The sole survivor of a stately home air disaster

Disorientated and barely conscious, Technical Sgt Leonard J Nitti was found slumped up against a cedar tree by gamekeepers and other estate staff.

The 21-year-old radio operator had apparently been thrown clear of a US bomber, the wreckage of which was burning fiercely in the distance.

"There was a flash in front of me," the US airman would recall years later. "I felt as if somebody hit me in the back and took my breath away."

He and his six comrades from the United States Air Force 326th Bombardment Squadron had already completed 33 missions and were waiting for orders to return home at the time of the crash.