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Aviation History
1957
1957 - 0467.PDF
12 April 1957 469 SERVICE AVIATION Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm News Command Changes ""PHE Air Ministry announced last Mon- •*• day that the Queen had approved the appointment of Air Marshal the Earl of Bandon as Commander-in-Chief, Far East Air Force, from July in place of Air Marshal Sir Francis Fressanges, who is retiring from the R.A.F.; and of A.V-M. John Humphrey Edwardes Jones as Com- mander-in-Chief, the Second Tactical Air Force, from June with the acting rank of air marshal. (The latter appointment in- cludes the NATO post of Commander, Second Allied Tactical Air Force.) Air Marshal the Earl of Bandon has been C-in-C, 2nd T.A.F., since December 1955 and was previously Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Training) from October 1953. A.V-M. Jones has been Commandant of the School of Land-Air Warfare, Old Sarum, Wilts, since August 1955 and was previously S.A.S.O., 2nd T.A.F., from March 1952. White Paper Implications TN a statement issued to all R.A.F. •*• stations as guidance on the implications of the Defence White Paper, the Air Minis- try says that officers, N.C.O.s and their wives and families should not draw con- clusions "not justified by the facts." Reduction in strength would be carried out under a plan taking "several years" to complete and be achieved "in the main" by running-down national service strengths; the "natural decrease" of numbers serving on shorter regular engagements; and the "normal outflow" of officers and odiers. It was "reasonable to believe," the statement adds, that the problem of redundancy "could be kept widiin reasonable propor- tions." U.S.A.F. Hand Back Bases TWO R.A.F. stations in the north-west •*• of England which have been used by the U.S.A.F. are to be handed back to Air Ministry control at the end of June. One is Sealand, Flintshire, where Americans have been based since 1951, and the other Cranage, Cheshire, which they have been using for just over two years. There are about 800 U.S. Servicemen and 600 British civilian employees at Sealand, comparable figures for Cranage being 500 and 100. Royal Appointments ON April 2 the London Gazetteannounced that the Queen had approved the appointment of G/C. J. M. Birkin as Aide-de-Camp in suc- cession to A. Cdre. Finlay Crerar. G/C. Birkin, who has been Inspector of the R.Aux.A.F. since January 1952, joined the R.A.F.V.R. in 1938 and had a distinguished record of service in the Second World War. From 1942—in which year he was awarded the A.F.C.—to 1943 he was a flying instructor at the Empire Central Flying School. Early in 1944 he was appointed to command No. 1409 Met. This Fairey Gannet A.S.I, of No. 820 (F.A.A.) Sqn.—based at R.N.A.S. E glint on, N.I., and known from their markings as "The Spangles" —makes a sturdy study with Bineyenagh (in F.A.A. parlance, "Ben Twitch") as impressive but formidable background. "Flight" photograph A Chinese fisherman, Goft Ah Heng (second from left), who led the rescue of the crew of a Lincoln from No. 1 (R.A.A.F.) Sqn. after it had crashed near Pontain Kechil, Malaya, on January 9 being presented by the c.o., W/C. K. Robertson, with a plaque of the squadron crest. Also seen (I. to r.) are a police interpreter; S/L. E. Goldner, captain of the Lincoln; and F/Sgt. J. Sandys, signaller. Flight in No. 8 Pathfinder Group and, later that year, he formed and commanded No. 571 Pathfinder Sqn. For his leadership and gallantry, he was awarded the D.F.C. in September 1944 and the D.S.O. the fol- lowing month. In the same issue of the London Gazette it was announced that the Queen had approved the appointment of A. Cdre. G. W. McAleer as an Honorary Physician in succession to Air Marshal Sir James Kilpatrick, on the latter's retirement from the R.A.F. A. Cdre. McAleer has been Principal Medical Officer of the Far East Air Force since June 1956, and before that was P.M.O. at Maintenance Command from the end of 1951. R.A.F. Postings THE following continues a list of Royal •*• Air Force appointments issued periodic- ally by the Air Ministry: — G/C. G. C. Allen to H.Q., AAFCE, for staffduties; G/C. A. A. Saw to H.Q., No. 2 Group, for technical staff duties; G/C. P. H. Cribb toR.A.F. Oldenburg, to command; G/C. W. I. C. Inness to H.Q., Allied Forces, Mediterranean,for air staff duties; G/C. N. C. Walker to Air Ministry for duty in the Department of the AirMember for Supply and Organization; G/C. A. Foden to Air Ministry for duty in theDepartment of the Chief of Air Staff. W/C. E. B. Loftus to A.H.Q., Malta, fortechnical staff duties; W/C. S. P. Austin to AFCE, for staff duties; W/C. W. G. Craddockto Ministry of Supply; W/C. W. Cunnliffe to R.A.F. Syerston for technical duties; W/C. E.J. B. Brown to H.Q. A.A.F.C.E.; W/C. C. V. Stammers to Ministry of Supply; Acting W/C.J. F. Ratcliffe to R.A.F. Geilenkirchen, for technical duties; W/C. J. T. Lowe to AirMinistry, for duty in the Department of the Air Member for Personnel, with acting rankof group captain; W/C. F. E. Evans to H.Q., Technical Training Command, for adminis-trative staff duties; W/C. C. S. W. Harte to Air Ministry for duty in the Department ofthe Air Member for Supply and Organization. S/L. T. U. Dunn to H.Q., M.E.A.F., fortechnical staff duties, with acting rank of wing commander. Reunion THE twelth annual reunion of the Head- -'- quarters Bomber Command Association of Officers is being held at H.Q., Bomber Command, R.A.F. High Wycombe, Bucks, on Saturday, May 18. Any mem- ber who has not received details can obtain them by applying to G/C. F. W. Wiseman- Clarke, hon. secretary, at the above address. IN BRIEF By defeating the Army 1-0 at Uxbridge on April 3 the R.A.F. became inter-Ser- vices hockey champions, having previously beaten the Royal Navy. Three P2V Neptunes returned to Aus- tralia on April 4 after completing the first round-the-world goodwill flight under- taken by the R.A.A.F., during which they covered 30,000 miles in 43 days.
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