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John 'Cat's Eyes' Cunningham CBE, DSO & Two Bars, DFC & Bar, AE (27 July 1917 – 21 July 2002) was a Royal Air Force (RAF) night fighter ace during the Second World War and a test pilot. During the war, he was nicknamed 'Cat's Eyes' by the British press to explain his successes and to avoid communicating the existence of airborne radar to the ...
Nov 19, 2010 · It was one of the more bizarre cover-ups of the Second World War, starting with the humble carrot and ending with the idolization of an RAF officer called John Cunningham.
Cunningham joined the RAF in 1935 as a Pilot Officer. He learned to fly in the Avro 504N and was awarded his wings in 1936. While assigned to the Middlesex Squadron Auxiliary based at Hendon, Cunningham received instruction in the Hawker Hart prior to moving on the Hawker Demon.
John Cunningham rose to fame as an outstanding night-fighter pilot, "Cat's-eyes Cunningham", during the bombing blitz of Britain. Few then knew of his major role in perfecting the operational use of radar interception.
British officer served as pilot with 604 Sqdn, Nos 11 and 12 Groups, Fighter Command, RAF in GB, 9/1939-7/1942; served with No 81 Group, Training Command, RAF in GB, 8/1942-1/1943; commanded 85 Sqdn, No 12 Group, Fighter Command, RAF in GB, 1/1943-3/1944; served as staff officer with Night Operations, Headquarters, No 11 Group, Fighter Command ...
Mar 23, 2024 · 23 March 1948: During a 45-minute flight over Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, the de Havilland Aircraft Company chief test pilot, Group Captain John Cunningham, D.S.O., flew a modified DH.100 Vampire F.1 fighter to a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Altitude of 18,119 meters (59,446 feet).¹ ...
Group Captain. John Cunningham - Biography. I joined No 604 County of Middlesex Squadron Auxiliary Air Force based at Hendon as a Pilot Officer in 1935. I was taught to fly at Hendon in the Avro 504N and gained my wings in 1936.
