Jack Lyon was shot down in Germany in 1941 and he broke out in 1944
20:13, 12 Mar 2019Updated 20:27, 12 Mar 2019
Jack Lyon has died at the age of 101(Image: PA)
The last survivor of the legendary Great Escape team has died aged 101.
Navigator Jack Lyon’s bomber was downed in Germany in 1941 and the crew were taken to prisoner camps.
He went to Stalag Luft III, where he did surveillance ahead of the 1944 breakout, immortalised by Hollywood.
He was about to enter a tunnel when prisoners heard a gunshot and realised the game was up.
Ironically, he said the plot being rumbled probably saved his life.
Jack Lyon(Image: PA)
A total of 76 men had got out but just three made it to freedom. The rest were recaptured and 50 were executed.
None of the 76 who escaped from the Nazi camp are now alive.
In an interview with the BBC on his 100th birthday in 2017, Mr Lyon said: "Had I got out, I probably wouldn't be talking to you because my chances of getting home were virtually nil. I was under no illusions about that."
He also loathed the Hollywood movie about the escape saying it was "absolute rubbish".
Jack Lyon(Image: SWNS)
Air Vice-Marshal David Murray, of the RAF Benevolent Fund, said: “His legacy and of his brave comrades are the freedoms we enjoy today.”
Mr Lyon, from Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, died shortly before the 75th anniversary of the breakout, on March 24.