John
was born in Haverford West, Wales on 19th January 1940. He joined the Army
in 1957 and served for 15 years.
He started in heavy
anti-aircraft artillery, serving in both 47th and 57th Regiments in the
British Army of the Rhine, Germany.
In
1960 he became Airborne in the 33rd Light Regiment and then the 7th
Parachute Royal Horse Artillery, part of 3 Parachute Group and remained with
them for the rest of his service.
During this time he
saw service in Cyprus, Radfan, Saudi Arabia and Aden, all hot spots of
terrorism and guerrilla activities.
John was very lucky
in 1962 when parachuting onto the beach at Cyprus. His chute failed to open,
but he fell onto the canopy of another man below him and was able to cling
to the rigging lines until they landed together in the sea.
He was less lucky in
1967 when he lost a hand in an accident. Despite this handicap he was able
to continue in the service for a further five years.
Naturally, in such a
long period of active service, even if nominally in peace time, he had many
other alarming experiences, including bombs bursting on the pitch during an
impromptu game of football in Saudi Arabia.
