Lance Corporal James Duckett

Lance Corporal James Duckett was the son of Arthur and Lily Duckett, of Blackburn; and husband of Edna Duckett, also of Blackburn. He enlisted into the Corps of Military Police and volunteered for the airborne forces shortly after the formation of No 1 Parachute Brigade; he was then attached to the 4th Parachute Battalion.

James Duckett attended the 8th preliminary parachute training course for the Brigade at RAF Ringway which ran from 10 to 24 February 1942. A total of 239 men from the 1st and 4th Battalions were on the course, and between them they completed 1096 aircraft descents and 471 balloon descents. Visibility during the course was consistently poor and the ground very hard owing to frosts.

Unfortunately, Corporal Duckett was the first of two men to die on this course as a result of fatal injuries sustained from a parachuting accident on his first aircraft descent. He had also previously completed two balloon descents without incident. The Officer Commanding and the instructors of the Parachute Training School made descents immediately after the fatal accidents to instil confidence in the course cadre.

Lance Corporal Duckett died on 16 February 1942, aged 26 years old, and is now buried at Blackburn Cemetery, Lancashire.

Cemetery photograph courtesy of CWGC.