Kane joined the RAF on a short service commission and began his ab initio course in July 1938. He joined 9 Air Observer School, Penrhos, in what is now Gwynedd, on 27 September 1939, as a staff pilot. Kane spent a period at RAF Farnborough undertaking high-altitude tests. He became an instructor.
Kane converted to Spitfires and joined No 234 Squadron at St Eval on 18 September. He shared in the destruction of a Ju 88 on the 22nd.
The next day Kane did not return from a patrol. His Spitfire was damaged in combat off the French coast, after he had shot down a Bf 109, and he baled out at 6,000 ft. He was rescued and taken prisoner by the Germans.
He was in several PoW camps, including Stalag Luft 3 in Lower Silesia. Terry Kane was freed in May 1945 and stayed in the RAF until 1950, when he went on to the Reserve of Air Force Officers.
He rejoined in April 1954, in the Fighter Control Branch and retired on 29 May 1974 as a Wing Commander. He died on 5 August 2016, aged 95.
