Last week I was very fortunate to have the opportunity of speaking during two days of the 2018 War and Peace Revival show. One of the largest living history events in the country. I talked about the ten greatest moments of the RAF's history - something which I felt more than slightly inadequate to do - who was I to stand up in front of dozens of people and tell them what the greatest RAF moments were? So, instead I put it to a vote - you may have seen emails or social posts over the last weeks asking for people's opinion. In the end over 300 people registered their opinion on my online survey and from their answers I was able to build out a list with much more credibility. Here is the presentation - I hope you like it.. and remember, if you disagree with the list or the order of the list - it is not my list! It is the result of the survey!!

1. THE TEN GREATEST MOMENTS IN RAF HISTORY
(1918-2018)

2. moment
/məʊm(ə)nt/
noun
1. A very brief period of time.
"she was silent for a moment before
replying"
2. Formal - importance.
"the issues were of little moment to the
electorate"
WHAT IS A MOMENT?

3. MODUS OPERANDI
Hugely subjective
Survey Monkey to the
rescue
Twitter / FB / Email list
300+ respondents
This is their opinion!

4. Before we get going…
On your post-it note, write down
your
TOP THREE
RAF moments.

6. HAWKER SIDDELEY HARRIER

7. 21 OCTOBER 1960 – P.1127
FLEW A TETHERED HOVER
RAF TOOK RECIEPT OF THEIR
FIRST MACHINES IN 1969
SERVED WITH DISTINCTION IN
FALKLANDS
ALSO SAW ACTION IN
BOSNIA, IRAQ AND
AFGHANISTAN
RETIRED IN 2011 AFTER 40
YEARS SERVICE
HAWKER SIDDELEY HARRIER

9. OPERATION BLACK BUCK

10. LONG RANGE BOMBING RAID
AGAINST STANLEY AIRFIED
VULCAN MEANT TO BE
RETIRING IN 1982
TWO VULCANS TOOK OFF
FROM ASCENSION ISLANDS
ON 30 APRIL 1982
8,000MILE ROUNDTRIP TOOK
16HRS
REFULLED FIVE TIMES
ELECTRICAL STORM ALMOST
RUINED MISSION
PRECISION BOMBING AT
10,000FT
7 LONG DISTANCE RAIDS
TOOK PLACE
OPERATION BLACK BUCK

12. THE DOWDING SYSTEM

13. FIGHTER COMMAND C/O HUGH DOWDING
– PILOTS NOT GETTING INFO
CLEARLY/QUICKLY ENOUGH
INFO FROM RADAR, OBSERVER CORPS, AA
DIVISIONS SENT TO CENTRAL FILTER
ROOM AND DISTRIBUTED TO RELEVANT
GROUP AND SECTORS
ONCE A SECTOR RECEIVED WORD FROM
HQ THEY WOULD SCRAMBLE. ONCE IN
THE AIR, PILOTS WOULD GET INFO ABOUT
NUMBER/HEADING/RANGE/ALT OF ENEMY
TURNED FIGHTER COMMAND INTO A
LEAN, MEAN INTERCEPTING MACHINE
THE DOWDING SYSTEM

15. HAWKER HURRICANE

16. FIRST PRODUCTION
HURRICANE FLEW OCT 1937
14,583 MACHINES PRODUCED
NUMEROUS VARIATIONS
BUILT INCLUDING TANK
BUSTING AND NIGHT
FIGHTING
SUPPLIED TO RUSSIA TO HELP
ON THE EASTERN FRONT
THE ONLY VC WON BY
FIGHTER COMMAND DURING
WW2 WAS WON BY FLT/LT
JAMES NICHOLSON ON 16
AUG 1940
HAWKER HURRICANE

18. 1ST APRIL 1918

19. S AFRICAN GENERAL JAN
SMUTS SUGGESTED BRITAIN’S
AIR SERVICE SHOULD BE
SEPARATE FORCE
RNAS & RFC WERE MERGED
TOGETHER DESPITE FIERCE
RESISTANCE FROM ARMY &
NAVY
THE CREATION OF THE
WORLD’S FIRST INDEPENDENT
AIR FORCE
PER ARDUA AD ASTRA
(THROUGH ADVERSITY TO THE
STARS)
STRENGTH ON 1ST APRIL:
22,000 AIRCRAFT & 300,000
PERSONNEL
1ST APRIL 1918

21. RADAR

22. IN 1935 ROBERT WATSON-WATT WROTE A
THESIS ON USING RADIO TO DETECT AIRCRAFT
AND SUCCESSFULLY TRACKED A HADLEY PAGE
HEYFORD BOMBER FOR 8 MILES TO PROVE HIS
THEORY
WATSON-WATT DRAFTED IN TO AIR MINSTRY TO
HELP WITH AIR DEFENCE
BY OUTBREAK OF WAR – 20 CHAIN HIGH
STATIONS
OVER 50 CH & CL STATIONS WERE BUILT
OPERATIONAL INTO THE 1950’S
RADAR

24. AVRO LANCASTER

25. MOST ICONIC & SUCCESSFUL
HEAVY BOMBER OF WW2
FIRST RAID ON 3 MARCH 1942
LANCASTERS FLEW 156,000
INDIVIDUAL SORTIES DURING
WW2
10 LANCASTER CREW
MEMBERS WERE AWARDED
THE VICTORIA CROSS
RETIRED FROM SERVICE IN
1953
AVRO LANCASTER

27. OPERATION CHASTISE
(DAMBUSTERS)

28. PRE-WAR INTELLIGENCE: THE
RUHR VALLEY CONSUMED 1/3 OF
GERMANY’S WATER – MOST
CONTAINED IN THE MŐHNE DAM
SMASHING THE DAM AND
OTHERS CLOSE BY WOULD
CAUSE CHAOS TO INDUSTRIAL
GERMANY
19 SPECIALLY MODIFIED
LANCASTER BOMBERS TOOK
PART IN THE RAID
8 PLANES WERE SHOT DOWN
THE DAMBUSTERS WERE
AWARDED 37 GALLANTRY
MEDALS INCLUDING THE VC TO
GUY GIBSON
OPERATION CHASTISE

30. SUPERMARINE SPITFIRE

31. ENTERED SERVICE IN 1938
20,351 MACHINES PRODUCED
22 VARIATIONS
MOST WIDELY PRODUCED
MACHINE IN RAF HISTORY
DUE TO SLOW INITIAL
PRODUCTION THERE WERE
MORE HURRICANES
AVAILABLE THAN SPITFIRES
AVERAGE AGE OF WW2
SPITFIRE PILOTS WAS 20
SUPERMARINE SPITFIRE

33. THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN

34. OPERATION SEALION ANNOUNCED BY HITLER ON 16
JULY 1940
HE NEEDED AIR SUPREMACY TO CARRY OUT AN
INVASION OF BRITAIN
LARGE SCALE AIR ATTACKS STARTED 10 JULY 1940
RAF FIGHTER COMMAND SIGNIFICANTLY
OUTNUMBERED
18 AUGUST 1940 – THE HARDEST DAY – OVER 900
SORTIES FLOWN BY EACH SIDE
2,963 PILOTS FLEW FOR FIGHTER COMMAND DURING
THE BATTLE - AVE AGE OF 20
THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN

35. WANT MORE
MOMENTS?
All of these ‘moments’ including all
infographics, images, facts etc. have been
taken from my book ‘Reaching For The Sky’

36. WANT MORE
MOMENTS?
All of these ‘moments’ including all
infographics, images, facts etc. have been
taken from my book ‘Reaching For The Sky’
Click on the cover image to view
the book on Amazon