 1891 - 1959 (67 years)
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| Name |
William George TURNER |
| Birth |
14 Jul 1891 |
Plumstead  |
- Sep Q 1891 1d 1246 Woolwich
|
| Gender |
Male |
| Census |
1901 |
 |
54, Liffler Road, Plumstead
|
| Military Service Entered |
1907 |
| Royal Artillery |
| Apprenticed |
1908 |
Royal Arsenal Ordnance College |
| Occupation |
1911 |
| Fitter/Turner at the Royal Arsenal Ordnance College, Woolwich. |
| Military Service Entered |
26 Jul 1912 |
Royal Flying Corps, Larkhill, Durrington, Wiltshire |
In 1909 a flying enthusiast called Horatio Barber rented a small piece of land in Larkhill. He built a shed to house his new aeroplane, and was soon joined by more enthusiasts. Among these were George Bertram Cockburn, a pioneer aviator, and Captain John Fulton who served with an artillery brigade, and it was partly as a result of their interest that the War Office quickly realised the importance of aircraft and founded the first army aerodrome in Larkhill in 1910. Several more huts were built and a three bay hangar was constructed by the British and Colonial Aeroplane Company, a forerunner of British Aerospace. In 1911, No 2 Company of the Air Battalion Royal Engineers was established at Larkhill, the first flying unit of the armed forces to use aeroplanes as opposed to balloons. This evolved into No. 3 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps in May 1912, the first RFC squadron to use aeroplanes.
In August 1912 the first Military Aeroplane Trials were held at Larkhill aerodrome. Several aeroplanes including the Avro Type G and the Bristol Gordon England biplane were entered. The competition was won by Samuel Franklin Cody in his Cathedral MkIII aircraft. 1912 also saw the first fatal air crash in the RFC. Captain Eustace Loraine and his observer, Staff-Sergeant R.H.V. Wilson were killed when they crashed west of Stonehenge after flying out of Larkhill aerodrome in July of that year.
The aerodrome was closed in 1914 when the hutted garrisons were built over the airstrip. The original BCAC hangar can be found on the corner of Woods Road and Fargo Road and is the oldest surviving military aerodrome building in the UK. It was given listed building status in 2005.
Wikipaedia |
- 1913 at Royal Flying School
1915 in France with 10 Squadron on the Western Front (he earned a number of promotions)
No. 10 Squadron, RFC, was originally formed at Farnborough, Hampshire, on 1st January 1915, from a nucleus supplied by No. 1 Reserve Squadron. It went to France in July 1915, equipped with BE2c's for what are now known as army co- operation duties, and served on the Western Front until the Armistice. During the British advance in September 1918, a novel task undertaken by the squadron was the dropping of baskets of pigeons to advanced parties of infantry so that they could report progress of their advance to their headquarters. The BEs were exchanged for Armstrong Whitworth FK8s in July 1917.
|
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1918 34 Squadron HQ in Italy
34 Squadron was raised at Castle Bromwich on 7 January 1916 as a Corp recce squadron equipped with BE2s, it moved over to France in July 1916. Re-equipment with RE8s took place in January 1917 and in October of that year, the squadron became part of the British force sent to support the Italians against the Austrians, remaining there until May 1919 when it returned to the UK; disbanding at Old Sarum on 25 September 1919.
|
| Address |
1920 |
66, Rushby Mead, Letchworth, Herts. |
| Stationed |
1925 |
Baghdad |
| Military |
1929 |
Discharged from RAF |
| Retired |
1957 |
| Death |
18 Apr 1959 |
Arlesey, Bedfordshire |
- Jun Q 1959 4b 110 Hitchin
|
| Notes |
- Career and photos courtesy of Liz Ellison
|
| Person ID |
I1422 |
Mills/Rushton Family History |
| Last Modified |
27 Aug 2010 |
| Family 2 |
Edna May CHESHIRE, b. 17 May 1901, Caddington Slip End, Bedfordshire d. Jun 1991, Felpham, Sussex (Age 90 years) |
| Marriage |
1926 |
- Sep Q 1926 3a 2169 Hitchin
|
| Children |
|
| Family ID |
F606 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Last Modified |
27 Aug 2010 |
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