Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm Database

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24 May 1939 the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm consisted of 20 squadrons with 232 aircraft. By the end of the war the worldwide strength of the Fleet Air Arm was 59 aircraft carriers, 3,700 aircraft, 72,000 officers and men, and 56 Naval air stations.

During WW2, the FAA operated fighters, torpedo bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. In the summer of 1940, the RAF called upon the Admiralty for Fleet Air Arm assistance as the Battle of Britain raged. In those bleak days of 1940 the Fleet Air Arm crews who served under Fighter Command, integrated themselves with panache within what was new to them, the advanced structure and fighter control system deployed by RAF Fighter Command.

The top scoring Fleet Air Arm fighter ace in WW2 with 17 victories is Commander Stanley Orr, whilst the top Royal Marine ace is Ronald Cuthbert Hay with 13 victories.

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You searched for: “"Stephens"”

#	Name	First Names	Initials	Rank	Service No.	Role	Attached	Unit	Ship	Aircraft	Serial	Crew	Age	Born	Fate	Date-of-Death	Place-of-Death	Commemorated	Family-Details	***************Notes***************	Photo
1	Anderson	Jasper Murray Mudge	J M M	Temp Sub-Lieutenant (A)		Pilot	RNZNVR	1830Sqn	HMS Illustrious	Corsair ll	JT 205	Anderson, J M M; Cork, R J	22		Killed	1944-04-14	China Bay	Plot 2, Row C, Grave 8, Trincomalee War Cemetery, St Stephens, Sri Lanka	Son of Sidney and Geraldine Anderson, of Napier, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand.		Courtesy Auckland Library Heritage Collection
2	Ashton	Gerald John	G J	Acting Leading Airman (TY)	FX 90585	Observer under training	RN	753Sqn / "O" Course	HMS Condor, Arbroath	Swordfish	P 4152		19		Killed	1942-11-12	Angus, Scotland	Grave 3243, St Stephens-By-Saltash (St Stephen) Churchyard - Cornwall, United Kingdom	Son of John Francis and Clare Ashton, of Saltash
3	Barnes	John Hickman	J H	Lieutenant		Pilot	RN	812Sqn	HMS Daedalus, Lee-on-Solent	Swordfish	L 2759	Andrews, R M; Barnes, J H; Gaillard, J; Groome, D	26		Killed	1940-07-30	Near North Coates, Scotland	Plot F, Grave 528, Chertsey (St. Stephens) Church Burial Ground, Surrey , United Kingdom	Son of Lionel Hickman Barnes and Eva Winifred Barnes of Chertsey, Surrey; husband of Mita Barnes, L.R.C.P., M R C S
4	French	Harry William	H W	Temp Lieutenant (A)		Pilot	RNVR	784Sqn	Attached to HMS Merlin, Donibristle	Firefly I	Z2053	Teuten, R.H.	23	4 October 1921 in Hastings, Sussex,	Missing presumed killed	1945-01-01	At sea	Bay 6, Panel 3, Lee-On-Solent Memorial - Hampshire, United Kingdom	Son of Harry George French (1882–1955) and Eileen Elva Kate French (née Stephens) (1895–1961)	He grew up in Bexhill-on-Sea, where his family were long-established residents, and had two older sisters, Gladys Kathleen and Evelyn Lily French. French entered the RNVR during WW2 and trained with the Fleet Air Arm (FAA). He was first appointed Acting Temporary Sub-Lt. with seniority from 27 December 1941, and this was confirmed with a full Temporary Sub-Lt. commission with seniority from 4 October 1942. He was later promoted to Temporary Lt. on 27 June 1944. During this period he qualified as a pilot, a role for which many RNVR officers were recruited and trained during the expansion of naval aviation. By 1944 he was serving with 784 Naval Air Squadron (NAS), a FAA unit specialising in instrument training and night-flying work, based administratively at HMS Daedalus and operating from HMS Merlin (RNAS Donibristle) in Fife, Scotland. The squadron flew the Fairey Firefly I, a two-seat fleet fighter and reconnaissance aircraft newly introduced into service. On 1 January 1945 during a night-flying training sortie the aircraft suffered engine failure, from low-oil pressure near Crail, Fife. Both he and his observer, Lt. (A) Reginald Henry Teuten, baled out into the sea, but neither man was found despite searches. Their loss formed one of only three FAA fatalities on that date. (Information Courtesy of Andrew Marshall)
5	Goodwin	Oliver Ross	O R	Temp Lieutenant (A)		Pilot	RNVR	718Sqn	HMS Dipper, Henstridge	Seafire		Goodwin, O R; Stephens, P W	22		Killed	1945-05-23		Section 6, Grave 51, Sherborne Cemetery - Dorset, United Kingdom	Son of Oliver Howard Goodwin and Evelyn Charlotte Goodwin, of Wylde Green, Sutton Coldfield, Warwickshire
6	Stephens	Charles John Thompson	C J T	Lieutenant-Commander		Observer	RN	823Sqn NAS (CO)	HMS Glorious	Swordfish		At least 146 Fleet Air Arm / RAF casualties on HMS Glorious	32		Missing presumed killed	1940-06-09	At sea	Bay 1, Panel 2, Lee-On-Solent Memorial - Hampshire, United Kingdom	Son of Major J A Stephens TD R.A. and Elsie Evelyn Stephens of Dorchester, Dorset
7	Stephens	Gordon Henry	G H	Acting Petty Officer Radio Mechanic (AW)	FX 587821		RN		HMS Nabob			One of at least 10 casualties from HMS Nabob on this date	21	1922-10-03	Missing presumed killed	1944-08-22	At sea, off North Cape	Section A, Grave 298, Dunfermline (Douglas Bank) Cemetery - Fifeshire, Scotland, United Kingdom	Son of William George and Elizabeth Mary Stephens, of Great Bookham, Surrey. Native of Clapton, London
8	Stephens	Maurice Hugh	M H	Lieutenant-Commander (A)			RNVR						54	1892-06-11	Died	1946-09-02		, Warnham (St Margaret) Churchyard - Sussex, United Kingdom	Son of James and Emma Stephens; husband of Marjorie Isabel Stephens, of Hammersmith, London. Also served in the R.N.A.S. in the 1914-18 War
9	Stephens	Peter William	P W	Temp Sub-Lieutenant (A)		Pilot	RNVR	718Sqn	HMS Dipper, Henstridge	Seafire		Goodwin, O R; Stephens, P W	21		Killed	1945-05-23		Division N, Section 1, Grave 17, Walsall (Bloxwich) Cemetery - Staffordshire, United Kingdom	Son of Charles William and Edith Mary Stephens, of Leamore, Walsall
10	Stephens	Reginald Joseph	R J	Temp Acting Leading Airman (TY)	FX 112061	Pilot under training	RN		HMS Saker, Washington / Halifax / Lewiston / Brunswick, Maine / Squantum / New York, USA				19	1924-08-23	Died of wounds	1943-10-17	Michigan, USA	Lot 172, Section E, Grave 28, Flatrock Oakridge Cemetery - Michigan, United States of America	Son of Ewart Joseph and Lucy Alice Stephens, of Gloucester

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