Daring Exploits Give N.Z. Airman The D.F.M.

Northern Advocate, 14 August 1942, Page 6

Daring Exploits Give N.Z. Airman The D.F.M.

(Official N.Z.E.F. War Correspondent) CAIRO, August 9.

A series of daring exploits in the air have won for Flight-Sergeant Ernest Leslie Joyce, of Hamilton, the immediate award of the Distinguished Flying Medal. Flight-Sergeant Joyce belongs to the same squadron as New Zealand's ace pilot, "Cobber” Kain, who was killed in an accident just before the Battle of Britain. Outstanding Pilot The citation says: Joyce is an outstanding desert pilot and an experienced ground strafer. He took part in a night, attack on Matruba aerodrome, and dived down to 500 ft. under heavy clouds. He dropped a flare under an intense barrage of ack-ack fire. Three runs across the target were made by Flight-Sergeant Joyce until all his ammunition was exhausted. His daring on that occasion contributed much to the success of that raid, in which about a dozen enemy aircraft were destroyed. _ , One night in June, he found a Junkers,} 88 above him. By skilful manoeuvring he closed to within 50 vards and opened up his guns. Three of his guns jammed, but he held on tenaciously, swept to another attack, and shot the German down in flames. .. Joyce’s Record So far, in the Middle East, FlightSergeant Joyce has destroyed two Junkers 88s by night, one Messerschmitt 109 F, and two C.R. 425. He also had a good bag of probables and damaged. Before coming to the Middle East, he had a share in the destruction of a Junkers 88 and one Heinkel 3. A friend of Flight-Sergeant Joyce told me he had performed exceptionally fine continuous servic- c , ncc no mmed his sQuaoron in July, 1941. His dar.’g and his neverflagging enthusiasm and enterprise have won for him ilie admiration of all with whom he has been associated. Remarkable Incidents It is a coincidence that another New Zealand pilot of the same name—R J. j 0 y Ce — W as second pilot of a Middle East Wellington bomber whose crew were involved in a remarkable series of incidents. Over a period oE 12 days, the bomber’s crew of five crash-landed deep in enemy territory, commandeered a German transport at the pistol point, made their way through Axis lines to El Alamein, were cantured and taken to a prison camp at Mersa Matruh, and again escaped from a point only a few miles from their original starting point. Luck Holds

It was on the night of July 24-25, after a raid on Tobruk, that Flight-Sergeant Jovce’s bomber crashed near Salum after being hit in the port engine and petrol tank. The crew jettisoned all detachable equipment, but the only hope for the crew was in a belly landing. They did it. Once on their hazardous journey back through the German lines, the crew found themselves in a really tight corner. They were moving as quietly as possible, but‘still they were making noise. The Germans poked their noses from the trucks, hissing “Shush,” and the escaping crew "shushed” back. Their luck held —and they got away.