A Collection of Awards to the Royal Air Force Between the Wars (1919-1939), formed by Group Captain J E Barker
Cowton, who flew as an Observer/Air Gunner with 27 Squadron, makes mention of his Flight Commander in his book, and Harris is pictured twice in the publication. In particular he records a sortie that he and Harris both flew on during the Razmak Campaign of 1923:
‘A frequent visitor to our camp at this time was a certain Captain Kent of the Tochi Scouts, who had been a pilot in the R.F.C. during the First World War and who was now doing duty as Liaison Officer. He was keen on flying and would have liked to take a machine himself on a raid, but regulations forbade this as he had not had a refresher course and was not on the flying strength of the R.A.F. He did the next best thing, and on the raid I am now going to describe he accompanied Flight Lieutenant Harris as observer and air gunner.
Twenty-four machines of our two Squadrons were wheeled out of their hangars and lined up on the aerodrome on this brilliant morning and pilots and air gunners gathered in a circle to receive instructions for the day.
Political Agents had obtained information that certain tribesmen who refused to come to terms with the Authorities had left their villages and, during the night, were making for the passes through the mountains to Afghanistan. During the day they were receiving assistance from other villagers on the route, who fed them and their animals and housed them in their villages. Our task was to endeavour to prevent their escape by bombing and machine-gunning them and the villages where they were sheltering....
Flight Lieutenant Harris and Flying Officer Hayter-Hames were the first two to leave, and I flew with the latter. Our detail was to carry out a reconnaissance on the territory to the west of Wana between that place and the Supera Range (the boundary).... When we had crossed the plain we came to the ridge of hills near Warukai Zangi, the tribesmen being Zilli Khel. We were now close to the Afghan frontier.
From now on we scanned the country for signs of the gathering clans preparing to cross the Border. The ridge we were flying over was one of many which ran almost parallel to each other and abutted the Supera Range. In order to obtain a better view of the sides of these ridges the pilots descended to just below their crests when we came to them, then they flew up the valley on one side, climbed to cross the ridge where it abutted the mountains, and flew down the valley below the crest on the other side.
After thus scrutinising three of these ridges on both sides, we were flying along the fourth, which was covered with green scrub and boulders, when a bullet passed through the port planes of the machine flown by Flight Lieutenant Harris, making holes in the fabric, which holes were the only evidence that we were being fired at; this information being conveyed to us by signal. Forthwith he turned his machine about and went down a little lower, both Flight Lieutenant Harris and Captain Kent looking very closely but seeing no sign of any moving thing.’
The pair of aircraft went on to successfully locate and harass a large number of tribesmen attempting to flee with their livestock to Afghanistan. Cowton also records a shared flight with Harris to Arawali in June 1924, when the latter was to attend a meeting to discuss the establishment of a forward striking base in that area. Whilst continuing to be engaged in the usual policing routine, Harris and others were also employed on differing operations including taking part in experimental long distance flights. As Cowton illustrates:
‘In December [1924] Wing Commander Pink, O.B.E. [O.C. 2 Indian Wing], had been given permission to organise a flight consisting of six machines, three to be selected from each squadron at Risalpur, to make a trip from Risalpur to Calcutta and back. Thus it was that 14 January [1925] saw the departure of six machines piloted by the three Flight Commanders from each of the two Bomber Squadrons... Those of 27 Squadron being Flight Lieutenant S. Graham, M.C., Flight Lieutenant Hughes-Chamberlain, and Flight Lieutenant S. B. Harris, and those of 60 Squadron being Flight Lieutenant Busk, Flight Lieutenant Baker, and Flight Lieutenant Savery.
The flight to Calcutta took four days... the actual flying time taken to cover the distance of 1400 miles was fourteen hours and 25 minutes.’
Wing Commander R. C. M. Pink acted as Observer/Air Gunner for Harris on the flight, and having safely made it to Calcutta the formation subsequently set off again after a four day stopover. All of the aircraft, bar two, met with difficulty on the return leg either suffering engine faults or crash landings, ‘thus only two machines returned to Risalpur by air, one piloted by Flight Lieutenant Harris with Wing Commander Pink as passenger and the other piloted by Flight Lieutenant Baker with a mechanic as passenger.’ (Ibid)
The above episode is also recorded by Chaz Bowyer in his history of 27 Squadron - The Flying Elephants. Harris was posted to the Staff College at Quetta in February 1925, and having completed his course returned to England. He was posted to join the staff of HQ Air Defence Great Britain at Hillingdon House in August 1927. Harris returned to India the following year when he was posted to HQ R.A. F. India, New Delhi, to act as the Personal Assistant to Air Vice-Marshal Sir Geoffrey Salmond, A.O.C. India. Having carried out this role for 20 months, Harris was promoted to Squadron Leader and posted to command 39 Squadron (Wapitis) at Risalpur in March 1930.
www.dnw.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170 |
Page 171 |
Page 172 |
Page 173 |
Page 174 |
Page 175 |
Page 176 |
Page 177 |
Page 178 |
Page 179 |
Page 180 |
Page 181 |
Page 182 |
Page 183 |
Page 184 |
Page 185 |
Page 186 |
Page 187 |
Page 188 |
Page 189 |
Page 190 |
Page 191 |
Page 192 |
Page 193 |
Page 194 |
Page 195 |
Page 196 |
Page 197 |
Page 198 |
Page 199 |
Page 200 |
Page 201 |
Page 202 |
Page 203 |
Page 204 |
Page 205 |
Page 206 |
Page 207 |
Page 208 |
Page 209 |
Page 210 |
Page 211 |
Page 212 |
Page 213 |
Page 214 |
Page 215 |
Page 216 |
Page 217 |
Page 218 |
Page 219 |
Page 220 |
Page 221 |
Page 222 |
Page 223 |
Page 224 |
Page 225 |
Page 226 |
Page 227 |
Page 228 |
Page 229 |
Page 230 |
Page 231 |
Page 232 |
Page 233 |
Page 234 |
Page 235 |
Page 236 |
Page 237 |
Page 238 |
Page 239 |
Page 240 |
Page 241 |
Page 242 |
Page 243 |
Page 244 |
Page 245 |
Page 246 |
Page 247 |
Page 248 |
Page 249 |
Page 250 |
Page 251 |
Page 252 |
Page 253 |
Page 254 |
Page 255 |
Page 256 |
Page 257 |
Page 258 |
Page 259 |
Page 260 |
Page 261 |
Page 262 |
Page 263 |
Page 264 |
Page 265 |
Page 266 |
Page 267 |
Page 268 |
Page 269 |
Page 270 |
Page 271 |
Page 272 |
Page 273 |
Page 274 |
Page 275 |
Page 276 |
Page 277 |
Page 278 |
Page 279 |
Page 280 |
Page 281 |
Page 282 |
Page 283 |
Page 284 |
Page 285 |
Page 286 |
Page 287 |
Page 288 |
Page 289 |
Page 290 |
Page 291 |
Page 292 |
Page 293 |
Page 294 |
Page 295 |
Page 296 |
Page 297 |
Page 298 |
Page 299 |
Page 300 |
Page 301 |
Page 302 |
Page 303 |
Page 304 |
Page 305 |
Page 306 |
Page 307 |
Page 308 |
Page 309 |
Page 310 |
Page 311 |
Page 312 |
Page 313 |
Page 314 |
Page 315 |
Page 316 |
Page 317 |
Page 318 |
Page 319 |
Page 320 |
Page 321 |
Page 322 |
Page 323 |
Page 324 |
Page 325 |
Page 326 |
Page 327 |
Page 328 |
Page 329 |
Page 330 |
Page 331 |
Page 332 |
Page 333 |
Page 334 |
Page 335 |
Page 336 |
Page 337 |
Page 338 |
Page 339 |
Page 340 |
Page 341 |
Page 342 |
Page 343 |
Page 344 |
Page 345 |
Page 346 |
Page 347 |
Page 348 |
Page 349 |
Page 350 |
Page 351 |
Page 352 |
Page 353 |
Page 354 |
Page 355 |
Page 356 |
Page 357 |
Page 358 |
Page 359 |
Page 360 |
Page 361 |
Page 362 |
Page 363 |
Page 364 |
Page 365 |
Page 366 |
Page 367 |
Page 368 |
Page 369 |
Page 370 |
Page 371 |
Page 372 |
Page 373 |
Page 374 |
Page 375 |
Page 376 |
Page 377 |
Page 378 |
Page 379 |
Page 380
