Flying Officer Gordon Percy Olley MM (29 April 1893 – 18 March 1958) was a

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 who later formed his own airline,

Olley Air Services Olley may refer to: People * Chris Olley, English artist * Frank Olley (1927–1988), Australian politician * Gordon Olley, English flying ace * Greg Olley (born 1996), English football player * Jonathan Olley (born 1967), British photographer *Jun ...

. He was the first pilot to fly one million miles in total.

Early years

Olley was born in Harleston, Norfolk on 29 April 1893. In the 1901 Census Olley, aged 7, is described as living at 161, Gloucester Road, Bristol with his parents George and Eliza Olley and a brother and sister. His father is described as a Tobacconist and Hairdresser. In the 1911 Census Olley is still living at the same address, now aged 17, and described as an Apprentice in a wholesale clothing warehouse. In 1912 he became a "motor salesman" at London's

Selfridges Selfridges, also known as Selfridges & Co., is a chain of high-end department stores in the United Kingdom that is operated by Selfridges Retail Limited, part of the Selfridges Group of department stores. It was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge ...

department store.

Military aviator

Olley joined the

Queen Victoria's Rifles The 9th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Queen Victoria's Rifles) was a Territorial Army infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantr ...

in August 1914. He later transferred to the

Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wars ...

, rising to the rank of serjeant, before being posted to the

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

as an Air Mechanic Second Class, going to France with them on 17 June 1915. At first he was a

despatch rider A despatch rider (or dispatch) is a military messenger, mounted on horse or motorcycle (and occasionally in Egypt during World War I, on camels). In the UK 'despatch rider' is also a term used for a motorcycle courier. Despatch riders were use ...

, and then he became an

air observer An air observer or aerial observer is an aircrew member whose duties are predominantly reconnaissance. The term originated in the First World War in the British Royal Flying Corps, and was maintained by its successor, the Royal Air Force. An ai ...

with No. 1 Squadron. After training as a pilot he rejoined the squadron in 1917 to fly Nieuport scouts. In September 1917 he was awarded the

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land. The award ...

for bravery in the field. He was then commissioned as a temporary

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

on the

General List The General Service Corps (GSC) is a corps of the British Army. Role The role of the corps is to provide specialists, who are usually on the Special List or General List. These lists were used in both World Wars for specialists and those not allo ...

, and appointed a flying officer in the

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

on 28 January 1918. He transferred to 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 ...

on its formation on 1 April 1918 and was promoted to

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

. After the war he was transferred to Unemployed List on 22 June 1919. His service record states that in addition to his MM he was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

"for valuable services" during the war. During operations with 1 Squadron he is credited with ten aerial victories, comprising 3 destroyed, 5 ( and 2 shared) 'out of control'.'Above the Trenches'; Shores, Franks & Guest, page 294 He rejoined the RAF in 1923 when he was commissioned as a flying officer on probation in Class A of the Reserve of Air Force Officers on 4 December, he was confirmed in that rank on 4 June 1924. He transferred to Class C of the reserve on 4 December 1932, and relinquished the commission on 4 December 1936, and was permitted to retain his rank.

Civil aviator

After leaving the Royal Air Force he worked as a pilot for Handley Page Air Transport,

Imperial Airways Imperial Airways was the early British commercial long-range airline, operating from 1924 to 1939 and principally serving the British Empire routes to South Africa, India, Australia and the Far East, including Malaya and Hong Kong. Passenger ...

and

KLM KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...

. In 1931, he became the world's first pilot to log one million miles. Leaving Imperial, he started his own airline,

, in 1934. The firm originally operated from its base at

Croydon Airport Croydon Airport (former ICAO code: EGCR) was the UK's only international airport during the interwar period. Located in Croydon, South London, England, it opened in 1920, built in a Neoclassical style, and was developed as Britain's main air ...

as a charter airline. Olley Air Services eventually was part of a group of airlines that included

Blackpool & West Coast Air Services Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and is ...

Channel Air Ferries Channel, channels, channeling, etc., may refer to: Geography * Channel (geography), in physical geography, a landform consisting of the outline (banks) of the path of a narrow body of water. Australia * Channel Country, region of outback Austral ...

and

Isle of Man Air Services Isle of Man Air Services Ltd (IoMAS) was a small airline, based at Ronaldsway Airport Isle of Man, which operated scheduled flights to the English and Scottish mainland between formation in September 1937 and nationalisation in January 1947. H ...

. After 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 opposin ...

the airline resumed services from Croydon as both a charter airline and a scheduled service before being sold to

Morton Air Services Morton Air Services was one of the earliest post-World War II private, independentindependent from government-owned corporations British airlines formed in 1945. It mainly operated regional short-haul scheduled services within the British Isles and ...

in 1953. Olley died in Wimbledon on 18 March 1958. His obituary reported that not one of his 40,000 passengers suffered a casualty.

References

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olley, Gordon 1893 births 1958 deaths Military personnel from Norfolk British Army personnel of World War I Queen Victoria's Rifles soldiers British World War I flying aces English aviators Royal Flying Corps soldiers Royal Flying Corps officers Royal Air Force officers People from Redenhall with Harleston Recipients of the Military Medal Royal Fusiliers soldiers