David_Lord

David Lord

Flight Lieutenant David Samuel Anthony Lord VC DFC (18 October 1913 – 19 September 1944) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Lord was born St Mary's Avenue, Cork, Ireland, the son of Samuel Lord , a warrant officer in the Royal Welsh Fusiliers and Mary Lord in October 1913.

After the First World War the family were posted to India and Lord attended Lucknow Convent School. On his father's retirement from the Army the family moved to Wrexham and then David was a pupil at St Mary's College, Aberystwyth before attending the English Ecclesiastical College, Valladolid, Spain to study for the priesthood. Deciding the priesthood was not the career for him he returned to Wrexham before moving to London in the mid 1930's as a freelance writer. He enlisted in the RAF in 1936.

War Service

He underwent pilot training, becoming a Sergeant Pilot in 1939 with No. 31 Squadron on the North West Frontier, flying the Vickers Valentia biplane. In 1941 No. 31 squadron was the first unit to receive the Douglas DC-2 'Dakota' transport. He flew in the Middle East, (being injured in a crash) before being posted back to India. Commissioned in 1942, he flew on supply missions over Burma.

Lord was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross during 1943 and by January 1944 had returned to the UK for sevice with No. 271 Squadron (based at Down Ampney, Wiltshire training to drop paratroops, supplies and to tow gliders. He then took part in the D-Day operations in June 1944.

Details

He was 30 years old, and a Flight Lieutenant in 271 Squadron, Royal Air Force during the Second World War when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross.

On 19 September 1944 during the Battle of Arnhem in the Netherlands, the British 1st Airborne Division was in desperate need of supplies. Flight Lieutenant Lord, flying Dakota KG374 through intense enemy anti-aircraft fire was twice hit and had one engine burning. He managed to drop his supplies, but at the end of the run found that there were two containers remaining. Although he knew that one of his wings might collapse at any moment he nevertheless made a second run to drop the last supplies, then ordered his crew to bail out. A few seconds later the Dakota crashed in flames with its pilot.

Only the navigator, F/Lt Harold King survived, becoming a prisoner of war. It was only on his release in mid 1945 that the story of Lord's action was known, and David Lord was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross. David Lord is buried alongside his crew in Oosterbeek Military Cemetery, near Arnhem.

Memorials

Oosterbeek War Cemetery, Arnhem Plot 4, row B Grave 5.
Wrexham Memorial Hall, Wrexham, Wales.
A Vickers VC-10 Serial 'XR810' of 10 Squadron was named 'David Lord VC' between 1967 and 2005.
A Douglas Dakota at the RAF Museum Cosford is painted as KG374 coded YS-DM the aircraft flown by Flight Lieutenant Lord DFC on his final mission.