'Cockpit visit took me right back to my RAF days'

A retired Royal Air Force engineer has said a surprise visit to a base and museum made many memories come "flooding back".

David Barnes, 88, is now a resident of a Wolverhampton care home that worked closely with volunteers from RAF Museum Midlands to "make his wish come true".

Barnes, who served with the RAF for 24 years after joining at 16, saw planes that he worked on up close again, toured the jet collection and shared stories and photos from his military past.

"The exhilaration of seeing planes again took me right back to my RAF days – I thoroughly enjoyed it," he said.

He said during the visit to Shropshire's RAF Cosford and the museum based there he was also able to see how technology had changed.

"I was able to analyse some of the planes and see the different parts used that are much more advanced than the parts in my day.

"I was honoured to see a plane fly over me in my working days, knowing I had played a part in engineering the safety for the troops – the memories came flooding back."

Barnes also thanked Foxland Grange, which is run by Care UK, which he said had done him "a great service", adding he was grateful for the time and effort put into the trip.

The home, in Wergs Road, Tettenhall, said it was previously awarded Veteran Friendly Framework status for supporting the armed forces community.

Barnes had spent 20 months in flight training after joining the air force, but was not able to fly because of being colour blind, the home said.

Instead, he pursued his passion for aviation with the logistics team, where he was responsible for testing and organising all aircraft fuel.

His stations included the Outer Hebrides and later Fontainebleau in France, where he worked for Nato.

Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.