Paul Caswell Powe Farnes, (16 July 1918 – 28 January 2020) was a British Royal Air Force fighter pilot and Second World War flying ace who flew during the Battle of Britain as one of " The Few". He flew the Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire in aerial combat. He scored 8 kills (comprising 7 and 2 shared destroyed, 2 'probables' and 11 damaged).

Early life

Paul Caswell Powe Farnes was born in Boscombe, Hampshire, on 16 July 1918. He was educated at Surbiton County School and Kingston Technical College, living near Walton-on-Thames, before joining 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 ...

(RAFVR) in April 1938.

Second World War

After completing his training, in the RAFVR, as a pilot he joined

No. 501 Squadron RAF ("Fear nothing") , colors = , colors_label = , march = , mascot = , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , anniversaries = , decorations = , battle_honours = France & Low Countries, 1940 Battle of Britain, 1940 Home Defen ...

in September 1939 and remained with the squadron when it went to France in May 1940. He claimed his first victories during the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

, with 'shares' in two bombers downed and a He 111 shot down solo. During August 1940 he claimed 5 more and in October 1940 he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM). By now a sergeant pilot, he was commissioned a

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 countri ...

(on probation) on 3 December 1940. In February 1941 Farnes was posted to No. 57 Operational Training Unit as an instructor. In November 1941 he transferred to No. 73 Operational Training Unit in

Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...

. He was confirmed in his rank and promoted to war-substantive flying officer on 3 December 1941. Farnes was posted to No. 229 Squadron RAF in North Africa as a flight commander in February 1942. He flew with the squadron on 27 March 1942 to Malta where he later took command of the squadron. Farnes returned to North Africa in late May 1942. On 26 July 1942, he was promoted to war-substantive

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 ...

. He was then posted to Iraq, where he joined the RAF headquarters staff and remained there until March 1945, receiving a promotion to war-substantive squadron leader on 1 May 1944. On return to the United Kingdom he took command of

No. 124 Squadron RAF No. 124 (Baroda) Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed to be a light bomber unit in World War I and reformed as a fighter unit in World War II. History Formation and World War I No. 124 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was formed on ...

, a command he retained until the end of the war. He ended the war with the acting rank of wing commander.

Later life

After the war, Farnes became a liaison officer for training centres with the Air Ministry. He was granted a permanent commission in the RAF in the rank of squadron leader on 1 September 1945. In 1948, he became a flying instructor. Farnes remained in the RAF until 1958, when he retired on 27 June with the rank of wing commander. In 2010, Farnes said: Farnes died on 28 January 2020 at the age of 101 in his home in West Sussex. He was the last

ace fighter pilot 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 c ...

of the Battle of Britain leaving two surviving members of The Few.

Personal life

Farnes's first wife was Pamela Barton who died in 1989. They married in Worthing, Sussex, in 1948. Farnes was married to Cynthia from 1994 until her death in 2012. He had a son, Jonathan, and a daughter, Linda; a second son, Nicholas, died in 1954.

References

External links

RCAF 70 Anniversary article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farnes, Paul 1918 births English centenarians Men centenarians British World War II flying aces Royal Air Force pilots of World War II 2020 deaths Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Medal Royal Air Force wing commanders The Few People from Boscombe Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II