List of cadets from the Government FTS in Singapore (SN 785000-785110)

**Mikkel Plannthin** · 29th July 2021, 00:26

An Elementary Flying Training School was established at Kallang, Singapore, in 1940 as part of the Empire Air Training Scheme. This school was run by the Malayan Volunteer Air Force (MVAF) supported by personnel from the Royal Air Force, and was financed by the Malayan Government. Hence, it is referred to as the Government Flying Training School (GFTS). About 100 pilots were trained at the flying school before the fall of Singapore. One—perhaps two—of these men were Danish. Therefore, I have had a closer look at this Flying Training School, and tried to make a list of the cadets.

Especially the first courses at the school were heavily covered in the local media and it is therefore rather easy to compile a list of these. After that it is more fuzzy, but I believe that there were another three courses. The Danish element was in the last course, which finished only days before the fall of Singapore.

The first contingent of Malayan recruits to RAF where sent overseas for training in September 1940. The recruits, who were trained under a separate scheme from the GFTS were:

785000 Philip Theodore Raymond
785001 Philip Schelley (68737)
785002 Gordon Archibald Jupp, + 1941-07-08
785003 Percy Norman Keeley, + 1942-01-24
785004 Frank Geoffrey Woolley, DFC (105174)
741430 John Albert Uvedale Quitzow (122724)

Course (or Squad) #1
The first batch of sixteen cadets were enrolled on 10 August 1940. Fourteen graduated from the course and were handed over to the RAF at a function at Kallang on 17 October 1940. They continued training in Canada, where they got their wings in February 1941. The last two fell ill with Malaria during the course and did not succeed. The sixteen cadets were:

785009 John Edmund Slade (66506), +1941-11-02
785010 Walter Burns, DFM (172400)
785011 John Cameron Cox (112516)
785012 John Edward Fearnley Dobbs, + 1941-05-24
785013 Denis Walker Fenton (66510)
785014 Philip Stanley Kendall, DFC (127038)
785015 Richard Edward Nicholson, +1941-11-22
785016 Michael Reginald Mark Pooles (68736), + 1942-04-28
785017 Ernest Thomson Savege (121079)
785018 Patrick Alfred Schade, DFM, +1944-07-31
785019 Norman William Berg, + 1941-08-18
785020 Harry Malcolm Williams (66508), + 1942-04-14
785021 John Patrick Woos, + 1941-09-08
785022 Richard Francis Wollaston (66509), + 1942-09-01
J. Adams (did not complete the course)
M. T. Piercey (did not complete the course)

Course (or Squad) #2
The second batch of only twelve cadets were enrolled in the MVAF on 19 October 1940 and finisted their training in January 1941. They continued training in Iraq. They were:

785024 Leonard John Blackhall, + 1941-05-13
785025 Dennis Charles Hughmore Copping, +1942-06-28
785026 Fred Milne Ferguson (112449)
785027 Geoffrey Thomas Gillespie, KCVSA (115629)
785028 Gordon David Arthur Lundon, DFC (117004), + 1943-03-04
785029 James Myles
785030 Ralph Ritz (120536)
785031 George Ian Robertson, + 1942-05-02
785032 Tom Adams Hume Slack (112428)
785033 Charles Derek Bovet White, DFC
785034 Brian Hugh Willson, DFM (133203)
785035 John Otto Kiddle (157048)

Course (or Squad) #3
The third batch were enrolled in the MVAF in January 1941. The full list of names were not reported in the newspapers, it was only reported that the group included the first asiatic to pass through school, later Flt Lt Cyril Talalla, DFC*. The were handed over to the RAF on 13 March 1941. Therefore, the cadets have been identified by the service numbers between those who participated in course 2 and 4. The following men, who is believed to have taken part in the third course are:

785036 Marven Ernest Farnan
785037
785038
785039 Alexander Christian Watson, DFC
785040
785041 Kenneth McAusland, + 1942-08-13
785042 Brian Francis Ball, + 1942-06-26
785043
785044 George Dudley Stewart Boole, AFC, KCVSA (124271)
785045
785046 Lincoln Richards Lord, MiD
785047 Richard Mathews, +1942-10-01
785048 Cyril Lionel Francis Talalla, DFC* (130674)
785049 Anthony Philip Webb (108140), +1941-12-13
785050
785051 Errol Walter Joseph Blake, +1942-06-19
785052 Alan Robertson Black

Course (or Squad) #4
The forth batch of cadets were enrolled on 22 March 1941. The full list of names were reported in the newspapers. They were:

785053 Thomas James Buddle, DFC (112430)
785054 Alan Martin Howard Carbery, + 1942-05-02
785055 James George Milne Ferguson (112435)
785056 John Eric Goodrich, +1942-07-01
785058 William John Newton Lee, DFC (112434), + 1944-03-27
785059 Gerald Lockley (129219)
785060
785061 James McBride (185303)
785062 George Bellenger Potter, + 1943-01-14
785063 Alan Tyson Wood, + 1942-05-24
785064
785065

Course (or Squad) #5
The fifth batch of cadets were enrolled in June 1941. They were

785069 Francis Peter Graves (117452), + 1943-11-22
785070 Henry Pryor Kelway, MiD (117472)
785071 Carswell Harold Niven (117505), + 1944-08-05
785072 Alfred James Ross, + 1943-02-06
785073 Harold Edward Richard Saunders, + 1943-02-11
785074 Michael Edmund Street (117654)
785075 John Godsalve Ward (117660), + 1943-01-29
785077 William Alexander Pullar (124757)
785078 Norman Walker (124759)
785086 Patrick John Legge (145323)

Further three cadets were mentioned in the newspapers, but have not been identified in RAF records, which indicate that they did not pass. They are:
R.F.V Kinloch
R.J.Murray,
F.A. Reid

The final courses
From this point it becomes difficult to distinguish between the courses as the newspapers gives less information on the individual batches.

The sixth course commenced in August and the passing cadets were passed on to the RAF on 14 October 1941. It was reported that the following were part of this course

785096 Henry Conrad Benjamin Talalla, + 1944-07-25
785097 Kay Hai Tan, DFC (122100)

The seventh course commenced on 25 October 1941 and the cadets were transferred to the RAF in early February 1942. It was reported that the following were part of this course

George Day, + 1941-11-07 (service number unknown)
Donald Booth (service number unknown)

Furthermore, five cadets have been identified via other sources indicating that they were on this course. They are:
Edgar Franceys Allen (128626)
Poul Henrichsen (128628), + 1945-03-01
Lancelot Alexander Alister MacKilligin (128629)
Ronald Walter Quixley, DFC (128630)
Harry Tolfrey Greive (128649)

This leaves the following servicemen with service numbers indication an affiliation with an enrollment with the RAF the Singapore, possibly (but not certainly) after having been enrolled in the MVAF/GFTS. They are:

785066 John Allan Chalmers (201462)
785067 Thomas Fleming Buchanan (131622)
785068 Ewart Winstone Lester Brice (133748)
785076 John Gerald Rappoport (117641), + 1943-04-21
785079 William Robert Horne, DFC* (174626)
785080 Ernest Albert Thomas Reece, + 1946-06-24
785081
785082 Arthur John Buxton, + 1943-05-13
785083 Stewart Broome, + 1942-03-16
785084 Alistair Stephen Davidson (170898)
785085 William Ernest Lawrence Fletcher (122073)
785087 James Hawson (144292)
785088
785089
785090 Jasper Benjamin Marsh (124937)
785091 Stuart James Rand, DFC (169905)
785092 Donald James Alan Kirk (124930)
785093
785094 Duncan John Stalker (139414), + 1945-04-21
785095 Gerald Fraser Stocks (123613)
785098 Andrew Conway Emil Drake, + 1943-06-26
785099 Noel David Booker (136195
785100
785101 Robert John Cleland Dobbie, + 1943-07-03
785102 William Frank Culver, + 1942-02-25
785103 Thomas Johnston, DFC (141571)
785104 Eric Geoffrey Rapkin, + 1944-03-11
785105 Thomas James Carey (145074)
785106 Anthony Henry Cowling, MiD
785108 William George Tadgell, + 1944-06-26
785109 Guy Albert Every, + 1945-05-20
785110 Joshua Moses Joshua, + 1945-06-10

The cadets have been identified on the basis of name and or service number through searches in the London Gazette, CWGC and here on RAFcommands. In addition to these sources I have used various Singapore/Malayan newspapers from 1940-1941.

If anyone has further information on the cadets (while in Singapore) please let me know. I am still trying to establish if yet another Dane trained at the school in the final days before the fall of Singapore.

Hope this is of interest.

Kind regards

Mikkel Plannthin

**paulmcmillan** · 30th July 2021, 10:27

http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~newar...ogy/Arthur.htm

Add one from list below 785096

First Name Surname Service Number Rank Record Year Unit
New Cyril Lionel Francis Talalla 785048 1945 Royal Air Force
New Henry Conrad Benjamin Talalla 785096 1945 Royal Air Force

**paulmcmillan** · 30th July 2021, 12:56

Walter Arthur George Draper was; 785005; RAF Seletar

https://sumatrarailway.com/the-roll/royal-air-force/

**paulmcmillan** · 30th July 2021, 12:58

Allan Angus Munro, 785007; STC.

https://sumatrarailway.com/the-roll/royal-air-force/

**paulmcmillan** · 30th July 2021, 13:21

George Day, + 1941-11-07 (service number unknown)
Donald Booth (service number unknown) Suggest Donald Newton Booth #771998
Suggest

Furthermore, five cadets have been identified via other sources indicating that they were on this course. They are:
Edgar Franceys Allen (128626)
Poul Henrichsen (128628), + 1945-03-01 #772013
Lancelot Alexander Alister MacKilligin (128629) #772015
Ronald Walter Quixley, DFC (128630) #772016
Harry Tolfrey Greive (128649) Grieve! #772011

**Mikkel Plannthin** · 30th July 2021, 14:48

Thank you very much Paul!

Could I ask you the source of the service number (NCO) for Poul Henrichsen? I have never seen it before. Hence, my interest.

I have written a short article for my website on the GFTS and included a small database of the men identified above, cf.
http://www.danishww2pilots.dk/articles.php?article=53
http://www.danishww2pilots.dk/gfts.php

Mikkel

**paulmcmillan** · 30th July 2021, 19:12

Mikkel

https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk...tryAward=False

Paul

**Mikkel Plannthin** · 30th July 2021, 21:08

Thank you. Very interesting that the year is 1939. To the best of my knowledge he did not volunteer before 1941. He is said to have served in the 'Volunteer Service' from 1940. From the description I have until know thought that this war the Singapore Volunteer Corps. His company did not allow for him and his colleagues to volunteer for active duty.

Mikkel

**paulmcmillan** · 31st July 2021, 00:06

Ignore the year it is only indicative and is usually out

**Mikkel Plannthin** · 31st July 2021, 08:29

Thanks yet again.

I am a bit puzzled by the service numbers of Henrichsen #772013, MacKilligin #772015, #772016, and [COLOR=#333333]Grieve #772011 as they relate to enrollment in India. The cadets were members of the Malalay Volunteer Air Force as long as they were under training at the EFTS. Only then were they haded over to the RAF and I presume given a RAF service number. Henrichsen was evaluated from Singapore in early February. Perhaps they were handed over to the RAF in India on their war to South Africa.

Mikkel[/COLOR]