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 ...

Vernon Charles "Shorty" Keough (8 June 1911 – 15 February 1941) was an American pilot who flew with 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 ...

during the

Battle of Britain The Battle of Britain, also known as the Air Battle for England (german: die Luftschlacht um England), was a military campaign of the Second World War, in which the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the Royal Navy defende ...

World War II 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 opposin ...

. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with 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 ...

between 10 July and 31 October 1940, thereby qualifying for the Battle of Britain clasp to the 1939–45 campaign star.

Biography

Born in

Elizabeth, New Jersey Elizabeth is a city and the county seat of Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New J ...

on 8 June 1911, Keough was the son of Charles K. Nezu and Constance Theresa Keough. He earned a civil

pilot's license Pilot licensing or certification refers to permits for operating aircraft. Flight crew licences are regulated by ICAO Annex 1 and issued by the civil aviation authority of each country. CAA’s have to establish that the holder has met a specifi ...

in America and was also a professional parachute jumper with over 500 jumps, performing at air shows across America.

Second World War

Keough and his friends and fellow Americans

Andrew Mamedoff Flight lieutenant Andrew Beck Mamedoff (12 August 19128 October 1941), known as Andy, was an American pilot who flew with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain in World War II. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with RAF Fight ...

and

Eugene Tobin Flying Officer Eugene Quimby "Red" Tobin (4 January 1917 – 7 September 1941) was an American pilot who flew with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain in World War II. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with RAF Fighter ...

were among 32 pilots recruited by American soldier of fortune

Charles Sweeny Charles Michael Sweeny (January 26, 1882 – February 27, 1963) was an American Mercenary, soldier of fortune, United States Army lieutenant colonel, French Foreign Legion officer, Polish Land Forces, Polish army brigadier general, Royal Air ...

to join the

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...

. However, by the time they reached France, Germany had already invaded the country. The trio made their way to England and joined the

in 1940. (Of the rest of Sweeny's recruits, four were killed, 11 were taken prisoner, and two others reached England.) Keough was the smallest pilot in the whole of the Royal Air Force, hence the nickname, and was just tall. He had to use two cushions in his

Spitfire 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 Griff ...

to see out of the cockpit. On 8 August 1940 Keough was posted to

No. 609 Squadron RAF No. 609 (West Riding) Squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, originally formed as a bomber squadron and in the Second World War active as fighter squadron, nowadays provides personnel to augment and support the operations of the Royal Air Fo ...

at Middle Wallop airfield. He flew many missions during the height of the

in August and September. He was credited with one shared kill:

Dornier Do 17 The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing a ...

bomber shot down on 15 September with Pilot Officer Mike Appleby and Flight lieutenant John Dundas. He was posted to

RAF Kirton in Lindsey Royal Air Force Kirton in Lindsey or more simply RAF Kirton in Lindsey is a former Royal Air Force station located north of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England. It's an RAF habit (inherited from the RFC) to name its bases after the nearest railway ...

in Lincolnshire on 18 September 1940 and was a founding member of No. 71 'Eagle' Squadron along with

Art Donahue Arthur Gerald Donahue, (29 January 1913 – 11 September 1942) was an American fighter pilot who volunteered to fly for the British Royal Air Force in World War II. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with RAF Fighter Command between 10 Ju ...

, Andrew Mamedoff, and Eugene Tobin.

Death

On 15 February 1941, Keough was on a convoy-protection mission off

Flamborough Head Flamborough Head () is a promontory, long on the Yorkshire coast of England, between the Filey and Bridlington bays of the North Sea. It is a chalk headland, with sheer white cliffs. The cliff top has two standing lighthouse towers, the olde ...

East Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire to th ...

. During the chase of a

Heinkel He 111 The Heinkel He 111 is a German airliner and bomber designed by Siegfried and Walter Günter at Heinkel Flugzeugwerke in 1934. Through development, it was described as a "wolf in sheep's clothing". Due to restrictions placed on Germany after th ...

, he was last seen spinning off into the sea. He may have been a victim of disorientation in cloud or oxygen failure. He was 29 years old. His body was not recovered, but he is remembered on the

Air Forces Memorial The Air Forces Memorial, or Runnymede Memorial, in Englefield Green, near Egham, Surrey, England is a memorial dedicated to some 20,456 men and women from air forces of the British Empire who were lost in air and other operations during World War ...

at Runnymede.

References

External links

''4th Fighter Group WWII'' Official WWII Association Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Keough, Vernon 1911 births 1941 deaths Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II The Few Missing in action of World War II American expatriates in the United Kingdom American Royal Air Force pilots of World War II French Air Force personnel of World War II People from Elizabeth, New Jersey Military personnel from New Jersey

Biography

Second World War

Death

See also

References

External links