NOTES ON OFFICIALS AND OFFICERS.
Wing Commander R.B.B. Colmore OBE Royal Air Force, Director of Airship Development, is the Air Ministry director under the Air Member of Council for Supply and Research, responsible for all airship activities. His directorate is organised in five main divisions; research and design; flying; organisation; construction and maintenance; and finance and adrninistration. Each of the first three divisions is in charge of an assistant director; a works manager is responsible for the fourth and a secretary and accountant for the last. The director has his headquarters at the Royal Airship Works, Cardington, Bedford, where the Airship R.101 was designed and constructed and which is also the base for British airship operations. The trials of R.100 and R.101 have been carried out at Cardington.
Wing Commander Colmore was born at Portsmouth in 1887, was educated at Stubbington House, Fareham and in H.M.S.Britannia. He became a Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Navy in 1907 and was promoted Lieutenant in 1909. He retired in 1911 and on being mobilised at the outbreak of War became a Lieutenant-Commander. He served with the Armoured Car Division at Antwerp in 1914 and Commanded the armoured car section which was employed in Gallipoli in 1915 and later in the same year was Commanding OffIcer in the flrst campaign against the Sensussi tribes on the Egyptian borders. He was transferred to the Airship section of the Royal Naval Air Service In 1916 and after serving at the airship station at Barrow became Commanding Officer of the airship base at Mullion, Cornwall. While holding thls command he evolved a novel scheme of deallng with the submarine menace by a system of comblned patrols of airships, seaplanes and aeroplanes in conjunctlon with surface craft. This method proved so successful that Lt.Col. Colmore (as he had beceme on the formation of the Royal Air Force) was appointed a 1st class Staff Offlcer, Aircraft OperatlonsJ Plymouth, wlth a view to the same principles being applied against submarines along the whole British Coasts, and in this connectlon he was later posted as Chief Staff Offlcer, Aircraft Operations, with Commander-in-Chief, Grand Fleet, based at Dundee. The war ended, however, before the system came into general operation.
After the War he was granted a permanent commisslon as Squadron Leader, Royal Air Force, and was attached as Staff Officer for Airships to the department of the Controller General of Civil Aviatlon, Air Ministry. When it was decided in 1924 to proceed with the development of airships he was appointed Deputy Director of Airship Development in the Department of the Air Member of Council for Supply and Research and became Director at the beginning of the the present year. He is seconded from the Royal Air Force for airship duty.
Major G. H Scott C.B.E . A.F.C. Assistant Director of AirshipDevelopment (Flying) was born in 1888 in Catford, Kent, and was educated at Richmond School Yorks, and the R.N. Engineering College, Keyham. From 1908 he was engaged in general engineering until the outbreak of War when he joined the Royal Naval Air Service as a Flight Sub-Lieutenant. After Service at Farnborough in H.M.A. Eta and at Kingsnorth he proceeded in 1915 to the airship Station at Barrow and became captain of the Parseval P.4. The following year he was appointed to the command of the airship station at Anglesey and in 1917 became captain of R.9, the first British rigid airship to fly and was also appointed Experimental Officer, Airships at Pulham airship base. On the formation of the Royal Air Force he was given the rank of Major.
Towards the end of 1918 he was chosen to command R.34 and was awarded the A.F.C. for his work on airships. In 1919 he commanded R.34 on its flight from East Fortune, Scotland to the United States and back to Pulharm. For this he was awarded the C.B.E. This was the first flight of any aircraft to America and also the first outward and homeward flight. He was demobilised from, the Royal Air Force later in 1919. In 1920 he was appointed to the technical staff of the Royal Airship Works, Cardington. He is the inventor of the Air Ministry system of airship mooring to a tower, which is also employed in the United States . In 1924 he was appointed Officer in Charge of Flying and Training in the Airship Directorate and in January of this year became Assistant Director (Flying). He visited Canada in 1927 to advise the Canadian Government on the selection of an airship base which resulted in St. Hubert, Montreal being chosen and equipped.
Since the Autumn of last year he has carried out extended trials of the two new British Airships R.101 and R.100, which are the largest airships in the world and contain many novel features compared with previous airship types.
Squadron Leader R. S. Booth A. F. C .Royal Air Force Captain of R.100, was born in 1895 at Hughenden, Bucks, and was educated at the R.N. Colleges at Osborne and Dartmouth. He became a midshipman,R.N., in 1912 and a Sub-Lieutenant in 1914. Transferring to the R.N.A.S, (Airship section) in 1915 he was Captain of non-rigid airships of the S.S. and Coastal types until 1918 when he was appointed first officer of the rigid airship R.24, and later became Commanding Officer of Mullion Airship Station. On the formation of the Air Force in 1918 he was given the rank of Major and after the Armistice served for nearly four years as an airship officer on the Inter-Allied Aeronautical Commission of Control, Berlin. In 1919 he was granted a permanent commission in, the Royal Air Force as Fllght Lieutenant and was promoted Squadron Leader in 1925 following his successful navigation of airship R.33 when she broke away in a gale from the mooring tower at Pulham, Norfolk, with a badly broken bow and drifted over the North Sea. He was also awarded at this time a bar to his Air Force Cross.
He has been attached to the Royal Airship Works, Cardington, since 1924 and was selected to Cornmand R.100 last year. He is also a qualified aeroplane pilot. He is seconded from the Royal Air Force for duty on airships.
Squadron Leader E.L. Johnston. A.F.C.Q.B.E Reserve of Air Force Officers.Navigator of R.100 was born in Sunderland in 1891 and was educated at Tynemouth High School and the Marine School, South Shields. He is a qualified Master Mariner and originally served in the Royal Naval Reserve. He transferred to the R.N.A.S. (Airship Section) in 1916 and after commanding coastal type airships he later became Commanding Officer of Luce Bay airship station, in the South West of Scotland. On the formation of the Royal Air Force he was appointed Captain and later was promoted to the rank of Major. After the War he served in the navigation branch in the Air Ministry but later retired from the Royal Air Force. He was apppinted to the Royal Airship Works, Cardington in 1924 for navigattonal duties and was loaned for some time to Imperial Airways Ltd., in order to open up European Aeroplane routes. In 1927 was navigator to the Secretary of State for Air on the first Irnperial Airways flight to India and back. He is navigator for R.101 as well as for R.100 and is also an Air Ministry Examiner for Navigator licences. He recently organised the Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators of the British Empire and holds the position of Deputy Master in that organisation.
Captain G.F.Meager, A.F.C. First Officer of R.100 was born in 1893 at Newport, Isle of Wight. He joined the Airship Section of the R.N.A.S. in 1915 and commanded during the two following years S.S. and coastal type airships at various stations in England. In 1917 he was second in command of an airship flight that was sent to Italy Adriatic patrol duties, and in 1918 became Captain of the S.R.l, an Italian semi-rigid, and flew this airship from Rome to England. He was demobilised in 1919 and was abroad in India and New Zealand until 1925 when he returned to England and was appointed second officer of R.33, which carried out various experimental flights to gather technical data required in connection with the design of R100 and R101. He was awarded by the Italian Government the Croce di Guerra and the Cross of the Order of the Crown of Italy for his in Italy.
Flying Officer M. H . Steff Royal Air Force Second Officer R.100 was born in 1896 at Luton, Beds. He joined the Navy in September, 1914 and served in H.M.S. “Inflexible” from 1915 , onwards and was present at the battle of Jutland in 1916. He became a flight officer in the Kite Balloon Section of the R.N.A.S. in the beginning of 1918 and served in the Adriatic Barrage Kite Balloons in Italy. He took part in minesweeping operations in 1919 in the Aegean Sea, the Dardanelles and the Black Sea and in 1920 he was posted to the instructional staff of the School of Balloon training in England where he served for four years. He proceeded in 1925 to the Royal Airship Works for Kite balloon experiments and was appointed 2nd Officer of R.101 last year. He is loaned to R.100 for the present flight. He is seconded from the Royal Air Force for airship duty.
Mr M.A. Giblett, M.S.c Meteorological Officer R.100 was born in 1894 at Englefield Green, Surrey, and was educated at the Universities of Reading and London. During the war he served as Meteorological Officer, Royal Engineer’s in the North Russian Expeditionary Force, Archangle and in 1919 joined the Meteorological Office, Air Ministry, being in the ForeCast, Division until the beginning of 1925 except during 1921 when he was detached for duty during the trial flights of Airships R.80, R.36 and R.38.
When an Airship Service Division was created in the Meteorological Office, Air Ministry, in 1925, he was appointed superintendent. He was a member of the official Airshpi Airship Mission which visited South Africa. Australia, New Zealand and India in 1927 to advise the Governments on the steps to be taken to provide the necessary ground organisation for airship operations. He has also organised the necessary meteorological services to airship flights to Canada and on the route to Egypt and India. He is on the Council of the Royal Meteorological Society and is Meteological Secretary of Section A of the British Association.
Squadron Leader A .H. Wann, Royal Air Force, Supernumeracy Officer was born in 1895 at Norwood London, and was educated at the Royal Naval Colleges at 0sborne and. Dartmouth. He entered the Royal Navy as a midshipman in 1913, serving during the first year of the war in H.M.S. King George V. He became a sub-lieutenant in May 1915, and for the remainder of the war was engaged in the airship section of the Royal Naval Air Service. In 1916 he was attached to the Russian Black Sea Fleet in charge or 4 coastal airships. Squadron Leader WAnn returned before the revolution took place and was posted for duty with rigid airships .Subsequently he commanded R.29, R32, R36 and R38 all of which were mainly from East Fortune and Howden. Squadron Leader Wann was responsible for the instruction of the United States Naval Airship detachment who came to this country to fly R.38 across the Atlantic. Squadron Leader Wann was in command of this airship when she broke up over the Hull in 1921 and was the only survivor from the fore part of the airship.
Squadron Leader Wann who holds a permanent commission in the Air Force qualified as an aeroplane pilot in 1924, and after attending the Royal Air Force Staff College , he was posted for dutry in the Deputy Directorate of Manning, Air Minisrty.
Mr. F. M McWade Resident Inspector, Aeronautical Inspection Department at the Royal Airship Works was born at GIasgow in 1872. He was trained at the School of Military Engineering and joined the School of Balloonfng, Royal Engineers, in 1895. He took part in the building of the airship “Nulli Secundus” in 1903 and also assisted in later vears in the construction of airships “Beta”, “Gamma”, “Deltata” and “Eta”. From 1915 to 1918 he was engaged at Kingsnorth Airship Station on the building of non-rigids and from 1920 to 1924 was an A.I.D. Officer at the experimental seaplane stations at Isle of Grain and Felixstowe. Since 1924 he has been resident inspector at the Royal Airship Works and has been responsible for the close inspection of R.101 during her erection and of R.100 since she came to Cardington.
Crew on Outward Canada Flight
| Name | Age | Designation | Decorations | Birthplace | Remarks |
| Angus, W. | 41 | Foreman Engineer | A.F.M. | Perth, Perthshire, Scotland | Joined Airship service Sept 1915 Ships P.6, C.4, C.11, C.25, N.S. 3, N.S.8, R34 ,R80, R33. Returned as crew in R34 from USA to England. |
| Ball, R. | 31 | Engineer | Nil. | Truro, Cornwall | No previous flying experience. Airship Guarantee Co. on construction of R.100. Joined Airship 23.11.29 |
| Broughton, C. | 28 | Rigger | Nil. | Hull, Yorkshire | do. |
| Clarke, H.W. | 34 | Engineer | Nil. | Middlesborough, Yorkshire | Jointed Airship service 22.8.35 R33. Joined crew R100 31.07.29 |
| Cumley, H | 24 | Engineer | Nil | Manchester, Lancashire | No previous flying experience. Joined R100 crew 14.08.29 |
| Cutts, G.G. | 27 | Rigger | Nil | Laxborough, Yorkshire | No previous flying experience. airship Guarantee co. on Construction of R.100 crew. 27.01.30 |
| Deverell, R.L. | 27 | Rigger | Nil | Barrow-in-furness, Lancashire | Apprentice on construction of R80. Airship Guarantee Co on construction of R100. Joined crwe 23.11.29 |
| Flatters, C. | 25 | Rigger | Nil | Poole, Yorkshire | No Previous flying experience. airship Guarantee Co on Construction of R100. Crew 23.11.29 |
| Gaye, R. | 24 | Engineer | Nil | Boston Spa, Yorkshire | No previous flying experience. Rolls Royce 6.5 years. Joined crew R100 19.08.29 |
| Flt Sgt Greenstreet, T | 33 | Chief Coxswain | Nil | Folkstone, Kent | Flight -Sergent R.A.F. ships No.4 Parseval, No.3 Astra SS Willows, SS4 & 5 Coastal 21, R9, R23, R31, R36, Second Coxswain R33, 1924-1926. Appointed Chief coxswain R100 21.05.29 |
| Hobbs, T. | 32 | Assistant Coxswain | Nil | Newcastle, Northumberland. | Joined Airships March 1925. P4, No.9, R23, R24, R25, R31, R36, and R33 until 1926. Assisted inflation of R101. Joined R100 crew 29.07.29 |
| Hunt. L.A | 24 | Engineer. | Nil | Alvasten, Derbyshire | No previous flying experience.Rolls Royce 10 years. Crwe R100 17.08.29 |
| Jowitt, J | 34 | Engineer | Nil | Bradford, Yorkshire | No previous flying experience. Joined R100 crew 23.11.29 |
| Savidge, A.H | 32 | Chief Steward | Nil | Reading, Berks. | Steward White star, Cunard, Union Castle & Orient Lines. Joined Airships 1921. R36, R101 and R100. |
| Meegan, J.F. | 30 | Cook | Nil | Leeds, Yorkshire | Joined Airships 01.10.29 R101 and R100 |
| Hodnett, F | 28 | Assistant Steward | Nil | Youghal, Co.Cork, Ireland | Joined Airships, 23.04.30 Assistant Steward |
| Lelliot, D. | 29 | Engineer | Nil | Aldershot, Hants | No previous flying experience, Airship Guarantee Company on construction of R100. Joined Crew 23.11.29 |
| Long, G.E. | 36 | Assistant Coxswain | AFM | Mutford, Suffolk | Joined airships March 1913, Willows No.2, No3, C.P.1 & 9, R9, R24 & R.33 Experience with kite balloons. Assisted with deflation of R101 Crew R100 29.07.29. R33 Breakaway crew. |
| Mann, N. | 37 | Charge-hand Engineer | Nil | Walsall, Staffs | Joined airsips in July 1919, R32, R36, R33 as engineer R100 10.09.29 |
| Millward, H | 24 | Engineer | Nil | Bonsall, Derbyshire | No previous flying experience. Rolls Royce 9 years. Joined R100 as crw 14.08.29 |
| Moncrieff, L.A. | 32 | Assistant Coxswain | Nil | Brentford Middlesex | Joined Airships 10.08.15. No 9, R26, 1919 R23, R25, R33, R100 on 06.08.29 |
| Rumsby, C.H. | 28 | Rigger | Nil | Fressingfield, Suffolk | No previous flying experience. rigger at Airship Guarantee Co on construction of R100. Joined crew 23.11.29 |
| Scott, G .R. | 30 | Rigger | Nil | Hull, Yorkshire | Served on airships R24, R34, R32, R36, Joined 1918 Joined R100 crw in October 1929 |
| Stupple, A.F. | 34 | Charge-hand Engineer | Nil | Berham, Kent | Joined airships 1915, Astra 3, SS4, SS12, P1, SSZero 1&2, R25, R29, R36, R33. On latter ship as chargehand engineer. Jined R100 10.09.29 |
| Sturgeon, J.M | 38 | Engineer | Nil | Glasgow, Scotland. | No previous flying experience. Airship Guarantee Companyon construction of R100. Joined crew 23.11.29 |
| Watts, G | 31 | Chargehand Engineer | Nil | Worstead, Norfolk | Joined airships November 1916. Zero’s SS3 & SST 14 & others. Construction and flying R32,R34, R80 and R33 as Engineer. R100 on 23.11.29. R33 breakaway crew. |
| Williams, F | 43 | Rigger | Nil | Liverpool, Lancashire | Naval Pensioner P.O. No previous flying experierence. Joined R100 crew 23.11.29 |
| Wiseman. A | 27 | Rigger | Nil | Harfield nr Barnet | No previous flying experience. Airship Guarantee Company on construction. Joined R100 crew on 23.11.29 |
| Keeley, S | 35 | Chargehand W/T | Nil | Stufton, Diss, Norfolk | Joined airship service 1924. R33 on breakaway. R100 and R101 |
| Disley A | 28 | W/T Operator | Nil | Lancaster Lancashire | Joined Airships 04.03.20. R101 and R100 |
| Atkins G.K | 30 | do. | Nil | London | Joined airships 1917, SSZ16, SSZ 37, SSZ53, SSZ 67, Coastal 3 & 5a. R100 and R101 |
| Attached:- | |||||
| Eldridge, A | 35 | Clerk to Captain of R100 | Nil | Windsor, Berkshire | 1921/1925 Pulham Airship Station. Investigations on morring systems. 1926 Planning Section : Construction of R101. !929 Chief Control Clerk, Airship Operations for Trials of R101 and R100.1930, Assistant to head of planning section. |
CREW OF R.100 (RELIEF WATCH)
The following members of the crew of R.100 proceeded to Canada some time ago and will act as Relief Watch in Canada. some will probably be members of the crew on the return flight.
| Name | Age | Designation | Decorations | Birthplace | Remarks |
| Addinell, H. | 32 | Engineer | Nil | Cargo, Cumberland | No previous flying experience. Employed by Airship Guarantee Company on construction of R100. Joined crew R100 23.11.29 |
| Armstrong, S.C. | 31 | Rigger | Nil | Newcastle, Northumberland | No previus flying experience. Joined R100 crew 29.07.29 |
| Burgess R.J. | 38 | Rigger | Nil | Fishbourne, Sussex | Joined Airship service 1916. Ships R9 & R34. Flew to USA and Back on R34 in 1919. Also on ships R31, R32. Instruction with Non Rigids, Balloon Course. |
| Burke, A.F. | 27 | Engineer | Nil | Market Weighton, Yorkshire | No previous flying experience. Joined Airships 23.11.29 |
| Hall, L. | 29 | Engineer | Nil | Horbury, Wakefield | No previous flying experience. Airship Guarantee Commpany as a Draughsman on construction of R100. Joined crew 23.11.29 |
| Kershaw, D. | 26 | Rigger | Nil | Barrow in Furness, Lancashire | No previous flying experience. Employed by Airship Guarantee Company on construction of R100. Joined crew R100 23.11.29 |
| Patterson, E. R | 26 | Rigger | Nil | Bedford, Bedforshire | No previous flying experience. Employed by Airship Guarantee Company on construction of R100. Joined crew R100 27.01.30. Previously at Royal Airship Works |
| Simmonds, D. | 23 | Engineer | Nil | Wigtown, Scotland | No previous flying experience. Rolls Royce 6 years. Joined R100 crew 11.11.29 |
| Watson, C. | 23 | Engineer | Nil | Barrow in Furness, Lancashire | No previous flying experience. Airship Guarantee Company on Construction of R100. Joined crew 23.11.29 |
| Wilson, H. | 27 | Engineer | Nil | Sowerby Bridge | No previous flying experience. Airship Guarantee Company on Construction of R100. Joined crew 23.11.29 |
| Larkins, C.W. | 25 | W/T Operator | Nil | Blackheath, Kent | Joined Airships September 1929 |