Date of birth:

December 1st, 1919 (Middleton/Yorkshire. Great Britain)

Date of death:

August 28th, 2010 (Southport/Lancashire, Great Britain)

Service number:

70854

Nationality:

British (1801-present, Kingdom)

John Freeborn joined no. 74 Squadron in October 1938 and from February 1939 flew Spitfires.
Freeborn and Paddy Byrne shot down two 56 Squadron Hurricanes three days after war was declared when the aircraft were misidentified. One pilot was killed, the other survived. Both Freeborn and Byrne were exonerated and acquitted at the subsequent court martial, but the memory of it never left Freeborn and he said that never a day went by without his thinking of Pilot Officer Montague Hulton-Harrop, the man who died.
Freeborn saw action over Dunkirk and the Battle of Britain and Italy. After the war he resigned his commission and qualified as a driving instructor, but soon joined Tetley Walker to serve as Regional Director for their Minster Minerals soft drinks brand.
He took early retirement and in the early 1980s he moved to Spain, but later returned to the UK.

Promotions:
March 26th, 1938: Acting Pilot Officer (probation)
January 17th, 1940: Pilot Officer
September 3th, 1940: Flying Officer
September 3th, 1941: Flight Lieutenant (war sub)
January 1st, 1944: Squadron Leader (temporary)
April 30th, 1944: Squadron Leader (war sub)

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Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

Rank:

Pilot Officer

Awarded on:

August 13th, 1940

Citation:
"This officer has taken part in nearly all offensive patrols carried out by his squadron since the commencement of the war, including operations over the Low Countries and Dunkirk, and, more recently, engagements over the Channel and S.E. of England. During this period of intensive air warfare he has destroyed four enemy aircraft. His high courage and exceptional abilities as a leader have materially contributed to the notable successes and high standard of efficiency maintained by his squadron."

Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

Rank:

Acting Flight Lieutenant

Unit:

No. 74 (Trinidad) Squadron, Royal Air Force

Awarded on:

February 25th, 1941

Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

With "BATTLE OF BRITAIN"-clasp.

Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

Period:

Second World War (1939-1945)

• Photo 1:
• - SHORES, CH. & WILLIAMS, C., Aces High, Grub Street, London, 1994.
  - The London Gazette Issue 34920 published on the 13 August 1940
  - The London Gazette Issue 35087 published on the 25 February 1941
  - 74 Squadron Association