John Fraser Drummond

After the German invasion of Norway on 9 April, No. 46 Squadron was part of the British air forces sent to Norway. They sailed on HMS Glorious and by 27 May 1940 were stationed in Bardufoss in the far north of the country.

On 29 May flying Hurricane L1794 Drummond saw four enemy aircraft and attacked a Heinkel 111 of Kampfgeschwader 26. Although Drummond hit the starboard engine he was hit in turn by return fire, causing his cockpit to fill with smoke. He turned to return to Bardufoss but his engine failed. Bailing out, he landed in the freezing waters of Ofotfjord and was rescued by HMS Firedrake.[5]

On 2 June he was patrolling in Hurricane W2543 over Narvik. He saw two Junkers Ju 87s attacking a destroyer over Ofotfjord. He shot down one of them, watching it force-land and burst into flames.[5]

On 7 June he was in the air at 04.00 when he saw three He 111s. He attacked the two, hitting one that he last saw flying damaged towards the Swedish border, claiming this as a victory.[5]

That same afternoon he attacked a formation of four He 111s. He claimed one downed and damaged two more, but again was hit by return fire, piercing the windscreen, clipping his goggles and helmet before ricocheting out of the cockpit hood.[5]

The British evacuation of Norway, Operation Alphabet began the same day. Unlike the other squadron pilots, he did not fly his Hurricane to the aircraft carrier Glorious but instead returned with the ground crew component on SS Arandora Star. This was fortuitous for him, as Glorious was sunk on the return journey, killing eight of Drummond's fellow Hurricane pilots.[5]

For his service in Norway Drummond was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on 26 July 1940 with a citation that mentioned that last day's exploits in detail.[6]

Citation from the London Gazette:

Pilot Officer John Fraser DRUMMOND (40810). During operations in Norway, this officer shot down two enemy aircraft and seriously damaged a further three. On one occasion, as pilot of one ,of two Hurricanes which attacked four Heinkel Ill's, he damaged one of the enemy aircraft and then engaged two of the others. Despite heavy return fire, Pilot Officer Drummond pressed home his attack, silenced the rear guns of both aircraft and compelled the Heinkels to break off the engagement.

For the next ten weeks he flew convoy and defensive patrols and trained Polish and Czech pilots to fly Spitfires at RAF Hawarden.[5]

On 5 September he was posted to 92 Squadron, serving with several legendary pilots including Bob Stanford Tuck, Brian Kingcome, Allan Wright and Geoffrey Wellum. He had been promoted flying officer on 3 September 1940.[7]

Drummond first saw action on 9 September, defending an attack on Biggin Hill. On 11 September Drummond attacked a Messerschmitt Bf 109 that was attacking a Hurricane, following it until he ran out of ammunition. He saw two more Bf 109s about to attack him, but managed to half-roll and return to base safely.[8]

Throughout September Drummond and 92 Squadron were involved in sporadic sorties to defend south eastern England. Meanwhile, the Luftwaffe began The Blitz on major cities. On 21 September a bomb smashed into a Drummond family home in Liverpool, killing John's grandmother and aunt while they slept.[9]

On the morning of 23 September, flying Spitfire QJ-T (X4422), Drummond attacked a Bf 109 attacking another Spitfire. Feldwebel Kuepper of 8./Jagdgeschwader 26 tried to escape but Drummond pressed home his attack, firing short bursts until Kuepper was forced down in a pond near Grain Fort on the Isle of Grain and captured unhurt.[8]

The next day 92 Squadron intercepted an incoming raid over the Thames estuary. Fighting through the Bf 109 fighter escort they attacked the Ju 88 bombers. Having damaged one, Drummond pulled away chased by three Bf 109s. He turned circle, attacking and damaging two of them, arriving safely back at Biggin Hill.[8]

On 5 October he took off a few minutes after the rest of the squadron. Before he could catch up, he saw twelve Bf 109s over Dungeness and launched a solo attack. He fired on the rear fighter, hit it then watched it crash in the sea. He then attacked a Henschel Hs 126 of 4 (H)/31 flying low over the water, finally bringing it down two miles from the French coast. Its pilot, Leutnant Klaeden, was taken prisoner.[8]

During the Battle RAF artist Cuthbert Orde drew his portrait. Out of the 3,000 or so pilots in Fighter Command, less than 200 of the most noteworthy had been selected for a study in Orde's iconic style.[8]

On the morning of 10 October 1940 Drummond was part of a patrol east of Brighton. A Dornier 17 was intercepted and all 9 Spitfires of the patrol descended on it. They were hindered by iced-up windscreens that prevented them from using their deflector sights.[10]

Drummond and Pilot Officer Bill Williams both attempted beam attacks from either flank. They missed and continued turning towards each other, and their Spitfires collided. Drummond baled out but was too low for his parachute to open effectively. Still alive after hitting the ground, a priest was able to administer the last rites before Drummond died in his arms.[10]

His Spitfire, R6616 crashed close by, landing on a flintstone wall that bordered Jubilee Field (now Easthill Drive) and St Mary's Convent in Portslade.[10] When his body was examined, Drummond was found to have been wounded in his left arm and leg. Bill Williams, it later transpired, had been shot through the head so was already dead when the planes collided.[10]

During the war Drummond had claimed 8 aircraft destroyed (and 1 shared), 3 'probables' and 4 damaged.[11]

• Bishop, Patrick. (2004). Fighter Boys: Saving Britain 1940. [Softcover]. ISBN 0-0065-3204-7 or ISBN 978-0-0065-3204-0
• Robinson, Michael. (2001). Best of The Few: 92 Squadron 1939–40. Michael Robinson. ISBN 0-9540-6740-1 or ISBN 978-0-9540-6740-3
• Shores, Christopher. & Williams, Clive. (2002). Aces High: The Fighter Aces of the British and Commonwealth Air Forces in World War II. [Hardcover]. Grub Street. ISBN 1-8986-9700-0 or ISBN 978-1-8986-9700-8
• Shores, Christopher. (1999). Aces High Volume 2. [Hardcover]. Grub Street. ISBN 1-9023-0403-9 or ISBN 978-1-9023-0403-8
• Wellum, Geofrfrey. (2003). First Light. [Hardcover]. Wiley; 1 edition. ISBN 0-4714-2627-X or ISBN 978-0-4714-2627-1
• Wynn, Kenneth. (1989). Men of the Battle of Britain. [Hardcover]. Gliddon Books. ISBN 0-947893-15-6
• Shores, Christopher. (1999). Aces High: The Fighter Aces of the British and Commonwealth Air Forces in World War II. Volume 2. [Hardcover]. Grub Street. ISBN 1-8986-9700-0
• Holmes, Tony. (1998). Hurricane Aces 1939–40. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-855325977