Second Lieutenant Kenneth A Alexander

Second Lieutenant Kenneth Aldis Alexander was the son of John Edward and Dorothy Elizabeth Alexander, of Slough, Buckinghamshire. He was commissioned into the Ox and Bucks Light Infantry on 6 September 1941 after passing through the Officer Cadet Training Unit (OCTU) and served with the 2nd Battalion, which at that time formed part of the 31st Independent Infantry Brigade.

The War Office decided that a brigade of glider infantry should be raised to complement the 1st Parachute Brigade around the time that Lt Alexander joined the Ox and Bucks. On 10 October 1941 the 31st Brigade was re-designated as the 1st Airlanding Brigade and Lt Alexander’s unit became known as the 2nd (Airborne) Battalion, Ox and Bucks Light Infantry.

A proportion of men from the Airlanding Brigade became trained as parachutists in addition to their glider borne role. Lt Alexander was amongst nineteen officers and men from the 1st Airlanding Brigade who attended Parachute Training Course 12 at RAF Ringway which started on Monday 20 April 1942. Sadly Lt Alexander suffered a fatal parachuting accident on his second aircraft exit.

Lieutenant Alexander died on 28 April 1942, aged 21 years. He is now buried at the Southern Cemetery, Manchester.

Cemetery photograph reproduced by kind permission of CWGC.