In what has become a Christmas tradition for this Editor, Military Veterans and Patriots presents Alan Maitland’s reading of the 1975 novella by Fredrick Forsyth. First heard on CBC (Canadian Broadcasting System) radio on Christmas Eve 1979, the reading has been replayed every year since on CBC radio 1.
The Shepherd relates the story of a De Havilland Vampire pilot, going home on Christmas Eve 1957, whose aircraft suffers a complete electrical failure en route from RAF Celle in northern Germany to RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk. Lost in fog over the North Sea and low on fuel, he encounters a De Havilland Mosquito fighter-bomber, which has apparently been sent up to “shepherd” (i.e. guide) him in.