George Powell-Shedden
Encyclopedia
George Powell-Shedden DSO
with bar, DFC
(1 April 1916 – 31 October 1994) was a Royal Air Force
Pilot who flew during the Battle of Britain
and later went on to operational commands and a British
Olympic
bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s.
on the Isle of Wight
. The son of Lt Col Richmond Ffolliott Powell DSO (1880-?) and Alice Katherine Beatrix Shedden. Powell-Shedden was youngest of three brothers: Richmond Roscow Ffolliott Powell (born 1909) and Atherton George Ffolliott Powell (born 1912), later became a Lt Colonel in the Royal Welch Fusiliers
; he had one sister Rosemary Beatrix Ffolliot Powell. He assumed the surname of Powell-Shedden by deed poll of 9 August 1938.
He was educated at Wellington College
, where he became a sergeant in the Officers' Training Corps. After leaving school he entered the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, but then switched to the Royal Air Force College Cranwell
where he was commissioned on 19 December 1936.
, flying Vickers Vincent aircraft based at Khartoum
. In 1939 he was transferred to No. 33 Squadron RAF
, a fighter squadron equipped with Gloster Gladiator
biplanes for policing Palestine
.
Powell-Shedden served as blue flight commander in Group Captain Douglas Bader's
No. 242 Squadron RAF
. Though somewhat large for a Hawker Hurricane
cockpit, and handicapped by a pronounced stutter, Powell-Shedden was recommended to Bader as "a very good type".
Powell-Shedden joined the squadron June 1940. Powell-Shedden shot down at least four enemy aircraft.
On 15 September 1940, now known as Battle of Britain Day
, it was reported that Powell-Shedden was missing. It transpired that he had shot down a Dornier bomber and was chasing another when a Messerschmitt Me 109 came out of cloud behind him and set his Hurricane on fire. While baling out he hit the tail and dislocated a shoulder.
After the Battle of Britain Powell-Shedden was sent to No. 258 Squadron RAF
, another Hurricane squadron, as a flight commander; the next April he received his first command - that of No. 615 County of Surrey Squadron RAF
an Auxiliary Air Force Hurricane squadron.
He was promoted to the rank of Squadron Leader
in September 1941. Powell-Shedden was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross
in December 1941. The citation read:
, a Mosquito squadron, and then took command of No. 29 Squadron RAF
, a Mosquito squadron specialising in low-level night intruder missions before and after D-Day
. He was awarded the bar to his Distinguished Service Order
on 27 April 1945 for his leadership during many perilous missions with 100 Bomber Support Group.
and was promoted to the rank of Group Captain
on 1 January 1954. From 1954 to 1957 served on the operational staff at Naples. He was posted to the Air Ministry
in 1958.
He retired from the RAF in 1961.
bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s. At the 1948 Winter Olympics
in St. Moritz
, he finished 15th in the four-man event, with team mates James Iremonger
, Edgar Meddings
and Richard Jeffrey
.
. He was twice married, to Diana and Marietta, and had a son, Henry, and a daughter, Angela.
He died on 31 October 1994 in London.
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...
with bar, 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...
(1 April 1916 – 31 October 1994) was a 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...
Pilot who flew 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...
and later went on to operational commands and a British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
Olympic
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s.
Early life
He was born George Ffolliott Powell was born on 1 April 1916 in CowesCowes
Cowes is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east Bank...
on the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
. The son of Lt Col Richmond Ffolliott Powell DSO (1880-?) and Alice Katherine Beatrix Shedden. Powell-Shedden was youngest of three brothers: Richmond Roscow Ffolliott Powell (born 1909) and Atherton George Ffolliott Powell (born 1912), later became a Lt Colonel in the Royal Welch Fusiliers
Royal Welch Fusiliers
The Royal Welch Fusiliers was an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Prince of Wales' Division. It was founded in 1689 to oppose James II and the imminent war with France...
; he had one sister Rosemary Beatrix Ffolliot Powell. He assumed the surname of Powell-Shedden by deed poll of 9 August 1938.
He was educated at Wellington College
Wellington College
Wellington College may refer to:*Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England*Wellington College , Wellington, New Zealand*Wellington College Belfast, a grammar school in Belfast, Northern Ireland...
, where he became a sergeant in the Officers' Training Corps. After leaving school he entered the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, but then switched to the Royal Air Force College Cranwell
Royal Air Force College Cranwell
The Royal Air Force College is the Royal Air Force training and education academy which provides initial training to all RAF personnel who are preparing to be commissioned officers. The College also provides initial training to aircrew cadets and is responsible for all RAF recruiting along with...
where he was commissioned on 19 December 1936.
Royal Air Force
In 1937 he was posted to No. 47 Squadron RAFNo. 47 Squadron RAF
No. 47 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Hercules from RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.-First formation:No. 47 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was formed at Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire on 1 March 1916 as a home defence unit, protecting Hull and East Yorkshire against attack by German...
, flying Vickers Vincent aircraft based at Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
. In 1939 he was transferred to No. 33 Squadron RAF
No. 33 Squadron RAF
No. 33 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Puma HC.1 from RAF Benson, Oxfordshire.-Current role:The squadron is part of the RAF Support Helicopter force, which reports into the Joint Helicopter Command....
, a fighter squadron equipped with Gloster Gladiator
Gloster Gladiator
The Gloster Gladiator was a British-built biplane fighter. It was used by the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy and was exported to a number of other air forces during the late 1930s. It was the RAF's last biplane fighter aircraft and was rendered obsolete by newer monoplane designs even as it...
biplanes for policing Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
.
Battle of Britain
During the Battle of BritainBattle 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...
Powell-Shedden served as blue flight commander in Group Captain Douglas Bader's
Douglas Bader
Group Captain Sir Douglas Robert Steuart Bader CBE, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar, FRAeS, DL was a Royal Air Force 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.Bader joined the...
No. 242 Squadron RAF
No. 242 Squadron RAF
No. 242 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force squadron. It flew in many roles during its active service and it is also known for being the first squadron Douglas Bader commanded.-In World War I:No...
. Though somewhat large for a 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...
cockpit, and handicapped by a pronounced stutter, Powell-Shedden was recommended to Bader as "a very good type".
Powell-Shedden joined the squadron June 1940. Powell-Shedden shot down at least four enemy aircraft.
On 15 September 1940, now known as Battle of Britain Day
Battle of Britain Day
The Battle of Britain Day is the name given to the large-scale aerial battle that took place on 15 September 1940, during the Battle of Britain ....
, it was reported that Powell-Shedden was missing. It transpired that he had shot down a Dornier bomber and was chasing another when a Messerschmitt Me 109 came out of cloud behind him and set his Hurricane on fire. While baling out he hit the tail and dislocated a shoulder.
After the Battle of Britain Powell-Shedden was sent to No. 258 Squadron RAF
No. 258 Squadron RAF
RAF 258 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron during World War I and World War II.No. 258 Squadron was first formed 25 July 1918 from 523, 525 and 529 Special Duties Flights at Luce Bay near Stranraer, Scotland under the control of No. 25 Group. It was equipped with De Havilland DH.6 biplanes and...
, another Hurricane squadron, as a flight commander; the next April he received his first command - that of No. 615 County of Surrey Squadron RAF
No. 615 Squadron RAF
No. 615 Squadron was a unit of the British Auxiliary Air Force and later the Royal Auxiliary Air Force between 1937 and 1957.-Formation and early years:...
an Auxiliary Air Force Hurricane squadron.
Malta
In July 1941 he was posted to the island of Malta, where he formed the Malta Night Fighter Unit, a handful of Hurricanes working with searchlight and anti-aircraft gun crews.He was promoted to the rank of 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...
in September 1941. Powell-Shedden 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...
in December 1941. The citation read:
This officer has been involved in operations almost since the start of the war began. He served with a fighter squadron in the Middle East theatre of war until June, 1940, when he returned to this country and took part in the Battle of BritainBattle of BritainThe 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...
. In July, 1941, Squadron Leader Powell Shedden was posted to Malta where he formed the night flying unit which has since performed sterling work in the night defence of Malta. By his great and energetic organising ability, together with his courage and initiative in the air, Squadron Leader Powell Shedden has contributed materially to the successes obtained. He has destroyed at least 5 enemy aircraft 3 of which were during the Battle of Britain.
D-Day
In January 1944, after further courses and staff appointments, he resumed operational flying with No. 96 Squadron RAFNo. 96 Squadron RAF
No. 96 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron. The squadron served on the Western Front during World War II and the Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II. No. 96 Squadron served in a variety of roles such as night fighter cover and transportation. It was disbanded in 1959,...
, a Mosquito squadron, and then took command of 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...
, a Mosquito squadron specialising in low-level night intruder missions before and after D-Day
D-Day
D-Day is a term often used in military parlance to denote the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. "D-Day" often represents a variable, designating the day upon which some significant event will occur or has occurred; see Military designation of days and hours for similar...
. He was awarded the bar to his 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...
on 27 April 1945 for his leadership during many perilous missions with 100 Bomber Support Group.
Command Appointments
In 1952 Powell-Shedden received command of RAF Jever in GermanyRoyal Air Force Germany
The former Royal Air Force Germany was a command of the Royal Air Force and part of British Forces Germany, consisting of those units located in Germany initially as part of the occupation following World War II, and later as part of the RAF's commitment to the defence of Europe during the Cold...
and was promoted to the rank of 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...
on 1 January 1954. From 1954 to 1957 served on the operational staff at Naples. He was posted to the Air Ministry
Air Ministry
The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
in 1958.
He retired from the RAF in 1961.
Bobsledding
Powell-Shedden was also a BritishGreat Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s. At the 1948 Winter Olympics
1948 Winter Olympics
The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in 1948 in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The Games were the first to be celebrated after World War II; it had been twelve years since the last Winter Games in 1936...
in St. Moritz
St. Moritz
St. Moritz is a resort town in the Engadine valley in Switzerland. It is a municipality in the district of Maloja in the Swiss canton of Graubünden...
, he finished 15th in the four-man event, with team mates James Iremonger
James Iremonger (bobsleigh)
James Henry Iremonger was a British bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s. At the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, he finished 15th in the four-man event.-References:****...
, Edgar Meddings
Edgar Meddings
Edgar James Meddings was a British bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s. At the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, he finished 15th in the four-man event.-References:****...
and Richard Jeffrey
Richard Jeffrey (bobsleigh)
Richard Robert Jeffrey was a British bobsledder who competed in the late 1940s. At the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, he finished 15th in the four-man event.-References:****...
.
Later life
Powell-Shedden retired in 1961 to join the Stock Exchange and to farm in BuckinghamshireBuckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
. He was twice married, to Diana and Marietta, and had a son, Henry, and a daughter, Angela.
He died on 31 October 1994 in London.