Air Marshal Sir Harold Brownlow Morgan "Micky" Martin, (27 February 1918 – 3 November 1988) was an Australian bomber pilot and senior commander in the Royal Air Force (RAF). He took part in Operation Chastise, the RAF's "Dambusters" raid in 1943, and was described by journalist Sir Max Hastings as "one of the three great bomber pilots of the war". He rose to become a senior officer in the RAF, commanding RAF Germany and later serving as Air Member for Personnel, a member of the Air Council, the RAF's controlling body.

Early life

Born on 27 February 1918 in Edgecliff, New South Wales, Martin left Australia for the United Kingdom in 1939. He intended to study medicine at the University of Edinburgh, but instead volunteered to join the Royal Air Force (RAF) on 28 August 1940.

Military career

Second World War

Martin commenced his operational career with No. 455 Squadron RAAF in October 1941, flying the Handley Page Hampden.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Marshal Sir Harold Martin
/ref> In February 1942, he captained the first all-Australian crewed bombing sortie against Germany. Martin soon acquired a reputation for low-level flying in order to avoid anti-aircraft fire and fighters. After 13 operations, he and his crew joined

No. 50 Squadron RAF No. 50 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was formed during the First World War as a home defence fighter squadron, and operated as a bomber squadron during the Second World War and the Cold War. It disbanded for the last time in ...

. Flying Hampdens,

Avro Manchester The Avro 679 Manchester was a British twin-engine heavy bomber developed and manufactured by the Avro aircraft company in the United Kingdom. While not being built in great numbers, it was the forerunner of the famed and vastly more successful ...

s, and finally

Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancaster is a British Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to the same specification, as well as the Short Stirlin ...

s, they completed their tour in October 1942, Martin being awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC). Martin's penchant for low flying contributed to his selection in March 1943 for assignment to the newly formed

No. 617 Squadron Number 617 Squadron is a Royal Air Force aircraft squadron, originally based at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire and currently based at RAF Marham in Norfolk. It is commonly known as "''The Dambusters''", for its actions during Operation Chastise a ...

under Wing Commander Guy Gibson. Martin took part in the " Dambusters" raid on the night of 16/17 May 1943. He piloted the Lancaster bomber AJ-P "Popsie" (officially known as AJ-P "Peter") in the first formation, which was assigned to attack the Möhne Dam in Western Germany. Martin's plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire during the attack, but he successfully accomplished the bombing run and returned. He was awarded a Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his actions. Martin was considered one of the best pilots in the squadron and was known for his dry jokes and constant good humour that he exhibited at all times, even when he was under considerable pressure. He was portrayed by Bill Kerr in the 1955 film The Dambusters. Following Gibson's retirement from operations and the immediate loss in action of his successor, Squadron Leader George Holden, Martin assumed temporary command of No. 617 Squadron. Later, under the command of Wing Commander Leonard Cheshire, Martin participated in various pin-point attacks on targets in France, Italy and Germany, often employing the new Tallboy bomb as seen in Operation Garlic. In February 1944, during an attack on the Anthéor railway Viaduct in the

French Riviera The French Riviera (known in French as the ; oc, Còsta d'Azur ; literal translation " Azure Coast") is the Mediterranean coastline of the southeast corner of France. There is no official boundary, but it is usually considered to extend fro ...

, Martin's Lancaster was hit by flak, knocking out the two port engines and killing the

bomb aimer A bombardier or bomb aimer is the crew member of a bomber aircraft responsible for the targeting of aerial bombs. "Bomb aimer" was the preferred term in the military forces of the Commonwealth, while "bombardier" (from the French word for "bom ...

Bob Hay, while wounding another crew member. Martin could not make the return trip to England, and flew on south toward an RAF base at Corsica before diverting further to the United States Army Air Forces base at Sardinia. The mission was Martin's 49th sortie flying a heavy bomber. When Martin returned to England he was transferred out of No. 617 Squadron and placed in No. 100 Group's No. 515 Squadron, flying the

de Havilland Mosquito The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito is a British twin-engined, shoulder-winged, multirole combat aircraft, introduced during the Second World War. Unusual in that its frame was constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", or ...

on serrate night fighter missions in support of Bomber Command aircraft. By late 1944, Martin had flown another 34 operations, where he claimed two aircraft shot down, and three destroyed (and one damaged) on the ground.

Post-war

After the war, Martin attended a course at the RAF Staff College in Haifa and in 1945 joined the headquarters staff of No. 100 Group. He broke the speed record for flying from London to Cape Town, completing the 6,717 mile journey in a time of 21 hours, 31 minutes in a Mosquito, for which he won the Oswald Watt Gold Medal and the Britannia Trophy. In 1947 he flew the meteorological Mosquito for the first transatlantic jet crossing in support of No. 54 Squadron's de Havilland Vampires. He was initially chosen to head up the Operation Jiu Jitsu flights, which the RAF were performing on behalf of the US Government. The flights were top secret reconnaissance missions deep into the Soviet Union using American

B-45 Tornado The North American B-45 Tornado was an early American jet bomber designed and manufactured by aircraft company North American Aviation. It has the distinction of being the first operational jet bomber to enter service with the United States Ai ...

bombers. Unfortunately Martin failed a pressurisation test and the entire project was handed over to Squadron Leader John Crampton instead. Martin was appointed to a succession of staff jobs: Air Attache, Tel Aviv in 1952; Operation Plans Division in 1955; attached to NATO in Fontainebleau, France 1955-1958; and Group Captain — Electronic Warfare, HQ Signals Command in 1959, before becoming Aide-de-camp to the Queen in 1964. He then served for three years from 1967 to 1970 as Air Officer Commanding No. 38 Group. In 1970 he was appointed Commander-in-Chief RAF Germany and finally, in 1973, Air Member for Personnel.

Later life

After retiring from the RAF on 31 October 1974, Martin worked for aircraft manufacturer

Hawker Siddeley Hawker Siddeley was a group of British manufacturing companies engaged in aircraft production. Hawker Siddeley combined the legacies of several British aircraft manufacturers, emerging through a series of mergers and acquisitions as one of onl ...

as an advisor. Sir Harold Martin died at his home in London on 3 November 1988,Sir Harold Martin, Pilot, 70
'' The New York Times'', 6 November 1988. and is buried at Gunnersbury Cemetery. M

References

External links

*
The Dambusters: AJ-P "Popsie"
a 1947 ''Flight'' article on Martin's record flight , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Harold Brownlow 1918 births 1988 deaths Military personnel from New South Wales Australian aviation record holders Australian Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Australian emigrants to the United Kingdom Australian Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Australian recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Australian World War II pilots Britannia Trophy winners British air attachés People from New South Wales Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Air Force air marshals Royal Air Force pilots of World War II