THIS week's anniversary of the Second World War airborne landings at Arnhem brought back memories for a Kidderminster veteran who carried out a battlefield burial of a hero who was subsequently awarded the Victoria Cross.

Ray Corneby, 85, was a corporal with the 2nd Battalion of the South Staffordshire Regiment when he and his comrades were airlifted by glider into the conflict on the second day of the battle, in 1944.

"There was fighting going on at the time we landed," said Mr Corneby, of Baldwin Road.

With the regiment under fire and taking flak, his platoon commander was killed and he was captured with some of his fellow servicemen.

"When I was captured, the first thing the Germans said was 'We want you to bury a comrade'," said Mr Corneby.

The dead man was Lance Sergeant Jack Baskeyfield, an NCO in charge of a six-pounder anti-tank gun at Oosterbeek.

With the remainder of his crew badly wounded or killed Baskeyfield had manned the gun alone until it was put out of action.

He then crawled, under enemy fire, to man another six-pounder gun whose crew had been killed. He was hit by a shell from an enemy tank but his bravery had kept German tanks at bay and allowed surviving men to keep together.

Mr Corneby said: "I was taken to the German HQ where Lance Sgt Baskeyfield was. His head was missing. I buried him there just by the HQ."

The Arnhem mission aimed to capture bridges from German forces on the River Rhine.

Only 53 South Staffordshires out of 1,200 got back across the river. The rest were killed, wounded or captured.

During his time as a PoW, Mr Corneby had to walk 300 miles on what was later called the Death March. He logged his impressions of that experience in a diary he keeps to this day.

Mr Corneby, a member of Kidderminster Parachute and Airborne Forces Association, was liberated in April 1945. Following demob, he joined the Post Office in Kidderminster and worked for the organisation in various positions both in the town and Birmingham until he retired in 1975. He and wife Eunice are great-grandparents.

Mr Corneby returned to Arnhem for the 50th anniversary of the battle. Unfortunately, the site of Lance Sgt Baskeyfield's makeshift grave has disappeared, which Mr Corneby thinks is a pity, for a man, who, in his words, "earned his VC".

.The Kidderminster Parachute and Airborne Forces Association's numbers have dwindled to about 10.

Anyone who wore the red beret, be it airborne, ex-airborne or glider pilots can join.

The association meets every second Thursday of the month at the Polish Club, St George's Terrace, Kidderminster.

For more details call Larry Billingsley on 01562 741532.