Who is the most iconic RAF figure of World War Two?

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I've just read about Sailor Malan at Wikipedia.
Alone for his fight against racism in South Africa he should be remembered well by humanity.
 
tomo pauk said:
Dowding IS the most iconic RAF figure of WW2 in my eyes
Click to expand...
Walk down a high street in the UK
any high street. Select a representative cross-section of people and ask them, "Do you know who Douglas Bader was?" I'm reasonably confident that they will.

To avoid infecting your poll by association, select another, equally representative cross-section and ask "Do you know who Hugh Dowding was?" I'm reasonably confident that a fair few of them won't.

Bader was iconic, Dowding was influential.

Bader caught the public imagination as the legless hero of the air at a time when the British public needed heroes. Dowding sat quietly in Whitehall and orchestrated the architectural changes necessary to retain the RAF as a viable fighting force. Their characters, those of great strength, were what they shared, their personalities however, were utterly different.
 
I'm sure that more people in UK know about Bader then about Dowding.
But how many? Judging by our "Hitler - football coach" thread, it's very unlikely that someone born 30, 40 or 50 years after the battle would know who those two were.
No offense here - the people under 40-50 ages barely know (or are barely interested in) the history. What ever country we talk about


Now, since my walk on UK high streets remain just my wish, and Dowding was the only character I remember from the "Battle of Britain" movie*, I'll stick with Hugh.


*not only because of that, of course
 
tomo pauk said:
Judging by our "Hitler - football coach" thread, it's very unlikely that someone born 30, 40 or 50 years after the battle would know who those two were
Click to expand...
Well
if you've been conscientious enough to select a representative cross-section, they won't all be schoolchildren
 
I think Colin1 that you are correct. I however will still vote for Dowding. That right is what they were both fighting for.
Steve
 
Many thanks for your votes in our poll to find the most iconic RAF figure of World War Two. At the moment Air Chief Marshal Dowding leads the pack, with Bader, Harris and Gibson following on close behind.

This poll has led to some great discussion about what constitutes an iconic figure, and plenty of debate about the merits of certain candidates, so we have decided to leave the poll open until the end of the year.

Please do cast your vote if you haven't already, we would love to hear your views.


90 faces of the RAF Benevolent Fund
 
This is a hard question. I think Dowding was the most important defensive air commander in the RAF, but if he had been asked to undertake offensive operations I doubt he would have done as well.

In my opinion, the best offensive air commander in the RAF was another New Zealander, Arthur Coningham.

Harris was a mixed bag. His 1000 bomber raids were strokes of brilliance, saving the RAF at a time it felt it was on the verge of defeat. His raids against Hamburg and the Ruhr were devastating....but his decision to press on to Berlin smacked of meglomania and poor judgement

Best is not necessarily iconic, but for me theyr are the same....not all that interested in image and PR
 
Thanks to all who have cast their votes on the most iconic RAF figure of World War Two. The online poll has been very popular so we are keeping it open until the end of January.

So there's still time to give your opinion – every vote counts!

90 faces of the RAF Benevolent Fund

At the moment Air Chief Marshal Dowding leads the pack, with Bader, Harris and Gibson following on close behind.

The game is hosted on the RAF Benevolent Fund's special 90th anniversary microsite, "90 Faces of the RAF Benevolent Fund". The microsite is full of stories and anecdotes about the charity, the people we help and our supporters. Please do have a look around the site after placing your vote, and learn more about the RAF's leading welfare charity.
 
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