Air Marshal Sir Robert Hamilton Clark-Hall (21 June 1883 – 8 March 1964) was a squadron and wing commander in the

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...

during the First World War and a senior Royal Air Force commander in the 1920s and early 1930s. Clark-Hall returned to service during the Second World War after volunteering to serve with the

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...

First World War

Commanded the first seaplane carrier at Gallipoli. He then commanded No. 1 Wing Royal Naval Air Service conducting surveillance and attacks on enemy shipping from St Pol-sur-Mer, Dunkirk between September 1916 and November 1918, and was awarded the Chevalier of the Legion of Honour for his services to the war in February 1919.M. Brewer, 'New Zealand and the Legion d'honneur: Officiers, Commandeurs and Dignites', The Volunteers: The Journal of the New Zealand Military Historical Society, 35(3), March 2010, pp. 131–147.

Second World War

At the outbreak of the Second World War, Clark-Hall was in his late-50s, retired and living in New Zealand. He volunteered to serve with the

, and was granted a commission as a wing commander. In May 1940 Clark-Hall was appointed the Officer Commanding RNZAF Harewood. After receiving a promotion to

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 ...

, in 1943 Clark-Hall was promoted again to air commodore and appointed Air Officer Commanding Southern (Training) Group. In October 1944, he became Air Officer Commanding No. 1 Islands Group in the Pacific Ocean. He retired from the Royal New Zealand Air Force on 12 September 1945.

References

Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Marshal Sir Robert Clark-Hall

Notes

, - 1883 births 1964 deaths Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Companions of the Distinguished Service Order English emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire New Zealand military personnel of World War II Royal Air Force air marshals Royal Naval Air Service aviators Royal Navy personnel of the Boxer Rebellion Royal Navy personnel of World War I Royal New Zealand Air Force personnel {{NewZealand-mil-bio-stub