We have just heard the sad news that, after long battles against illnesses, David died peacefully in hospital on the 7th August.
David’s military service began when he joined the British Army as a Gunner in the early 60s. His easy way with people marked him out for commission and he went on to Mons for Officer training in 1967. By the end of the decade his thoughts had turned to flying and he was seconded to the Army Air Corps as an Air Observation Pilot. At the end of his short service career, keen to further his flying ambitions, he joined the Sultan of Oman's Air Force. There he joined an eclectic mix of contract and loan service pilots on 3 (Heli) Sqn SOAF from UK, Australia, Sri Lanka and Rhodesia with varying operational backgrounds from none to N Ireland and Vietnam. He settled in quickly. His unfailing courtesy, charming smile and enthusiasm were a winning combination.
David was very soon to find that his operational experience ratcheted up very quickly. He spent about 2 months in Muscat and then was sent to Salalah which was the hub of military operations during the Dhofar War, 1965-1975. By 1975 the intensity of operations had risen to a crescendo with the Sultans Armed Forces aided by the British Military and 12000 Iranian troops driving the Communist-inspired enemy, ‘Adoo’, out of Oman back into Yemen. A key strategic stronghold - Sarfait, 4000 ft up on the jebel overlooking the Yemen border, was entirely resupplied by helicopter. On 31 October 1975, 5 days after arriving in Salalah David was being shown how this was done. It involved a climb to 10,000 ft and an alarming spiral descent to minimise the chance of engagement by shoulder-launched heat seeking missiles - SAM 7. There were two helicopters tasked with this resupply.
At the same time, it was evident that a ground operation against a set of caves known as Sherishitti was struggling and had requested fighter support. Two Strikemasters armed with bombs and rockets were scrambled. The first one tipped in dropped his bombs and as he climbed away was shot down by a SAM 7. The two helicopters on resupply diverted to help. It was immediately apparent that the helicopter with 2 pilots in it (as opposed to the other aircraft with only one pilot) should attempt to recover the Strikie pilot. The air was thick with more SAM 7s and heavy and light machine gun fire. Initially, aiming for the parachute as the only marker on the ground, David’s helicopter was redirected by the downed pilot on his emergency radio. The pilot had landed very close to the Adoo that had shot him down and had been running away from them across a Wadi some 600 ft deep. By this time, he was halfway up the other side of the Wadi. Despite all the shot and shell, David’s helicopter was able to pick up the pilot and escape safely. The Captain of the helicopter (Dave Long) was subsequently awarded a Gallantry medal on behalf of the crew. Five weeks later victory was declared in Dhofar and the remainder of David’s flying career was conducted in reasonable safety.
Funeral details:
David's Funeral will be held on Thursday, 5th September, at 2pm at Putney Vale Crematorium, West Chapel, SW15 3DZ.
No flowers, please, but donations if desired to Battersea Dogs and Cats Home via donate.battersea.org.uk
There will be a Reception afterwards locally (venue tbc) so the family would be grateful to know names of those attending by 25th August for catering reasons. Please email saf.business@dudwell.co.uk with your numbers attending and we will collate the responses on behalf of the family.
Dotty Mawdsley can be contacted at: 37 Stafford Mansions, Stafford Place, London SW1E 6NL.
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