“Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few,” Churchill proclaimed. When John A. Hemingway died in Dublin on Monday at 105 — the Royal Air Force announced his death — he was the last known survivor of the “few,” nearly 3,000 pilots and crew who saved Britain in the early stages of World War II. Mr. Hemingway, who was known as Paddy, piloted Hurricane fighters in the battle, which took place in the skies above Britain between July 10 and Oct. 31, 1940. Hitler had planned a September 1940 invasion of the British Isles, known as Operation Sea Lion. However, the Blitz, Germany’s bombing of London and other British cities, extended into the spring of 1941.

Source: The Times March 18, 2025 20:00 UTC