Ronald Derek Gordon Wight was born at Oak Craig Skelmorlie in Scotland. Aviation ran in the family as . His father John Eric Wight, had been a Flight Commander in the 1st World War. 'When he was 5 the family moved to England where he attended Bowdon College, Cheshire; Mostyn High School, Parkgate, Wirral and Wykin School at Wellington until he completed his formal education and applied to join the Royal Air Force.
He received his commission in March 1934 and sent to 5 FTS at Sealand. Widge is far right, back row
R.D.G. ( Widge ) WIGHT
8th December 1915 - 11th August 1940
On completion of his training he was posted to 64 Squadron at Martlesham Heath, staying with the Squadron until I June 1938. He was then sent to SHQ at RAF Wittering for eight months and then, in February 1939, posted to 213 Squadron, as a Flight Commander.'
. If that wasn't enough excitement then only a few weeks later Widge was tested once again.Whilst conducting an engine test in a Hurricane, he had a fire on take off. He managed to keep calm and ditched in a field just beyond the station sustaining slight injuries. He letter home to his mother explains the incident.
On Thursday 11 th April 1940 the Squadron held a Reformation Anniversary Dinner. Widge kept his Menu card complete with signatures
May 1940 saw the end of the phoney war and hostilities begin. 35 German divisions and paratroopers attack across the frontiers in Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands The Luftwaffe attacked airfields and the German panzers were heading for the channel ports. Although RAF Squadrons were already in France, as part of the B.E.F an appeal was received from the French Prime Minister for a further 10 Squadrons to be sent from England to supplement the 6 already there. Lord Dowding argued that the cause was lost in France and that all remaining Squadrons should be kept for the defense of Britain. The war Cabinet agreed a compromise to send a further 8 half Squadrons. On the morning of 17th May" B" Flight, with Widge, was on its way to Merville in France whilst "A" flight was based at Biggin Hill and flew to Merville during the day.
On the 19th Widge shared in the destruction of two Hs 126's and on the 20th he destroyed a Hs 126 and shared a Do 17. However, the German advance was so rapid that the Squadron withdrew on the 21st, Widge's flight going to Manston where they covered the withdrawal and eventual evacuation of troops. Over Dunkirk on the 27th May he destroyed two Bf 109's and on the 28th another Bf 109 and two probables. On the 30th he shared in probably destroying a Do 17 and on the 31st destroyed another two Bf 109's.
For his actions in combat, Widge was awarded the DFC on 13th June 1940
TRANSCRIPT 4.8.39
My dearest Mum
Thanks so much for your letter and end which I shall answer. By the grace of God I got away with it again yesterday. Taking off on an engine test my engine cut out. Just in the one place I could do practically nothing about it ie 15 feet off the ground and within 300 yards of the North Road. I had only started to get my undercarriage up so I knew I had to crash. Its slightly downhill there so I held the aircraft down to keep up my speed until I got to the road which is about five feet above the drome there and then pulled it up and over the top. Unfortunately my undercart hit the bank but I bounced over the road OK which was what I was aiming at, missing a car by inches and crashed in the next field. I undid my straps and then she went up. To my horror the hood catch was broken and the hood was jammed half forward. By this time the cockpit seemed to be full of flame so by some means or other I got the hood back and got out then ran like hell away from her as she was due to go up with a bang when the petrol tanks got hot. I got off with some nasty cuts, one of them on the head and all my eyebrows and eyelashes burned off also some slight burns on my face. Another five seconds and I wouldn't have been able to get out. By the time anyone got there I was standing under a hedge smoking a cigarette and it was damn funny to hear their comments and congratulations when they saw me, they all thought I was still in there as they said she caught fire before she stopped. One thing it has taught me is ive got a good many friends on this camp. Even one of the waiters this morning made a point of saying how glad they all were I had made it and the Doc said this morning "funny thing" your pulse coming back in the ambulance yesterday was perfectly normal. Don't tell me to save anymore. By the way I am thinking of buying a second hand Frazer Nash they've got near hear, should be rather fun. Must post this now so love to all Ever your loving Derek. PS I'm quite OK so don't fuss.
The remains of Widge's Hurricane
Although this period is known as the "Phoney War, Widge had his moments of excitement. Whilst flight testing a Hurricane, the propeller parted company with his aircraft. Widge quickly shut the throttle as the Merlin engine started to over rev and was able to return to the airfield and make a successful" Dead Stick" landing. By a strange quirk of fate representatives of Rolls Royce were visiting the airfield and were delighted that Widge had managed to stop the engine from seizing up. The reason being that they had reports of several similar incidents of propellers flying off in flight and were currently at loggerheads with the prop manufacturers who were insisting it was the engine seizing that was causing excessive torque on the propeller shearing it from its mountings whereas Rolls Royce's position was the props came off causing the engine to overspeed and seize. They thanked Widge for his quick reaction in saving the engine as they now had proof that the fault must lay with the propeller assembly. Widge received congratulations from the Ministry for saving the aircraft. His quick actions helped identify the problem and certainly saved further loss of aircraft and pilots.from this failure.
During the operations to cover the Dunkirk evacuation Widge wrote a letter home
Well another day is gone, and with it a lot of grand blokes. Got another brace of 109's today but the whole Luftwaffe seems to leap on us - we are hopelessly outnumbered. I was caught napping by a 109 in the middle of a dogfight and got a couple of holes in the aircraft, one of them filled the office with smoke, but the Jerry overshot and he's dead. If anyone says anything to you in future about the inefficiency of the RAF - I believe the BEF troops were booing the RAF in Dover the other day - tell them from me we only wish we could do more. But without aircraft we can do no more than we have done - that is, our best, and that's fifty times better than the German best, though they are fighting under the most advantageous conditions. I know of no RAF pilot who has refused combat yet - and that means combat with odds of more than fifty to one. Three of us the other day had been having a fight and were practically out of ammunition and juice when we saw more than eighty 109's with twelve JU 87's. All the same, we gave them combat, so much so that they left us alone in the end - on their side of the Channel too. This is just the work that we all do. One of my sergeants shot down three fighters and a bomber before they got him - and then he got back in a paddle steamer. (Sgt Butterfield DFM).So don't worry. We are going to win this war even if we have only one aeroplane to go into combat. . . The spirit of the average pilot has to be seen to be believed.
On 11th August 1940, the Squadron was scrambled to intercept an incoming wave of German bombers over
Portland. The enemy was expected to come from the direction of Cherbourg, crossing the English coast in the Portland area. Whilst the rest of the Squadron patrolled over the coastline, Widge and two of his flight Sgt's Butterfield and Snowden making up B flight were 10 miles out over the channel flying parallel with the coast. I surmise the plan was to drop in behind the formation and attack in an attempt to break the formation for the rest of the Squadron up ahead. However, by all accounts, rather than the enemy formation crossing their path the formation was also flying parallel to the coast line and Widge found himself in a head to head situation with approx. 60 ME 11O's plus escorting ME 109's. Ignoring the odds Widge, Butterfield and Snowden attacked. Sadly Widge and Butterfield failed to return from this action. Sgt Snowden's Hurricane was badly damaged but he managed to make it back to the coast and crash landed on Lulworth ranges. He later wrote to Widge's parents giving him account of the action which is further down this page.
A painting was done by the late Geoff Bell called "Odds Against" depicting Wight, Butterfiled and Snowden attacking......... Click on the thumbnail for the full picture.
Sadly Widge's parents received the following Telegram
Followed a few days later by a letter from his C.O S/LDR McGregor.
The writing is a little difficult to decipher in places and it took some time to get the pages in the correct order so that they made some sense. I have placed a transcript next to each page as my best interpretation of the content
1
2
1.Dear Mr Wight
I think I have some ideahow terrible you and Mrs Wight must be feeling. The blow you should have received yesterday when you heard your son was missing and I feel I must write to you and give you the very scanty information we have here. I dont like having to do it because I'm afraid
.It isn't assuming and may even be another blow in itself but I must tell you the absolute truth as you are not in as good a position to judge the chances of his getting back safely and presumably rely on what we tell you. Twelve of us took off yesterday morning at about 10 O'clock to intercept a raid heading for Portland. The position was changed a couple of times by radio telephony but we were finally over Portland where we met approx. 60 JU 88 escorted by 30 40 ME1O9's Widge, with his section of two
.others besides himself must have been trying to intercept them before us as he was off to the South of us over the Channel. In actual fact the raid came in practically parallel with the coast - which was rather unusual - but Widge was obviously hoping they would be coming from the direction of Cherbourg as usual and hoped to steal a march on us. With him was sergeant Butterfield who also
.A very good pilot and there was Sergeant Snowden. Sergeant Snowden says they saw a bunch of about 60 MEI1O's, there twin engine fighter types, he was badly shot about but eventually was shot down and managed to get back to the coast and force landed at Lulworth. Owing to the number of aircraft attacked however, once the usual dogfight started he did not see anything of the oter two, all his attention being on his own fight. It certainly does not look
Any too hopeful at the moment but there's quite a possibility that he may have been brought down in the Channel and have been picked up. One report we heard- How reliable it is I do not know- stated there were a number of German E Boatstheir small fast launches- in the Channel at the time so that even if he does not turn up in a day or two there is just
that very small possibility that he may have been picked up and taken prisoner. I must confess however that I do not feel the chances are very great. I only wish they were. Anyway ,even if he doesn't turn up you at least have the consolation that he went just as I know he would have liked it, if it had to be. In the middle of a real fight not through any fault of anybody else against colossal odds. Quite apart from my
Own sorrow at losing my senior flight commander and the person -above all others on who I could rely and placed implicit trust much more so than anyone else in the Squadron I feel I have lost a personal friend.
I do hope you will believe that even though it sounds so hackneyed when put on paper but I am not very good at putting things like that on paper so I do hope you will value exactly how I feel
I think if you knew what the rest of the Squadron feel in this matter it would be some comfort to you. All of us would do anything we possibly could to help but there is nothing that we can do. At least you can feellOJU88's were accounted for, for the two that were missing besides any more they got, which they were bound to do, before they went down. Will you please express the sentiments of the whole Squadron, Officers and Airmen to Mrs Wight and our hopes that he will be with us again shortly
Yours very sincerely
McGregor S/Ldr of 213A few days later Widge;s parents sent a letter and some cigarettes to Sgt Snowden which prompted the following letter from him in reply.......22nd August 1940
Dear Mr & Mrs Wight
I was very touched by the kind thought which lay behind your gift of cigarettes for which I am very grateful. I should like to be able to reply telling you that we have news that you son is, by miraculous chance, safe, but I am afraid this is not so Your grief, which I share, may be offset somewhat by the knowledge that he died in an extremely brave fashion, as he would have wished to die. He was leading a formation of three machines to attack at least _MEllO's, twin engined fighters. He sailed unfalteringly into the middle of them. and I caught a glimpse of him shooting one down before I pressed home my own attack.
The third member of the formation Sergeant Butterfield, DFM was also killed, I escaped with minor injuries which have now healed.
IYours sincerely E G Snowden RAFVR...Sgt Snowden left the Squadron early in November . Since his first victory on 11th August he was accredited with 5 enemy aircraft destroyed, two damaged and 1 probable with the Squadron
