Henry Cave-Browne-Cave

Henry Meyrick Cave-Browne-Cave
Born	1 February 1887 Wandsworth, Surrey, England
Died	5 August 1965 (aged 78) Southampton, Hampshire, England
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Navy  Royal Air Force
Years of service	1903 – 1940
Rank	Air Vice Marshal
Commands held	Far East Flight No. 205 Squadron
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Companion of the Order of the Bath Distinguished Service Order Distinguished Flying Cross

Air Vice Marshal Henry Meyrick Cave-Browne-Cave CB, DSO, DFC, RAF (1 February 1887 – 5 August 1965) was an engineering officer in the Royal Naval Air Service during World War I and senior commander in the Royal Air Force during the 1930s.

Henry Cave-Browne-Cave was the son of Sir Thomas Cave-Browne-Cave (1835–1924) (see Cave-Browne-Cave baronets for earlier history of the family) and Blanche Matilda Mary Ann Milton. He was the brother of the mathematicians Beatrice Mabel Cave-Browne-Cave and Frances Cave-Browne-Cave. He was educated at Dulwich College in London.

World War I

During World War I, Cave-Browne-Cave served in the Royal Naval Air Service, initially as the Engineering Officer at the Grain Island naval air station and later as the second in command of the station. In the summer of 1916, Cave-Browne-Cave was appointed as a squadron commander. He later served as Officer Commanding the Seaplane Station at Dunkirk and then as the Officer Commanding the Seaplane Station at Malta.

By 1918, Cave-Browne-Cave had risen to the rank of wing commander and on 1 April, when the Royal Naval Air Service merged with the Royal Flying Corps to form the Royal Air Force, Cave-Browne-Cave was transferred to the RAF as a lieutenant colonel.

Inter-war years

In 1919 Cave-Browne-Cave was awarded a permanent commission in the RAF and reverted to his previous rank of wing commander. He went on to serve in a senior training appointment at No. 1 School of Technical Training before working as the RAF's Deputy Director of Design.

The summer of 1926 saw Cave-Browne-Cave promoted to group captain and appointed as Deputy Director of Technical Development several months later. He only worked in technical development for several months as in May 1927 he took up the post of Officer Commanding the Far East Flight. The Far East Flight was a newly created unit and it was established to prove that the RAF had the capability to reinforce the more remote parts of the British Empire. The Flight, led by Cave-Browne-Cave, departed Plymouth on 17 October 1927 and eventually arrived in Singapore on 28 February the next year. Cave-Browne-Cave then took the Far East Flight on a flying tour of Australia further demonstrating the increasing reach of British air power. After the Far East Flight returned to Singapore, it was redesignated No. 205 Squadron and Cave-Browne-Cave returned to England as a supernumerary within the headquarters of Coastal Area.^[1] The following summer, Cave-Browne-Cave returned to Singapore, resuming his former command in its upgraded form as No. 205 Squadron. At the start of 1930 he became the Officer Commanding RAF Base Singapore.

Back at the Air Ministry in London, Cave-Browne-Cave is credited as being the person who authorised the UKP 10,000 investment in the development of the Supermarine Spitfire in time for it to be the decisive fighter in the Battle of Britain.^[2]

On 17 January 1939, when flying out of RAF Eastchurch, Cave-Browne-Cave was seriously injured in a flying accident which occurred at Butley in Suffolk. His personal assistant, Flying Officer Geoffrey Beavis was killed^[3] and Cave-Browne-Cave's active career came to an end.^[4]

References

• Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation - Air Vice-Marshal H M Cave-Browne-Cave
• thePeerage.com - Air Vice Marshal Henry Meyrick Cave-Browne-Cave

Notes