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Fighter pilots of the Royal Air Force,
and Fighter Pilots of commonwealth countries. Also included is information
of aviation art prints these fighter pilots have signed.
Fighter
Pilots of Germany.
Fighter Pilots of the United States of
America |
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Joining the RAF in 1939, Ken Evans was posted to 600 Squadron,
where he flew night operations. In September 1941 he was posted to
130 Squadron to fly Spitfires, and in early 1942 was ordered to
Malta. Arriving in Gibraltar he joined the carrier HMS
Eagle. On 18 May he flew his Spitfire to Malta from the Eagle, to
join 126 Squadron. Seeing much action over the island in June and
July, in August he returned to Gibraltar to lead a new flight back to
Malta, this time embarking on the carrier HMS Furious. One of 126
Squadron's most successful pilots on Malta, Ken was awarded the DFC, and
credited with 5 destroyed, 3 probables and 3 damaged. Commissioned
on Malta, he returned to the UK, and in September 1943 was posted to 165
Squadron as a flight commander. |
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Group Captain Tom Dalton Morgan DSO, DFC*, OBE
Tom joined the RAF in 1935, serving with 22 Squadron. In June
1940 he was posted to Tangmere as 'B' Flight commander with 43 Squadron,
flying Hurricanes, scoring his first victory on 12 July. In action
over the Channel in August he was hit by crossfire, bailing out with
slight wounds. He soon resumed flying but was again wounded on 6
September. Ten days later he was promoted to command 43
Squadron. In January 1942 he left the squadron to become a
Controller. Promoted Wing Commander Operations with 13 Group, he
then led the Ibsley Wing, consisting of 4 Spitfire, 2 Whirlwind, and 2
Mustang Squadrons. His final victory in May 1943 brought his score
to 17. Briefly attached to the USAAF 4th Fighter Group, he was then
Operations Officer with the 2nd TAF until the end of the war.
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Wing Commander Bob Doe, DSO, DFC*
Posted to 234 Squadron in November 1939, and 238 Squadron in September
1940, Bob Doe achieved great success during the Battle of Britain, scoring
14 and 3 shared victories. He was one of the few pilots to fly both
the Hurricane and the Spitfire. In October he was shot down, but
rejoined the squadron soon after, however in January 1941 he suffered
engine failure and was forced to crash land, suffering severe injuries
resulting in plastic surgery. Able to resume operational flying in
May 1941, he joined 66 Squadron, moving to 130 Squadron in August.
In July 1943 he joined 118 Squadron, then 613 Squadron flying
Mustangs. In October he was posted to the Far East to form 10
Squadron Indian Air Force on Hurricanes, which he led in Burma.
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Wing Commander George 'Grumpy' Unwin, DSO, DFM*
George Unwin joined the RAF in 1929, and in 1936 was posted to Duxford
with 19 Squadron as a Sergeant Pilot. He was one of the first pilots
in the RAF to fly the Spitfire. With the outbreak of war 19 Squadron
moved to Hornchurch and George, now one of the Squadron's most experienced
pilots, took part in the great air battles over France and Dunkirk,
scoring 3 and a half victories. He flew with 19 Squadron
continuously during the whole of the Battle of Britain. He was
commissioned in 1941. After a period instructing, he resumed
operations, flying Mosquitoes with 16 Squadron. George finished the
war with 13 victories, 2 shared, 2 unconfirmed, and 2 probables.
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Squadron Leader Neville Duke, DSO, OBE, DFC*, AFC, CzMC
Neville Duke flew Spitfires as wingman to Sailor Malan in 92
Squadron. In November 1941 he was posted to 112 Squadron in the
Middle East. After a second tour in the Desert, he flew a third
tour, with 145 Squadron in Italy. He was the top scoring Allied Ace
in the Mediterranean with 28 victories. After the war, in 1953, he
captured the World Air Speed record.
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Wing Commander John Freeborn DFC*
Johnie Freeborn flew Spitfires with 74 Squadron over Dunkirk, and was
in action throughout the Battle of Britain, he had been with his squadron
longer, and flown more hours, than any other Battle of Britain
pilot. He joined 602 Squadron in 1942, and commanded 118 Squadron in
June 1943. In June 1944 he was promoted Wing Commander Flying of 286
Wing in Italy. John Freeborn scored 17 victories.
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Commander Mike Crossley DSC* Royal Navy
Fleet Air Arm Ace Mike Crossley joined the carrier HMS Eagle in 1941,
flying Sea Hurricanes in defence of the Malta convoys. In August
1942 he was lucky to escape when Eagle was sunk by a u-boat. He
joined HMS Biter flying Sea Hurricanes in Operation Torch, and Seafires
during D-Day. He finished the war in the Far East, an Ace with 5 and
a half victories.
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Flight Lieutenant John Squier
John Squier was called up from the RAFVR at the outbreak of war,
joining 64 Squadron at Kenley in June 1940 flying Spitfires. In
August he crash landed following an attack by Hannes Trautloft of
III/JG51, suffering severe injuries. Rejoining 64 Squadron in
November, he was posted to 72 Squadron, then 603 Squadron, and finally 141
Squadron. He was commissioned in 1942. After the war he became
a test pilot and was the first pilot to eject at supersonic speed.
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Lieutenant Commander Peter Meadway Royal Navy (Signed companion print)
Peter Meadway joined the Royal Navy in 1939, and was posted as Observer
to 825 Squadron FAA flying Swordfish from HMS Furious. Transferring
to 810 Squadron FAA on HMS Ark Royal he took part in the successful
torpedo attacks on the German Battleship Bismarck on the night of
26th/27th May 1941, and was witness to her sinking the following day.
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Squadron Leader Mahinder Pujji DFC
In 1940 Mahinder, a qualified pilot flying for Shell in India,
volunteered to join the RAF and was commissioned as Pilot Officer.
Arriving in England, he was posted to 43 Squadron, and then 258 Squadron
at Kenley, flying both Hurricanes and Spitfires. Later posted to the
Western Desert, then to India, and finally to Burma, where he completed
two tours against the Japanese.
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Air Commodore Peter Brothers CBE, DSO, DFC*
Pete Brothers flew in the Battles of France and Dunkirk. During
the Battle of Britain he flew with Bob Stanford Tuck at 257
Squadron. In 1941 he formed 457 Squadron (RAAF), and later led 602
Squadron on the Dieppe Raid. He was then Spitfire Wing Leader at
Tangmere, and later given command of the Culmhead Wing for the Normandy
Invasion. He finished the war with 16 victories.
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Air Marshal Sir Denis Crowley-Milling KCB, CBE, DSO, DFC, AE
At the outbreak of war he was called up, joining 615 Squadron in
France, later posted to 242 Squadron in the fighting over Dunkirk.
During the Battle of Britain he flew in Douglas Bader's section, and
joined his Spitfire Wing at Tangmere as a Flight Commander of 610
Squadron. In 1942 he formed the first Typhoon Bomber Squadron.
He finished the war with 5 victories.
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Air Vice Marshal Johnnie Johnson CB, CBE, DSO**, DFC*
The top scoring Allied Ace of World War II with 38 victories, Johnnie
Johnson had joined 92 Squadron in August 1940. He flew with Douglas
Bader in the famous Tangmere Wing, and then led 610 Squadron on the Dieppe
Raid. After commanding the Canadian Wing at Kenley, he led 144 Wing
again flying Spitfires, 127 Wing, and then 125 Wing.
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Wing Commander Harbourne Stephen CBE, DSO, DFC
Flying Spitfires with 74 Squadron, Harbourne took part in the great air
battles over France and Dunkirk. With 7 victories already to his
credit he was in the thick of the Battle of Britain, and by the end of
1940 this talented Spitfire Ace ad accumulated 22 and a half air
victories. After forming 130 Squadron, he then led 234 Squadron, and
later commanded 166 Wing in the Far East.
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Group Captain Peter Townsend CVO, DSO, DFC
Peter Townsend was one of the most inspirational fighter leaders of the
Battle of Britain. In February 1940, flying a Hurricane, he had shot
down the first German aircraft to fall on English soil in World War II,
and this was the first of a string of successes for the popular commander
of 85 Squadron. Shot down twice, wounded, and flying part of the
Battle when he couldn't walk, Peter Townsend survived to lead the first
night-fighter squadron. He later became Equerry to King George VI, a
post he held for 8 years |
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Flight Lieutenant Eric Jones DFC
Eric Jones joined the RAF in April 1941 and trained as a pilot in
Canada. Back in England he was posted to No.49 Squadron flying
Lancasters, and flew his first operation on the night of 22nd August
1943. The target that night was Leverkusen. On the night of
14th January 1944 on a raid against Brunswick his aircraft shot down an
Me110 nightfighter south of Hannover. He flew 12 trips to Berlin,
the most heavily defended target in the Reich. Eric Jones completed
a tour of 29 combat operations in the Lancaster. He was awarded the
DFC. |
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Flight Lieutenant Leslie Hay
Joining the Royal Air Force in May 1941, Leslie Hay was trained as a
pilot in Canada. On qualifying he returned to England and eventually
was posted to join No.49 Squadron, then based at Fiskerton in
Lincolnshire, flying Lancasters. From there he flew his first
operation on 1st August 1944, following the Normandy invasion.
Leslie Hay completed a total of 36 combat operations in the Lancaster, all
with No.49 Squadron, at the height of Bomber Commands offensive against
Germany |
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Flight Lieutenant Robert Souter
Robert Souter joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force in February 1941,
and after training was posted in 1942 to the Middle East, joining No.108
Squadron then flying Wellingtons. He first flew operationally in
June of that year, in the Western Desert campaign, and the last operation
of his first tour was in Nov 1942 with the battle of El Alamein.
After a period with No.26 OTUWing, Robert undertook a second tour - this
time flying Lancasters with No.49 Squadron, up to the end of the
war. He had completed a total of 47 operations by that time.
After the war he flew Dakotas and Liberators with RAF Transport Command. |
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Flight Lieutenant Ernest Webb DFC
After joining the Royal Air Force in June 1941, Ernie Webb was chosen
for training as a pilot. After qualifying he was posted in 1943 to
join No.49 Squadron, based at Fiskerton in Lincolnshire. The
squadron were by that time flying Lancasters, and heavily involved in the
RAF Bomber Command offensive against the major targets in Germany.
He flew a total of 30 combat operations in the Lancaster during his tour
with No.49 Squadron, and later went on to serve with No.242 Squadron, RAF
Transport Command. Ernest Webb was awarded the DFC. |
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Flight Lieutenant Philip Bristow
Philip Bristow joined the Royal Naval Air Service in August 1917 and
was sent for immediate flying training in France. Transferring to
the RAF on April 1, 1918, he was posted to 219 Squadron, flying the Short
184, where he saw active service flying combat patrold on the Northern
Front. |
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Chief Test Pilot Alex Henshaw
Alex Henshaw perhaps understands the Spitfire better than any other
living pilot today - for he was Vickers Chief Test Pilot on Spitfires at
the new Spitfire factory at Castle Bromwich during World War II. By
the end of the war he had personally test flown a total of 2360 different
Spitfires and Seafires - more than ten per cent of the entire
production. It is often stated that those lucky enough to have seen
Alex handle the Spitfire in flight, that it is an experience that can
never be forgotten, he was acknowledged as a virtuoso in aerobatics. |
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Wing Commander Bob Stanford Tuck DSO DFC**
Bob Stanford Tuck was a flamboyant fighter pilot, his dashing good
looks, courage, and success in the air coming to epitomise the young
flyers who fought and won the Battle of Britain. To the British
public he was a hero in the mould of the knights of old, and today his
name is legend. In the early stages of the Battle of Britain Bob
fought with 92 Squadron flying Spitfires, quickly becoming one of the
leading aces. Promoted to command 257 Squadron, now flying
Hurricanes, Bob's dashing style of leadership inspired his pilots to great
success. He went on to command the Duxford and Biggin Hill Wings,
taking his personal score to 29 air victories before being shot down by
ground fire over Northern France in 1942. |
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Flt Sergeant Stan Bradford DFM
was a mid-upper gunner on Lancaster ED308 'D-Donald' of 57 squadron RAF
Bomber Command, then based at Scampton. By the end of his tour in March
1944 Stan had become an air Ace, credited by 5 Group with the shooting
down of 6 enemy fighters, including a Bf109 over France on his very
first operation on the night of August 27th 1943. |
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Flt Lieutenant Bob
Knights DSO, DFC
Lancaster pilot Bob
Knights joined 619 Squadron RAF Woodhall Spa in September 1943,
successfully completing his first tour of 26 operations. In January 1944
he was asked to join 617 Squadron with Leonard Cheshire, and carried out
the precision bombing attacks for which 617 Sqn was famed. These
included three attacks on the Tirpitz, and attacks on factories, U-boat
pens, and V1 rocket sites. Bob Knights completed a further 44 operations
with 617 Squadron. |
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Air Marshal Sir Ivor Broom KCB CBE DSO DFC AFC
Entering the RAF in 1940 he joined No 114 Squadron as a sergeant pilot
flying Blenheims. After 12 operations he and his crew were allocated
to No 105 Squadron and then No 107 Squadron, the last remaining Blenheim
Squadron in Malta. The Squadron remained there without relief for
five months carrying out low level attacks on the shipping. Very few
of the original crews survived the detachment, in fact he was commissioned
during this period, when 107 Squadron had lost all their officers and for
a short time was the only officer, other than the CO, in the
Squadron. At the end of this tour he was awarded the DFC. In
early 1943 he became one of the first Mosquito instructors in the
Pathfinder Force and later moved to No 571 Squadron with the Light Night
Strike Force. He then formed No 163 Squadron as acting Wing
Commander. He was awarded a bar to his DFC for a low level moonlight
mining attack on the Dormund - Ems Canal from 50ft and then a second bar
for getting a 4000lb bomb into the mouth of a railway tunnel during the
final German Ardennes offensive. During his time on Mosquitoes his
navigator was Tommy Broom, together they formed an inseparable
combination. Remaining with the RAF after WWII and in accordance
with peacetime rules for a much smaller Air Force he was reduced in rank
first to Squadron Leader and then to Flight Lieutenant in 1948.
Promoted to Air Marshal in 1974 he became the Head of the UK National Air
Traffic Services and was the first serving officer to be appointed to the
Board of the Civil Aviation Authority. Retiring from the RAF in 1979
he has been actively engaged in civil aviation since then. |
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Wing Commander Joe Singleton DSO DFC AFC Wing
Commander Singleton flew the Mosquito in both the offensive and defensive
role. During the latter, his more notable engagements included the
interception of three JU 88s in a matter of minutes. The three
aircraft were the lead pathfinders of a much larger bomber force heading
for the city of Hull. The downing of these three aircraft
effectively put an end to the success of the enemy raid. |
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Squadron Leader TJ 'Tommy' Broom DFC
As an observer with 105 Squadron he spent the early months of the WWII
on Fairey Battles in France and then on Blenheims back in England.
After spending a period as an instructor at 13 OTU he rejoined 105
Squadron on Mosquitoes, they were in fact the first squadron in the RAF to
receive them. Through early 1942 he was navigator on many of the
daylight raids carried out by 105 Squadron. In 1943 he became
navigator to Ivor Broom (no relation) in 163 Squadron as part of the Light
Night Strike Force and together they formed an inseparable and very
successful combination. Known as 'The Flying Brooms' they were
together throughout their time on Mosquitoes including the low level
attack on the Dortmund - Ems Canal and 22 attacks on Berlin. |
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Wing Commander Ernest Rodley DSO DFC AFC AE
He initially joined the RAFVR in 1937 and was commissioned and posted
to Bomber Command in 1941. Joining 97 Sqn flying Manchesters he was
involved in the famous Augsberg daylight raid for which he received a DFC.
At the end of 1942 he joined RAF Scampton helping to convert to Lancaster
Bombers before rejoining 97 Sqn at Bourn as a Pathfinder. After a
spell at Warboys as an instructor he took command of 128 Sqn at Wyton,
flying Mosquitoes as part of the Light Night Strike Force. Staying
with this unit he finished the war having completed 87 operations. |
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Flight Lieutenant Geoffrey Perks DFC
Joining the RAF in July 1941 he trained as a pilot in the USA and was
posted to 420 Sqn as part of no 6 Group (RCAF) initially flying
Wellingtons. The unit then converted to Halifaxes and he moved
firstly to 427 Squadron and then 434 Sqn still flying this aircraft.
In November 1944 he joined OTU as an instructor on Halifaxes, converting
to Mosquitoes in January 1945. He then joined 571 Sqn as part of the
Light Night Strike Force, flying the B Mk XVI and dropping 4000lb 'cookie'
bombs over Germany. He left the RAF in 1946 but rejoined, finally
leaving in 1958 |
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Wing Commander Norman Mackie DSO DFC
Joining the RAF in 1940 he was posted in April 1941 to 83 Sqn at
Scampton flying Hampdens and Manchesters, joining OTU as an instructor on
Wellingtons in March 1942. He then rejoined 83 Sqn now at Wyton as a
Pathfinder flying Lancasters until he was shot down by German Night
Fighters in March 1943. Having been captured he escaped to
Switzerland and after a period there managed to return to Britain through
France and Spain. In May 1944 he joined 571 Sqn flying Mosquitoes
with the Light Night Strike Force taking part in many of the units
operations over Western Germany. He left the RAF in December
1967. |
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Wing Commander Christopher 'Bunny' Currant DSO DFC |
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Group Captain Dennis David CBE DFC AFC |
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Group Captain Billy Drake DSO DFC
Joining the RAF in 1936, Billy Drake flew Hurricanes in France at
the outbreak of war, seeing action during the spring of 1940, and scoring
his first victory in May. After being wounded he was swoon back in
the fray with 421 Flight and by the end of 1940 his tally had reached
4. Posted to the Western Desert in early1942, he took command of 112
Squadron flying P-40 Kittyhawks and led the squadron through a period of
great success. He later served in Malta, and then as Wing Leader of
20 Wing, 2nd TAF flying Typhoons in the lead up to the Normandy
invasion. Billy Drake scored 24.5 victories, and in addition,
another 13 aircraft destroyed on the ground. he retired from the RAF
in 1963.
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Wing Commander Paul Farnes DFM |
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Wing Commander Gordon Sinclair OBE DFC |
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Air Commodore Cyril Brown CBE AFC AE |
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Air Vice Marshal Edward Crew CB DSO DFC |
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Group Captain John Cunningham CBE DSO DFC AE DL FRAeS
The most famous Allied night fighter Ace of WWII - 20 victories
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Air Commodore John Ellacombe CB DFC*
John Ellacombe joined the RAF in 1939 and was posted to 151 Squadron in
July 1940, immediately converting to Hurricanes. On 24th August he
shot down a He111, but a week later his Hurricane was blown up in combat
and he baled out, with burns. Rejoining his squadron a few months
later, in February 1941 was posted to 253 Squadron where he took part in
the Dieppe operations. On 28th July, flying a Turbinlite Havoc, he
probably destroyed a Do217. Converting to Mosquitos, John was posted
to 487 Squadron RNZAF, and during the build up to the Normandy Invasion
and after, was involved in many ground attacks on enemy held airfields,
railways, and other 'targets of opportunity'. He completed a total
of 37 sorties on Mosquitos.
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Air Commodore E. B. 'Ted' Sismore DSO DFC AFC
On 31st January 1943, Mosquitos bombed Berlin for the first time.
Timed to coincide with a speech by Hermann Goering, three Mosquitos from
105 Squadron, led by Squadron Leader R W Reynolds and Ted Sismore,
attacked at exactly 11.00 hrs to disrupt the Reichmarshall's speech for
over an hour. Ted later navigated the final large daylight raid by
105 Squadron in May 1943, when both men led the attack on the Zeiss
Optical factory and the glassworks in Jena. Ted Sismore planned the
route for the famous Amiens prison raid, and 'master-navigated' all three
Gestapo raids in Denmark - Aarhaus, Shelhaus and Odensa. |
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Flight Lieutenant Douglas Hadland
Joining the RAF in 1941, Douglas completed his training in Canada and
qualified as a navigator, returning to the UK to spend a brief time with
the Navigation Research Flight before being posted to 162 Squadron in No.8
Pathfinder Group at Bourn, near Cambridge, flying Mosquitos. At the
end of the war he went briefly to Black Bush Airport flying operations,
dropping diplomatic mail in Oslo, Visbarden and Brussels before being
posted back to 8 group with 692 Squadron Light Night Strike Force to
prepare for the then proposed invasion of Japan. |
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Wing Commander Branse Burbridge DSO* DFC*
Posted to 85 Squadron on night-fighters in October 1941, Branse
Burbridge flew Havocs on his first tour, scoring just a single claim, but
when he returned to 85 Squadron for a second tour - this time on Mosquitos,
he was far more successful. During the period of the build up to the
invasion of Normandy, and after, together with his radar navigator, Bill
Skelton, he claimed 21 victories in a ten month spell. In June 1944
he also shot down three V-1s. With his final air victory, in January
1945, he passed the total set by John 'Cats Eyes' Cunningham to become the
highest scoring RAF night fighter Ace of the war. |
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Group Captain George H Westlake DSO DFC Flying
Hurricanes, George Westlake joined 43 Squadron at the height of the Battle
of Britain. On 29th September he moved to 213 Squadron at Tangmere,
and on 15th November shot down an Me109. In May of the following
year the squadron flew their Hurricanes off HMS Furious to Malta bound for
Egypt and was briefly attached to 80 Squadron during the Syrian campaign,
where he had some further success. Returning to 213 Squadron he took
temporary command in October 1942. In 1944 he led 239 Wing in
Italy. He finished the war with eleven victories. |
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Wing Commander Wilfred M Sizer DFC* At
the outbreak of war Bill Sizer was flying Hurricanes with 213
Squadron. The squadron flew to France in May 1940, where he scored
his first victories, before being attacked by five Me109s and shot
down. Rejoining his squadron soon after, he took part in the air
battles over Dunkirk before again being shot down and escaping back to
England. He flew throughout the Battle of Britain. In April
1941 he was posted to join 1 Squadron, and then 91 Squadron. In
April 1942 he joined 152 Squadron flying Spitfires, with whom he went to
North Africa. In January 1943 he was given command of 93 Squadron
and took part in the Sicily landings. He finished the war with 7 and
5 shared victories. |
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Squadron Leader Tom McPhee CB DFC*
Joining the RAFVR in 1938, at the outbreak of war Tom was called up and
posted to 139 Squadron as a Sergeant Pilot flying Blenheims on low level
bombing raids. He was commissioned in 1941. In August 1943 he
joined 464 Squadron flying Mosquitos, and in February 1944 took part in
'Operation Jericho' when 18 Mosquitos of 140 Wing , nd TAF, attacked the
Gestapo held prison at Amiens, liberating over 100 French Resistance
fighters, many of whom had been condemned to execution the following
morning. Flying number two on the raid he was promoted to Squadron
Leader as a result. From June 1944 he was posted to a Forward
Control Unit until the end of the war. |
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Wing Commander Bob Foster DFC |
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Warrant Officer Peter Fox |
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Wing Commander Jack Rose CMG MBE DFC
Jack Rose flew one of the last Hurricanes to leave France in
1940. He formed the new 184 Squadron in 1942, initially on
Hurricanes, later Spitfires. In late 1943 the squadron converted to
rocket firing Typhoons, and were heavily involved in the build up to
D-Day, moving to France in late 1944. He later transferred to the
Far East, finishing the war with 3 victories. |
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Flight Lieutenant Peter Hairs MBE |
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Squadron Leader Percy Morfill DFM |
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Group Captian Alan Murray DFC |
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Wing Commander Tom Neil DFC* AFC
Tom Neil joined 249 Squadron flying Hurricanes just before the Battle
of Britain. Flying from North Weald, he scored his first victory on
7th September, quickly followed by 10 others. In 1942 he served with
the squadron in Malta, gaining a further victory. After a period
commanding 41 Squadron, he flew as Liaison Officer with the US 100th
Fighter Wing, and flew with this unit during the D-Day landings. He
claimed a share in numerous German aircraft destroyed on the ground
before, and after, the invasion. In March 1945 he was posted to the
Far East.
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Wing Commander Peter Parrott DFC AFC |
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Group Captain John Peel DFC DSO |
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Squadron Leader Arthur 'Bill' Pond AFC |
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Squadron Leader Christopher Riddle |
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Captain Tommy Thompson DFC JP BOAC/BA |
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Wing Commander Geoffrey Page DSO OBE DFC |
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Squadron Leader 'Ginger' Lacey DFM |
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Group Captain Brian Kingcome DSO DFC*
Brian Kingcome flew Gladiators with 92 Squadron before the war, the
squadron converting to Spitfire MkIs in 1939. He took part in the
Battles of France and Dunkirk, before being posted as a flight commander
to 92 Squadron, scoring his first victories in June 1940. He became
acting commanding officer during the latter stages of the Battle of
Britain. During this time he and his pilots achieved the highest
success rate of any squadron in the entire Battle of Britain. After
being shot down by Me109s and wounded, he returned to active
operations. In February 1942 he was posted to command 72 Squadron,
followed by promotion to Wing Leader at Kenley. In May 1943 he was
posted to lead 244 Wing in the Mediterranean during the invasion of
Sicily. An Ace, Brian Kingcome flew Spitfires in combat continually
until the end of 1944, his tally finishing at 8 and 3 shared destroyed,
plus a score of probables and damaged.
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Wing Commander Peter V Ayerst DFC
Peter Ayerst joined the RAF in 1938, and was posted to 73 Squadron in
August 1939, flying Hurricanes. He went to France with the squadron,
scoring his first victory in April 1940. After a spell instructing,
when he shared in the destruction of a He111 with two other instructors,
he had postings with both 145 and 243 Squadrons. In July 1942 he
went to 33 Squadron, before promotion to flight commander with 238
Squadron, both postings with further combat success. After a period
in South Africa, he returned to the UK, joining 124 Squadron flying
Spitfire MkVIIs in defence of the invasion ports, where he scored his
final victory; then flew Spitfire MkIXs on bomber escorts to
Germany. He later became a Spitfire test pilot at Castle Bromwich.
Peter finished the war not only a brilliant fighter Ace, but also one of
the most highly regarded wartime instructors in the RAF. His final victory
tally stood at 5 destroyed, 1 probable, 3 damaged and 2 further destroyed
on the ground.
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Squadron Leader Ian Blair DFM
Ian Blair joined 113 Squadron in 1938 as a AC1/Armourer AG. on Hawker Hind and later Blenheim Mk 1s. He took part in the heavy fighting of the first Lybian campaign. He was forced to take control and fly the Blenheim
aircraft after his pilot was killed following an attack by an Italian Fiat CR 42. Remarkably he managed not only to evade the enemy aircraft, but fly to fly the Blenheim 350 miles back to his base where he made a
successful textbook landing. This extraordinary action earned him the award of an immediate DFM. The experience led him to train as a pilot at No 4 SFTS RAF Habbaniya, where the No 6 War Course were heavily engaged in operations to raize the siege of the base from the Iraqi Army. He was finally awarded his wings in May 1941. On return to the UK he served with 501 Squadron on combat duties on Spitfire Mk V's until injured as a result of enemy action. On return to flying duties he was posted to 602 Squadron flying MkV's and MkIX's until June 1944. In February 1944, he claimed a high altitude victory by destroying a Me.109 F at an altitude of 35,000 feet, flying a Spitfire Mk.VII
H.F.
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Squadron Leader Desmond Fopp AFC MD
Joining the RAFVR in 1938, Des Fopp was called up at the outbreak of
war, joining 17 Squadron in May 1940, and fought with them in France and
afterwards during the Battle of Britain. After several successes he
was shot down, baled out badly burned and was hospitalised.
Returning to 17 squadron in July 1941, he then joined 132 Squadron at
Peterhead. In late 1943 he went as Liaison Officer to the 8th and
9th USAAF, and in May 1944 became an Instructor.
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Flight Lieutenant Michael E Croskell
Joining the RAFVR in June 1938, Michael Croskell was called up in
September 1939 at the outbreak of war. He was posted to join 213
Squadron at Wittering in December flying Hurricanes, and took part in the
Battle of France and the operations over Dunkirk in May 1940, where he
probably destroyed a Ju87. He flew with 213 Squadron throughout the
Battle of Britain, scoring three further victories at the height of the
battle in August 1940. Commissioned in 1942, his great fighter
skills led to him spending six years as an instructor.
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Wing Commander Paddy Barthropp DFC AFC
At the outbreak of war Paddy flew obsolete Hinds, Hectors and Lysanders
in combat, but converted to Spitfires and joined 602 Squadron at Tangmere.
During the Battle of Britain he flew with some of the great aces - Douglas
Bader, Sailor Malan, and Bob Stanford Tuck. In 1941 he was a Flight
Commander with 610 Squadron. Continuing to fly Spitfires, now with
122 Squadron based at Hornchurch, he flew fighter sweeps and escort
missions. On 17th May 1942 he was shot down over St Omer. He
baled out but was captured, spending the next three years as a POW.
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Flying Officer Ken Wilkinson |
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Squadron Leader 'Ben' Bennions DFC |
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Group Captain John Bisdee OBE DFC |
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Wing Commander George W Swanwick
George Swanwick was an air-gunner on Wallaces and Hinds with 504
squadron during the 1930's. In 1938 George re-trained as a pilot,
and was promoted to Sergeant Pilot in August 1939. In May 1940 he
joined 7 BGS, and on 7th September was posted to 54 Squadron at Catterick
flying Spitfires. He then went to 41 Squadron at Hornchurch.
Commissioned in late 1941, he was posted to 222 Squadron at North Weald in
April 1942 as a flight Commander. He later served with 603 and 81
Squadrons in Malta.
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Flight Lieutenant Sir Archie Lamb KBE CMG DFC
Archie Lamb joined the RAF from the Foreign Office after the outbreak
of war. Returning from training in Southern Rhodesia, his troopship
Orinsay was torpedoed, and he spent nine days in a lifeboat. Joining
184 Squadron, flying Hurricane rocket-firing fighter-bombers, the squadron
converted to Typhoons early in 1944. Flying from Westhampnett, he
flew two missions on D-Day. He transferred to 245 Squadron in mid
1944 as a Flight Commander. After the war he returned to the Foreign
Office, becoming H.M. Ambassador to Kuwait, and to Norway. |
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Group Captain Alan Wright DFC AFC |
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Squadron Leader Cyril 'Bam' Bamberger
Scoring the first of his five victories flying Spitfires in the Battle
of Britain with 610 Squadron, in October 1940 he volunteered for
Malta. Bam flew a Hurricane off HMS Argus to the island on 17th
November, joining 261 Squadron. He shot down two Ju87s in successive
days over Grand Harbour in January 1941, before being posted to 185
Squadron, and returned to England in May. The following year he
joined 93 Squadron in Tunisia where he made further claims.
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Flying Officer Frederick Barker DFM* |
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Squadron Leader Robert Beardsley DFC |
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Squadron Leader Herbert Green MBE |
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Squadron Leader Norman Hancock DFC |
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Wing Commander Michael Heron |
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Flying Officer Clive Hilken |
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Squadron Leader Tony Iveson DFC
Tony Iveson fought in the Battle of Britain with RAF Fighter Command,
as a Sergeant pilot, joining 616 Squadron at Kenley flying Spitfires on 2
September 1940. Commissioned in 1942, Tony undertook his second tour
transferring to RAF Bomber Command, where he was selected to join the
famous 617 Squadron, flying Lancasters. He took part in most of 617
Squadron's high precision operations, including all three sorties against
the German battleship Tirpitz, and went on to become one of the most
respected pilots in the squadron. |
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Air Vice Marshal Sandy Johnstone CB DFC AE DL |
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Wing Commander Terence Kane
Terry Kane joined the RAF in July 1938, and after a short time as an
Instructor, in July 1940 was posted to 234 Squadron flying Spitfires at St
Eval, where he helped down a Ju88. On 23rd September he shot down an
Me109 during a patrol, but was in turn himself shot down moments later,
and baled out over the Channel near the French coast. Rescued from
the water by the Germans, he spent the remainder of the war as a POW.
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Squadron Leader Jocelyn G P Millard
volunteering for the RAFVR in August 1939, J G Millard was called up
for full time service the following month. Converting to Hurricanes,
he was posted to 1 Squadron at Wittering in October 1940, and shortly
after transferred to Dougla Bader's 242 Squadron at Coltishall. In
November he moved to 615 Squadron at Northolt. After the Battle of
Britain he spent time as an instructor, going to Canada. He later
became Squadron Commander of 35 SFTS.
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Air Commodore 'Mickey' Mount CBE DSO DFC |
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Wing Commander Peter Olver DFC |
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Air Commodore David Roberts CBE AFC |
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Squadron Leader Stuart Nigel Rose |
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Group Captain Desmond Sheen DFC* |
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Wing Commander Tim Vigors DFC |
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Air Commodore Paul Webb CBE DFC AE |
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Squadron Leader Geoffrey Wellum DFC |
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Air Commodore Sir Archie Winskill KCVO CBE DFC AE |
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Squadron Leader 'Buck' Casson DFC AFC |
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Flight Lieutenant Richard L Jones In
July 1940 Richard Jones was posted to 64 Squadron at Kenley, flying
Spitfires. He was involved in heavy fighting over the Channel during
the Battle of Britain, with the squadron suffering many losses during July
and August. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain, in October, he
moved to 19 Squadron flying Spitfires from Fowlmere, and was heavily
involved in the fighter sweeps taking place at that time. |
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Air Marshal Sir Peter Squire DFC AFC Air
Marshal Sir Peter Squire began his operational flying with No. 20 Squadron
flying Hunters in Singapore. He became an instructor on the Hunter
before flying Gnats as a member of the Red Arrows; later returning to
operational flying on the Harrier. In 1981 he took command of No. 1
Squadron at RAF Wittering and during the Falklands conflict, led the
Squadron into action for which he received the Distinguished Flying Cross. |
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John Farley OBE John Farley is a well
known test pilot who has flown all versions of the Harrier family.
After a time as flying instructor at Cranwell, he joined the Empire Test
Pilots School at RAE Bedford. As project test pilot on the P1127 in
1964, he started what was to become 19 years of Harrier test flying.
In his career he has flown over 80 types of aircraft and in 1990 became
the first western pilot invited to fly the Russian Mig-29. |
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Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Michael Beetham GCB
CBE DFC AFC FRAeS
Michael Beetham volunteered for the RAFVR in May 1941. After
pilot training he was commissioned, and in November 1943 posted to 50
Squadron flying Lancasters at Skellingthorpe. At this time the
bomber offensive was at its height, culminating in the Battle of
Berlin. Sir Michael and his crew made ten trips to Berlin, lost an
engine over Augsburg and took heavy damage during an attack on
Leipzig. After completing his first tour and a period of
instructing, Sir Michael started his second tour with 57 Squadron at East
Kirby, taking part in 'Operation Exodus', bringing home Prisoners of War
from Germany. After a distinguished post war career, Sir Michael
received the RAF's top job, Chief of the Air Staff, where he was deeply
involved in the Falklands War. |
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Flight Lieutenant Harry Hughes DFC DFM AE*
After joining the RAF in March 1941, Harry Hughes trained as a
Navigator. On completion of training he was posted to join 102
(Ceylon) Squadron at RAF Pocklington flying Halifaxes. Harry
completed his first tour with 102 Sqn. For his second tour Harry was
posted to join 692 Squadron at Graveley, as Navigator (B). Equipped
with Mosquito light bombers, 692 Squadron was part of the Light Night
Striking Force of N0.8 (PFF) Group, Bomber Command; famous for its fast
striking raids on Berlin using 4000lb 'cookie' bombs. |
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Flight Lieutenant John Petrie-Andrews DFC DFM
John Petrie-Andrews joined the RAF in 1940. After training as a
pilot, in January 1943 he was posted to join 102 (Ceylon) Squadron at
Pocklington for his first tour, flying Halifaxes. In February 1943
he transferred to 158 Squadron, still on Halifaxes. John the joined
35 Squadron, one of the original squadrons forming the Pathfinder
Force. Here he flew first Halifaxes before converting to Lancasters.
John Petrie-Andrews completed a total of 70 operations on heavy bombers,
including 60 with the Pathfinders. |
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Flying Officer Laurence W Baker
Laurie Baker joined 467 Sqn RAAF at Waddington in Nov 1944, flying his
first sortie in Sugar as 'Second pilot', before a further six sorties as
Captain, including Sugar's last operational sortie on 21 April 1945. |
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Flight Lieutenant Albert R T Boys DFC
Reg Boys was posted to 467 Sqn RAAF during June 1943, and navigated S
for Sugar for three different Captains, including the Squadron C/O, W/Cdr
Hay. On 7th May 1945, he navigated Sugar as the first aircraft to
bring POWs out of Germany to the UK. |
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Flight Lieutenant John A Colpus DFC
Posted to 467 Sqn at Bottesford in Sept 1943, Jack Colpus flew 4
operations on S for Sugar, including the trip to Berlin on 26 Noc 1943,
where Sugar collided with another Lancaster over the target. With
exceptional skill, Jack brought Sugar safely home. |
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Flight Lieutenant Maxwell G Johnson
Max joined 467 Sqn at Waddington in June 1944, flying S for Sugar on
his first operational sortie. On 18th July, he took evasive action
when attacked by enemy fighters, this action popping 126 rivets in Sugar's
mainplane, putting her out of action for several months. |
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Flight Lieutenant William N Kynoch DFC
Bill Kynoch commenced operations with 467 Sqn RAAF in Sept 1943.
For twice returning his aircraft under difficult circumstances he was
awarded the DFC. He flew S for Sugar on one operation on 6 April
1945, completing his tour on 18th April. |
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Warrant Officer David Morland DFM
David Morland joined 467 Sqn RAAF in Aug 1944. On 11th Sept he
was wounded when a Ju88 attacked his Lancaster, smashing his turret.
Without hydraulics he returned fire probably destroying the enemy.
Morland completed one sortie in S for Sugar on 21 Dec 1944. |
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Flying Officer Neville J Morrison
Neville Morrison was posted to 467 Squadron on Lancasters, where he
completed a full tour, including one operation on S for Sugar on 24th June
1944. Morrison immediately began a second tour, this time with 463
Sqn RAAF. |
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Flying Officer John W Nedwich DFC
Joining 467 Squadron RAAF in August 1943, Sgt Nedwich flew in S for
Sugar to Hanover on 27th Sept 1943, Sugar's first operational sortie with
the squadron. After completing 20 ops with 467 Sqn, Nedwich joined
97 Squadron, Pathfinder Force. He completed 46 combat operations. |
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Flying Officer Roy L Pegler
After joining the Australian Army, Roy transferred to the RAAF in March
1943. He retrained as a bomb aimer, and was posted to 467 Squadron
RAAF. On his first op, his Lancaster was involved in a mid-air
collision, his skipper managing to return to the UK where the crew bailed
out. Pegler went on to complete a further 30 ops, including one trip
in S for Sugar. |
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Warrant Officer Raymond Sayer DFM
Ray Sayer completed 6 ops on S for Sugar. On 8 Feb 1945 his Lanc
was attacked by a Ju88 and set on fire. Sayer managed to extinguish
the fires enabling the skipper to get the badly damaged Lanc home.
For his actions, Sayer was awarded the DFM. |
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Flying Officer Albert Wallace
After joining 467 Squadron RAAF at Waddington, Albert Wallace completed
six sorties in S for Sugar as gunner, including Sugar's last operational
trip on 23rd April 1945. |
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Air Marshal Sir John Curtiss KCB KBE
John Curtiss trained as a navigator in RAF Bomber Command. He
joined his first operational squadron - 578 Squadron, in 1944, flying
Halifax IIIs. He later flew as a Halifax navigator with 158 Squadron
at RAF Lissett. After the war Sir John held many high ranking posts
in the RAF, and was Air Commander Falklands Operations in 1982. |
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Squadron Leader E Gray Ward DFC
After joining the RAF in November 1940, Gray Ward trained as a
pilot. His first operational squadron was 50 Squadron flying
Lancasters, before he joined 57 Squadron as a Flight Commander. In
late 1944 he was selected to join 617 Squadron, and took part in the
22,000lb "Grand Slam" raids on the Bielefeld and Arnsberg
viaducts. |
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Squadron Leader 'Mac' Hamilton DFC*
After joining Coastal Command in 1943, 'Mac' converted to Lancasters,
and was posted to Bomber Command, joining 619 Squadron at Woodall Spa for
his first tour. Here he flew sorties mainly to Berlin andthe
Ruhr. For his second tour he joined Cheshire's 617 Squadron, again
at Woodall Spa, where he flew precision operations, including the raids on
the Saumur rail tunnel, the U-boat pens, V1 sites and V2 rocket bases, and
the raids against the German battleship Tirpitz. |
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Squadron Leader Reg Lewis DFC
Reg Lewis was a navigator in Bomber Command, first with XV Squadron,
and then 214 Squadron, both on Stirlings. In August 1943 he was
posted to 138 (Special Duties) Squadron based at Tempsford. Here he
flew Halifaxes, dropping agents and arms into occupied Europe. In
February 1944, after flying agent Francis Cammaerts over France, Reg was
shot down but evaded capture and made his way to and over the Pyrenees
into Spain, and home. |
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The Lord Mackie of Benshie CBE DSO DFC
George Mackie joined the RAF in February 1940, training as a Navigator
in Bomber Command. He first joined 15 Squadron in 1941 flying
Wellingtons, before going to the Middle East to join 148 Squadron.
He later served with 149 Squadron on Stirlings, and 115 Squadron on
Lancasters. Squadron Leader George Mackie completed three full tours
on heavies, the last two as aircraft Captain. |
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Squadron Leader Harry Wright DFC*
Harry Wright joined the RAF in February 1940, training as a
navigator. In August 1943 he was posted to join 35 Squadron at RAF
Graveley, part of 8 (Pathfinder) Group. Converting to Lancasters in
March 1944, Harry became Pathfinder Navigation Leader with 35
Squadron. He flew the last of his 57 operations, to Heligoland, in
the final few hours of the war, May 1945. |
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Squadron Leader Basil Stapleton DFC
Born in South Africa, Basil Stapleton joined the RAF in Jan 1939, being
posted to 603 Sqn flying Spitfires. He first saw action off
Scotland, sharing in the destruction of two bombers, before the Squadron
was posted south to Hornchurch during the height of the Battle of
Britain. By Nov 1940 his tally had risen to 6 and 2 shared victories
and 8 probables. In March 1942 he was posted to 257 Sqn as
flight commander. In August 1944 he commanded 247 Sqn flying
Typhoons, taking part in the Arnhem operations. In December 1944,
whilst attacking a train, debris hit his aircraft forcing him to land
behind enemy lines where he was taken prisoner of war. |
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Flight Lieutenant Basil 'Tatters' Tatham
'Tatters' Tatham first flew Hurricanes with 79 Squadron, and then in
1941 on Atlantic convoys with the MSFU before being torpedoed. In
May 1942 he was posted to 257 Squadron on Hurricane night fighters, before
joining 247 Squadron on Typhoons. After a brief rest period
instructing, he rejoined 247 Squadron the day before D-day, and spent the
following months destroying German tanks and other ground targets. |
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Air Commodore C D 'Kit' North Lewis DSO DFC
After joining the Army in 1939, 'Kit' North Lewis transferred to the
RAF in 1940. In Aug 1941, after pilot training, he was posted to 13
Squadron, flying Blenheims, where he took part in the first 1000 bomber
raids. After a spell with 26 Squadron, flying P-51 Mustangs, in Feb
1944 he joined 182 Squadron on Typhoons, as a Flight Commander. A
few months later he was posted to command 181 Squadron. He led this
squadron into France where it became part of 124 Typhoon Wing. In
Aug 1944 he was promoted Wing Leader 124 Wing, where he remained until the
end of the war. |
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Flight Lieutenant Roy Crane
Roy Crane joined 182 Typhoon Squadron, 124 Wing, in Aug 1943 taking
part in operations against airfields, V1 sites and power stations in
France. In April 1944 he was posted to 181 Squadron, continuing
attacks on ground targets in the build up to D-Day. On 6th June he
attacked a Panzer Division south of Caen, and in the following weeks
continued unrelenting strikes in the area. On 2nd August, whilst
attacking tanks near Falaise, Roy was hit by flak, bailed out and landed
in a Waffen SS camp. He was taken prisoner of war, having completed
71 operations. |
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Wing Commander Hector MacLean |
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Flying Officer Hugh Niven |
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Squadron Leader Pat Carden DFC AE
Joining the RAF in 1932, after qualifying as a pilot, he served as an
instructor until 1942, when he joined 15 Squadron at Mildenhall, flying
Lancasters. Volunteering for the Pathfinder Force he joined 35
Squadron at Gravely on Halifaxes, followed by 582 Squadron on Lancasters,
taking part in many bombing sorties over Normandy, including two missions
on D-Day. He finished the war having completed 66 operations |
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Wing Commander Donald M Jack AE |
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Wing Commander Rolad 'Bee' Beamont CBE DSO DFC DL
One of World War II's great characters, Bee flew Hurricanes with 87
Squadron, later leading a Tempest Wing. He had 8 victories plus a
further 32 VIs destroyed. After the war he became a highly respected
Chief Test Pilot. |
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Squadron Leader Lawrence Thorogood DFC AE
Joining 87 Squadron on June 14th 1940, Lawrence Thorogood was thrown
straight into the Battle of Britain, destroying a Ju88 on 25th
August. Commissioned in 1941 he then was posted to India and
remained in the Far East until the end of the war. |
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Captain Murray Anderson DFC*
Commissioned in the Royal Tank Regiment from RMA Woolwich in 1939,
Murray Anderson was seconded to the Royal Air Force in 1940. He flew
Spitfires with No.1 Photo Reconnaissance Unit at RAF Benson until
1943. He then joined 161 (Special Duties) Squadron flying Lysanders,
and was the most successful 'pick up' pilot for the whole of that year
even though in May 1944 he was posted to 65 Squadron 2nd Tactical Air
Force, flying Mustangs. After a rest period he was posted to 52 Sqn
at Dum Dum in May 1945. |
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Lieutenant Colonel Francis Cammaerts DSO
Born in 1916 the son of a Belgian poet Emile Cammaerts, he was a
pacifist at the beginning of the war but his views changed when his
brother was killed in the RAF, and in 1942 joined the Special Operations
Executive (SEO). Flown to France (by Hugh Verity), he was to join a
'circuit' which he soon found to be insecure. Over 15 months in the
field he hardly ever stayed in the same house for more than a night or
two. By 1944 he was the inspired leader of thousands of well trained
and armed resistance fighters in the South of France. His sabotage
teams excelled at cutting railway lines when the time was required after
D-Day. Before the Allied landings in the South of France in August
1944, he was given command of all Allied missions in SE France. His
guerilla army held open the 'Route Napoleon' from Cannes to Grenoble to
allow the Allied army to by-pass the strong enemy forces near the
lower Rhone. |
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Air Chief Marshal Sir Lewis Hodges KCB CBE DSO DFC*
Lewis Hodges flew with 49 Sqn from June 1940 until he was shot down
over occupied France in Sept 1940 and taken prisoner by the Vichy
French. He managed to escape and made his way back to England,
rejoining 49 Sqn. He took part in the attacks against the German
Channel dash operation in Feb 1942. In Nov of that year he joined
161 (Special Duties) Sqn, flying Halifaxes, Lysanders and Hudsons landing
and parachuting agents into German occupied territory. Among the
people he brought out of France were two future Presidents - Vincent
Auriol and Francois Mitterand. |
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Wing Commander Len Ratcliff DSO DFC
Len Ratcliff joined the RAFVR in early 1939 to train as a pilot.
In 1941 he completed a full tour of 30 operations in Bomber Commandwith 49
Squadron. After a rest period he was posted to 161 (Special Duties )
Sqn as Flight Commander flying agents and supplies in and out of France,
Belgium, Holland, Norway and Denmark. He then spent a period in
charge of A.I.2.C at the very centre of clandestine activities in the
whole of occupied Europe. He returned to 161 Squadron in 1943 as
Flight Commander and later Squadron commander. |
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Group Captain Hugh Verity DSO* DFC
Learning to fly in the Oxford University Air Squadron in 1938, Hugh
Verity flew Beaufighters in Coastal Command and night fighter squadrons
before volunteering to join 161 (Special Duties) Sqn. In 1943 he
commanded this squadrons Lysander flight and became the Squadron
Commander. On his 29 successful 'pick ups', of which 24 were in
Lysanders, he brought back to England a total of 93 people from the
meadows of occupied France, lit only by pocket torches. |
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Flight Lieutenant James Kyle DFM James
Kyle joined the RAF in 1941 and trained as a pilot in Dallas, Texas,
before returning home to become a member of 197 Typhoon Fighter Squadron
at Drem upon its formation. In March 1943 the Squadron moved to
Tangmere, and he became one of a precious few survivors of a full tour of
operations, being awarded the DFM in 1944. He was demobilised in
1947 as a flight commander with 80 Tempest Fighter Squadron in
Germany. He spent some years away from the service but the urge to
fly never left and he rejoined the RAF in 1951 and became a Qualified
Flying Instructor. He retired in 1974 after 30 years service. |
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Warrant Officer Douglas Oram Doug Oram
joined the RAF in 1942 and went out to America to train as a pilot.
In 1944 he joined 174 Typhoon Fighter Squadron at Westhampnett, and spent
a year on operations serving throughout occupied Europe. In 1945 he
became a Flying Instructor and left the RAF in 1946. However he
rejoined in 1947 and stayed in the service until retirement in 1967. |
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Flying Officer Frank Wheeler DFC Frank
Wheeler joined the RAF in 1941, training in England as a pilot after which
he completed a period of instructing. In January 1944 he was posted
to join 174 Typhoon Fighter Squadron at Westhampnett, his first operation
being as an escort to the Mosquitos taking part in 'Operation Jericho',
the Amiens Jailbreak. He stayed with 174 Squadron for the remainder
of the War, serving throughout occupied Europe, and in 1945, at the end of
his tour of operations, he was awarded the DFC. |
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Flight Lieutenant Sir John Atkinson KCB DFC John
Atkinson joined the RAF from Oxford University in 1938 and completed his
pilot training in England. His first operational posting was in 1940
to 234 Squadron at St Eval, Cornwall, flying Spitfires, before moving on
to 609 Squadron at Warwell, Dorchester. In 1942 he converted to
Typhoons with 609 Squadron at Duxford, and from there to Biggin Hill and
Manston, launching fighter operations over France. When his tour of
operations ended in 1943 he was awarded the DFC and went on to become a
Flying Instructor until the war was over. Released from the RAF in
1945, he went on to have a successful career in the civil service, and was
knighted in 1979. |
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Squadron Leader Rik A C Dupre Rik
Dupre joined the RAF in 1940 and on completing his [ilot training in
Canada returned to England to join 609 Typhoon Squadron at Manston.
After D-Day the squadron moved to France and continued to serve in
occupied Europe, providing close support for the Army. He stayed
with 609 for the duration of the war, and in 1945 took a permanent
commission serving mainly in the Far East. He retired from the RAF
in 1967. |
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Warrant Officer Jack Hodges DFC Jack
Hodges joined the RAF in late 1940, and after completing his pilot
training in Canada he returned to England and was then briefly sent to a
Photo Reconnaissance Unit flying Spitfires. He moved to a OTU in
Annan, Scotland on Hurricanes before finally moving to a holding unit in
Redhill, flying Typhoons. In 1944 he was posted to join 175
Squadron. Shortly after this he moved to 174 Squadron at
Westhampnett. He served on operations throughout occupied Europe
until the end of the war, being awarded the DFC in 1945 for successfully
leading a group of Typhoons against a German Armoured Division. |
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Squadron Leader L F W Stark DFC* AFC C de G
(Belg) 'Pinkie' Stark joined the RAF in 1941 and trained to be a
pilot in Canada. On his return to England he spent some time flying
Avro Ansons before being sent to a Typhoon OTU and then posted on
operations in 1943 to 609 Typhoon Fighter Squadron, based at Manston.
He served on with 609 Squadron throughout occupied Europe, eventually
taking over as the Squadron Commander and, awarded the DFC, became an Ace
as one of the most successful Typhoon pilots in aerial combat. In
February 1944 he moved to 263 Typhoon Fighter Squadron as a flight
commander, and gained a Bar to his DFC. In 1947 he completed the
Empire Test Course and was posted to Boscombe Down as a test pilot.
He awarded the AFC and C de G (Belg) |
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Tony Gaze DFC**
Australian Tony Gaze joined Bader at Tangmere in March 1941 flying with
610 Sqn, scoring several victories during the high summer of that famous
year. In 1942 he was posted to 61 Sqn and then commanded 64 Sqn.
In Sept 1943 he joined 66 Sqn but was shot down. Evading capture he
escaped back to England. In July 1944 he flew again with 610 Sqn
then 41 Sqn. In the final days of the war he flew meteor jets with
616 Sqn. Tony gaze finished the war an Ace with 11 and 3 shared
destroyed, 4 probable and one V. He was awarded the DFC with 2 bars. |
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Flight Lieutenant Henry Botterell
First World War fighter pilot with the Royal Flying Corps |
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Colonel Don Blakeslee
"The best fighter leader of World War II", 4th FG, 15.5
victories. |
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Air Commodore Al Deere
Top scoring New Zealand Ace with 22 victories, one of the RAF's finest
pilots |
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Squadron Leader Robert Dale DSO, DFC
Highly respected Canadian Wellington pilot, and Mosquito master-bomber. |
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Wing Commander Moose Fumerton DFC* AFC
One of the finest Canadian Beaufighter and Mosquito Aces, 14 victories.
Moose Fumerton flew in the Battle of Britain with 32 Sqn before joining 1
RCAF Sqn. Converting to night fighting, he flew successfully in
Egypt with 89 Sqn. In June 1942 he and his radar operator Sgt L.P.S.
Bing flew with the squadron detachment to Malta. Here they were
rapidly to become the island's top scoring night fighter team with 9
victories, Fumerton receiving the DFC and bar, and Bing the DFC and bar
and a commission. On his second tour Fumerton commanded 406 Sqn on
Mosquitoes, where he claimed the last of his 14 victories. |
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Squadron Leader Pat Bing DFC* |
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Warrant Officer Norman Jackson VC
Norman Jackson joined 106 Squadron as a flight engineer, and his 30th
operational raid earned him the Victoria Cross. While climbing out
of the target area over Schweinfurt, his Lancaster was hit by an enemy
night-fighter and the inner starboard engine set on fire. Although
injured by shrapnel he jettisoned the pilots escape hatch and climbed out
on to the wing clutching a fire extinguisher, his parachute spilling out
as he went. He succeeded in putting out the fire just as the
night-fighter made a second attack, this time forcing the crew to bale
out. Norman was swept away with his parachute starting to burn but
somehow survived the fall to spend 10 months as a POW in a German
hospital. |
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Squadron Leader Pat Cardon DFC AE
Pat Cardon joined the RAF in 1932, and qualifying as a pilot served as
an instructor at the Central Flying School at Upavon. In 1942 he was
released for operations, joining 15 Squadron at Mildenhall for his first
tour, flying Lancasters. For his second tour he volunteered for the
Pathfinders, and joined firstly 35 Squadron at Gravely on Halifaxes, and
then 582 Squadron at Little Staunton, on Lancasters. He finished the
war with 66 operations |
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Flying Officer Bill North
Flying Lancasters with 61 Squadron, in 1944 he was shot down over
Northern France. With his aircraft badly hit, he gave the order to
bale out, but as some of the crew had damaged parachutes, he elected to
stay with the aircraft and crash land. Despite being badly wounded,
he managed to land his Lancaster at night, and every crewmember walked
away - two of them evading capture and returned to England. Bill
spent the rest of the war as a POW. |
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General Leon Johnson MOH
Medal of Honor winner as Commander of 44th BG on the Ploesti Raid. |
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Wing Commander Don Kingaby DSO AFC DFM** DFC (USA)
The only RAF pilot to be awarded three DFM, 23 victories and 8
probables |
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Squadron Leader Don MacFadyen DSO DFC*
7 victory RCAF Mosquito Ace who also destroyed 5 VI rockets in the air. |
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Lieutenant Colonel Robert W McClurg
7 victory US Marine Corps Ace with VMF-214 'Black Sheep' and
Boyington's Wingman |
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Colonel Bob Morgan
The 24 year old Captain and pilot Bob Morgan skippered the Memphis
Belle on every one of her 25 combat missions over the skies of occupied
Europe and Nazi Germany. His renowned skill as a B-17 pilot, his
courage under fire, and his leadership welded his crew into one of the
best fighting units in the 8th Air Force. Bob Morgan later commanded
a squadron of B-29s in the Pacific and led the first B-29 raid on
Tokyo. He completed a total of 26 missions against Japan, and became
the most celebrated American bomber pilot of WWII. |
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Wing Commander Douglas Oxby DSO DFC DFM*
The RAF's top scoring radar operator, assisted in 22 night victories |
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Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC
Volunteering for RAF aircrew in 1940, Bill Reid learned to fly in
California, training on the Stearman, Vultee and Harvard. After
gaining his pilots wings back in England he flew Wellingtons before moving
on to Lancasters in 1943. On the night of Nov 3rd 1943, his
Lancaster suffered two severe attacks from Luftwaffe night fighters, badly
wounding Reid, killing his navigator and radio operator, and severely
damaging the aircraft. Bill flew on 200 miles to accurately bomb the
target and get his aircraft home. For this act of outstanding
courage and determination he was awarded the Victoria Cross. |
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Colonel Hub Zemke
Brilliant leader of 56th Fighter Group 'Zemkes Wolfpack', |
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Air Commodore Wilf Burnett DSO OBE DFC AFC
Canadian Wilf Burnett joined the RAF before the war and at the outbreak
of hostilities was flying Hampdens. He completed his first tour of
30 operations in September 1940, flying with 49 Sqn at Scampton. His
crew had bombed invasion barges in the Channel ports, mined enemy waters,
operated against the Ruhr, and taken part in the first raids against
Berlin. In July 1941 he was posted to 408 (Goose) Sqn RCAF, at
Syerston, where one night in January 1942, returning from Hamburg, their
Hampden crashed in extreme weather. Wilf was the sole survivor, and
he was hospitalised. Recovering he was accepted to command 138
(Special Duties) Sqn at Tempsford who were engaged in dropping agents and
supplies to the Resistance in occupied countries flying Halifaxes, later
Stirlings. |
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Group Captain Dudley Burnside DSO OBE DFC*
Dudley joined the RAF in 1935 and in 1937 went to India flying on the
North West Frontier, and Iraq. At the outbreak of war he went to
Burma and in 1942 was fortunate to escape when his airfield was overrun by
the Japanese. Escaping back to England he took command of 195
Squadron RCAF flying Wellingtons. In 1943 he became CO of 427
Squadron on Halifax's, later converting to Lancasters. In the Korean
War he commanded a Flying Boat Wing operating Sunderlands. He
retired from the RAF in 1962. |
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Squadron Leader Lawrence Curtis DFC*
Joining the RAF in 1939, he was posted as a wireless operator firstly
to 149 Squadron and then 99 Squadron on Wellingtons. He then joined
OTU on Whitleys before moving firstly to 158 Squadron, and then 617
Squadron on Lancasters, where he was Unit Signals Leader for 18
months. After bomber operations he joined Transport Command in 1944. |
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Group Captain William Farquharson DFC*
William Farquharson was a pilot with 115 Squadron and flew Lancasters
with 195 Squadron. |
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Flight Lieutenant Douglas Newham LVO DFC
Douglas Newham was a navigator with 156 and 150 Squadrons before
transferring to the Lancasters of 10 Squadron. |
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Flight Lieutenant Kenneth Wolstenholme DFC*
Ken Wolstenholme was a pilot first with 107 Sqn flying Blenheims before
joining 8 Group Pathfinders flying Mosquitos. He completed 100
ops. After the war he became a famous sports broadcaster with the
BBC |
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Flight Lieutenant Dennis Woolley DFC DFM
Pilot Denis Woolley flew Lancasters, firstly with 106 Squadron and then
later with 83 Squadron. |
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Wing Commander Roderick Learoyd VC
On the day that war was declared Rod Learoyd was on patrol flying
Hampdens with 49 Sqn. Continually involved with low level bombing,
on the night of 12th August 1940, he and four other aircraft attempted to
breach the heavily defended Dortmund - Ems canal. For his supreme
courage that night he was awarded the Victoria Cross. He later
joined 44 Sqn with the first Lancasters, and then commanded 83 Sqn. |
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Flight Lieutenant Ian MacLennan DFM
Canadian Ian Maclennan joined the RCAF in October 1940, arriving in
England in August 1941. He joined 610 Squadron in February 1942,
then 401 Sqn, where he destroyed an Fw190. Posted to Malta, he flew
his Spitfire off HMS Eagle on 9th June, and shortly after transferred to
1435 Flight. On Malta he claimed 7 victories and was awarded the DFM.
He was commissioned, becoming a flight commander in November. In
December he returned to England. In February 1944 he joined 433
Squadron as a flight commander. On 7th June he was hit by ground
fire whilst covering the Normandy beaches, crash landed, and was taken
POW. |
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Flight Lieutenant Colin Parkinson DFC
Australian Colin Parkinson joined the RAAF in 1940, arriving in England
to join 19 Squadron flyin Spitfires. In March 1942 he shot down a
Do217. In May he was posted to Malta, flying his Spitfire off HMS
Eagle on 9th June, with 602 Squadron. After scoring several
victories he flew to Gibraltar to lead in further Spitfires, taking off
from HMS Furious to the island on 17th August. Commissioned, he now
flew with 229 Squadron. On 9th October with 'Winco' Donaldson and
'Screwball' Beurling, he performed a low level beat up and acrobatics over
the presentation of the George Cross to the people of Malta. He
ended his tour of Malta in November 1942 with the DFC and 10.5 victories,
plus probably 2 more. |
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Flight Lieutenant Jack Rae DFC*
New Zealander Jack Rae joined the RNZAF in September 1940, was posted
to England and joined 485 Squadron RNZAF. He claimed 2 victories
before being posted to 603 Squadron. With this unit he flew his
Spitfire off USS Wasp to Malta, on 20th April 1942. After being shot
down over the island, he was posted to 249 Squadron. During the
following two weeks he saw much action, claiming 4 and one shared by the
end of July. Posted back to the UK, he returned to combat flying in
May 1943, rejoining 485 Squadron. He rapidly scored further
victories, but on 22nd August just after downing an Fw190, his engine
failed forcing him to land in France where he was taken POW. His
final tally stood at 12 victories and 8 probables. |
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Fl. Lt. Thomas Harvell RAF Flight
Engineer and Co Pilot Lancaster Bombers, N.514 Sq. RAF Bomber Command
based in Cambridgeshire England. He completed 11 missions over
Germany, before being shot down at Domremy (S.W. Nancy) in France.
He then joined the FFI (French resistance) at Neuf Chateau. The
mayor of the town later awarded Thomas Harvell the Medal of Honour in
recognition of his wartime services an 50 years of continued friendship
with his former resistance colleagues. He moved to another area,
Doubs, near the Swiss border and helped the resistance liberate the town
of Pierrefontaine. he was again awarded and became a "Citizen
of Honour". The Resistance Veterans Association proposed him
for the "Legion of Honour" but as Thomas Harvell was still
RAF/British he never received this award. The RAF did, however,
award him several combat medals. |
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Squadron Leader Arthur Roscoe DFC
American Art Roscoe joined the RAF in February 1941, through the
Clayton Knight Committee that was recruiting American civilian pilots for
the RAF. Arriving in England he joined 71 'Eagle' Squadron, where he
made his first claims. In June 1942 he volunteered for service on
Malta and flew off the carrier HMS Furious on 11th August to join 229
Squadron. During his final combat on 12th October he was shot down,
wounded and evacuated from the island in a Liberator, which in turn
crashed on landing in Gibraltar. On recovery, he was posted to join
165 Squadron, then 242 Squadron, and in May 1944 was given command of 232
Squadron. He had destroyed 4 enemy aircraft and probably 3 more. |
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Flight Lieutenant Allan Scott DFM
Allan Scott joined the RAF in March 1941, joining 124 Squadron in
October, where he made his first claims. Ordered to Malta, he flew
his Spitfire off HMS Eagle to the island on 21st July. Initially
posted to 603 Squadron, he went to 1435 Squadron, seeing much action -
including a victory during Operation Pedestal on 13th August. He
remained with this unit until December 1942. Whilst on Malta he was
credited with at least 5 destroyed and a further 2 probables, and received
the DFM. Returnong to the UK he was commissioned in January
1943. In September he was posted to join 122 Squadron. His
final tally was 6 victories. |
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Commander Mike Crosley DSC* Royal Navy
Fleet Air Arm Ace Mike Crosley joined the carrier HMS Eagle in late
1941, one of four FAA pilots flying Sea Hurricanes in defence of the Malta
convoys, scoring 2 victories. In August 1942, during Operation
Pedestal, he was lucky to escape with his life after the carrier was
torpedoed and sunk by U73. She capsized within 7 minutes. He
later joined HMS Biter flying Sea Hurricanes in Operation Torch, and
Seafires during D-Day. Appointed CO of 880 Squadron FAA, he finished
the war in the Far East, with 5.5 victories. |
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Flight Lieutenant Merv Shipard DFC*
In August 1941 Australian Merv Shipard was posted to 68 Sqn, along with
his radar operator Douggie Oxby (later to become the RAF's top scoring
radar operator, assisting in 22 kills), here they scored their first
victory. In early 1942 they were posted to Egypt to join 89 Sqn,
before being sent to Malta on 22nd June, where they quickly scored six
confirmed kills, and probably one more. They the claimed 6 kills in
North Africa. Merv Shipard was posted back to Australia, having
achieved 13 confirmed victories. |
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Flight Lieutenant James Pickering AFC
Jim Pickering joined the RAFVR in 1937, and was attached to 769 Sqn
FAA, then 804 Sqn FAA. In June 1940 he returned to the RAF and flew
Spitfires with 64 Sqn during the Battle of Britain. With 418 Flight
Jim flew Hurricanes to Malta from HMS Argus on 2nd August 1940. This
flight was to reinforce Malta's handful of outdated Gladiators and few
surviving Hurricanes, and on 16th August was amalgamated to become 261
Squadron. With this unit Jim flew Hurricanes and at least five
operations in the legendary Gladiators, which have been immortalised as
Faith, Hope, and Charity. In April 1941 Jim was posted, first to
Egypt, then 80 Squadron in October 1942, and 145 Squadron in
December. He returned to the UK in 1943. |
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Flight Lieutenant Charles Palliser DFC
Joining the RAFVR in 1939, Charles Palliser joined 17 Squadron in
August 1940 during the Battle of Britain, moving to 43 Sqn and then 249
Sqn on 14th September. the following day he made the first of 8
claims, before being transferred to Malta with this unit. He flew his
Hurricane to Malta off HMS Ark Royal on 21st May 194`. Here he made
5 further claims, and on 27th November flew Gladiator 'Faith' on a met
flight. In January 1942 he was posted to 605 Squadron as flight
commander. He left the island in February 1942 as one of the
island's longest serving pilots. |
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Squadron Leader Brian Hanafin DFC
Joining 105 Squadron flying Blenheims, in July 1941 'Titch' Hanafin was
posted to Malta, under the command of Hughie Edwards VC. They
carried out many low level shipping strikes in an attempt to halt supplies
to Rommel in North Africa. In November 1942 he joined 487 sqn RNZAF,
carrying out attacks on V-1 sites. On 18th February 1944 he led the
second flight of 487 Sqn assigned to attack the Amiens Prison, and in
October piloted the F.P.U. Mosquito on the Aarhus Gestapo raid in Denmark. |
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Squadron Leader Keith Lawrence DFC
Seeing action during the Battle of Britain, on 26th November he was
shot down over the sea. Recovering from his injuries he was posted
to Malta in January 1942 joining 185 Sqn, flying Hurricanes. During
the heavy fighting that spring he destroyed or damaged 7 enemy
aircraft. The Squadron converted to Spitfires, and he was made
commanding officer, returning to England in August. he returned to
combat in February 1945 as CO of 124 Squadron. His tally stood at 5
victories and 9 damaged. |
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Lieutenant Leslie 'Bill' Bailey RN
HMS Victorious - 825 Squadron FAA Observer |
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Lieutenant Commander John William 'Jock' Moffat RN
HMS Ark Royal - 815 Squadron FAA Pilot '5C' |
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Rear Admiral Philip David 'Percy' Glick CBE OBE DSC
HMS Victorious - 825 Squadron FAA. Pilot 'F' |
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Commander Patrick Bernard 'Pat' Jackson RN
HMS Victorious - 825 Squadron FAA. Pilot 'H' |
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Flight Lieutenant James Bell DFC
Joining the RAF as a pilot in 1941, Jim Bell flew 32 operations with
576 Sqn, 31 of these were done in Lancaster ED888, the aircraft that flew
140 operations, more than any other in Bomber Command. His first op
as skipper on ED888 was on its one hundredth trip. |
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Squadron Leader Bob Cowper DFC*
Joining 153 Sqn flying Defiants, changing to Beaufighters. In
1943 he flew Beaufighters in Malta. With 89 Sqn he crashed in
Tunisia, having to walk home 65 miles through the Sahara Desert.
Went from 89 Sqn to 108 Sqn and then as an instructor teaching night
flying. Joined 456 Sqn RAAF before D-Day, finishing the war on
Intruder missions and 6 air victories. He became acting CO of 456
Sqn. |
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Flight Lieutenant W R Cundy DFC DFM MID
Ron Cundy commenced flying with 135 Sqn before being posted to the
Middle East with 260 Sqn flying Hurricanes and later Kittyhawks.
Returning back to Australia he flew Spitfires in defence of Darwin with
452 Sqn RAAF. In North Africa he survived an encounter with
Marseille, and ended the war with 5 confirmed victories. |
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Flight Lieutenant Allan Davies MID
Joined RAAF in October 1940, served in Iraq and Egypt on Belnheims,
then Baltimores, before being posted back to Australia in June 1944.
He flew Beauforts and Mosquitoes at 5 OTU. then posted to 97 Sqn at
Coomalie Creek NT completing 17 PRU missions over Borneo. His
aircraft PR Mosquito Mk XVI A52-600 is being restored to flying condition
by the RAAF at Richmond Airbase outside Sydney. |
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Wing Commander Arthur Doubleday DSO DFC MID
Flying Wellingtons then Lancasters on his 1st tour, Arthur Doubleday
began his second tour on Lancasters at Waddington with 467 Sqn RAAF. From
April 1944 he commanded 61 Sqn RAF Lancasters. He finished the war
as Chief Instructor 75 OTU. |
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Group Captain Sir Hugh Dundas CBE DSO DFC DI
'Cocky' Dundas flew Spitfires with 616 Sqn during some of the heaviest
air fighting of the Battle of Britain. With several victories to his
name he was shot down on August 22nd and wounded. Later this
distinguished pilot flew in Douglas Bader's famous Tangmere Wing, and
subsequently commanded successively Typhoon and Spitfire Wings. |
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Flight Lieutenant Jack Dundas DFC
Jack Dundas joined 424 (Tiger) Sqn No 6 Group RCAF on 25th May
1944. He flew on D-Day 5th/6th June and ended a relatively fast tour
on the Halifax flying two missions on the same day over Duisberg, 14th
October 1944. |
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Lieutenant General Chester Hull CMM DFC CD
Joining the RCAF, Chester Hull was posted overseas in 1943.
Joining the 420 (Snowy Owl) Sqn, No6 Group RCAF, he flew the Halifax
against targets such as the V weapon sites. He became Sqn Commander
of 428 (Ghost) Sqn RCAF, completing his tour on 30th December 1944.
he retired in 1974 as Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff. |
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Wing Commander Rollo Kingsford Smith DSO DFC AM
Rollo Kingsford Smith flew in the Pacific escorting the 1st AIF convoys
to leave Australia. Posted to Europe he commanded 467 and 463
Lancaster Sqns RAAF, Bomber Command, also 627 Pathfinder Mosquito Sqn
becoming Chief Instructor. Commanded RAAF contingent to victory
celebration in 1946. |
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Wing Commander Laddie Lucas CBE DSO DFC
Posted to Malta in early 1942, Laddie Lucas commanded 242 Sqn at the
height of the island battle flying Spitfire Vbs. In 1943 he
commanded 616 Sqn and later the fighter wing at Coltishall. For the
last six months of the war he led 613 Sqn Mosquitoes in support of the
advancing Allied armies. |
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Group Captain Hamish Mahaddie DSO DFC
Joining the RAF in 1928, Hamish Mahaddie took part in the first bombing
mission of World War II. He later joined 7 Sqn as skipper of a
Stirling, completing 50 missions by 1942. For the rest of the war he
spent personally recruiting over 17,000 of the best aircrew for the
Pathfinder Force. |
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Squadron Leader W C Pierce DFC
Trained in the Commonwealth Air Training Plan, Wib Pierce was posted
overseas in 1943. He joined the RCAF 433 (Porcupine) Sqn No6 Group
RCAF, where he flew the Halifax Mk3 on almost all of his 36 operations
over Europe. He returned home on VE Day, 1945. |
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Flight Officer Stephen J Puskas DFC
Stephen Puskas joined 429 (Bison) Sqn No6 Group RCAF in February
1944. He completed 40 operations over Europe on the Halifax by
August 1944. surviving a ditch in the North Sea, he went on to
become an instructor at Training command, Ossington. |
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Flight Lieutenant Fred Watts DFC
Fred Watts joined the RAF in 1940, and qualifying as a pilot was posted
to 630 Squadron in 1943 flying Lancasters out of East Kirby. He
joined 617 Squadron in 1944 and took part in many of the precision
operations that the Squadron was renowned for, including raids on V1
sites, V2 rocket bases, and all three attacks on the Tirpitz. |
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Squadron Leader E A Wass AE |
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Flying Officer C B R Fish |
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Warrant Officer B Burnett |
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Flight Lieutenant J Castagnola DSO DFC |
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Warrant Officer A W Cherrington |
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Flight Lieutenant D Cooper |
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Squadron Leader L S 'Benny' Goodman |
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Flight Lieutenant S V Grimes |
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Flight Lieutenant F E Howkins |
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Warrant Officer H Johnson DFM |
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Flying Officer A K Johnstone |
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Flying Officer B F Kent DFC |
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Flying Officer A J Lammas |
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Wing Commander G Mackie |
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Flight Lieutenant A M McKie |
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Warrant Officer J D Phillips |
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Flight Lieutenant H J Riding |
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Flying Officer J Soilleux |
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Warrant Officer F L Tilley |
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Squadron Leader Norman Scrivener DSO DFC
One of the top RAF navigators of the war, Norman Scrivener first flew
with the 75 (New Zealand) Sqn before joining Guy Gibson in 106 Sqn.
In 1942 he joined 83 Sqn Pathfinder Force as navigator to the Squadron
Commander John Searby. |
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Group Captain J B Tait DSO*** DFC* ADC
Commissioned in 1936, J B Tait led an inspired career in Bomber Command
throughout World War II. He is best remembered for his attacks
against the Tirpitz on 12th November 1944. By the end of the war he
had flown over 100 operational sorties. |
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Warrant Officer M 'Ben' Brennan DFM AFM
'Ben' Brennan volunteered for the RAF in 1941, qualifying as a Flight
Engineer in early 1943. Converting to Lancasters, he was posted to
join 619 Squadron at Woodall Spa. In late 1943 he went to 83
Squadron at Wyton, as part of the Lancaster Pathfinder Force, before
joining No 5 Group at Coningsby. He flew a total of 80 operations
during the war. |
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Squadron Leader John C Turnbull CM DFC BSP
In 1943 John Turnbull joined 419 (Moose) Sqn No 6 Group RCAF where he
flew against Berlin, Manheim and Munchen-Gladbach. Later he joined 424
)Tiger) Sqn RCAF where on 15th February he flew against Berlin in one of
the biggest raids of the war. His 34th and last mission was on 11th
September 1944. |
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Flight Lieutenant W E 'Jerry' Bateman DFC |
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Group Captain Leonard Cheshire VC OM DSO** DFC*
One of the most courageous and determined bomber leaders of World War
II, Leonard Cheshire flew four operational tours, starting in June 1940
with 102 Squadron. In July 1943 he took command of 617
Squadron. During this time he led the squadron personally on every
occasion. In September he was awarded the Victoria Cross for four
and a half years of sustained bravery during a total of 100 operations,
leading his crews with careful planning, brilliant execution and contempt
for danger, which gained him a reputation second to none in Bomber
Command. |
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Flying Officer Hilary M Bayliss DFC |
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Flight Lieutenant Phillip J Coffey DFC DFM |
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Flight Lieutenant John R Gardner DFC |
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Flight Lieutenant James Castgnola DSO DFC
Joining th RAF in 1941, James Castgnola graduated as a pilot after
training in America. Returning to England he joined 51 Squadron in
early 1943 flying from Scampton and East Kirby. In 1944 he was
elected for 617 Squadron and took part in many of the Squadrons successes,
including attacks on U-boat pens, and all three raids against the Tirpitz. |
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Flight Lieutenant R Gordon Goodwin DSO DFM |
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Flying Officer Lawrence W Woods DFC |
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Warrant Officer Bill Wilcox DFM
Bill was a Wireless Operator with 466 Squadron on Wellingtons, before
being posted to 640 Squadron on Halifaxes. In 1943 he joined 35
Squadron, part of the Pathfinder Force, on Lancasters. He remained
with this unit until the end of the war, completing nearly 60 operations. |
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Sub Lieut (A) Stanley T Brand RNVR. Although
in a reserved occupation volunteered on his 18th birthday to train as
pilot in the Fleet Air Arm. He flew open cockpit biplane Swordfish
aircraft from Merchant Aircraft Carriers called "Macships".
These were 8000 ton grain ships or oil tankers fitted with a flight deck,
carrying their usual cargo and manned by a Merchant Navy Master and
crew. They sailed in convoy back and forth across the North Atlantic
in all the extreme weather conditions experiened on that ocean. The
oil tankers lacked a hangar, so maintenance was carried out on open deck
exposing the aircraft, ground crew and aircrew to the fury of the sea, ice
and gales. By keeping U-boats submerged instead of allowing them
free range on the surface, in 24 months only two merchant ships were sunk
by the enemy in convoys protected by Macships. This was in spite of
there being greater numbers and more efficient U-boats at sea in this
period than at the time of our greatest losses in the Battle of the
Atlantic. |
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Lt Cdr Edgar Lee DSO Joined the Royal
Navy in May 1940, two days before his nineteenth birthday and after
initial training began a flying course in Trinidad in September
1940. He qualified as Observer in April 1941 and was commissioned as
Midshipman (A) RNVR. Promoted to Sub-Lieutenant (A) RNVR at the age
of 20 in May 1941 and appointed to 825 Squadron in HMS Ark Royal in June
1941, flying operationally with 825 Squadron in Swordfish TBR until the
Ark Royal was sunk in November 1941. Edgar returned to England and
the squadron reformed at Lee-on-Solent - again in Swordfish in late
December 1941, still under the command of Lt Commander E Esmonde DSO,
RM. He took part in the Channel attack on the Scharnhorst and
Gneisenau on 12th February 1942. All the aircraft were shot down,
with only five survivors; Edgar and his pilot were rescued from a dingy by
MTB. He joined the new 825 Squadron in March 1942 and flew in that
squadron until July 1942, then sent for re-posting to RNAS St Merryn on
Flying Control duties. At the end of February 1943, Edgar was
seconded to 106 Squadron RAF Bomber Command, flying in Lancaster, under
the command of Wing Commander Guy Gibson, DSO DFC RAF. Six Naval
Observers were seconded to 5 Group Bomber Command, three were lost and
three returned to naval duties at the end of July 1943. Edgar was
promoted to Lieutnant (A) RNVR in November 1943. Instructing in
Canada, August 1943 to November 1944 and returned to England to qualify as
a Signals Officer in August 1945. From Staff Signals Officer to Rear
Admiral reserve Aircraft from September 1945 until demob in July
1947. Edgar rejoined the reserve in 1956 and was promoted to Lt Cdr
RNR in November 1961 serving in most NATO and National exercises until
1981 and as Acting Commander RNR in exercises from 1969 until retirement
at 60 in 1981. |
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Lieut (A) N C Gillis RNVR. Volunteered
for training as a pilot in the Fleet Air Arm in 1940. After training
he was posted to join HMS Indomitable and sent to the Far East. The
posting did not materialise and after some months in Sri Lanka (then
Ceylon) and Nairobi, Kenya, joined 810 Squadron in HMS Illustrious.
810 was a Swordfish squadron and remained so until HMS Illustrious
returned to UK. The squadron then reformed with Barracuda aircraft and
rejoined the Illustrious. After a short spell with the Home Fleet
the Illustrious was despatched to serve with the Mediterranean Fleet,
subsequently returning to the Home Fleet. 810 Squadron served in the
ship during this time and was retained in the ship when she retuned to the
Eastern Fleet and was actively engaged in the Burma campaign. During
joint operations with the US carrier Saratoga, Lt Gillis was mentioned in
Despatches during the operation at Sabang in Malaysia. Having
overspent his time in an operational squadron he was returned to UK where
he served as Dive-Bombing Instructor at RNAS Crail, then converted onto
twin-engine aircraft and flew in a Mosquito squadron until demobilised in
1946. |
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Flt Lt Phil Ainley DFC Accepted
for aircrew training in February 1942 at the age of 17 and a half
years. He was selected for pilot training and was sent to the United
States Naval Aviation base in Pensacola. After gaining his United
States Navy wings on completion of his Catalina flying boat course, he was
commissioned and returned to the UK. Following retraining on land
planes, he eventually joined No.57 Lancaster Squadron in May 1944.
the squadron was heavily engaged in attacking both French flying bomb
sites, the build up to D Day and German industrial targets. One
sortie to Konigsberg necessitated flying for 11 hours 10 minutes, whilst
another was to drop mines in the Stettin canal from 250 feet. For
this last sortie Flt Lt Ainley was awarded an immediate DFC. He
completed his operation tour of 33 sorties in October 1944, having flown
all this time with the same crew with the exception of a replacement
flight engineer. On completing a course at the Bomber Command
Instructors School, he became a flying instructor in Bomber Command. |
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Warrant Offier Ron Legg Joined the RAF
at Lord Cricket on 12th July 1943. Prior to that he was an
engineering apprentice with a well known Bristol company. He was
called to the Aircrew Selection Board at Oxford and chose to become a
Flight Engineer and following a minor operation on his nose, he went to
Lords Cricket Ground. After three weeks initial training in London,
he went to Torquay and then to St Athans for the six months training as a
Flight Engineer. He passed out in March 1944 having never flown in
an aeroplane. When on his first leave, friends would say
"What's it like up there?" he was embarrassed to admit that he
had not yet flown. After his leave, he was posted to Scampton where
he met the lads that had been crewed up at OTU and were destined for the
Lancaster. His next posting was to Winthorpe, 1661 Heavy Conversion
Unit. The aircraft was the Stirling and he flew with Sgt Anscombe
for a full course; this was mainly to gain air experience. He was
then crewed up with F/L Oldacre and did the same course again as the
F/E. An experienced F/E flew with them until he was satisfied that
they were competent. The next posting was with his crew to Syerston
for a conversion on the Lancaster and then to 9 Squadron, Bardney where
they did a total of about 12 hours on training flights. The pilot
had to do one operation as a 2nd pilot, on that trip he was shot down but
he baled out and evaded capture. They then returned to another HCU
1654 Wigsley, once again on the Stirling and another pilot W/O Ross.
From there the course was completed and they went through the Lancaster
finishing course once again, then to 57 Squadron East Kirkby for
operational flying. the first op was a daylight raid on
Wilhelmshaven 5th October 1944 and the last on 7th April 1945. His
total was 31 operations. He was then posted to a holding unit for
redundant aircrew and never flew again with the RAF. |
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Warrant Officer Roy Last Was called up
early in 1943 upon reaching his eighteenth birthday. He trained at 7
AGS Stormydown and crewed up at Wing OTU. He started ops at 101
Squadron, Ludford Magna on 18th April 1944 on Aachen and was selected for
Pathfinders after six ops with 101 Squadron. He completed 30 ops
with 582 Squadron at Little Staughton, carrying out several master bomber
raids. He was wounded by flak in September 1944 and returned to the
Squadron. He rejoined his skipper and completed another ten ops
before being posted to PFTU as a gunnery instructor. |
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Flying Officer Fred Osborne Joined the
RAF in 1941 for pilot training and after going 'solo' (Tiger Moths) at
Fair Oaks, Surrey, was posted to the USA Detroit then Pensacola Naval Air
Station, Florida. He spent an enjoyable two or three months at
Pensacola but was devastated at being scrubbed and remustered to Observer
course in Canada; his offer to be a glider pilot was refused. He
eventually served as Bomb Aimer with Bob Sexton's (Australian) crew and
served on 101 Squadron and 7 Squadron PFF. His tour and ops flying
ended after a mid-air collision whilst returning from an op on
Leipzig. He cannot recall the actual crash but owes his life to the
late T Shaw who rescued him from the burning aircraft. |
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Flt Sgt Jeff Palmer Volunteered for
aircrew duties at the age of 20 in 1941. He later trained as Nav/BA
in South Africa. After further training he joined 195 and 9
Squadrons and took part in ops over Germany. Towards the end of the
war he took part in Operation Manna over Holland. After the end of
the war he flew to India with 9 Sqn and took part in victory
demonstrations. He was demobilised in 1946. |
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Warrant Officer Don Say DFC Joined the
RAFVR in March 1939 and was sent for Aircrew training to Calgary and
Hamilton in Canada in 1941. He qualified as Observer (armaments)
aimer and served first on Vickers Wellingtons with 466 Sqdn (Aus)
completing 20 operations before moving on to 196 Sqn for a further ten
operations over France and Germany on Stirlings. After six months as
Instructor, his second tour of 23 operations in Lancasters was with 514
Sqn. The picture evoked memories of a daylight operation on oil
refineries at Bordeaux on 4th August 1944. Crossing the Cornish
coast on return at very low level, everyone reported nude sunbathers
running for cover, as 300 Lancasters roared overhead. His total war
service was six and a half years between 1939 and 1945, completing two
operational tours. He was awarded the DFC in 1944. |
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Flt Lt Jack Stidard AE Joined the RAF
in 1942 and trained as a navigator at No 1 CNS, Rivers, Canada. He
eventually joined 90 Squadron at Tuddenham in early 1945 and was still in
the early stages of his tour when the European war was ended. He
felt privileged to take part in four Operation Manna ops in late April /
early May, when food was dropped to the starving Dutch, but he did not
appreciate how desperate the situation was until post war visits to
Holland with the Manna Association. Released from the RAF in 1946,
he served in the RAFVR for 14 years in the Intelligence branch and was
also OC of an ATC Squadron. |
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Flt Lt Robert Stone, Croix de Guerre Volunteered
for flying duties in 1941 and was trained as a pilot in Canada. On
returning to the UK he trained on Blenheims and was posted to North Africa
early in 1943. He was invalided home after a short period, having
suffered a rare tropical disease and was posted to Bomber Command and
trained on Wellingtons. He was subsequently posted to 550 Squadron,
No1 Group, stationed at North Killingholme in Lincolnshire, flying
Lancasters. After completing 29 operations he was grounded (having
developed a duodenal ulcer) and was discharged from the RAF shortly
afterwards. He was subsequently awarded the Croix de Guerre. |
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Flt Lt B S Turner DFC Volunteered for
the RAF in 1940 and trained as a Heavy Bomber pilot flying Tiger Moths,
Airspeed Oxfords and Wellingtons at Hatfield, South Cerney and Pershore
respectively. His first operational posting was to a grass field
aerodrome at Feltwell where he flew Wellingtons with 75 NZ Sqn.
After a tour of 37 trips mainly over Germany he then spent two and a half
years as "taxi driver" with various navigation training flights
and some two years later was posted to 61 Sqn at Skellingforth for a
second tour of ops flying Lancasters - flying 'N' for Nan on her 100th
trip. After 21 ops he went to T.R.E. Defford as an experimental
pilot. At that time the Air Force was preparing Tiger Force for the
invasion of Japan, but because of the atomic bomb being dropped the
invasion did not take place. Flying at Defford was with radar 'boffins'
testing their various offensive and defensive radar equipment in about ten
different types of aircraft. In 1946 Fly Lt Turner left the Air
Force. |
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Warrant Officer Bernard Warren Joined
the RAF on 25th January 1943 and qualified as an Air Gunner from No7 AGS
Stormey Down in July 1943. After ITW he was posted to 28 OTU in
August where he crewed up as a Rear Gunner. The crew then moved to
No 1662 Conversion Unit at Blyton until they were posted to 103 Sqn - 1
Group - Elsham Wolds. His first op as a spare Mid-upper Gunner was
to Augsberg on 25th February 1944. On the same op his pilot went
with another crew and failed to return. With a new pilot they
commenced ops and had completed seven when they were shot down and baled
out over Dusseldorf on 22nd April 1944. He spent the next 12 months
in POW camps and left the RAF in August 1946. |
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Sergeant Idris 'Taff' Arndell Volunteered
for aircrew at age 17 and was called up just before his eighteenth
birthday for Wireless Operator and air gunnery training. Later
joined No.101 Squadron serving with Rusty Waughman and sharing in at least
two near fatal mid-air incidents. Idris went on to fly with Wg Cdr
Alexander on the last of the Battle of Berlin missions, completing his
tour on 4th June 1944. He later returned to operational duties,
including the Manna relief drops and the last raid over Bertesgarten. |
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Squadron Leader Alexander 'Alec' Cowan Joined
the RAF in 1941 and qualified as a navigator in December 1942 after
training in the USA and Canada. He joined Rusty Waughman's crew in
July 1943 and completed his tour of operations with him on No.101 Squadron
in June 1944. A subsequent posting to Transport Command led to many
years spent flying around the world. He retired from the RAF in 1977
after a service career spent mostly on flying, examining and instructional
duties. |
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Sergeant E H Ted Manners Volunteered
for aircrew duties in the RAF in November 1942 and trained as an Air
Gunner in the Isle of Man. He volunteered for Special Duties whilst
at 14 OTU and joined 101 Squadron in November 1942 completing a tour of 30
operations with P/O Waughman and crew on 31st May 1944, aged 19. He
was commissioned on leaving the squadron and after a period as a Gunnery
Instructor he joineda new crew as an Air Gunner and was destined to join
Tiger Force in the Far East when the war ended. With the cessation
of hostilities he transferred to the Intelligence Branch and served in
Egypt, Italy ad Austria. He was demobbed in 1947. |
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Warrant Officer J Ormerod DFM Joined up
on 14th August 1942 as a mechanic. He became Flight Engineer and
flew with Sgt Zanchi of 101 Sqn, completing two trips with him, before
going on leave. On returning from leave, he found out that his crew
were missing on a Berlin op, so he became a spare engineer. He flew
eight trips on Berlin with six different pilots and then joined Rusty
Waughman's crew and finished his tour with them. When the war was
over Ormerod flew on York A/C from Lyneham RAF 511 Sqd to the Far
East until September 1946. |
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Flt Lt Russell 'Rusty' Waughman DFC AFC Volunteered
for the RAF in 1941. After training in Canada, he qualified as a
heavy bomber pilot. In November 1943 he was posted to No.101
(Special Duties) Squadron at Ludford Magna. He completed a tour of
operations, which began during the Battle of Berlin, where they did
several operations. Surviving a mid-air collision, only to write the
aircraft off on landing, Rusty and his crew on a subsequent flight had a
miraculous escape when their aircraft was blown upside down, over the
target, at Mailly-le-Camp; they also survived the Nuremberg raid on 30th
March 1944, when 97 aircraft were lost - including about one quarter of
101 Sqn strength that night. |
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Flt. Lt. Ronald Homes DFC
Joined the RAF in March 1942 and after initial training, went to
Terrell, Texas, USA for his flying training, where he gained his wings in
May 1943. He returned to the UK and joined the Special Operations No. 101
Sqdn. in May 1944, going on to complete 32 Ops. over Europe. After his
bombing tour he converted onto Dakotas, joined No. 238 Sqdn. and flew out
to India and Burma, then on to Australia and the South Pacific. After the
Japanese surrender he joined 1315 Flight and flew up to Japan with the
occupation forces. |
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Richard
Todd OBE |
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Harold
Roddis |
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Jim
Brookbank |
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Ted
Cachart |
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J.
Bain. DFC AE WOP/AG |
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Geoff
Brunton |
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Jim
Inward DFC Flt. Eng. |
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Jim
Auton MBE |
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Peter
Bond |
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Miss.
Lettice Curtis
J After a brief course on
a Blenheim I was cleared to fly without any further training, twin-engine
bombers up to the Wellington. In November 1943 I was sent on a Halifax
course, which due to unserviceability and bad weather closed, restarting
in February 1943 at Pocklington where I was cleared for ferrying Halifaxes.
After that without further training, I ferried Lancasters and over 100
Stirlings. In November 1945 I ferried 14 Liberators. |
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W/O J W Hill
Joined 196 Squadron
on his 18th birthday, 25th November 1939, having cycled ten miles to the
nearest recruiting office, hoping to enlist as an air gunner. However
there were no vacancies and they eventually contacted him to suggest
becoming a ground gunner. After
square bashing on Blackpool promenade, he found himself guarding West
Raynham aerodrome in Norfolk, where they were regularly strafed by German
aeroplanes, flying extremely low. He then decided he would like to get his
own back and volunteered for aircrew, this time as a pilot.
After ACRC, Lords
cricket ground, then ITW Scarborough, he found himself crossing the
Atlantic in a convoy. There were numerous ships, containing budding
aircrews, evacuated children and Italian prisoners of war. The fact that
he had to sling his hammock at the very front of the ship, below the
waterline, did nothing to boost his confidence, but they did have a number
of destroyers for protection. Eventually, they docked at New York and then
trans-shipped by rail to Moncton, New Brunswick, the holding terminal.
His first experience of
flying was at 32 EFTS Bowden, Alberta, where he flew Stearmans. He then
moved on to Weyburn, Saskatchewan, where he obtained his wings, flying
Harvards. Then
it was back to England, this time travelling solo on a fast liner. He flew
Tiger Moths at Banff, Scotland, then moved to twin-engine Oxfords,
followed by Wellingtons. This was where he crewed up – he did one
bombing raid on Wellingtons. Next
he moved to 1665 Heavy Conversion Unit at Woolfox Lodge, flying Stirlings,
then joined 196 Squadron on 5th November 1943. At the time of joining the
Squadron, Stirlings were taken off bombing, and joined 38 group, assisting
glider pilots with circuits and bumps, interspersed
with operations to France, dropping supplies to the maquis. These trips
were done at low level on moonlit nights, the theory being that they would
be too low for both fighters and ground gunners to get at them. The
biggest problem seemed to be avoiding high ground. On
the night of 5th June, D-Day minus one, he dropped paratroopers near Caen,
close to the now famous Pegasus Bridge. Then on D-Day itself, he towed a
heavy Horsa glider to the Caen beachhead. During June he dropped more
containers in the area. In
September he made various trips to Arnhem. On one trip, due to fog over
the North Sea, his glider became detached, finishing up in the sea.
Luckily he later learnt the occupants were picked up by Air-Sea Rescue.
These trips were done at a very low level, making them sitting ducks for
the ground gunners. Aircraft losses were very severe: on one day, less
than half the squadron got back to base, although some put down at other
aerodromes. On one day, in addition to the gunners, there were German
fighters overhead. He would have to take the decision to dive to the deck,
lifting over the high-tension cables; the aeroplane escaped relatively
lightly, with not much damage. He left the Squadron on completion of
his tour in 38 group, on 6th June 1945. He then went back to 1665 HCU,
this time as an instructor. Apart from a course on Oxfords at 7 FIS, he
finished flying on 25th September 1945 and was demobbed on 27th March
1946, having completed a total of 1,021 hours flying. |
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Captain
Alan William Frank Sutton CBE DSC* RN
Joined the navy as a Special Entry Cadet in 1930 and trained for one year in HMS Erebus, Devonport and then served in Battle Cruisers, Cruisers and Destroyers, before specialising as Naval Air Observer in 1937. He served in Swordfish Squadrons in Glorious and Illustrious and took part in the raid on Taranto, Italy on 11th November 1940 being in the leading aircraft of the last sub-flight of Torpedo attack aircraft, piloted by Lieut FMA Torrens- Spence. Their target was the fine modern battleship Littorio and Captain Sutton was awarded the DSC for this action. On 10th January 1941, Illustrious was badly damaged by German dive-bombers and went to the United States for repairs. Her aircrew remained ashore in Egypt and after a time Captain Sutton became the Senior Observer of 815 Squadron, operating from Greece against Italian shipping in the Adriatic in March and April 1941. The Germans invaded Greece in April 1941 and Alan was moved to Crete and served at the airfield at Maleme, Crete was in turn invaded by the Germans and Maleme was captured by airborne forces on 20th and 21st May when Alan found himself the Senior surviving officer from the airfield and formed a unit of Naval and RAF personnel who fought on the left flank of the New Zealand Brigade which was trying to retake the airfield. They were defeated and Alan escaped with a group of British, New Zealand and Australian personnel over the White Mountains to the south coast. Alan reached Sphakia where the defeated allied forces were being evacuated by the navy and became the beachmaster for the evacuation. He was awarded a Bar to the DSC he had received for Taranto for his actions in Crete. He was also twice mentioned in dispatches for operations in the Mediterranean in 1940/41. Subsequent to these operations in the Med, Alan was Staff Officer (Air) to the Admiral commanding the Eastern task force (Algiers) in operation Torch, the taking of Algeria and Morocco from the Vichy French in 1942. Then he was Air Staff Officer of the Escort Carrier Ravager in the Battle of the Atlantic, and finished the war in 1944/45 as an Acting Commander, being the operations officer of the Fleet Carrier, Implacable, operating against the Germans in Norway and against the Japanese in the Pacific. He was awarded nine months additional seniority for Meritorious War Service. Captain Sutton’s post war career was as Deputy Director of the joint Anti-submarine School (RN and RAF) Londonderry, 1947-49; Commanding Officer of the Frigate Bigbury Bay 1951-53, including a spell in the Antarctic and as guard ship in the Falkland Islands; Officer in Charge, Observer and Air Signal School, RNAS Culdrose 1954-56. He was promoted to Captain and became the Chief Staff Officer of the Aircraft Carrier Squadron 1956-58, including operation Musketeer, the action to retake the Suez Canal. He was Captain (Air) Mediterranean and Commanding Officer RNAS Halfar, Malta 1960-62 and finished his Naval career as Director of the Royal Naval Staff College, Greenwich 1962-65. He was Naval ADC to the Queen 1964. On retirement from the Navy Alan was awarded the CBE (Military) for Distinguished Service. He was a graduate of the Naval Staff College, Joint Services Staff College and Imperial Defence College. |
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CPO
Donald Bunce CGM
Joined FAA in January 1940 and trained as a Telegraphist Air Gunner (TAG). Don was drafted to 825 Squadron and then transferred to HMS Victorious at Scapa Flow, joining HMS Hood and HMS Prince of Wales. Torpedo attack on "Bismarck" same day as HMS Hood was sunk. His Squadron later transferred to HMS Ark Royal for Malta Convoys etc until she was torpedoed and sunk. The Squadron reformed at Lee-on-Solent and sent to Manston, Kent where they prepared for the night attack on "Scharnhorst", "Gneisehau" and "Prinz Eugen". This turned into a daylight raid on 12th February 1942 and all the aircraft were shot down, with only five survivors – four officers and CPO Bunce himself. From then on Don transferred to training squadrons. He was demobbed in January 1946. |
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Captain Michael C Clapp CB
Joined
the Royal Navy in 1950 from Marlborough College. As a midshipman, he
served in the Far East during the Korean campaign. In 1954 he was boarding
officer capturing a caique running guns into Cyprus. In 1955, he was
appointed to No. 1 Long Observer Course, expecting to specialise in
anti-submarine warfare. His first operational flying tour was, however,
with 849 Airborne Early Warning Squadron. In 1959, after a series of
flying courses, he was posted to Ferranti Ltd to assist in test flying the
weapon system for the Buccaneer Mk 1 finally joining 700 Z Flight, the
Intensive Flying Trials Unit. In
1962, he was the Senior Observer of 801 Squadron, then the first
operational Mk 1 Buccaneer squadron. They embarked in HMS Ark Royal and
Victorious and sailed for the Far East and tropical trials returning home
in January 1964. He returned to the Far East to command HMS Puncheston, a
Minesweeper, during Indonesian Confrontation when he was mentioned in
despatches. In
late 1965 he took command of 801 Squadron now equipped with the Buccaneer
Mk 2. The Squadron once again embarked in HMS Victorious and sailed for
the Far East and tropical trials. After
a brief stay at the Joint Warfare Establishment, he had two ship commands,
HMS Jaguar and HMS Leander. He also completed two tours in the Naval Staff
of the MOD and one as the executive officer of HMS Norfolk completing
Exocet trials at Toulon. Later he was the Naval Director of the Joint
Maritime Operational Training Staff. In
1981 he was appointed Commodore Amphibious Warfare and commanded the
landings and inshore operations in the Falklands conflict in 1982 for
which he was made a CB. He
retired in 1983 to Devon where he became a stockbroker and lives with his
wife. They have three children. On final retirement he sailed to the
Caribbean and back in his 28 ft yacht. |
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Lieutenant Commander Paul A J Collins
Joined
the Royal Navy in 1964 and as a midshipman served in HMS EAGLE in the Far
East in 1966. He qualified as an observer at RNAS Lossiemouth in 1969 and
joined 800 NAS flying in Buccaneer Mk 2 embarked in HMS EAGLE 1970-71. HMS
EAGLE was deployed to the Mediterranean and to the Far East during this
period. Immediately
after returning to the UK he flew to New York to join 809 NAS embarked in
HMS ARK ROYAL and served throughout 1972 embarked and at RAF Honington.
After a further year at Honington he converted to ASW helicopters and
served with 826 NAS embarked in HMS TIGER and HMS HERMES. On completion of
the US Navy Staff Course in 1976 he joined 700 Lynx Intensive Flying
Trials Unit for the introduction of the Lynx HAS 2 to operational service
and subsequently became the flight commander of Phoebe Flight embarked in
HMS PHOEBE. He
was Operations Officer at RNAS Yeovilton 1979-81 and during this time flew
in the Royal Naval Historic Flight for two display seasons in the Fairy
Firefly and Swordfish. He was then the Operations Officer of HMS
ILLUSTRIOUS during build and on commissioning 1982-1984. He was on the
staff of Flag Officer 3rd Flotilla as Staff Plans Officer 1984-86 and
embarked in HM Ships INVINCIBLE and ARK ROYAL [new] during this period. He
left the RN in 1988 after 2 years on the staff of Commander British Forces
Hong Kong. Paul then joined the Army as a Major in the RAPC serving in
Germany with 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery and HQ 1st Armoured
Division, RPO Exeter and HQ 49[East] Brigade in Nottingham. He retired in
2000 and now lives on Dartmoor. |
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Lieutenant Commander M J Callaghan
J After the final commission
in HMS ARK ROYAL, Mike joined the staff of the Sea Harrier Intensive
Flying Trials Unit (IFTU) at RNAS Yeovilton in 1979, which introduced the
aircraft into RN service. When the IFTU became the HQ Squadron (899), Mike
remained on the staff as an instructor to assist in the training of the
pilots for the first frontline squadrons. In
1981, he was appointed to the staff of HQ 3 Commando Brigade RM as the
Brigade Aviation Officer. Barely having completed his Arctic Warfare
Training in Norway in 1982, he deployed with the Brigade to the Falklands,
embarked in HMS FEARLESS. As part of the planning team for the amphibious
assault, he had a key role in co-ordinating the offensive air, helicopter
support and fire support aspects of the campaign. He even waded ashore
from a landing craft in San Carlos! In 1984,
Mike was appointed to the NATO HQ in Oslo, Norway (HQ AFNORTH). Returning
to UK in 1986, he became the Operations Officer, RNAS Yeovilton, His final
RN appointment in 1989 was as a member of the Directing Staff at the
Maritime Tactical School, with responsibilities for Sea Harrier and
carrier operations. On retiring from the RN in 1991,
Mike joined British Aerospace (now BAE SYSTEMS) and has been involved in a
number of programmes including the Future Aircraft Carrier. He is now
based in Bristol and lives in Bath with his wife and daughter. |
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Lieutenant
Commander Frank Cox RN
Joined
the Fleet Air Arm in 1962 directly from school having received a nautical
education and been involved in gliding from a very early age. He evaded
attempts to divert him into becoming a fulltime ‘Fishhead’ career
officer and remained on a short service commission in aviation where his
heart lay. On
completion of training in 1965 Frank served in 800 Squadron flying Mk. 1
Buccaneers from HMS Eagle. In 1967 he joined 738 Squadron flying Hunters
as a Tactical Instructor. Having completed the Air Warfare Instructor’s
course he returned to 738 as an AWI where he also flew as a member of the
‘Diamonds’ Aerobatic team. In 1967 he returned to the Buccaneer world
flying Mk. 2’s in 809 Squadron from Lossiemouth and HMS Ark Royal. He
joined the staff of 764 Squadron (AWI School) in 1971 and in 1972
commenced an appointment as a staff AWI on 237 Buccaneer OCU at RAF
Honington. Thence, in 1974, followed an exchange tour with the US Navy
instructing students in the art of weaponary without the assistance of
computer wizardry on the A6 Intruder at NAS Oceana. He returned to 809
Squadron in 1976 and became Senior Pilot in 1977 until the Squadron was
disbanded in December 1978. A sojourn at RAF (Ex RNAS) Brawdy until 1981
as Senior Naval Officer overseeing Naval Students through their advanced
training on Hawk aircraft led to his final appointment with the Naval
Flying Standards Flight at Yeovilton as the AWI where he also flew the
Firefly and the Seafury for the Naval Historic Flight displays.
Having
completed his naval service in 1983 Frank continued to fly Hunters until
1985 for Airwork Ltd. and subsequently Flight Refueling Ltd. Since then he
has been flying Corporate jets worldwide for various private owners. He
has his own ‘Flight Deck’ in North Devon where he flies and restores
vintage and classic aircraft. |
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Lieutenant
Commander J E Eatwell RN
J
After a tour
with 899 Headquarters Squadron, he transferred to the Buccaneer S Mk 1 in
1963 and then received training as a Photographic Interpreter (PI) prior
to joining 800 squadron in HMS Eagle as a Photo Recce Specialist. This was
followed by a tour instructing in 736 Squadron before rejoining 800
Squadron with the Mk 2 Buccaneer for another embarked tour in HMS Eagle
covering the withdrawal from Aden. Further
appointments at Lossiemouth as Station Intelligence Officer and P I to
Flag Officer Aircraft Carriers, Operations Staff in HMS Eagle and as a
Trials Officer at RAE Farnborough followed. His final four years were
spent at the Joint School of Photographic Interpretation, responsible for
the selection and training of all RN. WRNS and RNR PIs. He retired from
the RN in 1976 but remained active as a PI and Intelligence Officer in the
RNR, finally retiring in 1993. |
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Captain
E M Hackett FCMI MNI RN
Joined
the Royal Navy in 1961 from Dauntseys School and served in HM Ships URCHIN
and DUCHESS under training, before joining the minesweeper PUNCHESTON
(Commanding Officer Lieutenant Commander Mike Clapp!) in the Far East
Fleet during the Confrontation against Indonesia. He began flying training
in 1966 and qualified as a Buccaneer pilot in 1968 after which he joined
801 NAS in HERMES for his first deck landing off Singapore. He was Flag
Lieutenant to the Flag Officer Naval Air Command between 1970 and 1972
flying Sea Devons and the Hawker Hunter. He then joined 809 NAS in ARK
ROYAL after completing the Air Warfare Instructor’s Course at RNAS
Lossiemouth. He completed the Naval Staff Course and was Senior Pilot of
809 from 1974 to
1977, again in ARK ROYAL.His first Sea Command was HMS RHYL 1978-80
operating in the West Indies. This was followed by his first appointment
to the MoD between 1980-82 as the Sea Harrier and Air Weapons Desk Officer
in the Directorate of Naval Air Warfare. Between 1982-1984 he was the
first Commander (Air) of HMS ILLUSTRIOUS and flew the Harrier T4 and
Gazelle and Sea King helicopters. This was immediately followed by being
Staff Aviation Officer to Flag Officer Third Flotilla, Portsmouth 1984-85.
On being promoted to Captain in 1985 he was appointed to command HMS ROOKE
and be Chief of Staff to the Flag Officer Gibraltar. From there he
commissioned the new HMS COVENTRY and between 1988-90 took her to the
Arctic, Baltic, Mediterranean, Persian Gulf and the Far East. Between
1990-92 he was Deputy Director Naval Warfare (Air), which encompassed the
first Gulf War, and Adviser on Aircraft Accidents to the Navy Board. His
final appointment in the Service was as Captain of the Port, Queen’s
Harbour Master and Chief Staff Officer to the Flag Officer Portsmouth from
1992 to 1994, after which he retired from the Active List. He
is presently occupied as a consultant to OCTO Ltd where he advises,
teaches and assesses senior managers on fast decision making under stress,
for crisis and accident management in high risk and potentially dangerous
industries. He is also a Trials Master for new Warships both for the RN
and for export to other navies. Captain
Hackett lives with his wife near Petersfield in Hampshire and has a son
and daughter. |
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Lieutenant
M Holloway RN
Joined the
Royal Navy in 1963 as a short service pilot. He served with 800 Squadron
flying the Buccaneer Mk1 from HMS Eagle and subsequently he flew the Mk2,
also with 800 Squadron. He
was a QFI and served at RAF Linton on Ouse in a second-line flying
appointment. After leaving the Royal Navy in 1971 he joined the Fleet
Requirements and Air Direction unit at Yeovilton, flying the Hunter and
Falcon 20 that were operated by Flight Refuelling Ltd. For several years
he flew in the Blue Herons aerobatic team. When
the Hunters were withdrawn he flew for a number of minor airlines before
returning to Yeovilton in 1998 as a pilot on Heron Flight flying the Navy
Jetstream on communication flights all round Europe. He retired from
flying at the end of 2003. |
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Commander
T J I Howard-Jones RN BSc
Learned to fly in Manchester University Air
Squadron in 1963 and he joined the Royal Navy in January 1967. He served
as an Observer on 809 Naval Air Squadron (Buccaneer S Mk 2) from 1970 to
1971 and 1976 to 1978. He completed the Royal Air Force Staff Navigation
Course in 1971 and GD Aerosystems Course in 1972. He worked at the
Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment Boscombe Down as Flight
Trials Officer from 1973 to 1976 and a Trials Section Leader from 1982 to
1985. He was a Systems Analyst at the Royal Aircraft Establishment
Farnborough from 1978 to 1981. He served in MOD Whitehall as the desk
officer for the Sea Harrier Mid Life Update in 1985 – 1987 and 1990 to
1992. His final appointment before leaving the Royal Navy was as Officer
in Charge of the Naval Air Warfare Development Unit from 1992 to 1994. |
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Lieutenant
Commander Brian Jackson-Dooley RN
J In
1965 he qualified as an observer in the AEW role and joined HMS Eagle in
the Far East. Following a late night swim in the South China Sea, courtesy
of a Gannet engine failure, he thought it would be more civilised to see
where he was going and transferred to Buccaneers. Brian qualified in the
Strike role and joined HMS Eagle in 1967 for the second time. Two further
sea going tours in Buccaneers followed, both in HMS Ark Royal. In
1975 he joined VA 42, the A6 Intruder training organisation based on the
East coast of the USA. Initially he was the Systems Training Officer,
later the Director of Replacement Training. During this shore job he took
6 trainee pilots to the decks of four US carriers making 90 arrested
landings. This was his final flying appointment, completing with 2500
hours in the strike/attack role and rather more terrifying arrested
landings than he cares to remember. His
final appointment was negotiating the specification of the mission system
avionics for the Nimrod AEW with the contractor before he retired from the
Royal Navy in 1980. A successful second career followed and he has a Board
position in a pharmaceutical company. |
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Captain
Alan Leahy CBE DSC RN
J
In
1953 he was awarded the DSC for operations over Korea flying Sea Furies in
801 Squadron from HMS Glory. He was the leader of the all red Royal Navy
Seahawk aerobatic team of five aircraft at the 1957 Farnborough Air Show.
He was made MBE in 1958. Amongst
a variety of appointments he was Director of the Naval Air Warfare
Division of the Naval Staff when the Royal Navy got approval for the Sea
Harrier. His final appointment was as Commodore Clyde in command of HMS
Neptune and the Fastlane Submarine Base. He was appointed ADC in 1977 and
promoted to CBE in 1978. |
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Captain
John de Winton RN
J
In 1962 he
transferred to Lossiemouth, initially to Buccaneer Mk1 Intensive Flying
Trials Unit, then as Senior Pilot 801 Squadron, first front line Buccaneer
squadron, HMS Ark Royal and HMS Victorious in the Far East. He was CO of
809 Squadron Trials and Training Squadron Lossiemouth in 1964. In 1965 he
became CO 801 Squadron HMS Victorious, Far East, then after disbanding Mk
1 Squadron, CO 0f 801 Squadron again, first Mk 2 Buccaneer Squadron. He
was promoted to Commander at the end of 1965. He
commanded HMS Puma, frigate from 1967-1969, then London (MOD) i/c of all
Fleet Air Arm officer appointments. Promoted to Captain in 1971. Staff of
CinC Fleet 1971-73. Commanded HMS Leander and Captain 3rd Frigate squadron
from 1974-75. Director of Naval Air Warfare (MOD) from 1975-78. He retired
in 1980. Served in Sultan of Oman’s Navy as Chief of Staff from 1982-88.
He is married with four children, six grandchildren and lives in Somerset.
He keeps busy with many jobs in his large garden, playing golf and
croquet. |
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Colonel Art Fiedler
Joining the Army Reserves in April 1942, Art
Fiedler transferred over to the 325th Fighter Group – the
Checkertails in May 1944. Based
in Italy flying P-51’s, Art flew escort to the Ploesti raids, becoming
an Ace on 26th July when he downed two enemy Me109s over
Bucharest in the space of 7 minutes.
His score soon mounted and by the time he scored his last victory,
on 20th January 1945 over an Fw190, he finished the war an ace
with his final tally reaching 8 air victories. |
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First Lieutenant Clint White
Clint white joined up in November 1942 and after
training as a pilot, was posted over to Europe, joining the 15th
Air Force in the Mediterranean flying P-51s with the 309th FS,
31st Fighter Group. The
15th Air Force was engaged in the strategic offensive against
targets in Italy, Germany, and Eastern Europe.
Clint flew his first combat mission in February 1944, and soon got
into the action, including being jumped by two Me262 jets as he flew
escort to bombers heading to Berlin and back. |
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Captain Richard Buzen
After joining the service in September 1966,
Richard Buzen was posted to the 1st Cavalry Division flying
Huey UH-1Ds and UH-1Hs with the 229th Assault Battalion.
He flew his first Huey combat mission in Vietnam in January 1969,
becoming a flight Commander in April.
During his tour in Vietnam he commanded over 200 combat missions
and was shot down twice – first in April, and then in July, after which
he was hospitalised for six months, and awarded two Purple Hearts.
Seriously disabled by his wounds, Richard retired from the service
in 1971. |
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Chief Warrant Officer Michael J. Novosel Moh
Enlisting in the Army Air Corps in 1941, Michael
Novosel saw combat in the Pacific flying B29s out of Tinian against Japan,
and was called up to active service again during the Korean War,
eventually reaching the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
Again requesting active duty during the Vietnam War, he was
informed that the Air Force was over strength in senior officers, so he
promptly accepted an appointment as a Warrant Officer Aviator with the US
Army. Flying two tours on
Hueys in Vietnam as a “Dustoff Pilot”, he was assigned first to the
283rd Medical Detachment, and for his second tour the 82nd
where, on 2nd October 1969 in Kien Tuong Province, he saved the
lives of 29 wounded soldiers in 15 extremely hazardous extractions under
withering enemy fire. For
this he was awarded the Medal of Honour.
During his tours in Vietnam, he evacuated a total of 5589 wounded
soldiers. When he retired in
1985 after 42 years service and 2038 hours combat flight time, he was the
last active duty military aviator on flight status who had flown combat
during World War II. |
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Squadron Leader Iain Hutchinson
Posted to join 222 Squadron at Hornchurch, Iain
Hutchinson flew with them from June 1940 throughout the Battle of Britain.
As the fighting grew towards its crescendo, on 30th August his
Spitfire was damaged in fighting and he force landed unhurt in Essex.
Returning to the fray he downed an Me109 on 6th
September, another the following day, and a third a week later. On 18th September, after combat over Kent, he was
forced to bale out near Canterbury, and then on 30th September
following action over London he was wounded and made a forced landing at
Denham. Commissioned in
august 1941. Iain retired
from the RAF as a Squadron Leader in 1957. |
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Wing Commander Tom F. Neil DFC AFC
Tom Neil joined 259 Squadron flying Hurricanes
just before the start of the Battle of Britain flying from North Weald on
7th September; his first victory was an Me109, followed in
quick succession by 10 others and 1 probable.
On 7th November he collided in mid-air with Wing
Commander Francis Beamish and his aircraft lost its tail.
He baled out of his Hurricane unhurt, Beamish force-landing
unscathed. Tom was awarded a
Bar to his DFC in November Later he served in Malta where he gained
another victory, over an Mc200. In
September 1942 he was given command of 41 Squadron.
In January 1944 he was posted as Fighter Liason Officer with the US
100th Fighter Wing, and flew with the unit on D-Day.
He is believed to be the first English pilot to land on French soil
after D-Day. Tom Neil
finished the war with 12 and 4-shared victories. |
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Squadron
Leader Douglas G Clift |
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Flight Lieutenant George Britton
Joining the RAF in 1941, George trained on
Wellington and Stirlings as a Wireless Operator and Air Gunner.
Converting to Lancasters he was posted to 90 Squadron for his first
operational tour, and then to 186 Squadron, still on Lancasters.
George then found himself designated to be an Intelligence Officer
at Lossiemouth, interrogating Italian POWs Finally, before leaving the
service in 1946, he served in Sunderland flying boats, flying to West
Africa, Europe and Scandinavia. |
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Flight Lieutenant John Cox DFC
Born in 1923, after reaching eighteen, John Cox
joined the RAF in March 1942. He
soon found himself on the Queen Mary en-route to Canada for pilot
training, returning to become operational on Lancaster’s with 622
Squadron based at Mildenhall, whom he joined in July 1944.
His tour of 30 operations included the successful raid on Walcheren
Island in Holland, whose objective was to breach the sea wall in order to
flood the island, forcing a full scale German retreat. After hostilities he flew for BOAC, followed by 27 years
service with BA, becoming senior captain on 747s. |
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Warrant Officer Richard ‘Basher’ Hearne
‘Basher’ Hearne joined the RAF in 1942 and
trained as a Flight Engineer. His
first operational posting was to 622 Squadron at Mildenhall in Suffolk,
equipped with Stirlings, and then, in November 1943, he transferred to 15
Squadron, also flying from the same base.
The squadron re-equipped with Lancaster’s the following month. |
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Flight Lieutenant Tom Austin DFC AE
After joining the RAF in 1941 Tom Austin
qualified as a pilot on Harvard’s, then converted into Halifax’s.
During the war years other aircraft he flew included Wellingtons,
Stirling’s and Lancaster’s. While flying Wellingtons as part of 199 Squadron during a
raid over Dortmund, his aircraft was badly damaged but Tom managed to limp
home, crash landing at Mildenhall. |
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Wing Commander ‘Mac’ England DFC
‘Mac’ England joined the RAF in 1938 and
after qualifying, posted as a pilot into Lancaster’s. In 1941 he was transferred from Bomber command to fighter
Command-flying Spitfires on coastal sweeps.
After a short period of time on Spitfires he was transferred back
again to bomber Command, and in 1943 completed 30 Operations on
Lancaster’s. When he
retired in 1974 he had flown a total of 36 different aircraft including
Hunters and Canberras. |
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Flying Officer Norman A. Gampe RAAF
Norman Gampe joined the RAAF in September 1942.
After training as a pilot in Australia, he sailed to the UK, and in
the later half of 1944 attended 19 OUT, then converted to Lancaster’s.
In January 1945, Norman was posted to 619 Squadron equipped with
Lancaster’s, based at Strubby. On
ANZAC Day-25th April 1945, Flying Officer Gampe completed his
13th and final Operational Sortie of the war with 619 Sqn when
he bombed Hitler’s Eagles Nest at Berchesgarden. |
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Flight Lieutenant John M. Grant RAAF
John Grant joined the RAAF in October 1942.
He trained as a pilot in Australia, and then attended OUT and HCU
in the UK. In October 1944
John was posted to 619 Squadron equipped with Lancaster’s, and based at
Strubby. Grant went on to
complete his tour of 30 sorties with the squadron. After this, flight Lieutenant Grant was assigned to Tiger
Force, where he was to lead 619 Squadron in the planned RAF component of
MacArthur’s proposed invasion of Japan. |
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Flying Officer Bernard T. Hucks DFC RAAF
Bernie Hucks joined the RAAF in October 1941.
He trained as a Wireless Operator in Australia, and then attended
14 OUT in the UK. In June 1943, Hucks was posted to 619 Squadron equipped with
Lancaster’s, and based at Woodhall Spa.
After completing his tour of 27 sorties, Warrant Officer Hucks was
awarded the DFC for skill and fortitude against the enemy.
After instructing Bernie flew one last sortie with 463 Squadron
RAAF on ANZAC Day – 25th April 1945. |
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Wing Commander Robert Bray
Robert flew his first tour of 32 ops in 75 (NZ)
Squadron on Wellington’s. After
a period instructing he joined 105 Squadron PFF on Mosquitos, flying Oboe
operations, completing 87 ops by June 1944.
In March 1945 he was posted to command 571 Squadron PFF, then
commanded 128 Squadron PFF until Feb 1946. |
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Squadron Leader Ron Curtis DSO DFC
Qualifying as an Observer in 1941, Ron joined 144
Squadron on Hamden’s before transferring to 44 Squadron at Waddington as
a Navigator on Lancaster’s. At
the end of the 1942 he moved to Marham, converting to Mosquitos, and in
1943 was posted to 109 Squadron equipped with Oboe as part of the
Pathfinder Force. He flew 104
Oboe operations and 139 ops in total, and was widely credited with helping
advance development of the Oboe system. |
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Flight Lieutenant Ray Harrington
Ray joined the RAF in 1941, completing his
training in South Africa. In
January 1944 he was posted to 603 Squadron flying Beaufighters in North
Africa. Here he teamed up
with navigator, Warrant Officer A.E. ‘Bert’ Winwood, and from
where they launched attacks across the Mediterranean into Crete, Greece
and the Aegean Islands against shipping, harbour installations and enemy
aircraft with much success. In
December 1944 they were posted to 235 Squadron Coastal Command, part of
the Banff Strike Wing, converting to Mosquitos.
In April 1945 they were shot down following a strike in the
Kattegat, but avoided capture and with the help of the Danish resistance
made it home, where they continued to fly again from Banff. |
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Squadron Leader Leonard C. Jacobe DFC RAAF
Joined the RAAF in February 1941 and after
training and instructing, was posted to fly Mosquitos with 109 Sqn PFF in
June 1943. During his time
with 109, Len completed 96 sorties, flew LR503 on two occasions, and
attacked every main target with the squadron, including ground marking of
German coastal batteries on the eve of the Normandy landings on June 6th
1944. |
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Flying Officer Malcolm ‘Mac’ B. Skinner
RAAF
Joined the RAAF in June 1943 and after training
was posted to 105 Sqn PFF at Bourne, where he joined pilot David Young
(NZ). On 13th
April 1945 attacked Reisa in GBF. At
02.26 on 21st April 1945, in Mosquito ‘A’, he released 4
times 500 MC bombs on Berlin using OBOE – the last bombs dropped on
Berlin in world War II, then took past in the last RAF raid of the
European war on 2/3 May. |
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Brigadier General Frank L. Gailer
Frank Gailer was posted to England, joining the
357th Fighter Group at Leiston.
Flying with the 363rd FS he went into combat in august,
and in the next few months destroyed 6 enemy aircraft before being shot
down in November 1944. Captured
by the Germans, he was interned in Stalug I.
After the war, in Vietnam, he commanded the 35th TFW at
Phan Rang AB, flying over 500 hours combat on F-100s.
In 1969 he returned to England once again, to command the 48th
TW, and then as Vice-Commander of Third Air Force, USAF Europe. |
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Lieutenant Colonel Robert G. Schimanski
Born in Spokane, Washington in 1920, Bob
Schimanski graduated as a fighter pilot, and was posted to join the 364th
Fighter Squadron, 357th Fighter Group in England.
During his tour of duty on P51s at Leiston, he flew 70 combat
missions, getting on the score sheet with the first of his victories on 13th
September 1944. He became an
Ace on 2 Match 1945 when he downed a Me109 south of Magdeburg.
By the end of his tour had achieved 6 air victories, all but one
against Me109s, plus a further two on the ground. |
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First
Lieutenant Joseph Black
Joe Black joined up in November 1942, arriving in
England to join the 357th Fighter Group. Flying with the 362nd
Fighter Squadron, he flew the first of his 28 combat missions on 1st
February 1945, and participated in a massive escort raid to Berlin
escorting B17s for his second. Joe served with the 362nd right up
until the end of hostilities in Europe, leaving the service early in 1946. |
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Lieutenant
Colonel William W Foard
27th February 1943 saw Bill Foard join the service and
commence his pilot training, gaining his pilots wings, after which he was
posted to the Eighth Air Force in England. Joining the 357th Fighter
Group flying P51D Mustangs with the 364 Fighter Squadron based at Leiston
in Suffolk, East Anglia, Bill flew his first combat mission on 21st
February 1945. He took part in all of the Squadrons main escort
raids and fighter actions during the final phase of the air war, until the
end of hostilities. |
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First
Lieutenant Dale E Karger
Born in 1925, Dale Karger joined the Army Reserves and
was commissioned a 2nd Lt, and rated a pilot in February 1944. He
transferred to the 357th Fighter Group on 18th September 1944, scoring his
first two victories on 5th December, both against Fw190s north of Berlin,
followed by his first Me109 on 24th December. On 20th January he
achieved Ace status when he notched up an Me262 jet north of Munich.
Dale finished his tour with a tally of 7.5 victories, and was the third
youngest American fighter Ace of World War II. |
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John A. Kirla
Born in 1922, John Kirla joined the Army reserves
and was commissioned a 2nd Lt and rated a pilot in January
1944. He transferred to the
357th Fighter Group on 12th July 1944, scoring his
first victories on 13th September against Me109s south of
Nordhausen. His victories
continued to mount and on 24th December he achieved and passed
Ace status when he notched up three Fw190s near Fulda.
On 14th January he notched up four victories in a day on
a mission northwest of Berlin, the last of his 11.5 victories of the war. |
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Captain William B. Overstreet
Posted to England in November 1943 to join the
363rd fighter Squadron, 357th Fighter Group at
Leiston Bill Overstreet flew his P51 combat mission on 12th
February 1944. He commanded
nearly 50 combat missions during his tour with the 357th FS,
taking part in escorting the big raids to Berlin, Frankfurt, Leipzeig and
many other city targets as well as participating in escort missions to
Russia from Italy. Shot down
once he managed to escape to freedom after two days capacity. Returning
stateside in October 1944. |
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Colonel Arval J. Roberson
Joining the Army Reserves in 1942, ‘Robby’
Roberson was commissioned and rated a pilot in May 1943.
Transferring to the 362nd Fighter Squadron, 357th
Fighter Group, he flew 76 combat missions on P51s, sharing his first
victory against an Me110 over Berlin on 6th March 1944.
He became an Ace on 19th September, and scored his 6th
and final air victory at the same time.
During the Korean War he flew an additional 100 combat hours with
the 18th FBG, and in Vietnam managed to get in 26 support
missions on C47s. He retired
in 1973. |
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Flight Lieutenant Frank Diamond DFC AE
At the outbreak of war Frank was serving with the
Territorial Army, transferring to the RAF in May 1941 and training as a
navigator on flying Boats. In
1943 he completed a full tour on Stirlings, and in 1944 joined the
Pathfinder Force as a navigator on Mosquitos with 571 Squadron, Light
Night Strike Force. At the
end of the war he joined Transport Command returning the wounded from
Europe. |
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Flight Lieutenant Geoffrey Perks DFC
Geoffrey joined the RAF in 1941.
He served with 420 Squadron, part of 6 Group (RCAF), flying
Wellingtons, then Halifaxes. He
transferred to 427 Squadron, then 434 Squadron, before finally converting
to Mosquitos. Joining 571
Squadron, part of the Light Night Strike Force, he flew Mk XVI carrying
4000lb ‘cookie’ bombs over Germany. |
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Flight Lieutenant Peter Arkell
For his first tour Peter flew Mustangs and
Spitfires with 26 Squadron on intruder and low lever photographic sorties
over France, before joining 161 Squadron as Tempsford in 1944, flying
Lysanders into occupied Europe. He
then accompanied the Lysanders to Burma where he flew 35 successful but
hazardous missions supplying Force 136 behind the Japanese lines. |
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Marshal
of the Royal Air force Sir Arthur T. Harris Bt GCB OBE DD
Commander-in-Chief and inspirational leader of
RAF bomber command. |
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Squadron Leader Ken Brown CGM RCAF
Pilot and Captain of Lancaster AJ-F, he attacked
the Sorpe Dam. |
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Flight Lieutenant Bill Townsend CGM
DFM
Pilot and Captain of Lancaster AJ-O, he attacked the
Ennepe Dam. |
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Sergeant
Raymond E. Grayston
Ray Grayston had been serving in 50 Squadron when he
was posted to 617 Squadron in March 1943.
The flight engineer of Les Knight’s Lancaster AJ-N, they attacked
and successfully breached the Eder Dam, Ray was shot down on 16th
September 1943, and was taken to Stalag Luft III as a POW. |
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Squadron
Leader George L. Johnson DFM
Joining the RAF in 1940, George Johnson served with 97
Squadron before joining 617 Squadron.
Bomb aimer on American Joe McCarthy’s Lancaster AJ-T, they
attacked the Sorpe Dam, for which he was awarded the DFM.
Commissioned a few months later, George retired from the RAF in
1962. |
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Squadron
Leader Les Munro DSO DFC RNZAF
New Zealander Les Munro was the Captain and pilot of
Lancaster AJ-W assigned to attack the Sorpe Dam, but was forced to turn
back en-route to the target after heavy flak damage over Holland had
rendered his aircraft unable to carry on with the operation. |
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Sergeant
Frederick E. Sutherland RCAF
‘Doc’
Sutherland was the front gunner on Les Knight’s Lancaster AJ-N that went
to the Mohne Dam, and then successfully attacked and breached the Eder
Dam. Shot down four months
later, he managed to evade capture and escape back to England with the
help of the Resistance movements, returning through Holland, France and
Spain. |
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Flight
Sergeant Grant’s McDonald RCAF
Grant McDonald was the rear gunner on Lancaster AJ-F
flown by Ken Brown. On the
way to the Ruhr, the gunners shot up and damaged three trains in an
eventful trip before reaching the Sorpe Dam. |
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Corporal
Beck Parsons
Vital to the whole Dambusters operation was the
complete dedication by the ground crew of 617 Squadron. Personified by
Beck Parsons. Joining the RAF
in 1940, he trained as an electrician and worked with Avro Manchester’s
with 207 Squadron at Waddington. In
March 1943 he was posted to 617 Squadron at Scampton where he flew with
Barnes Wallis during the tests on the bouncing bomb.
As Electrical NCO Beck was responsible for the electrics on “B”
flight at the time of the raid, together with ‘Top Maintenance’ on
five of the Lancaster’s, including those of Guy Gibson and Mick Martin. |
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Corporal
Kenneth Lucas
Ken Lucas joined the RAF in June 1940, and trained as
ground crew for bomber Command. He
was sent first to 49 Squadron at RAF Scampton, before transferring to 617
Squadron upon its formation, Involved in all the major servicing of the
aircraft before the raid including fitting the motors that drove the belt
that spun the bomb, and attaching the critical lamps to the underside of
the aircraft. |
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Flt Lt Howard M Park
Having joined the service in 1942, Howard Park trained as a fighter
pilot. Posted to Europe to join the 406th Fighter Group in April
1944, he flew over 140 combat missions with the 513th Fighter Squadron on
rocket firing ground attack P47 Thunderbolts, Howard flew the P47 'Big Ass
Bird'. On D-Day the 406th were the first Fighter Group in action
over Utah Beach. Engaged heavily on attacking ground targets, Howard
sank a German naval vessel in Brest harbour using air-to-ground rockets,
but still managed to notch up victories over three Me109s in only five
aerial encounters with the enemy. During the Battle of the Bulge,
the 406th FG were the only 9th Air Force unit exclusively assigned to the
defence of the beleaguered town of Bastogne, attacking the besieging
German forces with devastating success. Howard flew P47s in combat
through until the final days of the war in May 1945. |
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Sergeant William True
Bill True served with the 506th Parachute Regiment which was attached
to the 101st Airborne. He took part in the initial parachute drop
into France with the 101st on D-Day, and by the end of the day they were
in control of the high ground overlooking the invasion beach. Bill
made his second combat drop with the 101st near Eindhoven during Operation
Market Garden, before, in December 1944, finding himself in the thick of
the action defending the town of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge,
where the 506th defended the eastern perimeter section of the town.
Advancing into Germany, the 506th's final mission of the war was the
capture of Hitler's Eagle Nest at Bergtesgarden on 4th - 5th May 1945. |
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Private Frank Denison
Joining up in 1943, Frank Denison was posted to the ETO after training,
arriving in England for training in the long months prior to D-Day.
Serving with C Company, 326 Parachute (Engineer) Battalion, part of the
101st Airborne he took part in the 6th June D-Day landings in Normandy,
and fought his way with the unit through Holland, before swinging into
action during the violent fighting around Bastogne during the Battle of
the Bulge. During the crossing of the Rhine, at Hagenaw, he was hit
by enemy fire and wounded. |
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Corporal Gordon Hearne
Gordon joined the Army in February 1943, nd was posted to the 447th AAA
(anti-aircraft) Battalion. As part of the 28th Artillery Division,
109th Field artillery Battalion, he landed in Normandy on 7th June during
the D-Day invasion force, and advanced through the constant fighting in
France. He took part in the hectic fighting in the dreadful winter
conditions during the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes, and advanced
with the Division into Germany until the final day of the war. |
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Corporal Peter Howenstein
As soon as he was able to enlist, Peter Howenstein joined the Army in
March 1943, and following basic training found himself en-route to Europe,
landing in England as part of the 319th Infantry Regiment, 80th
Division. As part of the US 3rd Army under General Patton, he landed
at Utah Beach during the Normandy landings, and fought his way with the
unit through France and Belgium, having the Bronze Star pinned on him by
General Patton personally on 11th November 1944. Peter served
throughout the Battle of the Bulge in the Ardennes, and on into Germany. |
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Technical Sergeant John Moseley
Technician John Moseley went to Europe with A Company, 112th Infantry
Regiment, 28th Division, landing with the unit in Normandy and seeing his
first action just outside St Lo before the 28th began its drive towards
Paris, taking part in the liberation of the city. He took part in
the heavy fighting in the Hurtgen forest, followed by the Battle of the
Bulge at Bastogne. The 28th were the first US Division into
Germany. John returned to the US in September 1945 with the same
Tech unit he had arrived with. |
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Staff Sergeant Murray Shapiro
Murray Shapiro joined the army in September 1941, and after training
went on active service with the 112th Infantry Regiment, 28th Division,
moving to Europe in October 1943 for further training in England and Wales
prior to the Normandy Invasion. Going into combat a few weeks after
D-Day, Murray advanced through France with his unit and was in the thick
of the fighting when Von Rundstedt launched his crack divisions at
Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. |
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1st Sergeant Egbert 'Duke' Buniff
Already a member of the National Guard, Duke transferred to the regular
US First Army in 1941. Posted to Europe he arrived in England before
D-Day, took part in the invasion and fought his way through France and
Belgium, and on to Cologne. He then fought in the Ardennes at
Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge, and on to the Rhine Crossing and
the capture of Cologne. |
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Squadron
Leader Percival H. Beake DFC
Joining the RAFVR in April 1939, Percival Beake was
mobilised at the outbreak of war. Posted
to 64 Squadron on Spitfires in the summer of 1940 at the height of the
Battle of Britain, he flew with them until June 1941 when he was posted
first to 92 Squadron at Biggin Hill, and then 601 Squadron at Duxford.
After a spell instructing he returned for his second tour in
December 1942, joining 193 Squadron as a Flight Commander. In May 1944 he took command of 164 Squadron at Thorney Island
flying Typhoons, moving to France shortly after the Normandy Invasion.
With two victories to his credit he was awarded the DFC in
September 1944. |
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Flight
Lieutenant William J. Corbin DFC
Already a member
of the RAFVR, William Corbin was called up for active duty in September
1939. Following training and
conversion to spitfires, in august 1940 he was posted as a Sergeant Pilot
to join 6 Squadron at Coltishall. With
the exception of a few weeks spent with 610 Squadron he remained with 66
Squadron until September 1941. Commissioned
in June 1942, he returned to combat flying in September, joining 72
Squadron with whom he went to North Africa.
Here he shared in a probable Me109 and damaged another, and in
August 1943 was awarded the DFC.
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Flight
Lieutenant Trevor Gray
After training Trevor Gray was commissioned as a Pilot
Officer in August 1940. Converted
onto Spitfires, and with the Battle of Britain at its Climax, he was
urgently posted to join 64 Squadron at Leconfield, arriving on 16th
September 1940. The Squadron
had re-equipped from Blenheims to Spitfires earlier that year as it fought
in the great air battles over Dunkirk, before seeing hectic action in the
Battle of Britain. Trevor
left the RAF as a flight Lieutenant after the end of the war. |
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Admiral
of the Fleet Sir Henry Leach GCB DL
Serving throughout World War II, Henry Leach was a
young Lieutenant in the forward 14” turret of HMS Duke of York during
the sinking of the German Battleship Scharnhorst.
From 1953-55 he was Gunnery Officer of HMS Newcastle, and is a
Patron of the Newcastle Association.
He commanded the destroyer Dunkirk, was Frigate Squadron Leader in
Galatea, the carrier Albion, and became first Sea Lord, and Chief of Naval
staff in 1979. |
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Lieutenant
John Baber RNVR
One of the HMS Newcastle’s crew on the night of 14/15th
June 1942. Posted to HMS
Newcastle in January 1942, he was one of the three lookouts alongside the
ship’s open Bridge, and his action station was in the cordite chamber
under ‘Y’ turret. Later he was commissioned in early 1943, and served with
Coastal forces, carrying out sweeps in the channel against E-boats and
armed trawlers. |
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Able
Seaman Wilfred Marriott RN
Wilfred Marriott joined the Royal Navy in May
1941and his first ship was HMS Newcastle, Trained on Newcastle as a
torpedo man, he served on the ship throughout the Mediterranean.
After the attack upon her by German E-boats, he remained with the
ship to New York for repairs, and stayed with the Newcastle until the end
of the war.
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Signalman
Arthur Deakin RN
Joining the Royal
Navy in April 1941, HMS Newcastle was Arthur’s first ship and he joined
her in January 1942. He
served as a Signalman on the ship’s flag deck and Brigade, and was
returning there when the torpedo struck.
He eventually left the Newcastle in Mombassa in July 1942.
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Chief
Petty Officer Rupert Stant RN
After escaping from Singapore, Rupert joined HMS
Newcastle in Ceylon, in March 1942. He
was a Chief Petty Officer in charge of the forward engine Room at the time
of the E-boat attack, and after the initial repairs in Aden, stayed with
the ship on her voyage to America. He
remained with the Newcastle until April 1946. |
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Flight
Lieutenant Tony Holland DFC AE DFC (US)
Tony Holland flew the first spitfire to Malta from USS
Wasp with 603 Squadron in April 1942.
He shared in the destruction of 6 enemy aircraft. |
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Admiral
of the Fleet Lord Lewin GCB MVO DSC
Terry Lewin served
onboard the destroyer HMS Ashanti during Operation Pedestal. He later served on the Russian convoys, the invasion of North
Africa and in the Channel. After
the war he became chief of the Defence Staff during the Falklands War.
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Lieutenant
Commander George Marten LVO DSC
George Marten was
first Lieutenant of destroyer HMS Penn during Operation Pedestal, and
boarded the Ohio to take charge of recovery operations.
He later commanded HMS Wilton in the North Atlantic.
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Lieutenant
Peter Twiss OBE DSC
Peter Twiss flew with 807 Squadron FAA from the carrier
HMS Furious during the Malta convoys, and later took part in the invasion
of North Africa. A test pilot
after the war, in 1956 he held the world speed record flying a Fairy Delta
2. |
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Commander
Charles Lamb DSO DSC Royal Navy
Commander Charles Lamb was to become a legend in the
Royal Navy during World War II. He
was one of the small bands of men who flew the slow cumbersome Swordfish
bi-plane nicknamed ‘Stringbags’, all but declared obsolete before the
war, but whose heroic actions changed the course of the war.
Charles Lamb flew in the thick of the action, from mine-laying and
U-boat hunting over northern Europe, harrying E-boats at Dunkirk, to being
one of the two Swordfish Pathfinder pilots with 815 Squadron FAA at the
Battle of Taranto. |
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Vice-Admiral
Sir Hugh ‘Dick’ Janvrin KCB CB DSO Royal Navy
“Dick” Janvrin joined the Royal Navy as a Cadet in
1929, working his way up the service before joining the fleet Air Arm
before the war. He became a
qualified FAA Observer, flying Swordfish.
He was in the front line of some of the most daring Swordfish
missions, including the legendary attack at Taranto, where he flew as
Observer with 815 Squadron on the lead Pathfinder aircraft.
After the war “Dick” Janvrin commanded several warships,
including the aircraft carrier HMS victorious. |
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Oberst
Kurt Kuhlmey
One of the most outstanding Stuka leaders of World War
II, Kurt Kuhlmey was Staffelkapitan of 1./St.G.1 at the outbreak of war,
serving in the Polish, Norwegian and French campaigns, before being
transferred to the attack on Malta. He
took part in successful strikes against HMS Illustrious, and the Malta
convoys of 1941. He fought in
North Africa, becoming Kommandeur of II./St.G.3 in April 1942.
A year later he was promoted Kommodore of SG3. In March 1945 he was Kommodore of SG2 “Immelmann”, and in
the last weeks of the war was with the staff of the General der
Schalchtflieger. He flew over
500 combat missions, and was awarded the Knight’s Cross. |
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Hauptmann
Gerhard Studemann
“Stultz” Studemann joined Erganzungs-Stukastaffel.
VIII Fliegercorps in October 1940. In
February 1941 he was posted to 2./St.G.77 on the Channel Front, before
taking part in the Balkan Campaign. Transferring
to the Russian Front he took part in most of the major operations in that
theatre, including the Battle of Kursk, the Battle of Sevastopol, and the
Crimea. He served as
Grupprnadjutant I./St.G.77 until April 1943.
Staffelkapitian 7/St.G.151 until July 1943, Staffelkapitan 9/SG 77
until the end of 1944, and finally Gruppenkommandeur III./SG 77.
“Stutz” flew 996 combat missions, and was awarded the Knight’s
Cross-with Oak Leaves. |
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Major
Franz Kieslich
Franz Kieslich served with 7./St.G. 77 in France in
1940, and later serving in Yugoslavia.
Transferring to the Russian Front he was promoted Gruppenadjutant
III./St.G. 77. And in October 1942 became Staffelkapitan 7./St.G. 77.
In February 1944 he was promoted Kommandeur III./SG 77.
He fought at Stalingrad, Kursk, Kiev and most of the other major
engagements on the Eastern Front. In
February1945 he became Kommodore erganzungs-SG148.
Awarded the Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves, he flew over 1000
combat missions, and had been shot down twenty times. |
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Oberleutnant
Helmut Fickel
One of the outstanding Stuka pilots of III./SG 2 “Immelmann”,
Helmut fickle joined 8./St.G. 2 on the Eastern Front in February 1943. In October he became Adjutant of III./SG 2. and flew as
wingman to the great Hans-Ulrich Rudel, perhaps the most successful pilot
of World War II. In November
1944 Helmut was promoted Staffelkapitian of 9./SG 2, on one occasion he
and his radio operator being rescued by Rudel after crash landing behind
enemy lines. He led 9./SG 2
until the end of the war, completing a total of over 800 missions.
He was the Knight’s Crossin June 1944. |
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Second Lieutenant Elbert Hudson
In September 1942 elbert Hudson joined up and went for
pilot training at the Tuskegee flight school, graduating as a fighter
pilot on P51Bs. He soon found
himself posted to the 332nd fighter Group in Europe, where he
undertook the first of many combat missions in June 1944.
Elbert flew combat with the 332nd right through until
the end of hostilities in May 1945. |
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Colonel Charles McGee
Charles McGee graduated from flight school and
shipped out to Italy in December 1943 as a flight Lieutenant in the 302nd
fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group.
He flew missions in North Africa, Italy and Germany, and got his
first victory on 24th August flying escort in the Ploesti oil
field raid. After the war this outstanding flyer commanded fighter
squadrons throughout the United States, Italy, the Philippines and
Germany, logging up more than 6,100 hours in 409 combat missions spanning
World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Serving
in the armed forces for 30 years he holds the record of flying more combat
missions than any other USAF pilot in history. |
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First Lieutenant Arthur Sherman
Arthur Sherman joined up as soon as he could on 10th
April 1942, and after training was posted to the 15th Air force
in Italy, joining the 779th bomb Squadron, 464th
Bomb Group flying B25s. He
flew his first combat mission on 2nd May 1944.
Transferring to the 483rd Bomb Group he flew B17
Fortresses and was regularly escorted by the 332nd Tuskegee
Fighter Group. Among his
numerous strategic bombing missions were included the momentous raid to
Memingen airfield to destroy the factory where over 600 Me109s were being
made every month, together with the new Me262 jet fighter. |
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Second Lieutenant Lowell Steward
Entering the Tuskegee flight school for training in
july 1942, Lowell steward graduated as a fighter and was posted to Europe
to join the 100th Fighter Squadron, 332nd fighter
Group flying P51s. During his
service Lowell flew 143 combat missions with the 100th FS, and
remained in the service until July 1946. |
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Staff
Sergeant Leon Walden
Joining up in November 1942 Leon Walden trained to
become a waist gunner on B17 fortress, being posted to Europe, joining the
840th bomb Squadron, 483rd bomb Group in Italy.
Going into combat on 12th April 1944, Leon flew 50
combat missions with the 483rd, including the heroic raid on
the Me262 jet fighter factory at Memingen Airfield on 18th July
1944, when the group was attacked by a force of over 75 Luftwaffe
fighters. |
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