|
Victor Lowden
Sub-lieutenant Victor Soutar Lowden DSC (13 September 1923 – 13 June 1998) was a Scottish businessman and Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm fighter pilot during World War II. On 15 August 1945 he flew as fighter escort with one of the last Allied bombing raids on Tokyo Bay, subsequently participating in the last dogfight of the war, for which he was honoured. Early life Victor Lowden was born in Bangkok where his father was working as an accountant. He was educated at the High School of Dundee and Strathallan School in Scotland and St John's College, Cambridge. Lowden graduated with a BA (Hons) in economics, which had been accelerated over two years, so that he could join the Fleet Air Arm. His younger brother was Gordon Lowden. Naval career Lowden joined the Fleet Air Arm in July 1942 and completed his basic flying training at RAF Sealand and RCAF Station Kingston in Canada. Whilst training at RNAS Henstridge Lowden came to the attention of Commander R Mike Crosley who des ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated population of 10.539 million as of 2020, 15.3 percent of the country's population. Over 14 million people (22.2 percent) lived within the surrounding Bangkok Metropolitan Region at the 2010 census, making Bangkok an extreme primate city, dwarfing Thailand's other urban centres in both size and importance to the national economy. Bangkok traces its roots to a small trading post during the Ayutthaya Kingdom in the 15th century, which eventually grew and became the site of two capital cities, Thonburi in 1768 and Rattanakosin in 1782. Bangkok was at the heart of the modernization of Siam, later renamed Thailand, during the late-19th century, as the country faced pressures from the West. The city was at the centre of Thailand's political struggl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RCAF Station Kingston
RCAF Station Kingston was a World War II air training station built in 1940 at Collins Bay near Kingston, Ontario, Canada. The station was originally built by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) for use by the Royal Air Force (RAF). Like other RAF schools in Canada, it was subject to RCAF administrative and operational control. History No. 31 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) was the first British Service Flying Training school to be established in Canada and the first flying training school at Kingston. The school was originally No. 7 Service Flying School based in Peterborough, England. Its main purpose was to train pilots for the Fleet Air Arm, but in the beginning the school's first students were British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) trainees selected for service with the RCAF and RAF. Naval trainees, however, made up the majority of the trainees by the end of December 1940. Pilots were trained on Fairey Battles, which were shipped from England, and later, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Pacific Fleet
The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was a Royal Navy formation that saw action against Japan during the Second World War. The fleet was composed of empire naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944 from the remaining ships of the former Eastern Fleet then being re-named the East Indies Fleet and continuing to be based in Trincomalee. The British Pacific Fleet's main base was at Sydney, Australia, with a forward base at Manus Island in northern Papua New Guinea. One of the largest fleets ever assembled by the Royal Navy, by Victory over Japan Day (VJ Day) it consisted of over two hundred ships and submarines and more than 750 aircraft; including four battleships and six fleet aircraft carriers, fifteen smaller aircraft carriers, eleven cruisers and numerous smaller warships, submarines, and support vessels. The fleet took part in the Battle of Okinawa and the final naval strikes on Japan. Background Following their retreat to the western side of the Indi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
887 Naval Air Squadron
887 Naval Air Squadron (887 NAS) was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil .... The squadron formed at Lee-on-Solent in May 1942 as a Fleet Fighter squadron with 6 Fulmar IIs. In April 1943 the squadron, now equipped with 9 Seafire IICs, embarked on HMS Unicorn for Malta convoy duties, and subsequently taking part in the landings at Salerno in September 1943. In October 1943 the squadron joined the 24th Naval Fighter Wing, and embarked on HMS Indefatigable in July 1944 to provide fighter cover during the Operation Mascot dive-bombing attack on the German battleship Tirpitz in Kaa Fjord, North Norway. In October 1944 the squadron operated from HMS Implacable. The squadron embarked again on HMS Indefatigable in November ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fleet Carrier
A fleet carrier is an aircraft carrier designed to operate with the main fleet of a nation's navy. The term was developed during World War II, to distinguish it from the escort carrier and other less capable types. In addition to many medium-sized carriers, supercarriers, as well as some light carriers, are also classed as fleet carriers. History Aircraft carriers were designed in the years between World War I and World War II. Flight decks were installed on several different types of ships to explore the possibilities of operating naval aircraft without the performance limitations of flotation devices required for seaplanes and flying boats. The most successful of these early aircraft carriers were built from battlecruisers. Battlecruisers typically had a speed of about , which was several knots faster than the speed of contemporary battleships. Additional speed was not necessary for maintaining station with the battle fleet, but enabled the carrier to catch up with the ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea ; tr, Ege Denizi (Greek: Αιγαίο Πέλαγος: "Egéo Pélagos", Turkish: "Ege Denizi" or "Adalar Denizi") is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea between Europe and Asia. It is located between the Balkans and Anatolia, and covers an area of some 215,000 square kilometres. In the north, the Aegean is connected to the Marmara Sea and the Black Sea by the straits of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus. The Aegean Islands are located within the sea and some bound it on its southern periphery, including Crete and Rhodes. The sea reaches a maximum depth of 2,639m to the west of Karpathos. The Thracian Sea and the Sea of Crete are main subdivisions of the Aegean Sea. The Aegean Islands can be divided into several island groups, including the Dodecanese, the Cyclades, the Sporades, the Saronic islands and the North Aegean Islands, as well as Crete and its surrounding islands. The Dodecanese, located to the southeast, includes the islands of R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operation Dragoon
Operation Dragoon (initially Operation Anvil) was the code name for the landing operation of the Allied invasion of Provence ( Southern France) on 15August 1944. Despite initially designed to be executed in conjunction with Operation Overlord, the Allied landing in Normandy, the lack of available resources led to a cancellation of the second landing. By July 1944 the landing was reconsidered, as the clogged-up ports in Normandy did not have the capacity to adequately supply the Allied forces. Concurrently, the French High Command pushed for a revival of the operation that would include large numbers of French troops. As a result, the operation was finally approved in July to be executed in August. The invasion sought to secure the vital ports on the French Mediterranean coast and increase pressure on the German forces by opening another front. After preliminary commando operations, the US VI Corps landed on the beaches of the Côte d'Azur under the shield of a large naval ta ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Air Defence Of Great Britain
The Air Defence of Great Britain (ADGB) was a RAF command comprising substantial army and RAF elements responsible for the air defence of the British Isles. It lasted from 1925, following recommendations that the RAF take control of homeland air defence, until 1936 when it became RAF Fighter Command. History The ADGB was created as a command in 1925 as a result of the 1923 recommendation of the Steel–Bartholomew Committee, including their recommendation to transfer responsibility for home air defence from the War Office to the Air Ministry. It main initial elements were: * The RAF's Metropolitan Air Force, initially comprising 25 squadrons (9 fighter), soon expanding to 52 squadrons (17 fighter) * 264 heavy AA guns (Royal Artillery) and 672 searchlights ( Royal Engineers) * The new part-time volunteer Observer Corps ADGB was organised into three defensive zones: * Inner Artillery Zone (IAZ), over London. * Air Fighter Zone (AFZ), divided into two areas controlling regular squ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peterhead
Peterhead (; gd, Ceann Phàdraig, sco, Peterheid ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement (the city of Aberdeen itself not being a part of the district), with a population of 18,537 at the 2011 Census. It is the biggest fishing port in the United Kingdom for total landings by UK vessels, according to a 2019 survey."Brexit trade deal: What does it mean for fishing?" - BBC News, December 2020 Peterhead sits at the easternmost point in mainland Scotland. It is often referred to as ''The Blue Toun'' (locally spelled "The Bloo Toon") and its natives are known as ''Bloo Touners''. They are also referred to as ''blue mogganers'' (locally spelled "bloomogganners"), supposedly from the blue worsted ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sortie
A sortie (from the French word meaning ''exit'' or from Latin root ''surgere'' meaning to "rise up") is a deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops, from a strongpoint. The term originated in siege warfare. In aviation In military aviation Military aviation comprises military aircraft and other flying machines for the purposes of conducting or enabling aerial warfare, including national airlift ( air cargo) capacity to provide logistical supply to forces stationed in a war the ..., a sortie is a combat mission of an individual aircraft, starting when the aircraft takes off. For example, one mission involving six aircraft would tally six sorties. The sortie rate is the number of sorties that a given unit can support in a given time. In siege warfare In siege warfare, the word ''sortie'' refers specifically to a sudden issuing of troops against the enemy from a defensive position—that is, an attack launched against the besieger ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares an open border to the south and west with the Republic of Ireland. In 2021, its population was 1,903,100, making up about 27% of Ireland's population and about 3% of the UK's population. The Northern Ireland Assembly (colloquially referred to as Stormont after its location), established by the Northern Ireland Act 1998, holds responsibility for a range of devolved policy matters, while other areas are reserved for the UK Government. Northern Ireland cooperates with the Republic of Ireland in several areas. Northern Ireland was created in May 1921, when Ireland was partitioned by the Government of Ireland Act 1920, creating a devolved government for the six northeastern counties. As was intended, Northern Irela ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
899 Naval Air Squadron
899 Naval Air Squadron (899 NAS) was a squadron of the Fleet Air Arm of the United Kingdom. It was most recently based at RNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron) as the British Aerospace Sea Harrier FA2 training squadron until it was decommissioned in March 2005 prior to the stand-up of 800 Naval Air Squadron with the Harrier GR7 at RAF Cottesmore. History Second World War 899 Naval Air Squadron was first formed on 15 December 1942 at RNAS Hatston using crew from 880 Naval Air Squadron and was equipped with the Supermarine Seafire IIC. The squadron embarked on the aircraft carrier in March that year, continuing to work up until the carrier sailed for the Mediterranean Sea to take part in the Allied invasion of Sicily in July 1943. ''Indomitable'' formed part of the covering force protecting the landings from any intervention by Italian naval forces. ''Indomitable'' was damaged by German air attack on 16 July, and 899 Squadron disembarked at Gibraltar on 29 July as the carrier returned to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
.jpg "Click for more on -> Bangkok")
.svg "Click for more on -> RCAF Station Kingston")
.jpg "Click for more on -> Fleet Carrier")
_Suez_1956.jpg "Click for more on -> 899 Naval Air Squadron")