Stanley was born in January 1923 in Whitechapel, London to Lewis and Alice nee Zeffman and had an older brother Frank. His parents both worked as tailors and the family in 1939 lived in Marylebone. Stanley enlisted early in 1942 and trained as an air gunner.

Stanley was an air gunner on Lancaster JB721 which departed from RAF Warboys at 18.48 for an operation to Schweinfurt in Germany. On the outbound journey the aircraft was shot down by night fighter pilot Hauptmann Eckart-Wilhelm von Bonin of the Stab II./NJG 1 killing five of the crew.

W/Op, Jack William Goulbourn, 1034195
A/B, William John Hollis, 1324480
Nav, Roy Tandy, 170352
A/G, James Michael Woodburn, 172563

F/E, Ernest John Magga, 1803652, Landed in the woods at Labry & captured, POW Stalag 357

Pilot, James Alfred Day, DFC, 131599, broke his right leg on landing and hospitalised for 6 months before POW at Stalag Luft 3.