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Aviation History
1958
1958 - 0798.PDF
814 FLIGHT, 13 June 1958 SERVICE AVIATION Royal Air Forces and Naval Flying News Aden Tests A SERIES of tropical evaluation trials•**• of the Folland Gnat, Hawker Hunter and Hunting Jet Provost is shortly to beheld by the R.A.F. at Aden. An announce- ment that such tests were contemplatedwas made by A.V-M. W. H. Kyle, A.C.A.S. (Operational Requirements), when hespoke on future equipment at the R.A.F. conference "Prospect Two" last month. Hesaid then that while it had become almost a tradition for fighter aircraft well tried inthe U.K. to be used for ground attack, defence and tactical reconnaissance needsoverseas, modern high performance inter- cepters were becoming less suitable for thisgeneral-purpose r61e. What was needed was something "simpler, more versatileand more economical." The aircraft on trial will probably be flown by Servicepilots. Senior Appointments CINCE October 1955 S.A.S.O. at Bomber*•* Command H.Q. and prior to that A.O.C. British Forces, Aden, A.V-M. S. O.Bufton is to become A.C.A.S. (Intelligence) in August in succession to A.V-M. W. M. L.MacDonald; and he will be succeeded this month as S.A.S.O. at Bomber Commandby A. Cdre. J. G. Davis, Director of Plans at the Air Ministry, who is to be an actingair vice-marshal in his new post. A.V-M. Bufton was successively DeputyChief of Staff (Operations and Plans) at H.Q., Air Forces Western Europe (nowAAFCE); Director of Weapons, Air Ministry; and A.O.A. Bomber Commandbefore his Aden appointment. Among his wartime posts were the command of Nos. 10and 76 Sqns. and of R.A.F. Pocklington. He was awarded the D.F.C. in November1940 and appointed C.B. in January 1945. A. Cdre. Davis became Director of Plansat the Air Ministry in August 1955, after completing an Imperial Defence Collegecourse. During the war he commanded No. 269 Sqn. and subsequently R.A.F.stations Lagens (in the Azores) and St. Eval, Cornwall. He was made O.B.E. in 1945and appointed a C.B. in 1953. Sunderlands' Retirement A CHAPTER in the Far East historyof the R.A.F. is closing with the retirement of the Sunderlands of No. 205/209 Sqn. (the last R.A.F. unit to use them) and their replacement by Shackletons, the first of which reached Singapore lastmonth; for it was at Seletar, where the squadron is at present based, that the firstF.E.A.F. unit—No. 205 Sqn., equipped with Supermarine Southamptons—wasformed in January 1929 from the original Far East Flight. No. 205 Sqn. was subsequently equippedwith Singapores, then with Catalinas and (in 1945) with Sunderlands. Its "otherhalf," No. 209 Sqn., has two distinctions in its history—the shooting-down by oneof its Camels in 1918 of Von Richthofen, and in 1941 the shadowing by one of itsCatalinas of the doomed Bismarck. The Sunderlands of No. 205/209 Sqn.first flew in October 1937. The first of the Shackletons which are to replace them wasflown out to Singapore by the squadron's present CO., W/C. R. A. N. McCready. M.E.A.F. Post T^ROM next month A. Cdre. C. S.•*- Moore, who has been a Director of Intelligence at Air Ministry since August1955, becomes A.O.A. at H.Q., M.E.A.F. Air Chief Marshal Sir Walter L. Daw son, Air Member for Supply and Organization, talks with a cadet at the annual review of the Dur- ham County Wing A.T.C. at R.A.F. Middleton St. George on June 1. An R.C.A.F. Lancas- ter with a Ryan Fire- bee under its wing at the Naval Auxiliary Air Station, Brown Field, Cal, where tests confirmed the feasibility of using Lancasters as launch- ers for these drones —which are to be used by the R.C.A.F. in the evaluation of weapons systems. Being let down gently from a F.A.A. Whirl- wind on to the deck of the frigate H.M.S. "Grenville" is the Minister of Defence, Mr. Duncan Sandys, during his recent visit to Portland to see demonstrations of submarine and AS. warfare in the Channel. This will be his third Middle East tour,for from 1932 until mid-1934 he flew with and was adjutant of No. 45 Sqn. in thattheatre; and in late 1936 he returned there for flying instructor and air navigator dutieswith No. 4 F.T.S., remaining in the M.E. until early 1943 and in 1941-42 command-ing R.A.F. Port Sudan and the Red Sea hill station, Summit, both of which wereconcerned with the assembly and despatch of aircraft for the Western Desert. A. Cdre.Moore, who is an O.B.E., was formerly A.O.C. No. 66 (Scottish) Group. R.A.F. Postings AMONG appointments recently an- ** nounced by the Air Ministry are the following: — W/C.s E. A. Cox to R.A.F. Wattisham, fortechnical duties; S. A. Fcntum to H.Q. No. 24 Group, for technical staff duties; F. R. Flynnto H.Q., Flying Training Command, for acci- dent prevention duties; E. D. Green to the AirMinistry, for duty in the Department of the C.A.S.; B. J. Jennings to R.A.F. CardingtonBalloon Unit, to command; F. N. Shuttleworth to the R.A.F. Hospital, Halton, as specialist inophthalmology; D. C. Smythe to the U.K. Service Liaison Staff, for Air Staff Trainingduties in Canada; A. Cross to the Ministry of Supply; W. J. Evans to H.Q., Fighter Com-mand, for administrative staff duties; R. V. Fiddick to H.Q., Fighter Command, for tech-nical staff duties; S. Robinson to the Air Ministry, for duty in the Department of theAir Member for Supply and Organization; S. R. Walton to the Air Ministry, for duty inthe Department of the C.A.S. S/L.s E. A. Challis to R.A.F. Cosford, foradministrative duties (with acting rank of wing commander); F. S. R. Johnson to the R.A.F.Staff College, Andover, for directing staff duties (with acting rank of wing commander); J. R-Saunders to R.A.F. Luqa, to command No. 38 Sqn. (with acting rank of wing commander).
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