Trooper William G Hunt MM

William George Hunt was born in 1918, the son of Harry and Louise Hunt; and husband of Sheila Hunt, of West Brompton, London.

He initially served with the 2nd Dragoon Guards (Queen’s Bays), Royal Armoured Corps and was awarded the Military Medal for his actions, with the British Expeditionary Force, in May 1940, announced in the London Gazette, 27th September 1940.

‘For gallant and distinguished services in action in connection with operations in the field.’

At the outbreak of the war the regiment was in England. In May 1940 the Bays were sent as part of the 1st Armoured Division to France and were heavily engaged on the Somme. In mid June, with the collapse of French resistance, they were evacuated to England through the port of Brest.

He subsequently transferred to C Special Service Squadron (Light) RAC in 1941. This became the Airborne Light Tank Squadron RAC in July 1942 and soon moved to become part of the (1st) Airborne Division on Salisbury Plain.

When the 1st Airborne Division went to North Africa, the Airborne Light Tank Squadron remained and was transferred to the newly formed 6th Airborne Division. The unit was expanded and redesignated as the 6th Airborne Armoured Reconnaisance Regiment (6AARR) in January 1944. Trooper Hunt was assigned to Headquarters Squadron.

He took part in Operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944 and fought in the campaign to hold the bridgehead onto mainland Europe which followed.

Tpr Hunt was at the Divisional Rest Camp in Ouistreham on 10 August 1944, when an enemy aircraft was shot down and crashed on the building he was in at around 22.45 hours. He and Cpl Elsey were killed.

Tpr Hunt died aged 26 years and now lies at rest in the Ranville War Cemetery Normandy.