Warfare in News
Posted on Wednesday 31st July
Squadron Leader Tony Gaze died on Monday at his home in Victoria, Australia, aged 93. A highly regarded Spitfire pilot, he served as Battle of Britain ace Douglas Bader's wingman during the Second World War, and later became the first Australian to compete in a Grand Prix.
Squadron Leader Gaze was credited with 12 kills and won the prestigious Distinguished Flying Cross 3 times. In 1943, his Spitfire was shot down over Occupied France and he made the 8 week long journey back to Britain by foot.
He famously enjoyed motor racing, and after the war he suggested creating what is now the Goodwood Motor Circuit from the track at his West Sussex wartime base, RAF Westhampnett. He became the first Australian to compete in Formula One, and launched the country's first international driving team.
He followed in the footsteps of his father, Irvin, who was a fighter pilot during the First World War.
Squadron Leader Gaze was credited with 12 kills and won the prestigious Distinguished Flying Cross 3 times. In 1943, his Spitfire was shot down over Occupied France and he made the 8 week long journey back to Britain by foot.
He famously enjoyed motor racing, and after the war he suggested creating what is now the Goodwood Motor Circuit from the track at his West Sussex wartime base, RAF Westhampnett. He became the first Australian to compete in Formula One, and launched the country's first international driving team.
He followed in the footsteps of his father, Irvin, who was a fighter pilot during the First World War.
Further Reading
Only £12.99
Dogfight: The Battle of Britain
(Paperback - 224 pages)by Adam Claasen
This book tells the story of Australians and New Zealanders in one of the Second World War's defining and most
memorable campaigns. From 9 July until 31 October 1940, the German air force (the Luftwaffe) sought aerial supremacy in skies over England as a prerequisite for an invasion of Britain (Operation Sealion). The ensuing conflict of Luftwaffe and RAF aircraft in the long summer of 1940 became forever known as the Battle of… Read more...
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