The Royal Air Force and the Dominion Air Forces
The Caterpillar Club, for aircrew whose lives had been saved by a silken Irvin parachute, is well-known. Less so is the Goldfish Club, for aircrew whose lives had been saved by an emergency dinghy. Few of the aircrew who ditched in the sea survived, but one of the lucky ones was […]
The Air Ministry Casualty Branch moved to 73-77 Oxford Street in late 1942. The tall Art Deco building had been the showroom for Drage’s before the war, and it appears that some shops remained in the building even in wartime. One account speaks of the Casualty Branch as being in ‘a […]
During the war, public opinion in Britain and the Dominions was firmly on the side of Bomber Command. However, there was also some determined criticism of Bomber Command’s campaigns, not least by George Bell, Bishop of Chichester, who argued the case against area bombing in the House of Lords. (Note: […]
The annual lighting of candles on the 167 graves at the War Cemetery at Den Burg, Texel, took place yesterday evening, Christmas Eve. This is a very simple but extremely moving and quietly spectacular ceremony, and for the last three years we have published photographs of it. Extremely powerful guns […]
One of the reasons why 16/17 December 1943 was so disastrous was the extreme limitations of landing aids. The only facilities available for such severe bad weather conditions were FIDO and a system known as SBA. Read the Full Article: 16/17 December 1943 – FIDO & Landing Aids
Some Pathfinders had very unusual – and dramatic – pre-Pathfinder war service. Allan Templeton was one of these. HIs service in ASR was very noteworthy. Read the Full Article: Pre-Pathfinder War Service: Allan Templeton
Norman McIntyre, later of 97 Squadron, PFF, at the ceremony which marked the completion of his training as a navigator: RAAF Navigator receives his Wings
An unusual photograph of trainee aircrew leaving their homeland: RNZAF Boys on Ship to Canada
Allan Templeton (his first name was Arthur but he was known by his second name) was a wireless operator from Newfoundland. He had a flying career packed with incident even before he joined the Pathfinders in February 1945. See: Pre-Pathfinder War Service: Air Sea Rescue, Allan Templeton Amongst the many […]
A Medical Officer’s office in a Nissen hut, note the very cramped space and the stethoscope on the papers on the desk. The wartime RAF had very extensive medical services. Most were located in the hospitals and rehabilitation centres, and in the research establishments which investigated all aspects of aviation […]
CHIEF OF AIR STAFF From 1940 to 1946, Charles Portal was the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), the top man in the RAF and the Secretary of State for Air’s principal adviser. (The Secretary of State for Air was an elected politician; serving as a member of the Cabinet, […]
When the war ended, the RAF had 41,881 service people missing. The vast majority were from Bomber Command, lost on operations in Europe. A large proportion of the missing were thought to have been lost at sea, but about 60 per cent of the losses were estimated to be traceable […]
The Caterpillar Club was open to all aircrew whose lives had been saved by a parachute made of silk. It was run by Irvin Air Chutes of Great Britain, who made the parachutes. The tiny emblems were very easily lost, but some of have been cherished over the years. One […]
In the Second World War, the Path Finder Force was the RAF’s only officially delineated elite force. As such, it had a unique emblem of an eagle badge. The badge was worn on the left-hand-side breast pocket of the RAF uniform, under any decorations … Read the full article: The […]
Here is a delightful photograph and story in another of the RAF’s brilliant PR campaigns. BONZO JOINED THE RAF IN ITALY