"Their names liveth forever more."

The Cavalier of the Skies

Wing Commander ROY MARPLES, DFC & Bar

1920 - 1944

One of The Few

The Distinguished Flying Cross

CITATIONS FOR THE AWARDS OF THE DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS

"The King has been graciously pleased to approve the award of the Distinguished Flying Cross in recognition of gallantry displayed in flying operations against the enemy to Acting Flight Lieutenant Roy Marples (70868), No. 41 Squadron. This officer has shown great courage and leadership as a flight commander. He has carried out 52 operational sorties over enemy territory and has destroyed 2, probably destroyed 3 and damaged a further 2 enemy aircraft. His keenness and personal example have been outstanding."  - London Gazette, 14 October 1941.

"The King has been graciously pleased to approve the award of a Bar to the Distinguished Flying Cross in recognition of gallantry displayed in flying operations against the enemy to Squadron Leader Roy Marples, D.F.C. (70868), No. 238 Squadron. In November, 1942, this officer participated in intensive attacks on the enemy's transports and supply lines. During the period, his squadron destroyed 50 and disabled 90 more transports and 3 aircraft. By his skilful leadership and courageous example Squadron Leader Marples contributed materially to the successes obtained." London Gazette, 1 January 1943.

VERY BRIEF RAF CAREER SUMMARY

He joined 616 squadron in 1939 as a Pilot Officer, flying Spitfires. During his career he achieved 6 1/2 kills (thus making him a Fighter Ace) including one of the very few night interceptions by a Spitfire when on 29th June 1940 he shot down a Heinkel III. This effort was greeted with mixed feelings by his colleagues in 616 squadron. For quite some time 616 had been flying their Spitfires as night interceptors, which the pilots found to be a very boring exercise as they never saw any enemy aircraft. In any event the Spitfire was never designed as a night interceptor, and landings in particular could be very hairy because the forward visibility in the approach was very poor due to the massive engine cowling housing the magnificent Rolls-Royce Merlin engine. To make matters worse the undercarriage had a very narrow track. To quote from his colleague, Hugh (Cocky) Dundas' book, "Flying Start":

"This was a magnificent effort; but Marples, a young short service commissioned officer, who was renowned for nocturnal operations of a different and more enjoyable kind, was found guilty by the rest of us of sabotaging our efforts to persuade the authorities that night patrols in Spitfires were a waste of time. We said that there must have been a woman in the German plane and that was the only reason why he saw it."

He was shot down in the Battle of Britain on 26th August 1940 at 13.20 hrs after he was wounded in the leg with cannon splinters. He successfully crash landed his Spitfire I (R6758) at Adisham in Kent. Having returned to his squadron after injury, one day he was returning from a sortie over France when he flew so close to the sea that he lost 9 inches off each of the 3 blades of the Spitfire's propellor.  He managed to stagger into Hawkinge airfield where he had to resort to some fast talking to mitigate his error.  

He flew with Group Captain Sir Douglas Bader, DSO*, DFC* when Bader joined 616 squadron as part of the Tangmere Wing in 1941. He was flying with Bader on the day Bader was shot down, and in the radio transcript of the battle he can be heard warning Bader that he had Me 109s on his tail. Immediately after this he was promoted to Flight Lieutenant and posted as a Flight Commander to 41 Squadron.

He was later promoted to Squadron Leader and posted to 238 squadron, serving in the Desert Air Force. There he was again shot down and, having landed in the sea, swam back to the shore. 

He was killed in a flying accident on 26 April 1944, whilst flying Spitfire IX, MK360, of 145 Wing, when he collided with MK346 in cloud and crashed near Horsham. He had been sent to take part in a Ramrod, escorting B-26s, but was recalled, so flew a sweep over Mons, France. The collision occurred whilst returning from this sweep. Wing Commander Roy Marples, recently appointed to lead 145 Wing was killed and Sergeant Chef Alligier of 329 Squadron crashed, injured. Source: RAF Fighter Command Losses, Vol. 3, p. 29, Norman Franks & Morley's Fighter Command War Diaries.

He is buried in the Chichester War Cemetery, leaving a widow and daughter.

Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth

And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;

Sunward I have climbed and joined the tumbling mirth

Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things

You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung

High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,

I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung

My eager craft through footless halls of air.

Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue

I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace

Where never lark, or even eagle flew.

And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod

The high untrespassed sanctity of space,

Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

"High Flight" by Flying Officer John Magee

Who flew Spitfires out of Tangmere in World War 2

Badges of the squadrons of the Royal Air Force's Fighter Command in which Roy Marples flew
616 (South Yorkshire) Pilot & Flying Officer	41 Flight Lieutenant	238 Squadron Leader

Spitfires!

"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed, by so many, to so few."

-Winston Churchill

addressing the House of Commons at the height of the Battle of Britain on 20^th August 1940

BATTLE OF BRITAIN MEMORIAL

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