World famous in Whanganui: James Ward

James Allan Ward

For an act of extraordinary courage and bravery, it's hard to go past what former Whanganui airman Jimmy Ward did on a bombing raid over Germany in July 1941.

It was an act of heroism that later saw the 22-year-old sergeant awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest medal for gallantry that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

James Allan Ward was born in Wanganui, where he attended Wanganui Technical College (now City College). He trained as a teacher at the Wellington College of Education in 1938 and taught until enlisting in the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) in July 1940.

He trained as a pilot at Taieri and Wigram before joining No 75 (NZ) Squadron in England.

He was co-pilot on a Vickers Wellington bomber flying out of RAF Feltwell in Norfolk on July 7 on a raid on Münster in Germany.

An attack by a German night fighter caused a fire at the rear of the starboard engine on Ward's plane.

At an altitude of 13,000 feet, flying at a speed of 145km/h and in total darkness, Ward climbed out through a hatch, crawled out on to the wing and beat out a fire in the fuel system, using the aircraft's canvas cockpit cover.

He kicked or tore holes in the aircraft's fabric with a fire axe to give himself hand and foot holes to reach the engine.

Instead of the crew having to bail out, the aircraft made an emergency landing at Newmarket, United Kingdom.

Ward was killed in action three months later when his plane was hit by flak over Hamburg. The Victoria Cross was presented to his parents by the Governor-General of New Zealand at Government House, Wellington in October 1942.

The assembly hall at City College is named after him.