Barry Davies | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 22, 1944 Wem, Shropshire, United Kingdom |
| Died | August 4, 2016 (aged 71) Spain |
| Branch | SAS |
| Years of service | 1967-1985 |
Barry Davies BEM (22 November 1944 – 18 April 2016) was a British Army soldier who served with the SAS and was awarded the British Empire Medal for his role in the operation to release hostages from a hijacked German plane, Lufthansa Flight 181, at Mogadishu, in October 1977. He was a counter-terrorist expert and the author of many books on the SAS and Survival training.
Army career[]
In 1962, Davies joined the Welsh Guards,[1] and joined the Special Air Service aged 22, with whom he served for 18 years. Davies served in Northern Ireland, Oman, Malaya, Africa and Latin America.[2][3] In 1977, Davies helped bring the 91 passengers of Lufthansa Flight 181 to safety after the plane was hijacked in Mogadishu; Davies had originally been sent as an observer, but ended up taking part in the assault to free the 91 passengers.[4][5] Davies was awarded the British Empire Medal.[1][2] In 1985, Davies left the SAS to work as a marketer and product developer for BCB International.[2]
Author[]
Davies was the author of over 35 books on the SAS and Survival training including Fire Magic: Hijack to Mogadishu (1994), Heroes of the SAS (2000), The Complete Encyclopedia of the SAS (1998), The SAS Self-Defence Handbook (2011), The Complete SAS Survival Manual (2011) and SAS Desert Survival (2001).[2]
Personal life and death[]
Davies was born in Wem, Shropshire, where his father worked as a farmer.[2][3] In 1996, Davies moved to Spain.[3] Davies died on 18 April 2016 in Spain due to a heart attack.[1][2][3] He was survived by his fourth wife Mary Dixon, whom he married in 2011, and a son and two daughters.[2]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 MacAskill, Ewan (19 April 2016). "Barry Davies, legendary SAS figure, dies aged 71". The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/apr/19/barry-davies-legendary-sas-figure-dies-aged-71.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 "Barry Davies, SAS soldier – obituary". The Daily Telegraph. 17 May 2016. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/05/17/barry-davies-sas-soldier---obituary/.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Devine, Darren (17 May 2016). "Tributes to former SAS soldier who helped save stricken air passengers". Wales Online. http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/tributes-former-sas-soldier-who-11346289.
- ↑ "Barry Davies". The Times. 26 April 2016. http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/barry-davies-z3x5ws3m9.
- ↑ "R.I.P ~ SERGEANT MAJOR BARRY DAVIES BEM". Combat + Survival. 19 April 2016. http://www.combatandsurvival.com/uk-news/6888-r-i-p-sergeant-major-barry-davies-bem.
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