I
was very saddened to read of the recent death of Air Marshal David Evans. As
many of you know, he wrote the foreword to my Australian Eagles. I had met him briefly at the ACT’s 2012
Wreathlaying Ceremony which was held on 14 September. How uncanny that his
death falls within the 80th anniversary period of the Battle of Britain. In that
commemorative address almost exactly eight years ago – the day before Battle of
Britain day – Air Marshal David Evans AC DSO AFC, former Chief of the Air Staff
of the RAAF and Patron, Australian Flying Corps and Royal Australian Air Force
Association (ACT Division), recognised that many who bravely fought against the
Luftwaffe experienced fear and had acknowledged and put aside their terror so
they could carry out their important duty.
Air
Marshal Evans spoke of the lives of
the young fighter pilots who displayed the true meaning of
courage during the brief
period when Britain’s defence depended on them. One moment they were lounging
around dispersal, reading, desultorily chatting or playing cards, all the while
listening with half an ear for the call to battle. Then, after the harsh ring
of the ops phone, there was the mad scramble to aircraft, take off, and combat
and, perhaps minutes later, watching the chap they were talking to plummet to
earth with black smoke pouring from his stricken aircraft. Before they knew it,
with adrenaline still pumping, they were back on the ground. Then, after
refuel, rearm and debrief, back to dispersal to wait for the ops phone to ring
again. And all this, four, five or six times a day. There was an incredible
physical and psychological toll on these young airmen.
Air Marshal Evans remembered all of ‘The Few’ but
he spoke of one man in particular—James Coward, a much loved and missed member
of Canberra’s air force fraternity. He told of how James was shot down on 31
August 1940, how he baled out, only to see his foot almost totally severed,
bobbing along as he floated down in his parachute, blood spurting out. He told
of how James fashioned a tourniquet out of his wireless cord, thus saving his
life. He quipped that it was ‘pretty good thinking for a fighter pilot’. And
that coming from a former transport and bomber pilot! It was an affectionate
vale for a brave man in a warm and intimate ceremony where politicians,
representatives of the Battle of Britain countries and members of their armed
services, former and current serving members of the air force and Canberrans
once again gathered to remember those dubbed by Air Marshal Evans, ‘the
immortal “Few”’. With his own inimitable and exemplary air force career, Air
Marshal Evans has earned his own place within aviation’s ‘immortal Few’. You
can read about his aviation career in his autobiography, Down to Earth.
David Evans’ 42-year career in the RAAF began
during the closing stages of World War II. Post-war, he flew to Japan in
support of occupation forces, then from Germany during the Berlin Airlift. In Vietnam
he commanded one of the only bomber unit which the RAAF contributed to that
conflict. He also led the Wing operating the RAAFs new F-111Cs, Australia’s
premier strike aircraft for most of the next four decades. Added to that
operational experience were jobs flying VIPs (including the Governor-General
and Prime Minister) around Australia and beyond, conducting training in New
Zealand, and representing the RAAF in the capital of our principal ally, the
United States. His career culminated in him serving as Air Force chief for
three years, from 1982 to 1985 during a period of enormous change, evolution
and modernisation within the Australian Defence Organisation. With his flying
days now 25 years behind him and both feet planted firmly on the ground, Air
Marshal Evans provides a vivid and forthright account of his Air Force
experiences, and reflects back on one of the most varied personal careers of
the modern RAAF.
