One of the Few .
Discussion
Like many at the time his story is like something from a boys own annual.
He wasn't an officer when he first flew hence the award of a DFM , only awarded to SNCOs or other ranks . An outstanding award to receive . Became an Ace , survived the war and rose to the rank of Wing Commander , and finally made it to 101 years old .
A pretty impressive life by any standards
He wasn't an officer when he first flew hence the award of a DFM , only awarded to SNCOs or other ranks . An outstanding award to receive . Became an Ace , survived the war and rose to the rank of Wing Commander , and finally made it to 101 years old .
A pretty impressive life by any standards
Seems to have been considered five victories = ace since the latter part of the First World War. The Smithsonian suggests that the main air forces at the time the US joined the war considered ten victories to be the (strictly unofficial) qualifying score, but as it seemed unlikely any US pilots would make that in the near future, American journalists decided amongst themselves to halve the limit, and thereafter it stuck, and spread to other air arms.
(Things are slightly complicated by the fact that in WW1, the RFC and RNAS, and latterly the RAF did not count enemy aircraft destroyed, but those which had been ‘driven down’, a looser categorisation, but by WW2, the counting of aircraft destroyed, probably destroyed and damaged was instituted. The RAF accounted for part shares of kills, which could be totalled into whole ones. E.g. if you and your wingman both contributed to two kills, that counted as one each).
Farnes’ career was pretty remarkable, even for the standards of the time. He survived the Battle of France, Battle of Britain, Malta and North Africa as a pilot, and served for the whole of the war, the last couple of years in a staff role. Blue skies sir
(Things are slightly complicated by the fact that in WW1, the RFC and RNAS, and latterly the RAF did not count enemy aircraft destroyed, but those which had been ‘driven down’, a looser categorisation, but by WW2, the counting of aircraft destroyed, probably destroyed and damaged was instituted. The RAF accounted for part shares of kills, which could be totalled into whole ones. E.g. if you and your wingman both contributed to two kills, that counted as one each).
Farnes’ career was pretty remarkable, even for the standards of the time. He survived the Battle of France, Battle of Britain, Malta and North Africa as a pilot, and served for the whole of the war, the last couple of years in a staff role. Blue skies sir
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