AN army veteran from West Howe says that he has waited 72 years to receive France's highest honour for his service on D-Day.

Jack Fletcher, 89, has been awarded the Chevalier in the Ordre national de la Legion d'honneur, which he earned as part of the East Riding Yeomanry who landed on Sword Beach on June 6, 1944 in Normandy.

Mr Fletcher, who has also served in Africa, Holland and Belgium, said: "We got as far as the Rhine and then I got seriously wounded, which meant that I had to stop fighting for six months.

"The tank was blown up and I was riddled with shrapnel. Three crew were killed and only two of us survived.

"I feel very proud. It has taken 72 years. I said to my wife, Miriam, that I am accepting this on behalf of all of the tank crew members who didn't make it because more didn't make it than did."

He said that after recovering from his injuries, he served in Palestine for two years before being demobbed five years after joining the Regimental Tank Corps in Bovington in 1943.

Asked about his term in the army, he said: "It was five years of war, but a lot of things happened in that time. A lot of terrible things."

Mr Fletcher, who has two daughters, Margaret and Carol, was one of the founding members of the West Howe Baptist Church, having moved to the area when the first council houses were built and finding no provisions for Christian residents.

He had previously worked as a conductor on the buses in Bournemouth and following his national service, he worked for Bournemouth council for 44 years before retiring due to ill-health.

In a letter written to Mr Fletcher, Sylvie Bermann, who leads the French Embassy in the UK, said: "As we contemplate this Europe of peace, we must never forget the heroes like you, who came from Britain and the Commonwealth to begin the liberation of Europe by liberating France.

"We owe our freedom and security to your dedication because you were ready to risk your life."