Ted Sly

Today we remember Ted Sly, who was stationed in Europe with the Royal Australian Air Force. He recalls a moment where he and his crew were able to take some well-deserved time out.

Ted Sly audio file (MP4 23.94 MB)

Ted Sly audio script

75th Anniversary of the End of the Second World War

Audio actuality

“Fellow Citizens, the War is over” — (The Hon J B Chifley, Prime Minister of Australia)

August the 15th marks the 75th Anniversary of the End of the Second World War. Around one million Australians enlisted to serve from a population of just seven million. Many more on the home front rallied to the cause. Australia remembers Ted Sly, who was stationed in Europe with the Air Force. He recalls a moment when he and his crew were able to take some well-deserved time out.

Ted Sly

I think it was 1943, the RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force) flew up to us in the desert; eggs and tomatoes and all the richest food you could imagine for us to have Christmas. And, at the time, we had captured some Chianti wine and various things left behind by the Italians and, of course, here we are with this wonderful spread of food and so on, but on Christmas Eve we all went by pretty well with the wine because we weren’t going to fly for a couple days. I can still remember we fought with the eggs and we threw the tomatoes at one another, and I suppose that was one way we got rid of some of that pent up feeling. Christmas was just the same; it was bully beef and some because all the food had been lost in the battle.

Saturday, August 15 marks the 75th Anniversary of the End of the Second World War. Let’s pay our respects to that amazing generation of Australians.