Raymond Brownell
Raymond James Brownell | |
---|---|
Air Commodore | |
Commands held | No. 11 Group (1945–46) Western Area (1943–45) No. 1 Training Group (1941–42) RAF Sembawang (1940–41) RAAF Base Pearce (1938–40) No. 23 (City of Perth) Squadron (1938–40) No. 1 Squadron (1926–28) |
Battles/wars | First World War
Second World War |
Awards |
Commissioned in the RAAF in 1921, Brownell had risen to the rank of
Early life
Brownell was born in the Hobart suburb of
First World War
Australian Imperial Force
On 12 September 1914, Brownell transferred to the Australian Imperial Force for service during the First World War.
During July 1915, Brownell was shipped to Gallipoli and rejoined the 9th Battery.[1] Promoted to bombardier on 12 November,[2] he was in one of the final Australian waves to be evacuated from the peninsula in December during the Allied withdrawal.[1] Returning to Egypt, he was advanced to provisional sergeant on 24 February 1916. Embarking with his unit from Alexandria, Brownell arrived in France for service on the Western Front on 29 March, following a six-day voyage.[2]
On 21–22 July 1916, Brownell was in action with his battery at
Royal Flying Corps
In October 1916, Brownell applied for a transfer to the Royal Flying Corps. One of 5,000 applicants, Brownell was accepted on 1 January 1917 along with a further 200 Australians.[2][8] Posted for pilot training, he proceeding to England and was posted to No. 3 School of Military Aeronautics at Exeter College, Oxford, from 26 January.[2] On graduating from the course, Brownell was discharged from the Australian Imperial Force on 16 March and commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Royal Flying Corps the following day.[4][9]
Allotted to No. 45 Squadron RFC flying Sopwith Camels, Brownell moved to France for operational service over the Western Front during September 1917.[1][10] On 10 September, he took part in his first patrol, during which he shot down a two-seater German aircraft.[8] In his time flying over the Western Front, Brownell accumulated a total of five victories and achieved 'ace' status before his squadron was transferred to Italy in December.[10] Later that month, Brownell and his observer, Lieutenant Henry Moody, shot down German ace Alwin Thurm over Asolo.[8]
Appointed a flight commander in No. 45 Squadron, Brownell was promoted to temporary
War Office, 16th August, 1918.
With reference to the awards conferred as announced in the London Gazette dated 4th March, 1918, the following are the statements of service for which the decorations were conferred:—
Awarded the Military Cross.
2nd Lt. Raymond James Brownell, M.M., R.F.C., Spec. Res.
For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. Within the last three months he has brought down six enemy aeroplanes, four of which were seen to come down in flames, the other two falling completely out of control. The dash, gallantry and offensive spirit displayed on all occasions by this officer are worthy of the highest praise.
In April 1918, Brownell was granted compassionate leave to visit his seriously ill mother. Leaving No. 45 Squadron, he travelled to Tasmania. At the end of his leave in September, he commenced his return journey to the United Kingdom. During the voyage, he became grievously ill with pneumonic influenza. On arrival, Brownell accepted a commission in the newly formed Royal Air Force (RAF). Brownell's mother again suffered a deterioration in health,[1] so he sought to resign from the RAF and was placed on the unemployed list on 14 August 1919.[16] Embarking for Tasmania, he arrived during September.[1]
Inter-war years
On his return to Australia, Brownell was employed as a sub-accountant for a firm of merchants in
During 1934, Brownell was posted to England for exchange service with the RAF. Made second-in-command of No. 3 Flying Training School at
Second World War
On the outbreak of the Second World War, more units were placed under Brownell's purview at RAAF Base Pearce and he was consequently promoted to temporary group captain in December 1939.[1] With the introduction of Lockheed Hudson aircraft to the RAAF in February 1940, several units were re-equipped, including No. 14 Squadron at RAAF Base Pearce. The Hudsons replaced the squadron's Avro Ansons, which were to be ferried back to the eastern coast of Australia to be used as training aircraft. On one occasion, Brownell took part in ferrying an Anson to RAAF Point Cook with No. 14 Squadron pilot Charles Learmonth. Arriving with the aircraft, the pair piloted a de Havilland Moth Minor—a two-seated, open-cockpit, monoplane—back to Pearce. The return journey took Brownell and Learmonth seven days to complete, and involved a total of twenty-one refuelling stops along the way.[19]
In August 1940, Brownell was ordered to Singapore to establish and command an RAAF station on the island, as well as administer the RAAF squadrons located in Malaya.[1][20] Embarking aboard the SS Strathallan in mid-August, Brownell and his staff formed the RAAF station within two weeks of arrival at Sembawang. Under the control of RAF Far East Command, the station was established as RAF Sembawang.[20] During this time, Brownell frequently visited the Malaya peninsula.[1]
Promoted to acting air commodore, Brownell returned to Australia in August 1941 and was appointed Air Officer Commanding
Relinquishing command of Western Area in July 1945, Brownell was appointed commander of the recently formed
Later life
Returning to Western Australia after the war,[1] Brownell attended an investiture ceremony at Government House, Perth, on 3 January 1947, where he was presented with his CBE by the Lieutenant-Governor of Western Australia.[25] On 24 March that year, Brownell retired from the RAAF on medical grounds.[1] He had in any case been slated for early retirement, along with other senior officers and veterans of the First World War, to make way for the advancement of younger and equally capable officers.[26]
Following his retirement from the Air Force, Brownell was made a partner of S. G. Brearley & Co., a stockbroking firm located in Perth. In 1951, he became chairman of the associated sporting committee of the National Fitness Council of Western Australia; he served in this role until 1967. Aged 79, Brownell died at Subiaco, Western Australia, on 12 April 1974 and was accorded a funeral with full Air Force honours. Brownell's autobiography, From Khaki to Blue, was posthumously published by the Military Historical Society of Australia in 1978.[1][27]
Notes
- ^ ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ a b c d e "Brownell, Raymond James : SERN 2058". Records Search. National Archives of Australia. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ a b "Raymond James Brownell" (PDF). First World War Embarkation Roll. Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ a b "Raymond James Brownell". AIF Project. Australian Defence Force Academy. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ ISBN 9780195517842. Retrieved 22 April 2009.
- ^ a b "Recommendation for Raymond James Brownell to be awarded a Military Medal" (PDF). Recommendations: First World War. Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ "No. 29827". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 November 1916. p. 11144.
- ^ a b c d e f "No 25 (City of Perth) Squadron". Units. Royal Australian Air Force. Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ "No. 30014". The London Gazette (Supplement). 11 April 1917. p. 3467.
- ^ a b c Franks 2003, p. 83
- ^ "No. 30582". The London Gazette (Supplement). 18 March 1918. p. 3399.
- ^ Page 2008, p. 378
- ^ a b Newton 1996, p. 24
- ^ a b "No. 30845". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 August 1918. p. 9563.
- ^ "No. 30555". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 March 1918. p. 2728.
- ^ "No. 31522". The London Gazette. 26 August 1919. p. 10760.
- The Argus. 23 April 1920. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
- ^ "Brownell, Raymond James". World War II Nominal Roll. Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ Page 2008, pp. 79–80
- ^ a b Gillison 1962, p. 142
- ^ Odgers 1968, p. 136
- ^ "No. 36866". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 January 1945. p. 18.
- ^ Odgers 1968, p. 478
- ^ Helson 2006, pp. 220–221
- ^ "Recommendation for Raymond James Brownell to be awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire" (PDF). Index to Recommendations: Second World War. Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- ^ Helson 2006, p. 234
- ^ Newton 1996, p. 25
References
- Franks, Norman (2003). Sopwith Camel Aces of World War 1. Osprey Aircraft of the Aces. Oxford, England: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-534-1.
- Gillison, Douglas (1962). Royal Australian Air Force, 1939–1942. Australia in the War of 1939–1945. Canberra, Australia: Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- Helson, Peter (2006). Ten Years at the Top (PhD thesis). Sydney: OCLC 225531223.
- Odgers, George (1968). Air War Against Japan, 1943–1945. Australia in the War of 1939–1945. Canberra, Australia: Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
- Newton, Dennis (1996). Australian Air Aces: Australian Fighter Pilots in Combat. Fyshwyck, Australian Capital Territory: Aerospace Publications. ISBN 1-875671-25-0.
- Page, Charles (2008). Wings of Destiny: Wing Commander Charles Learmonth DFC and Bar, and the Air War in New Guinea. Dural Delivery Centre, New South Wales, Australia: Rosenberg Publishing. ISBN 978-1-877058-64-6.
Further reading
- Brownell, Air Commodore Raymond J. (1978). From Khaki to Blue. Australia: Military Historical Society of Australia. ISBN 0-909859-18-3.