Kenneth Gordon Rayment, (11 March 1921 – 15 March 1958) was a British
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
and decorated
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 ...
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 ...
. On 6 February 1958, he was the co-pilot of
BEA flight 609 that was to carry the
Manchester United football team and journalists from West Germany to England but which crashed on take-off; this became known as the
Munich air disaster. Rayment survived the crash but died five weeks later of his injuries.
Early life and education
Rayment was born on 11 March 1921 in
Wanstead, Essex, England. He was brought up in
Woodford Green
Woodford Green is an area of Woodford in north-east London, England, within the London Borough of Redbridge. It adjoins Buckhurst Hill to the north, Woodford Bridge to the east, South Woodford to the south, and Chingford to the west. Epping F ...
. In 1937, after leaving school, he joined the
Merchant Navy. He served as a
deck officer
The deck department is an organisational team on board naval and merchant ships. The department and its manning requirements, including the responsibilities of each rank are regulated within the STCW Convention, applicable only to the merchant ...
on a route between England and Argentina.
RAF service
On 15 October 1940, Rayment joined the
ranks of the
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR).
In March 1941, he started his pilot training with 17 Elementary Flying Training School.
He was then promoted to
sergeant and sent to Canada to continue his training at
37 Service Flying Training School.
On 1 September 1941, Rayment was
commissioned into the RAFVR as a
pilot officer (on probation).
After spending three months at
56 Operational Training Unit based at
RAF Sutton Bridge
Royal Air Force Sutton Bridge or more simply RAF Sutton Bridge is a former Royal Air Force station found next to the village of Sutton Bridge in the south-east of Lincolnshire. The airfield was to the south of the current A17, and east of the Ri ...
, in December 1941 he was assigned to
No. 153 Squadron RAF
No. 153 Squadron was a Royal Air Force Squadron (aviation), squadron that saw service in both the First World War, First and Second World Wars.
History
On 1 July 1958, the unit was renumbered as No. 25 Squadron RAF.
Aircraft operated
Bases u ...
.
After a few days, he was sent to 62 Operational Training Unit to train as a
night fighter
A night fighter (also known as all-weather fighter or all-weather interceptor for a period of time after the Second World War) is a fighter aircraft adapted for use at night or in other times of bad visibility. Night fighters began to be used i ...
pilot.
He rejoined No. 153 Squadron in February 1942, and flew
Bristol Beaufighters.
Between May and August 1942, he was once more training with 62 Operational Training Unit.
He then rejoined No. 153 Squadron after leaving the OTU.
His commission was confirmed on 1 September 1942.
In December 1942, Rayment was posted to
North Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
with his squadron.
He was promoted to
war substantive
Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships, within armed forces, police, intelligence agencies or other institutions organized along military lines. The military rank system defines dominance, authority, and responsibility in a m ...
flying officer in May 1943. On 2 June 1943, it was announced that he had been
mentioned in despatches.
On 27 July 1943, he was awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC).
Between July and September 1943, having left No. 153 Squadron, he was stationed in
Reghaïa, Algeria.
In September 1943, Rayment returned to England from North Africa.
He was promoted to
flight lieutenant (war substantive) on 1 September 1943.
From September 1943 to April 1944, he was an instructor with 51 Operational Training Unit based at
RAF Cranfield
Cran may refer to:
* C-RAN, cellular network architecture
* CRAN (R programming language)
*Cran (unit), of uncleaned herring
*Representative Council of France's Black Associations
Surname
*Chris Cran (born 1949), a Canadian painter
*James Cran (bo ...
.
He then joined
No. 264 Squadron RAF
No. 264 Squadron RAF, also known as No. 264 (Madras Presidency) Squadron, was a squadron of the Royal Air Force.
World War I
The squadron was first formed during the First World War, from two former Royal Naval Air Service flights, No. 439 ...
, a squadron flying
De Havilland Mosquitos.
He was posted to France with his squadron in August 1944.
His last operational flight in a Mosquito occurred on 20 September 1944, but he remained in France until November 1944.
He was then seconded to the
British Overseas Airways Corporation
British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the British state-owned airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the pass ...
(BOAC), and flew
Lockheed Model 18 Lodestars until the end of the war in 1945.
By the end 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 ...
, Rayment had become a
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 ...
; he had shot down five German fighters, one Italian plane, and a
V-1 flying bomb
The V-1 flying bomb (german: Vergeltungswaffe 1 "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Ministry of Aviation (Nazi Germany), Reich Aviation Ministry () designation was Fi 103. It was also known to the Allies as the buz ...
.
Civilian career
In 1945, Rayment joined
British European Airways
British European Airways (BEA), formally British European Airways Corporation, was a British airline which existed from 1946 until 1974.
BEA operated to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East from airports around the United Kingdom. The a ...
(BEA) as a pilot. In his early career with BEA, he flew
Airspeed Consul
The Airspeed Consul is a twin-engined light transport aircraft and affordable airliner designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Airspeed Limited. Introduced during the immediate post-war period, it was a straightforward conver ...
s,
Dakotas, and
Vickers Vikings. In 1953, he started flying
Airspeed Ambassador
The Airspeed AS.57 Ambassador is a British twin piston-engined airliner that was designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Airspeed Ltd. It was one of the first postwar airliners to be produced.
The Ambassador was developed in ...
s and
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 ...
s as a
senior captain
Senior captain is a rank which is used in some countries' armed forces, navies, merchant marines, civil aviation and in the airline industry.
Army
In some armies of the world, the senior captain is a rank between a regular captain and a majo ...
.
By 1958, he was considering retiring from flying and becoming a farmer, this was after Rayment had to recuperate from his piloting duties flying for BEA following a hernia operation in late 1957.
Munich air disaster
On 6 February 1958, Rayment was the second pilot of a charted flight that was to bring the
Manchester United football team, supporters and journalists from Germany back to England. BEA flight 609 crashed on its third attempt to take-off from a
slush
Slush, also called slush ice, is a slurry mixture of small ice crystals (e.g., snow) and liquid water.
In the natural environment, slush forms when ice or snow melts or during mixed precipitation. This often mixes with dirt and other polluta ...
-covered runway at
Munich-Riem Airport,
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
.
Rayment was knocked unconscious during the crash, and was found to have a broken leg plus head injuries.
Having been rescued from the wreckage, he was taken to
Rechts der Isar Hospital
The Rechts der Isar Hospital (''Hospital to the right of the Isar'') is a hospital in the Haidhausen district of Munich, Germany. It is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of the TUM School of Medicine.
Overview
In Britain, ...
in Munich.
By 12 February, he was being kept in an
oxygen tent
An oxygen tent consists of a canopy placed over the head and shoulders, or over the entire body of a patient to provide oxygen at a higher level than normal. Some devices cover only a part of the face. Oxygen tents are sometimes confused with a ...
.
Having never regained consciousness, he died of his injuries on 15 March 1958, aged 37, he was the second crew member to die due to injuries received in the crash at Munich.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rayment, Kenneth Gordon
1921 births
1958 deaths
British World War II flying aces
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in Germany
People from Wanstead
British Merchant Navy officers
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II
Victims of the Munich air disaster