de Havilland apprenticeship

At 18, he joined the de Havilland Aircraft company in 1935 as an apprentice.^[1][2] Cunningham began his engineering career with some menial projects, before being invited to assist with the building of the de Havilland T.K.2 and de Havilland Moth Minor. At the same time, he joined the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), a part-time branch of the Royal Air Force (RAF), and became a member of No. 604 (County of Middlesex) Squadron after a recommendation by a friend of the family. Cunningham began his pilot training at Hatfield Aerodrome in August 1935, and flew solo on 15 March 1936,^[1] receiving his commission as a pilot officer (PO) on 7 May 1936.^[2][6][7]

He was awarded his wings in the summer of 1936. This was when he met Cecil F. 'Jimmy' Rawnsley, a 32-year-old electrical engineer who would later serve as aerial gunner and radar operator on all but three of his successful air battles. Cunningham later became a junior test pilot with de Havilland, working with light aircraft alongside Geoffrey de Havilland, the company founder's son and chief test pilot.^[1] The company was short of test pilots, and Cunningham caught de Havilland's eye as his flight experience grew. It was reflected by his promotion to flying officer (FO) on 5 December 1937. At this time, he began to care more for test-flying than manufacturing and design. He became one of de Havilland's four top test pilots.^[8][9]

A de Havilland Moth Minor

In March 1938, he was called to readiness with 604 Squadron during the Munich crisis.^[2] At this time, the squadron was flying the Hawker Demon. He was displeased when they converted to the Bristol Blenheim. The machines were fitted with a tray of four 303 Browning machine guns to give forward-facing firepower. As a long-range fighter it was of dubious value. The German Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Messerschmitt Bf 110 could, and would, expose the frailties of the aircraft, which was originally intended as a bomber. However, Cunningham was told by the Air Ministry that it would be sufficient in the night fighter role, which is where they intended to use this variant. On 20 April 1938, he returned to de Havilland, test-flying de Havilland Moth Minors.^[10]

On 11 April 1939, he narrowly escaped with his life alongside Geoffrey de Havilland, both men parachuting to safety. They had taken a de Havilland Moth Minor into the air to test its response to spins. The prototypes had had an anti-spin parachute, but preceding tests had been carried out without needing to resort to this safety measure. Geoffrey put the aircraft into a left-hand spin, which was recovered. After climbing back to 8,000 feet (2,400 metres), the aircraft was put into a right-hand spin. The engine cut out, the nose reared up, and the aircraft stalled and entered a flat spin. When de Havilland's recovery efforts failed, both decided to bail out. Once they had done so, the lightened Moth lowered its nose and recovered from the spin. The engine ignition had been left on, and the wind-milling propeller started the engine. The aircraft began circling the descending airmen at dangerously close range. Fortunately, it descended at a faster rate than their parachutes did, and it was destroyed when it hit the ground. Cunningham casually took pictures of the wreckage and his parachute, which exemplified his cool nature.^[11]

The growing tension in Europe made war more likely. In response to the Nazi–Soviet pact on 23 August 1939, the Royal Air Force (RAF) mobilized. Cunningham had been test-flying the de Havilland Dragon airliner. Only sixteen were completed before the declaration of war in September. At this juncture, Cunningham was forced to commit himself either to de Havilland or to the RAF. The RAF had trained him, and he felt he could be of far more use in the RAF than test-flying aircraft.^[12]

Night squadron

On 26 July 1940, the squadron was re-designated a specialised night fighter (NF) unit. The squadron was amongst the first to receive airborne interception radar (AI). 604 Squadron was sent a number of AI Mk. IV radar sets. Jimmy Rawnsley, Cunningham's friend and crew-mate, saw this as an opportunity to join a programme that promised a bright future. Rawnsley retrained as a radar operator, and would re-join Cunningham in January 1941. In the intervening period, the squadron was frequently frustrated by the Blenheim's limitations. Even with the 'magic boxes', they were too slow to catch any of the German bombers if the enemy was given the slightest advantage. Cunningham flew with 604 on the night of 18/19 June when the Luftwaffe flew its first major operation in the Greater London area. No victories were claimed in the summer of 1940.^[16][17]

Cunningham was promoted to acting squadron leader (Sqn Ldr) in September 1940, commanding B Flight. Within the month, the unit received the heavily armed and powerful Bristol Beaufighter. After the commanding officer, Cunningham was the second man to fly it. The Beaufighter went through a teething stage in relation to its gun sight. The sight projected a ring of light with a spot at the centre onto a small sheet of glass directly in front of the pilot's head. The spot in the centre provided the aiming point, and the ring, of variable diameter, helped him to judge the range and amount of deflection needed to attack a target. The light's brilliance was adjustable by rheostat, but the control was ineffective. Rotating it a fraction could produce maximum brilliance or cause the spot to flicker out.^[18]

Air marshal Sholto Douglas formed the Night Fighting Committee, and met regularly at RAF Bentley Priory to discuss operational problems. As an experienced aviator, Cunningham was invited to attend. Henry Tizard invited Cunningham to air his views at the meeting. Tizard referred him to the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) to meet Arnold Alexander Hall, a gun sight expert. With his engineering expertise, and Cunningham's assessment of the issue, Hall ironed out the inadequacies in the design. Hall later became Cunningham's managing director at Hawker Siddeley twenty years later. Cunningham also worked with ground control of interception (GCI), carrying out various exercises. He made the acquaintance of Philip Joubert de la Ferté, Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), who dropped in on 604 as well as Douglas; the two men were always keen to hear the experiences of the crew.^[19]

The AI sets added to Beaufighters were the first to be mass-produced. The operating frequency was 190 to 195 MHz, with a wavelength of 1.5 metres. The equipment consisted of a receiver, transmitter, control panel, modulator, indicator unit, and a system of fixed dipole aerials. On the nose, the aerial was a double arrowhead shape with a pair of azimuth aerials protruding above and below the leading edge of each wing between the cannon and the wingtip. A pair of elevation aerials were located above and below the wing surfaces near the RAF roundel on the starboard side. The indicator display consisted of two cathode ray tubes. They displayed elevation and azimuth bearing. The set had a range-limitation of four miles (circa 20,000 feet (6,100 metres)). The minimum range of detection was usually around 400 feet (120 metres). At closer ranges, the target merged with the transmission pulse and was obscured. At altitudes below 1,000 feet (300 metres), the returns from ground objects would swamp the tubes. Operators like Rawnsley were left to do a fair amount of guesswork. No scales or calibration markings were put on early sets. The position and heading of the enemy in the azimuth plane, its height, and its range had to be guessed. At least the GCI could bring the Beaufighter well within range of the target, usually a mile or so behind the bomber.^[20]

The Cunningham–Rawnsley team used the AI specifically to position themselves directly astern and underneath the enemy. Although the German bombers carried a dorsal gunner, it was difficult to locate an enemy against the black colour of the landscape. Usually, the blackness of the country would swallow up the outline of an approaching night fighter. As they approached, the enemy aircraft's slipstream could prove hazardous, bucking the Beaufighter and throwing the pilot off his aim. Approaching from slightly below allowed the attacking pilot to avoid the slipstream. These tactics allowed Cunningham to close the range and fire first, which was usually sufficient to end the engagement quickly and successfully. Bob Braham, a rival night fighter ace, also used this tactic.^[21]

'Cat's Eyes'

Throughout the summer of 1940, Cunningham and 604 Squadron had to sit idle and frustrated as the Battle of Britain raged. By autumn, the battle had subsided. Having failed to gain air superiority, the Luftwaffe now resolved to bomb British ports and industries. This change in German strategy began The Blitz phase of the aerial campaign. On the night of 19/20 November 1940, the Luftwaffe raided Birmingham. The Germans hoped to follow up their attacks on the West Midlands after a highly effective raid against Coventry on 14 November 1940. Pathfinders from Kampfgruppe 100 (Battle Group 100) led 369 aircraft from Kampfgeschwader 26 (KG 26, Bomber Wing 26), Kampfgeschwader 54 (KG 54), and Kampfgeschwader 55 (KG 55) to the city.^[22]

Cunningham took off this night from RAF Middle Wallop in Hampshire to patrol north of London. When the direction of the raid was known, he was ordered to proceed to the East Midlands. GCI vectored Cunningham and his temporary radar operator John Phillipson; a former ground radar operator, onto an enemy aircraft, but the crew were forced much further westward. Search lights attracted their attention, and Phillipson was able to make a contact and guide him. Soon visual confirmation was made. A tell-tale sign of an aircraft was a blank patch of sky surrounded by a cluster of stars. Keeping in the enemy's blind spot, he flew below it and adjusted his speed to match the German pilot. After closing the range as much as he dared, he pulled up and fired with all four cannons, downing the Junkers Ju 88 bomber,^[1][2] which exploded upon hitting the ground near Wittering, Cambridgeshire at 00:35. Cunningham's victim, 3./KG 54 Ju 88 flown by Unteroffizier Kaspar Sondermeister, was not claimed as destroyed. However, after interrogation of the two German survivors who affirmed the circumstances, Cunningham was granted the victory.^{[23][24][25][26][27]}

The Bristol Beaufighter; this variant does not carry the radar antenna on the wings or nose.

Cunningham had to wait a month for his next victory, on 23 December 1940.^[28] Kampfgeschwader 1 (KG 1) sent 100 bombers led by Kampfgruppe 100 to attack Manchester. GCI vectored Cunningham onto the enemy aircraft. It was not yet dark, and Cunningham identified the machine as a Heinkel He 111. Flying at 15,000 feet (4,600 metres), he saw the Heinkel above the Beaufighter at 16,500 feet (5,000 metres). Cunningham engaged the enemy 50 miles (80 kilometres) south of West Lulworth. The enemy climbed to 19,000 feet (5,800 metres). Following, Cunningham opened fire at 200–300 yards (180–270 metres). The He 111 was engulfed in fire. The bomber was high enough for the crew to jettison the bombs and incendiaries and glide to France, where it crash-landed at Cherbourg. Two of Feldwebel Georg Deininger's crew were wounded. The 3./KGr 100 machine was written off. The crew were unaware that they had been a victim of a night-fighter. They supposed they had been shot down by a flak ship.^[29]

On 2 January 1941, Cunningham nearly added a third. The Germans attacked Cardiff in the city's heaviest raid of the war. Cunningham engaged an He 111 that had an even spread of three aerial masts along its rear fuselage; indicative of a pathfinder. He expended all the Beaufighter's ammunition against it from the working cannons, one cannon jammed. It dived into clouds at 10,000 feet (3,000 metres) at an angle of 50 degrees. A 2./KGr 100 machine returned to France with a wounded gunner, and Cunningham received credit for a probable victory.^[30] On 12 January, he claimed a damaged He 111, his first, with operator Jimmy Rawnsley.^[31] Cunningham was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) on 28 January 1941 for his achievements, including 25 night sorties.^[2][32]

On 9 February, upon the invitation of Sholto Douglas and Charles Portal, Chief of the Air Staff, Cunningham arrived at the Air Ministry. He was ordered to report to Geoffrey de Havilland at Hatfield, though neither of the senior officers would say why. When Cunningham met Geoffrey de Havilland, he was summoned to a hangar. It was the first time Cunningham had laid eyes on the de Havilland Mosquito. Cunningham flew W4050, the prototype, on 9 February 1941. He was greatly impressed by the "lightness of the controls and generally pleasant handling characteristics". Cunningham concluded that when the type was fitted with AI equipment, it would be a perfect replacement for the Bristol Beaufighter.^[33][34]

Cunningham claimed a third victory on 15 February 1941.^[35] The Luftwaffe carried out air attacks on Liverpool and Humberside. Over Newton Abbot, Devon, he engaged a He 111 from Kampfgeschwader 27 (KG 27). It crashed outside Totnes. The bomber, 1G+FR, belonging to 7./KG 27, was completely destroyed. Leutnant Eberhard Beckmann and his crew were killed.^[36][37] The fifth victory eluded Cunningham for some time. On 12 March, he was twice vectored onto enemy aircraft by Rawnsley. He could only claim a Ju 88 and He 111 damaged. On the night of the 3 April 1941, he accounted for his fourth enemy aircraft.^[38] Although claimed as a He 111, the identity of the aircraft was likely the Ju 88 A-5, Werknummer ('factory number') 4224, code V4+AR of 7./KG 1, on a mission to raid Avonmouth. Leutnant Ernst Menge and his crew, Wilhelm Hahn, Robert König, and Wilhelm Schreiber, were posted as missing in action.^[39][9][40] On the night of the 7 April, he became a fighter ace. A He 111 of 9./KG 26 was intercepted as its bombers attacked Portsmouth and Portland Harbour. Leutnant Erwin Hartmann crashed into the Channel with his crew. A No. 87 Squadron RAF pilot, Flight lieutenant Derek Harland Ward claimed the victory, as he saw a glow which he fired at before it hit the sea. Cunningham was credited with the victory, however, as the Heinkel was about to crash when Ward fired at it. The 87 Squadron war diary acknowledged this fact in its entry for that night.^[41]

Bristol Beaufighter Mk.II with radar and Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. Cunningham flew the type in 1941 and 1942.

Two nights later, on 9 April, he accounted for another He 111, followed by another plus a probable victory on 11 April.^[42] It is possible his victim on the later mission was He 111 P-2, Werknummer 2002, 1G+HT of 9./KG 27. Pilot Leo Roth and crew members Oberfeldwebel Wilhelm Franke, and Unteroffizier Walter Rüggeberg and Fritz Unterieser were killed. A pilot from 307 Squadron also claimed the machine, which crashed at Prowers Farm, Lydlinch, Dorset at 01:35.^[40] One 8./KG 55 He 111 was lost with its crew over the Channel, and a Stab./KG 26 machine was lost over northern France when the crew abandoned their damaged aircraft. Cunningham's comrade in 604, Roderick Aeneas Chisholm, accounted for a 5./KG 54 Ju 88 near Portsmouth.^[43]

On 15 April, Cunningham was to have his most successful night, shooting down three bombers (victories no. 8–10). On patrol near the south coast, he engaged a He 111 over Monmouthshire, which he shot down with only 40 rounds. He returned to Middle Wallop, only to be sent on patrol for a second sortie. He took off and headed south, towards Southampton. GCI was too busy to employ him, and his request to investigate a searchlight cone towards Marlborough was granted. Rawnsley directed him into attack range, and he duly shot down the He 111, which crashed into derelict houses in Southampton. He was sent by GCI after another enemy, but lost the contact. Appearing over Southampton again, he spotted yet another He 111 in the moonlight. He closed to 80 yards (73 metres) and shot it down. It crashed in the area of Lymington.^[44] Cunningham's 9th victory was Werknummer 2857, code G1+ES, belonging to 8./KG 55. The Heinkel, piloted by Oberleutnant Günther von Seidlitz, crashed onto No. 10–12 Padwell Road, Southampton at 02:00. Seidlitz and Feldwebel Franz Hümmer were killed in action and Unteroffizier Horst Rosenberg and Herbert Sauer were taken prisoner.^[45][46][47] In April, having shot down at least ten aircraft in night-fighting operations, Cunningham was decorated with his first Distinguished Service Order (DSO).^[48][49]

On 3 May, Cunningham accounted for another Heinkel.^[42] Four nights later on 7 May 1941, Cunningham achieved a victory, his 12th, in front of King George VI. Sholto Douglas accompanied the King when he appeared at Danebury Hill, not far from Middle Wallop. The King met Cunningham and Rawnsley, congratulated the airmen on their success, and asked Cunningham to get another on that night. The King then was driven to the GCI station Sopley outside Bournemouth to tour the facility. Eager to impress the King, Cunningham drove to dispersal and prepared to go on patrol. The Luftwaffe attacked Liverpool, which took their flight path over 604's patrol area. Cunningham took off and intercepted a He 111 north of Bournemouth. The controller asked the King to go outside, as they might have an opportunity to witness the battle. Although they did not see it, the King heard the results: the roar of engines, and rattle of cannon fire. The Heinkel, from 7./KG 27, Werknummer 1639 code IG+DR, eventually crashed near Andersea Farm south of RAF Weston Zoyland at 23:30. Pilot Oberfeldwebel Heinz Laschinski and Oberfeldwebel Otto Willrich survived, though the pilot was badly burned. Flight Engineer Feldwebel Fritz Klemm and Feldwebel Heinz Schier were killed by gunfire.^[50][51] On the night of 31 May/1 June 1941, Cunningham and Rawnsley accounted for another He 111, as the Luftwaffe completed its last major raid of the Blitz. It was one of 24 German bombers lost on that night. The following morning, Cunningham was promoted to temporary squadron leader.^[52][53]

Wing commander

The dynamics of the air war changed in June 1941. The German invasion of the Soviet Union, Operation Barbarossa, opened up the Eastern Front. The German bomber force was heavily committed to the theatre. The escalation of the fighting in the Mediterranean and North African theatres also diverted German air strength. Luftwaffe operations over Britain changed dramatically. Small numbers of bombers would make hit-and-run attacks on selected targets near the coast for the remainder of 1941, replacing the mass raids of the preceding autumn and winter. Cunningham used the decline in the pace of operations to train new crews.^[58]

Cunningham's practice of leadership was different from that of his day-fighter counterparts. A day unit would fly in formation together, engage the enemy together, communicate by radio, and follow the directions and example of their commanding officer in combat. Cunningham was not in a position to lead in this way. The night fighter was a lone hunter. When it took off, the crew would operate alone in the air. Instead, he could ensure proficiency in battle only by teaching his men to master their aircraft and AI. He was constantly in touch with scientists, and tracked new developments. He also took new crews up in the Bristol Beaufighter to generate confidence in the machine. Night pilots had to learn to fly on instruments alone, in adverse weather conditions, and for sustained periods. Rawnsley contributed with training on the use of AI, and mock interceptions using target aircraft were flown regularly.^[59]

John Cunningham by Cuthbert Orde

Cunningham still flew on operations. Flying the new Beaufighter Mk.II powered by Merlin engines on an interception in July, he was hit by return fire from a He 111. The engines spluttered, and one caught fire. Already far out to sea, he flew back to base, extinguished the fire, and made a wheels-down landing.^[58] The following month, he had greater success. On the night of the 22 August 1941, he intercepted two He 111s. One was claimed as damaged, but the second was confirmed. The Heinkel He 111, an H-5 model, Werknummer 4081, coded F8+BS belonging to 8./Kampfgeschwader 40 (KG 40), fell into the sea north-west of Wells-next-the-Sea at 22:05. Gefreiter G. Dohmen, H. Hädrich, and K. Dändel were never found. The body of Rudolf Faath was washed ashore at Burnham Overy on 31 August.^[60] On 1 September, Cunningham caught and downed a Ju 88, his 15th victory.^[42] He was awarded a bar to his DFC on 19 September, by which time he was an acting wing commander (Wg Cdr).^[61]

The winter 1941–42 passed by with relative inactivity. In the spring of 1942, Arthur Harris began his campaign over Germany in earnest, with an attack by RAF Bomber Command upon Lübeck. Enraged by the attack, Adolf Hitler ordered the Luftwaffe to begin retaliatory strikes, which began the so-called Baedeker Blitz. On 4 April, Cunningham engaged and damaged a Baedeker raider He 111 pathfinder operating over Exeter. It was able to escape into cloud. KGr  100, the specialist German pathfinder unit, was now operating with new navigational aids that allowed them to fly through and navigate in thick cloud and rain. They deliberately operated whenever the weather proved more difficult for night fighters. Nevertheless, Cunningham made an interception on the night of 23 May 1942.^[62]

Attempting his usual tactic, Cunningham approached from behind and below. Suddenly, the Heinkel lurched into a tight left-hand turn, allowing the gunners to fire a broad-side. The bomber disappeared into the mist. Cunningham asked ground-controlled interception (GCI) for help. They tracked the Heinkel flying north near Shaftesbury. Engaging again, the German pilot managed to turn into a head-on position and dive past Cunningham almost upside down. He continually evaded Cunningham by turning in underneath him at near-impossible angles. Cunningham and Rawnsley came to understand that they were not dealing with a novice. Soon a turning match began, and then the German attempted to escape by twisting and diving. Cunningham forced him down to 900 feet (270 metres), but Rawnsley and GCI lost contact when the ground clutter hid the Heinkel's signal. Cunningham returned to base. News soon came through that the He 111 had crashed onto the slopes on Cranborne Chase. Apparently, the Heinkel had broken through the clouds at only a hundred feet and dived vertically into the ground near the isolated village of Alvediston at 17:05. Intelligence later determined that the machine was a He 111H-6, Werknummer 4627, code 6N+FR, from 7./KGr 100. The bomber disintegrated upon impact. The pilot, Staffelkapitän (squadron leader) Hauptmann Siegried Langer was killed, along with his crew, Oberfeldwebel G. Schmidt, Feldwebel D. Hoffmann, P. Gaidies, and Gefreiter W. Worring.^[63] It was a unique victory for Cunningham. He had not fired his guns in the 150-minute chase.^[64]

Following this episode, Cunningham was promoted to temporary wing commander on 1 June 1942, and following the downing of his 16th enemy aircraft, he received a bar to his DSO on 24 July for, among other feats, "destroying an enemy aircraft without firing a single bullet... by diving through cloud at great speed, drove the enemy aircraft to the ground."^[65][66]

Cunningham and Rawnsley were soon ordered to staff positions. Before they departed Middle Wallop and 604 Squadron, they had a chance to test the new 4 inches (10 centimetres) AI Mk. VIII radar, which had a range of two or three miles (3–5 kilometres). The new radar was a radical improvement. All the information was displayed on a single tube. The ground echo was reduced, but could still be seen on screen when flying low, but it did not interfere with the overall picture. Cunningham was to take over as director of all training units from Rory Chisholm, who left 604 to become a staff officer at group headquarters. Rawnsley was due to take an instructor job at 62 Operational Training Unit (62 OTU) at RAF Usworth. Cunningham managed to persuade the CAS to deploy him to headquarters at No. 81 Group RAF, the training organisation for RAF Fighter Command. Rawnsley was also promoted to squadron leader and was awarded the DFC and Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM). The pair remained grounded for six months, until January 1943.^[67]

Last tour

In January 1943, Cunningham was allowed back onto operations. He was given command of No. 85 Squadron RAF,^[2] equipped with the de Havilland Mosquito NF.II and based at RAF Hunsdon. He selected Jimmy Rawnsley as his operator. The new radar set displayed the entire picture. A small cathode-ray tube set on the left side of the instrument panel gave Cunningham a composite image. The duo decided Rawnsley should control the interception in the initial stages, until they reached a point where the enemy could take evasive action. Then Cunningham would take over while Rawnsley would call out the ranges and free the pilot from looking at his ray-tube.

On the night of 3 March 1943, the Luftwaffe was active again. Cunningham scrambled too late to get contact by ground-controlled interception (GCI). Searchlights operated in a box-shape, separated by evenly spaced markers, and he climbed towards a box. Each fighter was given a box and flew to its allotted marker beacon. There he orbited until the lights illuminated a target or formed a cone where he could pick up an airborne interception radar (AI) contact. Soon he had a contact, a Dornier Do 217; he closed in, but his cannons jammed. After he had sat behind the Dornier for some time and tried in vain to encourage the guns to fire, the German crew suddenly became aware of his presence and dived away. Cunningham was furious: three-quarters of the squadron got airborne, but only he had seen an enemy. Unsatisfied with ground- and aircrews, he used his influence in the small night-fighter community to bring in personnel from his old unit, 604, which was languishing in Cornwall. With the new VIII radar a uniform facility, Cunningham took over a Mosquito NF.XII; the first Mosquito to have a smooth 'bluff' nose dome over the dish antenna.^[68][69]

At this time, the Luftwaffe was sending increased numbers of Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighters over England, at night and at low-level. They were able to hit coastal targets, and their speed and agility meant they were difficult to intercept. The German pilots were disadvantaged in some respects: there was a lack of night-flying experience in these units, and the Fw 190s did not carry radar and had a short range. Aside from a small mirror, the pilot could not always see behind him well enough at night. On 16 May 1943, the Fw 190s lost four and probably a fifth to 85 Squadron. On 13 June 1943, Cunningham intercepted a Fw 190 not far from his airfield at West Malling. The GCI controller telephoned the crew-room to notify them the commanding officer was closing on an enemy aircraft heading to London. They heard both aircraft, and the brief burst of fire followed by the explosion. To his amazement, Cunningham later learned the pilot; Leutnant Ullrich from 3./Schnellkampfgeschwader 10 (Fast Bomber Wing 10, SKG 10), was thrown through the canopy as the Fw 190A-5, Werknummer, 840047 code CO+LT, fell earthwards. He opened his parachute and with a broken arm, was picked up by a searchlight crew.^{[70][71][72][53]}

On the night of 23 August, a Fw 190 was claimed off Dunkirk, and on 8/9 September 1943, a Fw 190A-5 off Aldeburgh proved his 19th victory, and his last claim for that year.^[73] The Fw 190 was seen to crash into the sea by the Coastguard.^[74] Cunningham achieved his 20th and final air victory on the night of 2/3 January 1944. He chased a Messerschmitt Me 410 to France, near Boulogne, before shooting it down. The machine, Werknummer 017, code U5+FE, belonging to 14./Kampfgeschwader 2 (KG 2), crashed at Marquise. Oberleutnant Helmut Schülze and Heinz Beger were killed.^[75]

In January 1944, the Luftwaffe initiated Operation Steinbock. Cunningham filed two claims during the offensive, which lasted until May 1944. On the night of 20/21 February 1944, he claimed a Junkers Ju 188 damaged at 22:09 near Staplehurst. A Ju 188 was lost, and its destruction was attributed to another pilot.^[76] On the night of 23/24 February, he claimed a probable victory against another Ju 188 off Beachy Head. One Ju 188E-1 landed at Coulommiers after surviving an attack by a night fighter. Werknummer 260222, code U5+AN from 5./KG 2 returned with two crewmen injured; Unteroffizier Johann Triebel and Wihelm Spönemann.^[77] During these missions, Cunningham was nearly shot down. Closing in on a Ju 188 from astern, the gunners suddenly opened fire and the Junkers took evasive manoeuvres. A round struck the windscreen, nearly shattering it. Glass fragments struck Cunningham in the face; these were later removed in a field hospital. Later, a captured German crew told intelligence officers Neptun, a new radar, was being used in the rear of German aircraft to detect night fighters. Bombers thus became more difficult to surprise. Cunningham's last encounter with the enemy in 1944 was in pursuit of a Me 410. He had to give up when his windscreen iced over near the French coast.^[78]

On 3 March 1944, he was awarded another bar to his DSO. The citation saying "his iron determination and unswerving devotion to duty have set an example beyond praise".^[79] On 11 April 1944, Cunningham was decorated by the Soviet Union with the Order of the Patriotic War, 1st Class.^[80]

Group captain

In March 1944, Cunningham relinquished command of 85 Squadron. He was appointed group captain (Gp Cpt) in command of Night Operations at No. 11 Group RAF. At 26, he was one of the youngest to hold that rank.^[1] Air marshal Roderick Hill asked him to report to de Havilland in company with Adolph Malan. They were to test-fly the de Havilland Vampire. Cunningham commented that the machine would make an ideal night fighter. Although he was not familiar with the workings of the de Havilland Goblin turbojet, he recommended that if the cockpit was extended to allow for a navigator and the fuel tanks were enlarged, the type could make a formidable interceptor. While test-flying, Cunningham and Rawnsley carried out a sortie over Normandy from RAF Uxbridge. They overflew the British sector on the 9 June 1944 as the Battle for Caen began. They were vectored onto enemy aircraft but were unable to hold their contacts.^[81]

On 13 June 1944, the V-1 flying bomb offensive began and Cunningham was tasked with assisting with their interception. He also coordinated his efforts with No. 100 Group RAF, which were engaged in intruder operations over occupied Europe. Cunningham was concerned at using Mosquitoes for intercepting V-1s, because of the dangers of the bomb exploding and damaging the attacking fighter. One of his former commanding officers and current Group captain Edward Crew; an ace with 15 enemy aircraft and 31 V-1s shot down, was forced to bail out when the nose of his Mosquito was split open. The operations did not last long, and by August 1944, the Mosquitoes were back on bomber support missions.^[82] He was promoted to wing commander (Wg Cdr) (war-substantive) on 1 September 1944.^[83]

Towards the end of the war, he spent most of his time flying throughout Europe and meeting various commanding officers and units. He took advantage of his position to fly other types he had not had the chance to operate. He flew Supermarine Spitfires frequently on such trips. Soon after the Normandy Campaign, he took leave to visit his mother in Ireland. She was staying with his sister Mary, (and his niece) whose husband had been killed in action at Anzio in Italy. He remained with 11 Group until the capitulation of Germany on 8 May 1945.^[84]

In July 1945, he was sent to the Far East. A group was created which was a collection of RAF forces that were to be used to recover Singapore from the Japanese. Cunningham and Rawnsley flew out to Rangoon via Malta, Cairo, Baghdad, and Karachi. Soon after they arrived, they learned of the atomic attacks against Japan. On 2 September 1945, Japan surrendered, and the Second World War was over. Cunningham was offered a permanent commission in the RAF; but he feared his career, if he stayed, would become mired in administration, policy-making, staff courses, and committees. It would mean flying would become a secondary occupation. He decided to return to de Havilland. The company had asked the RAF to release him the previous summer, but had been refused. He was formally de-mobilised in November 1945, and re-joined de Havilland on 1 December.^[85]

Citations

Bibliography

Further reading