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Oldest WWI veteran dies aged 113

18 July 2009 11:14 (UTC +04:00)

London â€“ APA. Henry Allingham, the world’s oldest man and one of the last surviving World War I servicemen, has died at the age of 113, his care home has said.
Mr Allingham served with the Royal Naval Air Service in WWI, later transferring to the Royal Air Force at the time of its creation.
Bosses at his Brighton care home said everybody was "saddened by Henry’s loss and our sympathy goes to his family".
Last month, Mr Allingham, born in 1896, became the world’s oldest man.
His funeral will take place later this month at St Nicholas’ Church in Brighton.
Mr Allingham, whose life has spanned three centuries and six monarchs, has five grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, 14 great-great grandchildren and one great-great-great grandchild.
His wife Dorothy, who he was married to for more than half a century, died in 1970.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown paid tribute to the war hero, calling him a "tremendous character".
"I had the privilege of meeting Henry many times. He was a tremendous character, one of the last representatives of a generation of tremendous characters," he said.
He added: "My thoughts are with his family as they mourn his passing but celebrate his life."
’War memories’
He joined the Royal Navy Air Service in September 1915 and served in Ypres before transferring to the RAF in April 1918.
In November last year, he took part in ceremonies to mark the 90th anniversary of the end of WWI.