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Cranston Fine Arts  Aviation Art and Artists World War Two Veteran Signatures UK and Commonwealth P  Pickering, James |
[UP] - Page, Frederick - Page, Geoffrey - Palliser, Charles - Parfitt, Bill - Parker, Charles - Parkin, Eric - Parkin, Harold - Parkinson, Colin - Parrott, Peter - Parry, D - Parry, Gwyn - Parry, Hugh - Parsons, Beck - Parsons, Lou - Partridge, Richard - Patterson, Charles - Patterson, Ernie - Pattison, H - Paulk, John - Payne, Aan - Payne, Tom - Pearl, John - Pearson, R - Peel, John - Pegler, Roy - Pemberton, John - Penny, Michael - Perks, Geoffrey - Petrie-Andrews, John - Phillips, D F W - Phillips, J - Phillips, Pip - Pickering, James - Pickering, Tony - Pinfold, Herbert - Pinner, Al - Pinning, Jim - Pitt-Brown, Willam - Plumridge, Ken - Poore, Arthur - Pottinger, Ron - Pears, Harry - Prichard, George - Pugh, Dei - Pujji, Mahinder |
Flight Lieutenant James Pickering AFC
Jim Pickering joined the RAFVR in 1937, and was attached to 769 Sqn FAA, then 804 Sqn FAA. In June 1940 he returned to the RAF and flew Spitfires with 64 Sqn during the Battle of Britain. With 418 Flight Jim flew Hurricanes to Malta from HMS Argus on 2nd August 1940. This flight was to reinforce Maltas handful of outdated Gladiators and few surviving Hurricanes, and on 16th August was amalgamated to become 261 Squadron. With this unit Jim flew Hurricanes and at least five operations in the legendary Gladiators, which have been immortalised as Faith, Hope, and Charity. In April 1941 Jim was posted, first to Egypt, then 80 Squadron in October 1942, and 145 Squadron in December. He returned to the UK in 1943. Born in 1915 in Hinckley, Leicestershire, England, James Pickering studied the printing business in Europe during the 1930s. Convinced that Hitler represented a threat which could lead to war, Pickering joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in 1937. As a 'week-end' flyer he earned his wings as a Sergeant Pilot in April of 1939. In September of that year Pickerings unit was mobilized. He was sent to an attachment of the Fleet Air Arm, where he flew Gladiators, Skuas, and Rocs, following his carrier training. In June of 1940 Pickering returned to the RAF flying Spitfires with No. 64 Squadron based in Kenley during the Battle of Britain. Pickering was selected along with eleven other carrier-qualified pilots to fly Hurricanes to Malta off the deck of the HMS Argus. On arrival in Malta these new Hurricanes and their pilots were integrated with the 3 flyable Gladiators and 3 Hurricanes already there to form No. 261 Squadron. This unit carried on the defense of Malta against Italian and German bombing missions which were launched regularly from Sicily, only sixty miles distant. Because of his earlier experience with the Gladiator, Pickering flew both Gladiators and Hurricanes at Malta for eight months. It is believed that Pickering is the last living RAF pilot to fly the Gladiator at Malta. Following his assignment in Malta, Pickering joined No. 1 Aircraft Delivery Unit which ferried aircraft from the West African Gold Coast and Port Sudan to various points throughout the war theater of operations. Pickering delivered a P-40 Warhawk to the Flying Tigers which involved one of the first flights 'over the hump.' In October of 1942 Pickering returned to operational flying with No. 80 Squadron (Hurricanes) at EI Alamein, and later with No. 145 Squadron (Spitfires). Having completed three separate operational tours, Pickering returned to England when victory was achieved in North Africa. In England, Pickering was assigned as a test pilot with No. 3501 Servicing Unit. He tested modifications to the Spitfire, and also test flew a number of P-51 Mustangs. Later he was transferred to No. 151 Repair Unit as its Chief Test Pilot. This was the largest unit of this kind in the RAF. Because of these experiences, Pickering is unusual in having flown eighty different types of aircraft during the War. Awarded the Air Force Cross, Pickering was released from the RAF at Wars end. He returned to his family-owned printing business, and spent his working career with the company, from which he retired in 1965. He also served as an outside Director of the largest Building Society in Britain. Pickering joined the Volunteer Reserve once again following the War, and continued to fly with the RAF until reaching the mandatory age limit of sixty. Pickering has had a private pilots license since 1938. He has flown thousands of hours and he is an expert on geological and archaeological research from the air. A Fellow of both the Geological Society and the Society of Antiquaries, Jim Pickering epitomizes the English character of determination and persistence which was so vastly underestimated by Hitler during WW2. He died on 6th October 2004.
| Flight Lieutenant James Pickering AFC - Signed Aviation Art |
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| Text for the above items : |
Clipped Signature - James Pickering. Flew Spitfires with No.64 Sqn during the Battle of Britain, then flew Hurricanes from HMS Argus to Malta to form No.261 Sqn, where he also flew the legendary Gladiators in defence of the island. He later flew Hurricanes and Spitfires in North Africa with No.80 and No.145 Sqn and remained a civilian pilot after the war. He died in 2004. Please note that this particular signature has been written in pen - not in pencil like most of our signatures. |
Faith Hope and Charity by Stan Stokes. With Italys entry into WW II on June 10, 1940, the epic two-and-one-half-year siege of Malta began. Symbolizing the defiant resistance of the people and defenders of that tiny island, the legend of Faith, Hope, and Charity grew from a handful of Gloster Sea Gladiators which initially comprised Maltas sole aerial defense. Until the arrival of the more modern Hawker Hurricanes, these obsolescent biplanes fought the Regia Aeronautica alone in the skies above Malta. Only six or seven Gladiators were assembled from the shipment of eighteen crated aircraft which had been delivered by the HMS Glorious. Others were utilized for spare parts, and three had been dispatched, still crated, to Egypt. Though hugely outnumbered, the defenders fought on, raising the morale of the citizens of Malta, and denying the Italians mastery of the sky. Suffering from a constant shortage of spare parts, tools and equipment, the devoted ground support crews were never able to keep more than three Gladiators operational at any point in time. Only one of these Gladiators was totally lost in aerial combat, and the sole surviving aircraft was presented to the people of Malta, and today stands in their National War Museum as a proud symbol of courage and endurance. In Stan Stokes painting, a Sea Gladiator, piloted by Flight Lt. James Pickering, tangles with a Fiat C.R. 42 over Malta in 1940 while an Italian Savoia S.79 tri-engined bomber passes by in the background. The Gloster Gladiator represented the zenith of development of the classic biplane fighter aircraft, a design formula which characterized an entire era from WW I until the advent of the monoplane fighter just before WW II. Glosters naval model of the Gladiator was equipped with a Bristol Mercury VIIIA engine providing a maximum speed of 253 MPH, a rate of climb of 2300 feet per minute, an operational ceiling of 32,200 feet, and a range of 415 miles. The Gladiator was armed with four .303 inch Browning machine guns, and incorporated several advanced features including an enclosed cockpit and wing flaps. One top RAF ace, Sqd. Ldr. Pattle, attained eleven victories flying the Gladiator. A total of 527 Gladiators were produced, and the aircraft served in twelve different countries. The Italians were overly persistent in their emphasis on biplane fighters, stemming from their successes with these highly maneuverable machines during the Spanish Civil War. Employing distinctive Warren-truss type interplane bracing the C.R. 42 was powered by a Fiat A74 R.C. 38 engine providing a maximum speed of 274 MPH and a range of 485 miles. The C.R. 42 was more lightly armed than the Gladiators it opposed, possessing only two 12.7mm Breda machine guns. The C.R 42 served on all of Italys fronts including North and East Africa, France, Britain, the Balkans, and Russia. Exported to Hungary, Sweden and Belgium, the C.R. 42 ironically served alongside the Gladiator in other theaters of operation during WW II. |
George Cross Island Association 60th Anniversary Limited Edition Print by John Young. Official limited edition print of the 60th Anniversary of the George Cross Island Association. Spitfires from one of Maltas most famous squadrons, 249, climbing up over Valetta harbour in the summer of 1942. The panorama beneath the aircraft is the city with its thousands of Maltese citizens daily exposed to the enemy blitz, ships of the Royal Navy and Merchant Service, and the Armys anti-aircraft batteries. |
| Flight Lieutenant James Pickering AFC Aircraft details |
 Gladiator Manufacturer : Gloster Built : 746 | Gladiator GLOSTER GLADIATOR: A continuation form the Gloster Gauntlet aircraft the Gloster Gladiator (SS37) becoming designated the F.7/30 was named Gladiator on the 1st July 1935. The first 70 Gladiators had Under wing machine guns (Vickers or Lewis) before the browning became standard The first aircraft arrived at Tangmere airfield on in February 1937 to no. 72 squadron. at the outbreak of world war two a total of 218 Gladiators had been received by the Royal air force with a total of 76 on active service. They served also in the Middle eats and in 1940 when Italy joined the war was nearly the only front line fighter in the middle east. Between 1939 and 1941. the Gloster Gladiator flew in many war zones. flying in France, Greece, Norway, Crete Egypt Malta and Aden. The Aircraft claimed nearly 250 air victories. It stayed in front line duties until 1942, then becoming fighter trainer, and other sundry roles. It continued in these roles until the end of world war two. The Naval equivalent the Sea Gladiator a short service in the Middle east and European waters. A Total of 746 aircraft were built of these 98 were Sea Gladiators.. Performance. speed: 250mph at 17,500 feet, 257 mph at 14,600 Range 430 miles. Armament: Two fixed .3-03 browning machine guns |
 Hurricane Manufacturer : Hawker Built : 14533 | Hurricane Royal Air Force Fighter, the Hawker Hurricane had a top speed of 320mph, at 18,200 feet and 340mph at 17,500, ceiling of 34,200 and a range of 935 miles. The Hurricane was armed with eight fixed wing mounted .303 browning machine guns in the Mark I and twelve .303 browning's in the MKIIB in the Hurricane MKIIC it had four 20mm cannon. All time classic fighter the Hurricane was designed in 1933-1934, the first prototype flew in June 1936 and a contract for 600 for the Royal Air Force was placed. The first production model flew ion the 12th October 1937 and 111 squadron of the Royal Air Force received the first Hurricanes in January 1938. By the outbreak of World war two the Royal Air Force had 18 operational squadrons of Hurricanes. During the Battle of Britain a total of 1715 Hurricanes took part, (which was more than the rest of the aircraft of the Royal air force put together) and almost 75% of the Victories during the Battle of Britain went to hurricane pilots. The Hawker Hurricane was used in all theatres during World war two, and in many roles. in total 14,533 Hurricanes were built. |
 Skua | Skua No profile available |
 Spitfire Manufacturer : Supermarine Built : 20351 | Spitfire Royal Air Force fighter aircraft, maximum speed for mark I Supermarine Spitfire, 362mph up to The Seafire 47 with a top speed of 452mph. maximum ceiling for Mk I 34,000feet up to 44,500 for the mark XIV. Maximum range for MK I 575 miles . up to 1475 miles for the Seafire 47. Armament for the various Marks of Spitfire. for MK I, and II . eight fixed .303 browning Machine guns, for MKs V-IX and XVI two 20mm Hispano cannons and four .303 browning machine guns. and on later Marks, six to eight Rockets under the wings or a maximum bomb load of 1,000 lbs. Designed by R J Mitchell, The proto type Spitfire first flew on the 5th March 1936. and entered service with the Royal Air Force in August 1938, with 19 squadron based and RAF Duxford. by the outbreak of World war two, there were twelve squadrons with a total of 187 spitfires, with another 83 in store. Between 1939 and 1945, a large variety of modifications and developments produced a variety of MK,s from I to XVI. The mark II came into service in late 1940, and in March 1941, the Mk,V came into service. To counter the Improvements in fighters of the Luftwaffe especially the FW190, the MK,XII was introduced with its Griffin engine. The Fleet Air Arm used the Mk,I and II and were named Seafires. By the end of production in 1948 a total of 20,351 spitfires had been made and 2408 Seafires. The most produced variant was the Spitfire Mark V, with a total of 6479 spitfires produced. The Royal Air Force kept Spitfires in front line use until April 1954. |
| Flight Lieutenant James Pickering AFC Squadron details |
No.145 Sqn RAF Country : UK Disbanded 15th October 1957 Known Codes : , SO, ZX, | No.145 Sqn RAF Polish Diu noctoque pugnamus - We fight by day and night |
No.261 Sqn RAF Country : UK Disbanded 25th September 1945 Known Codes : , FJ, HA, XJ, | No.261 Sqn RAF Semper contendo - I strive continually |
No.64 Sqn RAF Country : UK Disbanded 16th June 1967 Known Codes : , SH, GR, XQ, | No.64 Sqn RAF Tenax proposite - Firmness of purpose |
No.769 Sqn FAA Country : UK | No.769 Sqn FAA Fleet Air Arm |
No.80 Sqn RAF Country : UK Disbanded 28th September 1960 Known Codes : , W2, AP, EY, GK, YK, | No.80 Sqn RAF Nil nobis obstare potest - Nothing can stop us |
No.804 Sqn FAA Country : UK | No.804 Sqn FAA Fleet Air Arm |
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