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Auction: 15003 - Orders, Decorations, Campaign Medals and Militaria
Lot: 72

A Scarce Second War Fighter Ace's 1943 D.F.C., 1942 ' Immediate' D.F.M. Combination Group of Nine to Spitfire Pilot, Warrant Officer, Later Flight Lieutenant, H.W. 'Chas' Charnock, Royal Air Force, Who Having Crashed His Spitfire During the Battle of Britain, Went on to be Accredited With At Least 11 Victories, 1 Shared Destroyed, and 2 Probables. A Desert Ace, Two of His Victories Came On The Same Day, When He Single-Handedly Engaged 30 Enemy Aircraft. Charnock Eventually Succumbed to the Overwhelming Numbers and Was Shot Down Over Enemy Lines. Despite His Wounds He Persuaded a Hostile Arab, at Gunpoint, to Guide Him the 11 Miles Back to Safety. Charnock Had Lost Nearly 4 Pints of Blood During His Ordeal, However, He Still Managed to Convince A Medical Officer That He Was Physically Capable of An Almost Immediate Return To Operational Flying. Having Tricked His Way Passed The S.M.O. Charnock Had To Tie His Hand To The Throttle Before Every Take Off. Finally The Truth Was Established - But Not Before He Had Accounted For A 'One-Handed' Victory Over Another Me. 109
a) Distinguished Flying Cross, G.VI.R., reverse officially dated '1943'
b) Distinguished Flying Medal, G.VI.R. (901005. Sgt. H.W. Charnock. R.A.F.)
c) 1939-1945 Star, with Battle of Britain Bar
d) Air Crew Europe Star, with France and Germany Bar
e) Africa Star, with North Africa 1942-43 Bar
f) Defence and War Medals
g) Belgium, Kingdom, Order of Leopold II, Knight's breast Badge, 69mm including crown suspension x 40mm, silver and enamel, with silver palm on riband
h) Belgium, Kingdom, Croix de Guerre, L.III.R., bronze, with bronze palm on riband, generally very fine or better, mounted as worn, with the following related items:
- D.F.C. Royal Mint case of issue, Order of Leopold case of issue
- Two R.A.F. Pilot's Flying Log Books (covering the period 4.6.1943-29.2.1952 and 3.3.1952-21.7.1953), 1st annotated on inside cover 'Previous Log Book Destroyed In North Africa Through Enemy Action' and Certified Correct by O.C. 72 Squadron that up until that point recipient had 11 Destroyed, 1 Shared Destroyed and 2 Probables
- a Rare "Balbo" Book for B Flight, 19 Squadron, R.A.F Fowlmere, covering the period 26.2.1941-3.8.1941, this somewhat distressed
- The Battle of Britain "The Few" file as presented to the recipient, with additional photographs, MOD copies of citations, Air Ministry correspondence relating to Belgium awards, Bestowal Document for the Order of Leopold, cuttings and other ephemera all added by Charnock (lot)

D.F.C. London Gazette 26.2.1943 Warrant Officer Harry Walpole Charnock, D.F.M. (901005) 72 Squadron
The Recommendation states: 'Warrant Officer Charnock is a section leader of distinction who has at all times shown great keeness to engage the enemy. He has participated with much success in numerous low level attacks against enemy transports and has destroyed at least six hostile aircraft.'

D.F.M. London Gazette 7.4.1942 Sergeant Harry Walpole Charnock (901005), 19 Squadron
The Recommendation, dated 8.11.1941, states: 'This N.C.O. has shown great courage, dash and powers of leadership in engaging the enemy. He has destroyed four enemy aircraft and shared in the destruction of another. He also led his flight and showed the highest morale during our recent losses.

Remarks by Station Commander:
This N.C.O. Pilot has done exceptionally valuable work in his squadron and has contributed largely to its morale in trying circumstances, when his Squadron Commander and both Flight Commanders were lost.'

Belgium, Order of Leopold, Chevalier, Flight Lieutenant Harry Walpole Charnock, D.F.C., D.F.M. (147902), 61 O.T.U.
The Recommendation states: 'This officer served with the Lympne Wing which included No. 350 (Belgian) Squadron from October, 1944. In December, 1944, he proceeded to Brussels with his squadron, the Wing (125) being led by Wing Commander Donnet (Belgium). Later the Wing moved to Diest and, during this period, Flight Lieutenant Charnock carried out a large number of Armed Reconnaissances destroying 25 trains, 40 trucks and a barge.'

Flight Lieutenant Harry Walpole Charnock, D.F.C., D.F.M. (1905-1974) was educated at Harrow, Jesus College, Cambridge and R.A.F. College Cranwell. His family were involved in the textile business in Russia, and did a great deal to pioneer football in that country. He was commissioned into the Royal Air Force in December 1925. Charnock was initially posted to 32 Squadron (Gloster Grebes and Gamecocks), Kenley, before being posted to 1 Squadron in August 1930. He flew Siskins out of Tangmere until December of that year, when he was court martialled for a combination of a low flying offence and high-jinx. Rules and discipline would appear to have been at their most stringent during peace time as he found himself cashiered.

The advent of the Second World War changed everything, and two days after the outbreak of war he was welcomed back into the R.A.F. Charnock, having lost his commission, returned as a Sergeant-Pilot. He was posted for operational flying to 64 Squadron (Spitfires). He flew operationally during the Battle of Britain, and crashed his Spitfire K 9903 during a patrol, 6.9.1940. Later that month he was posted to 19 Squadron (Spitfires), Fowlmere as part of the Duxford Wing. He achieved his first victory when he shot down an Me. 109 over Deal, 5.11.1940.

Charnock was mainly engaged in fighter sweeps, before the squadron became tasked with escorting day bomber raids to the Continent. It was whilst carrying out escorts that he added another two victories to his score. Firstly when he shot down an Me. 109 north of Montreuil, 21.7.1941, and then another over Mardyck-St. Omer, 7.8.1941. The Recommendation for his D.F.M., which came at the end of his tour with 19 Squadron, suggests that he had scored at least one other victory, and shared in the destruction of another enemy aircraft by the first week of November 1941.

After completing his tour Charnock was posted to C.F.S. Upavon and then to 9 (P) A.F.U. Hullavington. In August 1942 Charnock was promoted Warrant Officer and posted to 72 Squadron. He joined as the squadron was posted north to re-equip for overseas duty. At the start of November he flew with the squadron to Gibraltar, and from there to Algiers. They arrived at their new base Maison Blanche on the 16th, and were up and flying operationally the following day. The change in climate seemed to work wonders for Charnock. The squadron achieved it's first victory on the 19th November, and Charnock was not long in adding to his score.

The squadron was primarily tasked with flying operational patrols over the Front, and between 25th November - 18th December 1942, Charnock recorded at least 5 enemy aircraft and 1 Probable.

His purple patch consisting of:

25th November Me. 109, Destroyed, Tunisia
27th November Me. 109, Destroyed, NE of Djedeida
27th November Me. 109, Destroyed (Probable), NE of Djedeida
4th December Me. 109, Destroyed, Tebourba
18th December Me. 109, Destroyed, Mateur
18th December, Fw. 190, Mateur

The 18th December was a particularly eventful day for Charnock, as not only did he shoot down two aircraft, he was also shot down himself. The following is taken from a handwritten account by Lawrence Wilkinson from Charnock's airfield dated, 18.12.1942, called One R.A.F. Fighter Took On 30 - Missing Man Came Back. "I Got 2 Germans":

News that cheered everyone here today was that a Warrant Officer, nicknamed "Chas", who is the top-scorer of a top-scoring Spitfire Squadron in Tunisia had survived a fight with 30 German fighters he tackled single-handed.

His fellow pilots who saw him go into the weaving enemy formation thought him killed.

After two days without news of him they said "Old Chas has had it" and they recalled the days at Hendon Air Pageant and what good times they had together in the air and in the Mess. Today came a message from a base hospital saying "Please credit Squadron with 2 certainly destroyed, Chas."

With it came the official report describing what happened. Chas broke away from the Spitfire escort to the R.A.F. bombers attacking Mateur and climbed into the sun to attack 30 Messerschmitts and Focke-Wulfs. He was firing at one when he noticed tracer bullets streaking past the cockpit from a second plane behind. He turned and blew the enemy to pieces with cannon and machine-gun fire. Then he resumed the chase, recaught the first plane and sent it spinning down, with flames tearing through fuselage. When he was out of ammunition he turned for home and was pounced on by 4 more. Their shots pierced the plane everywhere and set fire to the engine. Chas took off the cockpit cover and flung it back at them in the hope that it would damage the pursuers or spoil their aim.

With cannon splinter wounds in the head and arms and burns on the wrists and face he roared down and put the aircraft into the ground at 180mph.

It was a successful crash landing.

Chas jumped out and ran for cover just as the Spitfire exploded. Four of the German fighters circled twice and made off. Chas walked 11 miles to a British encampment. From there he was sent to an emergency dressing post and taken to a base hospital.

Once in bed, he called for paper and pencil and scribbled the message "Please credit Squadron with 2 certainly destroyed."

British war correspondent Guy Ramsey offers more insight in his One Continent Redeemed:

There was much trafficking with the Arabs by both sides. One R.A.F. pilot, for example, was shot down behind the German lines. A strange man, this pilot, holding only the rank of warrant officer, once a flight lieutenant. He had been in the R.A.F. before the war. He wore, in civil life, the tie of my own school - Harrow. He was dismissed from the Service for a hilarious breach of discipline, undertaken after a party. He rejoined the ranks.

He flew through the Battle of Britain; he had been recommended four times for a commission, but his youthful indiscretion - he had dumped a wing commander into a bath! - always forbade his getting it. In North Africa his squadron leader recommended him for a fifth time; and the application read, at one point:

Number of flying hours... More than 300.

Have you ever held commissioned rank before?... Yes. Cashiered.

"He was only a sergeant pilot, but God, how he can fly!" said his C.O. with humorous bitterness, to me. "He could lead the squadron, and nobody gave a damn. He ought to be a wing commander with his ability and experience. All he cares for is flying. If I have him as a flight leader, or as my No. 2, I know if I make a clot of myself or black-out it doesn't matter: he'll pull us out of the botch."

The whole squadron - even the C.O. - was on Christian name terms with Chas, unusual for a W.O. in the British service. And one day, during a sweep, Chas started to climb and tackled, irrespective of his support, a line of thirty German machines 'stooging around' and waiting to pounce.

I have heard it debated whether his action was undertaken to prevent an Axis swoop; I have heard it maintained that it was "just one of Chas's things." I cannot tell - and Chas won't...

Some saw him crash; and "Poor old Chas - he's had it," the squadron said... until from a military hospital came a scrawl of pencil. "Please credit squadron with two more officially destroyed 2", it read. "Back as soon as poss. Chas."

He was back somewhat sooner than poss. "He was binding because he was away from the chaps," said his C.O. to me. "He couldn't stand it in hospital. He broke out - always was crazy as a coot. He'll be flying again in a week. He ought to be still in bed - but he bloody well won't bloody stay there - blast him!"

It was not from Chas that I heard this epic. He had, as he so briefly reported, shot down two of the thirty planes that he assailed before a shot in his Glycol - not, you notice, a "lucky A.A. splinter" - sent him 'to the deck.' He came down, wounded, scalded with oil, got out of his burning aircraft - and found himself menanced by an Arab with a dog. With no common language, he yet made the Arab understand what he wanted, but the man was as hostile as his dog, which attacked Chas. So to save his life, Chas shot the dog. He then poked his gun in the Arab's stomach, and compelled him to lead him eighteen kilometres - eleven miles - on foot, despite his own wounds, through the German lines to safety.'

By the time Charnock reached medical assistance it was estimated that he had lost nearly 4 pints of blood from his various wounds. The surgeon that examined him suggested that he would spend a minimum of two months in hospital, a similar period of convalescence and at least a year's rest from operational flying. In 'actual fact I was flying again - though not legally, as it were, because I took matters into my own hands - just thirteen days after I had been shot down... There was just one minor drawback: I had to tie my left hand to the throttle with a handkerchief, or something similar, before attempting to take off and concealing this operation from anyone who might "talk" presented some difficulty. In the end this proved my undoing; the S.M.O. got to hear of it when the fact was related to him in jest and he immediately put his foot down with some force, but not before I had been lucky enough to get another 109.' (Typed account of the North African Campaign by recipient refers)

As the truth of Charnock's physical state became apparent, he was sent back to the UK. Charnock had in the interim period been awarded the D.F.C. He was posted for instructor duties to No. 61 O.T.U., Rednal, in June 1943. Charnock continued his 'rest' period at A.F.D.U. Wittering, before being being posted for operational flying to 66 Squadron (Spitfires) as part of 132 Wing, 2nd T.A.F. He flew with the squadron to France in August 1944, but was almost immediately involved in a car accident. After another period of recuperation he was posted as a Flight Commander to 41 Squadron (Spitfires) in October 1944. Initially based at Lympne, before moving to Belgium with the squadron, he mainly flew bomber escorts and armed recces. Charnock left the squadron in February 1945, and was posted as Officer Commanding No. 61 O.T.U. (Test Flight) in June of the same year. He flew his 'last trip' in September 1945, and was demobilised two months later. Charnock's flying skills were not wasted, and for a number of years he found post-war employment as an Instructor at No. 1 B.F.T.S., R.A.F. Booker.

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