WORLD War II veteran Eric Barton 95, from Cronulla, flew Lancaster bombers in multiple missions over Germany and is now the last member of the famous Pathfinders Association.
"I was lucky enough to do 45 operations (bombing missions) and come back,” Mr Barton said.
In the early days of WW2, the only way that the allies could take the fight to Germany was by way of utilising the resources of Bomber Command to conduct bombing raids on selected targets in Germany and throughout Europe.
The aircraft at their disposal were old and navigation was extremely crude, relying solely on compass bearing and dead reckoning.
Many aircraft were lost due to fog over England or because they simply ran out of fuel trying to find their way home.
In 1942 a bold decision was made to form an elite group to locate and mark the targets for the main bomber force to drop their bombs on.
This group was called the Pathfinder Force, and an Australian, Group Captain Don Bennett, was given the job of forming the squadrons and training the men.
Initially the crews were poached from other squadrons within Bomber Command. Only the best and most experienced men were chosen. The new crews were trained extensively in precise navigation and timing, using the latest technological developments such as OBOE and radar.
Their job was to locate and mark the targets with a variety of coloured flares so the main bomber force had an accurate aiming point. The crews came from all over the Commonwealth and were integrated into RAF squadrons.
Bombing accuracy improved enormously and Bomber Command went on to be a deadly weapon for the allies, wreaking havoc across Germany and its factories.
It was a dangerous job with crews having to complete a minimum of 60 operations,and 3,618 aircrew were killed on operations with the Pathfinders.
After the war the surviving Australian Pathfinders formed a Pathfinder Force Association in Australia in the early 1950’s.
The Association was very successful with functions held each year including the Anzac Day March and the awarding of the Pathfinder Award for Excellence for aircrew at RAF base Richmond.
Eric Barton is now the last member of the Pathfinders Force association and it has been disbanded and as custodian of their famous banner he has donated it to Cronulla RSL Sub Branch who have generously agreed to be the custodians and put it on permanent display.