Orders, Decorations and Medals

An excessively rare Second World War A.F.C., inter-war Aden operations ‘crowned bust’ A.F.M. group of seven awarded to Wing Commander F. Landrey, Royal Air Force, onetime attached Royal Australian Air Force - while employed in the latter capacity he fought a memorable engagement with Japanese Zeros on a supply trip to New Guinea

Air Force Cross, G.VI.R., the reverse officially dated ‘1945’; Air Force Medal, G.V.R., 2nd ‘crowned bust’ issue (366336 Sgt. (Pilot) F. Landrey, R.A.F.); 1939-45 Star; Pacific Star; Defence and War Medals, M.I.D. oak leaf; Royal Air Force L.S. & G.C., G.VI.R., 1st issue (Flt. Lt. F. Landrey, R.A.F.), mounted as worn, together with a set of related dress miniature medals and Czech Air Force Pilot’s Badge, by Spink & Son, silver, silver-gilt, minor contact wear, generally good very fine (8) £5000-6000

One of just 21 awards of George V ‘crowned bust’ A.F.Ms and quite possibly unique in combination with his 1939-45 War A.F.C.

A.F.C. London Gazette 1 January 1945.

A.F.M. London Gazette 3 June 1935. The original recommendation - submitted by the A.O.C., British Forces, Aden - states:

‘This N.C.O. has done consistently meritorious work throughout his period of service in No. 8 (B.) Squadron from 3 November 1935 to date. He has completed 481 hours flying in all parts of the Protectorate and in British Somaliland, and took an active part in all recent operations against the Yaffa, Bakri and Quteibi tribes. He also too part in the recent long distance training flight to West Africa, when he not only piloted his aircraft for a period of 98 hours, but, in addition, carried out an enormous amount of very valuable work in routine inspections, maintenance and repairs. Apart from his exceptional qualities as a pilot, he is also exceptional in his trade, that of Fitter Aero Engines. Moreover, as an N.C.O., he maintains discipline with firmness and tact, and has earned the confidence of his superiors and the respect of his subordinates.’

Frederick Landrey was born in Parkstone, Dorset in September 1909 and entered the Royal Air Force as a Halton Aircraft Apprentice in June 1925. Commended by his C.O. for his subsequent services in the Oxford University Air Squadron in 1929, he was selected for pilot training in the summer of 1931, and, on gaining his “Wings”, he was posted to No. 18 (B.) Squadron at Upper Heyford, flying Hawker Harts.

Then in August 1933, he joined No. 8 (B.) Squadron in Aden, flying Fairey IIIs, and flew his first bombing operations - against Upper Yaffa - that November. Having then flown in further bombing sorties - against targets in the Bakri area in February 1934, the Quteibi area in March-May, and the Alwar area in August - he undertook his long distance flight from Aden to Freetown in January 1935, a distance of 9,500 miles accomplished in 98 hours. An accompanying newspaper article also credits Landrey with piloting one of three aircraft to the rescue of the famous lady explorer Freyer Stark, who had fallen ill with dysentery and typhoid - ‘she was lashed to a stretcher and slid into the rear fuselage and survived the journey’, most probably in one of the unit’s newly delivered Vincent aircraft.

Posted back to the U.K. to attend a Flying Instructor’s Course at the Central Flying School, Upavon, in March 1935, Landrey subsequently joined the staff of No. 2 Flying Training School, where he remained employed until May 1940, and, having been commissioned as a Pilot Officer, was embarked for Australia to continue his good work at the R.A.A.F’s Central Flying School at Camden, N.S.W.

While employed in this capacity in December 1942, he called called away to fly operationally in support of the New Guinea operations, piloting Hudsons to landing strips with supplies, and evacuating wounded, perilous work that nearly ended in his demise. A wartime newspaper feature takes up the story:

‘The action began with a surprise raid by 12 Zeros, which apparently sneaked in low to attack Allied transport planes evacuating wounded from the landing strips at Dobadura, just south of Buna.

The first indication of the attack was when Flight Lieutenant F. Landrey of the R.A.A.F. took off in a Hudson and a saw a number of Zeros over another strip. As he got to tree-top level, five Zeros pounced on him, and four 10 minutes he took desperate evasive action while his gunners poured out bullets at the attacking Zeros. One Zero put a shot through the tail which passed right down the fuselage, smashing the radio and passing harmlessly beneath Flight Lieutenant Landrey’s arm. One member of the crew was wounded, but kept firing his gun though the wound forced him to lie down.

The fuselage was damaged and a tyre burst, but Flight Lieutenant Landrey got the plane back over the Owen Stanley Range to its base. Tracer fire as seen entering one Zero, which was certainly damaged badly.’

Landrey returned to the U.K. in April 1943, where he served as an instructor at No. 105 O.T.U. at Nuneaton until the War’s end, gaining his award of the A.F.C., while post-war, he served at Transport Command Aircrew Training Unit at Bramcote, April-August 1946, and in a similar capacity at Manston, from the latter month until December 1947, gaining the King’s Commendation for Valuable Services in the Air (London Gazette 12 June 1947 refers). His final appointments, in a non-flying capacity, were at R.A.F. Dishforth and Yatesbury, and he was placed on the Retired List in July 1958. The Wing Commander, who settled in Hawkinge, died in July 1998, aged 88 years.

Sold with a fine array of original documentation, including a complete run of the recipient’s R.A.F. Flying Log Books (1931-53), comprising a privately bound edition containing two books, covering the period July 1931 to March 1938, and three attractively rebound books for the periods April 1938 to July 1941, August 1941 to May 1947, and June 1947 to December 1953; together with other career documentation including R.A.F. admittance letters for his apprenticeship at Halton, dated in July and August 1925; a letter of commendation from the C.O. Oxford University Air Squadron, dated 16 August 1929; a signed typescript copy of the recommendation for his A.F.M. and two congratulatory telegrams, June 1935; Air Ministry Pilot’s Certificate and Licence, dated 19 October 1938, with portrait photograph, and another similar, dated 21 September 1939; his commission warrant for the rank of Pilot Officer, dated 1 April 1940; certificate of award for his Czech Air Force Pilot’s Badge, with related letter, dated 2 February 1945; Buckingham Palace forwarding letter for the A.F.C.; King’s Commendation for Valuable Services in the Air certificate, dated 12 June 1947, in forwarding envelope addressed to Landrey at R.A.F. Brize Norton; Air Ministry retirement letter, dated 25 July 1958; and his I.D. tags, assorted buttons and embroidered R.A.F. badges, and a sporting prize medal, named and dated 1932.

Together with an impressive archive of career photographs, amounting to approximately 450 images, some of them card mounted but the majority loose leaf, with all manner of subject matter, from aircraft and personnel to topographical and target pictures, many of them relating to Landrey’s operational career in No. 8 (B.) Squadron in Aden in the period 1933-35, but also with some images from his time in Australia in the 1940s.