Caygill - Biggin Hill Wing 1941 From Defence to Attack

First published in Great Britain in 2008 by
Pen & Sword Aviation
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Pen & Sword Books Ltd
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Copyright Peter Caygill 2008

9781844684892

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Table of Contents

Introduction

I n 1940 the RAF inflicted the first defeat on Germanys Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, a victory that was achieved by Churchills Few in the face of seemingly overwhelming odds. But without the defensive system that was put in place by Fighter Commands Commander-in-Chief, Air Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding, and the tactical genius of Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park, the No.11 Group commander, the outcome would have been very different. This did not stop Dowding and Park being removed from office after the battle had been won and replaced by Air Marshal Sir William Sholto Douglas and Air Vice-Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory who had very different ideas when it came to tactics. This change of leadership was to lead to a complete change of emphasis as the RAF looked to go onto the attack.

Flushed with the success of the previous year, 1941 saw Fighter Command move onto the offensive as it attempted to draw the fighters on the other side of the Channel into a battle of attrition. It was hoped that by putting large numbers of aircraft into the air in the form of several Wing formations the enemy would be decisively beaten and this strategy was implemented as soon as weather conditions allowed. The fighter airfields in the south of the country bore the brunt of the fighting with the squadrons based at Biggin Hill in Kent at the forefront of the air battles that raged over northern France.

During the Battle of Britain Biggin Hill had been the target of many raids and as a result it had suffered severely. Despite the damage and loss of life it had remained operational and for the public it came to epitomise the resolve that the whole country was feeling. With the daylight battles won the perfect posting for a fighter pilot was to Biggin Hill, not least because of its location close to London with its clubs and night life. Just as the best pilots seemed to be drawn there, the publicity that they attracted and their stature within society led to a constant stream of film stars attending the parties that were arranged at every opportunity.

This book looks at the activities of the Biggin Hill Wing in 1941 through the eyes of the pilots who fought high in the skies over the English Channel and northern France. At times the fighting was equally as intensive as it had been in 1940 and this was particularly true after the German invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June when Fighter Command attempted to prevent further units being withdrawn to the Eastern Front. Although there were plenty of opportunities for pilots to make a name for themselves they were up against the cream of the Luftwaffe fighter force and many were to die before they could appreciate the harsh realities of the aerial war. The actions which took place are pieced together from pilots combat reports and first-hand accounts and these paint a vivid picture of the battles that took place.

Also included is an evaluation of the political intrigue that led to the removal of Dowding and Park which shaped the events of 1941 and the concluding chapter is a detailed assessment of the strategy adopted by Sholto Douglas and Leigh-Mallory and questions its effectiveness. There are extensive appendices which list all combat claims and losses of the Biggin Hill Wing in 1941, together with the stories of Biggin Hill-based pilots who were involved in escape and evasion after being shot down over occupied Europe.

CHAPTER ONE

Early Days

T he name Biggin Hill can be traced back to 1499 when it appears for the first time in a deed, although its origin is rather more obscure. It may have been derived from the name Bygge, or, more likely, it refers to its location and means the hill next to the farm or house. With the coming of the 20th century Biggin Hill was home to around 500 people who lived either side of the Westerham Road where it was joined by Jail Lane, the junction of which was the location for the Black Horse Inn. The settlement was surrounded by farmland which included Biggin Hill Farm, after which it was named. The local area was made up of the villages of Cudham, Berrys Green and Aperfield. The latter is first mentioned around 1242 and was known originally as Apuldre which probably means the field with the apple trees. In Tudor times it was owned by the Dacre family and subsequently by the Christys who built Aperfield Court. In 1898 this was bought as a country retreat by Frederick H. Dougal, an Irish Law Agent who lived in Wandsworth. Dougal was to have a big influence on the development of Biggin Hill.

Although he kept Aperfield Court and its associated parkland, he started to sell the local farmland as building plots and these continued to be sold after his death in 1904. Due to an almost total lack of planning restrictions, the properties that sprang up varied tremendously in their design and construction, and this development, together with similar expansion elsewhere, was to lead to the planning laws of today. Progress was relatively slow due to the lack of a railway and all building materials had to be transported from the nearest station which added considerably to the cost. Because of its location on the North Downs the provision of a railway was far from straightforward and despite two separate schemes in 1898 and 1929, no railway has ever been built to serve Biggin Hill.

By the beginning of the First World War most of the Aperfield estate had been sold for development but the land around Cudham Lodge to the north was still being farmed by John Westacott who rented it from Earl Stanhope of Chevening. This did not last for long, however, as the Royal Flying Corps was looking for a site to carry out wireless experiments and in 1916 the site that would eventually become one of the best known airfields in the country was finally chosen. It offered a wide open space, but more than that, its relatively high location, which was approximately 600 ft above sea level, kept it largely free from fog. There was also no electrical interference in the area which might cause trouble for the trials that were about to take place. Stanhope, who was himself an army officer, was more than happy to dispose of his 80 acre estate and Koonowla, a former childrens hospital that was close by on the Westerham to Bromley road, was requisitioned as an Officers mess.