James Blackburn (RAF officer)
| James Blackburn | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1916 Acton, London |
| Died | 1993 |
| Allegiance |
 United Kingdom
|
| Service/ |
 Royal Air Force
|
| Years of service | 1936–1946 |
| Rank | Wing Commander |
| Service number | 70067 |
| Commands held |
No. 196 Squadron (1946) No. 570 Squadron (1945–46) No. 159 Squadron (1944) No. 148 Squadron (1942–43) No. 104 Squadron (1942) |
| Awards |
Distinguished Service Order & Bar Distinguished Flying Cross & Bar Mentioned in Despatches Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) |
Wing Commander James Blackburn DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar (1916–1993) was a Royal Air Force officer who completed a record five tours of operations during the Second World War.
Blackburn was born on 8 March 1916, in Acton, London, the son of Sir Arthur Dickinson Blackburn, and was educated at Wellington College, Berkshire, and The Queen's College, Oxford. Whilst at Oxford he joined the University Air Squadron, and was commissioned in to the Royal Air Force Reserve of Officers in 1936.
During the Second World War, Blackburn served first as a Blenheim pilot with No. 57 Squadron and then with No. 70 Squadron as a flight lieutenant, later to be promoted to squadron leader and then wing commander. Blackburn was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in November 1941, followed by a Bar (second award of the medal), in September 1942.
Blackburn was posted to North Africa in May 1942 to take command of No. 104 Squadron and remained in command of the squadron until August 1942.
On 12 September 1942, Blackburn was travelling aboard the RMS Laconia when it was torpedoed 130 miles north-northeast of Ascension Island, by the German submarine U-156. The events that followed became known as the Laconia incident. Blackburn survived the sinking of the Laconia and was taken prisoner of war, later to be imprisoned in Vichy controlled Morocco. In November 1942, Blackburn along with three other officers escaped and made their way to the American held lines in Morocco.
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