Fleet Air Arm Archive 1939-1945 - The Men

List of all Fleet Air Arm
Commanding Officers 1939-1945

A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L -
M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W

- X - Y - Z

EW Taylour RN
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr
Honours and Awards DSC (5.1940 Konigsberg) & Bar (5.1941 Mediterranean), MID (5.1940)
Died 13.9.1942
Other information
- air ace with 1 confirmed victory, 6 shared destroyed enemy aircraft, 1 probable, and 1 shared damaged.
- took part in the Norwegian Campaign, 1940
- took part in the attack on the German cruiser Konigsberg, April 1940 (800 sqdn) awarded DSC (802 sqdn
- Mediterranean operations, HMS Ark Royal, 1941 (808 sqdn)
- claimed victory, CR42, then Ju87, 8.5.1941, awarded DSC
- involved in Arctic Convoys, HMS Avenger, 1942 (802 sqdn)
- killed in command 802 sqdn during PQ18 Convoy to Russia, HMS Avenger, 13.9.1942.

See biography in "Aces High"

Commands:

802	April 1942	Sept 1942	killed 13.9.1942 HMS Avenger

R Tebble RNVR
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- CO of the reformed corsair sqdn at Eglington

Commands:

1837	July 1945	Aug 1945	disbanded

AJI Temple-West RN
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- CO of the reformed 826 barracuda sqdn at Lee-on-Solent
- first Wing Leader 9th Naval TBR Wing, 2.1944
- led wing in operations off Norway coast, including strikes on the German Basttleship Tirpitz, in operation Mascot, 17.7.1944.

Commands:

826	Dec 1943	Jan 1944
9th Naval TBR Wing (820, 826 sqdns)	Feb 1944	Aug 1944

AJ Thomson RNVR
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards DSC
Died
Other information
- as part of the Eastern Fleet and later British Pacific Fleet attacked targets in Sumatra, 1.1945, HMS Indefatigable
- took over command of 24th Wing in 11.1944 for operations against the Japanese, HMS Indefatigable.
- Led Wing in attack on Sakishima islands, and Formosa 3-4.1945
- Seniority 11.1951 (Lt Cdr)

Commands:

887	Aug 1944	May 1945
24th Naval Fighter Wing (887, 894 sqdns)	Nov 1944	March 1945

M Thorpe RN
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- CO of the reformed 821 barracuda sqdn at Stretton
- undertook minelaying ops off Norway, HMS Puncher, 2.1945

Commands:

821	May 1944	June 1945

HAL Tibbetts RCNVR
Born
Rank: Lt
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- Commanded 822 immediately after previous CO, Lt Cdr Nares, was shot down and killed in North Africa during attacks on La Senia, 11.1942.
- Arctic convoy duties HMS Furious, 1.1943

Commands:

822	Nov 1942	Feb 1943

RC Tillard RN
Born 1910 England
Rank: Lt Cdr
Honours and Awards: DSC (Mediterranean), Battle of Britain clasp
Died: 8.5.1941
Other information
- air ace with 6 confirmed destroyed enemy aircraft, and 1 shared destroyed.
- CO of 808 sqdn in defence of naval dockyards, Wick, under RAF Fighter Command during Battle of Britain.
- HMS Ark Royal, and Mediterranean convoys, Nov 1940-April 1941
- awarded DSC following action on 9.1.1941 when 2 S-79s were shot down west of Malta.
- during escort of convoy to Alexandria, codenamed "Tiger", involved in dogfight with Fiat CR42s and shot down, killing him and observer, Lt MF Somerville, son of Vice-Admiral Sir James Somerville, Commander of the Mediterranean Force H, HMS Ark Royal, 8.5.1941
- Buried Enfidaville, Tunisia

See biography in "Aces High".

Commands:

808	July 1940	May 1941	killed 8.5.1941

LR Tivy RN
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- first CO of 840 swordfish sqdn at Palisadoes
- involved in anti-submarine operations during the occupation of the Azores, HMS Fencer, 10-11.1943
- took part in Gibraltar convoys during which a sqdn aircaft shot down an enemy aircraft, 1.12.1943
- sqdn sank German U-boat U-666 on 10.2.1944
- MBE
- Seniority 11.1947 (Lt Cdr)

Commands:

840	June 1942	April 1943
842	April 1943	March 1944

CC Tomkinson RNVR
Born 1917 UK
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards DSC
Died 26.3.1945
Other information
- - led sqdn in attacks against Japanese forces in Operation Meridian, Palembang, 29.1.1945 (1836 sqdn)
- killed whilst in command of 1836 sqdn, HMS Victorious, 26.3.1945

Commands:

1836	Aug 1943	March 1945	26.3.1945 HMS Victorious

FMA Torrens-Spence RN
Born
Rank: Lt (1940), Lt Cdr (1941)
Honours and Awards: DSO, DSC , AFC (Taranto)
Died
Other information
- served on HMS Glorious pre-war
- took part in the attack on Taranto, 11.11.1940
- involved in attack on vichy french shipping and targets in syria,
- involved in sinking one dstroyer and damaging another.
- served at A& AEE, Boscombe Down as test pilot 1942-end of WW2
-foreign award
- Seniority 6.1952 (C)

Commands:

815	March 1941	Oct 1941

HER Torin RN
Born 1912 UK
Rank: Lt
Honours and Awards: DSC
Died 30.9.1942
Other information
- First commanding officer of 808 sqdn, a post which he held for 3 weeks at Worthy Down.
- killed 30.9.1942, HMS Jackdaw, buried Wellshill, Perth, UK

Commands:

808	July 1940	July 1940

GN Torry RN
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (Flt Lt, RAF)(1939)
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- Prewar commanding officer of 800 skua sqdn on HMS Ark Royal
- at the outbreak of war carried out fighter patrols off Norway and in the North West Approaches.
- Left the sqdn prior to the German invasion of Norway.
- Seniority 10.1939 (Lt Cdr)

Commands:

800	Nov 1938	April 1940

AM Tritton RNVR
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards DSC and two Bars (1945)
Died
Other information
- first CO of 1834 corsair sqdn at Quonset point and involved in deck landing training on USS Charger
- led 1830 sqdn in sweeps in the Bay of Bengal, HMS Illustrious 3.1944
- involved in operations against Sabang, 4.1944
- took command of 15th Wing after the loss of the previous Wing Leader, Lt Cdr RJ Cork in a flying accident, 4.1944
- involved in leading operations against Sourabaya 5.1944
- led Wing in attacks on targets in the Andaman islands, 6.1944
- involved in further operations against Sabang, 7.1944
- led Wing in attacks against Japanese held oil refineries in Operation Meridian, Palembang, 29.1.1945 (1830 sqdn)
- took part in the Sakishima Gunto island strikes, 4-5.1945
- returned to the UK with HMS Illustrious when it was damaged by a kamikaze attack, 4.1945

Commands:

1834	July 1943	Dec 1943
1830	Dec 1943	July 1945	disbanded
15th Naval Fighter Wing (1830,1831, 1833 sqdns)	April 1944	July 1945	disbanded

AM Tuke RN
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards: DSC (pre Sept 1943) & Bar
Died
Other information
first CO of 851 avenger sqdn at Squantum
involved in attacks on 3 German U-Boats 8.1944, HMS Shah in the Indian Ocean
- Seniority 12..1942 (Lt)
- WSR Lt Cdr

Commands:

851	Oct 1943	Sept 1944

FRA Turnbull RN (temp)
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr
Honours and Awards: DSC (pre 1942) & Bar (1944)
Died
Other information
- temporarily in Command forming up the squadron at Stretton with spitfire Va and Vbs
- as CO of 894 sqdn jouined HMS Illustrious to Iceland and an op off Norway
- supported Salerno landings
- sqdn joined 24th Naval Fighter Wing at Henstridge with seafire F.IIIs
- became Wing Leader of 47 Wing, and led the Wing in attacks on the German battleship Tirpitz in Northern Norway as part of operation Tungsten, 3.4.1944, HMS Victorious.

Seniority 8.1948 (Lt Cdr)

Commands:

801	Sept 1942	Sept 1942
894	June 1943	Jan 1944
47th Naval Fighter Wing (1834, 1835, 1836 sqdns)	Jan 1944	Aug 1944

AWR Turney RN
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- joined the 2nd Carrier Air Group, HMS Formidable
- took part in strikes against the Japanese mainland, 7.1945

Commands:

848	June 1945	End of WW2

JF Turner RNVR
Born
Rank: Lt Cdr (A)
Honours and Awards
Died
Other information
- involved in shipping attacks, and provided illumination for bombardment of the island of Pantellaria, the sqdn overall sinking 30 ships and damaging 50, 5-7.1943
- carried out anti-submarine patrols during the invasion of Sicily

Commands:

828	May 1943	Sept 1943	disbanded

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