Paul Caswell Powe Farnes, (16 July 1918 – 28 January 2020) was a British

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

fighter pilot and

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

who flew during the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

as one of " The Few". He flew the Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire in aerial combat. He scored 8 kills (comprising 7 and 2 shared destroyed, 2 'probables' and 11 damaged).

Early life

Paul Caswell Powe Farnes was born in

Boscombe Boscombe is a suburb of Bournemouth, England. Historically in Hampshire, but today in Dorset, it is located to the east of Bournemouth town centre and west of Southbourne. Originally a sparsely inhabited area of heathland, from around 1865 B ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...

, on 16 July 1918. He was educated at Surbiton County School and Kingston Technical College, living near

Walton-on-Thames Walton-on-Thames, locally known as Walton, is a market town on the south bank of the Thames in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Walton forms part of the Greater London built-up area, within the KT postcode and is served by a wide ran ...

, before joining the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF ...

(RAFVR) in April 1938.

Second World War

After completing his training, in the RAFVR, as a pilot he joined

No. 501 Squadron RAF ("Fear nothing") , colors = , colors_label = , march = , mascot = , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , anniversaries = , decorations = , battle_honours = France & Low Countries, 1940 Battle of Britain, 1940 Home Defen ...

in September 1939 and remained with the squadron when it went to France in May 1940. He claimed his first victories during the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second Wor ...

, with 'shares' in two bombers downed and a

He 111 The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after th ...

shot down solo. During August 1940 he claimed 5 more and in October 1940 he was awarded the

Distinguished Flying Medal The Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Royal Air Force and other British Armed Forces, and formerly to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for "exceptional va ...

(DFM). By now a sergeant pilot, he was commissioned a

pilot officer Pilot officer (Plt Off officially in the RAF; in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly P/O in all services, and still often used in the RAF) is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countri ...

(on probation) on 3 December 1940. In February 1941 Farnes was posted to No. 57 Operational Training Unit as an instructor. In November 1941 he transferred to No. 73 Operational Training Unit in

Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 peopl ...

. He was confirmed in his rank and promoted to war-substantive flying officer on 3 December 1941. Farnes was posted to

No. 229 Squadron RAF No. 229 Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force, and is an officially accredited Battle of Britain Squadron. It became No. 603 Squadron RAF in January 1945. History Formation and World War I No. 229 Squadron RAF was formed on 20 A ...

in North Africa as a flight commander in February 1942. He flew with the squadron on 27 March 1942 to

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

where he later took command of the squadron. Farnes returned to North Africa in late May 1942. On 26 July 1942, he was promoted to war-substantive

flight lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior Officer (armed forces)#Commissioned officers, commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) RAF officer ranks, system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries. I ...

. He was then posted to Iraq, where he joined the RAF headquarters staff and remained there until March 1945, receiving a promotion to war-substantive

squadron leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is als ...

on 1 May 1944. On return to the United Kingdom he took command of

No. 124 Squadron RAF No. 124 (Baroda) Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed to be a light bomber unit in World War I and reformed as a fighter unit in World War II. History Formation and World War I No. 124 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was formed on 1 ...

, a command he retained until the end of the war. He ended the war with the acting rank of wing commander.

Later life

After the war, Farnes became a liaison officer for training centres with the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of Stat ...

. He was granted a permanent commission in the RAF in the rank of squadron leader on 1 September 1945. In 1948, he became a flying instructor. Farnes remained in the RAF until 1958, when he retired on 27 June with the rank of

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

. In 2010, Farnes said: Farnes died on 28 January 2020 at the age of 101 in his home in West Sussex. He was the last

ace fighter pilot A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

of the Battle of Britain leaving two surviving members of The Few.

Personal life

Farnes's first wife was Pamela Barton who died in 1989. They married in Worthing, Sussex, in 1948. Farnes was married to Cynthia from 1994 until her death in 2012. He had a son, Jonathan, and a daughter, Linda; a second son, Nicholas, died in 1954.

References

External links

RCAF 70 Anniversary article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farnes, Paul 1918 births English centenarians Men centenarians British World War II flying aces Royal Air Force pilots of World War II 2020 deaths Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Medal Royal Air Force wing commanders The Few People from Boscombe Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II