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Wing Commander William Ronald Read, MC, DFC, AFC** (17 May 1885[1] − 1972[2]) was a highly decorated Royal Air Force (RAF) officer of the First World War and the inter-war period. A pre-war member of the Royal Flying Corps (which became the RAF in 1918), he is one of only twelve officers to have so far received a second Bar to the Air Force Cross, signifying three awards of the medal.
Willie Read | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | William Ronald Read |
| Born | 17 May 1885 |
| Died | 1972 |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service | British Army (1906–18) Royal Air Force (1918–32) |
| Years of service | 1906–1932 |
| Rank | Wing Commander |
| Commands | RAF Boscombe Down RAF Upavon No. 216 Squadron RAF No. 104 Squadron RFC |
| Battles / wars | First World War |
| Awards | Military Cross Distinguished Flying Cross Air Force Cross & Two Bars |
Read came from a wealthy family[2] and was the eldest son of W. T. Read of Hampstead.[3] Both his parents died when he was twelve and he and his siblings were raised by guardians.[2] He was educated at Jesus College, Cambridge.[1][2]
Read was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Hampshire Carabiniers, a yeomanry (part-time volunteer cavalry) regiment, on 23 September 1906.[4] On 6 March 1907, after leaving Cambridge, he transferred to the 1st (King's) Dragoon Guards, a regular regiment.[5] After obtaining his pilot's licence in April 1913,[1][6] Read was seconded to the Royal Flying Corps as a pilot on 28 April 1914[7] and joined No. 3 Squadron RFC.[6] He was promoted lieutenant on 14 June 1914.[8]
Read accompanied his squadron to France in August 1914.[6] He was wounded in December 1914. On 8 February 1915, he was appointed a flight commander in the Royal Flying Corps with the temporary rank of captain.[9][10][11] In December 1915 he was sent home to organise No. 45 Squadron RFC, returning to France in command in April 1916.[2] He was awarded the Military Cross on 1 January 1916,[12] and promoted to the substantive rank of captain on 19 August 1917.[13] In April 1917, disillusioned with heavy losses and with his superiors, he requested and received a transfer back to his regiment.[2] He did not much enjoy it, however, and returned to the RFC as the first commanding officer of No. 104 Squadron RFC, a bomber unit, in September 1917 with the acting rank of major.[14]
Read was awarded the Air Force Cross (AFC) on 1 January 1919,[15] and the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) on 3 June 1919 for services in France.[16]
After the war Read remained in the Royal Air Force (RAF) with the rank of flight lieutenant, although technically still on attachment from his regiment.[17] He served in Palestine with No. 216 Squadron from 1919 to 1921,[6] and received a Bar to his AFC on 12 July 1920.[18] By October 1921, he had been promoted to squadron leader in the RAF, although still holding the rank of captain in the army,[19] and was in command of No. 216 Squadron.[1]
On 17 November 1921, Read finally transferred from the army to a permanent commission in the RAF.[20] He was awarded a second bar to his AFC in the 1922 New Year Honours.[21] He was promoted wing commander on 1 January 1924.[22][23] Having previously been commander of an apprentices' wing at RAF Halton,[1] in January 1928 he became station commander of RAF Upavon,[24][25] and he was appointed first commander of RAF Boscombe Down in September 1930.[6][25][26] In March 1931, he was appointed Inspector of Recruiting for the RAF.[6] He retired on 17 May 1932, his 47th birthday.[1][27]
In December 1915, Read became engaged to Marjory Masters, daughter of an army chaplain.[3] However, he seems to have never actually married.[2] He was an amateur steeplechase rider, riding in many races,[28] and tennis player.[29]
Read's wartime diaries and papers are held by the Imperial War Museum.
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