Squadron Leader
Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is als ...
Ernest Derek 'Dave' Glaser (20 April 1921 – 2001) was a British
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) an ...
officer of the
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
, and later a notable
test pilot
A test pilot is an aircraft pilot with additional training to fly and evaluate experimental, newly produced and modified aircraft with specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques.Stinton, Darrol. ''Flying Qualities and Flight Testin ...
.
Biography
Glaser was the son of a former
Royal Flying Corps officer and brought up in
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...
. He was educated at Lancing House and
Bloxham School
Bloxham School, also called All Saints' School, is an independent co-educational day and boarding school of the British public school tradition, located in the village of Bloxham, three miles (5 km) from the town of Banbury in Oxfordshir ...
, before being accepted for flying training in the
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in April 1939.
World War II
In 1940, Glaser was attached to
No. 65 Squadron RAF, where he flew
Supermarine Spitfires alongside
Jeffrey Quill
Jeffrey Kindersley Quill, (1 February 1913 – 20 February 1996) was a British test pilot who served on secondment with the Royal Air Force and Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during the Second World War. He was also the second man to fly the Sup ...
and
Franciszek Gruszka in the
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...
. His plane became known for its
nose art
Nose art is a decorative painting or design on the fuselage of an aircraft, usually on the front fuselage.
While begun for practical reasons of identifying friendly units, the practice evolved to express the individuality often constrained by ...
, representing The Laughing Cavalier. Glaser was promoted to Flight Lieutenant and in July 1940 transferred to
No. 234 Squadron RAF
No. 234 Squadron RAF had a long career within the RAF, being operational on flying boats in World War I and on fighter aircraft in World War II. After the war it remained a fighter unit till 1957. In its last incarnation the squadron was in turn ...
as a flight commander. It was while serving with No. 234 that he was mistakenly shot down on 13 July 1940 by a
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
warship off the English south coast. He was promoted to Pilot Officer in 1941.
He became temporary commander of the squadron in October. He was awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross in August 1942. In 1943, Glaser was posted to Australia as OC 'B' Flight of
No. 549 Squadron RAF
No. 549 Squadron RAF was a fighter squadron of the Royal Air Force (RAF) operating in Australia from 1943 to 1945.
History
The squadron was formed at Lawnton Airfield, Queensland Australia on 15 December 1943, made up of RAF Aircrew and RAAF ...
, a Spitfire squadron charged with defending Darwin against
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
air attack. In early 1945 he was promoted Sqn Ldr and posted to command No 548 Squadron RAF, also at Darwin. In 1946 he was awarded the
Air Efficiency Award
The Air Efficiency Award, post-nominal letters AE for officers, was instituted in 1942. It could be awarded after ten years of meritorious service to officers, airmen and airwomen in the Auxiliary and Volunteer Air Forces of the United Kingdom ...
.
Test pilot
After two years he returned home, was granted a permanent commission and posted to Linton-on-Ouse, Yorkshire. There he was flight commander of
No. 64 Squadron RAF
No. 64 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was first formed on 1 August 1916 as a squadron of the Royal Flying Corps. It was disbanded on 31 January 1991 at RAF Leuchars.
History
1916 to 1919
No. 64 Squadron Royal Flying Corps w ...
, a half-strength
Hornet fighter squadron.
In 1949 Glaser passed the
Empire Test Pilots' School
The Empire Test Pilots' School (ETPS) is a British training school for test pilots and flight test engineers of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft at MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, England. It was established in 1943, the first of its type ...
and became a test pilot at the
Royal Aircraft Establishment. He became a test pilot with
Vickers Armstrong
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, wi ...
in 1952, and was involved in testing and developing planes such as the
Vickers Varsity
The Vickers Varsity is a retired British twin-engined crew trainer operated by the Royal Air Force from 1951 to 1976.
Design and development
The Varsity was developed by Vickers and based on the Viking and Valetta to meet Air Ministry Spec ...
,
Vickers Viscount
The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner.
The Vi ...
and the
Vickers Valiant. Glaser was also involved in testing the
BAC One-Eleven. In 1979 he became flight operations manager and test pilot instructor of
Rombac in Romania. In 1983 he retired from
British Aerospace
British Aerospace plc (BAe) was a British aircraft, munitions and defence-systems manufacturer. Its head office was at Warwick House in the Farnborough Aerospace Centre in Farnborough, Hampshire. Formed in 1977, in 1999 it purchased Marcon ...
and worked as a successful aviation consultant. He had been awarded the military
Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air
The Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air, formerly the King's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air, was a merit award for flying service awarded by the United Kingdom between 1942 and 1994. It was replaced by the Queen’ ...
in 1953, and was rewarded the commendation for civil test flying in 1968.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Glaser, Dave
1921 births
2001 deaths
BAC One-Eleven
British Aircraft Corporation
British test pilots
English aviators
People educated at Bloxham School
Recipients of the Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
Royal Air Force officers
Royal Air Force pilots of World War II
The Few
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II