Douglas, Robert Ewing

Date of birth:: April 7th, 1906 (Falkirk, Scotland)
Date of death:: August 10th, 1959 (Hackney/London, Verenigd Koninkrijk)
Service number:: 362370 / 44949
Nationality:: British (1801-present, Kingdom)

Biography

22 November 1940: Pilot Officer on probation.
13 May 1942: Pilot Officer on probation (emergency)
1st January 1944: Flight Lieutenant (temporary)
2nd December 1945: Flying Officer (temp. Flight Lieutenant)

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Empire Gallantry Medal (EGM)

Rank:: Leading Aircraftman
Unit:: No. 60 Squadron, Royal Air Force
Awarded on:: March 27th, 1931

"For conspicuous gallantry displayed in an attempt to save the lives of two fellow airmen at Kohat, India, on the 13th June, 1930.

An aeroplane proceeding on patrol with a crew of two and a load of live bombs stalled shortly after leaving the ground and crashed on the edge of the aerodrome, immediately bursting into flames.

Leading Aircraftman Douglas, who witnessed the crash, was the first to arrive on the scene of the accident and found the air gunner lying two yards from the wreckage, his clothes burning badly. These flames Douglas quenched with a hand extinguisher, and, after disentangling part of the gun equipment from the injured man's person, dragged him clear of the machine with the assistance of another airman who had arrived on the scene, and, after subduing a renewed burst of flames in his clothing, got him on board the ambulance. He then turned his attention to the pilot in the burning machine and had approached to within twelve yards of the wreckage when the first of the bombs exploded. Realizing then that were was no hope of the pilot being still alive, he started to get clear and was some thirty yards away when a second bomb exploded.

In advancing so close to the flames this airman took a grave risk as he was fully aware that the aircraft contained live bombs of a powerful type."