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André Hissink

André Louis Armand Born in Batavia, Dutch Indies on the 26th of June 1919. “When my age was 8 years old, our family moved to the Netherlands. Very few things, can I remember of the time in the Dutch indies, before my 8th.”

Hilversum

We lived in Hilversum, my grandmother lived in the nearby city of Bussum. I was at the H.B.S. school these days, not far from the railway, in the northern part of the city.

Kalmthout When we lived in the neighborhood of Antwerp (Belgium) I went to school, in the city of Bergen op Zoom, in Holland. The place where we lived was Kalmthout. Every day we passed the customs checkpoint two times. In Belgium there wasn’t the same type of school, what I needed, so I went to the HBS in Bergen op Zoom.

Utrecht “I studied law, at the university of Utrecht. But because of the looming war I had to suspend, and was called to join military service. We were mobilized in 1939, due to the thread from the east: Germany. I never had the intention to join the army, but was forced to, due to those circumstances.” "My intend was to become a lawyer," he said, "I never made it. I got my call up in my third year," specifically, on Oct. 3, 1939. "A week later, I was in uniform."

Part of the University in Utrecht, view from the Dom tower, in Utrecht

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The invasion – on the 10th of may 1940 “ There were shootings in Rotterdam, till the moment that the Germans decided to bomb the city. At that time, the tunnel under the river Maas was still under construction. On the northern bank, a large piece of this tunnel section was already finished and used as a bomb shelter. That’s where we took refuge and hided. When the bombings stopped, we rapidly went to Hook of Holland by feet. This was on the 14th of may. From the distance we saw large clouds of smoke rising from above the burning city, it looked like a big mushroom. At that moment I decided: “I want to act the same, but then back onto the enemy.” “I was with my friends Bill Hamilton of Silverton Hill, and Jan Wilderman. When we crawled out of the tunnel, we decided, “to teach the enemy a lesson.” We walked swiftly to the port of Hook of Holland. Halfway we stopped in a little village. (Vlaardingen) , and the officer told us: “its time to use lunch, get some bread from the bakery.” So we did, and consequently were ordered to consume this separately, each of us had to ask permission at the different homes in the street. My friends and I rang the bell at a house, the door was opened, a friendly woman opened the door and we had our lunch, she gave us coffee.”

The city of Rotterdam bombed, on the 14th of may 1940

“A car came along, it was already fully packed, we could not get in. So we stood on the footboard, and held ourselves tight thru the open window, and were driven to Hook of Holland. The three of us asked if we could sail with this British navy vessel “Keith” to England.”

“Wait a moment”, the man at the gangway said. He came back after a while and admitted our entry on the h.m.s. Keith. Approximately 60 soldiers were there as well, and while we were watching, a German fighter plane came flying low over the river “Waterweg” (the seaway from the port of Rotterdam to the Northsea). Suddenly a very loud noise. A battery of anti-aircraft fire tried to shoot down the enemy plane, no result. And I was standing next to these canons. Than something came down from this German airplane, a magnetic sea-mine, was dropped on a rope, into the water of the “Waterweg”. The question was raised; “so, can we leave when there are mines everywhere”? But this ship had a long electricity cable around it, which generated a magnetic field, disturbing the sensors on the sea-mine. We were safe. I was corporal in the Dutch army when we left Hook of Holland. When we arrived in Dover, my rank became sergeant. The Brits took us to a castle there." The ship “Keith” sailed back to the continent, to bring more refugees to the British Isles”.

h.m.s. Keith, sunk , 15 days later, by a German aircraft on the 1st of June 1940

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My friend Bill Hamilton of Silverton Hill In the 2nd half of 1940 (in the month of august) I left England to the Dutch Indies. In Surabaya I started as trainee with the Dutch Naval Air force (MLD) on the base of Morokrembangan.

Engelandvaarder Engelandvaarder, (literally translated as "England paddler") was the term given to men and women who, during the World War II, escaped from occupied territory (like the Netherlands) to England (or another Allied territory) to join the Allied forces so as to continue to fight against the Axis countries (Germany, Italy and Japan). The period covered is between the capitulation of the Dutch armed forces on 15 May 1940 and the Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944 (D-Day).

“I am officially not categorized as an ‘England paddler’, be it, in accordance with the general definition of it, because I crossed the Northsea to England before the surrender of the Dutch government on the 15th of may 1940.

1940 – to the Dutch Indies

Left England with the ss Dominion Monarch, along South Africa to the Dutch Indies, which at that time were still in peace. My grandparents also travelled there, although it had been recommended to them, to sail to the US instead. The ship made a stop in Cape-Town. And after we had been in the port of Durban for a while, the journey continued to the Dutch Indies.

Bill Hamilton, his real name was Henk, a dutch name. When we met

him for the first time, we asked: “what’s good about this dutch name,

from now on, you are: “Bill”. Nevertheless he was a real Dutchman.

His early ancestors (1800’s) were from Scotland. His father was mayor

in Etten-Leur.

As soon as we arrived in England, we stepped forward and firmly

stated: “We want to fly.”

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“I had an English girlfriend, named Janet Russell, we were married in the Dutch Indies.”

(engaged: Janet M. Russell and A.L.A. Hissink) - 17 june 1941

Question: “How did you came about to become a pilot ?” “That was my preference because if your airplane crashes, you will die instantly, but on the battlefield as a soldier, you may be lying there in the mud, maybe brought to the hospital, and become disabled for the rest of your life. As a sailor, your ship goes down, and you go with it.”

On the airfield of Tanjung Perak, most of the apprentices continued with their training to become pilots. Jan, Bill, and I received our first lessons here.

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training lessons on so-called “land Ryans”.

July 1941 - the visit of the Governor

General of the NEI accompanied by Vice-

Admiral Helfrig to Soerabaja 4th from the

left, front row, is Andre standing

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“I learned my basics at the VVC, a local aero-club in Soerabaja. Later applied as trainee for the Dutch naval airforce at the base of Morokrembangan. Only once I flew as a pilot with a Dornier Wal. Take Off, and Landing on water. That was between Soerabaja and Madura, such a slow and sluggish airplane.” “Which squadron did you fly with?” Andre: “No I was trainee, till the end.”

Land-Ryan, Dutch Naval Air force, registration S-14

War in the Dutch Indies On the 7th of December 1941, Pearl Harbor was attacked by the imperial Japanese navy. From then on, ground forces entered and conquered territories of Indochina, Philippines, China, Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, Dutch-East Indies. The Dutch naval air force was on high alert, and many reconnaissance flights were carried out over the Archipelago. André: “I didn’t know this was coming, and hadn’t anticipated the situation had become so bad. I was in Bandung, worked at the office of commander Wavell, but 2 days ahead, was called, and we took the train to Surabaya. Not the night train, because we were not ready to pack all the things we wanted to take with us. I was told, that we would be transported to Australia.

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The original idea was that after completion of our training, we would be send to England around the 15th of December 1941, now we were to stay in Surabaya.

1942, January, Bombs on Surabaya, the base of Morokrembangan.

André: “I told my wife that we would split up, that she could carry a suitcase with clothes for 2 weeks, and I would handle the rest of the baggage. We stayed in the Oranjehotel. Than went to the bank. When I was there the bombs fell on the city, the clerk became scared, and told me to go to the cellar to finish the paperwork. Janet would take the train to Batavia, to search a ship going to Australia. Instead she met an English friend who asked her: ”where are you planning to go?” “Because I am going to Cilacap, she said, are you going with me, because I am also going to Australia.” And that’s what Janet decided, despite that she had no ticket. The first hours she spend as stowaway, but soon made herself known to the purser, and later, my father took care to pay this ticket to the shipping company.” “My father eventually died 3 years after the war, due to the suffering in a concentration camp, where he became ill (t.b.c.), despite his treatment in Davos.

Newspaper of Batavia, morning edition. Issued on the 19th of February 1942. states: “Java has a good chance”, meaning they thought to be capable of withstanding the Japanese invasion.

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1942 - 19th February we left Surabaya “My wife Janet had left separately on a ship from Cilacap to Melbourne Australia. The Japanese enemy was already on Bali.”

s.s. Tsjinegara The s.s. Tsjinegara couldn’t proceed through Strait Bali, and had to take the longer route, north of Java towards Strait Soenda, and then southwards.

In the middle: Andre, pulling ropes onboard of the ss. Tsjinegara Source: collection Duijzing & Schraa - NIMH

So at the end, we arrived 2 days later in Australia, than Janet. We were reunited and safe in Melbourne.” “I became stationed in Rathmines, but that was only for a short period of time. From there we sailed with the ss Mariposa to San Francisco.” question: were you made aware of enemy submarines in the Indian Ocean when the ss Tsjinegara left ? “No we weren’t, but the ship was zigzagging, yes that’s what we observed.” " but the ss Mariposa went straight ahead to San Francisco "

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Source: Article Ottawa Valley - Jun 05, 2014 Perth vet to honor Dutch vets at D-Day ceremony this week

Escape from Indonesia Janet arrived in Asia without much fanfare, walking into his apartment and declaring, "I have arrived." This was in April of 1941, and they were married that August. As the Japanese closed in, landing on the island of Bali, the time came for the Dutch trainee flyers to be evacuated. The Dutch Navy told its members that their spouses and families would be flown out later, but Hissink had his doubts. "(I) didn't trust them completely," said Hissink. "I am very low on the totem pole. You (his wife) may be one of the last to get out. Try to get out yourself." She escorted him to the dock where he sailed away to Australia. As he saw his beloved wife standing on the dock, he thought, "I should have stowed her away." His wife, however, had other plans. Once her husband was out of sight, she turned around, headed straight back to her hotel, picked up her bags, and headed for the railway station to catch a train to Batavia to see if she could escape on a boat. As luck would have it, she met an English friend on the train, who told her that she was getting off at a port on the island's south side, at Tjilatjap, to take a ship leaving the area. She decided to follow her friend's lead, and they got off the train at midnight. In the harbor, the boat was already under steam, ready to sail. A rope ladder was tossed over the side for her to climb up. "I had never been so frightened as I was when I went up that rope ladder," he recalled her saying later. Janet's ship got a head start and she ended up meeting him off of the ship on the pier in Australia. In time, the Dutch surrendered the East Indies in March of 1942, with the military women and children being evacuated a month earlier. Hissink's wife was to be amongst those evacuated. As for the rest of André’s family, they were unable to outrun the Japanese. The Dutch colonials were put into internment camps, where his grandfather died. "He was carried off to the cemetery in an open push cart," said Hissink. His brother too was a prisoner of war, and though his father survived the war, at the camp, "he got very bad tuberculosis and died three years after the war in a sanatorium in Switzerland...I also lost a cousin on a prisoner of war ship that was torpedoed."

Arrival in San Francisco, 3rd of may 1942 The ss. Mariposa arrived that day in the port of San Francisco.

The journey continued by train from San Francisco to Jackson airbase in the State of Mississippi.

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Jackson and Midland - RNMFS (RNMFS means Royal Netherlands Military Flying School)

May 1942 -

In the background a so-called ‘link trainer’, today we would name it a flight simulator. My operational training was in the OTU of Pensacola. In the middle; André (OTU = Operational Training Unit) At that time we didn’t know anything about the situation in Holland. Only once I had the opportunity to write a letter to my family in the Netherlands, through the so-called ‘black cross’, sent from Jackson Miss., eventually we received a reply that the family was okay. note: the “black cross” was a sort of illegal (underground) service meant to deliver postal messages to family in occupied territory.

At the Log Cabin Inn From left to right: Janet, Andre, Nancy, Eric, Sizoo, Frances Ann, Cap. Kooistra, Jean, Engel

“celebration of Jean’s arrival from England

1943 - April Training completed.

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We left the USA for England on the ss. ‘Queen Mary’.

Dutch airmen, in New York. just before departure to England with the ss ‘Queen Mary’.

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1943 – arrival in England we were first sent to Attlebridge. than Posted in 320 Squadron

1944, the 8th of June Bill Hamilton’s plane (André’s best friend), was hit by flak, shortly after D-Day (which was on the 6th of june 1944), and crashed just outside the coast of Normandie.

Lt. H. L. Hamilton . Royal Air Force No. 320 (Netherlands) Squadron RAF (d.8th June 1944) On 8th June 1944 a RAF plane, a Mitchell FR179 of 320 Squadron FTR from night mission to Vire (France) Crew Members were: Lt. H.L. Hamilton - MIA Off. W. Badings - MIA Sgt.I. Posthumus - MIA Sgt. T.M. Kuypers - MIA All have a memorial stone at Orry-la-Ville (Senlis) France with their names on.

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In the UK we occasionally listened to the news radio. Several enemy controlled radio stations changed the actual facts. In particular, there was this newsreader, whom we called “Lord HawHaw.” (real name William Joyce)

we laughed about the nonsense he was telling.

1944 Dunsfold

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André visited the cemetery of Grebbeberg in June 2014 25 of the 320Sqdn crewmembers are buried here.

Post War KLM “I had a job at the nav buro at KLM for some time, and met with Hugo Burgerhout, who was than a testpilot at Fokker. He was one of our best commanders in 320. Than I became an operations officer for KLM in Zurich (1947-1949), We emigrated in 1951 to New-Zealand, and I worked during 8 years in Wellington, in the Air Department, as an aeronautical navigation and mapping officer. From than I emigrated with my family to Vancouver, Canada. I became employed there during 3 years as navigation and operations officer with Canadian Pacific Airlines.

ICAO At last, we moved to Montreal, and I became my assignment as operations and regional affairs officer, with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), of the United Nation Organization (UNO, New York). until my retirmenent.

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Article: Ottawa Valley - Jun 05, 2014 Perth vet to honor Dutch vets at D-Day ceremony this week Remembering D-Day Liam Grove Perth resident Andre Hissink was one of those representing Dutch veterans of the Second World War when the 70th anniversary of D-Day was marked on June 6. Perth Courier By Desmond Devoy

Then, "out of the blue, I got a phone call from Holland." A commander with the Dutch Naval Air Service told him that they would fly him to France. He did come back to Norfolk with holes in his aircraft on one occasion, but he only had one truly terrifying flight. While providing air cover, they were hit by anti-aircraft fire, and "we had to bail out. We all got out, except one. He, unfortunately, went down with the aircraft." – crash at Vielsalm, Belgium Both engines had been hit and were on fire, and they were slowly going down - over enemy-occupied territory. Looking at the map, Hissink told his captain, "if we can hold on for 10 minutes, we will be over our own liberated areas. That is what we did and started jumping out." As for the man (mr. Jillings) they lost, "that is still our big regret, that we lost this one man."

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3 medal clasps:

- Oorlogsvluchten 1940 – 1945 - Nederland may 1940 - Javazee 1941 – 1942

Medals: - Airman’s Cross - War memorial cross - medal for honor and extended service as officer

VIDEO

Vielsalm 9 may 2015 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZWZbu-ARGE Grebbeberg 25-may-2018 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYJYQw4e0Gw&t=504s

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