Richard Collard
Encyclopedia
Group Captain Richard Charles Marler Collard, DSO
, DFC
(25 August 1911 – 9 August 1962) was a British
Royal Air Force
officer and politician. His sudden death at the age of 50 occurred less than three years after he was first elected to the House of Commons
.
. On leaving school he enlisted in the Royal Air Force
and was commissioned as an officer. Serving with No. 4 Squadron and No. 615 Squadron
, he then became a flying instructor. He also played Rugby league
in the RAF first team.
. After the withdrawal from France, he transferred to Bomber Command
for a while, and then to the Middle East in command of No. 37 Squadron
and No. 12 Squadron
. In 1941, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross
and in 1942, he received the Distinguished Service Order
. He also had the Norwegian Liberty Cross.
goodwill tour of the United States
, and became commander of RAF Stradishall
in Suffolk
until 1948. He spent the next year in charge of development at the Central Bomber Establishment. He was then posted to the middle east to serve as Group Captain Operations in 1950, and from 1951 he was Group Captain Operations for RAF Coastal Command
until he retired from the RAF in 1953.
, and became a Director in May 1958. He also became involved in politics, and in November 1957 he was chosen to follow Brigadier Sir Frank Medlicott
as Conservative Party
candidate for Central Norfolk
for the next general election; Medlicott was in dispute with his Association over the Suez crisis, and had resigned the Conservative whip. At the 1959 general election
, Collard found himself in an energetic contest with the Liberal
candidate, Maxwell Goode; however, Collard won with an increased majority of nearly 7,000 and Goode came third.
and buy the American Skybolt.
Collard was ill in June 1961 and was advised to rest for two months. He did return to Parliament and in July 1962 objected to noise abatement rules and their effects on airlines, arguing that aircraft took off at the maximum load and the pilots should not be distracted by other considerations. However, in the middle of August he was found dead at his home in Whitwell.
He now has a road named after him in Kenley Surrey, adjacent to the former site of RAF Kenley
.
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, DFC
Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other services, and formerly to officers of other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against...
(25 August 1911 – 9 August 1962) was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
officer and politician. His sudden death at the age of 50 occurred less than three years after he was first elected to the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
.
Joining the RAF
Collard was the son of a stockbroker, and was educated at Haileybury CollegeHaileybury and Imperial Service College
Haileybury and Imperial Service College, , is a prestigious British independent school founded in 1862. The school is located at Hertford Heath, near Hertford, from central London, on of parkland occupied until 1858 by the East India College...
. On leaving school he enlisted in the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
and was commissioned as an officer. Serving with No. 4 Squadron and No. 615 Squadron
No. 615 Squadron RAF
No. 615 Squadron was a unit of the British Auxiliary Air Force and later the Royal Auxiliary Air Force between 1937 and 1957.-Formation and early years:...
, he then became a flying instructor. He also played Rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
in the RAF first team.
Wartime service
At the outbreak of war in 1939, Collard joined the Advanced Air Striking Force which was based in FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. After the withdrawal from France, he transferred to Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command
RAF Bomber Command controlled the RAF's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. During World War II the command destroyed a significant proportion of Nazi Germany's industries and many German cities, and in the 1960s stood at the peak of its postwar military power with the V bombers and a supplemental...
for a while, and then to the Middle East in command of No. 37 Squadron
No. 37 Squadron RAF
-History:No. 37 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps was formed at Orfordness, Suffolk, on 15 April 1916 but ceased to exist a month later. In September of that year, it was re-formed, with headquarters at Woodham Mortimer, in Essex. It responsibilities included defending London against aerial attack...
and No. 12 Squadron
No. 12 Squadron RAF
No. 12 Squadron of the Royal Air Force currently operates the Tornado GR4 from RAF Lossiemouth.-History:No. 12 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was formed in February 1915 from a flight of No. 1 Squadron RFC at Netheravon. The squadron moved to France in September 1915 and operated a variety of aircraft...
. In 1941, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross
Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Flying Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other services, and formerly to officers of other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against...
and in 1942, he received the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
. He also had the Norwegian Liberty Cross.
Post-war
During a bomber raid on Duisberg in 1942, Collard was shot down and taken prisoner by the Germans. He remained there until the end of the war, then rejoined the RAF. In 1946, he commanded the Avro LancasterAvro Lancaster
The Avro Lancaster is a British four-engined Second World War heavy bomber made initially by Avro for the Royal Air Force . It first saw active service in 1942, and together with the Handley Page Halifax it was one of the main heavy bombers of the RAF, the RCAF, and squadrons from other...
goodwill tour of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and became commander of RAF Stradishall
Stradishall
Stradishall is a village and civil parish in the Borough of St Edmundsbury in the English county of Suffolk.The Royal Air Force operated an airfield near Stradishall, RAF Stradishall, which was operational between 1938 and 1970. The former airfield is now the site of two category C prisons: HMP...
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
until 1948. He spent the next year in charge of development at the Central Bomber Establishment. He was then posted to the middle east to serve as Group Captain Operations in 1950, and from 1951 he was Group Captain Operations for RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...
until he retired from the RAF in 1953.
Politics
On leaving the RAF, Collard joined the Handley Page Aircraft CompanyHandley Page Aircraft Company
Handley Page Limited was founded by Frederick Handley Page in 1909 as the United Kingdom's first publicly traded aircraft manufacturing company. It went into voluntary liquidation and ceased to exist in 1970...
, and became a Director in May 1958. He also became involved in politics, and in November 1957 he was chosen to follow Brigadier Sir Frank Medlicott
Frank Medlicott
Brigadier Frank Medlicott was a National Liberal Party and later Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom.He first stood for parliament as a Liberal, contesting Acton in 1929....
as Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
candidate for Central Norfolk
Central Norfolk (UK Parliament constituency)
Central Norfolk was a county constituency in the county of Norfolk. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.-History:...
for the next general election; Medlicott was in dispute with his Association over the Suez crisis, and had resigned the Conservative whip. At the 1959 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1959
This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan...
, Collard found himself in an energetic contest with the Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
candidate, Maxwell Goode; however, Collard won with an increased majority of nearly 7,000 and Goode came third.
Parliamentary contributions
His Parliamentary speeches concentrated on RAF and aviation issues. He also took up farming issues, based on his mostly agricultural constituency. In March 1960 he appealed to Members of Parliament who visited British forces' bases in foreign countries to think about what they reported about the morale of the servicemen. He defended the government's decision to abandon the Blue Streak missileBlue Streak missile
The Blue Streak missile was a British medium range ballistic missile . The Operational Requirement for the missile was issued in 1955 and the design was complete by 1957...
and buy the American Skybolt.
Collard was ill in June 1961 and was advised to rest for two months. He did return to Parliament and in July 1962 objected to noise abatement rules and their effects on airlines, arguing that aircraft took off at the maximum load and the pilots should not be distracted by other considerations. However, in the middle of August he was found dead at his home in Whitwell.
He now has a road named after him in Kenley Surrey, adjacent to the former site of RAF Kenley
RAF Kenley
The former Royal Air Force Station Kenley, more commonly known as RAF Kenley was a station of the Royal Flying Corps in World War I and the RAF in World War II. It is located near Kenley, London, England.-History:...
.