A 97-year-old war hero is preparing to parachute into Arnhem in the Netherlands this weekend – 75 years after he was captured there.
Sandy Cortmann, a former paratrooper, was just 22 when he leapt from a plane and plunged through enemy gunfire at the start of the Battle of Arnhem, on September 17, 1944.
The conflict is remembered as one of the bloodiest in the history of the Second World War, and was be immortalised in the 1977 film A Bridge Too Far.
On Saturday, Mr Cortmann will travel to the Dutch city for the first time since 1944 to repeat his jump, and visit the graves of his fallen friends as part of the 75th anniversary commemorations.
The cheerful hero, who lives at Fairview House Care Home in the Bridge of Don, has been training for the tandem parachute drop by walking up and down the hallways with a frame and the assistance of staff.
Mr Cortmann clearly remembers the atmosphere as he and his fellow paratroopers prepared for the 1944 exercise.
He said: “Everything was silent when we were crossing the channel, and there were some Spitfires flying alongside us, so we thought we were OK
“But when we crossed the shore, all hell broke loose. It was just boom, boom, boom and a bit of panic set in.
“We opened the door, and it was one, two, three, and I think I was the fourth guy out.
After landing, Mr Cortmann and his comrades held out until he was eventually captured as a prisoner of war. He was not liberated until 1945, after a year of hard labour on the German railways.
He added: “We were 30 miles behind German lines, we really shouldn’t have been there – we should have waited until our forces moved closer.
“I’ve always wanted to go back to Arnhem and see the graves, and say hello to the gang.
“I often think about them, the lads who didn’t come back.
“Someone told me that it would be closure, and I think that’s the right word for it.
“I wouldn’t exactly say I’m frightened about it, but I hope they take plenty of clean underclothes with them just in case.”
