Geoffrey Page
Encyclopedia
Alan Geoffrey Page DSO
, OBE
, DFC
& Bar
(16 May 1920 – 3 August 2000) was a British flying ace
of the Second World War, and a founding member of the Guinea Pig Club
.
, England, where his parents split up when he was young. He developed an early interest in aviation, perhaps not surprisingly as he had an uncle who flew in World War I and another was the aircraft manufacturer, Sir Frederick Handley Page
.
Page was educated at Dean Close School
, Cheltenham
, and later studied Engineering at Imperial College, where he took advantage of the free Royal Air Force
flying training available, and joined the University Air Squadron at Northolt
.
. After advanced training at Cranwell
, Page was assessed as "exceptional" and assigned, against his wishes, to a flying instructor's role> However in May 1940 he received a posting to No. 66 Squadron, flying Spitfire
s. However, this posting was a blunder by the RAF, and Page was almost immediately reposted to No. 56 Squadron to fly Hawker Hurricanes.
On 13 July Page claimed a 'He 113' shot down and on 20 July claimed a third share in a recce Ju 88 of 4(F)/122, the crew becoming POWs. He next downed an StG. 1 Ju 87 off Dover on 25 July. He was shot down on 12 August 1940 during the Battle of Britain
. Flying behind his commanding officer, attacking a large formation of Dornier Do 17
bombers, Page's Hurricane (P2970) was hit and caught fire. The fuel tank in front of him spewed burning high-octane fuel into the cockpit, covering Page. His uncovered hands and face were so badly burnt that as he descended in his parachute, he could smell his own flesh burning.
in East Grinstead
, where the pioneering plastic surgeon Sir Archibald MacIndoe was rebuilding the bodies of disfigured servicemen. Both of his hands were burnt down to the bone, and his head had swollen to about three times its normal size. Page had also sustained gunshot wounds to both legs. During his time in hospital, Page became a founding member of the Guinea Pig Club
, Maclndoe himself was elected life president and Page was the first chairman.
He joined No. 132 Squadron as a supernumerary Flight Lieutenant, before volunteering for service in North Africa. The heat however had an effect on his skin grafts and he returned to the UK.
A posting to the Air Fighting Development Unit
(AFDU) at Wittering
followed. There, flying the North American Mustang Mark I, he teamed up with Squadron Leader James "Mac" MacLachlan, a pilot who. despite losing an arm over Malta in 1941, had like Page overcome his disability and returned to fly operationally. On one sortie south of Paris on 29 June 1943, the pair accounted for six enemy aircraft in ten minutes; three FW 86 aircraft of JG 105 were lost, along with a Ju 88 of KG 6. Page was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross
for this action. Another such sortie on 18 July saw MacLachlan shot down and killed. Page returned to hospital for more skin grafts.
Later in the year he joined 122 Squadron as a Flight Commander, before re-joining No. 132 Squadron in January 1944 as Commanding Officer. On 29 April he led his squadron to strafe Deelen
airfield in Holland, and attacked a Bf 110 night fighter that was landing. Despite the odds the Bf 110 shot down two Spitfires before Page forced the aircraft down and destroyed it. This night fighter was flown by Experte Major Hans-Joachim Jabs
of NJG 1, who survived and met with Page after the war.
In September 1944 Page, now Wing Leader of 125 Wing, crashed and was again injured, breaking a bone in his back.
Page was again sent back to MacIndoe for a further operation, this time being informed that there was no chance of him ever flying again. By this time Page had already achieved his goal of 15 "kills" ( 10 solo, 5 shared, and 3 damaged) and had been decorated with the Distinguished Service Order
and the Distinguished Flying Cross & Bar
. He was later made an Officer of the Order of Orange Nassau by Wilhelmina, Queen of The Netherlands
for his part in the Battle of Arnhem
.
After Page was released from hospital in early 1945 he was sent to the United States of America to lecture on the RAF. Whilst there Page became good friends with the actor Nigel Bruce
and his wife Violet, who were later to become his parents-in-law.
Awarded the DSO in 1945, part of his citation read: "Apart from his individual exploits, Wing Commander Page has infused the entire wing with his fighting spirit. Under his command 60 enemy aircraft have been destroyed."
In the spring of 1945 Page underwent further surgery before being attached to Vickers Armstrong as a test pilot. Geoffrey Page returned to England just as Germany surrendered. He took his discharge from the RAF in 1946 with the rank of Wing Commander.
with C. Aubrey Smith as his best man.
He then commanded No 64 Squadron, flying the DH Hornet, and in 1947 was appointed personal assistant to the senior RAF officer at the UN military staff commission in New York. In 1948 he left the RAF and joined Vickers Armstrong
as a sales executive and later became an international aviation consultant based in Switzerland.
In retirement, as well as remaining the driving force of the Guinea Pig Club, Page founded the Battle of Britain Trust. This raised more than £1 million, with which the Battle of Britain memorial was erected overlooking the Straits of Dover, to commemorate those who kept Nazi Germany at bay. He was created an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1995 for his efforts.
Page published his autobiography Tale of a Guinea Pig in 1981, and a revised edition Shot Down in Flames appeared in 1999.
Geoffrey Page died on 3 August 2000, survived by his wife, a daughter and two sons.
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...
, OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, DFC
Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other services, and formerly to officers of other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against...
& Bar
Medal bar
A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...
(16 May 1920 – 3 August 2000) was a British flying ace
Flying ace
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
of the Second World War, and a founding member of the Guinea Pig Club
Guinea Pig Club
The Guinea Pig Club was formed of patients of Archibald McIndoe at Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead, Sussex who underwent reconstructive plastic surgery during World War II, generally after receiving burn injuries in aircraft....
.
Early life
Geoffrey Page was born on 16 May 1920 in BoxmoorBoxmoor
Boxmoor, or Boxmoor Village, is a district of Dacorum in Hertfordshire, England. It is now part of Hemel Hempstead. It is a district of mainly nineteenth century housing and meadowland, repeatedly cut through by transport links from London to the The Midlands....
, England, where his parents split up when he was young. He developed an early interest in aviation, perhaps not surprisingly as he had an uncle who flew in World War I and another was the aircraft manufacturer, Sir Frederick Handley Page
Frederick Handley Page
Sir Frederick Handley Page, CBE, FRAeS was an English industrialist who was a pioneer in the design and manufacture of aircraft. His company Handley Page Limited produced a series of military aircraft, including the Halifax bomber in World War II, of which around 7,000 were produced...
.
Page was educated at Dean Close School
Dean Close School
Dean Close School is a co-educational independent school in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school is divided into pre-prep, preparatory and senior schools located on separate but adjacent sites outside Cheltenham town centre, occupying the largest private land area in the town...
, Cheltenham
Cheltenham
Cheltenham , also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a large spa town and borough in Gloucestershire, on the edge of the Cotswolds in the South-West region of England. It is the home of the flagship race of British steeplechase horse racing, the Gold Cup, the main event of the Cheltenham Festival held...
, and later studied Engineering at Imperial College, where he took advantage of the free 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...
flying training available, and joined the University Air Squadron at Northolt
RAF Northolt
RAF Northolt is a Royal Air Force station situated in South Ruislip, east by northeast of Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. Approximately north of London Heathrow Airport, the station also handles a large number of private civil flights...
.
Second World War
Two weeks after the outbreak of the Second World War, Page received his call-up papers and joined the RAF with the rank of Acting Pilot OfficerActing Pilot Officer
Acting Pilot Officer is the lowest commissioned grade in the Royal Air Force, being immediately junior to Pilot Officer. Unlike other RAF ranks which officers may hold in an acting capacity, Acting Pilot Officer is maintained as a separate grade. It normally denotes an officer who has recently...
. After advanced training at Cranwell
Cranwell
Cranwell is a village situated in the North Kesteven district of Lincolnshire. It is part of the Civil Parish of Cranwell and Byard's Leap and is located 3.95 miles north-north-west of Sleaford and 16.3 miles south-east of the county town of Lincoln...
, Page was assessed as "exceptional" and assigned, against his wishes, to a flying instructor's role> However in May 1940 he received a posting to No. 66 Squadron, flying Spitfire
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...
s. However, this posting was a blunder by the RAF, and Page was almost immediately reposted to No. 56 Squadron to fly Hawker Hurricanes.
On 13 July Page claimed a 'He 113' shot down and on 20 July claimed a third share in a recce Ju 88 of 4(F)/122, the crew becoming POWs. He next downed an StG. 1 Ju 87 off Dover on 25 July. He was shot down on 12 August 1940 during the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
. Flying behind his commanding officer, attacking a large formation of Dornier Do 17
Dornier Do 17
The Dornier Do 17, sometimes referred to as the Fliegender Bleistift , was a World War II German light bomber produced by Claudius Dornier's company, Dornier Flugzeugwerke...
bombers, Page's Hurricane (P2970) was hit and caught fire. The fuel tank in front of him spewed burning high-octane fuel into the cockpit, covering Page. His uncovered hands and face were so badly burnt that as he descended in his parachute, he could smell his own flesh burning.
Guinea Pig 1940–42
After being picked up from the icy sea in near-mortal agony, he eventually arrived at the Burns Unit at Queen Victoria HospitalQueen Victoria Hospital
The Queen Victoria Hospital, located in East Grinstead, West Sussex, England is the specialist reconstructive surgery centre for the south east of England, and also provides services at clinics across the region. It has become world famous for its pioneering burns and plastic surgery. The hospital...
in East Grinstead
East Grinstead
East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...
, where the pioneering plastic surgeon Sir Archibald MacIndoe was rebuilding the bodies of disfigured servicemen. Both of his hands were burnt down to the bone, and his head had swollen to about three times its normal size. Page had also sustained gunshot wounds to both legs. During his time in hospital, Page became a founding member of the Guinea Pig Club
Guinea Pig Club
The Guinea Pig Club was formed of patients of Archibald McIndoe at Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead, Sussex who underwent reconstructive plastic surgery during World War II, generally after receiving burn injuries in aircraft....
, Maclndoe himself was elected life president and Page was the first chairman.
Return to operations 1943–45
Due to the burns sustained to both of his hands, it was deemed unlikely that Page would be able to fly again, but due to his hatred of the enemy, determined spirit, and MacIndoe's outstanding work during fifteen operations, Page succeeded in first gaining limited-flight permission, eventually achieving full operational status in 1942. From that moment on, Page vowed to shoot down at least one enemy aircraft for each of the fifteen operations he had to endure.He joined No. 132 Squadron as a supernumerary Flight Lieutenant, before volunteering for service in North Africa. The heat however had an effect on his skin grafts and he returned to the UK.
A posting to the Air Fighting Development Unit
Air Fighting Development Unit
The Air Fighting Development Unit was an air technical intelligence part of the Royal Air Force which developed operational tactics and tested captured enemy aircraft. It was based at Royal Air Force Stations at Northolt, Duxford and Wittering....
(AFDU) at Wittering
Wittering
Wittering may refer to,* Wittering, Cambridgeshire, formerly in Northamptonshire** RAF Wittering, near the above* Wittering, Sussex, which is divided into:** East Wittering** West Wittering...
followed. There, flying the North American Mustang Mark I, he teamed up with Squadron Leader James "Mac" MacLachlan, a pilot who. despite losing an arm over Malta in 1941, had like Page overcome his disability and returned to fly operationally. On one sortie south of Paris on 29 June 1943, the pair accounted for six enemy aircraft in ten minutes; three FW 86 aircraft of JG 105 were lost, along with a Ju 88 of KG 6. Page was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other services, and formerly to officers of other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against...
for this action. Another such sortie on 18 July saw MacLachlan shot down and killed. Page returned to hospital for more skin grafts.
Later in the year he joined 122 Squadron as a Flight Commander, before re-joining No. 132 Squadron in January 1944 as Commanding Officer. On 29 April he led his squadron to strafe Deelen
Deelen
Deelen is a village in the Dutch province of Gelderland. It is largely located in the municipality of Ede, Netherlands, but a small part lies in the municipality of Arnhem.Deelen is best known for the Deelen Air Base, a military airfield close to the village....
airfield in Holland, and attacked a Bf 110 night fighter that was landing. Despite the odds the Bf 110 shot down two Spitfires before Page forced the aircraft down and destroyed it. This night fighter was flown by Experte Major Hans-Joachim Jabs
Hans-Joachim Jabs
Hans-Joachim Jabs was both a day and night fighter aceFor a list of Luftwaffe night fighter aces see List of German World War II night fighter aces in the German Luftwaffe during World War II. 50 victories28 victories at night were scored...
of NJG 1, who survived and met with Page after the war.
In September 1944 Page, now Wing Leader of 125 Wing, crashed and was again injured, breaking a bone in his back.
Page was again sent back to MacIndoe for a further operation, this time being informed that there was no chance of him ever flying again. By this time Page had already achieved his goal of 15 "kills" ( 10 solo, 5 shared, and 3 damaged) and had been decorated with the Distinguished Service Order
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...
and the Distinguished Flying Cross & Bar
Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other services, and formerly to officers of other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against...
. He was later made an Officer of the Order of Orange Nassau by Wilhelmina, Queen of The Netherlands
Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
Wilhelmina was Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Netherlands from 1890 to 1948. She ruled the Netherlands for fifty-eight years, longer than any other Dutch monarch. Her reign saw World War I and World War II, the economic crisis of 1933, and the decline of the Netherlands as a major colonial...
for his part in the Battle of Arnhem
Battle of Arnhem
The Battle of Arnhem was a famous Second World War military engagement fought in and around the Dutch towns of Arnhem, Oosterbeek, Wolfheze, Driel and the surrounding countryside from 17–26 September 1944....
.
After Page was released from hospital in early 1945 he was sent to the United States of America to lecture on the RAF. Whilst there Page became good friends with the actor Nigel Bruce
Nigel Bruce
William Nigel Ernle Bruce , best known as Nigel Bruce, was a British character actor on stage and screen. He was best known for his portrayal of Doctor Watson in a series of films and in the radio series The New Adventures of Sherlock Holmes...
and his wife Violet, who were later to become his parents-in-law.
Awarded the DSO in 1945, part of his citation read: "Apart from his individual exploits, Wing Commander Page has infused the entire wing with his fighting spirit. Under his command 60 enemy aircraft have been destroyed."
In the spring of 1945 Page underwent further surgery before being attached to Vickers Armstrong as a test pilot. Geoffrey Page returned to England just as Germany surrendered. He took his discharge from the RAF in 1946 with the rank of Wing Commander.
Later life
In 1946, Page married Pauline Bruce (daughter of British actor Nigel Bruce) in CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
with C. Aubrey Smith as his best man.
He then commanded No 64 Squadron, flying the DH Hornet, and in 1947 was appointed personal assistant to the senior RAF officer at the UN military staff commission in New York. In 1948 he left the RAF and joined Vickers Armstrong
Vickers Armstrong
Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927...
as a sales executive and later became an international aviation consultant based in Switzerland.
In retirement, as well as remaining the driving force of the Guinea Pig Club, Page founded the Battle of Britain Trust. This raised more than £1 million, with which the Battle of Britain memorial was erected overlooking the Straits of Dover, to commemorate those who kept Nazi Germany at bay. He was created an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1995 for his efforts.
Page published his autobiography Tale of a Guinea Pig in 1981, and a revised edition Shot Down in Flames appeared in 1999.
Geoffrey Page died on 3 August 2000, survived by his wife, a daughter and two sons.