Hurricane Squadron Ace: The Story of Battle of Britain Ace, Air Commodore Peter Brothers, CBE, DSO, DFC and Bar

289 Pages·2015·21.49 MB·English

by  Nick Thomas

HURRICANE ACE jckt 11/11/14 09:35 Page 1
NICK THOMAS is a former archaeologist Air Commodore Peter Malam ‘Pete’ Brothers
and finds expert. He currently works as CBE, DSO, DFC, and Bar (1917-2008) was
Collections Officer for a local authority one of the most heroic and highly praised
pilots of the Second World War. Decorated
having been manager of the ground-breaking
extensively, he secured a total of 16 ‘kills’ over
Stafford Castle Visitor Centre and Museum
the course of the conflict, with 10 of these
with which he has a 25 year association.
occurring during the Battle of Britain. Pivotal
Nick has contributed history articles for a
moments in his career include the time, in
number of archaeological journals and the
August 1940, when his flight encountered
local press, while finding time to work on
around a hundred enemy aircraft, including
many of the ‘digs’ in his home town. His Messerschmitt 110’s; he led the flight in attack
previous biographies include RAF Top Gun; against them, and soon found himself in a
the story of Teddy Donaldson, Ben Bennions stalled position, out of which he spun, only to
DFC; Battle of Britain Fighter Ace and be confronted by a Dornier 215, which he
Kenneth ‘Hawkeye’ Lee DFC: Battle of shot down, before later destroying a
Messerschmitt 109. Scores of these kind of
Britain and Desert Air Force Fighter Ace.
risky manoeuvres and winning victories
punctuated a career defined by great courage,
leadership and initiative in the face of fierce
opposition.
This new and engaging biography profiles a
pilot who, until now, hasn’t been the subject
of such a thorough book-length study. The
story of his career is incredibly entertaining,
featuring a number of hair-raising episodes,
and is sure to appeal to fans of aviation
history as well as the more general reader
seeking out an action-packed biography
offering fresh insights into one of the most
pivotal conflicts of the twentieth century.
Jacket design: Jon Wilkinson
For a complete list of current titles ring or write to:
PEN & SWORD BOOKS LIMITED
Freepost, 47 Church Street, Barnsley
South Yorkshire S70 2BR uk £25.00 • us$39.95
E-mail:[email protected]
Tel: [phone]
Or visit our website at: uk £25.00
www.pen-and-sword.co.uk SCAN THE QR
CODE FOR MORE us $39.95
OVER 4000 TITLES AVAILABLE. WW2 AVIATION
TITLES FROM
PEN & SWORD www.pen-and-sword.co.uk www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
Hurricane
Squadron Ace

Hurricane
Squadron Ace
The Story of Battle
of Britain Ace
Air Commodore Peter ‘Pete’ Brothers,
CBE, DSO, DFC and Bar
Nick Thomas
First published in Great Britain in 2014 by
Pen & Sword Aviation
an imprint of
Pen & Sword Books Ltd
47 Church Street
Barnsley
South Yorkshire
S70 2AS
Copyright © Nick Thomas 2014
ISBN 978 1 78159 311 0
The right of Nick Thomas to be identified as the Author of this Work has
been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act 1988.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including
photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without permission from the Publisher in writing.
Typeset in Ehrhardt by
Mac Style Ltd, Bridlington, East Yorkshire
Printed and bound in the UK by CPI Group (UK) Ltd,
Croydon, CRO 4YY
Pen & Sword Books Ltd incorporates the imprints of Pen & Sword
Archaeology, Atlas, Aviation, Battleground, Discovery, Family History,
History, Maritime, Military, Naval, Politics, Railways, Select, Transport,
True Crime, and Fiction, Frontline Books, Leo Cooper, Praetorian Press,
Seaforth Publishing and Wharncliffe.
For a complete list of Pen & Sword titles please contact
PEN & SWORD BOOKS LIMITED
47 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2AS, England
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.pen-and-sword.co.uk
Contents
Introduction vi
Acknowledgements ix
Chapter 1 Born to Fly 1
Chapter 2 The Road to War 6
Chapter 3 The So-Called Phoney War 21
Chapter 4 Blitzkrieg to Dunkirk 29
Chapter 5 The Fight Goes On 52
Chapter 6 Target Britain 63
Chapter 7 The Battle Heightens 85
Chapter 8 One Day’s Battle: 18 August 104
Chapter 9 No. 32 Squadron Keeping the Upper Hand 114
Chapter 10 No. 257 Squadron 133
Chapter 11 Leading the Aussies of No. 457 Squadron 164
Chapter 12 A New Command: No. 602 Squadron 188
Chapter 13 Wing Commander (Flying) Tangmere Wing 206
Chapter 14 Wing Commander (Flying) Culmhead Wing 218
Chapter 15 Post War Service and Honours 234
Bibliography 248
Index 250
Introduction
Peter Malam ‘Pete’ Brothers CBE, DSO, DFC and Bar
F
ascinated with flying from a very early age, Pete Brothers gained his pilot’s
license at the age of seventeen, by which time he was already an accomplished
pilot, highly proficient at aerobatics and fighter combat techniques.
In 1936 Brothers enlisted into the RAF and following his flying training was posted
to No. 32 Squadron, then heavily involved in the development of the Fighter Control
system. Re-equipped with Hawker Hurricanes a little after the Munich Crisis, the
squadron was to remain at the forefront of Home Defence.
Commanding ‘B’ Flight, operating out of Biggin Hill, Brothers played a pivotal
role in No. 32 Squadron’s campaign. His first ‘kills’ came on 18 and 23 May 1940,
while the squadron was using French airfields by day, returning to the ‘Bump’ at
nightfall. Pete later related how his initial combat had taught him to have his guns
calibrated to converge at half the recommended distance, which meant that he would
have to get in close to the enemy. More combats and victories came in July when the
Luftwaffe turned their attention to the Channel Convoys and mainland Britain.
The Battle of Britain was intense, demanding much from No. 32 Squadron’s
pilots. Pete later related as to how he was kept going on a mixture of caffeine and
Benzedrine; the downside of which was that when he did sleep it was so deep that
on one occasion he did not even hear an air raid which had left a line of craters just
outside the mess.
Leading from the front and often flying three or four sorties a day, Brothers
continued to notch up claims and was awarded a much deserved DFC, which
recognized his abilities not only as a combat pilot and flight commander, but also as
a highly capable tactician.
When No. 32 Squadron was finally rested in late August, only a handful of the pre-
war pilots remained, and most of these had been shot down, made forced-landings or
had taken to their parachute at least once.
Brothers could not be afforded any rest and was immediately sent to take command
of a flight of No. 257 Squadron’s Hurricanes following the loss of both flight
commanders in a single operation. With ‘Bob’ Tuck, he helped keep the squadron in
the thick of the combat at a crucial time, striking decisive blows against the Luftwaffe
on 15 September (Brothers adding two more victories to his score) and against the
Regia Aeronautica Italiana on 15 November 1940.
With two back-to-back tours of operations under his belt, Brothers was briefly
‘rested’, becoming an instructor at No. 55 OTU. Promoted to Squadron Leader,
Introduction vii
Brothers formed and led No. 457 (RAAF) Squadron, blooding them on Circuses,
Ramrods and Rodeos over enemy occupied Europe, before their withdrawal to defend
Northern Australia from the threat of Imperial Japan.
Taking over No. 602 Squadron from ‘Paddy’ Finucane, a hard act to follow, the
charismatic Brothers quickly made his mark, demonstrating himself to be the equal
of anyone in the air, whether it be leading a flight, squadron or wing. He led his
squadron on four offensive sweeps during the ill-fated Dieppe Raid, once again
demonstrating his supreme abilities as a tactician.
Marked down for one of the most demanding roles of any fighter pilot, Brothers
was appointed as Wing Commander (Flying), Tangmere. Flying in the vapour trails
of none other than his friend Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader,
CBE, DSO and Bar, DFC and Bar, FRAeS, DL, Pete excelled in the new role, even
adding to his own personal tally. He was awarded a much deserved Bar to his DFC,
gaining the admiration of his squadron commanders who included Squadron Leader
Reginald Joseph Cowan ‘Reg’ Grant, DFC and Bar, DFM, and ‘Johnnie’ Johnson
CB, CBE, DSO and two Bars, DFC and Bar, Légion d’Honneur (France), Officer
of the Order of Leopold with Palms (Belgium), Legion of Merit (US), DFC (US),
Air Medal (US).
There could be no rest for Brothers and following a taxing posting as Chief Flying
Instructor at No. 52 OTU he was transferred to No. 61 OTU, before a brief spell
directing operations at No. 10 Group.
Brothers’ final combat role during the war was as Wing Commander (Flying)
Culmhead Wing, making low-level strafes in support of the D-Day landings. Air-
to-air combat became rare due to Fighter Command’s dominance of the sky over
Europe. Ground strikes were, however, every bit as dangerous, with pilots lost to
ground fire and routinely flying at under 1,000ft over the combat zone, when there
would be no opportunity to deploy a parachute if they got into trouble.
Brothers made his last claim, an Fw 190, on 7 August 1944. His role as a Wing
Leader was rewarded with the award of the DSO, being credited with sixteen ‘kills’,
one probably destroyed, one unconfirmed and three damaged.
Brothers’ record was virtually unsurpassed. Having completed four tours, two as
Wing Leader, he had flown 875 hours on operations and, despite a couple of forced-
landings, never had to abandon an aircraft.
Following a brief spell in the Colonial Service, Brothers rejoined the RAF and
commanded No. 57 Squadron during the Malayan Emergency, before attending Staff
College and being taken on at the headquarters of Fighter Command, appointed as
Wing Commander (Flying) Marham, flying the Valiant V-bomber. Further promotion
took him to roles at the SHAPE headquarters in Paris. As Air Commodore, Brothers
commanded the headquarters of the Military Air Traffic Operations, before being
appointed as the RAF’s Director of Public Relations during the height of the Cold
War. Brothers’ peacetime service was acknowledged when he was appointed as a
Companion of the British Empire (CBE).
On retiring from the RAF, Brothers founded his own company, Peter Brothers
Consultants.
viii Hurricane Squadron Ace
Brothers became an advocate for former members of Fighter Command, in
particular the men who won the Battle of Britain, many of whom had paid the ultimate
price. Appointed deputy chairman of the Battle of Britain Association in 1993, he
became chairman ten years later. These roles brought him into the company of Her
Majesty the Queen Mother, and later with His Royal Highness Prince Charles, as
Patrons of the Battle of Britain Fighter Association. But there was no side to Brothers
and he was comfortable talking to anyone who had something sensible to say, no
matter their status. He was always interested in what others were doing, or what their
job entailed and chatted to all on an equal basis.
Brothers was a stalwart of the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust, campaigning for
what became the Thames Embankment Monument and later he turned his attention
to help save RAF Bentley Priory.
President of his local Air Crew Association in Hungerford, Berkshire, Brothers
was also invited to act as patron of the Spitfire Association of Australia, a reflection of
the esteem in which a ‘Pom’ was held by the Aussies, in remembrance of his service
commanding No. 457 Squadron.
Brothers was described by friend and fellow aviator, Wing Commander Percy
Belgrave ‘Laddie’ Lucas, CBE, DSO and Bar, DFC (DFC, London Gazette, 17 July
1942; DSO, London Gazette, 14 January 1944; Bar to the DSO, London Gazette, 2
October 1945; CBE 1981), as ‘one of those distinctive Fighter Command characters,
full of bonhomie, humour and decorations, who made light of the serious things, no
matter what his innermost thoughts.’
Thus was the career of a dedicated, patriotic and charismatic officer. Brothers’
courage and ability are a matter of record. What records can never reveal is the man
himself; above all, family man, loving father, and the type of man whom, once met,
became a friend. Those who knew him universally agreed how he could always lift the
spirits of those around him with his charm and ready wit. As a friend he was fiercely
loyal. He was a man with a zest for life and camaraderie, with a mischievous twinkle
in his eye, whose chuckle would presage some prank or story, of which he had many.
In spite of his predilection to storytelling, his innate modesty prevented him
from telling war stories unless they were humorous, or were against himself. His
modesty is the most likely reason why his family could never persuade him to write
his memoirs. His modesty, and the fact that he found many of the memories of lost
friends too painful to revisit. On his own achievements he was always reticent. The
telling of Pete’s story is long overdue.
In life he had few equals, in death he has become an aviation legend.
Pete Brothers died on 18 December 2008.
Acknowledgements
I
am very much indebted to Pete’s daughters, Wendy Wallington and Hilary Cairns,
for their interest and support throughout the writing of the late Air Commodore’s
biography. They have supplied not only background information but went to
great effort to transcribe details from both Pete’s civilian and RAF logbooks.
Thanks to Wendy and Hilary’s kindness in making their late father’s photographic
archive available, few photographs have had to be sourced elsewhere, although a small
number have been drawn from the author’s collection.
Reference has been made to correspondence and informal interviews with the late
Air Commodore, while further details have been drawn from correspondence with
other Battle of Britain pilots including: Wing Commander D. H. Grice, MBE, DFC;
Wing Commander T. F. Neil, DFC and Bar, AFC; Squadron Leader T. G. Pickering,
AE and Wing Commander J. Rose, CMG, MBE, DFC.
The Operational Record Books and Combat Reports for all of the squadrons
mentioned have been referred to on microfilm at the Public Record Office, Kew.
Meanwhile, casualty details have been drawn from the Commonwealth War Grave’s
official web site.