Air Vice Marshal George Stacey Hodson began his military career as an English World War I 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...

 credited with 10 aerial victories. In the course of his 34 years service to his nation, he rose to become a major commander during World War II.

Personal life

George Stacey Hodson was born on 2 May 1899. He was educated at Dulwich School. He died on 1 October 1976 at Bognor Regis.

Promotions and appointments

9 September 1917: commissioned as a probationary temporary second lieutenant

Second Lieutenant

Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces.- United Kingdom and Commonwealth :The rank second lieutenant was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery, Royal...

 in the British Army

British Army

The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...

; advanced to temporary second lieutenant on 28 October 1917. Later promoted to lieutenant

Lieutenant

A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

.

1 April 1918: became lieutenant in the Royal Air Force on its first day in existence.

Duty assignments

9 September 1917: began pilot training in the Royal Flying Corps

Royal Flying Corps

The Royal Flying Corps was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. During the early part of the war, the RFC's responsibilities were centred on support of the British Army, via artillery co-operation and photographic reconnaissance...

. Upon completion of training, on 28 October 1917 he was posted to 73 Squadron as a pilot.

April 1918: assigned to instructor duty.

August 1918: transferred to 213 Squadron as a pilot.

Promotions and appointments

1 August 1919: appointed 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...

24 October 1919: granted short service commission as 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...

.

17 December 1920: granted permanent commission as 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...

; seniority 24 October 1919.

1 July 1925: promoted to Flight Lieutenant

Flight 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"...

1 August 1935: promoted to 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...

.

1 July 1938: 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...

Duty assignments

March 1919: pilot at No. 11 Aircraft Park

Assigned to the Care and Maintenance Party, RAF Norwich

Norwich International Airport

Norwich International Airport , also known as Norwich Airport, is an airport in the City of Norwich within Norfolk, England north of the city centre and on the edge of the city's suburbs....

. 1 April 1920: assigned to same duty at RAF Lincoln.

15 March 1921: posted to No. 1 Flying Training School.

14 September 1923: assigned to 55 Squadron.

17 October 1925: posted to No. 4 Flying Training School.

14 February 1928: supernumerary to RAF Depot.

30 July 1928: assigned to No. 5 Flying Training School.

21 February 1931: assigned as Flight Commander in 58 Squadron. 7 October: became Adjutant

Adjutant

Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...

 and Instructor.

1 Octoberr 1935: assigned as Squadron Commander of No. 11 Flying Training School.

24 February 1938: began an exchange posting with the Royal New Zealand Air Force

Royal New Zealand Air Force

The Royal New Zealand Air Force is the air arm of the New Zealand Defence Force...

. April 1938: took command of RNZAF Wigram

Wigram Aerodrome

Wigram Aerodrome is a former Royal New Zealand Air Force base located in the Christchurch suburb of Wigram. It is named after Sir Henry Wigram. Originally home to the RNZAF Central Flying School , it was decommissioned in 1995 following the CFS' relocation to RNZAF Ohakea two years earlier.Wigram...

 near Christchurch

Christchurch

Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...

, New Zealand.

Promotions and appointments

1 December 1940: appointed temporary 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...

June 1942: surrendered command of RNZAF Wigram.

1 November 1942: appointed acting Air Commodore

Air Commodore

Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...

.

1 May 1943: promoted to War Substantive 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...

.

1 December 1943: appointed temporary Air Commodore

9 August 1944: appointed acting Air Vice Marshal

23 January 1945: confirmed as 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...

 with seniority of 1 June 1944.

9 August 1945: appointed War Substantive Air Commodore.

1 September 1945: relinquished appointment as acting Air Vice Marshal.

Duty assignments

6 April 1940: exchange posting with the Royal New Zealand Air Force altered to special duty.

1 May 1943: became Air Officer Commanding

Air Officer Commanding

Air Officer Commanding is a title given in the air forces of Commonwealth nations to an air officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, an air vice marshal might be the AOC 38 Group...

, No. 44 Base RAF, RAF Holme-on-Spalding Moor

RAF Holme-on-Spalding Moor

RAF Holme-on-Spalding Moor, or more simply RAF Holme as it was also known, was an airfield in Yorkshire. Built during the Second World War, it was used during the war by the Royal Air Force as a bomber station, and after the war as a transport base and bomb store before being "mothballed"...

.

9 August 1944: assigned as Air Officer Commanding

Air Officer Commanding

Air Officer Commanding is a title given in the air forces of Commonwealth nations to an air officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, an air vice marshal might be the AOC 38 Group...

, No. 93 Group RAF.

23 February 1945: assigned as AOC No. 92 Group RAF.

August 1945: Air Officer Training, Headquarters RAF Bomber Command

RAF Bomber Command

RAF Bomber Command controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s stood at the peak of its postwar military power with the V bombers and a supplemental...

Promotions and appointments

19 January 1947: again appointed acting Air Vice Marshal.

1 July 1947: promoted to Air Commodore.

1 January 1950: promoted to Air Vice Marshal.

Duty assignments

1 April 1946 assigned as Air Officer in Charge of Administration

Air Officer in Charge of Administration

The Air Officer In Charge Administration, is one of the Principal Staff Officers to the Chief Of Air Staff. The post is occupied by an Air Marshal of the Administration Branch of the Indian Air Force. He is generally either an Air Traffic Controller or Fighter Controller or a Pure Administration...

 at HQs, RAF Coastal Command

RAF Coastal Command

RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...

.

1 February 1947: posted as AOC No. 205 Group RAF

No. 205 Group RAF

No. 205 Group was a long-range, heavy bomber group of the Royal Air Force established on October 23, 1941 by boosting No. 257 Wing to Group status....

. During this posting, he was in charge of relocating airfields in Egypt from the Nile Delta

Nile Delta

The Nile Delta is the delta formed in Northern Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in the east, it covers some 240 km of Mediterranean coastline—and is a rich...

 south along the shores of the Suez Canal

Suez Canal

The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...

. His headquarters switched from Heliopolis

Heliopolis

-Placenames:*Heliopolis , the ancient city in Egypt*Heliopolis , a suburb in modern Cairo, Egypt* Heliopolis of Phoenicia, modern Baalbek, Lebanon...

 to RAF Fayid

RAF Fayid

RAF Fayid is a former military airfield in Egypt, located approximately 23 km south of Ismailia ; 69 miles 116 km northeast of Cairo...

, even as 205 Squadron was stripped of its Lancasters

Avro Lancaster

The Avro Lancaster is a British four-engined Second World War heavy bomber made initially by Avro for the Royal Air Force . It first saw active service in 1942, and together with the Handley Page Halifax it was one of the main heavy bombers of the RAF, the RCAF, and squadrons from other...

. They were replaced by rotating detachments of Lincolns

Avro Lincoln

The Avro Type 694, better known as the Avro Lincoln, was a British four-engined heavy bomber, which first flew on 9 June 1944. Developed from the Avro Lancaster, the first Lincoln variants were known initially as the Lancaster IV and V, but were renamed Lincoln I and II...

 from RAF Bomber Command.

30 December 1949: Senior Air Staff Officer, HQ RAF Reserve Command

1 August 1950: SASO HQ RAF Home Command

RAF Home Command

RAF Home Command was the Royal Air Force command which was responsible for the maintenance and training of reserve organisations from formation on 1 February 1939 as RAF Reserve Command with interruptions until it ceased to exist on 1 April 1959.-History:...

.

7 September 1951: retired from Royal Air Force.

Honors and awards

Companion of The Most Honourable Order of the Bath

Order of the Bath

The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...

 1 January 1946

Order of the British Empire

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...

 gazetted 11 June 1942 awarded to Group Captain George Stacey Hodson RNZAF.

Air Force Cross

Air Force Cross (United Kingdom)

The Air Force Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom Armed Forces, and formerly also to officers of the other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying, though not in active operations against the enemy"...

 gazetted 3 June 1919.

Croix de guerre

Croix de guerre

The Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...

from the Kingdom of Belgium gazetted on 15 July 1919

List of aerial victories

First four victories scored while with No. 73 Squadron RAF; remainder scored with No. 213 Squadron RAF.

No.	Date/time	Aircraft	Foe	Result	Location	Notes
1	10 March 1918 @ 1425 hours	Sopwith Camel Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel was a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter introduced on the Western Front in 1917. Manufactured by Sopwith Aviation Company, it had a short-coupled fuselage, heavy, powerful rotary engine, and concentrated fire from twin synchronized machine guns. Though difficult...  serial number B7291	Fokker Triplane Fokker Dr.I The Fokker Dr.I Dreidecker was a World War I fighter aircraft built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The Dr.I saw widespread service in the spring of 1918...  fighter	Destroyed by fire	West of Bohain-en-Vermandois Bohain-en-Vermandois Bohain-en-Vermandois is a commune in the department of Aisne in Picardy in northern France.It is the place where the painter Henri Matisse grew up.-History:... , France
2	13 March 1918 @ 1015 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n B7291	Albatros D.V Albatros D.V |-See also:-Bibliography:*Bennett, Leon. Gunning for the Red Baron. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press, 2006. ISBN 1-58544-507-X....  fighter	Destroyed by fire	Wambaix Wambaix -References:*... , France
3	22 March 1918 @ 1505 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n B7282	Albatros D.V	Driven down out of control	Marteville
4	31 March 1918 @ 1000 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n C8292	Albatros D.V	Destroyed by fire	Abancourt-Warfusée
5	18 September 1918 @ 1050 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n D3341	Observation balloon Observation balloon Observation balloons are balloons that are employed as aerial platforms for intelligence gathering and artillery spotting. Their use began during the French Revolutionary Wars, reaching their zenith during World War I, and they continue in limited use today....	Destroyed	La Barriere	Victory shared with aces David Ingalls, Harry Coleman Smith
6	24 September 1918 @ 1450 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n D3341	Fokker D.VII Fokker D.VII The Fokker D.VII was a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the summer and autumn of 1918. In service, the D.VII quickly proved itself to be a formidable aircraft...  fighter	Driven down out of control	Southwest of Thorout, Belgium
7	24 September 1918 @ 1455 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n D3341	Fokker D.VII	Destroyed
8	24 September 1918 @ 1730 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n D3341	Rumpler Rumpler The Rumpler Tropfenwagen was a car developed by Austrian engineer Edmund Rumpler.Rumpler, born in Vienna, was a designer of aircraft when on the 1921's Berlin car show he introduced the Tropfenwagen. It was to be the first streamlined car . The Rumpler had a Cw-value of only 0.28...  reconnaissance plane	Destroyed by fire	St.-Pierre-Capelle	Shared victory with David Ingalls
9	4 October 1918 @ 1555 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n F3965	Fokker D.VII	Destroyed	South of Roulers, Belgium
10	14 October 1918 @ 1430 hours	Sopwith Camel s/n D3400	Fokker D.VII	Destroyed	Beerst Beerst - External links :*... , Belgium

Endnotes