Post by Dave Homewood on Jan 21, 2024 12:52:24 GMT 12
From the New Zealand Herald, 21 January 1944:
ESCAPE IN ITALY
AIRMAN'S ADVENTURES
THREE YEARS A PRISONER
The story of four New Zealand officers' escape from an Italian prisoner of war camp and their journey of about 450 miles to the British lines near Foggia was told yesterday by Flight-Lieutenant R. D. Campbell, R.N.Z.A.F., of Opunake, who arrived recently in Auckland. Flight-Lieutenant Campbell was shot down in 1940 while making a daylight raid from Athens on the port of Valona, and he was in Italian hands for about three years.
When he was shot down Flight-Lieutenant Campbell had to crash-land into the sea. He broke his leg when his machine, a Blenheim bomber, hit the water, and had to swim about a mile and a-half to the shore because the dinghy had been hit and was useless. He was found by Albanians and during the same night was captured by Italian Alpini troops.
Rough Treatment by Italians
"I was tied to a donkey and after an all-night ride arrived at a small hut where two officers took charge of me." said Flight-Lieutenant Campbell.
"The following night I arrived at a first-aid post, and my leg was set. During the night I arrived at a naval hospital, Valona, where I was interrogated. I was not fed until later. They offered me wine and bread which was then taken from me in an effort to break down my spirit. After I had fainted during this questioning a doctor put me to bed and I was given food."
From Valona
Flight-Lieutenant Campbell was shifted to a military hospital and then, six weeks later, to a concentration camp in Southern Albania. The conditions at the hospital, he said, were shocking, especially for Greek prisoners, and at the concentration camp the Greeks were treated as dogs.
Repeated Attempts to Escape
From here he went to Italy, to Sulmona in Abriizzi. He made several attempts to escape by digging tunnels, but all the holes were discovered before they had been completed. It was found that no help could be expected from outside the camp and lack of clothing, food, money and maps made it very difficult to escape prepared for a long journey.
In February, 1942, Flight-Lieutenant Campbell was shifted to Poppi, near Florence, and he made several more efforts to escape, all by means which cannot yet he disclosed. He was then sent to Modena and again set about planning to escape. These attempts were spread over a period of more than a year, and just before the final one the Allies landed in Southern Italy and the camp was occupied by Germans.
Shot at by Sentry
"Believing we would be taken to Germany," said Flight-Lieutenant Campbell, "three other officers, including Lieutenant-Colonel C. D. A. George and Captain D. Gerard, of Wellington, and I, escaped by climbing the wall at the back of the camp and crawling through the barbed wire. It was in broad daylight and a German sentry shot at several officers who followed us. I know three were wounded. We ran for about two miles and were hidden in a patch of corn by three Italian girls.
"We had planned on going to the east coast, but decided after we had established the exact position of the Allied landings to attempt to walk to the south of Italy and join up with the Eighth Army, a distance of about 400 miles. We walked for about four days dressed as Italian farm workers and passed a large city.
Two Stages by Train
"At this time thousands of Italians were trying to return to their homes in South Italy, so we went to a small station and during the night scrambled on to a train going south. I managed to hang on to the bumpers between trucks and the other three clung on wherever they could. We stayed there for 18 hours and finally arrived at a city where a heavy British bombing raid had just taken place. This enabled us to pass through the station, where we counted seven trains destroyed. The Italians were looting these German supply trains and complete havoc was the order of the day."
The officers caught another train that was going inland, but as they progressed they found that German control was becoming tighter. So they abandoned the train and went to shelter in a tool shed in a vineyard. They were fed by friendly Italians, although the place war surrounded by Germans building fortifications.
Price Placed on Heads
Apparently the Germans learned of the fugitives, for they placed a price of £30 on the officers' heads. This made it extremely dangerous to stay longer and they left one midnight and walked for 16 hours. At this stage friendly Italians were scarce and Germans were becoming more numerous. It was difficult to establish the exact position of the front lines, as the Germans controlled all the radios, telephones and the newspapers, and Italian information was found to be usually 100 per cent inaccurate.
"We discarded everything except bare necessities of food and clothing and set out to cross the Bifferno River about 40 miles away. We walked solidly by night and carried out reconnaissance by day. On the fourth night we reached a point in the hills overlooking the river and watched the artillery duels between the Allies and the Germans. From this point, we established the exact position of our troops and decided we could reach them in one night. For the last two miles before crossing the river we were lucky enough to have patrol activity on either side of us, so we crossed the river while the Germans were otherwise engaged. We stripped off and our white skins blended with the rocks of the river bed. Once across the river we were safe. The journey lasted 41 days."
ESCAPE IN ITALY
AIRMAN'S ADVENTURES
THREE YEARS A PRISONER
The story of four New Zealand officers' escape from an Italian prisoner of war camp and their journey of about 450 miles to the British lines near Foggia was told yesterday by Flight-Lieutenant R. D. Campbell, R.N.Z.A.F., of Opunake, who arrived recently in Auckland. Flight-Lieutenant Campbell was shot down in 1940 while making a daylight raid from Athens on the port of Valona, and he was in Italian hands for about three years.
When he was shot down Flight-Lieutenant Campbell had to crash-land into the sea. He broke his leg when his machine, a Blenheim bomber, hit the water, and had to swim about a mile and a-half to the shore because the dinghy had been hit and was useless. He was found by Albanians and during the same night was captured by Italian Alpini troops.
Rough Treatment by Italians
"I was tied to a donkey and after an all-night ride arrived at a small hut where two officers took charge of me." said Flight-Lieutenant Campbell.
"The following night I arrived at a first-aid post, and my leg was set. During the night I arrived at a naval hospital, Valona, where I was interrogated. I was not fed until later. They offered me wine and bread which was then taken from me in an effort to break down my spirit. After I had fainted during this questioning a doctor put me to bed and I was given food."
From Valona
Flight-Lieutenant Campbell was shifted to a military hospital and then, six weeks later, to a concentration camp in Southern Albania. The conditions at the hospital, he said, were shocking, especially for Greek prisoners, and at the concentration camp the Greeks were treated as dogs.
Repeated Attempts to Escape
From here he went to Italy, to Sulmona in Abriizzi. He made several attempts to escape by digging tunnels, but all the holes were discovered before they had been completed. It was found that no help could be expected from outside the camp and lack of clothing, food, money and maps made it very difficult to escape prepared for a long journey.
In February, 1942, Flight-Lieutenant Campbell was shifted to Poppi, near Florence, and he made several more efforts to escape, all by means which cannot yet he disclosed. He was then sent to Modena and again set about planning to escape. These attempts were spread over a period of more than a year, and just before the final one the Allies landed in Southern Italy and the camp was occupied by Germans.
Shot at by Sentry
"Believing we would be taken to Germany," said Flight-Lieutenant Campbell, "three other officers, including Lieutenant-Colonel C. D. A. George and Captain D. Gerard, of Wellington, and I, escaped by climbing the wall at the back of the camp and crawling through the barbed wire. It was in broad daylight and a German sentry shot at several officers who followed us. I know three were wounded. We ran for about two miles and were hidden in a patch of corn by three Italian girls.
"We had planned on going to the east coast, but decided after we had established the exact position of the Allied landings to attempt to walk to the south of Italy and join up with the Eighth Army, a distance of about 400 miles. We walked for about four days dressed as Italian farm workers and passed a large city.
Two Stages by Train
"At this time thousands of Italians were trying to return to their homes in South Italy, so we went to a small station and during the night scrambled on to a train going south. I managed to hang on to the bumpers between trucks and the other three clung on wherever they could. We stayed there for 18 hours and finally arrived at a city where a heavy British bombing raid had just taken place. This enabled us to pass through the station, where we counted seven trains destroyed. The Italians were looting these German supply trains and complete havoc was the order of the day."
The officers caught another train that was going inland, but as they progressed they found that German control was becoming tighter. So they abandoned the train and went to shelter in a tool shed in a vineyard. They were fed by friendly Italians, although the place war surrounded by Germans building fortifications.
Price Placed on Heads
Apparently the Germans learned of the fugitives, for they placed a price of £30 on the officers' heads. This made it extremely dangerous to stay longer and they left one midnight and walked for 16 hours. At this stage friendly Italians were scarce and Germans were becoming more numerous. It was difficult to establish the exact position of the front lines, as the Germans controlled all the radios, telephones and the newspapers, and Italian information was found to be usually 100 per cent inaccurate.
"We discarded everything except bare necessities of food and clothing and set out to cross the Bifferno River about 40 miles away. We walked solidly by night and carried out reconnaissance by day. On the fourth night we reached a point in the hills overlooking the river and watched the artillery duels between the Allies and the Germans. From this point, we established the exact position of our troops and decided we could reach them in one night. For the last two miles before crossing the river we were lucky enough to have patrol activity on either side of us, so we crossed the river while the Germans were otherwise engaged. We stripped off and our white skins blended with the rocks of the river bed. Once across the river we were safe. The journey lasted 41 days."
