Peter Robert Burton-Gyles
Person details
| Forename(s) | Peter Robert |
|---|---|
| Surname | Burton-Gyles |
| Rank | Wing Commander |
| Regiment | RAF |
| Age | 25 |
| Death | Missing, presumed killed in action |
| Place of Death | Western Europe |
| Date of Death | 10/12/1943 |
| Year of Entry | 1932 |
| House Letter | H |
| School Notes | - |
| Comments |
History of 23 Squadron http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/23squadron.cfm War record of 23 Squadron http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/23_wwII.html |
| Commonwealth War Graves Commission Link | https://www.cwgc.org/find-record... |
| Unit | 23 Squadron |
| Prefect | - |
| Military Decorations | DSO, DFC & bar |
| Album Number | |
| Battle | |
| Previous Regiment | |
| Burial or Cemetery | Memorial > Malta |
| Citations | |
| Archives | Correspondence file in OR files in Radley Archives |
| Post School | R.A.F. |
| Prep School | Cottesmore |
| Prisoner of War | |
| Radlein Obituary |
March 5 1944. Recorded as missing June 17 1945. Missing, presumed killed in December 1943. Peter Robert Burton~Gyles, D.S.O ., D.F.C .. and bar. Wg. Cdr., R.A.F.O. (Smale s. H. 1934-35). What we remember most about Peter Burton-Gyles at Radley is his unfailing cheerfulness under all conditions. He so obviously enjoyed everything, and his high spirlts infected everyone around him. The last time we saw him-shortly before he was reported missing-he had not changed at all. He still had that same infectious gaiety. and that same enthusiasm for the work he was doing. That work he carried out with spectacular distinction. He was commissioned in 1937, and was posted to a Bomber Squadron. He won his D.F.C. in 1940 and a bar to it in 1941. In 1942. when a Flight Lieutenant, he gained the D.S.O. for operations which included several attacks on enemy warships at Brest, and on important industrial targets in Germany. "On one occasion." says The Times, "after bombing Cologne, he descended almost to ground level to attack gun posts which were partly silenced. He had consistently displayed outstanding qualities of leadership." . He was one of those who could least of all be spared, and those of us who knew him realise how much we have lost. |
| Service Number | 40077 |
| Place of Birth |