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 ...

John Robert Baldwin, (16 July 1918 –

missing in action Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been killed, wounded, captured, ex ...

15 March 1952) 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) and ...

fighter pilot and the top scoring

fighter 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 ...

flying the

Hawker Typhoon The Hawker Typhoon is a British single-seat fighter-bomber, produced by Hawker Aircraft. It was intended to be a medium-high altitude interceptor, as a replacement for the Hawker Hurricane, but several design problems were encountered and i ...

exclusively during 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 ...

. He went missing during

secondment Secondment is the assignment of a member of one organisation to another organisation for a temporary period. Job rotation The employee typically retains their salary and other employment rights from their primary organization but they work close ...

service with the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

and was presumed killed.

Career

The only son of Chambré Baldwin (1884–1969) and Grace Baldwin, John Baldwin was born in Bath. Beginning as ground crew with the RAFVR at the start of the

, he served in France during 1940 and spent the 'Blitz' period on bomb disposal duties. Baldwin volunteered for aircrew in 1941 and trained as a pilot. Commissioned as a pilot officer in March 1942, he joined

No. 609 Squadron RAF No. 609 (West Riding) Squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, originally formed as a bomber squadron and in the Second World War active as fighter squadron, nowadays provides personnel to augment and support the operations of the Royal Air Fo ...

on 17 November 1942, flying the

. His first success was damaging a

Focke-Wulf Fw 190 The Focke-Wulf Fw 190, nicknamed ''Würger'' (" Shrike") is a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank at Focke-Wulf in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, ...

in December 1942. On 20 January 1943 fighter-bombers from Jagdgeschwader 26 (JG 26) (fighter wing), supported by

JG 2 Jagdgeschwader 2 (JG 2) "Richthofen" was a German fighter wing during World War II. JG 2 operated the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Focke-Wulf Fw 190 single-seat, single-engine interceptor aircraft. Named after the famed World War I flying ...

attacked London in daylight with some 90

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...

s and Fw 190s in three waves. No. 609 Squadron intercepted the second wave and claimed four Bf 109-Gs from 6 squadrons of JG 26. Three of these successes were by Baldwin. Postwar research indicates that these may have included ''Leutnant'' Wenzel, reported as missing, and ''Unteroffiziers'' Marquardt and Budde, who were both captured. Baldwin met the two captured pilots a few days later. On 25 March he was shot down 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 ...

by a Fw 190. On 4 October 1943 he claimed two Bf 109's of

. On 16 October 1943, six Typhoons from 609 Squadron encountered several

Ju 88 The Junkers Ju 88 is a German World War II ''Luftwaffe'' twin-engined multirole combat aircraft. Junkers Aircraft and Motor Works (JFM) designed the plane in the mid-1930s as a so-called ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") that would be too fast f ...

s, three being claimed, with a half-share to Baldwin. From mid-October 1942 to June 1943 the squadron claimed some 27 of the 47 air victories claimed by Typhoons, making it the most successful Typhoon squadron. Baldwin moved from No. 609 Squadron to command

No. 198 Squadron RAF No. 198 Squadron was a Royal Air Force aircraft squadron that operated during the Second World War particularly in the ground attack role as the allies advanced through continental Europe. The RAFAC counterpart of the squadron resides in Hinckley, ...

in November 1943. On 1 December he destroyed a Fw 190 and on 4 December a

Dornier Do 217 The Dornier Do 217 was a bomber used by the German ''Luftwaffe'' during World War II as a more powerful development of the Dornier Do 17, known as the ''Fliegender Bleistift'' (German: "flying pencil"). Designed in 1937 and 1938 as a heavy bomber ...

bomber, his ninth victory. He was awarded a Bar to his DFC and destroyed three Fw 190s and a Caudron Goeland (utility passenger aircraft) during January 1944. His tour ended in April 1944, and he served with No 2 Group Operations staff. In June 1944 he was appointed to command No. 146 Wing RAF. On 29 June 1944, flying with 193 Squadron, he shot down two Bf 109's, and two weeks later on 3 July, flying with 197 Squadron, he destroyed another. During operations following the invasion of north-west Europe, Baldwin was involved in a "

friendly fire In military terminology, friendly fire or fratricide is an attack by belligerent or neutral forces on friendly troops while attempting to attack enemy/hostile targets. Examples include misidentifying the target as hostile, cross-fire while eng ...

" incident. On 27 August 1944, his wing was requested by the Royal Navy to attack enemy vessels off

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very cl ...

. Typhoons of

No. 263 Squadron RAF No 263 Squadron was a Royal Air Force fighter squadron formed in Italy towards the end of the First World War. After being disbanded in 1919 it was reformed in 1939 flying mainly strike and heavy fighter aircraft until becoming No 1 Squadron ...

and

No. 266 Squadron RAF No. 266 (Rhodesia) Squadron RAF was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. History First World War The squadron was formed from Nos 437 and 438 Flights at Mudros, Greece on 27 September 1918 to carry out anti-submarine patrols in that area, flying Sh ...

attacked the ships. Baldwin requested clarification, as the ships did not appear to be enemy, but he was told to press on. The ships turned out to be the Royal Navy's 1st Minesweeping Flotilla. In the course of the attack, and were sunk, while had her stern blown off. The attacks cost 117 sailors killed and 153 wounded. The subsequent court of enquiry identified the fault as lying entirely with the Navy; the officer arranging the minesweeping had not informed others of the area of operations. In February 1945 he assumed command of

No. 123 Wing RAF No. 123 Wing RAF is a former Royal Air Force wing that was operational during the Second World War. Second World War No. 123 (Rocket Projectile) Wing RAF was formed on 12 May 1944 under No. 83 Group RAF, RAF Second Tactical Air Force at RAF Thor ...

. During the last days of the war in Europe, he was commanding the Wing in operations against enemy shipping in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

. On 3 May 1945 squadrons of 83 Group were attacking enemy shipping, and No. 198, No. 184, No. 193, No. 263, and No. 197 squadrons attacked the

passenger liner A passenger ship is a merchant ship whose primary function is to carry passengers on the sea. The category does not include cargo vessels which have accommodations for limited numbers of passengers, such as the ubiquitous twelve-passenger freig ...

s and and the freighter , which were believed to be used by the Germans to escape. The ships had actually been used by the Germans to house prisoners, many from the concentration camp at Neuengamme. As a result of the attack over 7,000 died. He was credited with 15 and 1 shared aerial victories destroyed, 4 damaged, and 5 damaged on the ground as well as many ground vehicles. He was awarded a permanent commission in the RAF in October 1946. He then led a team of four pilots from the RAF

Central Fighter Establishment The Central Fighter Establishment was a Royal Air Force formation that dealt with the development of fighter aircraft tactics which was formed on 4 September 1944 at RAF Wittering. It also tested new fighter aircraft and equipment, and with the ...

on attachment to the USAF in Korea. He flew operationally with the 16th Fighter Interceptor Squadron of the 51st Fighter Interceptor Wing. He was posted missing, presumed killed, in March 1952 during the

flying a

North American F-86 Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing So ...

. He was profiled on the Nova programme ''Missing in MiG Alley''.

Honours and awards

*23 February 1943 – Flying Officer John Robert Baldwin (122337) Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, No. 609 Squadron is awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross: *14 January 1944 – Bar to DFC; London Gazette dated 14 January 1944 *10 March 1944 – Acting Squadron Leader John Robert Baldwin, DFC (12233), Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, No. 198 Squadron is 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, typ ...

in recognition of gallantry displayed in flying operations against the enemy: *29 December 1944 – Acting Wing Commander John Robert Baldwin, DSO, DFC (122337) is awarded a bar to the

. *24 January 1947 – Wing Commander John Robert Baldwin, DSO, DFC (122337), Royal Air Force is allowed to wear the Croix de Guerre 1940 with Palm conferred by the Belgian Government in recognition of valuable services rendered in connection with the war. *31 October 1947 – Wing Commander John Robert Baldwin, DSO, DFC (122337), Royal Air Force is allowed to wear the decoration of a Grand Officer of the Order of Orange Nassau conferred by the Queen of the Netherlands in recognition of valuable services rendered in connection with the war. *1 January 1948 – Acting Wing Commander John Robert Baldwin, DSO, DFC (122337) is awarded the Air Force Cross *30 October 1953 – Squadron Leader John Robert Baldwin, DSO, DFC, AFC (122337) Royal Air Force (missing) is allowed to wear the Distinguished Flying Cross conferred by the President of the United States in recognition of valuable services rendered during operations in Korea.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baldwin, John Robert 1918 births 1952 deaths British military personnel killed in the Korean War British Korean War pilots Military personnel from Somerset British World War II flying aces Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Grand Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau Military personnel missing in action Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium) Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Air Force personnel of the Korean War Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Royal Air Force wing commanders

Career

Honours and awards

See also

References