Obituaries

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Air Commodore 'Jack' Frost

Air Commodore 'Jack' Frost, who has died aged 89, was a fighter pilot throughout his long career in the RAF and flew Typhoons during the Battle of Normandy, achieving considerable success against enemy tanks and transports.
He joined No 175 Squadron in February 1944 as it was converting to the rocket-firing role. In April the squadron moved to the New Forest and started operations over northern France. In the period leading up to D-Day, Frost flew 12 sorties, attacking vital radar stations that had to be put out of action before the invasion. On June 6 he flew an armed-reconnaissance sortie to attack enemy transports taking reinforcements to the beachhead.

Within 10 days many of the 18 Typhoon squadrons, including No 175, were operating from hastily prepared landing strips in Normandy. Flying in close support of the British and Canadian armies, the Typhoons became the scourge of the German Seventh Army's armoured columns.
On August 7 a major German counter-attack, spearheaded by five Panzer divisions, was identified moving against just two US infantry divisions. The Panzers were threatening to cut off the US Third Army near the town of Mortain.

More than 300 sorties were flown by the squadrons on the "Day of the Typhoon". Frost himself claimed a Tiger tank and a troop carrier, as well as two unidentified "flamers". His aircraft was hit by 20mm flak but he managed to return to his airstrip. The intense effort of the Typhoon squadrons defeated the German counter-attack, which the Chief of Staff of the Seventh German Army reported had come to a standstill due to "employment of fighter-bombers by the enemy and the absence of our own air support".

Frost and his fellow pilots flew a "cab rank" of aircraft, available immediately to be called down over the radio by ground controllers as the Allied armies encircled the enemy at Falaise and the break out from Normandy that followed. Frost carried out many attacks against gun positions, tank and transport concentrations, all in the face of intense anti-aircraft fire. The Typhoon squadrons suffered heavy casualties.

After the rout of the Seventh German Army at Falaise, No 175 Squadron leapfrogged across France in pursuit, attacking the retreating Germans and the V-1 flying bomb sites in the Pas de Calais before arriving in Belgium on September 17. Frost flew in support of the armoured thrust towards Eindhoven and Arnhem and, with a move to an airfield in the Netherlands, attacked trains and river traffic and gave close support to the Army as it headed for the Rhine.
In mid-December, Frost flew his 100th and final operational sortie. He had suffered two engine failures and crash landings, and been hit by anti-aircraft fire on a number of occasions — but had always escaped injury. Eleven of his squadron colleagues had been killed, six were PoWs and a further seven had been wounded or injured. He was awarded a DFC and later invested with the Croix de Guerre and, by the Belgians, with the Order of Leopold II.

The son of a potter, John William Frost was born in Stoke-on-Trent on July 30 1921 and educated at Longton High School, which he left at 16. He joined the earthenware and bone china manufacturers Samson Bridgwood as a trainee manager, at the same time attending North Staffordshire Technical College.

In March 1941 he volunteered for the RAF as a pilot and trained in the United States. He was commissioned and retained as a basic flying instructor at Gunter Field, Montgomery, in Alabama, before returning to Britain in the spring of 1943.

Immediately after the war Frost flew Typhoons and its successor, the Tempest, based in Schleswig-Holstein before moving to Kastrup in Denmark. He later commanded No 26 Squadron at Gutersloh in Germany in the fighter ground-attack role.

In 1948 he was appointed RAF Liaison Officer to HQ BETFOR, responsible for air advice and control of air support for the British Army Brigade, based in the Free Territory of Trieste. During this sensitive period, Marshal Tito of Yugoslavia was causing some difficulties and Frost led a four-aircraft dummy attack on his headquarters as a reminder of the RAF's continued, and potent, presence in the area. It was at a dance in Trieste that Frost met his future wife, who had served as a radio operator in the WAAF.

In May 1949 he returned to Britain to command No 222 (Natal) Squadron, equipped with Meteor day fighters, as air defences were rebuilt with the emergence of the Soviet threat.

Frost served in Malaya at the Air Headquarters during the communist insurrection, when he was involved with planning the development of airfields and air defence radar. After service in Hong Kong he returned to flying duties when he took command of No 151 Squadron, flying the delta-wing Javelin night fighter from Leuchars in Scotland.

In September 1964, Frost was appointed to command RAF El Adem in Libya, a staging post and weapons training base. This was always recognised as a potentially difficult appointment requiring tact and diplomacy but Frost was particularly successful at an increasingly sensitive time politically. He had many dealings with General Frost (of Arnhem fame) and they had a regular correspondence. To avoid confusion for their staffs they agreed to be referred to as 'Air' Frost and 'Ground' Frost. For his services at El Adem he was appointed CBE.

After a series of senior appointments in the MOD, Frost was posted in August 1970 to the Joint Warfare Establishment. After a four-year appointment as Deputy and Chief of Staff to the UK Military Representative to Nato Headquarters in Brussels, he retired from the RAF in October 1976.

In November 1977 he became a civil servant and was appointed to the MoD as Head of Protocol .

After retiring in 1983 he remained very active in Berkshire. For 16 years he was chairman of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme in the county and he served as vice-president of the Burghfield branch of the Royal British Legion. In 1986 he was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Berkshire.

Frost always remembered his many colleagues who lost their lives during the Normandy campaign, and gave strong support to the creation and maintenance of a memorial established at Noyers Bocage, near Caen, in honour of the 151 Typhoon pilots who were killed in the liberation of Normandy.

Jack Frost died on August 7. He married, in 1950, Shelagh Baldock, who survives him with their son and two daughters.

source: The Telegraph.
 


A few words more about Ludwik:

Flight Lieutenant Ludwik Martel: Battle of Britain pilot | Times Online Obituary
 
Flight Lieutenant Denis Cayford

Flight Lieutenant Denis Cayford, who has died aged 92, was a specialist navigator in the Pathfinder Force during the Second World War; shot down and captured, he took part in the Great Escape and was near the exit of the tunnel when it was discovered.
Cayford, a veteran of the earliest bombing campaigns, joined the Stirling-equipped No 7 Squadron in January 1943 and was immediately selected as one of the first navigators to be trained on the new H2S radar navigation and bombing aid. The radar "painted" a picture of the ground below the aircraft, highlighting towns, coastlines and major inland water features. By using offsets from a prominent feature, it was possible to mark and bomb the target.

In the early months of 1943 Cayford and his crew attacked industrial targets in the Ruhr. Acting as one of the "marker" crews, they dropped flares and coloured indicators over the targets as aiming points for the bomber stream that followed. Cayford flew on the major raids that devastated Hamburg in late July 1943, when the H2S was particularly effective. The experience of the smell of burning at 17,000ft left a deep impression on him.

Cayford's expertise was recognised by the award of the DFC, his commanding officer commenting: "He is one of the squadron's most experienced and capable navigators; such men are the backbone of the squadron."

On the night of August 17/18 1943, Cayford and his crew were ordered on a "shift" attack of the Peenemunde rocket research establishment on the Baltic. Flying a Lancaster, their task was to check the earlier marking and "shift" the aiming point, if necessary, by dropping new markers. When the Lancaster arrived at the target Cayford, using his H2S radar, was convinced that earlier markers were too far south. After an altercation with his bomb-aimer, Cayford's view prevailed and the red markers were placed precisely over two production buildings, allowing the Master Bomber to give new instructions to the following bombers.

With his flight commander, Squadron Leader Charles Lofthouse, Cayford took off on the night of August 23/24 to mark Berlin. On board as the second pilot was their group captain. As they approached the target, searchlights coned the Lancaster and a night fighter attacked and set an engine on fire. Cayford offered to climb on to the wing to extinguish the fire but Lofthouse realised he had no chance and refused. The fire spread and the crew started to bail out.

All had left before Cayford returned to his compartment to retrieve a gold signet ring from his girlfriend, which he always took off when flying. He landed on the roof of a church and was soon captured and transferred to Stalag Luft III.

Berkeley Denis Cayford was born in Wolverhampton on March 16 1918 and educated at Tettenhall College. He was a county swimmer and travelled with the British swimming team to the Berlin Olympics in 1936. He took up articles with a local solicitor before joining the RAF at the beginning of 1939.

He trained as an air observer and by the end of 1939 joined No 77 Squadron, equipped with Whitley bombers.

Cayford was soon involved in searching for German shipping and dropping leaflets over Germany. On one occasion he flew to Warsaw to drop leaflets, a round trip of 10 hours in his old, unheated bomber. His pilot was Sergeant Hamish Mahaddie, who later went on to be a Pathfinder leader and who would recruit Cayford to the force two years later.

After flying 30 operations, Cayford left for Canada to take a specialist navigation course, before becoming an instructor at a bomber training unit in Scotland.

On the night of November 17 1941 he was supervising a night navigation exercise in an Anson. The aircraft became badly iced up and lost power and the crew was forced to ditch in the Moray Firth. Cayford was injured and had to endure a very difficult and long night in freezing conditions in his dinghy before rescue arrived. A few months later, his bomber caught fire after a flare exploded and he was forced to bail out. In the space of a few weeks he had become eligible for membership of the Goldfish and Caterpillar Clubs.

Soon after arriving in Stalag Luft III, Cayford joined the team of "penguins". In sacks suspended inside their trouser legs, they carried and dispersed the sand excavated from the three tunnels being dug for the Great Escape. He was allocated a place as an escaper and planned to travel across Germany to Bulgaria.

On the night of March 24/25 1944 the escape started. Cayford was well down the tunnel when a German guard discovered the exit after 76 men had escaped. Three managed to return to Britain, but 50 were executed on Hitler's orders.

Cayford and his fellow prisoners were forced to march westwards in the bitter weather of January 1945, and he was finally liberated in May. After recovering he was seconded to BOAC and spent almost two years navigating flying boats on the Far East service.

Cayford left the RAF in May 1947 and remained with BOAC in ground appointments. He served in Shanghai and in Hong Kong before moving to Karachi. He became the manager of BOAC's southern routes between Pakistan and the Bahamas before becoming the general manager of Bahamas Airways. He retired in 1969 to establish his own aviation consultancy business. His clients included the Saudi Royal Family and the construction company Paulings, when they were involved in constructing airfields in Oman.

A low handicap golfer, he was captain of the Aero Golfing Society in 1983. He enjoyed his garden and retained a keen interest in flying and classic cars.

Denis Cayford died on August 30. He married Christabel Robson, a WAAF officer, in 1947. She died in 1996. He is survived by their two sons and by his partner, Gill Forrester.

source: The Telegraph
 
Wing Commander 'Butch' Barton

Wing Commander 'Butch' Barton, who has died aged 94, became a fighter ace during the Battle of Britain and went on to lead his squadron with distinction during the fierce air battles over Malta.
Barton was flight commander of the Hurricane-equipped No 249 Squadron based in Yorkshire when it was transferred to Boscombe Down on August 14 1940; the aim was to reinforce the hard-pressed fighter squadrons in the south. He was immediately in action, and the following day shot down a Messerschmitt Bf 110 fighter and damaged a second.

On August 16, Barton's deputy, Flight Lieutenant JB Nicolson, was attacked and his Hurricane caught fire. Despite suffering burns, Nicholson immediately attacked another German fighter before baling out. He was later awarded a Victoria Cross, the only pilot in Fighter Command to receive the supreme award for valour.

Over the next three weeks, Barton's successes mounted. On September 3, now flying from North Weald in Essex, his Hurricane was hit by return fire from a Dornier bomber and he was forced to bale out. On his return to the squadron later in the day he was ribbed by his colleagues for allowing himself to be shot down by a bomber.

When his CO was wounded, Barton led the squadron into battle during the most hectic phase of the Luftwaffe's onslaught, sometimes flying four times in a single day. On September 15, the day of the greatest air battle, he shot down a Dornier bomber over the Thames Estuary and damaged a second.

By the end of the Battle of Britain on October 31, Barton had accounted for two more enemy fighters and damaged two others. He was awarded a DFC for his "outstanding leadership".

The son of a Canadian civil engineer and a Scottish mother, Robert Alexander Barton was born on June 7 1916 at Kamloops, British Columbia. He was educated in Vernon, requiring a weekly journey by steamship to and from his home at Penticton. When he was 19 he went to a recruiting office in Vancouver and was accepted into the RAF. He travelled to England to take up a short service commission in January 1936.

After training as a pilot he joined No 41 Squadron, flying biplane fighters. Following the outbreak of war he joined the newly-formed No 249 Squadron, whose CO was Squadron Leader John Grandy, later Chief of the Air Staff and a Marshal of the RAF.

In December 1940 Barton was promoted to take command of 249 Squadron, and he destroyed two more enemy fighters. In 1941 his squadron was ordered to prepare for service in Malta, and on May 19 its Hurricanes were transferred to Ark Royal in Gibraltar.

Barton opened his account in Malta on June 3, when he shot down an Italian bomber, the squadron's first victory over the island. Five days later he destroyed another bomber, this time at night. At first light, he returned to the scene to search for the Italian crew. Two men were found and rescued.

Under Barton's leadership, 249 Squadron was one of the most successful fighter squadrons on the island. But on July 31 he was lucky to survive when the engine of his Hurricane failed as he took off and he crashed through some sturdy Maltese walls. His injuries included second-degree burns, and he was kept in hospital for several weeks. Yet by September he was back leading the squadron, and was soon involved in a fierce battle with Italian fighters, during which he was credited with shooting down one and damaging another. On November 22 he achieved his final victory when he shot down a Macchi MC202 fighter near Gozo.

After two years' continuous and intense fighting, in December he was rested and returned to England. His deputy, Tom Neil (himself a Battle of Britain ace), wrote: "I was very conscious of the squadron's debt to him. Small and slight in stature, in no way a heroic figure and unassuming almost to a fault, he was a wonderful leader and one of the best fighter pilots it would be my good fortune to meet." The citation for the Bar to Barton's DFC concluded that "his excellent leadership inspires the pilots under his command".

Following a spell as chief instructor at a fighter training unit, Barton took command of the fighter airfield at Skaebrae in Orkney. He later commanded North Weald and served at HQ Fighter Command, where he was responsible for tactics. He was mentioned in despatches and in June 1945 was appointed OBE.

In August 1945 he was posted to India, and then for two years helped in the creation of the Pakistan Air Force following Partition.

Barton served on a number of fighter stations and commanded RAF Acklington in Northumberland. His final appointment was on the operations staff at the Air Ministry, and he retired in February 1959. During his career he had always tried to maintain the highest standards of chivalry, once severely reprimanding an inexperienced colleague who had finished off a damaged German aircraft, killing the pilot as he was attempting to crash land over England.

On his return to Canada he lived a quiet life. Much of his time was devoted to caring for his wife, who for a long time was in poor health, and every year they wintered in Arizona. His great passion was fishing in the rivers and lakes of British Columbia, where he was regarded as one of the region's finest fly fishermen.

"Butch" Barton died on September 2. His ashes were scattered on his favourite lake in British Columbia on the morning of September 15, Battle of Britain Day.

He married, in 1939, Gwen Cranswick; she died in 1988, and he is survived by their son.

source: The Telegraph
 
Steve Butte of 403 Sqn RCAF passed away 11/11/10 in Western Australia\
here is a summary of hem from
Steve Butte
Canadian Fliers Down 36 German Aircraft in Luftwaffe Attack
London, Jan. 1, 1945 - (CP) - Canadian fighter pilots, in one of their greatest triumphs during the war, destroyed at least 36 of 84 Germans shot down today by the RAF 2nd Tactical Air Force.
The big Canadian score was rolled up as the German Air Force came out in its greatest show of strength for three years in an attempt to smash up Allied airfields in Belgium, Holland and France.

Five Planes Missing
Canadian fighter squadrons accounted for 35 enemy aircraft and the 36th was destroyed by a Canadian in an RAF Tempest Squadron Five. RCAF planes are missing.
Although the Huns' low-level strafings included RCAF airfields and caused some damage, the operational program of the squadrons was not interrupted and approximately 300 sorties were flown. Some enemy planes were destroyed white the airfields were under attack and others when the enemy fled for home.
The pilot of one RCAF reconnaissance squadron, whose name was not immediately disclosed, destroyed two ME190s and damaged two FW190s as he returned to base.
Spitfire fighter-bombers also were active and destroyed or damaged several locomotives and freight cars in the German supply area around St. Vith in Belgium south of Malmedy.
The Canadian Wolf Squadron alone knocked down five out of a formation of 60 enemy craft which strafed the squadron's airfield in the Brussels area. Two others probably were destroyed and another damaged in a low-level action that developed into the hottest dogfight for Canadian fighters in months.

Bags 2 Focke-Wolfs
Four RCAF Typhoons returning from a reconnaissance flight met enemy fighters and destroyed three and probably destroyed a fourth. Two were destroyed by FO. A. H. Fraser of Westmount, Que., and the other by FO. H. Laurence of Edson, Alta. All were FW190s.
A Canadian Tempest pilot, Flt. Lt. J. W. Garland of Richmond, Ont., jumped two Focke Wulfs just 50 feet from the ground. He dived from 9,000 feet and destroyed both.
In the Wolf Squadron dogfight, PO. Steve Butte of Michel, B.C., and Mac Reeves of Madoc, Ont., each downed two planes and Butte also claimed one damaged. FIt. Sgt. Keith Lindsay destroyed one and also had a "probable."
These were the first scores for Butte and Lindsay.
Butte and Lindsay found themselves in a swirling mass of Huns as they took off on a morning patrol. Butte sent an ME-109 down in flames with cannon fire.
Next victim was an FW-190. "There were strikes on his wing and engine, and I saw him crash on the edge of a near by town," Butte said.

Out of Ammunition
Then he hit an ME-109, seeing strikes and smoke, but losing sight of the enemy plane as it dived steeply toward the ground.
"By this time all my ammunition was gone and a Hun got on my tail," Butte continued, "I managed to get on his tail, but couldn't do anything about it."
Lindsay shot one plane down in flames and registered a cannon hit on another, but couldn't determine whether it crashed.
Reeves and his namesake, Flt. Lt. Dick Reeves of 1507 Mt. Pleasant Rd., Toronto, who is no relation, plunged into a flock of enemy planes while returning from patrol. Dick Reeves had to land immediately because of a faulty motor, but Mac, his guns belching, closed on the plane which caught fire and crashed. He attacked the second victim from underneath and the pilot baled out.
It was announced tonight that the Canadian Mosquito Squadron on the Continent during Sunday night destroyed two Junkers planes while on defensive patrol.

_________________________________________________

Born in Waugh, Alberta, 7 November 1923
Enlisted in Calgary, 9 January 1942.
Trained at No.5 ITS (graduated 20 June 1942),
No.13 EFTS (graduated 10 October 1942) and
No.1 SFTS (graduated 5 March 1943; wings that day).
Arrived in UK, 4 April 1943 and
underwent further training at No.17 (P) AFU
(posted there 27 May 1943) and
No.53 OTU (posted there 13 July to 31 December 1943).
Station Grangemouth, 31 December 1943 to 12 May 1944
Station Redhill, 12 May 1944.
With No.403 Squadron, 10 June 1944 to 18 March 1945.
Repatriated to Canada 3 December 1945;
released 17 January 1946.
Award presented at Sea Island, 22 October 1949.


_________________________________________________

Canadian Fighter Pilots Get Biggest Bag of Huns
London, Jan. 2, 1945 - (CP) - Canadian fighter pilots accounted for at least half of the 94 German planes destroyed by the RAF's 2nd Tactical Air Force New Year's Day when the Luftwaffe made an attempt to cripple west front airfield operations.
A compilation tonight, based on the latest reports received from the Continent, showed that RCAF fighters in their biggest day of the war destroyed at least 36 enemy aircraft and half-a-dozen others fel1 to Canadian sharpshooters in RAF Squadrons.
The top scoring wing in the 2nd Tactical Air Force during the day of close to 100 "kills" was the Canadian Spitfire unit which brought down 24 German machines, probably destroyed another three and damaged seven. An untold number of probables and damaged planes was claimed by other Canadians.
The wing's scorers included two airmen who downed three planes apiece, both from the Ram Squadron. FO G. D. Cameron of Toronto destroyed a trio of ME-109s while Flt. Lt. John Mackay of Cloverdale, B.C. destroyed two ME-109s and an FW-190. Mackay got the last two without using his guns because they dived into the ground when he chased them.
Flt. Lt. D. Pieri of Toronto and Elmhurst, Ill., destroyed two ME-190s and probably destroyed two others.
Flt. Lt. Dick Audet of Lethbridge, Alta., who last Friday shot down five enemy planes in little more than five minutes, brought his total to seven with two FW-190s bagged as they roared low over his field. Friday's quintet were the first aircraft the 22 year-old Lethbridge airman had downed.
Others from the Canadian wing, who helped to set up the day's record - the previous top mark for the Canadians in a single day was 22 planes - included Sqdn, Ldr. Dean Dover, DFC, and Bar, of Toronto, who destroyed an ME-109 and shared another with FO. Dean Kelly of Peterborough, Ont. and Flt. Lt Donald Gordon of Vancouver with two ME-109's.
Double scorers included Flt. Lt. J. W. Garland. Richmond, Ont., PO. Steve Butte, Michel. B.C.; PO. Mac Reeves, Madoc, Ont.; and FO. A. H. Fraser, Westmount, Que.
Single scorers included Flt. Lt. W Banks, Toronto; Flt. Lt. B. MacPherson, St. Thomas, Ont.; Flt Lt. Basil Doak, Cowansville, Que.; FO. Vic Smith, Toronto; FO. J. C. Lee, Ottawa; PO. D. M. Horsburgh, Carnduff, Sask.; Flt. Lt. N. Keen, White Lake. B.C.; FO. H. Laurence, Edson. Alta.; and Flt. Sgt. Keith Lindsay. 10764 95th St. Edmonton. Lindsay also claimed one probable.
_________________________________________________

BUTTE, P/O Steve (J85829) - Distinguished Flying Cross - No.403 Squadron
Award effective 6 March 1945 as per London Gazette of that date and
AFRO 625/45 dated 13 April 1945.

One morning early in January 1945, Pilot Officer Butte was detailed to fly the leading aircraft of a section on a sortie over the battle zone. Just as the formation became airborne a large force of enemy fighters attacked the airfield. Pilot Officer Butte immediately engaged one of the enemy aircraft, shooting it down. A second and yet a third attacker fell to his guns before his ammunition was expended. He was himself then attacked by two fighters but outmaneouvred them. In this engagement against a vastly superior number of enemy aircraft Pilot Officer Butte displayed great skill, bravery and tenacity.

_________________________________________________

1 Jan 1945
-
two Me109s
one FW190
Operation Bodenplatte

Steve also assisted Andy MacKenzie on 3 of his kills
and help with an Me262 on Christmas day 1944

and in his own words
http://rcafspitfirepilot.tripod.com/
_________________________________________________
 
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