William Walker

Flight Lieutenant William Louis Buchanan Walker, AE (24 August 1913 – 21 October 2012) was, at the time of his death, the oldest surviving pilot from the Battle of Britain. His poem "Our Wall" about the Battle of Britain is inscribed on a special plinth aside the Christopher Foxley-Norris Memorial Wall of the Battle of Britain Memorial, Capel-le-Ferne, Kent.

Early life

Walker was born on 24 August 1913 in Hampstead, London. He was educated at Brighton College, a private school in Brighton, East Sussex. Following schooling, he followed his father into the brewing business. In 1931, he began as a pupil brewer at a brewery in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire to learn the trade. In 1933, he moved to Ind Coope brewery in Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire. He was called up on 1 September 1939, the day World War II broke out. He was posted to 1 Initial Training Wing, Cambridge on 15 November. On 17 February 1940, he was posted to RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire to undergo officer training,

He was immediately posted to No. 616 Squadron RAF, who were based at RAF Leconfield, East Yorkshire and flew the Supermarine Spitfire. they were engaged by Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters as they climbed to attack the bombers. He was pulled from the water by a fishing boat, then transferred to an RAF Whaleback that brought him ashore at Ramsgate, Kent. He later transferred to No. 116 Squadron RAF, an anti-aircraft unit. He was demobilised in September 1945.

Later life After demobilisation, Walker returned to his pre-war career of brewing. He would go on to become the chairman of Ind Coope's brewery in Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire. before Claudine's death on 13 September 2012.