Billy Drake

Billy Drake was born in London on 20 December 1917, the son of an English father and an Australian mother, and was schooled partly in Switzerland. Drawn to flying after a joyride as a boy, he took a short-service commission in the RAF in 1936 and, once trained, joined No. 1 Squadron at Tangmere in 1937, progressing from biplane Furies to Hurricanes. He flew with the squadron in France in 1940, opening his account against a Bf 109 that April before being shot down and wounded in May. Recovered, he went on to command No. 112 Squadron in the Western Desert flying Curtiss P-40 Tomahawks and Kittyhawks, becoming the RAF’s highest-scoring P-40 pilot, then led fighter wings over Malta and northern Europe. Credited with around 18 confirmed victories, he was awarded the DSO, the DFC and Bar, and an American DFC. He remained in the RAF until 1963, retiring as a group captain, and died on 28 August 2011.