Francis S. Symondson

Francis Stanley Symondson
Born	27 March 1897 Sutton, Surrey, England
Died	1 May 1975 (aged 78)
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army Royal Air Force
Years of service	1914–1919 1921 1939–1943
Rank	Captain
Unit	Honourable Artillery Company Glamorgan Yeomanry No. 29 Squadron RFC No. 66 Squadron RAF
Battles/wars	World War I  • Sinai and Palestine Campaign  • Western Front  • Italian Front World War II
Awards	Military Cross Silver Medal of Military Valor (Italy)

Captain Francis Stanley Symondson MC (27 March 1897 – 1 May 1975) was a British World War I flying ace credited with 13 confirmed aerial victories. He survived over three years of ground warfare and overcame early setbacks as a fighter pilot on the Western Front to become an ace in Italy.^[1]

Early life

Symondson was born in Sutton, Surrey, the second of three sons born to Stanley Vernon Symondson, a ship broker, and his wife Jesse Kate (née Uridge). The census of March 1901 found him boarding in Margate, Kent.^[2][3] Symondson first flew before the war in a Bleriot aircraft with Frank Goodden in June 1914.^[4]

World War I service

Symondson served three and a half years in the infantry before transferring to the Royal Flying Corps.^[5] He first served as a trumpeter in the Honourable Artillery Company, before being commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 25th (County of London) Cyclist Battalion, The London Regiment, on 18 March 1915.^[6] He later transferred to the Glamorgan Yeomanry (Welch Regiment), and was serving in Egypt^[4] when he was seconded to the Royal Flying Corps, in which he was appointed a flying officer on 23 May 1917.^[7] He was promoted to lieutenant on 1 July.^[8]

He was posted to No. 29 Squadron in France on 4 September 1917. He crashed three of the squadron's Nieuports in the next 16 days, and was sent back to England for further training. He was then posted to Italy to join No. 66 Squadron as a Sopwith Camel pilot. On 7 March 1918, he set fire to a kite balloon at Chiarano for his first victory. It was the beginning of a string of a dozen enemy losses, as Symondson destroyed another balloon and ten aircraft by 28 August 1918. On 15 September, he drove down an Austrian-Hungarian Berg D.I out of control for his thirteenth win.^[9] The following day, his Military Cross was gazetted. The citation read:

Lieutenant Francis Stanley Symondson, Yeomanry and Royal Air Force.

"For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. In two months he destroyed five enemy machines and one enemy kite balloon."^[10]

In November 1918 he was awarded the Silver Medal for Military Valour by the Italian government.^[11]

Symondson's victories included an observation balloon set on fire, another destroyed, two Albatros D.V fighters shot down in flames, seven other opposing fighters destroyed, an enemy reconnaissance aircraft destroyed, and another driven down.^[12]

List of aerial victories

Combat record^[1]

No.	Date/Time	Aircraft/ Serial No.	Opponent	Result	Location
1	7 March 1918 @ 1015	Sopwith Camel (B2445)	Balloon	Destroyed in flames	Chiarano
2	16 March 1918 @ 1200	Sopwith Camel (B2445)	Berg D.I	Destroyed	Col la Parada
3	30 March 1918 @ 1315	Sopwith Camel (B7353)	Albatros D.III	Destroyed	Mt. Maletto
4	4 April 1918 @ 0915	Sopwith Camel (B7353)	Albatros D.V	Destroyed	Brenta River at Cismon
5	17 April 1918 @ 1415–1425	Sopwith Camel (B7353)	Albatros D.III	Destroyed in flames	South of Giacomo
6			Albatros D.III	Destroyed in flames
7	6 May 1918 @ 1040–1042	Sopwith Camel (B7353)	Albatros D.III	Destroyed	Motta
8			Albatros D.III	Destroyed
9	6 June 1918 @ 1225	Sopwith Camel (D1912)	Albatros D.V	Destroyed	Zangetti
10	15 June 1918 @ 0810	Sopwith Camel (D9406)	Albatros D.V	Destroyed	Val d'Assa
11	13 August 1918 @ 0935	Sopwith Camel (D9390)	Balloon	Destroyed	West of Conegliano
12	28 August 1918 @ 1705	Sopwith Camel (D9390)	Aviatik C	Destroyed	South of Feltre
13	15 September 1918 @ 0830	Sopwith Camel (E1577)	Berg D.I	Out of control	North-east of Feltre

Inter-war career

Symondson was transferred to the RAF unemployed list on 6 June 1919.^[13] He was briefly restored to the active list as a flying officer for temporary duty between 9 April^[14] and 5 June 1921.^[15] On 26 June 1924 Symondson enlisted in the Territorial Army, losing his right to retain his RAF rank.^[16]

By 1929, he was married to Betty Symondson; she was named to probate a will on 17 June 1929.^[17]

He remained a recreational pilot throughout the 1930s. He was both entrant and pilot of the Gypsy Moth G-AARU during the King's Cup Race in June 1930,^[18] but dropped out of the event en route.^[19] He competed in the same event the following year, flying the same aircraft, sponsored by the Royal Aero Club.^[20][21] He was placed as high as fifth place at one point.^[22] A month later, in July 1931, at the opening of Plymouth airport, he also flew aerobatics for His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales.^[23] Symondson flew in Jubilee Week during May 1935.^[5] As late as 1938, he was still flying and stunting a Gypsy Moth at an altitude of only 200 feet (61 m).^[24]

World War II

On 1 September 1939, two days before Britain's declaration of war on Germany, Symondson was commissioned into the Administrative and Special Duties Branch of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve,^[25][26] serving as a flight lieutenant until finally resigning his commission on 21 June 1943.^[27] He then served in the Air Transport Auxiliary into late 1945.^[1]

Francis Stanley Symondson died in Bridport, Dorset, on 1 May 1975.^[2]

References

Notes

1. "Francis Stanley Symondson". The Aerodrome. 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
2. Euridge, Teresa Pask (2016). "Francis Stanley Symondson". Uridge, Euridge: One-Name Study Narratives. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
3. Euridge, Teresa Pask (2016). "Stanley Vernon Symondson". Uridge, Euridge: One-Name Study Narratives. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
4. "De Havilland "Gipsy Moth"". Flight. XXIII (1178): 719. 24 July 1931. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
5. Shores, Franks & Guest (1990), p. 356.
6. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 29103. p. 2717. 16 March 1915.
7. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 30221. p. 8088. 7 August 1917.
8. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 30425. p. 13043. 11 December 1917.
9. Shores, Franks & Guest (1990), pp. 356–357.
10. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 30901. p. 11023. 13 September 1918.
11. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 30989. p. 12978. 1 November 1918.
12. Shores, Franks & Guest (1990), p. 357.
13. The London Gazette: no. 31463. p. 9139. 18 July 1919.
14. The London Gazette: no. 32311. p. 3544. 3 May 1921.
15. The London Gazette: no. 32368. p. 5016. 24 June 1921.
16. The London Gazette: no. 32970. p. 6580. 2 September 1924.
17. The London Gazette: no. 33544. p. 6656. 18 October 1929.
18. "Competitors in the King's Cup Air Race, 5 July 1930". Flight XXII (1120): 627. 13 June 1930. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
19. "The King's Cup". Flight XXII (1124): 771. 11 July 1930. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
20. "First Entries for the King's Cup". Flight. XXIII (1172): 521. 12 June 1931. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
21. "List of Entries for King's Cup Air Race". Flight. XXIII (1178): 714. 24 July 1931. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
22. "The King's Cup Race 1931". Flight. XXIII (1179): 750. 31 July 1931. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
23. "Another Municipal Venture". Flight. XXIII (1178): 723. 24 July 1931. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
24. "Devon Air Day". Flight. XXXIV (1545): 96–97. 4 August 1938. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
25. The London Gazette: no. 34713. p. 7045. 20 October 1939.
26. The London Gazette: no. 34805. p. 1320. 5 March 1940.
27. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 36100. p. 3284. 16 July 1943.

Bibliography

• Shores, Christopher F.; Franks, Norman & Guest, Russell F. (1990). Above the Trenches: a Complete Record of the Fighter Aces and Units of the British Empire Air Forces 1915–1920. London, UK: Grub Street. ISBN 978-0-948817-19-9.