Reginald Heber Thomas AFC (11 January 1907 – 14 March 1946) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

middle-distance runner. He competed at the

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhanov, J ...

and

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932 in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held duri ...

and the

1930 British Empire Games The 1930 British Empire Games were the inaugural edition of what now is known as the Commonwealth Games, and were held in Hamilton, Ontario, from 16 to 23 August 1930. The games were organized by ''Hamilton Spectator'' sportswriter Bobby Robinso ...

. He missed the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

because of injury, and did not compete in the

1934 British Empire Games The 1934 British Empire Games were the second edition of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games, held in England, from 4–11 August 1934. The host city was London, with the main venue at Wembley Park, although the track cycling events wer ...

for

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, because of English objections. At both Olympics he was eliminated in the first round of the 1500 metres event. At the 1930 Empire Games in Hamilton, Ontario, he won the gold medal in the mile and the silver medal in the 880 yards. He could not compete for Wales because Wales did not have a national athletics association at the time. Welsh track and field athletes could only compete for England in 1930 although Welsh swimmers did compete for their home nation. In 1931 he broke the 10 year old British record for the mile with 4 mins. 13.4 secs to underline his status as Britain’s leading miler. He also took the AAA mile title three times - in 1930, 1931 and 1933, also winning 8 Welsh titles between 1929 and 1936. In 1940, Heber was commissioned 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) and ...

. On 8 June 1944 Thomas, now a flight lieutenant, was awarded the Air Force Cross (AFC). In 1946 he was a

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 ...

and was killed piloting an

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 ...

bomber; after take-off from

RAF Aston Down Aston Down is in Gloucestershire, South West England, east of Minchinhampton, southeast of Stroud and west of Cirencester. The nearest settlement is the large village of Chalford, 1 mile (1.6 km) to the northwest. The airfield was used ...

all the engines failed and the bomber crashed into a nursing home at Brownshill near Chalford. He was buried at Haycombe Cemetery in Bath.Commonwealth 43825 Squadron Leader Reginald Heber Thomas
War Graves Commission

References

1907 births 1946 deaths People from Pembroke, Pembrokeshire Sportspeople from Pembrokeshire Welsh male middle-distance runners Olympic athletes of Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 1928 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1932 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games gold medallists for England Commonwealth Games silver medallists for England Commonwealth Games medallists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 1930 British Empire Games Welsh aviators Royal Air Force squadron leaders British World War II bomber pilots Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in England {{Wales-athletics-bio-stub