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Aviation History
1953
1953 - 0625.PDF
FLIGHT, 15 May 1953 619 SERVICE AVIATION Royal Air Force and Naval Aviation News Palace Presentation TOMORROW, Her Majesty the Queen is to present a Squadron Standard to No. 600 (City of London) Squadron R.Aux.A.F. at Buckingham Palace. This is the first of the Squadron Standards to be presented to a unit of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force. The Queen Mother is the Honorary Air Commodore of No. 600 Squadron and it is commanded by S/L. J. P. Meadows, D.F.C. Pathfinders Dine THE annual dinner of the Pathfinder Association once again proved to be a special occasion this year, for among the guests were the Chief of the Air Staff, the High Commissioner for Australia and Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Arthur Harris, Bt., G.C.B., O.B.E., A.F.C. The dinner took place at the Dorchester Hotel, London, on May 7th, with the president, Dr. J. C. MacGown, D.F.C., in the chair. Proposing "The Royal Air Force," His Excellency the Hon. Sir Thomas White, K.B.E., D.F.C., V.D., remarked that we had no victory until we had achieved mastery of air power. It was never easy in the Air Force, however interesting. It was his opinion that Britain was still supreme in its aircraft, and Australia was following in our tradition. Australian Sabres would have Avons. He recalled that during the war Australia lost nearly 5,000 aircrew men flying from Great Britain. The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir William F. Dickson, G.C.B., K.B.E., D.S.O., A.F.C., replying, said that it was a great honour that "Tommy" White, Cabinet Minister, author, poet and pioneer pilot, should propose the toast of the R.A.F. He recalled that he had been the first Australian pilot to go into active service, had served in two wars, and had been the hero of a most thrilling and enter prising escape which was the embodiment of the Pathfinder spirit. Australians were handsomely represented in the corps a'elite which was the P.F.F. The C.A.S. then extended a warm welcome to "Bert Harris," the master bomber himself, who was pre sent, and to the late C-in-C. Bomber Com mand, Sir Hugh Lloyd. Referring to Bomber Command, Sir William said enormous sums were being spent to get electronic equipment ready: Bomber Command had an enormous national and democratic role to play, he add:d. "Bomber Command" was proposed by W/C. T. G. Mahaddie, D.S.O., D.F.C., A.F.C. He claimed in introduction—and hoped historians would note—that he was "the only chap who had commanded an elephant in Bomber Command." From it he had learned an important law of nature, namely, that the more you put in the more you got out. He wondered what historians would say about what had been put into Bomber Command during the war and what had come out. Certainly no force in history had been better led. In the future the country would be even more anxious to see value for money. Remarking that "the night camera had cut down the number of heroes in Bomber Command," he said that the crews in the Command were better now than ever before. Refer ring to Sir Hugh P. Lloyd as a professor of economics, he said that as C-in-C. Bomber Command he had made sure that everybody should know that the better they were individually the fewer bodies of all kinds would be needed. Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Lloyd, K.B.E., C.B., M.C., D.F.C., said that the P.F.F. dinner was one of the leading functions of the R. A. F. in London and great credit was due to the chairman and organization. Bomber Command was in the good, safe and capable hands of its new C-in-C., Air Marshal G. H. Mills, C.B., D.F.C. It was now the senior Command, so it would have to work all the harder to set the example werthy of its pride of place. Bomber Harris was next called to his feet. In an amusing and forceful speech he said he was satisfied that Bomber Com- OF THE HOUSE OF WINDSOR: Flying solo the only Harvard ever to wear five-star insignia, the Duke of Edinburgh passes over Windsor Castle in formation with his instructor, FjL. Gor don, from whose aircraft this photograph was taken. mand's efforts during the war were not wasted; they could only be assessed by "the customers"—who were always right. The toast of "The Guests" was proposed by Mr. L. G. Johnson, D.F.C., vice- president of the Pathfinder Association. Sir James Barnes, K.C.B., K.B.E., Per manent Under-Secretary of State to the Air Ministry, replied for the guests, and recalled some amusing contacts with Sir Arthur Harris during the war—in particular his remark on meeting a V.I.P.: "And what part of the war effort are you impeding today?" Finally, as is the custom, everyone drank to "Absent Friends," proposed by Mr. Peter H. Swan, D.S.O., D.F.C. Duke of Gloucester in Iraq AFTER attending the recent accession • ceremonies of King Feisal, the Duke of Gloucester paid visits to Habbaniya and Amman. The Duke, wearing the uniform of an air chief marshal, was travelling in a chartered B.O.A.C. Argonaut and he was accompanied by Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Sanders, A.O.C-in-C, M.E.A.F., and A.V-M. Hawtrey, A.O.C. Iraq. On arrival at Habbaniya he was greeted by the Station Commander, G/C. R. A. T. Stowell and a Guard of Honour of R.A.F. Iraq Levies. His Royal Highness inspected No. 6 Squadron—the pilots of which put up a 20-minute display of formation flying and aerobatics on their Vampires—and studied photographs taken by No. 683 Squadron while air mapping Aden and British Somaliland. On the following day, at Amman, the Duke, with the Station Commander, G/C. E. W. Palmer, watched a demonstration by the R.A.F. Regiment, and inspected the new runway project. R.A.F.A. Legal Panel Dines THE third annual dinner of the R.A.F.A. legal panel was held in London on Saturday last. In the chair was A.V-M. Sir Geoffrey Bromet and Lord Goddard was the guest of honour. A report of the function will appear next week. Coronation Fly-Past T HE Royal Air Force salute to the Queen on Her Majesty's return to Buckingham Palace following the Corona tion Procession on June 2nd will be given by a mass formation of 168 fighters, 144 R.A.F. Meteors and 24 R.C.A.F. Sabres. Approaching the Palace from south of the Thames, the formation is due to pass over St. James's Park and fly across The Mall at 5.15 p.m., passing from the right to the left of Her Majesty, who will be on the balcony to take the salute. The formation will fly at 345 m.p.h., the heights of individual wings being stepped down from 1,500ft to 1,100ft. The basic formation will be two broad arrow heads, linked by a central group of aircraft. It will be a compact mass, covering an area about 2,200 yards long and 640 yards wide, taking only 15 seconds to pass. The leading arrowhead will comprise 72 Meteors, in three groups of 24. Each of these groups will be made up of six "boxes" of four aircraft. Immediately behind will be the 24 Sabres, also flying in six "boxes" of four. Then will come the second arrowhead of Meteors, flying an identical pattern to the leading formation. Formation leader will be W/C. J. Wallace, D.S.O., D.F.C., officer command ing the flying wing at R.A.F. Station Dux- ford, Cambridge. The flanking formations in the leading arrowhead will be led by W/C. D. Crowley-Milling, D.S.O., D.F.C.
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