Alan Eckford
Alan Eckford | |
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Second World War
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Awards | Distinguished Flying Cross |
Alan Francis Eckford
Born in Thame Park, Eckford joined the RAF in late 1938. In the early stages of the Second World War he served with No. 32 Squadron, including a brief period in France in May 1940 following the German invasion of the Low Countries. During the later stages of the fighting there, he flew with No. 242 Squadron as a reinforcement pilot. During the subsequent Battle of Britain, he returned to No. 32 Squadron and was heavily engaged in the fighting over Kent during July and August, achieving several aerial victories. In the final weeks of the aerial fighting over Britain, he flew with No. 253 Squadron. He remained with the unit until late 1941, when he was rested from operational flying. After a period of instructing duties, he returned to active operations in mid-1942, serving with No. 154 Squadron during the Circus offensive, the Dieppe Raid, and in North Africa. He commanded No. 242 Squadron during the final stages of the North African campaign before returning to the United Kingdom. He served in the Air Ministry for the remainder of the war. He died in 1990, aged 71. A photograph taken of Eckford and other pilots of No. 32 Squadron during the Battle of Britain inspired the ‘Spirit of The Few’ Monument at Hawkinge.
Early life
Alan Francis Eckford was born on 6 February 1919 in
Second World War
Following the outbreak of the
In early June Eckford was assigned as a reinforcement pilot for another Hurricane unit, No. 242 Squadron. On 8 June, it was sent to Châteaudun in France to provide cover for the British forces retreating to the Atlantic coast. It was heavily engaged and had suffered heavy casualties. Eckford flew several sorties before the squadron moved to Le Mans. Flying from an airfield there, he shot down a Bf 109 on 14 June in the Seine-Rouen region. Patrolling continued in the area around the western Bay of Biscay until 18 June, at which time No. 242 Squadron was withdrawn to England.[1][6]
Battle of Britain
Now under the command of
Promoted to flying officer in early September,[2] Eckford was transferred to No. 253 Squadron later that month.[8] The squadron operated Hurricanes from Kenley and faced heavy attacks by the Luftwaffe.[9] He destroyed a Messerschmitt Bf 110 heavy fighter over Maidstone on 27 September. Regular patrolling continued into October, including one at night over London, and he shot down a Bf 109 over Kent on the last day of the month.[4][10]
Although the Battle of Britain was largely over by November, Eckford was still heavily engaged in patrols, shooting down a Bf 109 near
No. 253 Squadron was briefly rested at the end of November but was brought back into service in early December, mainly on patrols with many being uneventful.[9][10] Later in the month, Eckford's award of the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) was announced. The citation, published in The London Gazette, read:
This officer has displayed great keenness in his attacks against the enemy both in France and in England. His courage and skill, often in the face of odds, have enabled him to destroy six enemy aircraft.
— The London Gazette, No. 35022, 24 December 1940.[11]
Circus offensive
In early 1941, No. 253 Squadron moved north and, operating from Skeabrae, carried out convoy patrols over the North Sea for the next several months. As well as these patrols, Eckford, now a flight commander, carried out several sorties at night. In November he was taken off operations and posted to No. 55 Operational Training Unit at Usworth in Sunderland.[9][10]
Eckford, now holding the rank of flight lieutenant, returned to operations in May 1942 with No. 64 Squadron. His new unit operated Supermarine Spitfire fighters from Hornchurch on sweeps over France as part of the RAF's Circus offensive. He flew with the squadron for two months and was then transferred to No. 154 Squadron.[12] This unit, another Spitfire squadron, was part of the Hornchurch fighter wing and at the time of Eckford's posting was engaged in sweeps to France and convoy patrols over shipping in the Thames Estuary.[13] It participated in the Dieppe Raid as cover for the landings of 19 August, during which Eckford engaged and damaged two German aircraft, a Dornier Do 217 bomber and a Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighter. On 27 August, while carrying out a search for a pilot downed in the English Channel, he encountered and probably destroyed a Fw 190 5 miles (8.0 km) south of Dover.[4][12]
Subsequent war service
A month after the Dieppe Raid, No. 154 Squadron was transferred to North Africa, becoming operational from
By early 1943, Eckford had recovered from his wounds and returned to operations, which by that time mainly involved patrols over Allied shipping in the area.[13][14] In March, Eckford took command of his former unit, No. 242 Squadron, also based in Algeria and carrying out escort missions for heavy bombers. Once the North African campaign concluded in May, the squadron was moved to Malta to prepare for the forthcoming Allied invasion of Sicily.[6] At this time Eckford was transferred back to the United Kingdom to take up a posting at the Air Ministry. He was promoted to squadron leader on 1 July 1944 but remained at the Air Ministry for the rest of the war.[2][14]
Eckford was discharged from the RAF in February 1946.[14] He is credited with eight or nine enemy aircraft destroyed, two or three probably destroyed, and five damaged. The uncertainty in the number of his aerial victories is due to the Bf 109 that was destroyed on 5 November 1940; in his logbook, this is described as being destroyed while in Fighter Command's 'Combats and Casualties', it is recorded as being probably destroyed.[4]
Later life
Little is known of Eckford's civilian life after his military service but in August 1978, he did meet one of the aircrew of the Do 17 he shot down on The Hardest Day, 38 years previously. He died at Rickinghall, in Suffolk, on 6 December 1990.[15][16]
In September 2002 his medals which, in addition to the DFC, included the
Eckford is remembered in a memorial, the ‘Spirit of The Few’ Monument, unveiled on 29 July 2022 at Hawkinge airfield.[19] He is represented as one of seven bronze sculptures of pilots of No. 32 Squadron, replicating a photograph taken of the men during the Battle of Britain.[19]
Notes
- ^ a b c Ashcroft 2012, p. 105.
- ^ a b c d Wynn 1989, p. 123.
- ^ a b Rawlings 1976, pp. 88–89.
- ^ a b c d e f g Shores & Williams 1994, p. 245.
- ^ Ray 2002, pp. 27–28.
- ^ a b c Rawlings 1976, pp. 342–344.
- ^ Ashcroft 2012, p. 106.
- ^ a b Ashcroft 2012, pp. 106–107.
- ^ a b c Rawlings 1976, pp. 357–358.
- ^ a b c d Ashcroft 2012, pp. 108–109.
- ^ "No. 35022". The London Gazette. 24 December 1940. p. 7213.
- ^ a b Ashcroft 2012, p. 110.
- ^ a b c Rawlings 1976, pp. 294–295.
- ^ a b c d Ashcroft 2012, p. 111.
- ^ "The Airmen's Stories - F/O A F Eckford". Battle of Britain London Monument. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
- ^ Price 1988, p. 174.
- ^ "Lot 1424". Dix Noonan Webb. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
- ^ Ashcroft 2012, pp. xv–xvi.
- ^ a b "'Spirit of The Few' Monument unveiling". RAF News. 3 August 2022. Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
References
- Ashcroft, Michael (2012). Heroes of the Skies: Amazing True Stories of Courage in the Air. London: Headline Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7553-6389-6.
- Price, Alfred (1988) [1979]. Battle of Britain: The Hardest Day, 18 August. London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 0-85368-831-1.
- Rawlings, John (1976). Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and Their Aircraft. London: MacDonald & James. ISBN 0-354-01028-X.
- Ray, John (2002) [1994]. The Battle of Britain: Dowding and the First Victory, 1940. London: Cassell & Co. ISBN 0-304-35677-8.
- Shores, Christopher; Williams, Clive (1994). Aces High: A Tribute to the Most Notable Fighter Pilots of the British and Commonwealth Forces in WWII. London: Grub Street. ISBN 1-898697-00-0.
- Wynn, Kenneth G. (1989). Men of the Battle of Britain. Norwich: Gliddon Books. ISBN 0-947893-15-6.