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Cecil Arthur Lewis

Name : Cecil Arthur Lewis Born : 29th March 1898 Died : 27th January 1997 Air Victories : 8.00 Awards : Military Cross

Lewis joined the RFC in 1915and learned to on a Longhorn, with final training was on Avros, BE 2c's and FE's; in March 1916, 22 Squadron was ready to go overseas. in April 1916 he built up his hours to 50 hours and joined no. 3 Squadron on the Somme. There, he flew a Morane Parasol on patrol, photographing the front between Thiepval and Montauban, Flying over the battlefield on the First day on the Somme (1 July 1916) to report back on British troop movements, Lewis witnessed the blowing of the mines at La Boiselle. . He won the Military Cross Lewis had eye problems and was sent back the England to the Testing Squadron as a rest. April 1917 saw him back in France with 56 Squadron, flying the SE 5 on offensive patrols. This was the squadron of Albert Ball, He saw Ball disappear in a cloud, never to be seen again. He was credited with eight victories during May and June of 1917. Wounded, he was sent home and posted to a Home Defence squadron, where he hunted for Gothas over London. In October 1918 he joined 152 Squadron as Flight Commander; in November the War was over. He managed to get a job with Vickers and spent a few months doing exhibition flights. When the firm sold planes to China in 1919, he went to Peking as flying instructor. In 1921 for Lewis was one of the five young men who, in 1922, founded the British Broadcasting Companya short period. Lewis was one of the five young men who, in 1922, founded the British Broadcasting Company Lewis joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in early 1939 as a pilot officer,[13] and during World War II served in Sicily, Greece, Egypt, and Italy, rising to the rank of squadron leader.

Known Service Details :
Squadron	Rank	Start of Service	End of Service	Known Dates	Aircraft	Airframes	Notes
No.56 Sqn RAF		April 1917	unknown		SE5

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Aircraft for : Cecil Arthur Lewis
A list of all aircraft associated with Cecil Arthur Lewis. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name.
Aircraft	Info
SE5 Click the name above to see prints featuring SE5 aircraft. Production Began : 1917	SE5 The third S.E.5 produced (A4563) became, in effect, the prototype S.E.5a with a 200hp Hispano Suiza power plant and shorter span wings. The S.E.5.a went to No56, No.40 and No.60 squadrons from June 1917, and by the end of the year No's 24, 41, 68 and 84 squadron had taken them on charge. After troubles with the reduction gear of the Hispano Suiza together with a general shortage of these power plants, the direct drive Wolseley Viper became the standard S.E.5a power unit. The S.E.5.a built a fine reputation for strength, performance and general flying quality, which together with the Sopwith Camel was the main reason for the Allies gaining and maintaining air superiority during 1918. Some aircraft were fitted with four 25lb (11kg) Cooper bombs on under fuselage racks. The S.E.5.a also service in the Middle East and several home defence units in 1918. At the end of World War I over 2,000 S.E.5.a aircraft were in service with the RAF. The type had served with 24 British, 2 US and 1 Australian Squadrons. After its 'demob' 50 of these aircraft were supplied to Australia, 12 to Canada with several more to other countries including South Africa, Poland and the United States of America. 50 came onto the British register and were used for developing the art of sky-writing. The S.E.5.a will always remain one of aviation's great warplanes.

Squadrons for : Cecil Arthur Lewis
A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by Cecil Arthur Lewis. A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name.
Squadron	Info
No.56 Sqn RAF Country : UK Founded : 9th June 1916 Punjab Quid si coelum ruat - What if heaven falls Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of No.56 Sqn RAF	No.56 Sqn RAF 56 Squadron was formed on 8th June 1916 and in April 1917 was posted to France as part of the Royal Flying Corps. 56 squadron was equipped with the new SE5 fighter. One of the major aerial combats of the squadron was the shooting down of Lt Werner Voss. By the end of the first world war 56 Squadron had scored 402 victories, and many famous fighter aces flew with 56 Squadron including James McCudden, Reginald Hoidge, Gerald Maxwell, Arthur Rhys-Davies, Geoffrey Hilton Bowman, Richard Mayberry, Leonard Monteagle Barlow, Cyril Crowe, Maurice Mealing, Albert Ball, Harold Walkerdine, William Roy Irwin, Eric Broadberry, Kenneth William Junor, Cecil Leiws, Keith Muspratt, Duncan Grinnell-Milne, William Spurret Fielding-Johnson, William Otway Boger, Charles Jeffs, and Harold Molyneux. The squadron lost 40 pilots during the first world war with another twenty wounded and thirty one taken prisoner. When world war two broke out on the 6th of September 1939, 56 Squadron was based at North Weald. 56 Squadron flew Hurricanes during the Battle of France and during the Battle of Britain. 56 Squadron claimed just over 100 enenmy aircraft shot down during 1940. In 1941 as part of the Duxford Wing it was the first squadron to be equipped with the new Hawker Typhoon and during 1942 and 1943 was based ay RAF Matlaske as part of No.12 Group. No 56 Squadron was the frist squadron to confirm a victory while flying the Hawker Typhoon. In 1944 56 Squadron moved to RAF Newchurch and was re equipped with the new Hawker Tempest V, becoming part of the No.150 Wing under the command of the Ace Wing Commander Roland Beamont. 56 Squadron's new role was to defend Britian against the V1 flying bombs, and the squadron shot down around 75 V1s. The squadron moved to Europe on the 28th of September 1944 to Grimbergen in Belgium as part fo 122 Wing of the Second Tactical Air Force. During this period to the end of the war 56 Squadron became joint top scorers with a total of 149 aircraft cliamed. Over its history the squadron flew, SE5's Sopwith Snipes, Gloster Grebes, Armstrong Whitworth Siskins, Bristol Bulldogs, Gloster Gauntlets, Gloster Gladiators, Harker Hurricanes, Hawker Typhoon, and Hawker Tempests. Battle of Honours of the Squadron are : Western front 1917 - 1918 , Arras, Ypres 1917, Cambrai 1917, Soome 1918, Amiens, Hindenburg Line. During World war two : France and the Low Countries 1940, Battle of Britian, Fortress Europe 1942 - 1944, Dieppe, France, Germany 1944 - 1945, Home Defence 1942 - 1945 and Arnhem.

Last edited : 00:54, January 5, 2018
Last editor : HMS

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