Looking around it was total darkness with no lights or fire to be seen. Now I checked my own condition and found that one of the thuds I heard and felt was a bullet that hit my upper arm and luckily missed the bone. I had no idea as to how serious an injury I had suffered. When I could see the ground, the Mae West was inflated and all I could recognize were trees and open ground. As I came down, the chute caught the edge of a tree and my feet were on the ground. The chute was quickly pulled down and taken to the nearest bushes and trees. There I stayed for about 2 hours, resting and planning the next move. It was about 11:45pm when I came down and I had to figure out where I was. In the distance I could see a slight glow in the sky which was the target area of Karlsruhe and I estimated it to be about 12 miles distance. With the map and compass, it was evident I was NE of the target area. The Rhine river would be about 20 miles west. I didn’t think there would be a chance of crossing a bridge, without getting caught. My next best bet was due south to Switzerland and that’s what I decided to do. I cut up a lot of the parachute material for bandages etc. His my flying suit as best I could and removed all the rank insignia and badges form my uniform and hid them in the grass. The large gray woolen scarf I had was perfect for a hat and neck wrap. It was now about 1 am and I was feeling more confident no one saw me coming down. I heard one German plane circle around but could not see it. The sound of the engines was a lot different than ours. Next I heard a rumbling noise getting closer and closer and then a locomotive goes by about 100 feet away. It is now about 2 am and I am ready to start out. My first stop would be at daylight, so I could see better examine my arm. I walked through the woods till daylight., I found a fairly dry spot and striped to the waist. I was in good shape from the waist down, but the rest of me was not a pretty sight. I picked out bits of clothing from the open wound in my shoulder and rapped it up with chute material as best I could. After getting my clothes back on, I went through my escape kit thoroughly, and went over my map. There was a river running east and west and then the City of Phortzhime in the general direction that I was going to take. On the way, I filled the water container and put a purifying pill in, as all I could fund was surface water. About 2 hours before sunset I came up to the river and a road leading to a bridge. With no one in sight; crossed the road to get a better view of the other side of the river and there was a large city on the other side. I decided that I would be best to cross the bridge after dark. There was a walking trail parallel to the river that I thought would give a better view and a spot to rest till after dark. I had just gone a short distance down the trail when around a bend I came face to face with a German soldier. We made eye contact, and I lowered my head and almost touched shoulders as we passes. I expected him to say something, but not a word was said. This was the first person I had seen. I left the trail and went down a hill and rested till after dark. After walking across the bridge without any trouble, there was a road sign (Phortzheim) and stuttgart 30 km. I now knew exactly where I was and headed due south. During the night I would take only short rest periods, as it was too cold, to stay still. It was nice to see the sun come up and later on find a warm spot to sleep for 3 or 4 hours, before starting out again. Parsnips in a farmers field was the only food I found on the way. I continued on for one more night and day. I was turned by a civilian on February 5th. I was returned to England on May 11th, and visited my old squadron at Fulbeck. I found that four Lancaster’s were lost, on the Karlsruhe operation. Only four rear gunners survived.