the memory of two brave men’.
So far £2,000 has been raised to share between SSAFA Forces Help Herefordshire and Le Bleuet de France – the French equivalent of the Royal British Legion.
