Hugh William Lumsden Saunders

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hugh Saunders as commander of No. 11 Group

Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh William Lumsden Saunders GCB , KBE , MC , DFC & Bar , MM (* 24. August 1897 , † 8. May 1987 ) was an officer in the Air Force of the United Kingdom .

Military career

Saunders enlisted in the Witwatersrand Rifles Regiment at the beginning of World War I in 1914 and then served with the South African Rifles before becoming a pilot in the No. 84 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps . With 15 victories in the air, he is considered a triple " Fighter Ace ".

On May 29, 1929, he was promoted to major in the Air Force. In 1932 he became the commanding officer of No. 45 Squadron appointed.

During World War II , he first served as Chief of Staff for the Royal New Zealand Air Force before becoming Chief Air Force Officer at Headquarters in Fighter Command in February 1942 .

In November 1942, he was finally appointed air force officer in command of No. 11 Group . In November 1944 he rose to Director-General of Personnel in the Ministry of Aviation. At the end of World War II, he was transferred to Burma before he was promoted to air force officer in command of Bomber Command in January 1947 .

He received his last rank as Air Deputy to Supreme Allied Commander Europe in 1951. Two years later he retired.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c d Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organization - Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Saunders
  2. ^ Hugh Saunders The Aerodrome
  3. ↑ London Gazette . No. 33499, HMSO, London, 28 May 1929, p. 3520 ( PDF , accessed on 26 July 2011, English).
personal data
SURNAME Saunders, Hugh William Lumsden
BRIEF DESCRIPTION South African officer in the United Kingdom Air Force
DATE OF BIRTH August 24, 1897
DATE OF DEATH May 8, 1987