RAF personnel recreate Long March of 1945

The Long March of 1945 came about when, towards the end of World War Two, Hitler decreed that all allied prisoners of war should be moved closer to Berlin from the prisoner of war camps in central Europe. In total, 80,000 were forced into separate marches.

Amongst those involved were RAF prisoners housed at Stalag Luft III, the prison made famous in the film 'The Great Escape', located in Poland, around 160 miles (257km) from Berlin.

For the RAF prisoners at Stalag Luft III, as well as the other allied prisoners of war forced to march, the episode, which took place in the winter months, was a gruelling experience in harsh weather conditions where, due to the lack of warm clothing and food, around 200 died along the route.

Current RAF personnel marked the 65th anniversary of The Long March last week by marching a mile (1.6km) for each of the 65 years since the prisoners of war were forced to move camps.

The party of over 100 Service and civilian volunteers included four generations; from the oldest veteran of 95 to the youngest participant at just 13 years old.

Click here to see more pictures from this year's Long March.

Former Flight Lieutenant Eric Foinette was an RAF navigator who became a prisoner of war after his Wellington Bomber was shot down. He started the day of his 95th birthday the same way he had marked his 30th - by starting a journey from the prison camp Stalag Luft III. He said:

"We left the camp on 28 January 1945, my 30th birthday. It was a very rough time, with no food, and chaps having to scrounge what they could along the way. As they got nearer to the Western Front, allied aircraft mistook the great columns of marchers for Germans, and opened fire on them.

"One RAF sergeant had built up a good relationship with his captors and they allowed him to go through the German lines to the British near Hamburg where he was able to pass on the message not to raid the marchers as they were actually RAF prisoners. The British offered to take the sergeant home, and he said 'No, I gave my word to the Germans that I would go back', and he returned to look after his men.

"I feel very proud that the RAF's next generations are doing this march, and I am sure it will be a great experience they will always remember."

With the temperature dropping to -28 degrees Celsius, this year's marchers were grateful for the modern day back-up of a military field kitchen providing hot meals and drinks along the route.

Civilian volunteer Mr Michael Day, aged 63, was marching in memory of his father, RAF pilot Frank Day. He said:

"Frank was 28 when he was in The Long March, and he'd been in Stalag Luft III for three years. He had two nights in the snow, one night in the barn at Lipna and one night in the laundry at Bad Muskau. If he was looking down at what I'm doing today he'd probably be grinning, and calling me names!

"I never thought I would do something like this until I came to see the 'Great Escape' tunnel for the first time in November last year - it was very emotional for me. The camp was very isolated, and you could really feel the atmosphere.

"There has been nothing but courtesy, kindness and help from the RAF chaps - I fell over in the snow, and they helped me up. I had expectations of what it might be like to take part in this commemorative march, and it is all I thought it would be. I started off full of enthusiasm, and now I'm quite tired! Although I practised for this, you can't anticipate how the extreme cold can sap your energy. But it's a real privilege to be here.

Flight Lieutenant Louise Brooks, 43, is a communications engineer working in 90 Signals Unit based at RAF Leeming, North Yorkshire. She said:

"I came on this march because I thought it would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. To be able to visit the site of Stalag Luft III in the company of veterans imprisoned there was extremely humbling."

Flight Lieutenant Brooks was part of the only mother and son team on the march, being accompanied by 13-year-old Ross Brooks, from Queen Ethelburga's College Combined Cadet Forcet. Ross, who wants to be an RAF pilot after leaving school, summed up his week:

"The best part of this experience is that we are remembering the people that actually did this back in 1945. It was amazing to meet Eric Foinette, he's got brilliant stories to tell. I'll take home an understanding of how hard the march actually was and I'll remember all these people I've met this week - especially the medics who taped my feet up when they started to hurt!"

See more stories about Stalag Luft III under Related News >>>