Grounded in Eire: The Story of Two RAF Fliers Interned in Ireland during World War II

Off-course after a failed mission over Frankfurt in 1941, Bobby Keefer, a former McGill football star, and his best friend Jack Calder found themselves forced to bail out of their twin-engine Wellington over Southern Ireland. Much to their surprise, rather than being returned to their squadron in England, they were interned for having violated Ireland’s neutral airspace. In Grounded in Eire Ralph Keefer retells his father’s remarkable experiences in Ireland during the war. After an unusual interrogation at the hands of the Local Defence Force in County Clare, Keefer and Calder were transferred to a makeshift prison camp in County Kildare - right next to a similar camp for German prisoners. There they found themselves subject to a surreal honour system that allowed them daily parole away from their internment camp - to golf or cycle across the broad plains of the Curragh free of any supervision. This system forbade escape attempts when they were on parole but bound them, as RAF officers, to attempt to escape upon their return to camp. A colourful and often amusing record of events, Grounded in Eire offers insight into this little-known aspect of the war and provides a testament to courage, friendship, and perseverance in the face of unusual obstacles.