Last real life Great Escape prisoner dies aged 99 - BBC News
Sqn Ldr Dick Churchill was one of 76 airmen who escaped from prisoner of war camp Stalag Luft III.
Dick Churchill was described as "tenacious, resilient and incredibly brave"

The last surviving member of the real-life Great Escape team has died.

Former squadron leader Dick Churchill was one of 76 airmen whose escape from the Stalag Luft III camp in Nazi Germany in 1944 was immortalised in the Hollywood film starring Steve McQueen.

Mr Churchill, who lived in Crediton, Devon, died on Wednesday, aged 99.

Chief of the Air Staff Sir Stephen Hillier said: "He was from a selfless generation who offered bravery and sacrifice to secure our freedom."

"On behalf of the RAF as a whole I would like to offer my condolences to the friends and family of Flt Lt Richard 'Dick' Churchill, one of the RAF personnel involved in the Great Escape.

"He will be sorely missed. Per Ardua [the RAF motto]."

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. The last survivor of 'The Great Escape' camp tells his story

Air Vice-Marshal David Murray, of the RAF Benevolent Fund, said Mr Churchill "embodied the spirit of the RAF - tenacious, resilient and incredibly brave in the face of adversity."

Mr Churchill's death followed that of Australian pilot Paul Royle, who died in Perth, aged 101 in 2015.

The survivors formed a sort of club and kept in contact through the Sagan Select Subway Society newsletter, of which Mr Royle and Mr Churchill were the last two recipients.

Mr Churchill was among 76 airmen who escaped through a 102m-long tunnel

A spokesperson for the RAF Benevolent Fund said it is believed there are at least two remaining RAF veterans who were held at Stalag Luft III, which now stands in Poland.

They are named as Charles Clarke, who was not involved in the escape, and Jack Lyon, who was in the tunnel when the plot was uncovered.

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