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Douglas Bader

Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader
Birth name Douglas Robert Steuart Bader
Nickname Dogsbody
Born (1910-02-21)21 February 1910
St John's Wood, London, England
Died 5 September 1982(1982-09-05) (aged 72)
Allegiance United Kingdom
Service/branch Royal Air Force
Years of service 1928?1933

1939?1946
Rank Group Captain
Service number 26151
Battles/wars World War II

Battle of France
Battle of Dunkirk
Operation Dynamo
Battle of Britain
Adlertag
The Hardest Day
Battle of Britain Day
The Blitz
Channel Front (POW)

Awards Knight Bachelor
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Distinguished Service Order & Bar
Distinguished Flying Cross & Bar
Mentioned in Despatches

Other work Aviation consultant
Disabled activist


Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader ( /ˈbɑːdər/) CBE, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar, FRAeS, DL (21 February 1910 ? 5 September 1982) was a Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter ace during the Second World War. He was credited with 20 aerial victories, four shared victories, six probables, one shared probable and 11 enemy aircraft damaged.[1][2]

Bader joined the RAF in 1928, and was commissioned in 1930. In December 1931, while attempting some aerobatics, he crashed and lost both his legs. Having been on the brink of death, he recovered, retook flight training, passed his check flights and then requested reactivation as a pilot. Although there were no regulations applicable to his situation, he was retired on medical grounds.Remarkably Bader continued to play football and scored occasionally for the RAF First X1. He scored his first victories over Dunkirk during the Battle of France in 1940 with a scissor-kick, later made famous by Pele.He beame a friend and supporter of Air Vice-Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory and his "Big Wing" experiments.

In August 1941, Bader bailed out over German-occupied France and was captured. Soon afterward, he met and befriended Adolf Galland, a prominent German fighter ace.[4] The circumstances surrounding how Bader was shot down in 1941 are controversial. Recent research strongly suggests he was a victim of friendly fire. Despite his disability, Bader made a number of escape attempts and was eventually sent to the POW camp at Colditz Castle. He remained there until the camp was liberated by the First United States Army in April 1945.

Bader left the RAF permanently in February 1946 and later worked in the oil industry. During the 1950s, a book and a film, Reach for the Sky, chronicled his life and RAF career to the end of the Second World War. Bader campaigned for the disabled ? for which he was knighted in 1976 ? and continued to fly until ill health forced him to stop in 1979. He died three years later, on 5 September 1982, from a sudden heart attack. Though a war-hero he will still be remembered for coming off the bench and scoring occasionally whilst representing the RAF First XI at football.

Posted By: Cheltenham_Canary, Sep 3, 12:52:18