Head, Jervis Alston, son of Raymond Evelyn Head MC, of Balsham, Cambs, and Margaret Lloyd, d. of Rev. Frederick Clements Williamson, Vicar of Ashford, Middx; b. 7 Mar. 1918; adm. Sept. 1931 (KS); left July 1936; Merton Coll. Oxf., matric. 1936; RA 1939-41 (Lieut.); d. from an accident on active service 15 Mar. 1941.

Jervis Alston Head was born at Cork, Ireland on the 7th of March 1918 the son of Richard Evelyn Head MC and Margaret Lloyd (nee Williamson) of 26b, Golders Way, Golders Green in London and of Balsham in Cambridgeshire. He was educated at Tormore School, Deal and at Westminster School where he was admitted as a King’s Scholar on a Mathematics Scholarship from September 1931 to July 1936. He played the part of Dromo in the school production of “Epilogus in Andriam” in 1935. He matriculated for Merton College, Oxford in 1936 where he was an Officer Cadet in the Oxford University Officer Training Corps.
Shortly after coming down from Oxford he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Artillery on the 2nd of August 1939. He was posted to 137 Field Regiment, based at Blackpool and was promoted to Lieutenant on the 2nd of February 1941. By March 1941 the Regiment had moved to Larkhill and he was posted to 501 Battery on the 4th of March 1941.
On the 15th of March 1941, Jervis Head was driving in his Morgan three wheeler car when it struck a road island at Ferndown, at the junction of the Bournemouth and Poole roads to Ringwood in Hampshire. The vehicle overturned and he was seriously injured. He was admitted to the Royal Victoria & West Hampstead Hospital, Boscombe where he died from his injuries at 7pm the same day
He is commemorated on the war memorial at Merton College, Oxford.
He is buried at Durrington Cemetery, Grave 723.

Hebblethwaite, Edwin Charles Long, son of Bernard Robinson Hebblethwaite FRIBA, of King­ston Lyle, Berks, and Margaret Austin, d. of George Austin-Hyslop of Glasgow; b. 19 Sept. 1915; adm. Sept. 1929 (B); left Apr. 1934; a journalist; RAFVR 1941-2 (FO), killed in action in a bombing raid over Hamburg May 1942.

Edwin Charles Long “Peter” Hebblethwaite was born at Dublin, Ireland on the 19th of September 1915 the only child of Bernard Robinson Hebblethwaite FRIBA, an architect, and Margaret Austin (nee Hyslop) Hebblethwaite, of Gaston Manor, Tisbury near Salisbury in Wiltshire. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Busby’s from September 1929 to April 1934. He was a member of the Colts Cricket XI in 1930 and 1931 and was a member of the 1st Cricket XI in 1932. He was a member of the Football XI in 1932, 1933 and 1934 where he played at outside left. The Elizabethan wrote the following on his 1932/33 season: - “A clever dribbler and good at the short passing game, but his left foot is not yet strong enough, and he is very weak with his head. Position play good, but often fails to make the most of an opening through hesitation.”
He was appointed as a member of the Monitorial Council in 1933.
On leaving school he became a journalist and a sub editor and worked in Grimsby.
He enlisted in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve where he trained as an observer and rose to the rank of Sergeant before being commissioned as a Pilot Officer on the 9th of December 1941. He was promoted to Flying Officer in March 1942.
On the night of the 3rd/4th of May 1942, Bomber Command dispatched 43 Wellingtons, 20 Halifaxes, 13 Stirlings and 5 Hampdens for an operation on Hamburg. When the formation arrived at Hamburg it was found that the target was completely covered by cloud and only 54 of the aircraft bombed the target by estimating its position. 113 fires were started in the city of which 57 were classified as large. A large entertainment palace in the Reeperbahn was completely destroyed, as were a cinema and a theatre. A warehouse in the dockside area which contained vehicles and other goods was also destroyed. A 4,000lb bomb landed at a road junction in the historic residential area which caused 11 blocks of flats to collapse; another 11 buildings were severely damaged and 352 were slightly damaged. 77 people were killed on the ground with 243 injured and 1,624 people were bombed out of their homes.
Edwin Hebblethwaite and his crew took off from RAF Croft at 11.05pm on the 3rd of May 1942 in Halifax Mk II R9391 EY- for the operation. While in the target area the aircraft was coned by searchlights and was shot down by a night fighter flown by Feldwebel Hans Berschwinger of 4./NJG2 and crashed into the North Sea, some twenty kilometres to the north of Juist at 2.31am with the loss of the entire crew. This was Hans Berschwinger’s third victory of an eventual twelve before he was killed in action on the 15th of February 1944.
The crew was: -
Sergeant Thomas Percy Willoughby Davis (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Sergeant Gilbert Murray Edwards (Rear Gunner)
Flying Officer Edwin Charles Long Hebblethwaite (Observer)
Pilot Officer John Robert “Jack” Kennedy RCAF (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Sergeant Frederick Ross Mills (Flight Engineer)
Sergeant Eric Charles Smith (2nd Pilot)
Squadron Leader Albert John Drake Snow (Pilot)
Theirs was one of five aircraft lost during the raid.
His father received the following telegram dated the 31st of August 1942: - “Deeply regret to advise you that following information from the International Red Cross Committee and Germans sources that your son Flying Officer Edwin Charles Long Hebblethwaite is reported to have lost his life as the result of air operations on 3rd May 1942. Letter confirming this telegram follows. The Air Council express their profound sympathy.”
Edwin Hebblethwaite’s body was washed ashore on the Island of Sylt on the 16th of June 1942 and was buried at Buesum Cemetery, Westerland on the 18th of June 1942. His body was exhumed by No. 4 Missing and Research Unit, Royal Air Force on the 9th of July 1947 and was moved to its present location. John Kennedy’s body was washed ashore on the 10th of June 1942 and Eric Smith’s body was recovered from the sea by a boat on the 9th of May 1942.
He is commemorated on the war memorial at Tisbury.
He is buried at Kiel War Cemetery Plot 3, Row E, Grave 14.

Herbert, Christopher Reginald Courtenay, son of Arthur Stewart Herbert of Cahirane, Co. Kerry, and Lady Theresa Selina, d. of Col. Gerald Edmund Boyle and sister of Admiral of the Fleet William Henry Dudley Boyle, 12th Earl of Cork & Orrery GCB GCVO; b. 23 Mar. 1906; adm. Sept. 1920 (R); left Dec. 1923; a stockbroker; m. 4 Sept. 1939 Celia Winifred, d. of Christopher Foulis Roundell CBE; PO RAFVR Nov. 1940, killed in action June 1941.

Christopher Reginald Courtenay Herbert was born at Montreux, Switzerland on the 23rd of March 1906 the younger son of Arthur Stewart Herbert, a director of the North London Railway, and Lady Theresa Selina (nee Boyle) Herbert of 6, Grosvenor Hill, Willow Lane, Wimbledon in South London. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Rigaud’s from September 1920 to December 1923. On leaving school he worked as a solicitor in the City of London and later became a Partner. He achieved a Royal Aero Club Certificate (No. 16073) at the Airwork School of Flying, Heston on the 27th of July 1938 while flying an Avro Club Cadet aircraft. He was married at Paddington, London on the 4th of September 1939 to Celia Winifred (nee Roundel) and they lived at 8, Pelham Place, Kensington.
He enlisted as an Aircraftman 2nd Class in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve at the Uxbridge Depot where he trained as a pilot and was commissioned as a Pilot Officer on the 30th of November 1940, with seniority from the 10th of November 1940.
On the night of the 26th/27th of June 1941, Bomber Command dispatched 30 Hampdens and 14 Wellingtons for an operation on Dusseldorf. The results of the bombing were not able to be observed.
Christopher Herbert and his crew took off from RAF Newton at 11.05pm on the 26th of June 1941 in Wellington Mk IC R1644 JN-L for the operation. The aircraft was hit by anti aircraft fire and crashed on farmland on the west bank of the River Maas near Grubbenvorst, 14 miles due north of Venlo, at 4am with the loss of the entire crew.
The crew was: -
Pilot Officer John Winston Sievers RNZAF DFC (Pilot)
Pilot Officer Christopher Reginald Courenay Herbert (2nd Pilot)
Pilot Officer Alan George St John Ross (Observer)
Sergeant Hector George Burgess (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Sergeant William John Grieve (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Sergeant Francis Joseph Hart RCAF (Air Gunner)
Theirs was the only aircraft lost during the operation.
His wife received the following telegram dated the 19th of July 1941: - “Further information received through the International Red Cross states that your husband Pilot Officer Reginald Courtney Herbert previously reported missing is now reported missing but believed to have lost his life as the result of air operations. Any further information received will be immediately communicated to you. Letter confirming this telegram follows.”
Four of the crew’s bodies were found in the wreckage of the aircraft with two more being found a few hundred yards away. One of these had tried to bail out as his parachute was found near his body and was open.
The crew was buried at Ehrenfriedhof Cemetery, Venlo but their bodies were later exhumed by No. 5 Royal Air Force Missing Research and Enquiry Unit and were moved to their present location.
He is commemorated on a plaque in the Protestant Church at Killarney, Co. Kerry and on a memorial window at the King Henry VII Chapel, which was unveiled on the 10th of July 1947. .
He is buried at Jonkerbos War Cemetery Plot 3, Row H, Grave 3.

Hicks, Richard George Vyvyan, son of Vyvyan George Hooper Hicks, solicitor, and Winifred Heyhoe, d. of Rev. Richard Warcup Pitt, Rector of Saxlingham, Norfolk; b. 28 Mar. 1923; adm. Jan. 1937 (H); left July 1941; Corpus Christi Coll. Camb., matric. 1941, BA 1944; REME 1944-5 (Lieut.); d. of typhoid fever (Bombay) 3 July 1945.

Richard George Vyvyan Hicks was born in Norfolk on the 28th of March 1923 the only son of Vyvyan George Hooper Hicks, a solicitor, and Winifred Heyhoe (nee Pitt) Hicks of “The Grove”, Scarning in Norfolk He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Homeboarders from January 1937 to July 1941. He matriculated for Corpus Christi College, Cambridge in 1941 and achieved a BA in 1944.
He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers on the 12th of February 1944.
He died of typhoid fever at the British Military Hospital, Bombay.
He is commemorated on the war memorial at Scarning and on the memorial at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.
He is buried at Kirkee War Cemetery Plot 2, Row K, grave 9.

Hoare, John Matthew Hampden, son of Lieut.-Col. Arthur Fanshawe Hoare CB VD, asst master Haileybury Coll., and Gertrude Jane Katherine, d. of Rev. James Samuel Hoare, Rector of Godstone, Surrey; b. 11 Aug. 1906; adm. Sept. 1920 (KS); left July 1925; Trin. Coll. Camb., matric. 1925, BA 1928; asst man. De Havilland Aircraft Co. (Indian branch); Capt. BOAC; PO RAFRO Mar. 1927, FO Sept. 1928; killed in action over France 23 May 1940.

John Mathew Hampden “Sam” Hoare was born at Haileybury School, Hertfordshire on the 11th of August 1906 the fourth and youngest son of Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Fanshawe Hoare CB VD, an assistant master at Haileybury College, and Gertrude Jane Katherine (nee Hoare) Hoare of 5, Gerard Road, Harrow in Middlesex. He was christened at Great Amwell, Hertfordshire on the 30th of September 1906.
He was educated at the Dragon School, Oxford as a Day Boy from September 1916 to July 1920 where he was a member of the Hockey XI in 1919 and 1920. He won his colours as a member of the Rugby XV in 1919 and was a member of the 2nd Cricket XI. He won the school Mathematics Prize in 1920.
He was educated at Westminster School, where he was a King’s Scholar from September 1920 to July 1925. He was a member of the 1st Rowing VIII, where he rowed at No. 5, in 1924 and 1925. The Elizabethan wrote the following on his 1924 season: - “Is handicapped in a light eight by the slowness of his movements. An aptitude for sitting at the finish and admiring the view, instead of shooting away the hands, and rocking the body up over the slide at once, was the root of all his trouble. However he had practically mastered this before the crew reached Henley, and rowed in all the races.”
He was appointed as Hon. Secretary of the Elizabethan in September 1924 and was the winner of the Pancake Greaze on Pancake Day in 1924. He was a member of the Debating Society from 1923 to 1925 and was elected to the committee of in September 1924. He was appointed as a Monitor in the same month. He served as a member of Officer Training Corps and was promoted to Company Sergeant Major in No. 2 Company in September 1924. He placed second in the school for Mathematics in his final year. He was appointed as Head School Monitor. He matriculated for Trinity College, Cambridge as a pensioner on a Westminster Exhibition on the 1st of October 1925 where he rowed for the 3rd College Boat. He read Mathematics in the first part of his Tripos and Engineering in the second part, achieving a BA in 1928. While at Trinity, he decided on a career in aviation having joined the Cambridge University Air Squadron in 1926.
He was commissioned as a Pilot Officer in the Royal Air Force Reserve of Officers on the 14th of March 1927 and was confirmed in his rank on the 14th of March 1928. He was promoted to Flying Officer on the 14th September 1928 and passed into the Royal Air Force Reserve of Officers on the 7th of September 1934.
On leaving university he was apprenticed to the De Havilland Aircraft Company for two years and, as soon as his apprenticeship ended he requested to be transferred to their Indian Branch at Karachi where he became an engineer and an assistant manager, a position he held for three and a half years. A colleague wrote of him: - “Throughout that time, apart from work, I saw much of him socially, and I never knew an unkind word pass between us. He was an ideal companion, his serene way was delightful, and his cheery laughter still rings in my ears”.
Shortly after leaving De Havilland he joined Imperial Airways where he was appointed as a First Officer in 1935 and was promoted to Captain in 1936. He was promoted to Master in 1939 and to Extra Master in 1940. He was an Associate fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society. In 1937 he was posted to Karachi where he was placed in command of the Atlanta fleet on the Singapore service. His arrival there followed visit to Karachi by the Air Minister, Sir Samuel Hoare, (no relation) and he acquired the nick name of “Sam”. In 1938 he was transferred to Bangkok and he was sent on leave to England later that year. In February 1939 he returned to the Far East where he flew an Atlanta aircraft on a survey of the route from Rangoon to Lashio, returning to England with his report the following month. In April 1939, he was posted to European operations based at Croydon where he trained on the Whitworth Ensign aircraft and flew on European routes for the airline.
Following the outbreak of war the Ensign fleet was commandeered by the Air Ministry and he operated from airfields in the West Country to European destinations and was flying on the London to Paris route until the 22nd of May 1940.
John Hoare took off from Croydon as the pilot of Ensign G-ADSZ "Elysean" on the 23rd of May 1940 to carry supplies of food for the British Expeditionary Force to Merville in Northern France. His was one of 5 Ensigns, 1 DC3, 2 Savoias and a Dragon Rapide which made up the air convoy and they took off at between 8.40am and 9am. As they crossed the English coast at Hawkinge they were joined by a fighter escort and later crossed the French coast at Cap Gris Nez.
The aircraft landed at Merville later that morning. Having unloaded the aircraft his Ensign was strafed and destroyed on the ground by two Messerschmitt Bf109s. In order to return to England he boarded DC3 OO-AIU from E Flight, 24 Squadron which was returning to England that afternoon. The aircraft took off from Merville and was flying over Calais when it was attacked by enemy fighters and was forced to make a landing in a field at Arques. John Hoare was killed by German troops while sheltering under the fuselage of the aircraft.
The crew was: -
Captain Raymond Emile Chartier (Pilot)
Pilot Officer Peter Edward Bressey (Navigator) (POW No. 1124 Oflag 29A)
The passengers were: -
Captain John Mathew Hampden Hoare
Pilot Officer Benson Railton Metcalf Freeman (24 Squadron) (POW No. 33107 Dulag Wetzlar)
Captain Albert Lassois
Flying Officer Philip Arthur De Gleichen Tettenborn
Pilot Officer Peter Bressey later wrote the following detailed report of the events of those two days and of the death of John Hoare: -
“This officer was pilot of an Ensign aircraft which was part of an aerial convoy, loaded with food for the B.E.F., sent from Croydon to Merville, France, on the morning of the 23rd of May 1940. The aircraft took off about 9am, picked up a fighter escort at Hawkinge, and (owing to a last minute change in instructions received only by the leading aircraft) crossed the Belgian coast at Gravelines, and approached Merville from the north, instead of flying the more direct route which would have taken the convoy too near to Calais. On arrival, Merville aerodrome was found to be utterly deserted, the perimeter littered with derelict Hurricanes. The Douglas aircraft carrying the RAF officer detailed to take command of the ground party at Merville had, at the last moment, failed to take off from Croydon owing to engine trouble. A “council of war” of the captains of the aircraft (both English and Belgian) and the RAF liaison officers from the Belgian aircraft was held, at which it was finally decided that aircrews should unload their own aircraft and the return to Croydon be made with all possible speed. Manhandling some 2 tons of bulky stores, stowed in between the seats of a passenger aircraft, is quite a lengthy proceeding. The job was about half done, when our fighter escort, which had meanwhile been cruising overhead at about 15,000 feet, became engaged in a dog fight with enemy fighters, in the course of which they drifted from our field of vision, and incidentally, were never seen again. The unloading meanwhile continued at considerably increased speed. A final council of war was held, to decide whether to await the problematical return of our fighter escort, or to attempt the return to England unescorted at low level (no parachutes were carried). The meeting was brought to a sudden close by the appearance at the far end of the drome of two Me109s, which swept over the field at 50 feet with all 6 (or maybe 8) machine guns firing. From the dubious safety of the nearest ditch we watched them put an incendiary bullet through the starboard wing tank of Captain Hoare’s Ensign, to start a most expensive looking bonfire. They did two runs over the drome and departed as suddenly as they had come. It was a somewhat shaken council of war that reassembled briefly and unanimously decided to evacuate all remaining serviceable aircraft without delay.
After a brief check over for bullet holes, aircraft were started up and taken off straight from their parked positions. One of the SABENA Savoia-Marchettis was found to have both petrol tanks and two oil tanks riddled by bullets, and its crew (3 Belgians and an RAF Liaison officer) elected to come home in the aircraft in which I was flying – a SABENA DC3, piloted by Captain Chartier. At the last moment before take-off, Captain Hoare and his first officer, Philip Tettenborn, were also taken on board as passengers. Owing to the slight delay occasioned by hauling these two up through the rather high door against a strong slipstream, we were the last aircraft to take off from Merville.
Once airborne, I worked out a course to take us back via Gravelines – 320 degrees, and gave this to the Belgian pilot. He however refused to fly this course and insisted on flying his own course of 300 degrees, as it was “shorter and more direct”. We therefore kept diverging from the other survivors of the convoy (who were flying approximately 320 degrees) leaving them more and more on our starboard side. Flying extremely low over fairly heavily wooded country, we had been airborne for some three or four minutes only, when we were attacked by two Me109s – I suspect the same two who had strafed us on the ground at Merville. The fighters made diving attacks from the stern, and as we were quite unarmed withheld their fire until they were very close – too close, fortunately for us, as at this range there was no effective cone of fire, and the bullets spread remarkably little. By pressing themselves against the side walls of the cabin as soon as each fighter in turn was heard approaching, the passengers were somehow able to avoid being hit, as time after time, the hail of bullets swept down the centre of the gangway of the aircraft from tail to nose. In the same way, the crew in the cockpit, sitting well out to the side, and partially protected from the rear by the radio installation and the fright cage, were also unhit, although the centre of the instrument panel and windscreen were both smashed. Unfortunately the commencement of the attacks had coincided with the beginning of a very heavily wooded area, and some four or five separate attacks were made before any clearing suitable for a forced landing could be found. At last we came to the end of the wooded country – flaps and undercarriage were lowered, (I never understood why a “belly landing” was not attempted but miraculously the hydraulics still functioned), and Captain Chartier made a magnificent 3 point landing in the midst of a stubble field.
As the fighters continued to attack us even during the landing run, the RAF officer from the Savoia’s crew –P/O Freeman – opened the cabin door as soon as the plane had come to a halt. This manoeuvre was greeted by a burst of machine gun fire from the nearest hedges, the bullets spattering into the door some 6 inches underneath Freeman’s outstretched arm. He shut the door again. The general impression seemed to be that the ground firing was due to our gallant but excitable allies, the French, who at that time had the reputation of shooting first and asking questions afterwards. Staying in the aircraft was obviously impossible – the fighters were still doing diving attacks, and it was purely a question of time before we were all shot or an incendiary bullet found one of the fuel tanks. Already one of the Belgians had a bullet through his feet and F/O Tettenborn had been gashed across the temple by a flying splinter. The door was therefore kicked open (with the same result as before), and one by one we made a sort of running dive out through the open door onto the grass below. We all lay around on the grass as flat as possible, whilst odd bullets whistled past uncomfortably close overhead (from our unknown friends in the hedge) and the fighters carried out the good work of their diving attacks, impartially spraying both the aircraft and the surrounding turf, littered as it was with extremely recumbent forms. Why everyone was not killed in beyond me.
I found myself lying next to P/O Freeman, and we decided to make a run for it to a sandpit some 60 to 80 yards away. This turned out to be about 10 feet deep, and we arrived at the bottom with considerable velocity. When we had recovered our breath, we climbed cautiously up to the top again and looked over the edge, to find ourselves and the aircraft in the centre of a wide semi-circle of advancing Germans, all with rifles at the ready.
The first thing I noticed when we rejoined the rest of the party was that Captain Lassois, the Belgian captain of the Savoia, was looking more shaken than the rest of us, and that he was still wearing his British steel helmet, which had an enormous gash in the front of the crown. He explained to me that he had been lying under the fuselage of the Douglas next to Captain Hoare. During a lull in the firing they had both raised their heads for a look around. Immediately he had felt a bullet hit his helmet, and Captain Hoare had slumped back onto his face, and was, he thought, hit in the head. I could still see Captain Hoare lying face downwards under the aircraft, and after the wounded had been attended to, I persuaded the German N.C.O. who seemed in charge, to let me go and look at Captain Hoare. A German medical orderly who accompanied us helped me to turn Captain Hoare over onto his back. He was quite unconscious, his face extremely congested, his tongue protruding, and his breath literally rattling in his throat. He was covered in blood and was altogether a most unnerving sight. The medial orderly said something in German to the N.C.O., who turned to me and said “Kaput –finish”, prodded me in the ribs with his revolver, and we went to examine the body of the Belgian pilot of the Douglas, Captain Chartier, who had tried to run away across the fields but had been shot. He was quite dead. I was immediately conducted back to the rest of the prisoners and was not allowed to go near Captain Hoare again.
The Germans who captured us were front line troops, all quite young, and once they had searched us for arms etc., treated us very well and gave our wounded every possible attention. I am quite sure that if it had been possible to do anything for Captain Hoare, he would have received the same care as our other wounded. But seeing him unconscious and in an obviously dying condition, they refused to waste any further time on him. I was very worried at having to leave Captain Hoare to die alone in this seemingly callous fashion. But an RAMC Major to whom I later described his symptoms assured me that he would have died without regaining consciousness and within less than 5 minutes of our leaving him. I subsequently learned that the name of the village outside which we force landed was Arques, near St Omer”
Three Ensigns and the Dragon Rapide managed to return to Croydon with a further Ensign crash landing at Lympe.
Sir W. Runciman, Director General of the British Overseas Airways wrote: - “We are all very proud of Capt. Hoare's fine record, and of the gallant way in which he met his end. He is indeed a great loss to us.”
The British Overseas Airways Newsletter wrote of him: - “People in many parts of the world who are interested in aviation have heard the news with deep regret. Scholar as well as pilot, and equally gifted in both spheres, Hoare was universally popular among his colleagues. His bluff and cheerful personality was known at airports from Croydon to Hong-Kong. There was another and more reticent side to his character which those who knew him best found just as lovable”
The publication, The Log, wrote: - “Sam was one of those rare personalities whose cheerful good humour and unselfish acceptance of rough and smooth are a joy and example to their fellows. He gave his life in the course of an airline pilot's duties in wartime. No medals or decorations were bestowed for his supreme sacrifice, and none was expected, for a risk which was shared by all who took part in the glorious work. But he will not be forgotten and his gallant example will inspire those who follow after.”
He is commemorated on the war memorial at Trinity College, Cambridge and on the memorial at the Dragon School.
He is buried at Arques Churchyard, Grave 8.

Holmes, Robert Edward Ingram, son of J. W. Holmes, of Wallington, Surrey; b. Dec. 7, 1898; adm. Jan. 18, 1912 (G); left April 1917; 2nd Lieut. 5th (Res.) Batt. Grenadier Guards; Ch. Ch. Oxon., matric. Michaelmas 1919; B.A. 1922; silver medallist, R. Academy of Drama­tic Art; an actor; frequently appeared on the London stage and was a regular member of the Repertory Players; 2nd Lieut. R. A. Sept. 21, 1939; d. of wounds July 10, 1945.

Robert Edward Ingram Holmes was born at Wallington, Surrey on the 7th of December 1898 the second son of James Wallace Holmes, an East India merchant, and Edith Mary Annie (nee Ingram) Holmes of “Cotleigh”, 5, Stanley Park Road, Wallington in Surrey. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Grant’s from the 18th of January 1912 to April 1917. He was appointed as Monitor in January 1917.
He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 5th (Reserve) Battalion, Grenadier Guards during the Great War and served overseas. He matriculated for Christ Church, Oxford in 1919 and graduated with a BA in 1922. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, where he won a Silver Medal, and became an actor with frequent appearances on the London stage as well as being a regular member of the Repertory Players. He played Laertes in the modern dress version of Hamlet at the Kingsway Theatre, London in 1925. He appeared in the film drama “The Rosary”, directed by Guy Newall in 1931, in the part of Concannon in the comedy film “Hyde Park Corner”, directed by Sinclair Hill in 1935 and in the part of d’Allery in the comedy film “The Gay Adventure” also directed by Sinclair Hill in 1936.
Following the outbreak of war he enlisted in the Royal Artillery and rose to the rank of Lance Bombardier before being commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant on the 21st of September 1939. He was dismissed from the army on the 16th of December 1942 following a Court Martial.
He died at “'Houghton”, Petworth Road, Wormley, Godalming, Surrey
His death is not recorded by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission as he was no longer in the army at the time of his death.

Horton, John Corbett, son of Henry Beavan Horton, of Blackheath, Kent, by Jean May, daughter of Thomas Spurr, of King's Lynn, Norfolk; b. Sept. 4, 1899; adm. April 30, 1914 (A); left March 1918; 2nd Lieut. 3rd Batt. R. Sussex Regt. Oct. 30, 1918; a timber merchant, director of B. Horton and Son, Ltd.; Capt. King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, Feb. 26, 1940; transferred to Durham Light Infantry; Major; m. Aug. 22, 1931, Eileen Mary Dowman, daughter of William Edward Riley, F.R.I.B.A., of Blackheath, Kent; d. on active service Dec. 3, 1944.

John Corbett Horton was born at Blackheath, London on the 4th of September 1899 the eldest son of Henry Beavon Horton, a timber merchant, and Jean Mary (nee Spurr) Horton of 15, Eliot Vale, Blackheath in London. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Ashburnham from the 30th of April 1914 to March 1918. He was a member of the 2nd Football XI in 1916 and of the 1st Football XI in 1917 and 1918. He was a member of the Officer Training Corps where he was promoted to Lance Corporal in September 1916, to Corporal in November 1916 and to Company Sergeant Major in November 1917.
He enlisted into the army at Whitehall as Private 60564 on the 5th of April 1918 and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 3rd (Reserve) Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment on the 30th of October 1918. After the war he joined the firm of B. Horton and Son Ltd, timber merchants, where he was later appointed as a director. He retired to the Territorial Army Reserve of Officers and was promoted to Lieutenant in the 20th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (Blackheath and Woolwich) on the 23rd of December 1928. He was promoted to Captain on the 13th of June 1934.
He was married on the 22nd of August 1931 to Eileen Mary Dowman (nee Riley) and they lived at 16, Blackheath Rise, Lewisham and later at 11, Oakcroft Road, Lewisham in London. They had a son, Richard John, born on the 23rd of January 1934.
Following the outbreak of war he was mobilised in 1940 and was appointed as a Captain in the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry on the 26th of February 1940. He transferred to the Durham Light Infantry at the same rank on the 13th of June 1940 where he was appointed as second in command of No. 41 Infantry Training Company based at Brancepeth Castle, County Durham.
He died there following a short illness.
He is buried at St Brandon’s Church, Brancepeth.

Humphries, Clifford Stuart, son of Stanley Humphries of Blackheath and Gertrude, d. of John Johnson of Banstead, Surrey; b. 18 May 1911; adm. May 1924 (H); left July 1929; Trin. Coll. Camb., matric. 1929, BA 1932, MA 1937; St Thom. Hosp. Med. Sch., MRCS LRCP 1935; MB BCh 1937; gen. med. practice Blackheath; RAMC 1939-41 (Capt.); d. of wounds (Middle East) 1941.

Clifford Stuart Humphries was born at Greenwich, London on the 18th of May 1911 the only child of Stanley Humphries, a school master, later an assistant manager at the Royal Ordnance factory, and Gertrude (nee Johnson) Humphries of 37, Dombey Road, Tulse Hill, later of Beckenham in Kent and of Parville Alsager, Stoke on Trent. He was christened at Holy Trinity Church, Tulse Hill on the 18th of June 1911. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Homeboarders from May 1924 to July 1929.
He matriculated for Trinity College, Cambridge as a pensioner on the 9th of October 1929 and graduated with a BA in 1932. He attended St Thomas’s Hospital Medical School and achieved MRCS and LRCP in 1935. He achieved MB BCh in 1937 and was awarded a MA in the same year.
He served as House Physician at the Royal Berkshire Hospital before entering general practise at a surgery at 75, Maxted Road, New Cross in London.
He was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Royal Army Medical Corps on the 4th of September 1939 and was promoted to Captain in 1940. He served in France, Greece and Crete.
He is commemorated on the war memorial at Trinity College, Cambridge and on the St Thomas’s Hospital Roll of Honour.
He is buried at El Alamein War Cemetery Plot XXXII, Row C, Grave 9.

Hunter, Colin Havard, brother of Francis Trevor Hunter (qv); b. 27 Aug. 1912; adm. Apr. 1926 (G); left July 1930; an aeronautical engineer, AFRAeS 1933; RAFVR 1940-4 (acting Sqdn Ldr), killed in action 8 May 1944.

Colin Havard Hunter was born at Briton Ferry, Neath, Wales on the 27th of August 1912 the son of His Honour Judge Trevor Havard Hunter KC and Ethel Ruth (nee Griffiths) Hunter of 6, Hereford Mansions, Hereford Road, Paddington in London. He was christened at Briton Ferry on the 29th of September 1911. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Grant’s from April 1926 to July 1930.
On leaving school he became an aeronautical engineer and qualified AFRAeS in 1933. He was awarded a Royal Aero Club Certificate (No. 10534) at the Herts and Essex Aero Club on the 7th of June 1932 while flying a DH Moth aircraft.
He was commissioned as a Pilot Officer in the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve on the 14th of September 1940 and was promoted to Flying Officer on the 14th of September 1941. He was promoted to Flight Lieutenant on the 14th of September 1942. He trained at No. 1654 Conversion Unit prior to becoming operational.
On the night of the 7th/8th of May 1944, Bomber Command dispatched 58 Lancasters and 9 Mosquitos for an attack on an ammunition dump at Salbris as part of ongoing operations in preparation for the planned invasion of France. It was to be his eighteenth operation and he had completed 133.48 hours of operational flying up to that time.
Colin Hunter and his crew took off from RAF Dunholm Lodge at 9.46pm on the 7th of May 1944 in Lancaster Mk III ND741KM-K for the operation. Shortly after midnight the aircraft was attacked by a Messerschmitt Bf110 night fighter flown by Leutnant Fred Hromadnik of 9/NJG4 and it caught fire. The crew abandoned the aircraft at low level but only Flight Engineer Fred Cooper’s parachute deployed in time, with the remaining six crew members being killed when they hit the ground. The aircraft crashed at 12.30am into the village of Herbilly, a few kilometres to the west of the River Loire and some twenty kilometres to the north east of Blois. It exploded when it hit the village, destroying several buildings and killing thirteen civilians in their homes. Theirs was the fourth of an eventual six victories for Fred Hromadnik.
The crew was: -
Squadron Leader Colin Havard Hunter (Pilot)
Pilot Officer Richard Colton Alexander (Air Gunner)
Flying Officer Alfred Greenwood (Navigator)
Pilot Officer George Robert Miles (Air Gunner)
Pilot Officer Frederick Arthur Salmon (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Flying Officer Gordon Keith Willis RCAF (Air Bomber)
Sergeant Frederick Stanley Cooper (Flight Engineer) (POW No. 13 Dulag Luft)
Theirs was one of seven aircraft which failed to return from the operation.
While Colin Hunter was fighting to control the aircraft to give his crew time to bail out, Fred Cooper escaped from the aircraft out of the top hatch and was the first member of the crew to get out. His parachute opened just in time and he hit the side of the roof of a house before sliding off and landing on a green house where he suffered cuts to his head. He was taken into hiding by locals but when the Germans threatened to begin shooting the villagers he gave himself up and was taken prisoner. He was later taken by the Germans to the crash site where he was able to identify the bodies of George Miles, Colin Hunter and Alfred Greenwood.
He is buried at Orleans Main Cemetery Plot 1, Row A, Collective Grave 16-27.

Iago, John Martindale, son of George Martindale Iago FCA, of Harrow, and Beatrice Mary, d. of George Waldron Bowen of Knighton, Radnor; b. 16 Jan. 1916; adm. Jan. 1930 (A); left Dec. 1933; Imperial Coll. of Science, BSc 1938; RNVR 1939-41 (Lieut. (E)); lost in HMS Hood 24 May 1941.

John Martindale Iago was born at Northwood, Middlesex on the 16th of January 1916 the son of George Martindale Iago FCA, an accountant, and Beatrice Mary (nee Bowen) Iago of “Gerrans”, Crofters Road, Northwood. He was educated at Westminster School where he was up Ashburnham from January 1930 to December 1933. He played the flute solo from the First Movement from Sonata No. 4 by J.C.F. Bach at an informal concert in the Michaelmas term of 1932 and the flute solo “Gavotte” by Gossec at an informal concert in early 1933.
He went on to the Imperial College of Science from where he graduated BSc (Eng) in 1938 and also qualified as ACGI.
He was commissioned as an Electrical Sub Lieutenant in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve on the 29th of August 1939 and was posted to the crew of battlecruiser HMS Hood on the 14th of September 1939. He was promoted to Electrical Lieutenant on the 16th of January 1941. He was engaged to Dorothy Castle of Belsize Gardens in London.
At 1am on the 22nd of May 1941, the battleship HMS Hood set sail from Scapa Flow in company with the newly built battleship HMS Prince of Wales. They were escorted by the destroyers HMS Achates, HMS Antelope, HMS Anthony, HMS Echo, HMS Electra and HMS Icarus and were bound for Hvals Fjord in Iceland following reports that the German battleship Bismarck and the cruiser Prinz Eugen had left Bergen in search of merchant shipping to attack.
By the evening of the 23rd of May they were to the south of Iceland when they received a report from the destroyer HMS Suffolk that they had sighted the Bismarck in the Straits of Denmark and at 7.39pm they increased their speed and changed course to intercept the enemy ship.
Due to the pounding seas and the high speed of the two larger ships, the escorting destroyers struggled to keep up and were given permission to drop back at 4am on the 14th of May as the two capital ships continued the hunt on their own.
The enemy ships were sighted and at 5.52am HMS Hood opened fire on Prinz Eugen at a range of 25,000 yards. Prince of Wales fired its first salvo one minute later. HMS Hood received five salvos in reply from the two enemy ships, the second and third of which bracketed the ship causing a fire to break out on the port side.
At 6am she was hit by the fifth salvo in the aft magazine, blew up, and sank in three to four minutes with the loss of 1,415 of her crew of 1,418.
His sister Beatrice “Bee” (later Kenchington) published a book of his letters called “...and Home There’s No Returning: Letters of Lieutenant John Martindale Iago RNVR from HMS 'Hood', 1939-41”
He is commemorated on the Roll of Honour of Electrical Engineers and on the memorial at the Hood Chapel at the Church of St John the Baptist, Boldre, Hampshire.
He is commemorated on the Portsmouth Naval Memorial Panel 60, Column 3.