Keith Park
Royal Air Force air marshals
Died when: 82 years 236 days (991 months)Star Sign: Gemini
Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Rodney Park, GCB, KBE, MC & Bar, DFC (15 June 1892 – 6 February 1975) was a New Zealand-born officer of the Royal Air Force (RAF).
During the Second World War, his leadership of the RAF's No. 11 Group was pivotal to the Luftwaffe's defeat in the Battle of Britain.
Born in Thames, Park was a mariner when he enlisted in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force for service in the First World War.
Posted to the artillery, he fought in the Gallipoli campaign, partway through which he transferred to the British Army.On the Western Front, he was present for the Battle of the Somme and was injured.
He obtained another transfer, this time to the Royal Flying Corps.Once his flight training was completed, he served as an instructor before being posted to serve with No. 48 Squadron on the Western Front.
He became a flying ace, achieving a number of aerial victories and eventually becoming commander of the squadron.In the postwar period, he served with the RAF in a series of command and staff postings, including a period as air attaché in South America.
By the late 1930s, he was serving in Fighter Command, as Air Marshal Hugh Dowding's senior air staff officer.The two worked together to devise aerial tactics and management strategies for the aerial defence of the United Kingdom.
Soon after the outbreak of the Second World War, he was placed in command of No. 11 Group, responsible for the defence of South East England and London.
Due to the strategic significance and geographic location concerning the Luftwaffe, Park’s No. 11 Group bore the brunt of the German aerial assault during the Battle of Britain.
His careful management of his fighter aircraft and pilots ensured that Britain retained air superiority along the English Channel.Relieved of command after the Battle of Britain, Park served in a training role before being posted to the Middle East as Air Officer Commanding, Egypt in late 1941.
Midway through the following year, he took charge of the aerial defences of Malta, then under heavy attack from the Luftwaffe and the Regia Aeronautica (Italian Air Force).
When the siege was lifted he successfully transitioned Malta's RAF forces from a defensive role into an offensive footing in preparation for the Allied invasion of Sicily.
From 1944, he held senior roles in the Middle East and in British India.He retired from the RAF in 1946 as air chief marshal.
Returning to New Zealand, he worked in the aviation industry for a British aircraft manufacturer and then became involved in local body politics in Auckland.
He died in February 1975 due to heart problems.
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