One of the many stories of incredible bravery from September 1944 is that of Flt Lt David Lord who posthumously won the Victoria Cross on the 19 th September 1944 over ‘ Drop Zone S ’.
Extracts from the official citation read : “ Flight Lieutenant Lord was pilot and captain of a Dakota aircraft detailed to drop supplies at Arnhem on the afternoon of the 19th September , 1944 . Our airborne troops had been surrounded and were being pressed into a small area defended by a large number of anti-aircraft guns . While flying at 1,500 feet near Arnhem the starboard wing of Flight Lieutenant Lord ' s aircraft was twice hit by anti-aircraft fire . The starboard engine was set on fire . He would have been justified in leaving the main stream of supply aircraft and continuing at the same height or even abandoning his aircraft . But on learning that his crew were uninjured and that the dropping zone would be reached in three minutes he said he would complete his mission , as the troops were in dire need of supplies . By now the starboard engine was burning furiously yet despite this Flight Lieutenant Lord came down to 900 feet , where he was singled out for the concentrated fire of all the anti-aircraft guns while their supplies were dropped . At the end of the run , he was told that two containers remained . Although he must have known that the collapse of the starboard wing could not be long delayed , he made a second run to drop the remaining supplies . His task completed , Flight Lieutenant Lord ordered his crew to abandon the Dakota , making no attempt himself to leave the aircraft , which was down to 500 feet . A few seconds later , the starboard wing collapsed and the aircraft fell in flames . By continuing his mission in a damaged and burning aircraft and remaining at the controls to give his crew a chance of escape , Flight Lieutenant Lord displayed supreme valour and self-sacrifice .