Wing CommanderJohn Reginald Dowling, MBE,DFC & Bar,AFC[2] (5 July 1923 – July 2000) was a Royal Air Force (RAF) officer and helicopter pilot famous for placing the spire of the rebuilt Coventry Cathedral on 22 April 1962.[1] He was a Lancaster bomber pilot during the Second World War, and the author of RAF Helicopters: The First Twenty Years, a comprehensive overview of the RAF's early helicopters and their uses.[1]
Dowling used a Bristol Belvedere helicopter to place the spire at Coventry Cathedral
Dowling was born in Withington Manchester, the son of Dr Stephen Dowling and Mrs Kathleen Dowling (née Gilmore). One of four children, he was educated at Ampleforth College and practised Catholicism all of his life.
Referencesedit
^ abc"Wing Commander John Dowling". The Telegraph. London. 28 July 2000. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
john, dowling, officer, wing, commander, john, reginald, dowling, july, 1923, july, 2000, royal, force, officer, helicopter, pilot, famous, placing, spire, rebuilt, coventry, cathedral, april, 1962, lancaster, bomber, pilot, during, second, world, author, heli. Wing Commander John Reginald Dowling MBE DFC amp Bar AFC 2 5 July 1923 July 2000 was a Royal Air Force RAF officer and helicopter pilot famous for placing the spire of the rebuilt Coventry Cathedral on 22 April 1962 1 He was a Lancaster bomber pilot during the Second World War and the author of RAF Helicopters The First Twenty Years a comprehensive overview of the RAF s early helicopters and their uses 1 John DowlingNickname s Mr Helicopter 1 Born 1923 07 05 5 July 1923Manchester EnglandDiedJuly 2000AllegianceUnited KingdomService wbr branchRoyal Air ForceYears of service1941 1978RankWing CommanderCommands heldNo 72 Squadron 1961 62 Battles warsSecond World WarBerlin AirliftMalayan EmergencyIndonesia Malaysia confrontationAwardsMember of the Order of the British EmpireDistinguished Flying Cross amp BarAir Force CrossMentioned in Despatches Dowling used a Bristol Belvedere helicopter to place the spire at Coventry Cathedral Dowling was born in Withington Manchester the son of Dr Stephen Dowling and Mrs Kathleen Dowling nee Gilmore One of four children he was educated at Ampleforth College and practised Catholicism all of his life References edit a b c Wing Commander John Dowling The Telegraph London 28 July 2000 Retrieved 31 March 2012 No 41589 The London Gazette Supplement 30 December 1958 p 9 nbsp nbsp This biographical article related to the Royal Air Force is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title John Dowling RAF officer amp oldid 1144578981, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
