Group Captain Cecil Francis Kilner, DSO*, ADC (8 October 1883 – 20 October 1925) was an early

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...

and pilot in the 1914

Cuxhaven Raid The Raid on Cuxhaven (, Christmas Raid) was a British ship-based air-raid on the Imperial German Navy at Cuxhaven mounted on Christmas Day, 1914. Aircraft of the Royal Naval Air Service were carried to within striking distance by seaplane tend ...

. He was awarded two

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

s during service with the Royal Naval Air Service during the First World War, he died as a Royal Air Force Group Captain in 1925 after a short illness.

Early life

Kilner was born on 8 October 1883 in

Kemsing Kemsing is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Sevenoaks (district), Sevenoaks district of Kent, England. The parish lies on the scarp face of the North Downs, 20 miles south east of Central London and north east of ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

12 April 1887 the son of William and Frances Kilner.

Royal Marines

He graduated from the

Royal Military College Royal Military College may refer to: ;Australia * Royal Military College, Duntroon, Campbell, Australian Capital Territory ;Canada * Royal Military College of Canada, Kingston, Ontario * Royal Military College Saint-Jean, Saint-Jean, Quebec ;Indi ...

at Sandhurst, and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the

Royal Marine Light Infantry Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Roya ...

on 1 September 1902. In the 1911 Census he was described as a Lieutenant of the Royal Marines Light Infantry aboard HMS ''Swiftsure'' in the Grand Harbour,

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

.1911 Census RG14 34973

Royal Naval Air Service

On 22 October 1913 he was awarded the Aviators Certificate #667 from the

Royal Aero Club The Royal Aero Club (RAeC) is the national co-ordinating body for air sport in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1901 as the Aero Club of Great Britain, being granted the title of the "Royal Aero Club" in 1910. History The Aero Club was foun ...

following flights at the

Central Flying School The Central Flying School (CFS) is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 at the Upavon Aerodrome, it is the longest existing flying training school in the world. The sch ...

at Upavon, Wiltshire and went on to serve with the

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty (United Kingdom), Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British ...

On Christmas Day 1914 he took part in the

for which he was awarded the DSO. The raid was an air reconnaissance flight in the Heligoland Bight with an opportunity to bomb German facilities. The aircraft were launched from seaplane-carriers, which were supported by destroyers and light cruisers, at first light, with bad weather the aircraft had to fly low. The low flying aircraft and the supporting ships were attacked by defending forces with submarines, seaplanes and Zeppelins. Kilner with his observer Erskine Childers flying a Short Admiralty Type 135 was one of the few who managed to return to his ship.

Royal Air Force

In 1919 he transferred to the new

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

with a permanent commission as a Major. In early 1925 he was appointed as Air Aide-de-Camp to the King but he died soon after in London on 20 October 1925 at 16 Beaumont Street, London.

Honours and awards

* 19 February 1915 – Captain Cecil Francis Kilner, RNLI (Flight Commander) is awarded the

for distinguished service on the combined operations by HM Ships and Naval Seaplanes on 25 December 1914. * 1 October 1917 – Squadron Cd. Cecil Franscis Kilner, DSO, RNAS (Capt, temp Major RMLI) a bar to the Distinguished Service Order for services in reconnaissance and bombing flights in the eastern Mediterranean.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kilner, Cecil Francis 1883 births 1925 deaths English aviators Royal Marines officers Royal Marines personnel of World War I Royal Naval Air Service aviators Royal Air Force group captains People from Kemsing Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Military personnel from Kent