Bio / Text:
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John Newell (1919-1998) took leave of absence from the family business in Northern Ireland to enlist in the RCAF in Ottawa in 1940, following a few months as a civilian clerk at the British Air Mission in New York. He was commissioned on 17 May 1941, the day after he qualified as a pilot.
Highlights:
22 July 1941 - First solo Spitfire flight
April 1942 to February 1944 - 258 Squadron RAF flying Hurricanes in India and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka)
November 1944 - posted to 412 Squadron RCAF, Volkel, Holland, flying Spitfire IX
14 December 1944 - shot down an enemy ME109 (recorded on ciné-gun)
16 December 1944 to 22 June 1945 - commanded 411 Squadron RCAF, Heesch, Holland (Spitfire IX and XVI)
He was demobilsed at the end of WW2 and rejoined the family business. He married Eileen Dare in September 1945. In 1948 he joined 502 Fighter Squadron RAAF, and flew Spitifire XXII as well as jets (Meteor and Vampire). He stopped flying in 1951.
