We tell their stories: RAF Casualties

In the next series of We Tell Their Stories we focus our attention on the Royal Air Force. It’s our mission to keep their memories alive.

We tell their stories

The Royal Air Force in the World Wars

It’s been over a hundred years since the Royal Air Force was born.

The RAF was formed out of two pre-existing air combat organisations: The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Navy Air Service (RNAS).

British planners realised the potential of aerial warfare early into aviation’s history. The RFC was founded in 1912 and continued to expand as World War One rolled on. By the 1st of April 1918, the RAF had been established.

By the end of 1918, the RAF was the largest and most advanced air combat organisation in the world. But Great War aerial combat took its toll.

Over 6,000 men and women of the air services died during World War One.

The RAF was expanded in the run-up to World War Two. Through Fighter, Coastal, and Bomber Command, the Royal Air Force was a multi-pronged force, capable of completing any number of aviation tasks.

From the iconic Battle of Britain to the controversial area bombing campaign, the Royal Air Force fought in deadly skies across war effort-essential campaigns across the globe.

Pilots and aircrew were supported by hundreds of thousands of ground crew. The Few could not achieve victory without the Many.

Women played an important role in supporting the RAF too. The Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) provided over 180,000 support staff, including plotters, clerks, radio operators, codebreakers, and more vital non-combat roles.

The Air Transport Auxiliary was a unit with a high proportion of women pilots that served a crucial wartime function: ferrying new, repaired, and damaged aircraft between factories and assembly plants to maintenance yards, active air squadrons and even aircraft carriers.

120,000 RAF casualties came to 120,000 during World War Two. The most heavily hit unit was Bomber Command. The bomber squadrons suffered over 50% casualties killed across the war with 57,000 giving their lives throughout the Second World War.

During the World Wars, the RAF was supported by other Commonwealth nations with their own aerial combat services. These include:

• Royal Australian Air Force
• Royal New Zealand Air Force
• Royal Indian Air Force
• Royal Canadian Air Force
• Royal South African Air Force

Stories of RAF World War Casualties

Douglas John Bell MC

Image: Douglas John Bell (Wikimedia Commons)

The air services in both World Wars attracted pilots and aircrew from across the globe. They came from across Africa, the United States and every corner of the earth to fight in the skies.

South African Captain Douglas John Bell is a perfect example of the international effort taken up during World War One.

Douglas was born in 1893 in Johannesburg. The future airman’s military career started in the Transvaal Light Horse Regiment, on terra firma, and saw action during the 1914-1915 South-West Africa Campaign.
 
Douglas’ destiny lay in the air, not on the ground. In June 1916, he enlisted in the Royal Flying Corps as a Second Lieutenant. On his first day, he was appointed a Flying Officer, such was his command of an aircraft.

By July, Douglas was serving with RFC’s No.27 Squadron, flying an ungainly Martinsyde G.100 bomber. Despite its cumbersome size and lack of agility, Douglas was able to rack up three aerial combat victories in his Martinsyde, taking out Imperial German pilots flying the much nimbler Albatross D.III fighter planes.

On 15th June, Douglas earned the Military Cross for strong performance and conduct during a long-range bombing mission.

Douglas was appointed a Flight Commander on 9th April 1917 with the temporary rank of Captain. He was reassigned to No.78 Squadron, piloting a sprightly Sopwith 1 ½ Strutters on Home Defence Duty in England.

On 25th September, Douglas intercepted and engaged a German multi-engine Gotha bomber. Douglas sprayed machine-gun fire at his quarry for a full 15 minutes before the Gotha was sent tumbling into the cold North Sea. 

Although his claim for this victory was not verified, if true, it makes Douglas the first fighter pilot to successfully engage and shoot down a multi-engine bomber. This would also have been Home Defence’s first aerial victory too.

On 13th February 1918, Douglas was transferred to No.3 Squadron and assigned back to France. Now he was piloting a Sopwith Camel, one of World War One’s most iconic aircraft. Soon, Douglas would begin to notch up victory after victory.

One of Douglas’ most impressive days was March 23rd when the intrepid South African took out a German observation before defeating two Albatross D.V fighters – all within the space of five minutes.

A further six victories were achieved in April including another balloon. Douglas was becoming quite the balloon buster. He was awarded a Bar in lieu of a second Military Cross in May 1918.

Unfortunately, Douglas would not survive the war.

27 May 1918. Douglas was engaged in another swirling dogfight in the skies above Thiepval on the Somme in northern France.

Douglas drove down an enemy two-seater to claim his 20th victory of the war. However, another Imperial German plane swooped in and raked Douglas’ Camel with machine-gun fire, sending him spiralling to the ground.
 
Douglas’ body was never recovered. Today, he is commemorated on the Arras Flying Services Memorial dedicated to those World War One airmen that fell in the Great War but have no known grave.

Squadron Leader Henry Wallace McLeod DSO, DFC & Bar

Image: Henry Wallace McLeod: One of Canada's top WW2 fighter aces (Wikimedia Commons)

The island nation of Malta was witness to incredible aerial battles during the Second World War.

Malta’s location in the central Mediterranean, just 60 miles from Sicily, made it an important strategic asset. Whoever controlled Malta controlled the Med.

As such, the tiny island was subject to some of the most intense aerial bombing by Axis air forces of World War Two. It also attracted a high degree of Commonwealth aerial talent committed to Malta’s defence.

Amongst their number was Henry Wallace McLeod.

Henry was a native of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. His military career started over a decade before the outbreak of the Second World War in 1928. The soon-to-be fighter ace first served in the infantry with the 5th Saskatchewan Regiment and Regina Rifle Regiment.

Henry would get his wings when he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in September 1940. He graduated from flight school in April 1941 and a month later was in Great Britain, ready to take on the Luftwaffe over France.

The Canadian pilot, already a fast learner, took to his combat role with ease. By May 1942, Henry had achieved five aerial victories and had been awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. His DFC citation noted Henry’s leadership and skill in the cockpit.

Soon after, Henry transferred to Malta: the place where he would really make his name.

Henry flew many sorties with his squad mates in No. 1435 and No.603 squadrons above Malta. Previously, the island’s aerial defenders had been equipped with Hawker Hurricanes. 

While an excellent plane in its own right, the Hurricane was starting to show its age. Its slow ascent speed meant, by the time the Hurricane was at the correct altitude to engage enemy aircraft, the German and Italian pilots had been and gone.

However, by the time Henry had arrived in Malta, they had been outfitted with Supermarine Spitfires. Spitfires are one of the most iconic fighter aircraft of World War Two. Their speed, manoeuvrability and firepower made them more than a match for any Axis aircraft over Malta.

By November 1942, Henry had shot down 12 enemy aircraft. It is believed he was also responsible for shooting down noted German fighter ace Heinz “Figaro” Golinski above Malta in October 1942.

Henry was soon awarded a Bar for his DFC.

December 4th saw Henry return to the UK for rest and recuperation after shooting down 13 enemy aircraft over Malta in just three months. His Maltese exploits earned Henry the nickname “The Eagle of Malta”.

In September 1944, Henry was made a Companion of the Distinguished Service Order. He had flown 250 missions and notched up 21 aerial victories plus 3 probably destroyed and 12 enemy aircraft damaged.

Unfortunately, Henry would not live to see the end of the war.
 
On 27 September 1944, Henry was leading a wing of six aircraft from his squadron during a patrol over Nijmegen, Netherlands, close to the German-Dutch border.

Wing Commander James “Johnnie” Johnson, the patrol leader, tried to reach Henry on the radio but noted the Canadian pilot was not responding. Henry had gone missing.

Reports from the rest of the squadron claim to have seen Henry tearing away from the group in pursuit of a lone Messerschmitt fighter. He was never seen again.

In September 1949, the remains of Henry’s Spitfire Mark IX with Henry still at the controls were found on the outskirts of Wessel near Duisburg just inside the German border.

Today, Henry McLeod is buried in Rheinberg War Cemetery, Germany.

First Officer Amy V. Johnson

Image: Amy Johnson: an accomplished, pioneering pilot (Wikimedia Commons)

It wasn’t just men who made the ultimate sacrifice during the World Wars. As we mentioned earlier, hundreds of thousands of women served in the air services during these epoch-defining conflicts.

The Air Transport Auxiliary was dependent on female pilots to ensure new or repaired aircraft were transported to their destinations, be they depots, frontline squadrons, factories, and so on. 

This was dangerous work. Predacious enemy fighters could and did shoot down ATA-piloted craft, the weather could cause losses, as could mechanical failures.

One ATA pilot with an interesting story was First Officer Amy Johnson.
 
Prior to the outbreak of war, Amy was already an aviation pioneer.

Aboard her plane Jason, Amy became the first woman to fly from Britain to Australia solo in 1930. The following year Amy and her fellow pilot Jack Humphries became the first aviators to fly from Britain to Moscow in one day.

Amy married Jim Mollison, a Scottish pilot, in 1932 but thoughts of settling down to married life on the ground were the furthest from Amy’s mind. 

Shortly after her wedding, Amy took to the skies again to set another record, beating her husband’s solo flight time from London to Cape Town. She broke her own record in 1936.

The Mollisons would continue to soar, but storm clouds were gathering over Europe. Soon, the skies would become very deadly indeed.

Amy joined the Air Transport Auxiliary in 1940 at the same time as her husband Jim.

On 5th January 1941, Amy was flying a mission to ferry an Airspeed Oxford training craft from RAF Squires Gate in Prestwick Scotland to RAF Kidlington in Southern England.

The weather steadily worsened and soon conditions were too tough for even an experienced aviator like Amy to handle. With Oxford’s fuel running low, Amy made the decision to bale out of the aircraft. She did so at Herne Bay, near the Thames Estuary, on England’s south coast.

A convoy of ships bobbing along in the Thames Estuary spotted Johnson’s parachute. The crews soon spotted the stricken pilot as Amy, still alive in the water, cried for help.

The sea was rolling, and snow was starting to fall. The poor conditions made it difficult for the sailors to locate and rescue Amy, especially with the weather turning bitterly cold.

Lieutenant Command Walter Fleischer of HMS Hazlemere managed to spot Amy and brought his vessel close by to attempt a rescue.

Despite ropes being thrown to Amy, she was sucked beneath Hazlemere never to resurface. Her flying bag, logbook, and chequebook were later found washed up on the nearby shore.

Amy Johnson’s body was never recovered. Today, Commonwealth War Graves commemorates this courageous aviation pioneer on the Runnymede Memorial in Southern England.

Help us keep telling the stories of the Commonwealth’s war dead

Keeping the memories of our war dead alive and spreading our shared is history is at the core of what we do at the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation.

If you would like to support our work, please consider making a donation.

Why not become a CWGF member? For just £36 a year, you can help us tell their stories while enjoying some big benefits.

Thank you for everyone here at the Commonwealth War Graves Foundation.