Wartime escapades add up to the story of a true survivor

Records at Linton on Ouse RAF station in Yorkshire stated "killed in action", while a telegram received by his wife Joan read: "Information received through the Red Cross Committee that Pilot Officer William Johnston is a prisoner of war."

Only one told the truth as a new book, Survival, unveils. A tale of courage, adventure and incredible luck - and much-belated recognition as a local war hero - has been brought about by the publication of the book.

Second World War veteran Mr Johnston's astonishing story has been recorded by local writer Geoff Moore, 72, a former rural science teacher.

Now aged 83, Mr Johnston - or Paddy as his wife calls him - lives at Ingramgate in Thirsk. He cannot understand what all the fuss is about, but the book has created a lot of interest.

It is the story of his experiences as a prisoner of war in Stalag Luft III, survival of air crashes and other escapades - indeed survival against all the odds.

He escaped death when a Wellington bomber crashed and exploded, was shot down on a bombing raid over Germany and was forced to march across Germany. He was a soldier who became a bomber crew member and was involved in Bomber Harris's blitz on Germany.

His childhood was spent growing up in Shankill Road, Belfast. As a soldier, he was involved in anti-aircraft defences on the south coast in 1940. Transferring to the RAF, Mr Johnston trained in the United States and Canada, qualifying as an observer.

Back in England he flew with 408 Squadron, 6 Group Bomber Command, based in Yorkshire.

Mr Johnston married a Thirsk girl, Joan Bradley, in 1943. The couple celebrate their diamond wedding in October.

Theirs was a whirlwind romance. They met in March, got engaged in May and married in October. Then after Christmas came the long separation when Mr Johnston was shot down.

He was part of the blitz on Germany when he was shot down and was taken to Stalag III at the time of the Great Escape, but lost the lottery to take part in it.

But, back to the start of his RAF career. Once in the RAF, daredevil civilian crop duster pilots in the USA taught him enough to go solo within eight hours, but his first flight was unforgettable.

In his lilting Irish brogue which has a faint Canadian accent, Mr Johnston said: "They just strapped us in, turned the aircraft upside down and flew along like that to get us used to it".

Only one in three passed out as pilots, but Mr Johnston earned his wings and went through a further selection which picked him out as an observer.

When he returned to Britain he flew with the Royal Canadian Air Force and joined a conversion unit on Wellington bombers from Yorkshire airfields, but this course was more frightening than operations.

"A lot of people were killed. We were only there a fortnight when we crashed. We all got out and jumped into a ditch and the thing blew up"

There was little time to be frightened. Mr Johnston was back in the air within two days and was posted to Dalton. It was at a dance there that he met Joan.

By 1944, Mr Johnston - now a Pilot Officer - had lost his first crew and was flying with a new pilot. They had completed 20 operations when they took off from RAF Linton on Ouse on January 21, 1944.

Their Lancaster was shot down during a diversionary raid over Magdeburg while the main bomber force was attacking Berlin.

The crew baled out and Mr Johnston landed in a cemetery, one of only three survivors. He evaded capture for 24 hours, but was then caught and taken to Stalag III. His time there was horrendous, with little food, medical assistance or warm clothes.

Although not included in the escape team, Mr Johnston was involved as a lookout. At the time he believed he was unlucky not to be selected for the escape, but he now feels that not drawing the right lot saved his life.

That night, 76 officers escaped through the now famous tunnel, but 50 of them were shot by the guards.

Later, as the Russians advanced, the captives were forced to march across Germany, sleeping in the open and begging for food from farmers.

Meanwhile, Mr Johnston's wife had been told he was missing. She was overjoyed to learn, several months later, that he had been captured and was alive, although a prisoner.

On his return to England at the end of the war, Mr Johnston was given leave, a railway pass to Thirsk and the love of his life, Joan.

He realised that he presented a quite different picture from the one Joan remembered. His gaunt face, prison haircut and missing teeth caused him to worry about what she would think.

He need not have worried for Joan, who had been given an immediate discharge from the Wrens, was at the station to meet him.

After the war, Mr Johnston trained as a remedial teacher at Didsbury College in Manchester before working at Thirsk School with another teacher, Mr Moore.

Mr Moore first met Mr Johnston in 1967, but lost touch when he retired to Northumberland.

The book has been written since his return to Thirsk and has taken two years to complete.

He said: "I heard Paddy had an interesting war and prised it out of him. It took some time before he and Joan agreed.

"Many of the interviews were traumatic and very emotional for him. He had buried much of his experiences deep in his head."

This is not Mr Moore's first book. He has published a series of books on rural sciences.

Copies of the book are available from White Rose Books, Thirsk, priced £6.99.