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Michel Donnet
Michel G. L. "Mike" Donnet, (1 April 1917 – 31 July 2013) was a Belgian pilot who served in the Belgian Army and British Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War. He shot down four enemy aircraft confirmed, and achieved the RAF rank of wing commander. After the war, he returned to the Belgian Air Force, and held several important commands before retiring in 1975. Second World War On 1 March 1938, he joined the ''Aviation Militaire Belge'' (Belgian Army Air Force). On 26 March 1939, he was commissioned as sergeant-pilot, and on 1 March 1940 he signed for a further three years' service. Donnet flew Renard R.31 reconnaissance aircraft with the 9/V/1Aé ( 9th Escadrille of the First Aviation Regiment) at Bierset. After the German invasion on 10 May 1940, he flew sorties during the 18-day campaign. On 1 June 1940, he was taken POW (Prisoner of war) by German ground forces when Belgium capitulated, and he was held in camps in Germany and France. On 10 January 1941, he was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richmond, Surrey
Richmond is a town in south-west London,The London Government Act 1963 (c.33) (as amended) categorises the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames as an Outer London borough. Although it is on both sides of the River Thames, the Boundary Commission for England defines it as being in South London or the South Thames sub-region, pairing it with Kingston upon Thames for the purposes of devising constituencies. However, for the purposes of the London Plan, Richmond now lies within the West London region. west-southwest of Charing Cross. It is on a meander of the River Thames, with many parks and open spaces, including Richmond Park, and many protected conservation areas, which include much of Richmond Hill. A specific Act of Parliament protects the scenic view of the River Thames from Richmond. Richmond was founded following Henry VII's building of Richmond Palace in the 16th century, from which the town derives its name. (The palace itself was named after Henry's earldom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Hornchurch
Royal Air Force Hornchurch or RAF Hornchurch is a former Royal Air Force sector station in the parish of Hornchurch, Essex (now the London Borough of Havering in Greater London), located to the southeast of Romford. The airfield was known as Sutton's Farm during the First World War, when it occupied of the farm of the same name. It was used for the protection of London, being east north-east of Charing Cross. Although the airfield closed shortly after the end of the war, the land was requisitioned in 1923 because of the expansion of the Royal Air Force and it re-opened as a much larger fighter station in 1928. The airfield was ideally to cover both London and the Thames corridor from German air attacks. It was a key air force installation between both wars and into the jet age, closing in 1962. History In 1915 the London Air Defence Area (LADA) was established and airfields were built around London to defend the capital from the growing threat from German airships. Sutton's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Drem
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) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). Following the Allied victory over the Central Powers in 1918, the RAF emerged as the largest air force in the world at the time. Since its formation, the RAF has taken a significant role in British military history. In particular, it played a large part in the Second World War where it fought its most famous campaign, the Battle of Britain. The RAF's mission is to support the objectives of the British Ministry of Defence (MOD), which are to "provide the capabilities needed to ensure the security and defence of the United Kingdom and overseas territories, including against terrorism; to support the Government's foreign policy objectives particularly in promoting international peace and security". The RAF ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spitfire MK II
Supermarine Spitfire variants powered by early model Rolls-Royce Merlin engines mostly utilised single-speed, single-stage superchargers. The British Supermarine Spitfire was the only Allied fighter aircraft of the Second World War to fight in front line service from the beginnings of the conflict, in September 1939, through to the end in August 1945. Post-war, the Spitfire's service career continued into the 1950s. The basic airframe proved to be extremely adaptable, capable of taking far more powerful engines and far greater loads than its original role as a short-range interceptor had called for. This would lead to 19 ''marks'' of Spitfire and 52 sub-variants being produced throughout the Second World War, and beyond. The many changes were made in order to fulfil Royal Air Force requirements and to successfully engage in combat with ever-improving enemy aircraft. With the death of the original designer, Reginald J. Mitchell, in June 1937, all variants of the Spitfire were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Turnhouse
Royal Air Force Turnhouse or more simply RAF Turnhouse is a former Royal Air Force Sector Station located in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is now Edinburgh Airport. History The following units were here at some point: ;First World War * No. 26 Reserve Squadron * No. 26 Training Squadron * No. 73 Training Squadron * No. 84 (Canadian) Reserve Squadron * No. 89 (Canadian) Reserve Squadron ;Squadrons ;Units: Current use The site is now Edinburgh Airport Edinburgh Airport is an airport located in the Ingliston area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2019, handling over 14.7 million passengers. It was also the sixth-busiest airport in the United Kingdom by t .... References Citations Bibliography * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Turnhouse Royal Air Force stations in Scotland Royal Air Force stations of World War II in the United Kingdom ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aircraft Of The Royal Air Force, 1939-1945- Supermarine Spitfire
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines. Common examples of aircraft include airplanes, helicopters, airships (including blimps), gliders, paramotors, and hot air balloons. The human activity that surrounds aircraft is called ''aviation''. The science of aviation, including designing and building aircraft, is called '' aeronautics.'' Crewed aircraft are flown by an onboard pilot, but unmanned aerial vehicles may be remotely controlled or self-controlled by onboard computers. Aircraft may be classified by different criteria, such as lift type, aircraft propulsion, usage and others. History Flying model craft and stories of manned flight go back many centuries; however, the first manned ascent — and safe descent — in modern times took place by larger hot-ai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Heston
Heston Aerodrome was an airfield located to the west of London, England, operational between 1929 and 1947. It was situated on the border of the Heston and Cranford areas of Hounslow, Middlesex. In September 1938, the British Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, flew from Heston to Germany three times in two weeks for talks with Adolf Hitler, and returned to Heston from the Munich Conference with the paper referred to in his later "Peace for our time" speech from 10 Downing Street. History Private flying Heston Air Park was conceived by fellow pilots and aircraft co-owners Nigel Norman and Alan Muntz in 1928, and it was constructed by their new company, Airwork Ltd. It was officially opened on 5 July 1929, to coincide with hosting the two-day King's Cup air race. By then, the Airwork Flying School had become well established, many privately owned aircraft had moved in, and the Household Brigade Flying Club, also known as the Guards flying club, had moved from Brooklands. Freq ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operational Training Unit
Royal Air Force Operational Training Units (OTUs) were training units that prepared aircrew for operations on a particular type or types of aircraft or roles. OTUs ; No. 1 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit RAF (1 OTU): The Unit was formed in 1940 as part of RAF Coastal Command at RAF Silloth for training aircrew on coastal command patrol aircraft types until it was disbanded on 19 October 1943.Sturtivant 2007, pp. 198-206 ;No. 2 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit RAF (2 OTU): 2 OTU was formed in 1940 as part of Coastal Command at RAF Catfoss for training aircrew on coastal command twin-engined fighter and strike aircraft types until it was disbanded 15 February 1944. ;No. 3 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit RAF (3 OTU): 3 OTU was formed in 1940 as part of Coastal Command at RAF Catfoss for training aircrew on coastal command aircraft types including the Avro Anson and Bristol Beaufighter, until it was disbanded 4 January 1944. ; No. 4 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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), the active reserve for the RAF, by providing an additional non-active reserve. However during the Second World War the high demand for aircrew absorbed all available RAuxAF personnel and led the RAFVR to quickly become the main pathway of aircrew entry into the RAF. It was initially composed of civilians recruited from neighbourhood reserve flying schools, run by civilian contractors with largely RAF-trained flying instructors as well as other instructors in related air war functions, such as observers and wireless operators. After the war, and with the end of conscription in the early 1960s, the RAFVR considerably reduced in size and most functions were absorbed into the RAuxAF. The RAFVR now forms the working elements of the Universit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musée Royal De L'Armée
The Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and Military History (french: Musée Royal de l'Armée et d'Histoire Militaire, often abbreviated to MRA, nl, Koninklijk Museum van het Leger en de Krijgsgeschiedenis, KLM) is a military museum that occupies the two northernmost halls of the historic complex in the Parc du Cinquantenaire/Jubelpark in Brussels, Belgium. The park is set on the continuation of the Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, which starts at the end of Brussels Park before the Royal Palace. History Origins (–1910) The Parc du Cinquantenaire/Jubelpark was part of a project commissioned by the Belgian Government under the patronage of King Leopold II for the 1880 ''National Exhibition'', commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Belgian Revolution. In 1875, the architect Gédéon Bordiau made a proposal to build on this site; part of the so-called "Linthout" plains, the former military exercise ground of the Garde Civique outside of Brussels' city centre. The location was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Hendon
Hendon is an urban area in the Borough of Barnet, North-West London northwest of Charing Cross. Hendon was an ancient manor and parish in the county of Middlesex and a former borough, the Municipal Borough of Hendon; it has been part of Greater London since 1965. Hendon falls almost entirely within the NW4 postcode, while the West Hendon part falls in NW9. Colindale to the north-west was once considered part of Hendon but is today separated by the M1 motorway. The district is most famous for the London Aerodrome which later became the RAF Hendon; from 1972 the site of the RAF station was gradually handed over to the RAF Museum. The railways reached Hendon in 1868 with Hendon station on the Midland Main Line, followed by the London Underground further east under the name Hendon Central in 1923. Brent Street emerged as its commercial centre by the 1890s. A social polarity was developed between the uphill areas of Hendon and the lowlands around the railway station. Hendon is l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
