Squadron Leader Denis Peto-Shepherd

	This page: general experience.
	Includes inventory and autobiographical extracts.

TO PRINT THIS ARTICLE ... ... click on print-friendly pdf which opens in a new tab/window. To open PDFs you will need Acrobat Reader. Most computers will already have the Reader but if not there is a free download here

To view transcripts and enlargements you must have javascript switched on - most computers will have javascript enabled.

If you experience problems all such items can be found at Extras which opens in a new window and does not require javascript to be enabled.

Born in October 1920, Denis attended Downsend Preparatory School in Leatherhead, Surrey and the Oratory Public School in Reading, before joining the R.A.F. for pilot training in 1940. During the war Denis was stationed at R.A.F. Montrose from October 1942 to February 1944, but served with several units including No 2 CFS at Cranwell and No 3 SFTS at South Cerney. From the acting rank of Flight Lieutenant in August 1943, Denis was promoted to Squadron Leader in September 1944. His flying log books bear witness to the unrelenting nature of the bombing operations, particularly from July to September 1944 including raids on Kiel, Bremen and Le Havre in the Lancaster III. He also flew other aircraft during the war such as the Oxford, Wellington and Stirling and trained both pilots and flying instructors, the logbooks stamped throughout with the words 'Flying above average'.

Post-war, Denis was granted one of the first R.A.F. permanent commissions and was later appointed Aide de Camp to the British Ambassador in Iraq for two years. His post-war log-books record flights in the Wellington, Prentice, Oxford, Harvard and Provost. After a service life amounting to 24 years, Denis retired from the R.A.F. in November 1964 as a Wing Commander D.F.C. and began writing his book, The Devil Take the Hindmost for his three children in 1973.

At the Second World War Experience Centre we are honoured to hold this airman's flying log books, two notebooks, flying jacket, unpublished recollections of his operational service and post war artefacts including items of uniform.

D. Peto-Shepherd, January 2001:

"A totally neglected, but fundamentally most important point in R.A.F. history, was the teaching of flying. At the outbreak of the Second World War such teaching was extremely limited and very out of date, largely having been by word of mouth and little having been recorded. The outbreak of war brought a huge demand for the piloting of many new aircraft types, particularly four-engined bombers, by then becoming highly advanced and complex.

In the fighting against German air superiority, such flying training had to be achieved by the R.A.F. at a desperately rapid rate, but very few instructors were available with any teaching experience at all. In addition, flying had to be carried out in very poor weather conditions to increase the training time available and the need for such experience. The inevitable result was awful in a very high training accident rate running into thousands of deaths and much injury. Strangely, this horrifying fact has been obscured and ignored in R.A.F. accounts and history."

From one of Denis Peto-Shepherd's Note Books. On the left: Sequence of Instruction, on the right: Oxford Fuel System. Transcript

From one of Denis Peto-Shepherd's Note Books on the value of different cloud formations Transcript

From one of Denis Peto-Shepherd's Flying Log Books. Practising, November 1st- 25th, 1943 - flying, landing, firing, etc. - often flying with Scott or Herringer pictured right

From one of Denis Peto-Shepherd's Flying Log Books with photographs of two airmen at a course in Scotland in 1943/44; on the left F/Lt D.S.Scott D.F.C., R.A.F., on the right Sgt. Herringer R.C.A.F.

During his time at No 2 FIS Montrose, the then Ft Lt Peto-Shepherd trained as a Flying Instructor and the relentless nature of training is evident in the pages of this airman's flying log. The constant battle against the elements gave both the instructors and students some frightening moments and there were unfortunately regular accidents during training.

	This page: general experience.
	Includes inventory and autobiographical extracts.