Australian war buddies reunited after 72 years
A veteran looks at a large poppy wreath at the Royal British Legion Field of Remembrance at Westminster Abbey on November 8, 2012 in London, England. Hundreds of small crosses bearing a poppy have been planted in a Field of Remembrance in a tribute to British servicemen and women who have lost their lives in conflict.
Australian soldiers Harry ''Hal'' Wolters and Cecil ''Buff'' Creswick assumed that each had been killed during battle.
But in a remarkable story, the former schoolmates from a Sydney high school have been reunited after 72 years.
The pair, aged under 21 at the time, enlisted on March 3, 1941, during World War II but after training became separated and never saw each other again, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
On the Easter weekend Wolters, now 90, placed a small advertisement in a newspaper searching for information about his mate's whereabouts, and Creswick responded.
''The voice said, 'It's Buff Creswick here.' I said, 'Holy, bloody hell.' I was just about dumbstruck.''
The pair met Friday, drank beer and chatted about old times.
Their tale follows an incredible story in 2011 when two decorated war heroes from Britain, who served during World War II together, were reunited after 60 years apart, the Bridgewater Mercury reported.
Morris Jones, 88, and Leonard Mead, 89, served in the Royal Navy around the world in the 1940s but were separated during service.
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