Air Marshal Sir Kenneth Charles Michael Giddings, (27 August 1920 – 5 April 2009)
was a senior
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) a ...
officer who served as a fighter pilot 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 opposing ...
. After retiring from the military, he became an independent panel inspector with the Department of Environment and chaired a number of inquiries concerning motorway expansion.
Early life
Giddings was born 27 August 1920 in
Walthamstow, London, England. He was educated at
Ealing
Ealing () is a district in West London, England, west of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Ealing. Ealing is the administrative centre of the borough and is identified as a major metropolitan centre in the London Plan.
Ealing was hist ...
Grammar School
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary sch ...
.
RAF career
Second World War
Giddings was
conscripted
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
into the
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF) ...
in 1940.
On 1 November 1941, he became a
Sergeant
Sergeant ( abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other un ...
in the RAFVR.
He completed his pilot training in the
United States of America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
.
Upon returning to Britain, he joined
No. 122 Squadron RAF, based at
RAF Turnhouse
Royal Air Force Turnhouse or more simply RAF Turnhouse is a former Royal Air Force Sector Station located in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is now Edinburgh Airport.
History
The following units were here at some point:
;First World War
* No. 26 Reserve ...
, and flew
Spitfires
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Gri ...
. With the squadron he flew patrols over the
Firth of Forth
The Firth of Forth () is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south.
Name
''Firth'' is a cognate of ''fjord'', a Norse word meanin ...
. He moved with them when they were reposted to
RAF Hornchurch in the south of England. He then flew sorties over northern
France.
In July 1942, Giddings flew from the
aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for Carrier-based aircraft, carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a ...
, situated in the
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...
, to
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
.
In August he joined
No. 246 Squadron RAF and provided air support for the
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
s involved in
Operation Pedestal
Operation Pedestal ( it, Battaglia di Mezzo Agosto, Battle of mid-August), known in Malta as (), was a British operation to carry supplies to the island of Malta in August 1942, during the Second World War. Malta was a base from which British ...
.
On 1 October 1942, he was regraded to the rank of
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer (Plt Off officially in the RAF; in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly P/O in all services, and still often used in the RAF) is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countrie ...
on probation.
During that month he flew as many as four sorties a day, and shot down at least two enemy aircraft,
including an Italian
Macchi C.202
The Macchi C.202 ''Folgore'' ( Italian "thunderbolt") was an Italian fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Macchi Aeronautica. It was operated mainly by the ''Regia Aeronautica'' (''RA''; Royal ( Italian) Air Force) in and around the S ...
, and damaged numerous others.
He was involved in the defence of the island from the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were N ...
until November 1942, when he was injured during an accident. He was taking off when a truck appeared on the runway in front of him. He crashed into it at high speed and broke a wrist and an arm. He then returned to England to recuperate.
On 1 November 1943 he was promoted to
Flight Lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth countries. It has a NATO rank code of OF-2. Flight lieutenant is abbreviated as Flt Lt in the India ...
,
and on 1 September 1945 this was made permanent.
He later was given seniority from 1 September 1945.
During the summer of 1944, he was made a
flight commander in
No. 118 Squadron RAF. With them he flew the Spitfire IX. With the squadron he took part in the
Battle of Arnhem
The Battle of Arnhem was a battle of the Second World War at the vanguard of the Allied Operation Market Garden. It was fought in and around the Dutch city of Arnhem, the town of Oosterbeek, the villages Wolfheze and Driel and the vicinity f ...
, and shared the destruction of a
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 a ...
. In February 1945, Giddings was awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross.
The citation published in the ''
London Gazette
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...
'' on 9 February 1945, reading:
In April 1945, he became the commanding officer of
No. 129 Squadron RAF.
Post-war and senior command
In 1946 Giddings attended the
Empire Test Pilots' School
The Empire Test Pilots' School (ETPS) is a British training school for test pilots and flight test engineers of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft at MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, England. It was established in 1943, the first of its type. ...
at
RAF Cranfield
Cran may refer to:
* C-RAN, cellular network architecture
*CRAN (R programming language)
R packages are extensions to the R statistical programming language. R packages contain code, data, and documentation in a standardised collection format th ...
in
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council was ...
. Upon graduating he was sent to the
Royal Aircraft Establishment,
Farnborough Farnborough may refer to:
Australia
* Farnborough, Queensland, a locality in the Shire of Livingstone
United Kingdom
* Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England
** Farnborough (Main) railway station, a railw ...
, to test new jet fighters for three years. He was promoted to
squadron leader
Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also ...
on 1 January 1950,
and awarded the
Air Force Cross (AFC) in June.
He then spent five years as a
Staff Officer
A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military ...
at
RAF Fighter Command
RAF Fighter Command was one of the commands of the Royal Air Force. It was formed in 1936 to allow more specialised control of fighter aircraft. It served throughout the Second World War. It earned near-immortal fame during the Battle of Britai ...
,
during which he was appointed an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
in the
1952 Birthday Honours
The Queen's Birthday Honours 1952 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate ...
.
He was then appointed as
Commanding Officer
The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitud ...
of a wing based at
RAF Waterbeach
Royal Air Force Waterbeach or more simply RAF Waterbeach is a former Royal Air Force station located in Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire which is about north of Cambridge, England. The site was transferred to the Royal Engineers, part of the British ...
.
He held this position from 1954 to 1956. He was promoted to
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 ...
on 1 January 1956, as part of the new-year promotions,
and was awarded a
Bar
Bar or BAR may refer to:
Food and drink
* Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages
* Candy bar
* Chocolate bar
Science and technology
* Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment
* Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud
* Bar ( ...
to his AFC the following day.
His next appointment was to
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 ...
and he commanded their tactics wing. His next flying role was as Commanding Officer of
No. 57 Squadron RAF
Number 57 Squadron, also known as No. LVII Squadron, is a Royal Air Force flying training squadron, operating the Grob Prefect T1 from RAF Cranwell, Lincolnshire.
History First World War
No. 57 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps was formed fr ...
that flew the
Handley Page Victor
The Handley Page Victor is a British jet-powered strategic bomber developed and produced by Handley Page during the Cold War. It was the third and final ''V bomber'' to be operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF), the other two being the Avro V ...
.
On 1 July 1960, Giddings was promoted to the rank of
group captain
Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force, where it originated, as well as the air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. It is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank i ...
,
and served on the operational staff of
Bomber Command
Bomber Command is an organisational military unit, generally subordinate to the air force of a country. The best known were in Britain and the United States. A Bomber Command is generally used for strategic bombing (although at times, e.g. during t ...
.
Giddings was promoted to
air commodore on 1 January 1965.
He was appointed
Air Officer Commanding Central Reconnaissance Establishment in 1967, and held the post for one year.
On 1 January 1969, he was promoted to
air vice marshal
Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes u ...
.
He took another staff appointment as
Assistant Chief of the Air Staff
The Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (ACAS) is a senior appointment in the Royal Air Force. The current ACAS is Air Vice-Marshal Simon Edwards.
The post was originally established circa February 1938, but without being made a member of the Air ...
(Operational Requirements), in 1969. During this post he was involved in international talks about a
Multi-Role Combat Aircraft, which would become the
Panavia Tornado
The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine, variable-sweep wing multirole combat aircraft, jointly developed and manufactured by Italy, the United Kingdom and West Germany. There are three primary Tornado variants: the Tornado IDS (inter ...
.
From 1971 to 1973, he was Chief of Staff of
No. 18 Group RAF
No. 18 Group of the Royal Air Force was a group active from 1918 to 1919, and from 1938 to 1996.
History
The Group was initially formed on 1 April 1918 in No. 4 Area RAF. It was transferred to North-Eastern Area RAF on 8 May 1918. Disbanded ...
.
He was promoted to
air marshal on 1 January 1974,
and knighted as a
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as on ...
in the
1975 New Year Honours.
His final appointment was as
Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (Operational Requirements).
He retired from the RAF on 19 June 1976.
Later life and death
Giddings was an independent panel inspector with the
Department of Environment
An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...
between 1979 and 1991.
During this time he presided over many
inquiries concerning
motorway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...
expansion. He presided over the year-long inquiry in May 1982 concerning the extension of the
M1 motorway
The M1 motorway connects London to Leeds, where it joins the A1(M) near Aberford, to connect to Newcastle. It was the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the UK; the first motorway in the country was the Preston By-pass, which la ...
to link with the
A1(M)
A1(M) is the designation given to a series of four separate motorway sections in England. Each section is an upgrade to a section of the A1, a major north–south road which connects London, the capital of England, with Edinburgh, the capit ...
. At the time it was the longest inquiry ever held.
He also chaired the inquiry concerning the
Archway Road A1 extension in North London.
The expansion would have led to the demolition of almost 200 houses and was strongly opposed. During this inquiry he and his family received a number of threats and an attack on their home. This led to Gidding's resignation from the department in 1991.
Giddings died on 5 April 2009.
Personal life
In 1946 he married Elizabeth McConnell,
who survived him. They had four children; two sons, and two daughters.
Giddings was an accomplished
pianist
A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
. He wrote a number of
music scores for television programmes, including the opening
theme tune
Theme music is a musical composition that is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at som ...
for the television drama
Cathy Come Home
''Cathy Come Home'' is a 1966 BBC television play about homelessness. It was written by Jeremy Sandford, produced by Tony Garnett and directed by Ken Loach. A 1998 ''Radio Times'' readers' poll voted it the "best single television drama" an ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Giddings, Michael
1920 births
2009 deaths
British World War II fighter pilots
Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath
Military personnel from London
Officers of the Order of the British Empire
People educated at Ealing County Grammar School for Boys
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
Royal Air Force air marshals
Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom)
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II
Royal Air Force pilots of World War II