Walter Henry Heinz. Walter was for my paternal grandfather and Henry was for my maternal grandfather. My parents decided they didn't like either of those names and I have been known as Peter all my life.

When and where were you born?

In Ballarat on September 21, 1920.

Tell us about your parents.

My father was Walter Peter Heinz and my mother's maiden name was Muriel Emily Handford. My father was born in Ballarat in 1885 and my mother had been born in Ballarat in 1890. My grandfather John Heinz was the youngest of three brothers who emigrated during the goldrush. The two older brothers came out in 1858 and he came out in 1862 at the age of 13.

Your father was a butcher?

Yes. I had two brothers _ John the eldest and a younger brother called David, now deceased. My father decided there wasn't room in the business for the three of us and, in his words, ``put me to the law''. I began my articles with TT Hollway, then the State Member for Ballarat at his offices at 20 Lydiard St. Sth. and commenced correspondence studies through the University of Melbourne.

You had gone to school in Ballarat?

Yes. Six years at the Macarthur St State School and six years at Ballarat Grammar.

You were 19 when the war broke out. What was your initial involvement?

I initially served in the Melbourne University Rifles before enlisting in the RAAF in 1941.

You were part of the Empire Air Training Scheme.

Yes. I did my initial training at Victor Harbour in South Australia. It was at this point they decided whether you would be a pilot, a navigator, a wireless operator/gunner or the like. I was fortunate to be selected for pilot training.

Where did you do your flight training?

At Parafield in SA. We learnt to fly on Tiger Moths.I can still visualise doing my first solo circuit. It was pretty exhilarating _ being in charge of a machine and floating around in the ether. After Australia the next stop was Canada aboard the SS Klypfontein. In Canada we divided into single engine (fighters) and multi-engine groups.

Canada must have been a shock to the system for a boy from Australia.

Saskatoon, where I was posted, experienced some severe weather including blizzards. For 10 days straight it was so cold that we couldn't heat the engines on the planes up to a safe operating temperature. The hospitality was not cold however. I have often thought that if I hadn't come from Australia I would have seriously considered living there.

I understand you did a stint as a pilot instructor.

Yes. The Canadians were getting tired of staying behind to train the newcomers so the Australians were asked to share the job.

When did you encounter the Mosquitoes?

In July 1944 _ just after D-Day. We were given extensive low level training before being posted to Europe.

I was assigned to 464 Squadron of the RAAF based out of Rosieres in France. The squadron emblem was described as a ``piping shrike'' _ in reality a magpie. Having followed Collingwood man and boy since their back-to-back premierships in the 1920s I felt this was a very good choice.I was on the edge of my seat during the recent grandfinal. I thought we had them.

What was 464 Squadron's role?

We were night intruders. Our role, at the time British, American and Russian forces were advancing into Germany from east and west, was to make life unpleasant for the enemy troops, to attack gun emplacements and transports, to destroy trains and to make a nuisance of ourselves. Flight Lieutenant Peter Heinz was credited with two trains in the official history.

How do you attack a train in a Mosquito?

Carefully. We used to operate at between 1000 and 4000 feet (300 and 1200 metres) because this put us above the light German ack ack (anti-aircraft fire) and below the heavy ack ack. It was important to come in from ``up moon'' so you didn't present a target.The trains were armed with their own ack ack wagons.It was a golden rule that after attacking from one direction, with the element of surprise, you didn't come back and attack from the other. The night we ignored this rule we got hit. The shell passed through the fuel tank in the wing. We were lucky it wasn't an incendiary. We made it back but we were running short of petrol.

Did you have a regular partner?

Yes. My navigator was Neville Eldredge of South Australia. Friendships formed under these circumstances are special and we have stayed in close touch over the years.

Where were you on VE day?

On leave in London with my brother John. He was also a pilot and had been flying with 461 RAAF Sunderland Squadron as part of the British Coastal Command.

When did you arrive back in Australia?

In early January, 1946. After one year in the army and four in the RAAF I, like a lot of other people, was ready to follow other interests.

These were?

The law. I went back to complete my articles with TT Hollways, the firm that over time has become Heinz and Partners, and was admitted to practice as a solicitor and to the bar in mid-1946.

You are still active in the firm. What is your specialty?

In the early days if you were a provincial lawyer you were expected to be able to turn you hand to most things. Over time I paid more attention to commercial law, probate matters and conveyancing.

When did you meet your wife Patricia?

After I came back from the war. She was working in town and I would catch up with her as she was going down the street. I believe she walked slowly so I could catch up.

When and where did you get married?

At St John's Anglican Church, Soldiers Hill, on January 31, 1948. We have three children _ Joanne, who has three children of her own, Tony, a surgeon at Shepparton, who has two children and Peter, a partner in the firm, who has three children.

Much of your life has been devoted to community service. Do you feel the community service ethic is on the wane?

There seems to be a reluctance for people to give the type of voluntary service that was considered par for the course in the past.

My work, the 42 years I spent on the board of the Queen Elizabeth Centre for example, was always a great source of satisfaction. There is a need for people to hop in and get things done rather than stand back and be critical of other people's efforts.

The low level raids you carried out during the war were considered very hazardous. Did you dwell on the risks at the time?

Our view was that if we were fortunate to make it through unscathed we would have also have had the good fortune to have been exposed to an experience that would hasten maturity. You were philosophical. There was a sense of fatalism. Death is always a question of when, not if. You would regret the loss of a friend but accept it as part of the risk. There was no good grizzling about it.