Lieutenant Alan Incell Riley (9 December 1897 – 17 December 1960) was a British

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

credited with five aerial victories.

Early life

Riley was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 9 December, 1897 to George and Margaret Riley of Clacton and was educated at

Malvern College Malvern College is an Independent school (United Kingdom), independent coeducational day and boarding school in Malvern, Worcestershire, Malvern, Worcestershire, England. It is a public school (United Kingdom), public school in the British sen ...

Military service

Riley began his military service as a

Private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

with the

Artists Rifles The 21 Special Air Service Regiment (Artists) (Reserve), historically known as The Artists Rifles is a regiment of the Army Reserve. Its name is abbreviated to 21 SAS(R). Raised in London in 1859 as a volunteer light infantry unit, the regimen ...

. He served in the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

between 1916 and 1919. Riley rejoined the forces, being in the

Royal Air Force 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 ...

from 1923 to 1928. On 2 July 1932 Riley gave up his commission upon completion of his service. In 1919, Riley was awarded the Air Force Cross.

Other work

Airco Ltd

Between 1919 and 1920, Riley flew the London to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

route as a pilot with Airco Ltd.

Westland Aircraft Works

In 1928, he worked at the Westland Aircraft Works.

India

Delhi Flying Club

From 1928 Riley was an instructor at the Delhi Flying Club and flew Lady Willingdon from

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

in a

de Havilland Puss Moth The de Havilland DH.80A Puss Moth is a British three-seater high-wing monoplane aeroplane designed and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company between 1929 and 1933. It flew at a speed approaching 124 mph (200 km/h), making it o ...

aircraft. The aeroplane was lent for the journey by Grant Govan who was president of the club.

Viceroy's Cup

In 1933, Riley won the Viceroy's Cup, which was a 700-mile handicap air race beginning and ending in Delhi. The route took competitors through

Bareilly Bareilly () is a city in Bareilly district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is among the largest metropolises in Western Uttar Pradesh and is the centre of the Bareilly division as well as the historical region of Rohilkhand. The city ...

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...

Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...

and Rampur with a stop at each place. His average speed in winning the race was 115 mph.

Survey Flight

Also in 1933 he made a 1,500 mile survey flight on behalf of

Indian National Airways Indian National Airways Ltd was an airline based in Delhi, India.Page 15 The founder of the airline was R. E. Grant Govan, a Delhi based British industrialist who also co-founded the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the Cricket Club o ...

. This was to examine a possible link up between cities in northern India and the Indian Trans-Continental Airways' service.

Later life

In later life Riley worked as a company director. He died in London on 17 December 1960 at the age of 63.

Personal life

He was married to Ella Adele Van Os at St. Mary Abbots Church in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

on 19 June 1926. Ella is recorded in the 1939 England and Wales Register as being a member of the Civil Nursing Reserve.England and Wales Register 1939

References

Royal Air Force personnel of World War I British World War I flying aces 1897 births 1960 deaths Artists' Rifles soldiers Air racers {{RAF-bio-stub