RFC 'Incoming' Aeroplanes Card

**Allegra** · 09-17-2014, 09:03 AM

Good Evening / Morning Ladies and Gentlemen

I'm conscious of the fact that I have not posted any new odds and ends for sometime.

I picked this card up last week. It measures 180x140mm.

I suffers from being folded, though this is not really noticeable. It also, unfortunately, has a little water damage but for all that, it is in fairly good condition for something that is 99 years young.

It shows 2 planes leaving:
1. -Mart 4236 - 80 Gnome - Lt Fairburn - Serviceable - To England - 22/11/1915
2. BE26 - 4105 - 90 RAF 990 - 22972 - Lt Morton - Serviceable -To No. 13 Squadron - 22/11/15

It is signed by a J Mead (Lt for Capt Commanding 1/ARS). Unfortunately still have not been able to definitively identify this gentleman.

Cheers
Tim

**big ned** · 09-17-2014, 11:12 AM

Hi Tim,

There's a lot of info about your chap on this website, but you will have to sign up to view some of the photo and document attachments.

Tracing the RFC History of Wing Commander John Mead CBE

A fair amount of information is available on him out there, but you have to sign up and pay for certain information, so the above link is good in that much of this has been copied and shown in it. Hope it helps.

Regards, Ned.

**Allegra** · 09-18-2014, 08:44 AM

Hi Ned

Many thanks for this, though I had seen it and I did wonder.

The dates did seem to fit, but I didn't dare hope that I had jagged a piece of this gentleman's history for 23 quid. Do you think it's really the same person?

Attempting to research a signature / person, RFC, 1/ARS, 1915

I am a member of that site.

Cheers
Tim

**big ned** · 09-18-2014, 12:36 PM

The guy was a Quarter Master Lieutenant and Assistant Equipment Officer (AEO) when he signed your document Tim, having been appointed to that position in August 1915. It seems he was assigned to various aircraft parks throughout his career and that fits nicely with him being responsible for dispatching aircraft fresh in from Blighty to the various line squadrons. He appears to have come up through the ranks of the fledgling RFC if you look carefully, and retired from RAF service in 1921 as a Wingco. He was the holder of a rather early RAeC pilots licence (No.475) and it may be that he flew in action early in his career or later when he could wangle an op or patrol. All the info is out there, you've just got to take the time to sort through it all. I'm pretty certain that this is your boy.

Regards, Ned.