Cathcart Wight-Boycott
Encyclopedia
Air Commodore
Cathcart Michael Wight-Boycott CBE DSO and bar
MA
, RAF R’td
(18 August 1910 – December 1998) was a British fighter pilot
during the Second World War and a senior Royal Air Force
officer during the post-war years. As an Air Commodore in 1961 Wight-Boycott became the 10th Commandant Royal Observer Corps
.
at Cambridge University where he joined the Cambridge University Air Squadron
that was based at RAF Duxford and learned to fly in 1930. After leaving university he joined the Metropolitan Police
as a non-uniformed civilian administrator.
In September 1937 Wight-Boycott joined the RAF Volunteer Reserve
as a Pilot Officer
in his spare time and undertook advanced combat training on Hawker Hurricane
s. He was promoted to Flying Officer
in the RAFVR before enlisting on a short service commission in the RAF at the start of the Second World War in September 1939.
and his first posting was as a QFI
at No. 1 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School, Hatfield
where he remained until May 1941. He was sent on a course at No. 54 Operational Training Unit before receiving a combat posting as a fighter pilot with No. 219 Squadron RAF
. In July 1941 he was promoted again to Acting Squadron Leader
and appointed as flight commander of ‘B’ flight.
In September 1942 his rank of Squadron Leader having been made substantive he was promoted to Acting Wing Commander
and posted to RAF West Malling
as Officer Commanding No. 29 Squadron RAF
flying Bristol Beaufighter
s. Between December 1942 and January 1943 he took the additional temporary role of Station Commander at West Malling.
In February 1943, he was reverted to Squadron Leader (War Substantive)
before he was posted in to No. 81 Group RAF
as a headquarters staff officer. In July that year Wight-Boycott returned to operational flying as an Acting Wing Commander and Officer Commanding No. 9 Group RAF
. In the September he was appointed Officer Commanding No. 25 Squadron RAF flying de Havilland Mosquito
s. Wight-Boycott finished the air war with a score of seven aircraft destroyed, two damaged and two V-1 flying bomb
s shot down and destroyed.
In September 1944 Wight-Boycott was posted as a Headquarters Staff Officer with No. 12 Group RAF
but only a few months later moved to an appointment as Station Commander of RAF Church Fenton
. In early 1945 he moved, again as Station Commander, to RAF Molesworth
home of the USAF 303rd Bombardment Group
and remained there until September when he attended a ‘’Methods of Instruction’’ course at the RAF Senior Staff College.
Following his course he became an instructor at the RAF’s Officers’ Advanced Training School. As the war ended Wight-Boycott was confirmed as a permanent commission officer in the substantive rank of Squadron Leader. In July 1947 he was promoted to Wing Commander
with seniority and pay backdated to October 1946. In February 1948 he was posted as the Air Staff Officer at Headquarters, RAF Middle East. He returned to the UK in 1950 on the staff at Headquarters Southern Sector, Fighter Command at RAF Colerne
.
Promoted to Group Captain
in July 1952 he took up the appointment of Station Commander at Colerne where remained until 1954 when he became a QFI at the RAF Flying College, RAF Manby in Lincolnshire
. In April 1955 he was posted to RAF Luqa
as Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) at Air Headquarters Malta
.
On the 13 January 1958 he was appointed the RAF’s Director of Operational Requirements (A), moving sideways as Director of Organisation/Logistics (Forecasting and Planning) in September that year.
and was appointed as the tenth Commandant of the Royal Observer Corps
, taking over from Air Commodore J M Warfield. He had taken over the ROC at a crucial time in its development, as the building programme of 1,500 underground monitoring posts and 31 operational group controls, to provide protected accommodation during nuclear warfare, had just started all over the UK. As Commandant, Wight-Boycott found himself travelling the country to perform endless opening ceremonies as each new Group Control bunker was commissioned and declared operational.
In the course of the massive consolidation of the organisation nine previous ROC groups were disestablished and closed. Some spare time observers were able to transfer to nearby groups but many others, together with the groups' civilian staffs, found that their services were no longer required and they were stood down. The professional wholetime officers from the closed group headquarters were declared supernumerary, redesignated as Mobile Training Officers and spent the next few years moving from group to group covering holiday and illness absences by other officers. The arrangement continued until natural wastage had reduced the cadre back to the new manning levels.
In July 1961 Wight-Boycott presented a Royal Observer Corps long-service medal
to the Battle of Britain Class locomotive Royal Observer Corps that had started its service with the Great Western Railway company in December 1948. The ceremony took place at Waterloo Station
. The locomotive's cab was repainted with a representation of the medal and its ribbon and displayed it until the engine was withdrawn from service and broken up in the late 1960s. Following the engine's break up its original nameplate and front badge were recovered and displayed in the entrance hall of Headquarters ROC at RAF Bentley Priory
, until 1996 when it was transferred to the RAF Museum.
On the 3 June 1964 Air Commodore Wight-Boycott retired from the RAF and handed over command of the Corps to Air Commodore J H Greswell.
. Wight-Boycott's son also served in the RAF and is recorded as being a Group Captain and serving as Regional Commandant of Scotland and Northern Ireland ATC.
Air Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Cathcart Michael Wight-Boycott CBE DSO and bar
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
MA
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
, RAF R’td
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
(18 August 1910 – December 1998) was a British fighter pilot
Fighter pilot
A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained in air-to-air combat while piloting a fighter aircraft . Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and dogfighting...
during the Second World War and a senior Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
officer during the post-war years. As an Air Commodore in 1961 Wight-Boycott became the 10th Commandant Royal Observer Corps
Commandant Royal Observer Corps
The Commandant of the Royal Observer Corps was the Royal Air Force commander of the Royal Observer Corps. All the holders of the post were RAF officers in the rank of Air Commodore, initially retired reserve officers then Auxiliary officers and, since the end of World War II, serving officers...
.
Early life
Wight-Boycott attended Clare CollegeClare College, Cambridge
Clare College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1326, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the University after Peterhouse. Clare is famous for its chapel choir and for its gardens on "the Backs"...
at Cambridge University where he joined the Cambridge University Air Squadron
Cambridge University Air Squadron
Cambridge University Air Squadron, abbreviated CUAS, formed in 1925, is the training unit of the Royal Air Force at the University of Cambridge and forms part of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. It is the oldest of 14 University Air Squadrons in the UK...
that was based at RAF Duxford and learned to fly in 1930. After leaving university he joined the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan police
Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
as a non-uniformed civilian administrator.
In September 1937 Wight-Boycott joined the RAF Volunteer Reserve
Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve consists of a number of groupings of individual military reservists for the management and operation of the Royal Air Force's Air Training Corps and CCF Air Cadet formations, Volunteer Gliding Squadrons , Air Experience Flights, and also to form the...
as a Pilot Officer
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer...
in his spare time and undertook advanced combat training on Hawker Hurricane
Hawker Hurricane
The Hawker Hurricane is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd for the Royal Air Force...
s. He was promoted to Flying Officer
Flying Officer
Flying officer is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence...
in the RAFVR before enlisting on a short service commission in the RAF at the start of the Second World War in September 1939.
Royal Air Force
After joining the RAF he was promoted to Flight LieutenantFlight Lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...
and his first posting was as a QFI
Qualified Flying Instructor
Qualified Flying Instructor is a term mainly used in the UK and commonwealth Military, Army, Navy and Air Force for a person who has passed the appropriate course before being allowed to instruct in an aircraft. In the USA and elsewhere, the equivalent term is "IP"...
at No. 1 Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School, Hatfield
Hatfield Aerodrome
Hatfield Aerodrome, formerly , was an airfield and aircraft factory located in the town of Hatfield, Hertfordshire from 1930 until its closure and redevelopment in the 1990s.-Early history:...
where he remained until May 1941. He was sent on a course at No. 54 Operational Training Unit before receiving a combat posting as a fighter pilot with No. 219 Squadron RAF
No. 219 Squadron RAF
No. 219 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was originally founded in 1918 and disbanded in 1957 after four separate periods of service. During the First World War it served as a coastal defence unit, and through most of the Second World War and the 1950s it operated as a night fighter air defence...
. In July 1941 he was promoted again to Acting Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
and appointed as flight commander of ‘B’ flight.
In September 1942 his rank of Squadron Leader having been made substantive he was promoted to Acting Wing Commander
Wing Commander (rank)
Wing commander is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries...
and posted to RAF West Malling
RAF West Malling
RAF West Malling was a Royal Air Force station near West Malling in Kent, England.Originally used as a landing area during the first World War, the site opened as a private landing ground and in 1930, then known as Kingshill, home to the Maidstone School of Flying, before being renamed West Malling...
as Officer Commanding No. 29 Squadron RAF
No. 29 Squadron RAF
No. 29 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was first raised in 1915, and is one of the world's oldest fighter squadrons. The second British squadron to receive the Eurofighter Typhoon, it is currently the Operational Conversion Unit for the RAF's newest fighter.-Service in World War I:This unit was...
flying Bristol Beaufighter
Bristol Beaufighter
The Bristol Type 156 Beaufighter, often referred to as simply the Beau, was a British long-range heavy fighter modification of the Bristol Aeroplane Company's earlier Beaufort torpedo bomber design...
s. Between December 1942 and January 1943 he took the additional temporary role of Station Commander at West Malling.
In February 1943, he was reverted to Squadron Leader (War Substantive)
Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
before he was posted in to No. 81 Group RAF
No. 81 Group RAF
No. 81 Group was a group within the Royal Air Force's Fighter Command during the Second World War and the post-war era.-History:The group was formed on 16 December 1940 at RAF Sealand as part of Fighter Command to control the Operational Training Unit...
as a headquarters staff officer. In July that year Wight-Boycott returned to operational flying as an Acting Wing Commander and Officer Commanding No. 9 Group RAF
No. 9 Group RAF
-History:No. 9 Group RAF was first formed on 1 April 1918 in No. 2 Area. The next month it was transferred to South-Western Area and then disbanded on 15 May 1919....
. In the September he was appointed Officer Commanding No. 25 Squadron RAF flying de Havilland Mosquito
De Havilland Mosquito
The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito was a British multi-role combat aircraft that served during the Second World War and the postwar era. It was known affectionately as the "Mossie" to its crews and was also nicknamed "The Wooden Wonder"...
s. Wight-Boycott finished the air war with a score of seven aircraft destroyed, two damaged and two V-1 flying bomb
V-1 flying bomb
The V-1 flying bomb, also known as the Buzz Bomb or Doodlebug, was an early pulse-jet-powered predecessor of the cruise missile....
s shot down and destroyed.
In September 1944 Wight-Boycott was posted as a Headquarters Staff Officer with No. 12 Group RAF
No. 12 Group RAF
No. 12 Group of the Royal Air Force was a command organization that exisited over two separate periods, namely the end of World War I when it had a training function and from just prior to World War II until the early 1960s when it was tasked with an air defence role.No. 12 Group was first formed...
but only a few months later moved to an appointment as Station Commander of RAF Church Fenton
RAF Church Fenton
RAF Church Fenton is a Royal Air Force airfield at Church Fenton in North Yorkshire, England.- History :Plans for a new airfield adjacent to the village of Church Fenton were announced in June 1935, it was subject to protest from the local population particularly concerning the waste of valuable...
. In early 1945 he moved, again as Station Commander, to RAF Molesworth
RAF Molesworth
RAF Molesworth is a Royal Air Force station located near Molesworth, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom with a history dating back to 1917.Its runway and flight line facilities were closed in 1973 and demolished to support ground-launched cruise missile operations in the early 1980s...
home of the USAF 303rd Bombardment Group
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
and remained there until September when he attended a ‘’Methods of Instruction’’ course at the RAF Senior Staff College.
Following his course he became an instructor at the RAF’s Officers’ Advanced Training School. As the war ended Wight-Boycott was confirmed as a permanent commission officer in the substantive rank of Squadron Leader. In July 1947 he was promoted to Wing Commander
Wing Commander (rank)
Wing commander is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries...
with seniority and pay backdated to October 1946. In February 1948 he was posted as the Air Staff Officer at Headquarters, RAF Middle East. He returned to the UK in 1950 on the staff at Headquarters Southern Sector, Fighter Command at RAF Colerne
RAF Colerne
RAF Colerne now known as Colerne Airfield or AEF Colerne is a former World War II RAF Fighter Command and Bomber Command airfield located on the outskirts of the village of Colerne, Wiltshire...
.
Promoted to Group Captain
Group Captain
Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks above wing commander and immediately below air commodore...
in July 1952 he took up the appointment of Station Commander at Colerne where remained until 1954 when he became a QFI at the RAF Flying College, RAF Manby in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. In April 1955 he was posted to RAF Luqa
RAF Luqa
Royal Air Force Luqa was a flying station and location of RAF Mediterranean Command headquarters of the Royal Air Force on the island of Malta during World War II...
as Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) at Air Headquarters Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
.
On the 13 January 1958 he was appointed the RAF’s Director of Operational Requirements (A), moving sideways as Director of Organisation/Logistics (Forecasting and Planning) in September that year.
Royal Observer Corps
On the 1 July 1958 Wight-Boycott received his final promotion to Air CommodoreAir Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
and was appointed as the tenth Commandant of the Royal Observer Corps
Royal Observer Corps
The Royal Observer Corps was a civil defence organisation operating in the United Kingdom between 29 October 1925 and 31 December 1995, when the Corps' civilian volunteers were stood down....
, taking over from Air Commodore J M Warfield. He had taken over the ROC at a crucial time in its development, as the building programme of 1,500 underground monitoring posts and 31 operational group controls, to provide protected accommodation during nuclear warfare, had just started all over the UK. As Commandant, Wight-Boycott found himself travelling the country to perform endless opening ceremonies as each new Group Control bunker was commissioned and declared operational.
In the course of the massive consolidation of the organisation nine previous ROC groups were disestablished and closed. Some spare time observers were able to transfer to nearby groups but many others, together with the groups' civilian staffs, found that their services were no longer required and they were stood down. The professional wholetime officers from the closed group headquarters were declared supernumerary, redesignated as Mobile Training Officers and spent the next few years moving from group to group covering holiday and illness absences by other officers. The arrangement continued until natural wastage had reduced the cadre back to the new manning levels.
In July 1961 Wight-Boycott presented a Royal Observer Corps long-service medal
Royal Observer Corps Medal
The Royal Observer Corps Medal is a long service medal awarded in the United Kingdom to members of the Royal Observer Corps relating to service between 1941 and December 1995, when the ROC was stood down. The medal was initiated in 1950 by HM King George Vl...
to the Battle of Britain Class locomotive Royal Observer Corps that had started its service with the Great Western Railway company in December 1948. The ceremony took place at Waterloo Station
Waterloo station
Waterloo station, also known as London Waterloo, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. The station is owned and operated by Network Rail and is close to the South Bank of the River Thames, and in Travelcard Zone 1....
. The locomotive's cab was repainted with a representation of the medal and its ribbon and displayed it until the engine was withdrawn from service and broken up in the late 1960s. Following the engine's break up its original nameplate and front badge were recovered and displayed in the entrance hall of Headquarters ROC at RAF Bentley Priory
RAF Bentley Priory
RAF Bentley Priory was a non-flying Royal Air Force station near Stanmore in the London Borough of Harrow. It was famous as the headquarters of Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain and the Second World War. The RAF Bentley Priory site includes a Grade II* listed Officers' Mess and Italian...
, until 1996 when it was transferred to the RAF Museum.
On the 3 June 1964 Air Commodore Wight-Boycott retired from the RAF and handed over command of the Corps to Air Commodore J H Greswell.
Retired appointment
Following his retirement from active service in 1964 Wight-Boycott remained in uniform as a retired 'C' class status Senior Staff Officer in charge of flying training at the Headquarters of the Air CadetsAir Cadets
Air Cadets may refer to:* Members of the British Air Training Corps or Combined Cadet Force* Members of the Australian Air Force Cadets* Members of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets* Members of the New Zealand Air Training Corps, New Zealand Cadet Forces...
. Wight-Boycott's son also served in the RAF and is recorded as being a Group Captain and serving as Regional Commandant of Scotland and Northern Ireland ATC.
Honours and awards
- 5 February 1943 - Distinguished Service OrderDistinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
in recognition of gallantry displayed in flying operations against the enemy to Acting Wing Commander Cathcart Michael Wight-Boycott (72005), Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, No. 29 SquadronNo. 29 Squadron RAFNo. 29 Squadron of the Royal Air Force was first raised in 1915, and is one of the world's oldest fighter squadrons. The second British squadron to receive the Eurofighter Typhoon, it is currently the Operational Conversion Unit for the RAF's newest fighter.-Service in World War I:This unit was...
. Since July, 1941, Wing Commander Wight-Boycott has completed much operational flying by night. He was appointed to command his squadron in September 1942. In January, 1943, during an enemy air attack, he displayed outstanding skill and keenness and destroyed 4 enemy aircraft. Wing Commander Wight-Boycott's exceptional personal feat and the fine performance of his squadron was in keeping with his reputation for outstanding enthusiasm and thoroughness.
- 21 November 1944 - Bar to the Distinguished Service OrderDistinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
to Acting Wing Commander Cathcart Michael Wight-Boycott DSO (72005) RAFVR, No. 25 Squadron.