George Barclay – Prisoner of War Escapee

The Editor,

Air Force News

airforcenews@nzdf.mil.nz

27 Apr 23

Dear Editor,

In Air Force News magazine #255 Mar 23, at page 30, there is an interesting story by Michelle Sim of the Air Force Museum of NZ titled ‘Kiwi escaper’s disguise preserved at the Museum’;  the article states that Warrant Officer Gordon Woodroofe “later became the only New Zealand Airman to successfully escape from a German prisoner of War (PoW) camp during World War II”.

I wish to add that my late father, NZ413369 Warrant Officer George Stanley Barclay RNZAF also escaped from a German PoW camp during World War II, and he made it back to England.

On the night of 8 Apr 43 George was piloting his RAF 166 Sqn Wellington MkIII BK361 AS-F on a night bombing raid to Duisburg, Germany.  After an engine failure over the target, all five crew members successfully parachuted from their stricken Wellington bomber over NW France. George was captured by Germans and now as PoW #977 he was sent for interrogation at Dulag Luft 1 (Frankfurt) then to Stalag Luft 1 (Barth, NE Germany), Stalag Luft 6 (Heydrekrug, East Prussia), Stalag XXA/357 (Thorn, Poland) and finally to Stalag 357 (Fallingbostel, Germany).  On the night 6 Apr 45 George and W/O Stanley Reed RAF escaped from Stalag 357 and hid in adjacent woods.  As Reed’s escape story in the book ’No Time for Fear’ relates, they made contact with advancing British troops on 15 Apr 45. George was evacuated via RAF Dakota to RAF Hospital Wroughton, England on 17 Apr 45.

Perhaps you could change the W/O Woodroofe story to “later became the first [delete only] New Zealand Airman to successfully escape from a German prisoner of War (PoW) camp during World War II”.

I send my best wishes,

Jim Barclay

(Air Cdre J S Barclay AFC RNZAF (Rtd))