Mr Defriend had a leg amputated in an operation three years ago

Wind and clouds meant Sidney Defriend's leap at the airfield he flew from 61 years ago to join the Allied forces' frontline was put on hold.

He was doing the jump for the British Limbless Ex-Service Men's Association (BLESMA) after having a leg amputated three years ago.

The widower, from Llandybie, west Wales, will try again in a few weeks.

When you are sitting in a tank and the tank is being hit with all kinds of missiles, your brains get shook up a little bit - compared to that this will be a piece of cake Sidney Defriend

Mr Defriend, who fought with the Royal Scots Greys regiment, was joined by fellow branch member and amputee Anthony Williams for the tandem jump at Redlands Airfield, near Swindon.

He said: "We were there from 0900 BST to 1600 BST but the sky was cloudy most of the day and there were high winds.

"A few got to go but most of the day was a write-off. It's unlucky but we'll go back."

He said as well as doing the jump for charity he was marking 60 years since the end of hostilities.

"It's in memory of those poor buggers who died for freedom. I'm not a bit nervous."

Mr Defriend, who detailed his time in the forces in his self-published autobiography Cockney Sparrow, flew from Swindon in a Dakota when he was first posted in Europe.

"It's a bit ironic I'm going back there," he added.

Steve Fisher, honorary secretary of the south west Wales branch of Blesma, said the association helped to provide social activities and support for former servicemen and their widows.

"The branch is run purely on a voluntary basis," he said.

"Sid is quite a character. They have raised �1,700 to date but there is more to come.

"We look after the welfare and social side of members - to get them out of their homes to meet up - and to help with any little problems if we can.