Denys Boudard was another courageous Frenchman who managed to get to England and join the RAF after the fall of France. On 29 April 1941, Boudard and a fellow countryman, Jean Hébert, had dressed in dark-coloured overalls to resemble German mechanics and walked onto the huge Caen-Carpiquet Luftwaffe airfield, which was, according to one source, home to nearly 400 Luftwaffe machines at that time. The two former Armée de l'Air pilots planned to steal an aircraft and fly it to England.
From the site of the Prefet du Calvados;
"..The two men attempted their exploit on 29 April 1941. It was raining. They slipped on the airfield at Caen-Carpiquet wearing black overalls, as worn by German mechanics, and entered a hangar, where Bücker Jungmann WNr. 4477 coded 'GD+EG' was parked. (The aircraft belonged to the Luftdienstkommando Westfrankreich.) Just as they were about to start the engine, German officers passed in front of the hangar. The two friends opened the cowl cover and plunged their hands into the engine. The Germans move on. Then two French workers stopped in front of the hangar door. When at last the coast was clear, the Germans returned. Disciplined, they stopped to let the plane pass in front of them before taking off. Jean Hébert flew the small liaison machine low over the SNCF station and waggled his wings, a sign agreed with a friend, an SNCF inspector. This was the signal that letters written by the two friends to their families could be posted. After an hour's flight the two former Armée de l'Air pilots arrived over the English coastline, flying over Bournemouth's main street and sounding the warning siren. Shortly afterwards, two fighters patrolled overhead, but did not spot the small biplane. Boudard and Hébert looked for an airfield and landed their plane in Christchurch, where they parked it in front of a hangar. Surrounded by British soldiers, they declared ‘we are French’. After several hours of interrogation, they reached London and were presented to Winston Churchill with Mrs Churchill acting as interpreter..."
According to Chris Thomas; " the poor visibility that day probably saved their lives. Following the coast to look for an airfield, they had started on a second circuit of the Isle of Wight before they realised it was an island! They eventually landed at Christchurch.."
It was a Sunday and visibility was presumably much better on the English side of the Channel - the two Frenchmen (Boudard left, Hébert right) were surprised to find the RAF were playing cricket on the airfield..
Fast forward three years- Jean Hébert had been sadly KIA during 1943, but on 18 June 1944 Sergent-chef Denys Boudard was filmed preparing to fly to Normandy in his 340 Sqn Spitfire IX at Merston. The IWM film was shot by the RAF FPU to celebrate Denys Boudard's return to France. He was later the first Allied pilot to land at the recaptured Carpiquet airfield - the same field from which he had stolen his Bücker Jungmann three years previously.
The Jungmann was allocated serial DR 626, dismantled and sent to London for War Weapons Week display, still in its Luftwaffe markings. It returned to Christchurch on 13 June. However the machine had been damaged by souvenir hunters and was later struck off charge (November 1941) It is not known if it was ever repainted in RAF colours - the likelihood is that at some stage between May and November 1941 it probably was...
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