GROUPS AND SINGLE DECORATIONS FOR GALLANTRY 15
A scarce inter-war ‘Kurdistan’ D.F.C., 1919 ‘Pioneering Flight’ A.F.C. and ‘Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment’ Second Award Bar group of six awarded to Wing Commander E. G. Hilton, Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force, late 14th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (London Scottish) and 14th (Service) Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (Pioneers). A veteran of the First Day of the Battle of the Somme, Hilton transferred to the Royal Flying Corps and served as a Handley Page 0/400 night bomber pilot in France during 1918. He continued serving with 58 Squadron, when five squadron’s aircraft were flown from France to Egypt in 1919 - ‘This whole transferring of complete squadrons to ‘foreign shores’ - in particular, the aerial transit by the 0/400 units - had no equivalent precedent in R.A.F. annals, and was to prove a daunting test of the involved aircrews’ skills and endurance.’
Pioneering flights were to become something of a habit for Hilton, who was to fly in both the explorative flights for the Cairo-Baghdad air mail route in 1919, as well as commanding a small detachment of 216 Squadron’s Victoria aircraft for planning and surveying the Khartoum - West Africa route, by flying from Egypt to Nigeria, October - December 1933. He served as a test pilot at the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment, 1924-29 and 1935-37, where he ‘was considered one of the most brilliant of the R.A.F. pilots at Martlesham.’ Despite having over 6,000 hours of flying experience he was tragically killed when his aircraft crashed during the King’s Cup air race over Scarborough, 10 September 1937
DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS, G.V.R.; AIR FORCE CROSS, G.V.R., with Second Award Bar; 1914 STAR, with clasp (2815 Pte. E. G. Hilton. 14/Lond: R.); BRITISHWAR AND VICTORYMEDALS (Lieut. E. G. Hilton. R.A.F.) minor official correction to surname on BWM; GENERAL SERVICE 1918-62, 1 clasp, Kurdistan (F/L. E. G. Hilton. RA.F.), with related miniature awards, last miniature with ‘Iraq’ clasp, both groups mounted as originally worn, edge bruising to last, otherwise generally good very fine (6) £6000-8000
D.F.C. London Gazette 11 June 1924:
‘For distinguished service rendered during the operations in Kurdistan between 15th February and 19th June, 1923.’ A.F.C. London Gazette 12 July 1920 (70 Sqn. Egypt). A.F.C. Second Award Bar London Gazette 1 January 1930.
Edward Goodwin Hilton was born in London, and educated at Malvern and University College, London. He was studying engineering at the latter, when he enlisted for service at the outbreak of the Great War aged 18. Hilton served with the 14th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment (London Scottish) in the French theatre of war from September 1914. He was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the East Yorkshire Regiment, 23 September 1914. The following year Hilton was attached for service with the 14th (Service) Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers (Pioneers), and he described conditions at the front in letters between 10 - 19 October 1915:
‘We have got to a very large town, manufacturing seems the great thing.... It is really too funny for words, I have a billet right out in the open, just 3/4 kilo from the German front trench, at the corner of the road to the billet no men are allowed to stand and talk in a bunch as they get potted at, from the corner to my billet, which is about 100 yards distance, I have to cross two reserve trenches, rather dangerous...
We came here expecting a rest, but things are livening up. This town is on the frontier, at present it is a salient. I have just been watching our asphyxiating gas go up, a remarkable sight to see. We do most of our work at night...
I had quite an exciting time, I went out about dusk to look for a new machine gun place, our other was getting too hot as a Jack Johnson had fallen within a few yards, when suddenly there was a whizz and bullet struck the ground close by, then another, so I lay flat for a moment, then crawled forward to the place and a starlight went up just as I was having a look round, of course it was convenient in a way for me, but I had to keep still as a rock and pretend I was a tree, then I crawled back...’
The following month he recorded: ‘Suddenly a whizz-bang came within 15 yards of us, blew in all the parapet, wounded some men and plastered us from head to foot with mud... The ground here is very thick and heavy, it is mostly clay, the Boches are a little higher up than us, there is a stream which flows through the Boche line into ours, they periodically dam it up, then let it through with a rush. The consequence is our trenches are flooded out owing to the stream being narrow and being unable to cope with the rush of extra water. No one seems able to rectify this so every week we have the same old game of walking up to our knees in mud.’
Hilton’s luck continued into February 1916: ‘We had an exciting time on Thursday last. In the afternoon I was walking along the trench and a whizz-bang exploded somewhere in front. Before I heard the explosion I was knocked over, a piece had evidently run into me. I was stunned for a time, but am quite all right now. They told me afterwards that my hat badge must have saved me. My hat was cut through in front and the badge was bent up. I have a large mound on the top of my head at present but it is slowly subsiding, so you see my head is fairly hard and of some use yet.’ (Ibid)
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