Minden Blake

Minden Vaughan Blake (13 February 1913 – 30 November 1981) was a New Zealand flying ace of the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War.

He is credited with shooting down thirteen aircraft.

Born in Eketāhuna, New Zealand, Blake earned bachelor's and master's degrees in science from Canterbury University College.

Minden Vaughan Blake was born in Eketāhuna, in the Manawatū District of New Zealand on 13 February 1913.

The son of a schoolmaster, Charles Minden Blake, and his wife, Emma, he was educated at Southland Boys' High School from 1926 to 1929 and then Christchurch Boys' High School.

He was heavily involved in sports, participating in cricket, soccer, and athletics.

Commencing his tertiary education in early 1932, Blake entered Canterbury University College and gained a Bachelor of Science degree three years later.

His father financially supported his studies by purchasing a chicken farm and Blake developed technology for grading eggs.

After graduating in 1934, he progressed to graduate studies, studying mathematics.

The following year, he was one of the college's two representatives for a Rhodes Scholarship.

In 1936, he joined the RAF after twice missing out on a Rhodes Scholarship and was posted to No. 17 Squadron.

He would go on to become national champion in the pole vault in 1936.

He was not selected and a subsequent attempt in 1936 was also unsuccessful.

In the meantime, he graduated with a master of science with second-class honours.

He spent much of 1936 as a lecturer in physics at the university and then applied to join the Royal Air Force (RAF) under its university entrant scheme, intending to study engineering in England once he completed flying training.

The RAF accepted Blake's application and he left for England in November 1936.

He began his flying training late the following month at the Elementary and Reserve Flying Training School at Brough Aerodrome, in Yorkshire.

He was granted a permanent commission in the RAF as a pilot officer, with the service number 36095, in March 1937, at the conclusion of his course.

He was posted to No. 5 Flying Training School at Sealand.

He gained his pilot's wings in June and was selected for training on fighters, learning on the Hawker Fury fighter.

He completed his training a few months later and was posted to No. 17 Squadron, which operated Gloster Gauntlet fighters from Kenley.

In September 1937 Blake was promoted to flying officer and became one of No. 17 Squadron's flight commanders.

He remained active in pole vaulting, becoming the RAF champion three years running from 1937 to 1939.

In March 1939, Blake received a further promotion, to flight lieutenant, and a few months later, the squadron moved to North Weald where it began converting to Hawker Hurricane fighters.

On 8 September 1939, a few days after the outbreak of the Second World War, Blake suffered minor injuries in an aircraft accident.

During an attempted landing at Croydon in the early evening, his Hurricane's engine failed and he overshot the runway and crash landed in the grounds of Purley Hospital.

In doing so, the wing of his aircraft clipped the chimney of a building that Blake failed to see due to the fading light.

This caused the Hurricane to flip as it landed.

Blake's head was gashed and he was heavily bruised.

The engine failure was due to hay, from the cutting of the grass around the airfield, entering the air intake.

For the first several months of the war, the squadron mainly flew from Debden and Martlesham Heath but saw little action during this time.

He participated in the Battle of Britain in 1940 as acting commander of No. 238 Squadron and then No. 234 Squadron, destroying several German bombers.

He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in January 1941.

By mid-1942, he was commanding a fighter wing.

He was shot down on 19 August during aerial operations in support of the Dieppe Raid and became a prisoner of war.

He had been awarded the Distinguished Service Order just a few days previously.

After the war, he continued to serve in the RAF in a series of senior posts until 1958.

In civilian life, he worked for a number of manufacturing companies.

He was also an inventor, developing a golfing aid that was a commercial success.

He died in Surrey in 1981, aged 68.