Air Chief Marshal Sir Leslie Norman Hollinghurst, (2 January 1895 – 8 June 1971) was a British

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

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 ...

and a senior commander in 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) an ...

Early life and First World War

Hollinghurst was born in

Muswell Hill Muswell Hill is a suburban district of the London Borough of Haringey, north London. The hill, which reaches over above sea level, is situated north of Charing Cross. Neighbouring areas include Highgate, Hampstead Garden Suburb, East Fi ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

, England on 2 January 1895, and was the second of three children of Charles Herbert Hollinghurst and Teresa Petty. At the outbreak of the war in 1914, Hollinghurst enlisted with the Royal EngineersAir of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Chief Marshal Sir Leslie Hollinghurst
/ref> participating in the Gallipoli landings and was wounded at

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

. In 1916 he was commissioned into the 3rd Battalion, the

Middlesex Regiment The Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge's Own) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1966. The regiment was formed, as the Duke of Cambridge's Own (Middlesex Regiment), in 1881 as part of the Childers R ...

, and later in the same year was seconded to the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). He learned to fly while serving in Egypt and went on to become a Captain in No. 87 Squadron flying

Sopwith Dolphin The Sopwith 5F.1 Dolphin was a British fighter aircraft manufactured by the Sopwith Aviation Company. It was used by the Royal Flying Corps and its successor, the Royal Air Force, during the First World War. The Dolphin entered service on th ...

s, and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in October 1918, having destroyed four enemy aircraft. His final total was 11 confirmed victories. Leslie's two siblings also served in the war: Charles Stanley Hollinghurst was also in the RFC and was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

and

Distinguished Conduct Medal The Distinguished Conduct Medal was a decoration established in 1854 by Queen Victoria for gallantry in the field by other ranks of the British Army. It is the oldest British award for gallantry and was a second level military decoration, ranki ...

, while Phyllis Hollinghurst enlisted in the

; the

Women's Royal Air Force The Women's Royal Air Force (WRAF) was the women's branch of the Royal Air Force. It existed in two separate incarnations: the Women's Royal Air Force from 1918 to 1920 and the Women's Royal Air Force from 1949 to 1994. On 1 February 1949, the ...

Interwar service

In 1919 Hollinghurst was given a permanent commission in the

. He served in India and China, and was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1931. In 1932 he was appointed Officer Commanding No. 20 Squadron. On return to the United Kingdom in 1935 he became a member of staff of the

RAF Staff College The RAF Staff College may refer to: *RAF Staff College, Andover (active: 1922 to 1940 and 1948 to 1970) *RAF Staff College, Bulstrode Park The RAF Staff College, Bulstrode Park, was a satellite staff college for the Royal Air Force based at Buls ...

and was promoted to the rank of group captain with a position at the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of State ...

in 1939.

Second World War

Hollinghurst was appointed Director General of Organisation for the RAF in 1940, and was promoted to the rank of air commodore in 1941 and acting air vice marshal in the following year. In 1943 he was given command of No. 9 Group. Later in the year he was given command of No. 38 Group, formed to transport airborne troops in the forthcoming

Normandy Landings The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and ...

. Hollinghurst was on board the first pathfinder aircraft to leave for Europe on the evening of 5 June 1944. No. 38 group were later involved in Operation Market Garden, for which Hollinghurst was awarded United States Distinguished Flying Cross. Later in 1944 he was appointed commanding officer of air bases in south east Asia.

Post war

Returning to the UK in 1945, Hollinghurst became Air Member for Supply and Organisation, and received substantive rank as air vice marshal in 1946. He was Inspector-General of the Royal Air Force from 1948 to 1949, and was

Air Member for Personnel The Air Member for Personnel (AMP) is the senior Royal Air Force officer who is responsible for personnel matters and is a member of the Air Force Board. The AMP is in charge of all aspects of recruiting, non-operational flying and ground tr ...

from 1949 to 1952. He was promoted to air chief marshal in 1950, and retired in 1952. Following his retirement he was twice called upon to produce reports on technical aspects of the RAF. During 1966, he served as the Senior Steward of the

National Greyhound Racing Club The National Greyhound Racing Club was an organisation that governed Greyhound racing in the United Kingdom. History The National Greyhound Racing Club (NGRC) was formed in 1928 and this body would be responsible for regulation, licensing and the ...

. Hollinghurst died on 8 June 1971, having collapsed on his journey back from a commemoration of the Normandy Landings.''Sir Leslie Hollinghurst'', The Times, 12 June 1971, p.16

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hollinghurst, Leslie Norman Royal Air Force air marshals Middlesex Regiment officers Royal Engineers officers British Army personnel of World War I British World War I flying aces People from Muswell Hill Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Bronze Lion Officiers of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) 1971 deaths 1895 births Military personnel from Middlesex People in greyhound racing