Donald Ackerman was born the third child of six on 6 May 1924.  He left school aged 14 and worked as a milkman. At 15 he took a part time job as a Firewatch at the community centre at Knowle, Bristol. In April 1941 he left the milk business an worked at a munitions factory. He survived a 10 hour long blitz of Bristol which sadly killed his best friend, Reg White.

At 17 he joined the Home Guard as a Gunner on an AA site at Eastern Gordana, between Bristol and Avonmouth Docks.

At 18 he volunteered as a Signaller with The Royal Navy. However he was colour blind, so could not pursue this line of work. He was sent to Hyderabad Barracks in Colchester. After training he was posted to 22^nd Anti-Tank Gun Unit, RA. Stationed at Horse Shoe Barracks in Shoeburyness.

Early January 1943 Donald was selected for duty with The 1^st Airborne Division. The potential recruits went through very stringent medical testing, of which only half passed scrutiny. Donald was then sent off to Bulford Camp to join The 1^st Air-Landing Light Brigade. He would become part of 2 Battery, C Troop, 1st Airlanding Light Regiment. 

The 1st Airlanding Light Regiment, Royal Artillery became one of the first Airborne artillery units, as part of 1st Airborne Division. It began life as 458 Independent Light Battery, before conversion to an Airborne unit in December 1941. It was renamed 1st Airlanding Light Battery in mid-1942, before being expanded to a Regiment in February 1943.

After a few months of intense training and flying in gliders, the unit was transported to Liverpool and embarked on the troop ship ‘Stirling Castle’. The ship was bound for  Oran in North Africa. After 10 days of dodging enemy submarines they landed safely in Oran.

After disembarking the Regiment was accommodated at Fleurus Transit camp. Which Donald later described as ‘a dump’. The men lived off tinned rations. The living conditions were so poor that many, including Donald, suffered from Dysentery and Colic.

Soon the Regiment was sent to Massacara to a well laid out camp near Froha Airfield. By this time the fighting in North Africa was mostly over. So 6 weeks later the 1^st AB Div. was taken by road and rail, to Msaken. This journey took 6 days. A camp was made in a large olive grove. When off duty the men were allowed transport to the sea side town of Sousse. In August 1943 training was increased to ready the men for the invasion of Sicily and Italy. However the Light Regiment remained in North Africa.

In September 1943 the Regiment were shipped by Tank Landing Craft (TLCs) off to Taranto, Italy. It must have been a very rough journey. Donald’s Regiment were placed under the command of The 8^th Army in a close support role. They took part in the 1^st Canadian Division’s attack on Campobasso. The Regiment also supported The 78^th Division and The 2^nd Para Brigade in a defensive role in the area of Casoli, south west of Orsogna.  It was here the ‘B’ Troop were cut off from 48 hours by snow drifts.

Late December 1943 the Regiment’s guns were positioned on the bed of the river Sangro. The retreating Axis forces had blown all the bridges. Christmas was very quiet. They remained here until early January 1944, before withdrawing back to Taranto where they handed over their guns and transport. Soon they embarked on an old Indian troop ship back to the UK and the newly formed 6^th Airborne Division.

In February 1944 the Regiment was based at their permanent base for future operations in Boston, Lincs.

As The 6^th Airborne’s operations in Normandy went well Donald’s unit and The 1^st AB Div were stood down for operations in France.

In the August of 1944 Donald was sent to Bristol Royal Infirmary suffering bool poisoning. In early September The Regiment was moved to Birchingham on the Kent coast. Around the 14 or 15 September they were briefed for the ‘Arnhem Drop’, known as Op. Market. No.1 and No. 3 Batteries would take off on 17 September and No.2 Battery (Donald’s Battery) and Regimental HQ would take off on 18 September from Manston Aerodrome, Kent.

Each Gun Team where given 2 gliders. First glider would take a Jeep, a trailer of ammunition, the 75mm howitzer, plus The No.1, the Sergeant, the 2 Gunners and the No.1 Driver. The remainder of the Gun Team would take second Jeep and 2 trailers carrying ammunition and supplies went on the second glider. 

Donald’s glider was damaged by flak. The tow rope was damaged which forced the glider to cast off. Machine gun bullets ripped through the fuselage as they steadily lost height. They landed very hard, the under carriage ripped off crossing a dyke and the aircraft ended up with it’s nose in the ground and tail in the air. No one was injured and their pilot was awarded a DFM (Distinguished Flying Medal) for his skill. Snipers in a nearby farmhouse immediately opened fire on them. Donald was forced to take shelter underneath the Jeep and trailer. Joe Spence, the No.1 Driver was shot through the mouth and Arthur Jones, the co-pilot got hit too. This hopeless position forced them to lay down their arms and become POWs. The 2 wounded men were left in the farmhouse, Arthur died soon afterwards. The 4 survivors, Jeff Tyson, Ron Watkinson, Nobby Clark and Donald were marched to a local town police station, held in cells and given dry bread and a drink of unknown origin.

The following day they were marched to a larger town, possibly Utrecht, where they met men of the KOSB who had met the same fate. They were all moved to Stalag 12a, where they were given a hostile reception from the locals as they had just suffered a 1000 bomber raid on their city. After interrogation Donald and Jeff were sent to Stalag IVb, Ron and Nobby went to Stalag IVd. Stalag 4d was a working camp situated in a large town called Halle-On-The-Sea (??). The camp was near a railway marshalling yard which was targeted for Allied bombing in a regular basis, resulting in the loss of some British POWs. When the RAF bombed, the British buried the dead. When the USAF bombed, the Americans buried the dead.

POWs were fed a daily bowl of pea and potato soup and a 2lb loaf of bread for 10 men to share. Occasionally the POWs would receive a Red Cross parcel or be given a tiny piece of cheese. Cigarettes were often made from old dry tea leaves. A Christmas camp concert was put on by the men. 

By February and March the Germans were retreating and the Allies stepped up their bombing. Donald and 6 other took advantage of the demolished prison fencing and made and escape. They walked westwards at night and rested during the day. However they were soon rounded up by ‘German Youth Members (??)’ and eventually marched back to their camp. Donald and his fellow escapees were threatened with execution if they were caught trying to escape again.

Early April the POWs were marched out of the camp and inland towards the mountains. They were joined by other non-military, forced labour, prisoners from Poland and Canada. They  were only given sugar beet to eat. After 6 days of marching heavy gun fire could be heard and a white flag appeared from a village church they were travelling through. They were soon liberated by US troops, who at first thought they were French. The US soldiers fed them well.

In a few days’ time Donald was flown back to Brussels and then by road and sea back to the UK. On 6 May he finally celebrated his 21^st birthday with his family and girlfriend, who became his wife. Two days later the War in Europe was over.

Based on a handwritten account written by Donald Ackerman, submitted by Len Baines (3 PARA), who worked in the same Police station as Donald. 

It is believed that of the 9 Officers and 111 other ranks who set out for Arnhem, 3 Officers and 25 other ranks arrived back in the UK. They were later joined by 5 other ranks, who in spite of 3 abortive attempts failed to join the Battery at Arnhem.