Robert Cecil Dawkins
Robert Cecil Dawkins | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1903 Holloway, London, England |
| Died | 1985 Newton Blossomville, England |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service |  Royal Air Force |
| Years of service | 1932-1955 |
| Rank | Group Captain |
| Service number | 27251 |
| Commands | RAF Tengah R.A.F. Hendon |
| Battles / wars | World War II |
Group Captain Robert Cecil Dawkins CBE (1903-1985) was a senior officer in the Royal Air Force.[1] In September 1951 he was made CBE for services in Malaya, principally for operational achievements while he was in command of the R.A.F. station at Tengah.[1][2][3] In 1951 he was made station commander at R.A.F. Hendon until his retirement in 1955.[2][4]
Life
[edit]Robert Cecil Dawkins was born on 6 March 1903 in Holloway, London.[5] He was the son of Frederick Adolphus Dawkins and Adelaide (née Maude)[5] and was educated at Bedford Modern School between 1912 and 1920.[2]
Dawkins saw service with the Fleet Air Arm[6] between 1932 and 1938, becoming squadron leader on 1 October 1938.[7][8] Shortly after the outbreak of World War II he was promoted to wing commander.[9] For much of the war, he served with Coastal Command and ‘commanded several important stations at home and abroad’.[7] In 1944 he was promoted to temporary group captain.[10]
In 1947, Dawkins was made substantive group captain,[11] and became superintendent of flying at the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment at Boscombe Down.[7] In 1949 he was appointed deputy director of accident prevention at the Air Ministry.[7]
In 1950, Group Captain Dawkins was put in command of the R.A.F. station at Tengah[1][2][3] and in recognition of his operational achievements while holding that command he was made CBE.[1][2][3] The citation for his CBE read that ‘by his sympathy, example and determination he had shown outstanding devotion to duty’.[2]
In 1951 Dawkins returned to England and was made station commander at R.A.F. Hendon,[2][4][12] a position he held until his retirement on 15 March 1955.[13] Dawkins died in Newton Blossomville in 1985.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "The London Gazette" (PDF). thegazette.co.uk. 18 September 1951. Retrieved 8 July 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g The Eagle, The Magazine of Bedford Modern School, Christmas 1951, Vol. XXVIII No.4
- ^ a b c "Station OCs - Far East".
- ^ a b "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ a b c "Genealogy, Family Trees & Family History Records at Ancestry.co.uk".
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ a b c d "Aeroplane and Commercial Aviation News". July 1949.
- ^ "The Air Force List, April 1940". Mocavo.
- ^ The London Gazette 10 December 1940, Issue 35010, p. 6983
- ^ Fourth Supplement to The London Gazette, 18 January 1944, Issue 36340, p. 403
- ^ Supplement to The London Gazette, 14 October, 1947, Issue 38095, p. 4796
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 March 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Supplement to The London Gazette, 15 March 1955, Issue 40429, p. 1532