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Charles. Nevil. Overton

Name : Charles. Nevil. Overton Died : unknown Service Number : 40639 Air Victories : 5.00 Awards : Distinguished Flying Cross

In 1938 as the pace of rearmament accelerated, Overton – known as ‘Teeny’ because of his fondness for Ovaltine (advertised with the ditty "We are the Ovalteenies") – had been granted a short service commission. He did his elementary training at 13 E&RFTS White Waltham, going on to 8 FTS Montrose on 9th April. His first posting was to the School of Naval Co-Operation at Ford on 29th October 1938. In late September 1939 he joined 17 Squadron, operating Hurricanes from Debden, Essex. In November 1939 Overton was posted to 609 (West Riding) squadron flying defensive patrols from Drem in Scotland. On 18th May 1940, after the German invasion of the Low Countries and France, 609 was ordered south to Northolt. Barely 20, Overton was the youngest pilot in the squadron. He later reflected: ........I don't think that I had a clue what was happening. From being a small, semi-isolated unit we suddenly found ourselves part of a big and often baffling circus. Abruptly we were really in the war. On 30th May Overton and his fellow pilots refuelled at Biggin Hill and at lunchtime flew 609's first patrol of the war to cover the Dunkirk evacuation. In the evening, loss and damage having depleted the squadron, Overton and eight others returned to Dunkirk. On 609's approach run, Overton encountered 15 He111 bombers and 20 Me109 fighters. There followed a superb display of air fighting; Overton and Flying Officer Hank Russell, an American volunteer, making simultaneous beam attacks, destroying a Heinkel. Overton then noticed that he had a Me109 on his tail. After a six minute dogfight he was in a stall turn when he got the 109 in his sights and opened fire at 70 yards. The 109 plunged into the sea. Shortly afterwards Overton piloted one of nine Spitfires which escorted Winston Churchill to see the French Prime Minister, Paul Reynaud. Having got lost on the way home Overton refuelled in Jersey and loaded his aircraft up with brandy. In mid-summer 1940, 609 operated from Middle Wallop and Warmwell in the south west. On 12th August, led by Squadron Leader George Darley, 609 intercepted 80 Me110 twin-engine fighters circling east of the Isle of Wight. Darley led Overton and his fellow pilots straight through the circle of enemy aircraft, taking beam shots and breaking away downwards. Overton accounted for two of six 110’s shot down. The next day, 609 intercepted 40 Ju87 Stuka dive-bombers over Lyme Bay; of 10 destroyed, Overton was credited with two. In April 1941, Overton, now a flight commander, had survived long enough to become the doyen of the squadron. He was posted as an instructor to No 59 Operational Training Unit at Crosby-in--Eden for a "rest". Charles Nevil Overton was born on 25th September 1919, the youngest of six children at Navenby, Lincolnshire where his father farmed the Blankney Estate. Nevil was one of the first entry of boys to attend St Hugh’s School, Woodhall Spa, from where he went on to Denstone College, Staffordshlre. Before joining the RAF he trained briefly in land agency with Woodruffe Walters. In December 1941, keen to return to operations , Overton was posted as a flight commander to No 145, a Spitfire squadron at Catterick. In New Year 1942, 145 was the first Spitfire squadron to be sent to the Middle East where in April Overton received command, at Helwan in Egypt. The next month, operating from Western Desert landing grounds, Overton began to lead the squadron in sustained fighter and bomber support operations. On 10th June 1942 Overton damaged a 109, following it up with a kill. After a spell with No 239 Wing's four squadrons of Kittyhawks, Overton was appointed Wing Commander Operations at Desert Air Force Headquarters. He was awarded the DFC (gazetted 6th October 1942) and was twice mentioned in despatches.

Known Service Details :
Squadron	Rank	Start of Service	End of Service	Known Dates	Aircraft	Airframes	Notes
No.609 Sqn RAF	p/o	unknown	unknown	18th May 1940	Spitfire		OVERTON, Charles Nevil, joined 609 Squadron as a Pilot Officer in 1940, having served in 17 Squadron during 1939. He shot down a Bf110 on 12th August and next day got two Ju87's. He was injured and was off operations for some time. In 1942 he joined 145 Sq uadron as a flight commander, and on 3rd June damaged a Bf109. Six days later he destroyed one of these, and the following month became Commanding Officer. He received a DFC in October, by which time his score was 5. He did not claim any further victories. Charles Neville 'Teeny' Overton. Joined in November 1939 whilst 609 were at Drem. Postwar, bought RAF Wellingore airfield and farmed Wellingore Heath. Wing Commander Nevil (Teeny) Overton. DFC 17, 609, and 145, Squadrons, 59 OTU and 239 Wing Desert Air Force. The youngest pilot to serve in 609 sqd

Aircraft for : Charles. Nevil. Overton
A list of all aircraft associated with Charles. Nevil. Overton. A profile page including a list of all art prints for the aircraft is available by clicking the aircraft name.
Aircraft	Info
Spitfire Click the name above to see prints featuring Spitfire aircraft. Manufacturer : Supermarine Production Began : 1936 Retired : 1948 Number Built : 20351	Spitfire Royal Air Force fighter aircraft, maximum speed for mark I Supermarine Spitfire, 362mph up to The Seafire 47 with a top speed of 452mph. maximum ceiling for Mk I 34,000feet up to 44,500 for the mark XIV. Maximum range for MK I 575 miles . up to 1475 miles for the Seafire 47. Armament for the various Marks of Spitfire. for MK I, and II . eight fixed .303 browning Machine guns, for MKs V-IX and XVI two 20mm Hispano cannons and four .303 browning machine guns. and on later Marks, six to eight Rockets under the wings or a maximum bomb load of 1,000 lbs. Designed by R J Mitchell, The proto type Spitfire first flew on the 5th March 1936. and entered service with the Royal Air Force in August 1938, with 19 squadron based and RAF Duxford. by the outbreak of World war two, there were twelve squadrons with a total of 187 spitfires, with another 83 in store. Between 1939 and 1945, a large variety of modifications and developments produced a variety of MK,s from I to XVI. The mark II came into service in late 1940, and in March 1941, the Mk,V came into service. To counter the Improvements in fighters of the Luftwaffe especially the FW190, the MK,XII was introduced with its Griffin engine. The Fleet Air Arm used the Mk,I and II and were named Seafires. By the end of production in 1948 a total of 20,351 spitfires had been made and 2408 Seafires. The most produced variant was the Spitfire Mark V, with a total of 6479 spitfires produced. The Royal Air Force kept Spitfires in front line use until April 1954.

Squadrons for : Charles. Nevil. Overton
A list of all squadrons known to have been served with by Charles. Nevil. Overton. A profile page is available by clicking the squadron name.
Squadron	Info
No.609 Sqn RAF Country : UK Founded : 10th February 1936 Fate : Disbanded 10th March 1957 West Riding (Auxiliary) Tally ho! Click the name above to see prints featuring aircraft of No.609 Sqn RAF	No.609 Sqn RAF 609 (West Riding) Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force: 609 Squadron came into being on the 10th February 1936 as part of the expanding Auxiliary Air Force. Initially a bomber squadron equipped with Hawker Harts. On 8th December, 1938, the Squadrons role was changed from bomber to fighter and the squadron took delivery of its first Spitfires Mk I during August 1939. The squadrons first victory was a Heinkel HE111 H-2 of 2/KG26 which was shot down near St. Abbs Head, 27th February 1940, by Flying Officer G. D. Ayre, Pilot Officer J R Buchanan and Flying Officer D Persse-Joynt. 609 squadron was, it is said, the first Spitfire Squadron to reach 100 victories (Ju88 A-5 1/KG51) on 21st October 1940. The victory was shared by Flight Lieutenant F J Howell and Pilot Officer S J Hill. During April 1942, 609 began to replace its Spitfires with Hawker Typhoons, and went on to become the first Typhoon squadron with 227 victories. Based at many RAF Stations 609 was in action throughout WWII, covering the Dunkirk evacuation, the Battle of Britain and supporting the D-Day landings as part of the 2nd TAF. There were many decorations awarded to squadron members, these included 3 DSOs, 22 DFCs and Bars and 4 DFMs. On 16th December 1947, King George VI gave permission for use of the Royal Prefix for all Auxiliary Air Force Squadrons. 609 Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force was disbanded on 10th March 1957, whilst equipped with Gloster Meteors F8 at RAF Church Fenton, Yorkshire. On 1st October, 1999, 609 (west Riding) Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force, was re-formed at RAF Leeming operating in the guise of Air Defence Support Squadron (ADSS).

Last edited : 18:19, June 18, 2016
Last editor : HMS

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