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This is the Witness History Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Tim Stokes.

Today we remember the remarkable John Henry Smyth, one of the very few West Africans to fly

with Britain's Air Force during World War II, the RF navigator from Sierra

Leone, flew on bombing missions across occupied Europe before he was shot down over

Nazi Germany and taken prisoner.

Johnny Smyph was working in a government clerical job in Sierra Leone when World War II broke out. When the fighting started, a color bar was in place meaning only men considered to be of European descent could join the RAF. But as Allied casualties mounted the rules were changed and in 1941 Britain called on its West African colonies to support the

war effort.

Johnny was all too keen to volunteer as his son Eddie Smyth explains,

My father saw this as an opportunity. I suppose to do something

fairly exciting but he also wanted to make a contribution to the effort because after all he was

fighting at the time for his king. So along with

hundreds of young men at the time they fill out application forms and he wanted to go

into the RAF A. F.

Only five of the applicants were picked and in October 1941 they were given a rousing

send-off as they left Freetown by ship for the UK. Johnny stood out during his R.A. F. F.

free town by ship for the UK.

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