British Army

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Major General Sir Leslie Gordon Phillips KBE, CB, MC, LoH, MID
 
Major General Sir Leslie Gordon was born on the 11th of February 1892. After school he attended Sandhurst Military College before being commissioned into the Worcestershire Regiment in 1911. During the First World War he served with the 1st Battalion as well as on attachment to the Royal Engineers and Guards Signal Company. He was mentioned in dispatches three times and was awarded the Military Cross. 

After the war he transferred to the Royal Corps of Signals and gradually rose through the ranks, reaching Major General in 1941, which was confirmed in 1942. Phillips served as Director of Signals until his retirement in 1946, when he became Colonel Commandant until January 1954. During the Second World War he was awarded the United States' Legion of Honour and early postwar became a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Sir Leslie Gordon Phillips passed away in 1966.

Full biography coming soon. 
 
More about about Major General Sir Leslie Gordon KBE CB CBE MC MID LoH can be found in the London Gazette, npg.org.uk, & ukwhoswho.com

WWII peaked visor cap from General Phillips KBE CB MC

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General Sir Charles Richard Huxtable KCB, CBE, DL
 
General Sir Charles Richard Huxtable KCB CBE DL had a distinguished and colourful career, rising up to the second highest rank in the British Army, next only that of Field Marshal. He was the Commander in Chief of UK Land Forces, Commander of Land Forces in Northern Ireland and an Aide-de-Camp to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
 
Huxtable was born on the 22nd of July 1931. He was educated at Wellington College then attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, before being commissioned a Second Lieutenant into the Duke of Wellington Regiment on the 8th of February 1952. He saw active service during the Korean War, as an assistant Signals Officer, and heavy fighting on the approach to Seoul. He was confirmed a Lieutenant in February 1954 and then Captain in February 1958, becoming an Ordinary Member of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in June 1961. On the 8th of February 1965 Huxtable was promoted to Major, going on to serve in Cyprus on a peace keeping tour with the DWR in 1967. He was subsequently promoted to Lieutenant Colonel on the 30th of June 1969. For his services in Northern Ireland on Operation Banner he was made an OBE in February 1972. In June 1976 he reached the rank of Brigadier and was made an Ordinary Commander of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE).
 
From 1976 until 1978 he commanded the Dhofar Brigade, of the Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces, surviving a helicopter crash during that time. On the 22nd of October 1980 he was promoted to Acting Major-General, upon appointment to Commander of Land Forces Northern Ireland and was also Deputy Director of Operations, Northern Ireland, until the 19th of January 1982. On the 1st of February 1982 he was appointed Director of Army Staff Duties, Ministry of Defence, until September 1983. In October 1982 he then became the Colonel of the Duke of Wellington Regiment, until October 1990, reflecting back to his roots in the army. In December 1983 Lieutenant General Huxtable was appointed a Knight Commander of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath (K.C.B). He was the Colonel Commandant of the Kings Division from July 1983 until July 1988, and Quartermaster General, Ministry of Defence, from October 1986 until July 1988, also serving as the Senior Military Advisor to Saudi Arabia for HM Government. He was further promoted to Major-General on the 24th of January 1981 and then Lieutenant General upon appointment to be the Commander of Training Establishments in October 1983. He was made a full General on the 27th of October 1987. In September 1988 he was made an Aide-de-Camp to HM The Queen and appointed C-in-C, UK Land Forces. After a 38 year career he retired on the 3rd of December 1990. However, General Huxtable’s retirement was far from quiet. From the 1st of July 1991 until the 30th of June 1992 he was the Colonel Commandant of the Ulster Defence Regiment, then from July the 1st 1992 he was Colonel of the Royal Irish Regiment until July 1996. On the 6th of May 1994 he was appointed the Deputy Lieutenant for the County of North Yorkshire. General Sir Charles Richard Huxtable KCB CBE DL passed away on November the 26th 2018, aged 87 years old.
 
More about about General Sir Charles Richard Huxtable KCB CBE DL can be found in the London Gazette, www.thetimes.co.uk,  www.telegraph.co.uk, www.oman.org.uk,  & ukwhoswho.com

Uniform items from General Huxtable KCB, CBE, DL

Peaked visor cap from General Huxtable KCB, CBE, DL

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SAS Trooper, Special Air Service.

This unknown SAS veteran was based in Hereford, neighbouring Worcestershire, and saw action in Oman, Indonesia or Aden during the late 1950s and 60s. He may well have been a senior NCO, judging from the Other Ranks badge and private purchase Herbert Johnson beret. The Special Air Service is the Godfather of the world’s special forces. It was formed during the Second World War in North Africa by Colonel David Sterling formerly of the Scots Guards, as a deadly strike force operating deep behind enemy lines. Using the element of surprise it hit hard and fast causing maximum damage and disruption to airfields and installations before disappearing back into the desert. After World War 2 the SAS was reformed and honed their skills and reputation as the world’s foremost elite fighting force, on covert operations in Malaya, Aden, Northern Ireland, Falklands, Iraq, and, Afghanistan, as well as the publicised Iranian Embassy siege of 1982.

Special Air Service beret.

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SAS Trooper, Special Air Service. Circa 1980.

Not much is known about this SAS trooper, as such articles of headdress are rarely ever named, aside from the fact that his beret dates to 1979/1980 and shows obvious wear. He may very well have taken part in the daring operation to free the hostages from the Iranian Embassy in London, in April - May 1980, when the  Special Air Service stepped out of the shadows and drew world media attention and admiration. And/or possibly he saw action behind enemy lines during the Falklands War. It certainly fits the timeframe.

On an interesting side note, if you are a fellow The Professionals and Bodie fan, the actor Lewis Collins actually served with the Paras and tried out for the SAS. He also took the lead role in the 1982 film “Who Dares Wins”, based upon the then recent embassy siege. Film stills show him wearing a similar beret.

Special Air Service beret. 1980.

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Major-General John Antony Ward-Booth OBE DL

​Major General John Antony “Tony” Ward-Booth was born in 1927. In the late 1930s he attended Hillstone Prep School in Great Malvern (now part of Malvern College) and went to Worksop College in Nottinghamshire before joining the Worcestershire Regiment as a Second Lieutenant on the 28th of April 1946. He was then promoted to Lieutenant in January 1949, transferring to the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Regiment. In July 1961 he was promoted to Major in the 3rd Battalion East Anglian Regiment but transferred again to the Parachute Regiment in December 1963. During the late 1960s he commanded the 3rd Battalion and in June 1967 was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, before being made an OBE on the 14th of June 1969. In the early 1970s he was CO of the 16th Parachute Brigade and was promoted to Brigadier in December 1970. From 1964 until 1975 he also served as Deputy Adjutant General of the British Army of the Rhine. He was promoted to Acting Major-General in July 1976, made substantive four months later, and was made the Director of the Army Air Corps. He then became the Commanding Officer of the West Midlands District from February 1979 until March 1982, retiring from active service on April the 26th 1982. He was then appointed Deputy Colonel of the Royal Anglian Regiment in February 1982 until the 18th of January 1988 when he was made a Deputy Lieutenant for Hampshire. During his career he served in the BAOR in Germany, Canada, the Far East, India, and Africa. At age of 75 Major-General John Antony Ward-Booth OBE DL passed away in 2002.

More about Major-General John Antony Ward-Booth OBE DL can be found in the London Gazette and at www.kingscollections.org 

Parachute Brigade senior officer's beret. Major-General John Antony Ward-Booth

Parachute Regiment Generals beret

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Captain Matthew Rodger Selfridge MID GSM, Parachute Regiment

Captain Matthew Rodger Selfridge was born on the 14th of February 1959. He grew up in Edinburgh Scotland and went to Welbeck College and the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst before joining 3 Para as a Second Lieutenant, on the 8th of April 1978. He was promoted to Lieutenant in April 1980 and by 1982 was an Acting Captain. Upon being commissioned he took over command of 6 Platoon, B Company before becoming the CO of the Patrols Platoon, Support Company. During the Falklands War he was Operations Officer for which he was recommended the Military Cross but was awarded a Mention in Dispatches, on the 8th of October 1982. His forward recce for the Battle of Mount Longdon provided valuable intel for the subsequent night attack, of which he then took part, successfully destroying an enemy strong point that was stalling the attack. During his short career he was posted to West Germany, Northern Ireland, Canada, Oman, and the Falklands, earning the South Atlantic Medal with rosette, as well as the General Service Medal (1962) for Northern Ireland. Having fought through the Falklands campaign, Captain Selfridge passed away at the age of 23 on the 17th of July 1982, being tragically killed in a parachute jump shortly after his arrival back in the UK.

More about Captain Matthew Selfridge can be found in the London Gazette and at paradata.org.uk

Parachute Regiment Airborne helmet. Captain "Matt" Selfridge, 3 Para. Falklands War

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​Royal Air Force

Air Marshal Sir John Frederick Andrews Higgins KCB,  KBE, DSO, AFC, MiD.
 
Air Marshal Sir John Higgins served with the Royal Field Artillery in South Africa, during the Boer War, before permanent secondment to the Royal Flying Corps. in 1912. When the Royal Air Force was created Major General Higgins, known as "Bum and eye glass" was one of its six most senior officers, along side Lord Trenchard, its founding father. In World War Two he held the top position of Air Officer Commander in Chief, Royal Air Force India.

John Frederick Andrews Higgins was born on the 1st of September 1875. In 1893 he attended the Royal Military Academy Woolwich, for two years, before obtaining a commission in the Royal Field Artillery, as Second Lieutenant on the 15th of June 1895. In June of 1898 he was further promoted to Lieutenant. He then followed the regiment overseas, participating in the 2nd Boer War, where he saw promotion to Captain and Adjutant on the 23rd of March 1901. He was Mentioned in Dispatches on the 10th of September, and would eventually go on to be mentioned another five times during the First World War. He was also awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his actions in South Africa, whilst a Lieutenant, on the 27th of September 1901. He made Major on the 30th of August 1911. On Monday the 28th of October 1912, he was seconded to the newly formed Royal Flying Corps., as a Flight Commander, where he remained throughout the First World War and into the establishment of the Royal Air Force. He was made a Squadron Commander in May 1913. On the 9th of November 1914 was promoted to Temporary Lieutenant Colonel and assumed command of training. He was promoted to Temporary Colonel, on the 18th of February 1915, with actual rank of Brevet Lieutenant Colonel. Which became Temporary Brigadier General on the 25th of August 1915. On January the 1st 1918 he was promoted to Brevet Colonel, with the rank of Temporary Brigadier General. Then at the end of April, now a Temporary Major General, was appointed Area Commander of No.3 Area (Midland Area).

In January 1919 he was made a Brigade Commander, then on June the 5th was awarded the Air Force Cross, for his actions in France. At the beginning of August, as one of the old boys, Higgins was given a permanent commission in the Royal Air Force, with the official rank of Major General as well as the newly created rank of Air Vice Marshal. In October he took over command of Northern Area before serving a term at the Air Ministry, as Director of Personnel. From April 1922 he served as Air Officer Commanding Inland Area, prior to becoming AOC of Iraq Command on the 1st April 1924 until November 1926. Air Vice Marshal Higgins was made a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire on the 3rd of June 1925. He was the Air Member for Supply and Organisation from December 1926 until September 1930, before retirement, where he oversaw Airship development. Perhaps even observing the tests from Airship R33 carried out by Flying Officer Ragg (later Air Vice Marshal - see biography below), prior to taking up  the post. On the 4th of June 1928 he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath, and in the following New Year’s list of January 1929 was promoted to Air Marshal. Higgins retired from the Royal Air Force in August 1930, and settled in India. He then served on the board of several aircraft and automobile companies. In October 1939 however, with the country once again at war, he was called back to the colours and appointed the AOCinC (Air Officer Commanding in Chief) of the Royal Air Force India, in Delhi. In August 1940 he retired from active service for a second time, returning to England, where he passed away in on the 1st of June 1948, aged 73.

More about Air Marshal Sir John Higgins can be found in the London Gazette and rafweb.org , www.rafmuseum.org.uk, www.bharat-rakshak.com, www.gulabin.com, www.aerosociety.com, and ukwhoswho.com.
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Air Marshal Sir John Frederick Andrews Higgins KCB, KBE, DSO, AFC, MiD. Letter dated 1925.

Air Marshal Sir John Frederick Andrews Higgins KCB, KBE, DSO, AFC, MiD's peak cap.

Sir John Frederick Andrews Higgins. www.npg.org.uk

Sir John Frederick Andrews Higgins
by Walter Stoneman
bromide print, 1930
8 1/8 in. x 6 in. (206 mm x 152 mm) image size
Commissioned, 1930
Photographs Collection
NPG x168301

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Air Chief Marshal's visor cap. Early Second World War period.

Notable World War Two Air Chief Marshals included Sir Hugh Dowding, AOC of Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain. Arthur Tedder, AOC RAF Mediterranean Command, Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory​, holding key commands during the Battle of Britain and Normandy, and Sir Arthur "Bomber" Harris, CinC of Bomber Command. Such senior officers held important posts in the various Royal Air Force branches during the war, with some playing a particularly important role. Even the British Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill was an Honorary Air Commodore.​

Unfortunately, we do not know who this particular officer was or indeed which exact rank he held, but the stiff shape of his Flights Ltd tailor outfitted cap, with its wide peak, shows us that he was promoted to Air Rank during the 1930s or early on in the Second World War. Air Officers held the rank of Air Commodore, Air Vice Marshal, Air Marshal, and Air Chief Marshal. They were given the honour of wearing a cap laden with two rows of golden oakleaves on their peak, as well as a unique and distinctive badge. Our featured example is certainly quite a looker, which unfortunately the moths have also appreciated, rather a little too much!

Air Chief Marshal visor peaked cap. 1930s / Second World War period.

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Air Vice Marshal Sir Edward  Arthur  Beckton Rice KBE, CB, MC, MID.

Edward Arthur Beckton Rice was born in Oxford on the 19th of December 1893. After attending Sandhurst Military College he was promoted to Lieutenant in the Royal Flying Corps, on the 8th of June 1915, and attended the Central Flying School. During the First World War he was wounded in action and later awarded a Military Cross. After the war "Ed" Rice took up duties with the Army of Occupation and was posted to Iraq between 1920 and 1921 where he was Mentioned in Dispatches. From 1929 to around 1933 he was the CO of 216 Squadron in Egypt. On the 1st of November 1938 he was promoted to Group Captain and in June of 1941 Air Commodore. In January 1941 he was awarded a CBE and was again Mentioned in Dispatches in March. Air Vice Marshal Rice commanded HQ 1 Group Bomber Command, from 1943 to 1945, and on the 12th of June 1945 was awarded the Order of Polonia Restitutia 1st Class. He was made a KBE on the 1st of January 1946. On retiring from the RAF he moved to Kenya. Air Vice Marshal Sir Edward Arthur Beckton Rice passed away on the 14th of April 1948, aged 54.

More about Sir Edward Rice can be found in the London Gazette, militaryimages.net, iwm.org.uk, npg.org.uk, and rafweb.org.

World War II Air Vice Marshal's RAF cap. Air Vice Marshal Sir Edward Arthur Beckton Rice

Sir Edward Arthur Beckton Rice. www.npg.org.uk

Sir Edward Arthur Beckton Rice
by Walter Stoneman
bromide print, March 1945
5 in. x 3 3/8 in. (128 mm x 87 mm) image size
Commissioned, 1945
Photographs Collection
NPG x159891

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Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh William Lumsden Saunders GCB KBE MC DFC* MM

Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Saunders had a very distinguished career, winning the Military Cross, Military Medal and Distinguished Flying Cross with bar. Rising up from private to the highest achievable rank, that of Air Chief Marshal. During the First World War he joined the Royal Flying Corps and quickly became an ace with 15 victories. He held key command positions in World War II and later became Inspector General of the Royal Air Force, as well as Commander in Chief of HQ Air Forces Western Europe, ending his career as Air Deputy to Supreme Allied Commander Europe, at SHAPE (NATO).

Hugh Lumsden Saunders, known as “Dingbat”, was born on the 24th of August 1894, in Johannesburg, in the Transvaal Republic, modern day Republic of South Africa. He grew up in Germiston and went to school at Marist Brothers' College. When the First World War began Saunders joined the the South African Army in August 1914, aged 20, with the Witwatersrand Rifles regiment, before serving with the 8th South African Horse. He remained in Africa during the first three years of the conflict, promoted to Lance Corporal and winning the Military Medal on the 12th of March 1917. In May 1917 he joined the Royal Flying Corps. in England, as a Cadet and in August 1917 was promoted to Temporary Second Lieutenant, confirmed in October. Promotion to Captain came on the 25th of May 1918. On the 16th of August 1918 he was awarded the Military Cross, for destroying five airplanes and shooting down four more. Then three months later, on the 2nd of November, a Distinguished Flying Cross, for shooting down two enemy balloons and another six aircraft. After the war, in August of 1919 Saunders was given a permanent commission in the RAF. Having racked up an impressive fifteen victories and earning the reputation as a WW1 air ace.
 
He was then posted overseas and rejoined 84 Squadron in Mesopotamia, modern day Iraq, where he took part in the relief of the gunboat, HMS Greenfly and the garrison at Samawah, for which he was awarded a bar to his DFC, on the 28th of October 1921. (Incidentally on the same date as Flying Officer David D’Arcy Greig, later Air Commodore, was awarded his DFC). In December 1923 he was posted back to England and from 1924 until 1928 was at the Air Ministry, before a spell at the RAF Staff college and promotion to Squadron Leader on the 29th of May 1929. In December he was posted to the ADGB HQ (Air Defence Great Britain) until January 1932 when he became CO of No. 45 Squadron, in the Middle East. In 1935 he was training at the Air Ministry and was promoted to Wing Commander 1936. However, in January 1938 he attended the Imperial Defence College. In February 1939 Saunders became Chief of Air Staff, New Zealand, and was made Group Captain on the 1st of April 1939. On the 1st March 1941 he was promoted to Temporary Air Commodore. In December 1941 he was appointed AOA (Air Officer Administration) of Fighter Command HQ, until November 1942 when he became AOC of No.11 Group. Promotion to Temporary Air Vice Marshal came just a month later. He was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath on the 2nd of June 1943. During the D Day landings he was was responsible for RAF fighter operations. Then followed a posting to the Air Ministry. On the 12th of June 1945 Saunders was awarded the Polish Order of Polonia Restituta, 2nd class. He served as Director General of Personal until July 1945 when he was posted to the Far East as Commander of RAF Burma, now an Air Marshal. He then served as AOC or Bomber Command from January 1947 until October 1949 when he was appointed Inspector General of the Royal Air Force.  For his outstanding command during the war he was awarded the Legion of Merit Commander, on the 20th of April 1948, by the US President.

He was promoted to Air Chief Marshal in May 1950. In February 1951 he was made the Commander in Chief of Air Forces, Western Forces before becoming the Air Deputy to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Dwight Eisenhower,  where he attended the SHAPE conference in December 1951, planning the organising and future of NATO defence in Western Europe. Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Saunders was made a Knight Grand Cross of Most Honourable Order of the Bath in June 1953, prior to his retirement on the 27th of July 1953. After an impressive military career, rising up from humble foot soldier to the highest ranks of the Royal Air Force, and an astonishing thirty nine years service. His retirement was anything but quiet as he then became an advisor to the Danish Government on the reconstruction and organisation of their air force, for which he was awarded the Grand Cross Order of Dannebrog, on the 20th of November 1956. Returning to the United Kingdom, he settled down in Wiltshire and passed away on the 8th of May 1987, aged 92. 

More about Sir Hugh Saunders can be found in the London Gazette, www.gulabin.com,  iwm.org.uk, Australian War Memorial, www.samilhistory.com, 
www.oxforddnb.com, www.salegion.org.uk, www.durhammuseum.contentdm.oclc.org, 
www.theaerodrome.com, nara.getarchive.net, npg.org.uk, and rafweb.org, and ukwhoswho.com.

World War II Air Chief Marshal's RAF cap, 1945. Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh William Lumsden Saunders

© IWM CH 7952 / AIR VICE MARSHAL H.W.L. SAUNDERS, CBE.,MC.,DFC.,MM., AIR OFFICER COMMANDING NO.11 GROUP, ROYAL AIR FORCE. IWM Non-Commercial Licence

Penang, Malaya. C. 1945-07. Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Park, Allied Air Commander-in-Chief, South East Asia (centre), with Air Marshal Sir Hugh Saunders, Air Marshal Commanding RAF Burma (right), and Air Vice Marshal A. T. Cole, RAAF Observer Officer (extreme left), on Georgetown airfield, near Penang. Source: Australian War Memorial. SUK14753. Copyright expired - public domain

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Air Commodore David D'Arcy Alexander Greig DFC AFC

Air Commodore David D'Arcy Alexander Greig had an incredible and impressive Royal Air Force career, from flying fragile biplanes in WW1 to testing G suits and the first jet plane in WW2. He was a skilled pilot, flying 140 different airplanes, escaped enemy territory during wartime, set a world speed record, and was even part of Britain's 1929 Schneider Trophy winning team, securing 3rd place. You can watch the actual footage of Flight Lieutenant D'Arcy Greig setting the world speed record of 319.57mph in 1928, on the British Pathé website.

Greig’s eventful career was carefully noted down in his amusing and must read autobiography, My Golden Flying Years: From 1918 Over France, Through Iraq in the 1920s, to the Schneider Trophy Race of 1929, (Grub Street Publishing, London 2011). Reviewed here. It was a career filled with adventure and the almost carefree atmosphere of the golden age of flight, mixed with antics and pranks, and an obvious amount of fun thrown in, such as toilet paper bombing raids on neighbouring units or fireworks in the mess!

David D‘Arcy Alexander Greig was born on the 1st of February 1900. He was schooled at Weston House School, Elgin Academy and Shrewsbury House. In 1917 he became a Flying Cadet with the Royal Flying Corps. before being commissioned a Second Lieutenant on the 20th of August 1918, in the newly formed Royal Air Force. During the closing stages of the war he flew with 83 Squadron on Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.2.b bombers. During one bombing raid his aircraft was shot down and forced to land behind enemy lines. Along with his Observer, they managed to evade the enemy and sneak back 13 miles to safely. He was then posted back to England. On the 1st of August 1919 he was promoted to Pilot Officer with further promotion to Flying Officer coming just over a month later, on the 12th of September, 1919. In 1920 he joined 6th Squadron and was posted to Mesopotamia, where he flew observation, strafing and bomber escort missions, mainly flying the Bristol Fighter, against the insurgent uprising. “Mespot” was a mixture or fun and adventure, with the odd sombre moments of tragedy.

In his downtime, together with a few of his fellow officers, Grieg repaired surplus cars and motorcycles for the recreational use of the squadron and can be seen posing, in the propeller tip frame, on a Douglas around 1921. The mahogany frame itself may well have come from a RE8 or Avro 504, flown by Grieg during this time. For his bold low level actions in Mespot he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, on the 28th of October 1921. Incidentally, Greig’s CO whilst at 6th Squadron was none other than Ed Rice (later Air Vice Marshal Sir Edward Arthur Beckton Rice KBE, CB, MC, MID. See earlier biography ). After three years to the day in Iraq he arrived back in England on the 13th of February 1923. He was then given a permanent commission, with official London Gazette date of 22nd of May, as well as six months well deserved leave before a brief Air Pilotage Course and a posting to 24th Squadron. In March 1924 he was then posted to No.13 Flying Instructors’ Course, at the Central Flying School in Upavon, flying Avro 504K trainers. On completion he was given the honour of appointment as an instructor at the CFS. During the next years he experimented and developed his aerobatics skills and repertoire, most notably his trademark “Falling Leaf” stunt. In August 1926, whilst performing the stunt in front of a crowd he crashed to the ground, miraculously emerging from the wreckage unharmed. His display team would later perform at Hendon and other events.

On the 1st of January 1927 he was made a Flight Lieutenant, and was duly posted to Headquarters Fighting Area, RAF Uxbridge, becoming the RAF‘s first Examining Officer, in April 1927. There, he was quickly tasked with investigating reports into the potentially fatal spinning of Gloster Gamecocks. During one test flight his Gamecock failed to recover from a spin, forcing Greig to bail out at the last moment using one of the relatively recent issued parachutes. The airplane crashed mere minutes later. For his actions he was to be awarded the Air Force Cross on the 4th of June 1928. During that time he also took part in air displays and smaller flying competitions, as well as working closely with the aircraft manufacturer De Havilland. In May 1928 Greig was chosen as the new CO of the High Speed Flight, Experimental Section, seeking to win gain the world speed record for Great Britain.

In May 1928 Greig was chosen as the new CO of the High Speed Flight, Experimental Section, seeking to win the world speed record for Great Britain. In November of that year, flying Supermarine N220, he unofficially broke the world speed record, with 319.57mph, and set the record for the British Seaplane Class C. In September 1929, he was one of the three pilots in Britain‘s Schneider Trophy racing team, which won, with Greig coming in third. On the 28th of October 1929 he was posted to 9 Bomber/Transport Squadron, then in March 1930 to No.216 Bomber Squadron, at RAF Heliopolis, Cairo, flying the Vickers Victoria troop transport. A cumbersome twin engine biplane. Between January 1932 and 1933 he was Station Adjutant at the Aircraft Depot, RAF Aboukir, near Alexandria, before becoming the Adjutant at RAF Amman. In August 1934 he returned to the UK and became the CO of the Aerodynamic Flight, at the Royal Aircraft Establishment, RAF Farnborough. The following December,1935, he was promoted to Squadron Leader. In March 1936 he took a training course at the CFS, then became a squadron Chief Flying Instructor at No. 9 FTS. In 1937 he was made Chief Instructor at the Central Flying School. On the 1st of November 1938 came promotion to Wing Commander and the post of Commanding Officer of No. 75 Bomber Squadron, which in mid 1939 were flying Wellington Bombers, at RAF Honington. In January 1940 however, he was posted to the Royal Canadian Air Force and No. 1 Training Command, in Canada. It was during this time that he began testing the Franks Hydrostatic Suit, in a Spitfire, to combat blackouts during fast and tight G manoeuvres. He made Group Captain on the 1st of March 1941, which was confirmed in December 1944, and became Senior Air Officer to No. 4 Training Command.

​In April 1942 he was posted to No. 31 Service Flying Training School, however in September he returned to England as Commanding Officer of the Marine Experimental Establishment. Then on the 25th of April 1943 he was promoted to Air Commodore, assuming command of the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) at Boscombe Down, where researching and testing of new aircraft and components was carried out. In early 1944 he was one of the first service pilots to fly the Gloster Whittle jet powered prototype and in April also flew de Havilland‘s Spider Crab prototype. Which entered service as the D.100 in 1946. In June 1944 he became the CO of No. 3 Group Area, Bomber Command, until July 1946, and his last command, that of AOC, HQ 91 Group. After a career spanning nearly thirty years and overseeing the transition from biplanes to monoplanes to jet planes he retired from the Royal Air Force, on the 27th of November 1946, retaining his rank of Air Commodore. In retirement Greig became President of the Bexhill RAF Association Club and continued flying in civilian clubs and indulging his love of motorbikes. Air Commodore David D'Arcy Alexander Greig DFC AFC passed away on the 7th of July 1986, aged 86 years old.

More about Air Commodore David D'Arcy Alexander Greig can be found in the Air Force Lists, London Gazette, rafweb.org, www.iwm.org.uk, www.britishpathe.com, and in his published autobiography.
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Second World War 1943 Air Commodore's Field Service cap. Air Commodore David D'Arcy Alexander Greig

Air Commodore David D'Arcy Alexander Greig DFC AFC, "My Golden Flying Years".

Flying Officer David D'Arcy Alexander Greig in "Mespot" during the 1920s. Mesopotamia - modern day Iraq.

Air Commodore David D'Arcy Alexander Greig DFC AFC, Schneider Trophy Contest 1929 programme and Aviator's Assistant armband.

© IWM H(am) 323 / Supermarine S.5 seaplane at Calshot for the 1929 Schneider Trophy Competition held on 6 - 7 September. This machine, flown by Flight Lieutenant David D'Arcy Alexander Greig, finished in third place. IWM Non-Commercial Licence.

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Air Marshal Sir John Rene Whitley KBE, CB, DSO, AFC*, MiD.

Air Marshal Sir John Rene Whitley’s RAF career must rank up there as being among the most unique and indeed colourful, from piloting movie stars and Prime Ministers, to being shot down over occupied France and daring escape back to England. He was awarded the Air Force Cross with Bar (twice) and Mentioned in Dispatches 3 times during the war. One of Bomber Command’s wartime commanders he became Inspector General of the Royal Air Force postwar and was even a flight record holder.
 
John Rene Whitley was born on the 7th of September 1905, to an English father and French mother. Due to his father’s work he spent his childhood in Chile and France, attending the prestigious Haileybury school in Hertfordshire. In 1926 he joined the Royal Air Force as a Pilot Officer, serving with 7 Squadron, flying the Vickers Virginia heavy bomber, before being posted to 101 Squadron on medium bombers. He was confirmed a Flying Officer on the 27th of May 1931 and in February 1932 was promoted to Flight Lieutenant. Then followed an overseas posting to India, with the Bomber Transport Flight. It was during this posting that he was awarded his first Air Force Cross, on the 2nd of February 1937, for his contribution to the relief effort of the 1935 Quetta earthquake. 1937 saw promotion to Squadron Leader and in August he became Flight Commander of 38 (B) Squadron, with Hendon and Wellington bombers. A command he held until August 1939 when he assumed command of the VIP Flight, No. 24 Squadron. With the esteemed honour of piloting Prime Ministers, Neville Chamberlain and Winston Churchill, as as well as other VIPs and film stars. On the 12th of March 1940 he made Wing Commander, prior to assuming command of 149 Squadron, equipped with Wellingtons. For the next 6 months Whitley served in Bomber Command, as Wing Commander of Operations, before becoming Station Commander of RAF Linton-on-Ouse, from May 1941. He was Mentioned in Dispatches on the 24th of September 1941, with further promotion to Temporary Group Captain in June 1942, and was Mentioned in Dispatches again (Dated 2nd of June 1943, whilst posted as missing). He remained at Linton-on-Ouse until April 1943, when his Halifax bomber was shot down over France but managed to escape to Spain, with the help of the French Resistance. For which he was awarded a Distinguished Service Order on the 9th of July 1943. A gripping account of which can be read in Paul Brickhill’s excellent WW2 RAF escape book, “Escape -or die”. A most enjoyable and recommended read indeed. Back home Whitley took over command of RAF Lissett in September 1943. After six months he was promoted to Air Rank, with Air Commodore, becoming Air Officer Commanding of No. 43 Base (Driffield) in April 1944. In June 1944 he was Mentioned in Dispatches for a third time. In October he was confirmed Group Captain. On the 12th of February 1945 he was promoted to Acting Air Vice Marshal and was AOC of No. 4 Group until May when he became the Air Officer Commanding of No. 8 (Pathfinder Force) Group. In June of 1945 he was made a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, then in November 1945 served as Air Officer Administration, Air Command South East Asia, HQ Singapore. In the January 1946 New Year Honour’s List he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath, with promotion to Air Commodore, rank confirmed in July 1947. In December he served a term as Director of Organisation (Establishments) at the Air Ministry in London, prior to attending the Imperial Defence College in 1950. The 26th of January saw him reinstated as Acting Air Vice Marshal, which was confirmed in June of that year, during his posting as AOA, 2nd Tactical Air Force in Germany, from January till April 1953. He was then appointed Air Officer Commanding No.1 Group Bomber/Strike Command. As CO he took part in the 1955 tour of Canada and the Carribean, with Canberras and Hastings from 511 Squadron and 139 (Jamaica) Squadron, as well as across the globe, setting a speed record for flying from Scampton to Cyprus, in an English Electric Canberra. At the end of May 1956 he was awarded a Bar to his Air Force Cross, and was also elevated to Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. On the 1st of November he was promoted Acting Air Marshal, which was confirmed in January of 1957, when he was appointed Air Member for Personal. On the 3rd of June 1959 he was given his final command, that of Inspector General of the Royal Air Force, before retiring on the 1st of June 1962. In retirement Air Marshal Whitley was involved with the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund and recorded his service memoirs for the Imperial War Museum, in 1992. At the ripe old age of 92, he passed away on the 26th of December 1997.

More about Air Marshal Sir John Rene Whitley can be found in the Air Force Lists, London Gazette, rafweb.org, www.iwm.org.uk, www.gulabin.com, www.bywat.co.uk, www.key.aero, www.raf.mod.uk, www.ancestry.com, and ukwhoswho.com.
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Air Marshal Sir John Rene Whitley KBE, CB, DSO, AFC*, MiD daring escape exploit in "Escape or Die".

Second World War 1944 Air Marshal's Field Service cap. Air Marshal Sir John Rene Whitley.

© IWM CH 15248 / Air Vice Marshal J R Whitley. ROYAL AIR FORCE BOMBER COMMAND, 1942-1945. IWM Non-Commercial Licence.

© IWM CH 13592 / H.R.H. THE DUKE OF GLOUCESTER VISITS R.A.A.F. SQUADRON. (Image dated 1944. A/Cdre Whitley 6th from right). IWM Non-Commercial Licence.

© IWM CH 13593 / H.R.H. THE DUKE OF GLOUCESTER VISITS R.A.A.F. SQUADRON. (Image dated 1944. A/Cdre Whitley standing in doorway). IWM Non-Commercial Licence.

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Air Commodore Walter Karl Beisiegel OBE
 
Walter Karl Beisiegel was born in Uppingham Rutland on the 13th of July 1907. He went to Uppingham School where he developed quite a skill for playing cricket, going on to become a professional player for the Royal Air Force and the county of Leicestershire during the 1920s and 30s. After Attending the Royal Air Force Cadet College Cranwell he was made a Pilot Officer on the 17th December 1927 and then Flying Officer in June 1929. In August 1937 he was promoted to Squadron Leader and in June 1940 a Temporary Wing Commander. In December 1943 as a Temporay Group Captain, he was confirmed a Wing Commander and in July of 1947 made a Substantive Group Captain. However upon his posting to South America in April 1945 he was promoted to Acting Air Commodore and appointed Air Attaché for Beunos Aires, Asuncion and Montevideo, a hotbed for international espionage during WW2. After the war he was made Senior RAF Officer Kenya from May 1954 until September 1955, improving air operations in the country and relations with that government. In June 1950 he was awarded an OBE before retiring from the RAF on the 10th of April 1956. When he then moved to Kenya, becoming a farmer. Air Commodore Walter Karl Beisiegel passed away on the 8th of January 1973, at the young age of 65.
 
Beisiegel and the royal connection.
In 1929 a low flying adventurous young Pilot Officer buzzed a stately home in Scotland, where the future Queen Mother was staying. Sometime around this time her Royal Highness suffered a miscarriage. Walter Beisiegel was that pilot and apparently felt responsible. Whether or not this was true or just coincident we shall never know, but you can read about the intriguing story in an excellent article from the Daily Mail British newspaper. (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2225089/Did-buzzed-biplane-make-Queen-Mother-lose-son-King.html).

More about Air Commodore Walter Karl Beisiegel can be found in the London Gazette, rafweb.org, https://digital.nls.uk/gallery/ and www.dailymail.co.uk.

Second World War Air Commodore's peak cap. Air Commodore Walter Karl Beisiegel

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Air Vice Marshal Norman Stuart Allinson CB, MiD.
 
During the Second World War Air Vice Marshal Allinson served in the Middle East with distinction, being mentioned in despatches twice and overseeing coastal and training commands. He was also part of the committee planning Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1952.
 
Norman Stuart Allinson was born on the 9th of April 1904 and educated at Trent college in Nottingham, before attending the Royal Air Force Cadet College, Cranwell. From there he was commissioned a Pilot Officer on the 17th of December 1924. In the late 20s he was promoted to Flying Officer and then Flight Lieutenant on the 14th of May 1930. On the 1st of February 1937 he became a Squadron Leader. During the Second World War he served in Coastal Command before postings in the Middle East. In March 1940 he was promoted Wing Commander and made a Group Captain (Temp) in March 1942. He was Mentioned in Dispatches on the 1st of January 1944. In March of that year he became the Air Officer Commanding of Number 212 Group, specialising in sea rescue and coastal patrols, with promotion to Temporary Air Commodore, then took command of Force 438. On the 8th of June he was Mentioned in Disptaches a second time. In September 1944 he was promoted to War Subs Group Captain and on the 1st January 1946 confirmed Group Captain, with official promotion to Air Commodore (Temp), from Wing Commander Temporary Air Commodore. He was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath, on the 1st of January 1946. On the 1st of July 1947 he was confirmed Air Commodore. He was then appointed Air Officer Commanding in Southern Rhodesia, for the Rhodesian Air Training Group, before assuming various command posts in personnel and administration, during the 1950s. On the 15th of May 1951 he was promoted to Acting Air Vice Marshal, which was confirmed 2 months later. When Queen Elizabeth II succeeded the throne from the late King George VI, Air Vice Marshal Allinson was a member of the Executive Committee overseeing the coronation planning. On the 17th of September 1956 he retired from the Royal Air Force, becoming a Deputy Lieutenant for the county of Essex, from July 1962 until September 1984. Air Vice Marshal Allinson passed away on the 8th of October 1984.
 
More about AVM N. S. Allinson CB MID can be found at the London Gazette, rafweb.org, and ukwhoswho.com.
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Second World War Air Vice Marshal's peak cap. AVM N. S. Allinson.

Second World War Air Vice Marshal's best peak cap. AVM N. S. Allinson.

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Air Vice Marshal Robert Linton Ragg CB, CBE, AFC, CBD (SC), MiD
 
AVM Ragg began his career during the formative adventurous years of the Royal Air Force, was an experimental test pilot and held key commands during and after the Second World War. He was also one of a small number to be awarded the AFC between the wars, as well as the prestigious Chinese Cloud and Banner Decoration with Special Cravat, for his exemplary service in WW2.
 
Robert Linton Ragg was born in Reigate on the 9th of April 1901. He was educated at Dragon School, before going on to Dulwich College in London. He joined the Royal Air Force just three months shy of his 20th birthday, commissioning as a Pilot Officer on the 15th of January 1921, at the dawning of the Golden Age of flight. He was swiftly posted to Kurdistan where he flew sorties with the young “Bomber” Harris, on operations to protect British interest in neighbouring Iraq. On the 23rd of December 1924 he was promoted to Flying officer. In 1925 he returned to the UK and took up a posting as test pilot for the coveted Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE), Farnborough. In October 1926 he was part of an elite team exploring the feasibility of airborne aircraft carriers. Strapped into two Gloster Grebes fighters, Ragg and a fellow pilot, C. Mackenzie-Richards, were released from Airship R33 and landed ultimately successfully, reminiscent of a scene from an “Indiana Jones” movie. As if that wasn’t enough adventure in 1926 Flying Officer Ragg also won Second Prize from the Daily Mail Light Aeroplane Competition, together with Flight Lieutenant J. H. Chick MC AFC, flying a Hawker Cygnet. As well as taking home the Pilcher Memorial Prize, from the Royal Aeronautical Society. In July 1927 he made Flight Lieutenant. Incidentally, Ragg was hoping to set a non-stop record to Bucharest from Lympne Airfield in Kent, with the Hawker Cygnet on the 23rd of August 1927, when overloaded with fuel, it crashed on take-off. For his attachment to the RAE Ragg was awarded the Air Force Cross on the 2nd of January 1928. From 1931 he was posted to RAF Basra in Iraq and served through 1933, with No. 203 (F.B) Squadron. Most probably being awarded King Feisal's War Medal, for Iraq, during this period. Promotion to Squadron Leader also came in February 1936, by which time Ragg had become a specialist in Navigation, working on interception techniques, with Gloster Gauntlets, from 30 Squadron, as mentioned in David Zimmerman’s “Britain's Shield: Radar and the Defeat of the Luftwaffe”, Amberley Publishing 2010. Around January 1938 Ragg was listed as a student at RAF Staff College, before being Attached to the Staff of No.2 Bomber Group, Bomber Command by May 1938. Just prior to the start of the Second World War he was promoted to Wing Commander, on the 3rd of January 1939. A year later he was posted to Bomber Command HQ, specialising on Navigation Staff Duties. On the 10th of June 1941 he was made a Group Captain (Temp), which was  followed by a position at the British Air Commission in Washington D.C. Returning from the USA he was made Senior Air Staff Officer No.15 Group and reached Air Rank in December 1943 with promotion to Air Commodore (Temp). On the 14th of January 1944 he was Mentioned in Dispatches and in April appointed Deputy Air Officer Commanding, No. 222 Group in Colombo, Ceylon. On the 8th of June 1944 he was Mentioned in Dispatches again. In the New Year’s Honours list of 1945, he was made a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. With promotion to Acting Air Vice Marshal, on the 23rd of April 1945. Reverting to Air Commodore at the end of June 1946. By the 23rd of April 1945 he was the Air Officer Administration (AOA) for HQ Base Air Forces, South-East Asia, Headquarters, located In Delhi. Incidentally, he was also the last the AOA at RAF HQ Delhi, before Indian Independence. Serving from the start of April 1946 until August 1947. On the 11th of February 1947 Air Commodore Ragg was awarded the prestigious Chinese decoration, the Cloud and Banner with Special Cravat, for recognition of his contributions during the war. Final promotion to Air Vice Marshal came on the 1st of January 1948, with appointment as the Senior Air Staff Officer, Transport Command. In November of that year he published a paper entitled, “The role and problems of air transport”. He then became Senior Air Staff Officer HQ Far East, from 1949 until 1951. In 1952 he also served a term as Director General of Personnel at the Air Ministry. He was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath, on the 9th of June 1949. In September 1952 he became the NATO Air Commander Northern Sub-area, Atlantic, until 1955, and was also Air Officer Commanding of No 18 Group and the RAF’s Senior Air Force Officer in Scotland.
 
After a colourful career Air Vice Marshal Robert Linton Ragg retired on the 29th of April 1955. In retirement, from the late 1950s to early 60s, he was on the Board of Governor’s for several schools, including HM Prince Phillip‘s old Gordonstoun. On the 19th of December 1973 Air Vice Marshal Robert Linton Ragg CB CBE AFC CBD (SC) MID passed away, at the relatively young age of 72 years old.

More about AVM R. L. Ragg CB CBE CBD (SC) AFC MID can be found in the Air Force Lists, London Gazette, rafweb.org, ukwhoswho.com,  www.npg.org.uk, www.nationalarchives.gov.uk, www.bharat-rakshak.com, www.nato.int, www.aviation-safety.net, www.gracesguide.co.uk (1933 Who's Who in British Aviation), 1926 | 0798 | Flight Archive, nlb.gov.sg, and www.spink.com

AOC's Inspection No. 18 Group, Air Vice Marshal Robert Linton Ragg

Post WW2 Air Officer's uniform. Air Vice Marshal Robert Linton Ragg

Air Officer's pre-war Mess Dress uniform. Air Vice Marshal Robert Linton Ragg

Air Vice Marshal Robert Linton Ragg

Robert Linton Ragg. www.npg.org.uk

Robert Linton Ragg
by Elliott & Fry
bromide print, circa 1952
6 1/2 in. x 4 5/8 in. (166 mm x 117 mm) overall
Purchased, 1996
Photographs Collection
NPG x90778

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Air Vice Marshal Edward Alfred Daley CBE, MB. RAAF.

Edward Alfred Daley was born on the 23rd of January 1901. After studying medicine at Melbourne University he joined the Royal Australian Air Force in July 1928 as a Flight Lieutenant and was swifly promoted to Squadron Leader in 1930. In 1936 he took part in an exchange programme with the Royal Air Force and studied Tropical Medicine at Liverpool University during  that time. After returning to Australia in 1938 he was appointed Deputy Director of Medical Services and then a year later Director. His experiences with the RAF helped establish a smooth cooperation between the RAAF during the Second World,  forming a solid foundation from which the RAAF Medical Services developed.  In 1940 he was promoted Temporary Group Captain and by August 1945 Acting Air Commodore. During the war Daley set up No.1 RAAF Hospital Laverton and in 1941, whilst posted to the Middle East, No.1 Air Ambulance. He was made an Honorary Physician to King George VI as well as Queen Elizabeth II.  In March 1952 he reached Vice Air Marshal . For his services during the Korean War he was made Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. He retired from the RAAF in March 1962 and became National Director of the St John Ambulance Association. Air Vice Marshal Edward Alfred Daley passed away in East Malvern, a suburb of Melbourne, on the 15th of March 1985.

More about Air Vice Marshal Edward Alfred Daley can be found in the London Gazette, awm.gov.au, npg.org.uk and www.adb.anu.edu.au.

Second World War Royal Australian Air Force Air Vice Marshal Edward Alfred Daley

Air Vice Marshal Edward Alfred Daley, RAAF. Source: Australian War Memorial. 043286. Copyright expired - public domain

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Air Commodore Edward James Morris CB, CBE, DSO, DFC.
 
Air Commodore Morris was a Second World War Royal Air Force fighter pilot ace, credited with 3 enemy airplanes destroyed (1 probable), 3 damaged and 5 shared, as well as destroying numerous ground targets. He was one of the Battle of Britain “Few”, flying Hurricanes, Spitfires, Tomahawks, and Kittyhawks during the war.
 
Edward James “Teddy” Morris was born on the 6th of April 1915, in Southern Rhodesia. He went to school at Michaelhouse in the former province of Natal, South Africa, before joining the Royal Air Force as a Pilot Officer on the 5th of September 1937. Prior to joining 79 Squadron, based at Biggin Hill, he trained at RAF Netheravon then was posted to RAF Henlow where he was part of the Parachute Test Flight. He was promoted to Flying Officer on the 12th of January 1940 and flew sorties during the “Phoney War before participating in the Battle of Britain. In August he was wounded in aerial combat and upon promotion to Flight Lieutenant on the 1st of January 1941, was posted to 238 Squadron. In May of that year, he was posted to 274 Squadron in the Middle East. By September 1941 he had become the Commanding Officer of 250 Squadron, part of the Desert Air Force. In April 1942 he awarded a Distinguished Service Order for his invaluable leadership of the squadron, resulting in 34 aircraft shot down, and made Group Training Instructor of Fighters. In July 1942 he was further promoted to Squadron Leader prior to being attached to the 2nd New Zealand Division in North Africa, as an Air Advisor in 1943. He was then made Station Commander of the newly captured Italian Airport, RAF Castel Benito near Tripoli. Then joined 71 Squadron as a Chief Instructor before moving to the South of France as Wing Leader of 251 Wing, for Operation Dragoon. From September 1944, for the Italy campaign, Morris was involved in planning for the joint US and British command of the Tactical Air Force, for which he was awarded an American DFC in September 1947. By November 1944 he had been promoted Acting Wing Commander and on the 14th was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross, for his leadership of the Wing, resulting in over 1000 damaged enemy vehicles prior to and after the Battle of Monte Cassino. On the 9th of September 1945 he was confirmed a permanent Squadron Leader.
 
After the war he attended RAF Staff College and became the Commanding Officer of RAF Sarum from August 1949. He was then briefly attached to the USAF. On the 1st of January 1956 he was promoted to Group Captain and was the CO of RAF Wattisham. In the Queen’s New Year Honours List of January 1959, he was made an Ordinary Commander of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire and upon posting to HQ Fighter Command in December 1959 became an Acting Air Commodore, confirmed on the 1st of January 1962. He then served as Chief of Staff through the Aden insurgency and Rhodesian Independence, of HQ Middle East Command. On the 11th of June 1966 he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath before being appointed the Air Officer Commanding of the Air Training Corps. Air Cadets. Morris retired on the 16th of July 1968. An exceptional officer with a distinguished career spanning 30 years, Air Commodore Edward James Morris passed away in South Africa on the 1st of November 1999.
 
More about Air Commodore Edward James Morris can be found in the London Gazette, iwm.org, oldsarumairfield.co.uk, rafweb.org, bbm.org.uk & ukwhoswho.com

Air Rank Officer's visor cap from Air Commodore E. J. Morris CB CBE DSO DFC

Royal Air Force Air Commodore Edward James Morris dress uniform showing the CB, CBE and DFC decorations.

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Air Marshal Sir John Samuel Rowlands  GC, KBE, BSc, CEng, FRAeS.
 
Air Marshal Sir John Samuel Rowlands GC was a Second World War bomb disposal officer, who was awarded the prestigious George Cross (equal to the Victoria Cross) for his vital and highly dangerous war work. He is one of only 166 direct recipients and the only RAF officer awarded to retire at the rank of Air Marshal. After the war he led the development team of Britain's first atomic bomb, the Blue Danube, and its service into the RAF, and was also an advisor for the development of Britain's H-Bomb.

Full biography coming soon. 
 
More about Air Marshal Sir John Samuel Rowlands can be found in the London Gazette, www.rafweb.org, www.victoriacrossonline.co.uk, vwww.vcgca.org, www.theywerethere.co.uk, www.theguardian.com, www.rafbdassociation.com & ukwhoswho.com

Air Rank Officer's visor cap from Air Marshal Sir John Samuel Rowlands GC KBE. George Cross recipient.

Air Marshal Sir John Samuel Rowlands GC KBE. George Cross recipient. Signed commemorative envelope, 1972. OC of Maintenance Command.

The George Cross is equal to the Victoria Cross, which are Britain's highest awards for bravery. Unlike the VC, the GC was awarded for supreme acts of bravery, not in the enemy's presence. Illustration artwork of the George Cross gallantry medal. ©Worcestershire Militaria Museum 2023.

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The Venerable Wilfred Ernest Granville Payton CB, QHC, MA, MiD.

The Venerable W. E. G. Payton was the Chaplain in Chief of the Royal Air Force and an Honorary Chaplain to HM Queen Elizabeth II. He was also a Canon of Lincoln Cathedral and Vicar of Abington, as well as a renowned cricketer.
 
Wilfred Ernest Granville Payton was born in Beeston, in the county of Nottinghamshire, on the 27th of December 1913. He was educated at Nottingham College, before attending Cambridge University. He played cricket for Nottinghamshire in 1935 and then represented Cambridge in 1937. He also represented Nottinghamshire at hockey. After the war he would play for the Royal Air Force as well as Derbyshire. Unlike his father and uncle who were professional cricketers, Payton junior remained at amateur level. In 1938, at the age of twenty five he was ordained as a priest into the Church of England. When war came Payton joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) as a Chaplain, on the 1st of January 1941, with the relative rank of Squadron Leader, and was later Mentioned in Dispatches during the war. In May 1947 he was given a permanent commission. January the 1st 1955 saw promotion to Wing Commander. In April 1959 he was the Assistant Chaplain in Chief for Bomber Command, and by 1964 had become Assistant Chaplain in Chief for Maintenance Command. During this time he also served as Principal of the RAF Chaplain’s School. No doubt having reached air officer status, and gaining the relative rank of Air Commodore. On the 13th of March 1965 he was promoted to Air Vice Marshal and appointed Chaplain in Chief of the Royal Air Force, a post he held until the 14th of March 1969. The highest rank achievable for a RAF Chaplain. He was also made an Archdeacon. One day later, on the 14th of March 1965 he also became an Honorary Chaplain (QHC) to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, until his retirement from the Royal Air Force, on April  the 11th 1969. In the Queen’s Birthday Honours list of the 12th of June 1965, The Venerable Wilfred Payton was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath. In retirement he became the Vicar of Abingdon, and Shippon, and later Dean, until 1980, as well as an Honorary Canon of Lincoln Cathedral. At the age of 75 the Venerable Wilfred Ernest Granville Payton CB QHC MA MiD passed away on the 4th of September 1989.
 
More about the Venerable Wilfred Ernest Granville Payton CB QHC MA can be found in the  Air Force List, London Gazette, whoswho, www.cricketarchive.com, www.espncricinfo.com​, www.sthelenwithout-pc.co.uk, www.trentbridge.co.uk

RAF Chaplain Air Vice Marshal W. E. G. Payton CB QHC MA. Letter dated 1978.

RAF Chaplain Air Rank Officer's visor cap from Air Vice Marshal W. E. G. Payton CB QHC MA

Chaplain in Chief of the Royal Air Force, the Venerable W. E. G. Payton, Honorary Chaplain to HM Queen dress uniform showing the CB and WWII service.

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Air Commodore Ernest Sydney “Martin”Chandler AFC, QCVSA, MID.

Known to all as Martin, Ernest Sydney Chandler was born on the 16th of September 1927. From Godmanchester, in Cambridgeshire, he joined the Royal Air Force on the 9th December 1948 and was commissioned a Pilot Officer. In December 1949 he was promoted to Flying Officer, which was confirmed in 1950. In July 1951 he was one of 26 pilots that volunteered to served in 77 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force during the Korean War, flying Gloster Meteors. On the 9th June 1952 he was further promoted to Flight Lieutenant and on the 7th July 1953 Mentioned in Dispatches for his services in Korea. After the war he was awarded the Air Force Cross, on the 1st January 1954, and then the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air, in January 1957. In July 1957 he was also promoted to Squadron Leader. On the 1st January 1963 he was made a Wing Commander and as Wing Commander Officer Commanding Strike Wing Khormaksar, operating out of Aden, was the first Hunter to land successfully at Yemen’s Beihan airstrip in August 1966. The landing was in response to Egyptian fighter jets probing Yemeni airspace and attacking allied tribes, as detailed and photographed in the book, Best of Breed: The Hunter in Fighter Reconnaissance as well as being mentioned in Tales from the Frontline: The Middle East Hunter Squadrons as well as Hunters Over Arabia: Hawker Hunter Operations in the Middle East. In July 1970 he was confirmed Group Captain and in the early 1970s was the Air Attaché for Brussels and the Hague, before becoming Assistant Air Attaché in Washington DC USA. Following his promotion to Air Commodore on the 1st July 1978 he was appointed Air Attaché for Bonn, West Germany. After a colourful career of flying fast jets and administrative and diplomatic posts he retired from active service in October 1982, having clocked up over 30 years of service. In retirement, in the 1980s, he was a Technical Advisor on the British sitcom ‘Allo ‘Allo. At the age of 71, Air Commodore E. S. “Martin” Chandler passed away on the 17th of March 1999.

More about Air Commodore Ernest “Martin” Chandler AFC can be found in the London Gazette, awm.gov.au, rafmuseum.org, and rafweb.org

Air Rank Officer's visor cap from Air Commodore Ernest Sydney “Martin” Chandler

Flying Officer Martin Chandler RAAF Kimpo Airfield during the Korean War (1952). Source: Australian War Memorial. P00660.020. Copyright expired - public domain

Flying Officer Martin Chandler seated in a RAAF Meteor during the Korean War (1952). Source: Australian War Memorial. P00660.022. Copyright expired - public domain

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Air Vice Marshal Frederick "Freddie" Charles Hurrell CB, OBE, CStJ, QHP, MBBS, MRCS. LRCP. FRAes. FFOM. DAvMed.
 
Air Vice Marshal Frederick “Freddie” Charles Hurrell had a successful service career in aviation medicine, reaching the highest post for a medical officer, that of Director General of the Royal Air Force Medical Services. He was also an Honorary Physician (QHP) to HM Queen Elizabeth II, from September 1984 to April 1988.​
 
Born on the 28th of April 1928 he attended the Royal Masonic School in Hertfordshire, where he was a keen sportsman and represented England at rugby. Leaving school he went on to study medicine at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington, London, before doing his National Service in 1953. On the 27th of April 1953 he was commissioned a Pilot Officer and was promoted to Flight Lieutenant a year later, which was transferred to a permanent commission on the 14th of December 1954. On the 2nd of June 1965 he was further promoted to Wing Commander. During the early years of his career Hurrell served in various postings around the world, including Singapore and Australia, providing medical support to RAF personal and their families, as well as establishing an interest in aviation and medicine. In the 1970 New Year’s Honours list he was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, and was promoted Squadron Leader on the 7th of June 1970. Between 1974 and 1977 he served as Deputy Director Aviation Medicine, with promotion to Group Captain in July 1975, where he looked into the effects of what training flights and operational sorties have upon the human body. During this period he also coordinated with NATO and international aero-medical organisations, as the United Kingdom‘s main representative. From 1977 until 1980 he was posted to the United States and Washington DC, as a Staff Officer for Aerospace Medicine on the British Defence Staff. On his return to the UK he was promoted to Air Rank and appointed as Air Officer Commanding for the Princess Alexandra Hospital, a post held until 1982. Promotion to Air Commodore was confirmed on the 20th of January 1981. He then served a term as Director of Health & Research, from 1982 until 1984 and was made an Air Vice Marshal in July 1984, upon appointment to Principal Medical Officer, RAF Strike Command, until 1986. On the 13th of March 1986 Hurrell was made a Commander of The Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem, just prior to his appointment as Deputy Surgeon General (Operations) on the 30th of April. He also served as Director General of the Royal Air Force Medical Services, from the 30th of April 1986 until the 30th of December 1987. He became a Companion of the Order of the Bath on the 14th of June 1986 before retiring from active service on the 24th of April 1988.
 
In retirement AVM Hurrell successfully held the tenure of Director of Appeals, for the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund until 1995. From 1997 until 2003 he was the Vice President for the Royal International Air Tattoo, as well as promoting and serving on the Disabled Flying Scholarship board. After a 36 year career Air Vice Marshal Frederick Charles Hurrell passed away on the 3rd of October 2008. He was 80 years old.
 
More about Air Vice Marshal F. C. Hurrell can be found at the London Gazette, whoswsho, thetimes.co.uk, rafweb.org and on the Imperial College London website. 

Royal Air Force Medical Air Vice Marshal Frederick "Freddie" Charles Hurrell's dress uniform showing the CB, CBE and Commander of the Order of St John decorations. Note the United Kingdom Air Force NATO command badge.

Air Rank Officer's visor cap from Air Vice Marshal Frederick "Freddie" Charles Hurrell

Air Rank Officer's visor cap from Air Vice Marshal Frederick "Freddie" Charles Hurrell

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Air Vice Marshal Barry Hamilton Newton. CB, CVO, OBE, QCVSA, FBIM
 
 Barry Hamilton Newton was born on the 1st April 1932. After attending the Royal Air Force training college Cranwell he was commissioned a Pilot Officer on the 28th of July 1953. A year later he was promoted to Flight Officer and then Flight Lieutenant on the 26th of May 1956. During the late 1950s he was selected to make valuable research flights during Britain’s Atomic weapons tests in Australia and Christmas Island, flying the Canberra Bomber with 76 Squadron, for which he was awarded the Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air on the 12th June 1958. In January 1962 he was made a Squadron Leader and in July 1968 became a Wing Commander. In the New Year’s Honours list of 1975, he was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. Following his OBE he was further promoted on the 1st of July 1976 to Group Captain and reached Air Commodore on the 1st of July 1981. In April 1983 he was appointed Aide-de-Camp to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. He served as Senior Directing Staff (Air) Royal College of Defence Studies from the 10th January 1984 until the 28th February 1986, having been promoted to Acting Air Vice Marshal upon taking up his post. he was confirmed an Air Vice Marshal on the 1st of January 1985. He was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath on the 31st of December 1987 before retiring from active service in June 1989. In retirement he was appointed a Gentleman Usher to HM the Queen from 1989 until 2011 and was the Honorary Air Commodore of the Helicopter Support Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force from the 4th April 1997. He was also the Honorary Air Commodore of 606 (Chiltern) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force and the Inspector-General of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, from 2nd January 2000. Air Vice Marshal BH Newton was instrumental  in the restauration, re-dedication and preservation of the 1912 Airman's Cross memorial. A stone monument commemorating the first air casualties of the Royal Flying  Corps. A history of which he authored in the book, "Monument to Courage" in 2012. On the 15th of June 2002 he became a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. After a career spanning well over 36 years Air Vice Marshal Barry Hamilton Newton passed away on the 25th of August 2020. He was 88 years old.
 
More about Air Vice Marshal B. H. Newton can be found at the London Gazette, thetimes.co.uk, rauxaf.org, rafweb.org, and mortimerbenefice.blogspot.com

Royal Air Force Air Vice Marshal Barry Hamilton Newton's dress uniform showing the CB and OBE decorations.

Air Vice Marshal Barry Hamilton Newton's summer dress uniform.

Monument to Courage. Written and published by Air Vice Marshal Barry Hamilton CB, CVO, OBE.

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Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael James Douglas Stear KCB, CBE, MA, QCVSA, DL
 
Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Stear was the Deputy Commander in Chief, Allied Forces, Central Europe. Serving in the Middle East, United States, Germany, and the UK. He was a pioneer of jet age bombing techniques, flying Hunters, Phantoms, Harriers, and Nimrods over the course of his career, as well as the Puma and Wessex, and is noted as landing the RAF’s last operational Hunter on its retirement.
 
Born on the 11th of October 1938, Michael James Douglas Stear was educated at Monkton Combe School in Bath, before doing his National Service. He then attended Cambridge University and was enrolled in the Cambridge University Air Squadron RAFVR before being commissioned on the 10th of May 1961 as an Acting Pilot Officer. He was given a permanent commission in the Royal Air Force on the 13th of November 1962 with 1 Squadron, Flying Hawker Hunters. Further promotion to Flying Officer came in April 1963 and Flight Lieutenant on the 1st of January 1964, when he joined 208 Squadron. During the late 1960s he accepted a posting to the US, training McDonnell Douglas Phantom F4 pilots for the Vietnam War and reached Squadron Leader on the 1st of January 1970. In the 1970s he commanded 17 Squadron then 56 Squadron. Following promotion to Group Captain in July 1979 he spent the early 1980s in command of RAF Gutersloh in West Germany and became the Commander of the Harrier Force Germany, before being appointed Air Commodore of Plans, Strike Command, with promotion to full Air Commodore coming on the 1st of January 1983. On December the 12th 1983 he was also made a Commander of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. In July 1985 he was made Air Vice Marshal, assuming command of 11 Fighter Group, and then Air Marshal in October 1989. Two months later he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath. Whilst in various command roles he continued flying in a non combat role, giving Blackburn Buccaneers a supporting part in the 1991 Gulf War. After the war he was promoted to Air Chief Marshal on the 27th of August 1992, become Deputy Commander-in-Chief, Allied Forces Central Europe in August 1993, retiring from the service in October 1996. In retirement Air Chief Marshal Stear continued as President of the 208 Squadron Association, serving from 1993 until 2004, and was President of the Royal Air Forces Association from 1998 until 2002. In 1997 he was made a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and served from 1998 to 2003 as the Royal Air Force Commissioner for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. On the 26th of May 2000 he was appointed the Deputy Lieutenant for Devon, representing Her Majesty the Queen. Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael James Douglas Stear KCB, CBE, MA, QCVSA, DL passed away on the 5th of January 2020.
 
More about Air Chief Marshal M. J. D. Stear KCB, CBE, MA DL can be found on the London Gazette, Devonlive, rafa.org.uk, www.naval8-208-association.com​, telegraph.co.uk, rafweb.org, ukwhoswho.com.

Royal Air Force Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Stear's V-Neck jersey.

Royal Air Force Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Stear's flying coveralls, showing squadron service history.

Royal Air Force Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Stear 17(F) Squadron disbandment program, 1999, and Westminster Abbey Battle of Britain thanksgiving program 2010.

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Air Vice Marshal AO. MID. RAAF.
 
After joining the Royal Australian Air Force this officer was commissioned in 1968 and flew Huey combat mission over Vietnam, with No. 9 Squadron during the war, where he was Mentioned in Dispatches. When he returned to Australia, he changed to fast jets, flying the Sabre, Mirage and Hornet, steadily rising up the ranks to reach Air Commodore in the mid 1990s and eventually Air Vice Marshal. He was appointed the Commanding Officer of the Integrated Air Defence System, going on to command the Australian Theatre, and also held an advisory role in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. In 1988 he was made an Member of the Order of Australia and an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2000 just prior to retiring from active service in the early 2000s. He then transferred to the RAAF Reserve and held various military advisory positions during his retirement.

Royal Australian Air Force Air Vice Marshal's visor cap.

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Air Vice Marshal CB CBE BSc ADC 

This officer served in Northern Ireland and played an important role during the Falklands War, as well as during the 1st Gulf War. He was twice appointed an Aide-de Camp to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and retired an Air Vice Marshal.
 
The AVM joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve on the 9th of April 1967 as an Acting Pilot Officer, before receiving a permanent commission in the Royal Air Force in August 1968. Just six months later he was promoted to Flying Officer and in November of 1969 came Flight Lieutenant. In July 1976 he was promoted to Squadron Leader. He was Air Advisor to the SAS during the Falklands War, for which he was made a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, in October 1982. January 1984 saw promotion to Wing Commander. During the 1980s he was the Commanding Officer of No.18 Squadron, operating Chinook helicopters. In the New Years Honours list 1987 he became an Officer of the above said order. In 1991 he was Station Commander of RAF Aldergrove. He then participated on Operation Granby, during the 1st Gulf War, prior to becoming an Aide-de-Camp to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, from May 1991 until June 1993. In June 1991 he became a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, for his contribution to Operation Granby. Promotion to Air Commodore came at the start of 1994 with final promotion to Air Vice Marshal four years later, in July 1998. From October 1999 until September 2002 he was the Commander of Joint Helicopter Command. In the New Years Honours list of 2001, published on the 31st of December 2000 he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath.
 
The Air Vice Marshal officially retired from active duty in January 2003. However, he continued to represent the service in retirement, as an Air Commodore of the RAFVR, until 2018, as well as Air Officer Northern Ireland. In September 2011 he was once again appointed an Aide-de-Camp, representing HM Queen and the RAF at official functions, including the Royal Air Force’s centenary.
 
More about the Air Vice Marshal can be found in the London Gazette, rafweb.org and gulabin.com

Air Rank beret to an Air Vice Marshal who served on Operation Banner, during the Falklands War and Operation Granby.

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Air Commodore Alexander Dickson OBE, QVRM, AE**, MPhil, FRSA

Air Commodore Alex Dickson was not only a highly respected journalist and Royal Air Force officer, but proved to be an inspirational, charismatic and caring leader, both in his day job and at the RAF. He built a hugely successful career in the media branch, culminating as the MD of Radio Clyde, whilst advising senior officers and politicians on press releases and at press conferences, as CO of 7644 Flight RAFVR. He was later appointed their first Honorary Air Commodore when it became a Squadron. A singular achievement, especially more so for a reservist officer. Through his dedicated service in the Royal Air Force he was posted to Europe, the US and Middle East.
 
Alex Dickson was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on the 10th of December 1935. After studying he pursued a career in journalism, with the Daily Mail in the late 1950s, first as a journalist then as a feature writer. On the 31st of October 1958 he joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, with the rank of Pilot Officer. A step which would change his life. Learning to fly he went on to become a glider Instructor, (as reflected by the unique wings displayed on his tunic), with 661 Gliding School, Air Cadets Scotland, as well as 631 Volunteer Gliding Squadron. From around 1965 he left the newspaper for Scottish Television, reporting the news and presenting political programmes. On the 13th of July 1970 he was further promoted to Flying Officer. In 1973 he joined the new and independent Radio Clyde in Glasgow, as Head of News and Current Affairs. During this time his high standards and valuable skills in media were recognised by the air force who sent him to Cyprus in 1974, following the Turkish invasion. There he advised the command on terms of public relations and handling media statements on the ground. Following his return he was tasked with recruiting media expert volunteers into the RAFVR. On the 13th of July 1976 he was promoted to Flight Lieutenant. In Autumn 1980 he was sent to Germany for Exercise Spearpoint 80, a large US, British and German training exercise. In 1981, alongside three radio colleagues, he setup the Cash for Kids charity, generating millions for children around the Glasgow area and West. A charity close to his heart and which still provides support today. On the 13th of February 1984 he made Squadron Leader prior to taking part in Exercise Lionheart, the British army’s biggest military exercise in Germany, during September and October of that year, being based at RAF Wildenrath. He was promoted to Acting Wing Commander in November 1987 and in 1988 appointed Commanding Officer of No. 7644 Flight RAFVR. Aside from advising senior officers, he also produced instructional films and courses in media. On the 24th of May 1989 he was confirmed a Wing Commander and a month later on the 17th of June became a Member of the Order of the British Empire. In 1990 he was sent overseas again to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm, 1st Gulf War, awarded the Gulf Medal with Clasp. Back at Radio Clyde he became Head of programming whilst still continuing on air and offering training to less experienced colleagues. Most memorably was his thrice weekly and much loved book reviews, where he also interviewed authors and famous celebrities. He himself was a keen collector of signatures and amassed quite a collection, (including those shown in the RAFVR / RAuxAF brochures below). On the 17th of June 1995 he became an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. A year later, in 1996 he was appointed head of Radio Clyde and was responsible for kickstarting many a journalists’ career. In April 1997 the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve and Royal Auxiliary Air Force was amalgamated, marked by a luncheon which Dickson attended as commanding officer of the new No. 7644 (VR) Public Relations Squadron, RAuxAF. In radio he had also earned a small number of awards over the years, including the Lord Provost of Glasgow medal in 2000, before retiring as Clyde’s Managing Director, although his book reviews continued. On the 18th of June 2002 Group Captain Dickson was awarded The Queen’s Volunteer Reserves Medal (QVRM) for his outstanding contribution to the RAF reserves, as well as the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal 2002. He was also awarded the Air Efficiency Medal (AE) with two clasps (three times), the Volunteer Reserves Service Medal with Clasp (VRSM), and the Cadet Forces Medal, for long and dedicated service that was impressive and unique even for a regular officer, let alone a reservist. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts, a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and a Fellow of the Radio Academy. Upon retirement he was made the first Honorary Air Commodore of the 7644 (VR) Public Relations Squadron, RAuxAF, an appointment authorised by Queen Elizabeth II personally! Despite being retired he was far from bored and completed a Masters of Philosophy in Military history at Glasgow University. A well loved and respected figure in media and RAF circles, he passed away on the 10th of April 2018, at age 82.

Air Commodore Alexander Dickson OBE, QVRM, AE**, MPhil, FRSA can be found on the London Gazette, www.rauxaf.org, www.heraldscotland.com, www.thetimes.co.uk, www.radiotoday.co.uk,  www.raf-waddington.com, www.audioboom.com, ​www.glasgowlive.co.uk, and RAF Media Reserves | Facebook.

Side hat and leather gloves belonging to Air Commodore Dickson with his RAFVR / RAuxAF amalgamation program, signed by MRAF Sir Michael Beetham, ACM Sir Michael Graydon (Chief of Air Staff), ACM John Allison (Air Member for Logistics), A/Cdre Hector Monro (Honorary Inspector General RAuxAF), A/Cdre Chris Davison (Controller Reserve Forces RAF), Earl Howe (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State), and Mrs Cracroft-Eley (Lord Lieutenant of Lincolnshire). As well as Victoria Cross recipients, Flight Lieutenant Bill Reid VC and Flight Lieutenant John Cruickshank VC.

Wing Commander Dickson cleaning his boots at King Abdulaziz Air Base, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, during the 1st Gulf War. He was one of the media advisors to the Commander of the UK detachment. Used with kind permission. From the Militaria Photograph Archive of Air Commodore Alexander Dickson (1935-2018). For more information, simon@simondickson.com. Copyright. All rights reserved.

Service dress tunic from Air Commodore Alexander Dickson OBE, QVRM, AE**, MPhil, FRSA. Note the glider pilot wings and medal ribbons.

Service dress visor cap from Wing Commander Alexander Dickson RAuxAF. Worn in Saudi Arabia and during the Gulf Wars, before his promotion to Air Commodore.

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​Royal Navy

Engineer Rear-Admiral Hubert Beackley CBE, MVO

Hubert Bleackley was born in Shrewsbury Shropshire on the 18th of June 1886. He joined the Royal Navy from a Cadet on the 1st of July 1907 and was promoted to Engineer Lieutenant on October the 1st 1909. During the First World War he served in the North Sea and Pacific, whilst attached to H.M.A.S Australia, from July 1914 until December 1916. After returning to the Royal Navy he was promoted to Engineer Lieutenant Commander in October 1917. During the interwar years he was promoted to Engineer Commander in July 1923 and then Engineer Captain in June of 1934. During the Second World War he was promoted to Engineer Rear-Admiral in June 1940. Hubert Bleackly was made a Member of the Victorian Order 4th Class in 1922, whilst serving aboard HMS Renown, and was made an additional Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in January 1942. After reaching the second highest rank for a Royal Navy Engineer, Rear-Admiral Hubert Beackley passed away at the relatively young age of 64, on the 19th of June  1950.

More about Admiral Bleackley can be found in the London Gazette, npg.org.uk, www.sl.nsw.gov.au and www.familysearch.org.

World War II British Admiral's hat. Engineer Rear-Admiral Hubert Beackley

Engineer Rear-Admiral Hubert Beackley. www.npg.org.uk

Hubert Bleackley
by Walter Stoneman
bromide print, April 1945
5 3/8 in. x 3 1/2 in. (135 mm x 90 mm)
Commissioned, 1945
Photographs Collection
NPG x165312

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Surgeon Vice-Admiral Sir (Eric) Dick Caldwell KBE, CB, CStJ, QHP, MD, FRCP, FRCP

Surgeon Vice-Admiral E. D. Caldwell held the post of Director General of the Royal Navy Medical Service and was an Honorary Physician (QHP) to HM Queen Elizabeth II.​ Surgeon Vice-Admiral was the highest rank obtainable for the RN Medical Service.

Eric Dick Caldwell was born in South Africa on the 6th of July  1907 into a Scottish family. He studied medicine at Edinburgh University before gaining experience in his father’s practise and hospital. On the 20th of September 1934 he  joined the Royal Navy, and was commissioned as a Surgeon Lieutenant. He was posted aboard the heavy cruiser HMS Norfolk before a period at the Royal Marine Infirmary. In February 1939 he was aboard the stone frigate, HMS St Angelo, in Malta before transferring again to the heavy cruiser HMS Dorsetshire around August. By October 1939 he had been posted to the battleship HMS Royal Oak when she was torpedoed at the Royal Navy anchorage at Scapa Flow, with the loss of 833 men. By December he was at the shore training establishment HMS Raleigh in Cornwall, where he remained for 1940. With promotion to Lieutenant Commander coming on the 26th of September 1940. By April 1941 had been posted to HMS Prince of Wales, and was present when His Majesty King George VI visited. Caldwell was also onboard during the hunt for the German battleship Bismarck, witnessing the tragic fate of HMS Hood in May 1941. In August Caldwell had the honour of treating the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, during his Atlantic crossing for the signing of the Atlantic Charter with the USA. He remained with Prince of Wales when she  transferred to the Far East and was deep in action, witnessing HMS Repulse’s sinking from Japanese aircraft on the 10th of December 1941. Prince of Wales was to share the same fate, with Surgeon Lt. Cdr Caldwell being one of the lucky survivors rescued from shark infested waters. As a ship’s doctor on a homeward bound liner he was fortunate to be returned to the United Kingdom and escape the fall of Singapore. In February 1942 he found himself on convoy escort duty aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Furious. In August he spent a period at the Royal Naval Hospital Haslar, until around April 1943 when he was posted to the shore frigate HMS Pyramus in Kirkwall, the Orkneys, just off the north-eastern tip of Scotland. He was then posted to Liverpool and the shore establishment HMS Eaglet in around August. In October 1944 his commission in the royal Navy was made permanent. By April 1945 Caldwell was back serving in Malta at HMS Angelo, before transferring to the nearby HMS Eurochydon, in the Fort Verdala, around July time. He was now a Surgeon Commander.
 
In 1946 Caldwell took a course at the Royal Navy Hospital Haslar before accepting a three year posting to Hong Kong. In 1950 he returned to the UK and again the south coast, at the shore establishment HMS Ganges, when he earned his Doctor of Medicine. He remained at Ganges until 1952 when he was stationed at the Britannia Royal Naval College at Dartmouth. In July 1955 he was made a Serving Brother of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem. He once again returned to Royal Navy Hospital Haslar from 1956 until late 1958. With further promoted to Surgeon Captain in 1957. He then joined the Admiral’s Staff in Malta. In 1961 he returned to England and the Admiralty Medical Board. On the 24th of October 1963 he made Flag Rank, with promotion to Surgeon Rear Admiral, and given the command of the Royal Navy Hospital Portsmouth. From the 30th of that month until the 14th of July 1969 he also served as Honorary Physician to HM Queen. In June 1965 he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath and in August a Commander of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem. His final posting was as Medical Director General of the Royal Navy, a post he held upon promotion to Vice Admiral, on the 24th of October 1966 until retirement. In Her Majesty’s New Year’s Honours list of 1969 Vice Admiral Caldwell was made a Knight Commander of the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. After an eventful naval career, spanning thirty five years, Surgeon Vice-Admiral Sir Dick Caldwell KBE, CB, CStJ, QHP, MD, FRCP, FRCP retired from the senior service, on the 11th of August 1969. In retirement he served on the Medical Council on Alcoholism, were he wrote several papers on the subject and during his career was a member of various prestigious medical associations. At the age of 93 years old he passed away on the 11th of July 2000.

​More about Admiral Caldwell can be found in the Navy lists, London Gazette, ukwhoswho.com, www.iwm.org.uk, www.history.rcplondon.ac.uk, www.academic.oup.com, and ​www.npg.org.uk​

Surgeon Vice-Admiral Sir (Eric) Dick Caldwell KBE, CB, CStJ, QHP, MD, FRCP, FRCP peaked cap

Surgeon Vice-Admiral Sir (Eric) Dick Caldwell KBE, CB, CStJ, QHP, MD, FRCP, FRCP visor cap

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Rear-Admiral Frank Wright Hearn CB ADC.

Rear Admiral F. W. Hearn CB served during the Second World War and became an Aide de Camp to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. He specialised in supply and administration, rising up to the branch’s most senior rank and position, that of Chief Naval Supply & Secretariat Officer, during the second half of the 1970s. Starting his naval career at sea he then progressed to more senior shore bases posts. Without the skills and dedication of such officers the Senior Service would not function.
 
Frank Wright Hearn was born on the 1st of October 1919 and educated at Abbotsholme
school. He joined the Royal Navy at the age of eighteen in 1937, serving aboard the Admiral Class Battlecruiser HMS Hood. No doubt a daunting first posting. On the 1st of January 1938 he was promoted to Paymaster Midshipman and by August 1939 had been transferred to HMS Caledon, a C- Class Light Cruiser. Promotion to Paymaster Sub Lieutenant came on the 1st of September 1939 and subsequent promotion to Paymaster Lieutenant on the 1st of May 1941. By December 1941 he found himself aboard HMS Buccaneer a Fleet Tug before being posted to the far east and HMS Lanka, a shore establishment in Ceylon, through April 1942. By August 1943 he had returned to the UK and was at HMS Victory, a shore base in Portsmouth. In December 1943 was posted to Aden in the middle east at the shore establishment HMS Sheba, where he served as Secretary to the Naval Officer in Charge, until July 1945. From 1951 until 1953 he was attached to the Staff of the Commander-in-Chief, Home Fleet. Then from February 1954 was posted to HMS Dolphin in Gosport, where he served a term as Secretary to the Flag Officer Submarines, until December 1955. On the 31st of December 1954 he was also promoted to Commander (S). He was then posted to the United States until 1958 when he joined HMS Tiger, a Tiger Class Cruiser and Flagship of the Mediterranean Fleet, as Secretary to the Directory of Naval Intelligence, until 1960. In 1962 he was on the Western Fleet as the senior Supply Officer. In 1964 he became the Chief Staff Officer (Administration) to the Flag Officer Submarines until 1969 when he attended the Imperial Defence College. Then followed promotion to Flag rank with Captain (Commodore), upon taking command of HMS Centurion, a drafting depot shore establishment. In January 1973 he became an Aide de Camp to HM Queen until July 1973, and a position at the Ministry of Defence in London, as Assistant Chief of Personnel and Logistics. 1st of January 1974 saw Hearn promoted to Rear Admiral and appointed Chief Naval Supply and Secretariat Officer (CNSSO) in February of that year, serving until January 1977. In the New Years Honours list of 1977, published on the 31st of December 1976 he was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath. He retired from active service three months later, on the 30th of March 1977, after forty years of service. Settling in Hampshire, he passed away on the 13th of February 1993, aged 73 years old.

​More about Admiral Hearn can be found in the Navy lists, London Gazette, www.unithistories.com, and & ukwhoswho.com

Rear-Admiral Frank Wright Hearn CB ADC visor cap

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Rear-Admiral Derek James Anthony MBE.

Rear Admiral D. J. Anthony held the senior position of Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as the posts of Deputy Flag Officer Submarines, Naval Attaché to Washington D.C. and Great Britain’s senior representative to NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic. Spending a large chunk of his career at sea.
 
Derek James Anthony was born on the 2nd of November 1947. He was educated at Eastbourne College before attending the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, in 1966. On the 1st of July 1970 he was confirmed a Sub Lieutenant, in the silent service, going on to serve aboard a variety of submarines with promotion to Lieutenant coming in the mid 1970s. He was promoted to Lieutenant Commander on the 1st of August 1979, before assuming command of the Oberon class submarine, HMS Onslaught in 1981. He then served a tour with the US Navy before promotion to Commander on the 31st of December 1984. Then followed a period of staff training at the Joint Service Defence College. In 1986 he was given command of the Valiant class nuclear submarine HMS Warspite. From 1988 until 1990 he served as Commanding Officer of the “Persisher”, or officially the Submarine Command Course, in charge of preparing new submarine commanders. Then in 1991 he took command of the type 22 frigate HMS Cumberland, with promotion to Captain coming on the 30th of June 1991. He was then appointed Director of Naval Service Conditions, a post he held from 1993 to 1996. He then spent the next year at Staff College, in Camberley, on the Higher Command and Staff Course. Resulting in promotion to Flag Rank with Commodore, and appointment as Chief of Staff, Flag Officer Submarines, until May 1997. Commodore Anthony was then offered a three year posting to the US and Washington DC,as Naval Attaché, at the British Embassy, and Britain’s senior officer to NATO’s supreme commander. When in July 2000 he formally accepted Britain’s purchase of the US Navy's Tactical Control System, used for unmanned vehicles and missiles. In August 2000 Anthony returned to the UK to accept the senior position of Flag Officer, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and was promoted to Rear Admiral. Incidentally, it was during this period that the nuclear submarine HMS Trafalgar, ran aground during a training exercise, in November 2002, due to instructor and trainee error, no doubt causing Admiral Anthony a few unnecessary headaches. After over thirty-five years he retired from the service, on the 12th of August 2003. In retirement he was active with various Royal Navy and maritime associations and charities. At the age of 71 Rear Admiral Derek James Anthony MBE passed away, on the 19th of March 2019.
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​More about Admiral Anthony can be found in the Navy lists, London Gazette, ukwhoswho.com, www.gulabin.com, www.navair.navy.mil, www.bbc.com, and www.theintelligencer.com

Rear-Admiral Derek James Anthony MBE visor cap

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​Exhibits of similar interest

US Army Signal Corps BC 611F “Handie Walkie” WW2 field radio.

The iconic SCR536 was the world's first portable handheld military radio set, developed in 1940 and used throughout the Second World War by the US Army, including on D Day. It has come to be known as the BC 611, Walkie Talkie, or Handie Talkie. This radio transmitter and receiver was the godfather of  walkie talkies and  mobile phones. Our exhibit clearly shows field use as well as bullet / shrapnel damage.

To use the Handie Talkie you had to unscrew the heavy antenna cap, extend the antenna to full length and then press down on the side rubber button to talk and transmit. The unit measures around 49.5cm in height and 10cm in width (excluding mouth and ear pieces), weighing in at 2.15kg.

US Army Signal Corps BC 611F “Handie Walkie” WW2 field radio.

US Army Signal Corps BC 611F “Handie Walkie” WW2 field radio.

VISIT THE WORCESTERSHIRE MILITARIA MUSEUM