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A. C. Hamilton |
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Name : A. C. Hamilton Died : 19th July 1940 Service Number : 78543 |
Pilot Officer A.C.Hamilton of No 141 Squadron was the gunner in a Defiant (L7009) flown by Flight Lieutenant I.D.G.Donald. Their aircraft was shot down in combat over Dover on July 19th 1940. They both lost their lives. |
Known Service Details : | |||||||
Squadron | Rank | Start of Service | End of Service | Known Dates | Aircraft | Airframes | Notes |
Pilot Officer | unknown | 19th July 1940 | Killed in Action | ||||
Historical Notes :
19-07-1940 - Defiant flown by Flight Lieutenant I.D.G.Donald was flying convoy patrol when it was shot down near Dover. Pilot Donald died.
19-07-1940 - Defiant flown by Flight Lieutenant I.D.G.Donald was flying convoy patrol when it was shot down near Dover. Pilot Donald died.
Known Individual Aircraft : | ||||||||
Type | Serial | Codes | First Flew | Squadron History | Aircrew History | History Notes | Engine | Factory |
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| Aircraft for : A. C. Hamilton | ||
| A list of all aircraft associated with A. C. Hamilton. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name. | ||
| Aircraft | Info | |
Blenheim 
Manufacturer : Bristol Production Began : 1935 Retired : 1956 Number Built : 4422 | Blenheim The Bristol Blenheim, the most plentiful aircraft in the RAFs inventory when WWII began, was designed by Frank Barnwell, and when first flown in 1936 was unique with its all metal monoplane design incorporating a retractable undercarriage, wing flaps, metal props, and supercharged engines. A typical bomb load for a Blenheim was 1,000 pounds. In the early stages of the war Blenheims were used on many daylight bombing missions. On the day that war was declared on Germany, a Blenheim piloted by Flying Officer Andrew McPherson was the first British aircraft to cross the German coast and the following morning 15 Blenheims from three squadrons set off on one of the first bombing missions The Blenheim units operated throughout the battle, often taking heavy casualties, although they were never accorded the publicity of the fighter squadrons. The Blenheim units raided German occupied airfields throughout July to December 1940, both during daylight hours and at night. Although most of these raids were unproductive, there were some successes; on 1 August five out of 12 Blenheims sent to attack Haamstede and Evere (Brussels) were able to bomb, destroying or heavily damaging three Bf 109s of II./JG 27 and apparently killing a Staffelkapitän identified as Hauptmann Albrecht von Ankum-Frank. Two other 109s were claimed by Blenheim gunners. Another successful raid on Haamstede was made by a single Blenheim on 7 August which destroyed one 109 of 4./JG 54, heavily damaged another and caused lighter damage to four more. There were also some missions which produced an almost 100% casualty rate amongst the Blenheims. One such operation was mounted on 13 August 1940 against a Luftwaffe airfield near Aalborg in north-western Denmark by 12 aircraft of 82 Squadron. One Blenheim returned early (the pilot was later charged and due to appear before a court martial, but was killed on another operation); the other 11, which reached Denmark, were shot down, five by flak and six by Bf 109s. Blenheim-equipped units had been formed to carry out long-range strategic reconnaissance missions over Germany and German-occupied territories, as well as bombing operations. In this role, the Blenheims once again proved to be too slow and vulnerable against Luftwaffe fighters and they took constant casualties While great heroism was displayed by the air crews, tremendous losses were sustained during these missions. The Blenhiem was easy pickings at altitude for German Bf-109 fighters who quickly learned to attack from below. To protect the vulnerable bellies of the Blenheims many missions were shifted to low altitude, but this increased the aircrafts exposure to anti-aircraft fire. In the German night-bombing raid on London on 18 June 1940, Blenheims accounted for five German bombers, thus proving that they were better-suited for night fighting. In July, No. 600 Squadron, by then based at RAF Manston, had some of its Mk IFs equipped with AI Mk III radar. With this radar equipment, a Blenheim from the Fighter Interception Unit (FIU) at RAF Ford achieved the first success on the night of 2–3 July 1940, accounting for a Dornier Do 17 bomber. More successes came, and before long the Blenheim proved itself invaluable as a night fighter. One Blenheim pilot, Squadron Leader Arthur Scarf, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for an attack on Singora, Thailand, on 9 December 1941. Another bomber of No. 60 Squadron RAF was credited with shooting down Lt Col Tateo Katō's Nakajima Ki-43 fighter and badly damaging two others in a single engagement on 22 May 1942, over the Bay of Bengal. Katō's death was a severe blow to the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force. | |
Defiant 
Manufacturer : Boulton Paul Production Began : 1939 Number Built : 1075 | Defiant BOULTON PAUL DEFIANT Built as a fighter, with a crew of two. Maximum speed of 304 mph, and a ceiling of 30,350 feet. armament on the defiant was four .303 browing machine guns in the Boulton Paul Turret. Designed as a intercepter fighter, the Defiant first flew in August 1937. and entered service with the Royal Air Force in October 1939 with no 264 squadron. and first flew in operations in march 1940 the Boulton Paul Defiant was certainly no match for the German Fighters, due to their lack of fire power as the defiant had no wing mounted machine guns. Heavy losses. The aircraft was re deployed as a night -Fighter in the autumn of 1940. This role also being taken over by Bristol Beaufighters in 1941, leaving the defiant for training, target tug, and air-sea rescue roles. A Total of 1075 Boulton Paul Defiant's were built | |
| Squadrons for : A. C. Hamilton | ||
| A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by A. C. Hamilton. A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name. | ||
| Squadron | Info | |
No.141 Sqn RAF Country : UK Founded : 1st January 1918 Fate : Disbanded 31st March 1964 Caedimus noctu - We slay by night | No.141 Sqn RAF No. 141 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was formed on 1 January 1918 at Rochford, for home defence in the London Area. The Squadron moved to RAF Biggin Hill in February and giving up its mixed collection of types in favour of Bristol F.2 Fighters during March. In March 1919, it moved to Ireland, and was disbanded the following year, on 1 February 1920. On 4 October 1939, No 141 reformed at Turnhouse and by the end of the month had received some Gladiators followed shortly afterwards by Blenheims and these two types formed the training equipment of the until the arrival of Defiants in April 1940. Becoming operational on this type on 3 June 1940, the first operational patrol was flown by No 141 on 29 June and in July it moved to West Malling. The maintenance flight was based at Biggin Hill while the Defiants used Hawkinge as an advanced airfield and it was from the latter that the Squadron had its first and last daylight encounter with the enemy. Six out of nine aircraft were lost over the Channel to Me 109s and the squadron was withdrawn to Prestwick two days later as the ineffectiveness of the Defiant against single-seat fighters became evident. In September, a detachment was sent back to southern England but this time for night patrols and the whole squadron moved there in October. In April 1941, No. 141 returned to Scotland where it converted to Beaufighters for the defence of central Scotland and north-east England. In June 1942 it moved to Tangmere for local defence and in February 1943 to south-west England where it began flying intruder missions over north-west France. At the end of April 1943, it was transferred to Wittering and began flying intruder sorties over German airfields in support of Bomber Command in June. Mosquitoes began to replace the Beaufighters in October and in December the Squadron joined No. 100 Group, sending aircraft with Bomber Command's main force to attack enemy night-fighters and their bases. This type of operation continued until the German surrender and on 7 September 1945 the Squadron was disbanded. On 17 June 1946, No. 141 reformed at Wittering, again as a Mosquito night-fighter Squadron. In September 1951, it began to convert to Meteors and replaced these with Venoms in 1955. Javelins began to arrive in February 1957 and were flown until the Squadron was renumbered 41 Squadron on 1 February 1958. On 1 April 1959, No. 141 was reformed as a Bloodhound anti-aircraft missile unit at Dunholme Lodge, disbanding on 31 March 1964. | |
Last edited : 15:18, November 30, 2012
Last editor : DataStream
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