Captain of the R101, Flt Lieutenant Irwin was born in County Cork, Ireland in 1894. He joined the RNAS in 1915 and served on numerous airships as captain and then commanded airships R33 and R36. He joined the RAW programme in 1925 but later transferred to command the RAF School of Balloon Training. He returned to the RAW in 1929.
Tragically, lost his life in the loss of the R101 on 5th October 1930.