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Clipped Signature - Billy Drake. - Cranston Military Prints

Clipped Signature - Billy Drake.


Clipped Signature - Billy Drake.

Joining the RAF in 1936, he flew Hurricanes in the Battle of France. Awarded the DFC, he commanded No.128 Sqn and No.112 Sqn in Africa, gaining a Bar to the DFC and a DSO. He later flew in Malta and flew Typhoons in the summer of 1944. Credited with more than 24 aircraft destroyed in the war, he retired from the RAF in 1963. He died in 2011.
Item Code : CLP0033Clipped Signature - Billy Drake. - Editions Available
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Clipped Signature.
Great value : Value of signatures exceeds price of item!
Drake, Billy

Died : 2011
Group Captain Billy Drake DSO DFC* (deceased)
Joined the R.A.F. in 1936. His first posting was to 1 squadron flying Furies then Hurricanes and first saw action over France in the Spring of 1940 and was awarded his first DFC by the end of the year. As a Squadron Leader he was sent to West Africa to command 128 Squadron. 1942 saw his commanding 112 squadron in North Africa, in July saw an immediate BAR to his DFC and in December an immediate DSO. Posted to Malta as Wing Commander he won a US DFC in 1943. Back in the UK he now was flying Typho
Signature Value : £55
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Whilst attacking a temporary airfield North of Stendal on 22nd April 1945, a group of 198 Sqn Typhoons led by Sqn Ldr N J Durrant were surprised to find themselves confronted by that rarest of fighters, Focke-Wulf's awesome Ta.152, one of them piloted by the great Willi Reschke of Stab / JG301, flying 'Black 13'. In the words of Sqn Ldr Durrant: <i>'The first wave of Typhoons had broken up the airfield surface with 500lb bombs and started some fires. I spotted some of the enemy trying to get airborne through the smoke and as I made a low pass, another Focke-Wulf passed me from behind at great speed. Thinking this would be an easy 'kill', I fired a short burst, but the enemy was gone. I remember thinking that there must be something wrong with my own machine because I felt like I was standing still. Only later did I learn what we had encountered. Thank God the war ended when it did.'</i>

No Contest by Ivan Berryman. 		The P-40, legendary for its service with Chennaults Flying Tigers in China, was one of the RAFs principle fighters in the north African Desert war. A low-level dogfight between P-40 Kittyhawks of 112 Squadron is shown, as they tangle with the Luftwaffe ME109s over Matamata Hills, near the Mareth line on the border between Tunisia and Libya, early March 1943.

Duel in the Desert by Nicolas Trudgian.		 On finals, Hawker Typhoon PD608 (5V-G) of 439 Sqn drifts over the threshold at a forward airstrip in Belgium after a mission during the winter of 1945. RB326 is waiting to take off, whilst others taxi in to their dispersal.

Snowbound - Tribute to No.439 Sqn RCAF by Ivan Berryman. 		Wing Commander J R Baldwin is depicted flying Typhoon MN934 whilst commanding 146 Wing, 84 Group operating from Needs Oar Point in 1944, en route to a bombing raid on 20th June with other Typhoons of 257 Sqn in which both ends of a railway tunnel full of German supplies were successfully sealed.

Typhoons Over Normandy by Ivan Berryman.
Signatures on these products
*The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature and is for the unmatted version where available. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare.
NameInfo




Group Captain Billy Drake DSO DFC* (deceased)
Died : 2011
*Signature Value : £55

Editions signed :

Clipped Signature.


Drake, Billy
(Group Captain Billy Drake DSO DFC* (deceased))

Joined the R.A.F. in 1936. His first posting was to 1 squadron flying Furies then Hurricanes and first saw action over France in the Spring of 1940 and was awarded his first DFC by the end of the year. As a Squadron Leader he was sent to West Africa to command 128 Squadron. 1942 saw his commanding 112 squadron in North Africa, in July saw an immediate BAR to his DFC and in December an immediate DSO. Posted to Malta as Wing Commander he won a US DFC in 1943. Back in the UK he now was flying Typhoons in the lead up to D-Day. With Pete Brothers he was sent to the States to attend the US Staff School at Fort Leavenworth. After the war he continued in the R.A.F. serving in Japan, Malaya, Singapore, Switzerland and his final posting as Group Captain RAF Chivenor, Devon. Retired in July 1963. Going to Portugal where he ran a Bar and Restaurant and dealing in Real Estate. In his flying career he accounted for more than 24 enemy aircraft. Sadly, Billy Drake passed away on 28th August 2011.
Squadrons Related to This Print
No.112 Sqn
Aircraft Related to This Print
Hurricane

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