Showing 29 results

Copies of official photographs of HMS RAJAH, 1944-1945, including details of anti-aircraft guns; aircraft on board (some crashed onto deck); aircraft being unloaded by crane; Suez Canal; wardroom and ratings messdeck, Christmas 1944; boxing and hockey on deck. Also copy of a certificate of service for 1943-1946; wireless history sheet, 1943-1945.

Papers and photographs relating to Wilson's career, 1928-1990, especially his service as test pilot for British and captured German aircraft, 1937-1945, setting the world air speed record, 1945, and his role as Commandant, Empire Test Pilots' School, 1945-1947, including three flying log books, 1928-1944; typescript copy of unpublished memoir entitled 'Icy calm. Recollections of a wartime test pilot', written in [1972]. One hundred and seventy four official and personal photographs relating to Wilson's career, 1930-[1950], including damaged Bristol Bulldog fighter, crash landed by Wilson, UK, 1931; captured German aircraft Heinkel He111, Junkers Ju88, Messerschmitt Me109, Messerschmitt Me110 and Italian Fiat CR42 [1941-1945]; testing of CAM (Catapult Assisted Merchantman) aircraft launch apparatus and tests on Fairey Fulmar, Blackburn Shark and General Aircraft Hotspur gliders with RATOG (Rocket Assisted Take-Off Gear), 1941-1942; Empire Test Pilots' School students under instruction and in flight, 1945-1947; photographs of De Havilland Mosquito, Avro Lancaster, Hawker Tempest, Supermarine Spitfire, Gloster Meteor and De Havilland Vampire, 1945-1947; prototype of Planet Aircraft Satellite, 1948-1949. Contemporary reports, memoranda and official and personal correspondence, 1937-1990, including typescript memorandum by Wilson entitled 'Pilot's impressions of the [Blackburn] Botha', 1940; typescript report by Wilson entitled 'Observations of fighter requirements', 1940; typescript report by Wilson entitled 'Tactical trials and other observations on the De Havilland E6/41 (known as the DH100 Spider-Crab, later renamed Vampire) with Halford H1 engine', 1944, and Empire Test Pilots' School student's confidential report for Sqn Ldr J G Mann, RAF, Course No 3, 1946; typescript report by Cyril Francis Caunter entitled 'A historical summary of the Royal Aircraft Establishment 1918-1948', 1949; correspondence with potential publishers for Wilson's memoir, 1972-1990. Publications, 1946-1972, including two editions of The Times, 1946 and 1947, edition of The Aeroplane with article on the Empire Test Pilots' School, 1946, and booklet entitled 'Empire Test Pilots' School Personnel Supplement. List of graduates 1943-1972 and present staff' [1972].

Papers of ACM Sir Neil Wheeler including training account, report, press cuttings and photographs, 1939-1991, notably a comprehensive report on the Royal Air Force Operations in Malaya, June 1948-March 1949, produced by Air Headquarters, Royal Air Force Malaya, May 1949; text for talk by Wheeler on early aerial photographic reconnaissance, delivered at a Royal Air Force Historical Society seminar, 1991; undated detailed account of training for, planning and leading wing strikes against shipping convoys, 1942-1943. Cutting of article 'Cameramen of the Air: Photographing bomb damage - vital work of RAF PRU'S (Photographic Reconnaissance Units)', from The Times, 1 Sept 1943. Printed maps of Norwegian, English, French and German coastlines, [1942], with handwritten annotations. Album of Photographic Reconnaissance Unit photographs, 1940-1941, many with captions, showing locations in France, the Netherlands, Germany and Norway including: Brest harbour; anti-aircraft fire over Cherbourg; Morlaix; Brest; Chateau Bougon Aerodrome, Nantes; Nantes; St Nazaire; La Rochelle; La Pallice; Rochefort; Bordeaux; Dunkirk, showing wrecks on beaches; Le Havre; Zeebrugge; Boulogne; railway yards near Calais; Vlissingen Aerodrome; Antwerp; Ter Neuzen; Flushing; St Inglevert Aerodrome; Knickerbein W/T beam stations; Amsterdam; Ijmuiden; Gravelines; the Nordzee Canal; Caen; Schipol aerodrome; Stavanger; Bergen; Egersund Port; convoys in the Skaggerak area; Herl-Herdla Aerodrome; Lista aerodrome; Kiel; Bremerhaven; Brunsbuttel; Wilhelmshaven; The Hague; Dieppe; Rotterdam; Poix Aerodrome; Ostend; also photograph of shelling damage in Guernica, Spain, 2 Jun 1941; photograph of office showing maps and operations board for 8 Apr 1941; printed map with drawn annotations showing the ranges in nautical miles of medium range, long range, super long range and extra super long range Spitfires from Wick, St Eval and Heston. Loose photographs, 1939-1943, many with captions, showing: aircraft including a Maryland, a Swordfish, a Hawker Fury and a Heyford; Wheeler and colleagues at airfields in Wick, Scotland and St Eual, Cornwall, 1941; Wheeler and aircrew of 236 Squadron, 1943. Also painting of the insignia of 236 Squadron.

Papers relating to Weston's career, 1916- 1945, including manuscript notes by Weston entitled 'Some notes on the discipline of Imperial troops in convoy on HM Transport LLANSTEPHAN CASTLE from Durban to Suez', 1941; notebook containing manuscript 'Standing orders for POWs', 1943; typescript report on the sinking of the EMPRESS OF CANADA, 1943; typescript instructions and duties of Draft Conducting Officers on board troopships [1943]; typescript memorandum by Weston on the co-ordination of Movement Control in South Africa, 1944, with typescript reports on officers attached to Imperial Movement Control, South Africa (IMPCON), 1944; printed material including memorandum on the German attack near Givenchy, Western Front, 1918, with printed map annotated with dispositions of German 4 Ersatz Div during attack north of Cuinchy, France, 9 Apr 1918, scale 1: 10, 000; trench map entitled France. Sheet 57D SE. Edition 3A, scale 1:20,000 (GSGS 2742, 1916), annotated with features near La Boisselle, Pozieres and Courcelette, Battle of the Somme, 1916, Field Service Pocket Book, Orders and intercommunication (HMSO, London, 1939), Rifle Drill illustrated (Gale and Polden, Aldershot, 1940), Restricted War Office booklet 'Standing instructions for Officers Commanding units and drafts ordered overseas', 1943.

Papers relating to his RAF career, 1942-[1953], principally comprising correspondence relating to the development of a submersible target at RAF St Eval, Cornwall, 1942, dated 1948; manuscript notes on the problems of establishing Coastal Command Station, Nassau, Bahamas, as a training centre for Coastal Liberator crews, 1942; official report on the RAF occupation of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, 5-11 May 1945; printed reports on the progress of air disarmament in Germany in 1944-1946, produced by British Air Forces of Occupation, 1945-1947; correspondence relating to his work as Director of Air Branch, Control Commission, Berlin, 1947-1949, and to the planning of the Berlin Airlift, 1948-1949; official report on organisation and structure of Berlin Airlift administration; RAF training course notes and papers, 1950; papers relating to his service as Assistant Chief of Staff, Allied Air Forces Central Europe, [1951-1953], notably including photographs of Waite, [1951-1953]; published RAF manuals, 1948, 1950.

Copies of correspondence relating to his service with the RN in World War Two, 1940-1943, dated 1940-1947, 1984, principally comprising letters to his wife, 1940-1943, mainly letters written during his service as Divisional Sea Transport Officer, Port Said, Egypt, 1943; correspondence concerning coal bunkering abuse by merchants in the Red Sea, 1942-1943; correspondence concerning Veasey's retirement, 1943, dated 1942-1947; catalogue of Veasey's correspondence and brief biography of Veasey, written by his granddaughter Sarah Howard in 1984.

Papers of MRAF Sir John Slessor, 1965-1968, including: correspondence regarding the Defence Review on Naval Airpower with Air Chief Marshal Sir Charles Elworthy; W M Mills, Ministry of Defence; Edward Shackleton, Ministry of Defence; Hawker Siddeley Aviation Ltd; Air Marshal Sir Kenneth Cross, Transport Command; and others, 1965-1968, particularly debating the use of aircraft carriers. Correspondence regarding the Battle of the Atlantic with Vice Admiral Sir Peter Gretton; Capt Stephen Roskill, historian; the Air Historical Branch; the Naval Historical Branch; and others, 1966-67, including statistical analysis of efficacy of RAF and information and statistics from Air History Branch regarding U-Boat destruction, 1955. Correspondence with Capt B H Liddell Hart, 1965; with Rear Admiral Samuel Morison, USNR, 1968; with Professor Arthur Marder, 1966. Articles by Slessor relating to the Defence Review on Naval Airpower, including: 'An Integral part of the Fleet', 1964; 'The Capital Ship Complex', 1965; 'Air Power - Seabourne or Shore-based', 1965; 'Naval Air Power - Is it Worth It?', 1965; 'The Story of Jutland: Some reflections on Vol. 3 of "From the Dreadnought to Scapa Flow" - Arthur J Marder', 1966; 'Air Power and the Defence Review', 1966; 'Air Power East of Suez', 1966; 'The Purchase of the F111', 1966; 'Meeting Today's Defence Needs: Virtues of Shore-Based Planes', letter to The Times , 1968; and 'The Air League's Memorandum on Defence - January 1967', 1967. Also articles by others including: 'The case for the Aircraft Carrier' by Fletcher Pratt, and response 'The Case for Land-Based Air Power' by Francis V Drake, The Reader's Digest , 1949; German, Italian and Japanese U-Boat Casualties during the War: Particulars of Destruction , (HMSO, 1946); A memorandum on Defence , The Air League, 1967; and 'Merchant Aircraft Carriers' by Kenneth Poolman, Air Pictorial , Oct 1968.

Fifty editions of Tee Emm, the Department of the Air Member for Training, Air Ministry, training memoranda monthly magazine, Apr 1941-Mar 1946. In addition to containing RAF training procedures and memoranda relating to RAF administration, navigation techniques, airmanship, crew co-operation requirements, gunnery, and aerial intelligence matters, the magazines included leisure articles and cartoons; fictional accounts of air operations; RAF honours lists; and updates on technological developments in the RAF

Official illustrated edition of RAF Middle East: The Official Story of Air Operations in the Middle East, from February 1942 to January 1943 (His Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1945); official illustrated edition of Atlantic Bridge: The Official Account of RAF Transport Command's Ocean Ferry (His Majesty's Stationery Office, London, 1945)

List of stations on the Tomsk, Sabaikal, Omsk and Chinese Eastern Lines compiled in connection with British Military Mission in Irkutsk, USSR, 1919, with annotations made by the Commanding Officer of the mission while retreating from the Bolsheviks, 1919-1920. Passed to Percival for use on a planned round-the-world flight.

Typescript unpublished memoir of Squadron Leader Harry 'Wacker' Pain, 1937-1978, including descriptions of: training as an Aircraft Apprentice, RAF Halton, 1937; wireless operator training in Wallace and Wapiti biplanes; airborne wireless operator training, RAF Driffield, 1939; working for Special Duties Flight, Coastal Command, as a gunner in long range Sunderland flying boats, 1939-1942, including survivor searches after submarine attacks, escorting convoys, account of destruction of flying boats Cabot and Caribou, Bodo, Norway, Apr 1940, training messenger pigeons, serious injury in crash and subsequent reposting as Signals Instructor, 1942, and retraining as an Air Traffic Control Officer, 1943. Also anecdotes from various postings including Nutts Corner, Northern Ireland, 1944-1946; opening a new Area Control Centre in Gibraltar, 1946; RAF Mingaladon, Burma, 1947, and RAF Negombo, Ceylon, 1948; Area Control Centre, RAF Watnall, UK, 1949; RAF Gutersloh, Germany, 1954-1957; Air Traffic Controller at RAF Coningsby, 1957-1959; assisting with the introduction of radar guided systems and the formation of Border Radar in RAF Bishops Court, County Down, Northern Ireland, 1959-1962 and RAF Boulmer, Alnwick, 1962-1964; RAF Paya Lebar, Singapore, 1964-1967; as controller, Northern Radar, RAF Lindholme, 1967-1970; RAF Patrington, Withernsea, 1970-1971; Senior Operations Officer, Border Radar, RAF Boulmer, 1971-1973.

Photocopies of papers relating to his internment as a POW by the Japanese, 1943, comprising account of the treatment of H Force during their work on the Burma-Thailand railway, 1943, written [for the Malayan Government] in 1945; notebook containing financial accounts and a register of deaths for 5 Bn, H Force, 1943; account of the experiences of 1 Subsection, H Force, Sep-Nov 1943, written in 1943.

Just a Bit of Time , memoir of the life and service of Captain Michael Hugh Hutton, 1931-1985; including descriptions of training at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, 1938; service as midshipman aboard HMS JAMAICA and HMS ROCKET, 1942-1943; the Battle of Barents Sea, Dec 1942; involvement in Operation TUNNEL for the interception of German shipping in the English Channel which resulted in the loss of HMS CHARYBDIS and HMS LIMBOURNE, Oct 1943; the bombardment of the Normandy coast by HMS WARSPITE, D Day, 6 Jun 1944; training to become a pilot, 1945-1948; work as personal pilot to Vice Admiral Sir John Eccles, 1954-1956; service aboard HMS BULWARK, Singapore, 1963-1965. With photocopied photographs of Hutton as Captain, HMS JAMAICA, HMS ROCKET, HMS WARSPITE, HMS OCEAN, a Firefly aircraft approaching a landing deck and HMS HARDY.

Papers relating to his military career, 1922-1946, dated 1930, 1936 and [1946] principally comprising typescript log of railway survey work carried out by Herbert, Lt Charles Granville Barry Greaves and Capt Donald Maitland James Murray, Tanganyika, 1930, written by [Murray] in [1930]; The Royal Engineers Journal vol 50 Sep 1936, including 'Railway Survey in Tanganyika Territory' by Herbert; official 501 Inter-Service Mission 'Transportation report on the proposal for a base in East Africa', written by Herbert in 1946; copies of letters of appreciation concerning rehabilitation of Burma railway system carried out by Transportation Service, 1945; copy of Herbert's curriculum vitae, 1922-1946, written in 1946.

Typescript copy of the memoirs of Harry Gooding Field entitled 'Adventures in Finance', 21 Oct 1942, detailing his accountancy career working in Canada, the United States, Malaysia and Singapore, with copies of birth, marriage and death certificate and other official documents relating to Harry Gooding Field.

Papers of Maj Gen Stanley Eskell, 1942, comprising papers relating to the composition of war establishments of the Australian Army, Apr 1942, including a summary of ranks, distribution of personnel, allotment of transport, weapons and ammunition, and organisational notes for headquarters units, cavalry, armoured units, artillery, engineers, signals, infantry, supply and transport, medical, ordnance and provost companies.

Photograph album containing photographs on board the HMS CALYPSO and HMS PEMBROKE I, including crew attending a sporting event, 1925; aeroplane wreckage and the forced landing of an air liner, Corfu, 1926; ship football team and officers, 1926; torpedo firing, 1927; and crew dressed as clowns for Navy week, 1928.

Papers, 1953-1977, including draft of article relating to the role of air transport in army supply, published in the Army Journal; Imperial Defence College background study notes, 1966, on international relations, the UK economy, research and development; papers relating to Aden, 1967, including extracts of regimental journals relating to operations of British units in Aden, situation reports of 1 Bn the Lancashire Regt (Prince of Wales's Volunteers), translations of daily communiqués of FLOSY (Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen) and NLF (National Liberation Front), texts of speeches and official briefing papers of Headquarters MELF, notes and drafts for a book by Dunbar on Aden; articles by Dunbar, 1971-1973, relating to operations of 8 Bn (Midland Counties) the Parachute Regt in France, Belgium and Palestine, 1944-1948, and 16 Independent Parachute Bde Group in Cyprus and Suez, 1956.

Papers relating to aviation and transport, dated 1910-1928, principally comprising papers relating to Joint War Air Committee (Inter-Departmental Committee on the Air Service) chaired by Edward George Villiers Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby, 1916, Committee on the Administration and Command of the Royal Flying Corps, 1916, and Air Boards chaired by Weetman Dickinson Pearson, 1st Viscount Cowdray, 1917, and George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Earl Curzon of Kedleston, [1916]; correspondence, 1915-1916, 1920, notably including correspondence with Herbert Henry Asquith, 1916, Curzon, 1916, Derby, 1916, the Imperial Defence Committee, 1916, the Parliamentary Aviation Committee, and George Sydenham Clarke, 1st Baron Sydenham of Combe, 1916; printed books, pamphlets, memoranda, notes and texts by Douglas-Scott-Montagu and others, 1910-1920, mainly relating to aviation technology, anti-aircraft defence and the organisation of the air services; memoranda, official reports, notes and texts relating to his work as Adviser on Mechanical Transport Services to the Government of India, 1915-1919; manuscript account of service of No 1 Armoured Motor Unit, North West Frontier, India, 1915-1916, by Capt A J Clifton, 68 Durham Light Infantry, 1915-1916, dated 1917, including photographs and preface by Montagu. Other papers relating to his life and career, 1914-1926, dated 1914-[1926], 1948, principally comprising letters relating to his service with 7 Hampshire Regt in Egypt, 1914, and India, 1915; photographs and photographic negatives, 1915-1922, mainly relating to his service in India, 1915-1919. Typescript draft of A strange war. Burma, India and Afghanistan, 1914-1919 (Sutton, Gloucester, 1988), an account of 2/5 Bn, Somerset Light Infantry and 2 Mechanical Transport Company by Chris P Mills, based on the recollections of Col B G L Rendall, the diary of Edward William Ewens and research into the Montagu papers, dated 1987.