John A. Kent
Encyclopedia
Group Captain
John Alexander "Johnny" Kent DFC & Bar
, AFC
, Virtuti Militari
nicknamed "Johnny Kentowski" (23 June 1914 - 7 October 1985) was a Canadian
fighter ace
in the Second World War
. Considered one of the best young squadron leaders of the war, he went on to a distinguished postwar career before entering the aviation industry.
, Manitoba
, Canada
where he learned to fly and obtained his licence in 1931. He obtained a commercial licence in 1933 after working for the Northwest Aero Marine Company and became the youngest to achieve this in Canada.
In 1935, Kent joined the RAF
and was posted to 5 FTS (Flying Training School) on March 15 before joining 19 Squadron at RAF Duxford in February 1936 where he remained until October 1937 when he moved to the Royal Aircraft Establishment
(RAE) at Farnborough. For his research work, during which he deliberately made over 300 airborne collisions with various types of barrage balloon, Kent was awarded a well-deserved Air Force Cross
(AFC) on 1 February 1939.
s in France. During the late stages of the Fall of France
, while on a low-level sortie with an armed Spitfire, he was attacked by a Messerschmitt Bf 109
that subsequently crashed during the encounter. By early July, he was posted to RAF Hawarden flying Hawker Hurricane
fighters. On 2 August 1940, as a Flight Commander, Kent joined 303 Squadron
, a newly formed squadron consisting of Polish pilots, based at RAF Northolt
throughout the Battle of Britain
.
His first combat victories came on 9 September 1940 when Kent shot down a Messerschmitt Bf 110
and a Junkers Ju 88
. On 23 September, he destroyed a Bf 109
and damaged an Focke-Wulf Fw 58 reconnaissance aircraft while intercepting a raid over Dungeness. He shot down a Ju 88 after a raid over London on 27 September.
During a dogfight over the south coast of England on 1 October, Kent found himself alone with 40 Bf 109s. In the ensuing engagement, he shot down two of the enemy fighters and scored hits on another. Kent was awarded the DFC on 25 October 1940 and the following day, he was posted to RAF Biggin Hill to take command of another highly successful group of pilots, 92 Squadron
. Kent's strict discipline initially proved unpopular with the laid-back attitude the 92 Squadron pilots had at the time.
On 1 November, Kent shot down a Bf 109 and two more the following day. On 24 December 1940, he was awarded the Silver Cross of the Polish Virtuti Militari
decoration for his achievements with 303 Squadron. He was then posted back to Northolt as a Wing Leader in June to lead the Polish Wing of four squadrons. On 21 June, during an operation escorting Blenheim bombers
against enemy positions at Saint-Omer
, France, Kent shot down a Bf 109. On 27 June, during another raid over northern France, he destroyed a Bf 109 on the ground.
As the raids over France continued from RAF Fighter Command
during summer 1941, Kent continued adding to his score with a Bf 109 destroyed on 3 July and another Bf 109 on 20 July before he was then moved again as Wing Leader to command and lead the Kenley
Wing in August 1941. His first few operations over northern France with his new squadrons proved successful, claiming Bf 109s on 7 August and 16 August. Kent remained with the Kenley Wing until October 1941, when he was posted back to 53 OTU at RAF Heston and then RAF Llandow
before he was sent on a lecture tour of Canada and America late that year. Kent was awarded a Bar to his DFC on 21 October 1941.
In June 1942, Kent was Station Commander of RAF Church Stanton
where he remained until October of that year when he was posted to Fighter Command HQ as a Wing Commander of Training. Two months later, Kent was posted to the Middle East and took command of 17 Sector in Benghazi
, Libya
where on 25 January 1943, he damaged a Ju 88 during an engagement near the airfield at Benina
. After a posting to Air HQ as a Command Training Inspector at Air Defences East Mediterranean, he returned to the UK during March 1944 for an instructor’s course at the Central Flying School
, Upavon
.
His final wartime victories included 13 aircraft destroyed, three probables and three damaged.
, the Commander-in-Chief, and Military Governor of the British Zone of occupied Germany
.
Kent returned to flying duties as Chief Test Pilot at RAE Farnborough in 1948 and was involved until 1952 with many developments of military aviation including the de Havilland Dh 108 "Swallow" and Avro 707
. In August 1952, he assumed command of the RAF Station at Odiham
, a fighter base operating Gloster Meteor
s. Subsequently, he was posted as Station Commander at RAF Tangmere
, and in early 1956 accepted his final posting to RAF Newton
as Station Commander.
On 1 December 1956, Kent retired from the RAF service with the rank of Group Captain. He joined Kelvin-Hughes Aviation Limited as sales manager.
Kent died on 7 October 1985 at the age of 71 years.
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...
John Alexander "Johnny" Kent DFC & 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...
, AFC
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"...
, Virtuti Militari
Virtuti Militari
The Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
nicknamed "Johnny Kentowski" (23 June 1914 - 7 October 1985) was a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
fighter ace
Fighter Ace
Fighter Ace was a massively multiplayer online computer game in which one flies World War II fighter and bomber planes in combat against other players and virtual pilots...
in the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Considered one of the best young squadron leaders of the war, he went on to a distinguished postwar career before entering the aviation industry.
Early years
John Alexander Kent was born in WinnipegWinnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
where he learned to fly and obtained his licence in 1931. He obtained a commercial licence in 1933 after working for the Northwest Aero Marine Company and became the youngest to achieve this in Canada.
In 1935, Kent joined the RAF
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...
and was posted to 5 FTS (Flying Training School) on March 15 before joining 19 Squadron at RAF Duxford in February 1936 where he remained until October 1937 when he moved to the Royal Aircraft Establishment
Royal Aircraft Establishment
The Royal Aircraft Establishment , was a British research establishment, known by several different names during its history, that eventually came under the aegis of the UK Ministry of Defence , before finally losing its identity in mergers with other institutions.The first site was at Farnborough...
(RAE) at Farnborough. For his research work, during which he deliberately made over 300 airborne collisions with various types of barrage balloon, Kent was awarded a well-deserved 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"...
(AFC) on 1 February 1939.
Second World War
Kent was posted to the Photographic Development Unit (PDU) in May 1940 flying unarmed Supermarine SpitfireSupermarine 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 in France. During the late stages of the Fall of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
, while on a low-level sortie with an armed Spitfire, he was attacked by a Messerschmitt Bf 109
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
that subsequently crashed during the encounter. By early July, he was posted to RAF Hawarden flying 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...
fighters. On 2 August 1940, as a Flight Commander, Kent joined 303 Squadron
No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron
No. 303 Polish Fighter Squadron was one of 16 Polish squadrons in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. It was the highest scoring RAF squadron of the Battle of Britain....
, a newly formed squadron consisting of Polish pilots, based at RAF 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...
throughout 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...
.
His first combat victories came on 9 September 1940 when Kent shot down a Messerschmitt Bf 110
Messerschmitt Bf 110
The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often called Me 110, was a twin-engine heavy fighter in the service of the Luftwaffe during World War II. Hermann Göring was a proponent of the Bf 110, and nicknamed it his Eisenseiten...
and a Junkers Ju 88
Junkers Ju 88
The Junkers Ju 88 was a World War II German Luftwaffe twin-engine, multi-role aircraft. Designed by Hugo Junkers' company through the services of two American aviation engineers in the mid-1930s, it suffered from a number of technical problems during the later stages of its development and early...
. On 23 September, he destroyed a Bf 109
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
and damaged an Focke-Wulf Fw 58 reconnaissance aircraft while intercepting a raid over Dungeness. He shot down a Ju 88 after a raid over London on 27 September.
During a dogfight over the south coast of England on 1 October, Kent found himself alone with 40 Bf 109s. In the ensuing engagement, he shot down two of the enemy fighters and scored hits on another. Kent was awarded the DFC on 25 October 1940 and the following day, he was posted to RAF Biggin Hill to take command of another highly successful group of pilots, 92 Squadron
No. 92 Squadron RAF
No. 92 Squadron, also known as No 92 Squadron, of the Royal Air Force was formed as part of the Royal Flying Corps at London Colney as a fighter squadron on 1 September 1917. It deployed to France in July 1918 and saw action for just four months, until the end of the war. During the conflict it...
. Kent's strict discipline initially proved unpopular with the laid-back attitude the 92 Squadron pilots had at the time.
On 1 November, Kent shot down a Bf 109 and two more the following day. On 24 December 1940, he was awarded the Silver Cross of the Polish Virtuti Militari
Virtuti Militari
The Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
decoration for his achievements with 303 Squadron. He was then posted back to Northolt as a Wing Leader in June to lead the Polish Wing of four squadrons. On 21 June, during an operation escorting Blenheim bombers
Bristol Blenheim
The Bristol Blenheim was a British light bomber aircraft designed and built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company that was used extensively in the early days of the Second World War. It was adapted as an interim long-range and night fighter, pending the availability of the Beaufighter...
against enemy positions at Saint-Omer
Saint-Omer
Saint-Omer , a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais. The town is named after Saint Audomar, who brought Christianity to the area....
, France, Kent shot down a Bf 109. On 27 June, during another raid over northern France, he destroyed a Bf 109 on the ground.
As the raids over France continued from RAF Fighter Command
RAF Fighter Command
RAF Fighter Command was one of three functional commands of the Royal Air Force. It was formed in 1936 to allow more specialised control of fighter aircraft. It served throughout the Second World War, gaining recognition in the Battle of Britain. The Command continued until 17 November 1943, when...
during summer 1941, Kent continued adding to his score with a Bf 109 destroyed on 3 July and another Bf 109 on 20 July before he was then moved again as Wing Leader to command and lead the Kenley
RAF Kenley
The former Royal Air Force Station Kenley, more commonly known as RAF Kenley was a station of the Royal Flying Corps in World War I and the RAF in World War II. It is located near Kenley, London, England.-History:...
Wing in August 1941. His first few operations over northern France with his new squadrons proved successful, claiming Bf 109s on 7 August and 16 August. Kent remained with the Kenley Wing until October 1941, when he was posted back to 53 OTU at RAF Heston and then RAF Llandow
RAF Llandow
RAF Llandow was a Royal Air Force airfield situated near the village of Llandow, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales, 15 miles west of Cardiff. It opened in 1940 and closed in 1957....
before he was sent on a lecture tour of Canada and America late that year. Kent was awarded a Bar to his DFC on 21 October 1941.
In June 1942, Kent was Station Commander of RAF Church Stanton
RAF Culmhead
RAF Culmhead is an ex-Royal Air Force airbase, situated at Churchstanton on the Blackdown Hills in Somerset, England.It had 3 tarmac runways that are now in poor condition and the control towers are currently derelict...
where he remained until October of that year when he was posted to Fighter Command HQ as a Wing Commander of Training. Two months later, Kent was posted to the Middle East and took command of 17 Sector in Benghazi
Benghazi
Benghazi is the second largest city in Libya, the main city of the Cyrenaica region , and the former provisional capital of the National Transitional Council. The wider metropolitan area is also a district of Libya...
, Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
where on 25 January 1943, he damaged a Ju 88 during an engagement near the airfield at Benina
Benina
Benina is a Basic People's Congress administrative division of Benghazi, Libya.It contains the Benina International Airport....
. After a posting to Air HQ as a Command Training Inspector at Air Defences East Mediterranean, he returned to the UK during March 1944 for an instructor’s course at the Central Flying School
Central Flying School
The Central Flying School is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 it is the longest existing flying training school.-History:...
, Upavon
RAF Upavon
The former Royal Air Force Station Upavon, more commonly known as RAF Upavon, was a grass airfield, military flight training school, and administrative headquarters of the Royal Air Force....
.
His final wartime victories included 13 aircraft destroyed, three probables and three damaged.
Postwar
Kent was then posted to Air HQ, British Forces of Occupation and in late 1946 he became the Personal Staff Officer to Sholto DouglasSholto Douglas
Sholto Douglas was the mythical Progenitor of Clan Douglas, a powerful and warlike family in Medieval Scotland.A Mythical battle took place: "in 767, between King Solvathius rightful king of Scotland and a pretender Donald Bane...
, the Commander-in-Chief, and Military Governor of the British Zone of occupied Germany
Allied Occupation Zones in Germany
The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative purposes during 1945–49. In the closing weeks of fighting in Europe, US forces had pushed beyond the previously agreed boundaries for the...
.
Kent returned to flying duties as Chief Test Pilot at RAE Farnborough in 1948 and was involved until 1952 with many developments of military aviation including the de Havilland Dh 108 "Swallow" and Avro 707
Avro 707
|-See also:-References:NotesCitationsBibliography* Buttler, Tony. "Avro Type 698 Vulcan ." Aeroplane, Vol. 35, No. 4, Issue No. 408, April 2007....
. In August 1952, he assumed command of the RAF Station at Odiham
RAF Odiham
RAF Odiham is a Royal Air Force station situated a little to the south of the historic small village of Odiham in Hampshire, England. It is the home of the Royal Air Force's heavy lift helicopter, the Chinook HC2, HC2A and HC3...
, a fighter base operating Gloster Meteor
Gloster Meteor
The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...
s. Subsequently, he was posted as Station Commander at RAF Tangmere
RAF Tangmere
RAF Tangmere was a Royal Air Force station famous for its role in the Battle of Britain, located at Tangmere village about 3 miles east of Chichester in West Sussex, England. American RAF pilot Billy Fiske died at Tangmere and was the first American aviator to die during World War II...
, and in early 1956 accepted his final posting to RAF Newton
RAF Newton
RAF Newton was a Royal Air Force station, 7 miles east of Nottingham, England. It was used briefly as a bomber base and then as a flying training school during World War II....
as Station Commander.
On 1 December 1956, Kent retired from the RAF service with the rank of Group Captain. He joined Kelvin-Hughes Aviation Limited as sales manager.
Kent died on 7 October 1985 at the age of 71 years.
Quotes
I cannot say how proud I am to have been privileged to help form and lead No. 303 squadron and later to lead such a magnificent fighting force as the Polish Wing. There formed within me in those days an admiration, respect and genuine affection for these really remarkable men which I have never lost. I formed friendship that are as firm as they were those twenty-five years ago and this I find most gratifying. We who were privileged to fly and fight with them will never forget and Britain must never forget how much she owes to the loyalty indomitable spirit and sacrifice of those Polish fliers. They were our staunchest Allies in our darkest days; may they always be remembered as such!Awards
- Distinguished Flying CrossDistinguished 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...
- Air Force CrossAir 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"...
- Virtuti MilitariVirtuti MilitariThe Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
, Silver Cross