This interview first appeared in Military History magazine.  It has been re-printed on this website with the permission of Military History magazine with the understanding that it is not for profit.  I highly encourage you to subscribe to Military History magazine in order to provide the sort of support needed to produce future articles of this quality.

I N T E R V I E W

SPITFIRE ACE IN THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN

By Jon Guttman

On August 20, 1940, after Hawker Hurricanes and Supermarine Spitfires of the Royal Air Force had managed to fend off an all-out offensive by the Luftwaffe, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill said, "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few." His statement was a bit overblown, but appropriate. About a month later, the first great campaign to be decided entirely in the air, the Battle of Britain, reached its climax.

One of the participants in that pivotal struggle, Allan Richard Wright, enjoys a special place even within the ranks of that fabled "few." He managed to emerge from the deadly crucible of combat as an ace with 11 individual and three shared victories. In an interview with Military History editor Jon Guttman, retired Group Captain Wright shared his memories of Britain's "finest hour" and his activities thereafter.

Military History: How did you come to enter a career in aviation?

Wright: The principal influence was my father. He started out in the Royal Flying Corps in 1916 and retired from the Royal Air Force [RAF] in 1943. I was born in Teignmouth, Devon, on February 12, 1920. I wanted to be a civil engineer, but I hadn't yet entered university. My father couldn't advise my brother and me on anything but the RAF, so we both joined. To get a permanent flying officers commission, one had to take a civil service entrance examination, which I passed with honors and entered the RAF College, Cranwell, in May 1938.

MH: What was training like at that time?

Wright: It was a two-year course, with three terms each year - early spring, summer and autumn. As well as English, history, physics, mathematics and technical instruction, officer training was included, along with flight training. The next three months were spent flying as well as taking ground courses. They broke us into it quite gently, about two days a week performing what the school called ad initio [from the beginning] flights in the Avro Tutor, then moving on to the Hawker Hart or Audax. Part of the last term was spent at West Freugh in southwest Scotland, practicing air gunnery and dropping small 10-pound bombs. I flew a delightful little single-seat biplane, the Hawker Fury, which had fixed synchronized machine guns. In the event of a stoppage, we had to be able to take the breech apart, put it back together and fire again, though I'll never know how they expected us to do that during a dogfight.

MH: When did you complete the course?

Wright: I was still at it when war was declared on September 3,1939. They concentrated on our gunnery and bombing practice and hurried along our graduation. On October 29, three of us were posted to No. 92 Squadron at Tangmere. The unit had just been formed and was to be equipped with Bristol Blenheim Mk.IF twin-engine night fighters. The new planes trickled in a few at a time, but there were no radios or guns for them. Then, on March 8,1940, out of the blue we were told that we were going to receive Spitfire Mk.Is, and the next day they began arriving.

MH: It looks like the pace of things was changing.

Wright: For most of the interwar years the British government was certain that there wouldn't be another war, and we were hope lessly unprepared when it began. Only Churchill insisted that we would have to fight. The arrival of the Hurricane and the Spitfire in 1939 was most fortuitous.

MH: How did you feel about being able to fly the Spitfire?

Wright: I was absolutely thrilled to death. I thought we'd been forgotten and suddenly we received the best fighters in the RAF.

MH: What was the Spitfire like to fly?

Wright: It was an utter delight to fly, of course. The controls were well balanced and so light that if you pulled the stick back too suddenly you'd be crushed down into your seat. Landings can be tricky in any plane with a tail wheel, but the Spitfire had some special problems. It had a very long nose, which didn't curve down as the Hurricane's did, so we couldn't perform a normal landing - we had to come down in a turn until 50 feet or so from the ground before straightening up. We then had to judge our height from the grass on either side of the cockpit - you couldn't see in front. That wasn't bad on grass, but you had to be careful on tarmac. The undercarriage was the weak part of the Spitfire - it wasn't supported by a rear strut, so you couldn't just drop from a great height or the landing gear would collapse. It was also near the center of gravity, so if you landed too fast and had to brake hard, it could easily go over onto its nose.

MH: How did it compare with the Messerschmitt Me-109E?

Wright: The Spit had one big advantage - its wing loading was low, about 16 pounds per square foot, and consequently it could turn more tightly than an Me-109 and so lead it with its guns. If an Me-109 was on your tail, you could pull the stick back and turn until the Spitfire was nearly stalling but the German would spin out. The Me-109s did have the advantage of a fuel-injected engine, which could operate under all conditions, whereas the early Spitfire's carburetor was like that of a car. If you pushed the stick forward to negative Gs the engine would sputter and stop. Whenever the Spitfire had the advantage, an Me-109 would go into a steep dive. The Spitfire's eight wing-mounted .303-inch machine guns were always adjusted to converge 250 yards ahead, but in combat, opening fire at a distance of 70 to 50 yards was best, though often not possible. The Spitfire also carried cine [camera] guns, but they never seemed to work. Cine guns worked for me on only three occasions in the course of my fighting career.

MH: How long did it take to convert to the Spitfire?

Wright: Not all of the squadron had had experience in single-seaters, although my RAF Cranwell colleagues and I had - but we did not have much time to get used to the Spitfire or practice operational tactics. We were over Dunkirk in May.

MH: What was the situation at that time?

Wright: My brother had trained a year ahead of me, and he had been posted to Digby in Hurricanes just before the war broke out. He was badly wounded in France in 1940. He later flew dickers Wellington bombers and was killed in one while laying mines at night late in 1942. By late May, the Germans had overrun most of France and cornered the British Expeditionary Force against the English Channel at Dunkirk. One had to admire the German war machine - in addition to fighting Britain, they invaded Russia, and even after the Americans entered the war, it took us all three years to defeat them. 

MH: When did you fly your first combat mission?

Wright: On May 23,1940. We flew two sorties from Hornchurch on that day in support of the naval evacuation of Allied troops. My first combat was in the morning. We were patrolling off the coast of Dunkirk. It was a beautiful day, with a blue sky and the sun on the sea and the long stretch of yellow sand below. I remember particularly seeing nine silvery planes below and to the right of us and saying to myself, "How beautiful." Then they started climbing toward us and somebody called out, "Me-109s!" I got a long burst into one, but I don't know what became of him. My section leader, Robert Stanford Tuck, was credited with an Me-109 in the fight, and I was credited with a probable Me-109, but Pat Learmond was shot down. Pat and I had been at Cranwell together.

MH: What about the day's second mission?

Wright: There were nine of us in three sections that evening, when we ran into 15 bombers, 20 Messerschmitt Me-110s and 10 Me-109s. Bob Tuck took us straight into that lot, and the next thing I knew we were buzzing around like a whole lot of bees. I was going around trying to find a target, but the Germans all seemed to be whizzing by in the opposite direction. The Me-110s were in a defensive circle, which was probably a wise thing for them to do, so that the pilots and their rear gunners could give each other mutual support. I zoomed up and around to get into the circle and had a bash at one, hitting him in the cockpit. He went down, and I think I got another, although only one was confirmed. This one had broken away, and I followed him as he tried to get home. We flew low over fields and hedges, and I saw parts fly off as I fired into him, but then my ammunition ran out and I had to break off. When I got back, I learned that Squadron Leader Roger Bushell had crash-landed in France and was taken prisoner. In addition, John Gilles, the son of a famous surgeon, had been brought down and captured, and Flight Lt. Paddy Green had been wounded and forced to land at Manston. Sergeant Paul Klipsch was also lost.

MH: You had a grim first day In addition to your probable, were you credited with any other enemy planes?

Wright: I was credited with one of the Me-110s, as well as one damaged and the earlier Me-109 probable, while Tuck was credited with three Me-110s. Number 92 Squadron claimed a total of 30 destroyed, damaged or possibly shot down during the Dunkirk episode. That night though, while I was lying in a warm bath, Pat's loss came over me. Pat was a great friend of mine and of the girl who would later be my wife - very charming, a good guy - and I would never see him again. This is the only time that I am aware of ever being in bitter tears, completely overcome.

MH: And after all that, you had to get right back into it?

Wright: Yes. To fly an airplane is a most wonderful sensation. I had also been a good shot on the rifle range at school, but I had never shot a living thing before, nor have I ever since. Being at war was not a natural thing for me at all. We didn't start the war. The Germans did, and thanks to them I lost my brother and one of my best friends. I've never completely forgiven them, and I've never cared to take part in any postwar reunions with my Luftwaffe counterparts. On May 24 Tuck took over our flight and we met 17 Heinkel He-111s and 15 Me-110s. I attacked the Heinkels and possibly got one, but they maintained formation. I came back with three bullet holes in my aircraft. Peter Casenove, who must have been hit by an Me-110, had landed on the beach at Dunkirk. On May 25, Tuck took command of the squadron for two sorties. In the first, we thought we were about to attack some Me-110s, but they were our own Avro Ansons. Later in the day, we had only eight Spitfires flying in three sections rather than the normal four, but when we ran into two Domier Do-17s, six of us ganged up on one of them - I was the last one to attack when it went down in flames. Naive as it seems now, I thought it a bit unfair at the time.

MH: When was your next sortie?

Wright: We had a rest for a few days. I stayed with my girlfriends family before returning to Dunkirk on June 2. This time, the powers that be decided we should go in several squadrons together. They sent us to Martlesham Heath to join three other squadrons for the day's patrol. We saw some Me-109Es coming down on our formation and we split up as we were attacked. An Me-109 went after me, but I quickly turned inside and got him. I kept on fighting until my ammunition was finished, but as I was coming home I was attacked again. As the bullets hit, I instinctively pulled the stick back, rolled off to the right and got out of the way, then made a steep turn to search for him, but he was gone. I came back with 18 bullet holes in my plane. The evacuation of Dunkirk was completed that day, and the stage was set for the Battle 
of Britain.

MH: What happened then?

Wright: The squadron was dispatched to Wales in June - essentially to recoup our losses and train the new boys, although we also had a few tussles with enemy bombers. We operated from Pembrey. On August 14,1 was flying east of Bristol on a cloudy day, being given vectors from the ground controllers, when I saw two He-111s. I chased one and scored hits on it, although I didn't see it fall - it was very cloudy. My wingman, Bill Williams, made a similar claim, so when they found the wreckage of one Heinkel at Hullavington, it was credited to both of us in half shares.

MH: Wasn't your next victory scored at night?

Wright: Yes, we were operating from two airfields knocked together near Bibury, Gloucestershire. Our mission was to get bombers that were attacking Bristol under cover of darkness. Patrolling in the Spitfire at night was extremely difficult. There were three exhaust stacks on each side of the engine in front, which sometimes shot out flames. This ruined your night vision. We also had no means of homing and had to depend on being picked up by ground radar to be guided back to the airfield. We lost two airplanes because they had been out of touch with ground radar and could not see a place to land—the pilots bailed out. On the night of August 29, I must have been at about 25,000 feet - in any case, I was above the clouds, because I could see the stars. I saw two pink glows close together, and I closed to investigate. Sure enough, they turned out to be the exhaust flames of an He-111, but I couldn't see the plane itself until I got within 50 yards of it. I almost overshot. As I pulled the throttle back, white flames shot out of my exhausts, blinding me until I coarsened the pitch of my propeller and pushed the throttle forward a bit. It was very difficult to keep behind the slower Heinkel, firing whenever I could between and at the two glows - the Heinkel itself was only the dimmest of shadows. Eventually one engine flamed up. The other must have stopped, and the Heinkel was only gliding. I continued firing at the bomber until I feared that I was getting out of range from ground control. Sometime after landing I learned that the Heinkel had crashed near the Isle of Wight, on fire with both engines out. All of the crew were wounded and were taken prisoner; one later died.

MH: At that point the Battle of Britain was reaching its peak. You lost your assigned Spitfire, R6596, soon afterward. How did that happen?

Wright: I had first flown R6596 on June 4, and I flew it through August, except on the 23rd. Then, at 4:15 p.m. on September 9, we took off from Biggin Hill and the squadron got split up in a cloud. We were trying to attack a large formation of bombers when I was bounced by Me-109s. My No. 2 and No. 3 dropped back. They were shot down - Sam Saunders and Bill Wading had to bail out. I wanted to get the buggers! I climbed steeply with the throttle through the gate, turning back to get at them, when my Spit was badly hit. One bullet went through the hood and destroyed my reflector sight, so I could not fire back. I managed to evade the Germans and return to base, where I found some bullets had also gone through the propeller. My plane was apparently damaged enough to warrant extensive repairs.

MH: After that you were issued another plane, right?

Wright: Spitfire X4069 was the next to carry my usual letters, QJ-S but I was flying QJ-V as an interim plane when I joined 13 aircraft taking off from Biggin Hill at 3:20 p.m. on September 11 We met 200 enemy aircraft - He-111s escorted by Me-109s. We split up over Maidstone to carry out individual attacks. I lost the squadron early on and was flying over Croydon for about 30 minutes when I spotted a formation of Heinkels coming from Ramsgate. Diving out of the sun, I made head-on and quarter attacks on the lead plane. After I had dived away from some attacking Me-109s, I saw one He-111 break away with smoke coming from an engine. I went back up to 20,000 feet and saw the Heinkels returning, so I joined other fighters in attacking a damaged plane that had broken away. It crashed in flames on the Dungeness Peninsula. We had lost one new pilot killed, but six Heinkels were shot down. One of the Heinkels was credited to me, plus the shared one. I landed, then took off again with eight aircraft to attack bombers returning to the Channel. We split up when we were attacked by Me-109s at 20,000 feet. I got on the tail of one, but I couldn't catch up and fired at 500 yards. The German dived steeply, smoking, at 500 mph, and I lost him over Folkestone, for which I was credited with a probable. I Hew X4069 thereafter, damaging an Me-109 over Tunbridge Wells on the 14th.

MH: On August 6, 1940, Reichsmarschall Hermann Goring had announced, "I have told the Fuhrer that the RAF will be destroyed in time for Operation Sea Lion to be launched by September 15, when our German soldiers will land on British soil." September 15 did see a climactic confrontation over London, costing the Luftwaffe 59 planes, while the RAF lost 31. More important, the Germans' decision to bomb London instead of continuing their earlier strategy of attrition against the RAF gave Fighter Command just enough time to replace its losses at a most critical juncture. September 15 is now celebrated as Battle of Britain Day What were you doing that day?

Wright: At dawn, I had to go alone down to Hawkinge, on the south coast, to fly a scouting sortie. I was supposed to see the Germans early and report them while they were in mid-Channel, so our fighters could get at them before they got to London. I was not to get involved. The idea didn't really work very well. At 2 p.m., I climbed up to 30,000 feet, but all I encountered were two Me-109s at 27,000 feet, climbing in a circle to attack me. I had to attack first and fired a long burst. One of them dived north. I followed him - unlike Me-109s, Spitfires had a tendency to climb when the speed increased unless you held the nose down - all the time trying to shoot. At 7,000 feet, the Me-109 was still diving at a steep angle and I had to pull up. It required great pressure on the stick to hold the nose down. As I released some of the pressure, the Gs suddenly became so great that I passed out altogether. When I came to some time later, I was upside down in an utterly confused state of mind. I leveled out, and when I had regained my bearings I returned to Biggin. I was credited with a probable, but when I came back I was very annoyed that I had missed a tremendous fight.

MH: When did you score your next victory?

Wright: I probably got a Junkers Ju-88 flying over Dover on September 19. Then, on September 26, my section was off to intercept an attack on Tenderden. There was complete cloud cover of a thin layer at 6,000 feet, and we would fly occasionally above and below it to find a target. During the patrol, I thought I saw a Do-215 and managed to fire a three-second burst from abeam at long range before it went into a cloud. I then saw a Do-17 and fired a burst from the starboard beam until it disappeared. Then I fired a two-second burst at a Heinkel, which dived into the clouds. Later, the Observer Corps reported an aircraft exploded on the ground, and I was credited with the Do-17. The next day, nine of our aircraft, followed by Spitfires of No. 72 Squadron, encountered more bombers. I attacked a Do-17 and got in a four-second burst from abeam, damaging it. There were many Me-109s about, but few came down. I attacked an He-111 north of Cockfield, and it went down with smoke coming from the engines. On our second sortie that afternoon, 11 of No. 92 Squadron's planes joined Spitfires from No. 66 Squadron in an attack on 20 Ju-88s, escorted by many Me-109s flying 5,000 feet above them. We split up the formation, and I downed a Ju-88, damaging two others. One Spitfire had crashed in flames near Dartford, but overall the squadron had had a very good day I had developed a dive and climb attack on the flank of a bomber formation which had worked out very well, and I came back alone, feeling very elated to have got so many of them. I was disappointed, though, when the confirmed victories turned out to be less than I had thought - half credit on the Heinkel and one Ju-88.

MH: On September 30, your second plane was written off. What happened that day?

Wright: Late that morning I had arrived at 92 Squadrons dispersal area from being off duty. The squadron had already taken off to meet a German raid. A fierce battle was going on just south of the airfield. A Hurricane came screaming down from the sky and exploded in a plume of black smoke behind some trees. Looking around, I saw a single Spitfire standing nearby. I jumped in and roared off with two others to join the fray Seeing a Spitfire with a 109 on its tail, I shouted, "Watch out. Spitfire!" on the radio and went after the 109, shooting it down. The Spitfire pilot, Deacon Elliott, thanked me after we landed. During a second sortie by all three squadrons, I attacked some bombers at 15,000 feet, then I climbed up-sun to 25,000 feet over Reigate, where I found a formation of seven 109s. Picking the outermost, I fired a short burst without being seen. The 109 broke away and I continued firing with the rest of my ammunition. It dived south toward the coast, trailing white smoke. I checked my watch and followed to see how far it could go before its engine seized up. It went on down, leveling out close to the sea, and when the smoke stopped, glided a short distance and then splashed into the water. After a quick look round for any of his friends, I turned for home. It had been seven minutes. Suddenly there was a tremendous bang and smoke filled my cockpit - I'd been hit. I pulled hard round in what could only be a dummy attack on the Germans, but when I tried to straighten up, the Spitfire wouldn't. It careened around in half loops and steep turns - even vertically for a few seconds when, with the sea rushing up to meet me, I was sure the end had come. With one foot on the rudder and the stick hard pressed forward against the instrument panel, I coaxed my Spitfire along the coast to Shoreham, near Brighton, where I managed to put it on the ground. The Me-109's cannon had put a large hole in my wing and another in the right side of the cockpit, where bits of the shell had struck my leg, arm and part of my bottom. My plane had lost practically all of its elevator and rudder, and there was a slit 8 to 9 feet along the belly of the fuselage. A bullet had hit the oil gauge and smashed it, but fortunately had not caused an oil leak. The Spitfire had armor plate behind the pilot's seat. How much I had owed my life to it was attested by my instrument panel - all around the edge it was spattered with shell fragments. The damage meant my plane was a total write-off.

MH: After September, the worst crisis had passed - but I suppose only the Luftwaffe airmen suspected the battle was lost then?

Wright: I now get the impression that after September 15 we were more aggressive as soon as we engaged them, they would try to get away. By December 1940, they were attacking our cities only by night or making occasional Jabo [fighter-bomber] raids, while we were more often carrying the war to them, sometimes with low-level strikes on their bases in France. But we couldn't afford to relax. We didn't know whether Britain was out of danger or not; we only knew that we had to go on. On December 5, the three squadrons of the Biggin Hill Wing flew an offensive patrol over northern France at around 25,000 feet. Before we got there, we met several formations of Me-109s in threes and fours between Dover and Calais, heading east, and chased them back toward France. I attacked one, but my new 20mm cannons were not firing properly I tried a deflection shot with my machine guns, and it must have been a lucky one - the Me-109 dived steeply and I went after it. I gave him a long burst from behind with explosive machine gun ammunition and struck the fuselage and the port radiator, from which black smoke and glycol steam began to come out. I left him at mid-Channel. The Me-109 was credited to me.

MH: What did you do for the rest of the winter?

Wright: We mostly flew convoy patrols or Channel escort for daylight raids. On one of the convoy patrols a frightened anti-aircraft gunner blew a hole bigger than a fist behind my head, destroying my radio. On March 1,1941,1 received a new Spitfire fitted with a Rolls-Royce Merlin 45 engine. In its first air test, the altimeter stuck at 36,000 feet and the engine got too hot. By March 19, No. 92 Squadron was completely equipped with the Spitfire Mk.Vb. I liked this type because of its faster rate of climb, but we still had an awful lot of trouble with the 20mm cannons - they either kept firing or they kept stopping.

MH: Describe some of your cross-Channel duels in 1941.

Wright: I used my Spitfire to damage two Me-109s on May 13, and on one of two sweeps on May 16,1 teamed up with three others to send an Me-109 into the Channel off Dungeness. On June 14, my Spitfire was badly shot up and I only just managed to get it back across the Channel. I had Jamie Rankin to thank for shooting the Me-109 off my tail. I probably downed Me-109s on June 17 and 25. Then, on June 26, Wing Commander Adolf G. "Sailor" Malan was leading Nos. 74 and 92 squadrons from Biggin Hill. I was leading a flight and we were about 25 miles from Dunkirk at 28,000 feet, going south-southeast, when we saw 12 to 15 Me-109s passing 2,000 feet beneath us. I descended on them to the right, firing at an Me-109 at 200 to 100 yards. The German left the formation, diving and skidding until I hit him in front of the cockpit. A small stream of smoke began to come out, but as my plane was going past 400 mph I pulled out. The Me-109 straightened out and was diving even faster while I turned to engage a new Me-109 that I saw at 2,000 feet, but lost it in a cloud. I returned at water level, and the first Me-109 I attacked was credited to me.

MH: On July 15 you received a bar to your Distinguished Flying Cross, which you had been awarded on October 22, 1940. After that, you were involved in the gunnery techniques of fighter training. Didn't that involve a tour of the United States? 

Wright: By 1942, the U.S. Army Air Forces had begun flying missions over northern France and had suffered severe losses. So from October 13 to November 23,1942, three other experienced RAF After serving for three years in Spitfires, Wright transferred to No. 29 Squadron to fly night operations in Bristol Beaufighters. He assumed leadership of that squadron's "A" Flight in March 1943. pilots and I visited fighter stations on the east and west coasts of the United States to teach air tactics and fighter gunnery. I made four flights in the Lockheed P-38 Lightning and in the Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. Their pilots were very keen to see the results we would get from them. It was quite an experience. I'd met American pilots before in other situations, but I'd never experienced so many people just hanging on our words and actions.

MH: After returning to England, you attended a night fighting course at 54 Operational Training Unit. Why did you change over to that?

Wright: I asked for night fighting. I thought I was well-suited for it - I had already got one at night in the Spitfire. I'm a steady chap who works things out, which seemed right for working in a radar-equipped night fighter. At that point, I felt I could be excused for feeling that my luck as a day fighter pilot had probably run out, and I wanted to fight under conditions more under my control.

MH: Was there any difficulty in making the transition?

Wright: No bother really - I'd trained in the twin-engine Airspeed Oxford and had flown Blenheims at night. There were more exercises to do, and I went through a short training course with my radar operator until we were qualified on the Bristol Beaufighter Mk.I and were posted to No. 29 Squadron. I then took over "A" Flight in March 1943. I didn't care for the Beaufighter very much. It had great power, but was a very heavy machine and very cold - I would wear all my clothes but was still shivering when flying at high altitudes. Using the radar was very difficult, too, though radar on the later Beaufighter models and on the de Havilland Mosquito was a different kettle of fish.

MH: What was night fighting like in 1943 ?

Wright: By 1943, we faced more of a battle against the weather than anything else. The Germans were seldom bombing by night, and our night fighters were beginning to fly intruder missions until we learned that enemy bombers were flying at very low level to avoid radar detection, laying mines in great numbers in the Thames Estuary and off Dover. Even then, I was the only pilot in 29 Squadron who got one. On April 3, 1943, on a bleak night with solid clouds above 1,000 feet, ground radar brought me close enough for my radar operator, George Bliss, to obtain a contact on a possible target. He guided me until I caught a glimpse of a shadowy shape and a glow from each engine. But I had come in too fast. Throttling back produced flames from my own exhausts, and the other plane's rear gunner started firing at me. After a while, George yelled at me, "Why don't you shoot at the bugger?" I replied, "I can't recognize him," to which he reminded me, "He's shooting at you!" Then I fired. Pulling the aircraft around at 500 feet altitude, trying to follow his twists and turns - very dangerous so near the water - I was soon overtaking him again. Not wanting to throttle back, I put my flaps down. I thought I'd been hit when my aircraft suddenly heeled over on its side. It turned out that the wind had blown one flap up, and with only one extended I'd lost control. I got straight and level, my artificial horizon started working again, and I pulled both flaps up. After regaining control I asked ground control, "Have your got anything more for me?" He found one - when my radar operator was coaxing me in, the German bomber had turned southeast and started climbing to 2,000 feet. I wasn't about to let this one get away. The cloud had cleared, and I could see the dim line of the French coast below. I closed to between 50 and 100 yards, pressed the button and the German burst into flame and fell into the sea. I was credited with a Ju-88 destroyed and another damaged.

MH: Were those your last victories?

Wright: Yes. We were very pleased when we received Mosquitos on June 1, 1943, but by then there was no enemy about. I left the squadron on September 26, 1943.

MH: How did you spend the rest of the war?

Wright: Mostly gunnery training and fighter tactics, such as chief instructor at the Pilot Gunnery Instructor Wing of the Central Gunner School, and commander of the Air Fighting Developing Unit at Wittering, where we compared day and night fighting aircraft. I once flew a Focke Wulf Fw-190 we had on loan. I was very lucky in always managing to keep away from any purely administrative jobs. My assignments were always connected with fighter aircraft. In February 1945, I did a lot of flying while commanding the fighter wing of the Middle East Advanced Bombing and Gunnery School at El Bellah, Egypt.

MH: What was your reaction to the Allied victory in Europe?

Wright: All we heard out in Egypt was a signal saying that the Germans had capitulated and that we were not to undertake any flying the next day, in case anyone was too lightheaded and crashed. It was a terrible anticlimax. We simply redirected our training efforts against Japan until they surrendered on September 2. But my feelings about the end of the war were overlaid with frustration because I remained assigned to the Middle East for the next 2 and one half years. My wife, whom I'd married in 1942, could not come out there, and I could not go home, and that was more traumatic than anything else. Finally, in 1947, I returned home and got a desk job. My last job in the RAF was commanding the Ballistic Missile Early Warning Station in the northeast of England, in association with the U.S. Air Force, until finally retiring in February 1967.

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