Blog Archive

Group Captain Robert Olding, who has died aged 79, had the rare distinction of being one of very few post-war RAF officers to be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, which he received after being severely wounded while attacking an Egyptian airfield during the Suez conflict. Read his obituary on The Telegraph.

Commander Tony Shaw, who has died aged 89, was shot down over France and twice escaped from his German captors – the second time persuading his guards to desert with him. Read his obituary on The Telegraph.

Squadron leader Gerry O’Donovan, who has died aged 91, was one of Bomber Command’s most experienced Pathfinder pilots and regularly acted as the master bomber on large-scale raids over Germany. Read his obituary on The Telegraph.

Bill Farquharson, who has died aged 92, completed 63 operations as a pilot in Bomber Command and was twice awarded the DFC. Read his obituary on the Telegraph.

Pilot Kazimierz “Paddy” Szrajer, who has died aged 92, played a key part in a nail-biting behind-the-lines mission to retrieve a captured rocket from the Nazi’s secret V-2 wonder-weapon programme. Read his obituary on The Telegraph.

Flight Lieutenant William Walker, who has died aged 99, was shot down in his Spitfire during the Battle of Britain and wounded. Late in his life, having become the oldest surviving pilot of the Battle, he wrote poetry in memory of his fellow aircrew. Read his obituary on the Telegraph.

Group Captain Bill Randle, who has died aged 91, avoided capture after being forced to bail out of his crippled Wellington bomber over Belgium, and with the aid of the Comet Escape Line travelled through France to cross the Pyrenees into Spain. In retirement he raised millions of pounds for RAF charities, including the RAF …

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The wings of the Fantasy of Flight’s Stinson L-1 were recently attached to the airframe as its restoration process nears its end. The first flight should occur soon. Source: Florida Warbirds

Group Captain Sir Richard Kingsland, who has died aged 95, had an adventurous career as a pilot with the RAAF in the Second World War; he was also a gifted administrator and rose to the most senior levels in Australian public service. Read his obituary on the Telegraph.

A Tachikawa Ki-54 “Hickory” that crashed 69 years ago in Lake Towada in Japan has been recovered. This is only the second surviving airframe of the site and was recovered from a depth of 1,000 ft. Read more about the recovery from Aeroplane Monthly.

The Collings Foundation has acquired an F6F-3 Hellcat and has asked American Aero to restore it to airworthiness. A special Facebook Page has been created for those who want to follow its restoration. Source: Florida Warbirds

A new YouTube video showing Mosquito KA114 during engine test with both engines running. Rumour has it that the first flight is imminent and could be earlier than initially planned.

Air Commodore James Coward, who has died aged 97, was shot down flying a Spitfire during the Battle of Britain; despite losing a leg, he went on to fly jet fighters. Read his obituary on The Telegraph.

Hawker Hurricane AE977 returned to the UK in mid-July when it was disembarked in crates and then reassembled in early August at the Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar. The aircraft, belonging to the Friedkin family, was in Texas since October 2001. Source: Aeroplane Monthly

Don Charlwood, who has died aged 96, flew as a navigator in Lancaster bombers and wrote a classic account of the experiences of the young men serving with a Bomber Command squadron. Read his obituary on the Telegraph.