I disagree with his politics but this mans incredible life is detailed here
William Ash was a Texan 'hobo’ turned Spitfire pilot who became celebrated for his numerous attempts to escape from Stalag Luft III
William Ash, who has died aged 96, was the real-life “cooler king” of Stalag Luft III, said to be one of several sources for the character Virgil Hilts, played by Steve McQueen in the film The Great Escape; his escape attempts became celebrated – over the wire, through it with cutters, through the gates in disguise as a Russian slave-labourer, and, especially, via tunnels. If he never succeeded, it was not for want of trying.
Ash crammed several lifetimes of adventure into his 96 years. Even in Stalag Luft III he stood out. While most of his fellow-officer inmates in 1942 were from well-to-do British backgrounds, Ash was a former Texan hobo who had swapped his place in a Depression-era cattle car for the cockpit of a Spitfire.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obit...-obituary.html
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