Captain Hubert Standford Broad, MBE, AFC (1897–1975) was a British

First World War 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 ...

aviator and noted

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 ...

Early life

Born at Aston Lodge,

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

, Hertfordshire on 18 May 1897, the son of Thomas and Amelia Broad (''née'' Coles), his father was a solicitor; he was educated at St. Lawrence College in Ramsgate, Kent.

RNAS aviator

Broad learned to fly in 1915 at the Hall School of Flying at Hendon. Flying a single-engined Caudron he received Pilot Certificate No. 2,044, after which he joined the Royal Naval Air Service at Eastchurch. After training he was posted to operations with No. 3 Squadron RNAS based at

Dunkirk, France Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.Sopwith Pup The Sopwith Pup is a British single-seater biplane fighter aircraft built by the Sopwith Aviation Company. It entered service with the Royal Naval Air Service and the Royal Flying Corps in the autumn of 1916. With pleasant flying character ...

. Broad was wounded in the neck during one World War I mission escorting

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped from an air ...

s and returned to England to become an Instructor whilst he recuperated. For his second operational tour Broad was seconded to No. 46 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps flying the

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the ...

. At the end of the Great War, Broad became an instructor at the Fighter Pilots Flying School, Fairlop.

Test and sports pilot

After leaving the RNAS Broad flew joy-riding aircraft for Avro and in 1920 he flew joy-riding flights in the United States with two Avro seaplanes. In 1921 he came first in the

Aerial Derby The Aerial Derby was an air race in the United Kingdom sponsored by the '' Daily Mail'' in which the competitors flew a circuit around London. It was first held in 1912, with subsequent races in 1913 and 1914. Suspended during the First World Wa ...

air race around London, flying a Sopwith Camel. This gained the attention of de Havilland which took him on in October 1921 as chief test pilot at Stag Lane. Given the scarcity of test pilots he was tasked with flying a wide variety of De Havilland aircraft as well as Handley Pages and Glosters. At the 1925 Schneider Trophy Broad was the sole British entrant following a number of pre-race accidents. Flying a

Gloster III The Gloster III was a British racing floatplane of the 1920s intended to compete for the Schneider Trophy air race. A single-engined, single-seat biplane, two were built, with one finishing second in the 1925 race. Design and development In 19 ...

seaplane he came second to an American Army test pilot called James Doolittle. At de Havilland, Broad undertook many demonstration flights and entered air races and competitions to show off de Havilland aircraft. In 1926 he won the

King's Cup Air Race The King's Cup air race is a British handicapped cross-country event, which has taken place annually since 1922. It is run by the Royal Aero Club Records Racing and Rally Association. The King's Cup is one of the most prestigious prizes of the ...

in a

de Havilland Moth The de Havilland Moths were a series of light aircraft, sports planes, and military trainers designed by Geoffrey de Havilland. In the late 1920s and 1930s, they were the most common civilian aircraft flying in Britain, and during that time ever ...

. In 1928 he took part in the International Light Aircraft Contest in France, finishing in 3rd place. The next year, he came second in the F.A.I. Tourist Plane Contest –

Challenge International de Tourisme 1929 The Challenge 1929 was the first FAI International Tourist Plane Contest (french: Challenge International de Tourisme), that took place between August 4 and August 16, 1929 in Paris, France. Four Challenges, from 1929 to 1934, were major aviation ...

. In the subsequent

Challenge International de Tourisme 1930 The International Touring Competition in 1930 (french: Challenge International de Tourisme) was the second FAI international touring aircraft contest, that took place between July 18 and August 8, 1930 in Berlin, Germany. Four Challenges, from 1929 ...

, he was 8th overall (he completed the rally section in 1st place). Krzyżan, Marian. Międzynarodowe turnieje lotnicze 1929–1934, Warsaw 1988, In 1935 he left de Havilland to work with the Royal Aircraft Establishment as a test pilot. He published a book in 1939 about flying – ''Flying wisdom; a book of practical experiences and their lessons''. In 1940 he returned to industry as chief production test pilot for Hawker Aircraft. He was responsible for test flying the Hawker single-seat fighter planes as they left the production line. He was appointed MBE in 1944 for his work as a Hawker test pilot. Captain Broad died in 1975 at home in Basingstoke; during his career, he completed 7,500 flying hours in 200 different types of aircraft.

Sentimental life

Broad appears to have had an affair with

Beryl Markham Beryl Markham (née Clutterbuck; 26 October 1902 – 3 August 1986) was a Kenyan aviator born in England (one of the first bush pilots), adventurer, racehorse trainer and author. She was the first person to fly solo, non-stop across the Atlant ...

, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic from east to west; he was named by Mansfield Markham as a co-respondent in his 1937 divorce from Beryl.

Notes

External links

www.thegazette.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Broad, Hubert 1897 births 1975 deaths People from Watford People educated at St Lawrence College, Ramsgate English test pilots British World War I pilots English aviators Royal Navy officers Royal Naval Air Service aviators Members of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom)