Sqd.Ldr. Kenneth Richard Wilson "Johnny" Eager DFC MID
Royal Air Force B Flight 98 Squadron
from:Exeter, Devon, UK
My father, Kenneth Eager, was born in Exminster, Devon, England on 6th February 1921. He joined the RAF in 1940 and gained his "wings" at the end of that year, after which he was posted to North Africa as a part of Air Sea Rescue.
During his time in the desert he flew mainly Vickers Wellingtons and it was in 1943 that he was awarded the Air Force Cross, having landed in the desert behind enemy lines to rescue a downed Allied pilot. On take-off from the desert a rock punctured one of the tires of the Wellington which forced him to crash land the aircraft when they reached home base.
In late 1943 he was posted back to England to take up training on the B25 North American Mitchell. Upon completion if this training he was posted to number 98 Squadron which was a part of the 2nd Tactical Air Force based at Dunsfold in Surrey, where as a Flight Lieutenant he took part in raids over German occupied France.
On the night of June 5th 1944 my father led one of the first air raids of D-Day on the Germans with a raid on marshaling yards at Caen, in his aircraft was Air Commodore Helmore and a BBC commentator, who was reporting and recording the raid which was one of the first over Normandy on D-Day, which was then played over the BBC radio after D-Day to the world. (See the attached report from his log book below). Later in 1944 he led raids on V-1 rocket sites and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross in that year.
Later on in 1944 he was promoted to Squadron Leader and at only 23 years of age, was at the time the youngest Squadron Leader in the RAF and was later asked to be Aid to the King, a position he declined as I his eldest son, had by that time been born.
At the end of the war my father was seconded to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and helped design London Airport. He remained in the RAFVR and flew for two weeks of every year up to 1955 and in 1957 he, with my mother and my siblings, emigrated to Kenya where he took up farming.
