Billy Strachan

Join us in remembering RAF hero Billy Strachan (1921- 1998).

William Arthur Watkin Strachan was born in Jamaica on April 16, 1921 to a family of former slaves and was raised in Kingston.
Following the outbreak of WWII in Europe, Strachan left his job in the civil service to join the RAF. He was told by the British that he would have to pay for his own journey to Britain, so Strachan sold his bicycle and saxophone to pay for his voyage.

Aged 18, Billy was sent to an RAF base in Blackpool for military training. He was so highly skilled that he was allowed to fly solo after only 7 hours of training. Billy first became a radio operator, then a gunner, before then being promoted to a Bomber Command pilot with the 156 Squadron, a unit of the élite Pathfinder Force. Strachan rose to the rank of Flight Lieutenant within the RAF, a rare achievement for a black person in Britain in the 1940s. He survived combat during 33 missions against Nazi Germany, another rare achievement considering that 51% of RAF bomber crew were killed on operations, 12% were killed or wounded in non-operational accidents and 13% became prisoners of war. We will remember them.