1900s-1945
Leslie Albert Chandler was the eldest son of Albert and Ethel Chandler, whose home, Lightfoots, stood in the Kent village of Leigh. Before the war he had been apprenticed as a draughtsman to Messrs. Nickolls, Compressors, a firm based in Letchworth. A former King's Scout, he received his schooling at Penshurst and later at the Judd School.
When war came, Leslie joined the RAF in 1940. At first he served on ground staff, but in 1941 he was remustered for aircrew duties. His training took him to Canada, and in 1943 he earned both his wings and a commission. Flying with 39 Squadron in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, he held the rank of Flying Officer and served as a pilot, wearing the service number 151716.
In July 1944 Leslie was taking part in operations over Yugoslavia when he was reported missing. Death was presumed, and he was 22 years old. He lies buried in Belgrade War Cemetery.
Tragedy had already struck the Chandler household only days before. On 3 July 1944, Leslie's younger sister Joan, just 11 years old, was killed when a cannon-shell exploded at Leigh School. She was laid to rest at St Mary's Church in the village. The family's younger son, Raymond, was also serving, training as a navigator with the RAF.
The story of the Chandlers' losses was told in The Courier on 9 March 1945. Leslie is remembered on the Leigh War Memorial, and his name also appears on his sister's gravestone in the graveyard at St Mary's — a touching mark of a brother and sister, both gone within a fortnight of each other in the summer of 1944, and both still remembered in the village they called home.