I will be surprised if any-one knows what The Lancastria is. The Lancastria was a British ship sent to The Bay of Biscay in 1940 to bring home some of the British Troops and civilians who would otherwise be stranded in France with The Germans advancing on Paris.
On 17th June 1940 with estimates rangng from 7000-8000+ people on board The Lancastia was hit by German Bombers and sunk. It is not known exactly how many people lost their lives that day but it is believed to be around 6000 souls. Due to this happening in the middle of a war it was covered up by the British Government the story of her loss was reported over a week after the occurance and even then only a death figure of around 2800 was admitted.
The Lancastria went down resulting in more than double the deaths as The Titanic and yet hardly any British people know her story.
I know her story well because one of the few lucky survivors that day was my Great Grandfather a sergeant in the RAF. I believe my Grandfather had received his assignment to France as my great Grandmother was French and they had lived there for a while.

My Grandfather helped a couple save their small daughter. When the mother was having problems keeping afloat in the oil slicked sea my Grandfather safely held the little girl so that her father could save her mother. He saw this girl nearly every year (until his death some years ago) at the re-union for the survivors.

Here are some excerpts of my grandfathers experiences in his own words:

The Sinking of Lancastria
While the men on the top decks were peering through the smoke, trying to find their bearings, some of those in the corridors and companionways inside the ship were picking themselves up after being knocked off their feet by the blast. Sergeant Tom Payne, one of the RAF ground crew on board, has described how he was thrown the entire length of the passage where he had been standing: ‘I struggled up, in a daze. My head felt numb…I stumbled forward to find myself gazing into the dining room. Everything was strangely quiet. A couple of chaps were standing beside me staring at what appeared to be a large gaping hole in the centre of the dining room floor…Clouds of smoke began to fill the room…Only then did I realize the stark reality: that we were hit.’
Gallantly rushing down to on of the holds where he hoped to find his friend ‘Pikey’, he came across what he referred to as ‘a a terrible sight’: ‘The only way out from the hold, a temporary wooden staircase, had collapsed in the first rush of the men to get out, and now there was no exit. Ropes were being thrown down [to the men trapped inside]…but the struggling mass of men trying [unsuccessfully] to reach [these lifelines] was sickening to watch. [Then] the ship lurched to one side, and…[in a] panic, I rushed upstairs to the top deck.’ (Survivor: Tom Payne RAF)

Surviving the sea
“I looked over to see a man and a woman swimming along holding up out of the sea a tiny mite, a little girl, and I realised it was the same woman who had nearly landed on top of me when the lifeboat tipped up. The sight of this man plodding along in grim silence and the mother who cried out only for the child’s safety warmed my heart and I struggled onwards beside them.” (Survivor: Tom Payne RAF)

My great Grandfather died when I was 20 but this year marked the first year my Grandfather did not go in his stead to the Re-union due to poor health. I am hoping that family comitments will not prevent me attending next year as I think it is important that this event is remembered.

One humurous tale from a re-union my Grandfather told me which happened a few years before my great grandfather's death. My great grandfather started to forget things including who people were and get very confused towards the end of his life (quite understandably). He was sat at the re-union next to another old gent who had had the fortune to survive the ship and the conversation went something like this:
G Grandfather "I was on The lancastria when it was sunk you know"
Other gent "Really what an amazing co-incidence so was I!"
G Grandfather "Well I never what are the odds?"

Of course the majority of the people at the Survivors of The Lancastria Re-union found this rather amusing!

Please find a few minutes today to think of all the service personnel, innocent bystanders, and resistance fighters who have lost their lives to ensure our, nah your freedom.

Ok lecture over have a good evening guys