Walter Handscomb served with the Royal West Kent Regiment then volunteered for the airborne forces.

Walter was parachute jump trained at RAF Ringway on Course 36. This course ran from, 5 to 12 November 1942. This course had 11 injuries, 2 of which were serious, plus 1 fatality. 

After training he embarked for overseas on 10 December 1942. He was on the Strathallen that was hit by a torpedo just off the coast of Algiers & was sunk, he disembarked in Algiers North Africa on 21 December 1942.

He was officially posted to the 2nd Battalion Parachute Regiment on 8 January 1943.  He fought in Tunisia North Africa as part of Operation Torch.  During the 2nd Battle of Cork Wood at Tamera he was wounded in action on 28 March 1943.

He was then hospitalised, and  finally on the 27 October 1943 was rejected by the Regiment for further service and so was  returned to the Royal West Kent Regiment where he then served in Italy.

The family know from his stories & postcards sent home that he went to Rome, where he received a blessing from the Pope. Walter was also posted in Siena & Milan.