George Cecil Unwin, (18 January 1913 – 28 June 2006) was a

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 and

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 ...

of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

Early life

Unwin was born in the town of Bolton upon Dearne, near Barnsley,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, on 18 January 1913. He enlisted in the

(RAF) in 1929 as an administrative apprentice and, in 1935, was selected for pilot training. Upon completion of training he was posted to

No. 19 Squadron RAF Number 19 Squadron (sometimes written as No. XIX Squadron) is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was the first squadron to operate the Supermarine Spitfire. It currently operates the UK's Control and Reporting Centre from RAF Boulmer. No. 1 ...

as a sergeant pilot.

RAF career

Spitfire trials

No. 19 Squadron was the first unit to receive the Supermarine Spitfire in 1938, and Unwin was one of the first to fly the machine (K9792) on 16 August.Price 1997, p. 70. Unwin carried out intensive trials in the type, flying 15 different Spitfires. During these trials, on 9 March 1939, Unwin deliberately crashed a Spitfire (K9797) following an engine failure to avoid a children's playground at Acton, Suffolk.

Battle of France

Unwin's first combat experience came during the final phase of the

French Campaign The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

during the

Battle of Dunkirk The Battle of Dunkirk (french: Bataille de Dunkerque, link=no) was fought around the French port of Dunkirk (Dunkerque) during the Second World War, between the Allies and Nazi Germany. As the Allies were losing the Battle of France on t ...

. During a nine-day period of patrols between 26 May and 4 June Unwin claimed three kills and a probable during

Operation Dynamo Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

. Unwin described his first combat as stage fright: The next day Unwin claimed his first kill, a

Henschel Hs 126 The Henschel Hs 126 was a German two-seat reconnaissance and observation aircraft of World War II that was derived from the Henschel Hs 122. The pilot was seated in a protected cockpit under the parasol wing and the gunner in an open rear cockp ...

. The German pilot had used his slow speed and high manoeuvrability to evade the attacks of two fellow pilots, while retreating into Belgian airspace. The order was given to give up and the squadron turned away. As they did so Unwin saw the German straighten out. Feigning radio failure, Unwin dived on the Hs 126 and "pumped 240 rounds" into it before it burst into flames and crashed. On 1 June Unwin claimed a

Messerschmitt Bf 110 The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often known unofficially as the Me 110,Because it was built before ''Bayerische Flugzeugwerke'' became Messerschmitt AG in July 1938, the Bf 110 was never officially given the designation Me 110. is a twin-engine (Des ...

and a second as a probable. Unwin then claimed a Heinkel He 111 as a probable.

Battle of Britain

During 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 ...

stationed in No. 12 Group he was credited with 14 enemy aircraft shot down by the end of 1940 and was awarded the

Distinguished Flying Medal The Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Royal Air Force and other British Armed Forces, and formerly to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for "exceptional va ...

in October 1940 with a Bar award in December. On 15 September Unwin claimed three Bf 109s destroyed (''Luftwaffe'' records indicate they were Bf 109s from ''

JG 77 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 77 (JG 77) ''Herz As'' ("Ace of Hearts") was a Luftwaffe fighter wing during World War II. It served in all the German theaters of war, from Western Europe to the Eastern Front, and from the high north in Norway to the Mediter ...

'') . On 18 September Unwin added a Bf 110 to his score as his 11th victory. RAF Fighter Command CH1343

On 27 September Unwin destroyed a Bf 109- Wrk Nr 6162 of ''

JG 52 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 52 (JG 52) was a German World War II fighter ''Geschwader'' (wing) that exclusively used the Messerschmitt Bf 109 throughout the war. The unit originally formed near Munich in November 1938, then moved to a base near Stuttga ...

'', and on 5 November scored a kill against a ''

JG 51 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 51 (JG 51) was a German fighter wing during World War II. JG 51's pilots won more awards than any other fighter wing of the Luftwaffe, and operated in all major theatres of war. Its members included Anton Hafner, Heinz Bär ...

'' Bf 109- Wrk Nr 4846. Unwin had now destroyed eight 109s. On 5 November Unwin shot down his final personal victory, a Bf 110 over the

English Channel The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...

. Unwin was in turn attacked by Bf 109s and ''

Hauptmann is a German word usually translated as captain when it is used as an officer's rank in the German, Austrian, and Swiss armies. While in contemporary German means 'main', it also has and originally had the meaning of 'head', i.e. ' literally ...

'' Gerhard Schöpfel of

JG 26 ''Jagdgeschwader'' 26 (JG 26) ''Schlageter'' was a German fighter-wing of World War II. It was named after Albert Leo Schlageter, a World War I veteran, Freikorps member, and posthumous Nazi martyr, arrested and executed by the French for ...

claimed Unwin as one of two kills he claimed in that engagement, although Unwin was not shot down. At the end of 1940 he was rested and sent as an instructor to No. 2 Central Flying School, Cranwell. In July 1941 Unwin was commissioned and then served with 16 EFTS and 2 CIS until October 1943. In April 1944 he began flying DeHavilland Mosquito fighter-bombers with No. 613 Squadron,

RAF Second Tactical Air Force The RAF Second Tactical Air Force (2TAF) was one of three tactical air forces within the Royal Air Force (RAF) during and after the Second World War. It was made up of squadrons and personnel from the RAF, other British Commonwealth air forces, ...

until October 1944. He then served at the Central Gunnery School at RAF Catfoss, and subsequently

RAF Leconfield Royal Air Force Leconfield or more simply RAF Leconfield is a former Royal Air Force station located in Leconfield (near Beverley), East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The site is now used by the MoD Defence School of Transport Leconfield or ...

until January 1946, when he became Chief Instructor at No 608 Squadron RAuxAF.

Service after the war

Unwin remained in the RAF after the war and transitioned to

Bristol Brigand The Bristol Brigand was a British anti-shipping/ground attack/dive bomber aircraft, developed by the Bristol Aeroplane Company as a replacement for the Beaufighter. A total of 147 were built and were used by the Royal Air Force in Malaya duri ...

aircraft in 1948. He flew this type during the Malaya conflict in 1952 and was awarded the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...

for his efforts. He retired from the RAF in 1961 as a

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

Later life

His service-wide nickname was "Grumpy"; supposedly after he complained about the noise squadron comrade

Douglas Bader Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader, (; 21 February 1910 – 5 September 1982) was a Royal Air Force flying ace during the Second World War. He was credited with 22 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probables, one shared p ...

made repairing one of his leg prostheses late at night in late 1939. It kept Unwin awake and he let everyone know about it. Another story relates that it was due to his reaction at being left out of the squadron's operations during the

on 26 May 1940, due to a shortage of aircraft. In late May 2006 he was presented with a scale model of his Spitfire by

Corgi Toys Corgi Toys (trademark) is the brand name of a range of die-cast toy vehicles created by Mettoy and currently owned by Hornby Railways, Hornby.No. 19 Squadron is appointed a

: *6 December 1940 – Flight Sergeant George C Unwin (46298), No. 19 Squadron is awarded a Bar to the

: *21 March 1952 awarded the

(DSO).

Exhibition

Unwin featured in an "exhibition about the men and women who lived, worked and fought for their country at RAF Duxford in Cambridgeshire from 1918 to 1961", which opened at RAF Duxford on 28 March 2013.

References

Bibliography

* Price, Dr Alfred. ''Spitfire Mark I/II Aces, 1939–41''. Botley, Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1997. London. . * Shores, Christopher and Clive Williams. ''Aces High''. London: Grub Street, 1994.

External links

''Wing Commander George Unwin''
Obituary, The Times, 29 June 2006.
Imperial War Museum Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unwin, George 1913 births 2006 deaths Military personnel from Yorkshire People from Bolton upon Dearne Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Royal Air Force wing commanders Royal Air Force personnel of the Malayan Emergency Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Medal British World War II flying aces The Few English aviators