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Mark Henry Brown
Wing Commander Mark Henry Brown, (9 October 1911 – 12 November 1941) was a Canadian-born flying ace who served with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. Credited with having shot down at least fifteen German aircraft, he was the first Canadian pilot to become a flying ace during the war. He was killed in action in November 1941 over Sicily. Early life Mark Henry Brown, who was nicknamed 'Hilly', was born on 9 October 1911 in Portage la Prairie in Canada. Following the completion of his schooling, he worked for the Bank of Montreal in Brandon. He learned to fly at the Brandon Flying club and left Canada to join the Royal Air Force in May 1936 on a short service commission. After his training at No. 9 Flying Training School at Thornaby was completed, he was posted to No. 1 Squadron in February 1937 as a pilot officer. At the time of his posting to No. 1 Squadron, it was based at Tangmere and operating the Hawker Fury biplane fighter. However, in late 1937 i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s–40s which was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was overshadowed in the public consciousness by the Supermarine Spitfire during the Battle of Britain in 1940, but the Hurricane inflicted 60% of the losses sustained by the ''Luftwaffe'' in the campaign, and fought in all the major theatres of the Second World War. The Hurricane originated from discussions between RAF officials and aircraft designer Sir Sydney Camm about a proposed monoplane derivative of the Hawker Fury biplane in the early 1930s. Despite an institutional preference for biplanes and lack of interest by the Air Ministry, Hawker refined its monoplane proposal, incorporating several innovations which became critical to wartime fighter aircraft, including retractable landing gear and the more powerful Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. The Air Ministry ordered Hawker's ''Interce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Killed In Action
Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, says that those declared KIA did not need to have fired their weapons, but only to have been killed due to hostile attack. KIAs include those killed by friendly fire during combat, but not from incidents such as accidental vehicle crashes, murder, or other non-hostile events or terrorism. KIA can be applied both to front-line combat troops and naval, air, and support forces. Furthermore, the term died of wounds (DOW) is used to denote personnel who reached a medical treatment facility before dying. The category ''died of wounds received in action'' (''DWRIA'') is also used for combat related casualties which occur after medical evacuation. PKIA means presumed killed in action. This term is used when personnel are lost in battle, initial ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dornier Do 17
The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Dornier Flugzeugwerke. Large numbers were operated by the ''Luftwaffe'' throughout the Second World War. The Do 17 was designed during the early 1930s as a '' Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that was intended to use its speed to outrun opposing fighter aircraft. It was a lightly built aircraft, possessing a twin tail, " shoulder wing" and typically powered by a pair of Bramo 323P radial engines. The first prototype made its maiden flight on 23 November 1934; it entered regular service with the ''Luftwaffe'' three years later. Sometimes referred to as the ''Fliegender Bleistift'' ("flying pencil") or the ''Eversharp'', the Do 17 was a relatively popular aircraft among its crews due to its handling, especially at low altitude, which made the type harder to hit than other German bombers of the era. During 1937, the Do 17 made its combat debut during the Spanish Civil War, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Luftwaffe
The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial German Navy, Imperial Navy, had been disbanded in May 1920 in accordance with the terms of the 1919 Treaty of Versailles, which banned Germany from having any air force. During the interwar period, German pilots were trained secretly in violation of the treaty at Lipetsk (air base), Lipetsk Air Base in the Soviet Union. With the rise of the Nazi Party and the repudiation of the Versailles Treaty, the Luftwaffe's existence was publicly acknowledged and officially established on 26 February 1935, just over two weeks before open defiance of the Versailles Treaty through German rearmament and conscription would be announced on 16 March. The Condor Legion, a Luftwaffe detachment sent to aid Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vassincourt Airfield
Vassincourt Airfield (also known as Bar-le-Duc) is a former landing ground in the commune of Vassincourt, North-eastern France. History At the end of World War I, the French government launched a plan (known as the Jacques-Théodore Saconney, Saconney Plan) for organizing flight routes, and the construction of civil and military airfields until 1933. On June 22, 1931, the Air Club of Barrois was formed for the purpose of developing aviation, especially engineless aircraft. It was set up at Vassincourt Airfield, which caught the attention of the Army in 1935. At the beginning of October 1939, a Potez 630, Potez 631 from Training Section 408 arrived from the Marignane base. World War II On October 9, 1939, the airfield was occupied by the Royal Air Force's No. 1 Squadron RAF, No. 1 Squadron, which was part of No. 67 Fighter Wing RAF. On 2 March 1940, a Hawker Hurricane operated by No. 1 Squadron crashed shortly after departing Vassincourt, killing the pilot. On May 10, 1940, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Advanced Air Striking Force
The RAF Advanced Air Striking Force (AASF) comprised the light bombers of 1 Group RAF Bomber Command, which took part in the Battle of France during the Second World War. Before hostilities began, it had been agreed between the United Kingdom and France that in case of war, the short-range aircraft of Bomber Command would move to French airfields to operate against targets in Nazi Germany. The AASF was formed on 24 August 1939 from the ten squadrons of Fairey Battle light bombers of 1 Group under the command of Air Vice-Marshal Patrick Playfair and was dispatched to airfields in the Rheims area on 2 September 1939. The AASF was answerable to the Air Ministry and independent of the British Expeditionary Force. For unity of command, the AASF and the Air Component of the BEF (Air Vice-Marshal Charles Blount), came under the command of British Air Forces in France (Air Vice-Marshal Arthur Barratt) on 15 January 1940. Using the bombers for attacks on strategic targets in G ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flying Officer
Flying officer (Fg Offr or F/O) is a junior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Flying officer is immediately senior to pilot officer and immediately below flight lieutenant. It is usually equivalent to the rank of sub-lieutenant in the navy and of the rank of lieutenant in other services. The equivalent rank in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force was "section officer". Canada The rank was used in the Royal Canadian Air Force until the 1968 unification of the Canadian Forces, when army-type rank titles were adopted. Canadian flying officers then became lieutenants. In official Canadian French usage, the rank title was . United Kingdom Origins The term "flying officer" was originally used in the Royal Flying Corps as a flying appointment for junior officers, not a rank. On 1 April 1918, the newly created RAF adopted its officer rank titles ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fighter Aircraft
Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield permits bombers and attack aircraft to engage in tactical bombing, tactical and strategic bombing of enemy targets, and helps prevent the enemy from doing the same. The key performance features of a fighter include not only its firepower but also its high speed and maneuverability relative to the target aircraft. The success or failure of a combatant's efforts to gain air superiority hinges on several factors including the skill of its pilots, the tactical soundness of its doctrine for deploying its fighters, and the numbers and performance of those fighters. Many modern fighter aircraft also have secondary capabilities such as ground-attack aircraft, ground attack and some types, such as fighter-b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawker Fury
The Hawker Fury is a British biplane fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force in the 1930s. It was a fast, agile aircraft, and the first interceptor in RAF service faster than in level flight. It was the fighter counterpart to the Hawker Hart light bomber. Design and development The Hawker Fury was a development of the earlier Hawker F.20/27 prototype fighter, replacing the radial engine of the F.20/27 with the new Rolls-Royce F.XI V-12 engine (later known as the Rolls-Royce Kestrel), which was also used by Hawker's new light bomber, the Hawker Hart. The new fighter prototype, known as the ''Hawker Hornet'', first flew at Brooklands, Surrey, in March 1929.Mason 1992, p.213. The Hornet was a single-engined biplane, with single bay wings, initially powered by a Rolls-Royce F.XIC engine enclosed by a smooth, streamlined cowling but was quickly re-engined with a Kestrel IS.Goulding 1986, p.37. The prototype was evaluated against the similarly powered Fairey Firefly II ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Tangmere
Royal Air Force Tangmere or more simply RAF Tangmere is a former Royal Air Force (RAF) station located in Tangmere, England, famous for its role in the Battle of Britain. It was one of several stations near Chichester, West Sussex. The Second World War Flying ace, aces Wing Commander (rank), Wing Commander Douglas Bader, and the then inexperienced Johnnie Johnson (RAF officer), Johnnie Johnson were stationed at Tangmere in 1941. History First World War The aerodrome was founded in 1917 for use by the Royal Flying Corps as a training base. In August 1918 it was sold to the US Government and turned over to the Aviation Section, U.S. Signal Corps (USSC) as a training ground for US-built Handley-Page O/400 biplane bombers, although almost none were completed by the time of the Armistice of 11 November 1918, Armistice. The Aviation Section of the American Expeditionary Forces (ASAEF) agreed to improve the airfield and constructed further hangars. Tangmere continued to host the 9 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer (Plt Off or P/O) is a junior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Pilot officer is the lowest ranking commissioned officer immediately below flying officer. It is usually equivalent to the rank of second lieutenant in other services. The equivalent rank in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) was "company assistant", later renamed to "assistant section officer". Canada The rank was used in the Royal Canadian Air Force until the 1968 unification of the Canadian Forces, when army-type rank titles were adopted. Canadian pilot officers then became second lieutenants. In official Canadian French usage, the rank title was . United Kingdom Origins In the Royal Flying Corps, officers were designated pilot officers at the end of pilot training. As they retained their commissions in their customary ranks (usually second lieutenant ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Thornaby
Royal Air Force Thornaby, or more simply RAF Thornaby, is a former Royal Air Force Station located in the town and borough of Thornaby-on-Tees, in the North Riding of Yorkshire, England. Fighter Command, Bomber Command and Coastal Command all operated from the base over its history, but its stint under Coastal Command is what the base was notable for, particularly in the air-sea rescue environment and the development of the ''Thornaby Bag''. This was an emergency bag dropped to downed aircrew at sea and contained food, cigarettes and drink. History The aerodrome was officially opened on 29 September 1929, although flying in Thornaby dates back to 1912 when Gustav Hamel used the Vale Farm for a flying display. Subsequently, the Royal Flying Corps used the same fields as a staging post between Catterick and Marske Aerodrome between 1914 and 1918.608 squadron and RAF Thornaby, E. W. Sockett In 1920, the government purchased of farm land from Thornaby Hall and develope ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
