- He was the last surviving pilot of the Dambusters raids of World War II.
- His death left two surviving Dambusters crew members - Canadian former front gunner Fred Sutherland and British former bomb aimer George 'Johnny' Johnson.
- He put his medals up for auction to help pay for the upkeep of the Bomber Command Memorial in London. A day before the auction, they were purchased by British peer Lord Michael Ashcroft for £75,000 ($117,000). He donated them to the Museum of Transport and Technology in Auckland.
- He was patron of the New Zealand Bomber Command. He was still flying at the age of 95, and co-piloted an Avro Anson plane seven months before his death.
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