Adolph Malan
Encyclopedia
Adolph Gysbert Malan DSO
& Bar
DFC
& Bar
(24 March 1910 – 17 September 1963), better known as Sailor Malan, was a famed South African World War II
RAF
fighter pilot who led No. 74 Squadron RAF
during the height of the Battle of Britain
. Malan was known for sending German bomber pilots home with dead crews as a warning to other Luftwaffe crews. Under his leadership the 74 became one of the RAF's best units. Malan scored 27 kills, seven shared destroyed, three probably destroyed and 16 damaged.
Malan survived the war - to become involved in the anti-apartheid movement
in his country.
of the International Mercantile Marine Co.
which later earned him the nickname of "Sailor" amongst his pilot colleagues.
, flying for the first time on 6 January 1936. He completed training by the end of the year, and was sent to join 74 Squadron on 20 December 1936. He was promoted to Pilot Officer
in January 1937, and was appointed to acting Flight Commander of "A" Flight, flying Spitfires, in August. He received another promotion to Flight Lieutenant
just before the opening of the war.
. Believing 56 to be the enemy, Malan ordered an attack. Paddy Byrne and John Freeborn
downed two RAF aircraft, killing one officer, Montague Hulton-Harrop, in this friendly fire
incident, which became known as the Battle of Barking Creek
. At the subsequent courts martial, the courts accepted that the entire incident was an unfortunate error.
on 28 June 1940, Malan was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross having achieved five 'kill' claims. During this battle he first exhibited his fearless and implacable fighting spirit. In one incident he was able to coolly change the light bulb in his gunsight while in combat and then quickly return to the fray. During the night of 19/20 June Malan flew a night sortie in bright moonlight and shot down two Heinkel He-111 bombers, a then unique feat for which a bar to his DFC was awarded.
Malan and his senior pilots also decided to abandon the "vic" formation used by the RAF, and turned to a looser formation based on the "finger-four
" that the Luftwaffe
had developed just before the war started. Legend has it that on 28 July he met Werner Mölders
in combat, damaging his plane and wounding him, but failing to bring him down. Recent research has suggested however that Mölders was wounded in a fight with No. 41 Squadron RAF
.
. This was at the height of the Battle of Britain
. Three days later, on 11 August, action started at 7 am when 74 was sent to intercept a raid near Dover, but this was followed by another three raids, lasting all day. At the end of the day, 74 had claimed to have shot down 38 aircraft, and was known from then on as "Sailor's August the Eleventh". Malan himself simply commented, "thus ended a very successful morning of combat."
On the ground, Malan was remembered as an inveterate gambler and often owed his subordinates money. Malan was older than most of his charges and although sociable and relaxed off-duty, he spent most of his time with his wife and family living near Biggin Hill. He would soon develop a routine of flying the first sortie of the day and then handing the squadron to a subordinate while he stayed on the ground to do paperwork. Despite frosty relations after the Battle of Barking Creek he would often give command of the squadron to John Freeborn
(himself an ace
of note), showing Malan's ability to keep the personal and professional separate.
Malan commanded 74 Squadron with strict discipline and did not suffer fools gladly, and could be high-handed with sergeant pilots (many non-commissioned pilots were joining the RAF at this time). He could also be reluctant to hand out decorations, and he had a strict yardstick by which he would make recommendations for medals: six kills confirmed for a DFC, twelve for a bar to the DFC; eighteen for a DSO.
On 29 December 1941 Malan was added to the select list of airmen who had sat for one of Cuthbert Orde
's iconic charcoal portraits. He also had the far rarer honour of having Orde paint a full colour painting.
, and on 22 July 1941, a bar
to the Order. On 10 March 1941 he was appointed as one of the first Wing Leaders
for the offensive operations that spring and summer, leading the Biggin Hill Wing until mid August, when he was rested from operations.
He finished his active fighter career in 1941 with 27 kills destroyed, 7 shared destroyed and 2 unconfirmed, 3 probables and 16 damaged, at the time the RAF's leading ace, and one of the highest scoring pilots to have served wholly with Fighter Command during World War II.
in 1941 and became Station Commander at Biggin Hill
. Malan remained keen to fly on operations, often ignoring standing orders for Station Commanders not to risk getting shot down. In October 1943 he became OC 19 Fighter Wing, 2nd TAF
, then commander of the 145 (Free French) Fighter Wing in time for D-day, leading a section of the wing over the beaches during the late afternoon.
Malan developed a set of simple rules for fighter pilots, to be disseminated throughout RAF Fighter Command
, which eventually could be found tacked to the wall of most airbases:
TEN OF MY RULES FOR AIR FIGHTING
a joint project of the anti-fascist ex-servicemen's organisation, the Springbok Legion and the War Veterans Action committee. Sailor Malan became the president of that new organization. In Malan's words, it was "established to oppose the police state, abuse of state power, censorship, racism, the removal of the Coloured vote and other oppressive manifestations of the creeping fascism
of the National Party regime".
Amongst the leading members of the Springbok Legion were many ex-servicemen who would later join the African National Congress and Umkhonto we Sizwe under the leadership of Nelson Mandela
. Amongst these were Joe Slovo
, Jack Hodgson, Wolfie Kodesh, Brian Bunting and Fred Carneson. After the National Party came to power and began to implement its policies, many found the Springbok Legion, founded in 1941, (see Torch commando) to be too left orientated and too radical. In 1950 members of the Springbok Legion began to work with other more liberal organizations and even the United Party official opposition, to find new ways to mobilise protest support against a string of Apartheid laws.
In 1951 the Springbok Legion, formed a protest group together with the War Veterans Action Committee, to appeal to a broader base of ex-servicemen, which they called the 'Torch Commando', as a tactic to fight the National Party's plans to remove Cape's "coloured" voters from the roll. Harry Schwarz
, an ex-serviceman and later a leading figure in the anti-apartheid movement was one of the founders of the organization. The Torch Commando fought a battle for more than five years, and at its height had 250,000 members. The government was alarmed by the number of judges, public servants and military officers joining the organisation that a new law was passed to ban anyone in public service or the military from joining. The National Party ensured that the memory of the Springbok Legion, Torch Commando and of Sailor Malan was purged from history because there was a fear particularly that young Afrikaners might want to emulate Malan.
At its largest Torch Commando protest rally, the Springbok Legion attracted 75,000 people. In a speech at a rally outside City Hall in Johannesburg, Malan made reference to the ideals for which the Second World War was fought: “The strength of this gathering is evidence that the men and women who fought in the war for freedom still cherish what they fought for. We are determined not to be denied the fruits of that victory.”
Malan died in 1963 from Parkinson's Disease
, at the time a rare and essentially mysterious malady. A considerable sum of money was raised in his name to further study the disease, a fund that continues to this day.
He was survived by his wife, Lynda, son Jonathan, and daughter Valerie.
In the 1969 war film Battle of Britain
, the Robert Shaw
character 'Squadron Leader Skipper' was explicitly based on Malan, as recounted by director Guy Hamilton
in the documentary 'A Film for the Few', which was included with the 2004 Special Edition DVD release.
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...
& Bar
Medal bar
A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...
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...
& Bar
Medal bar
A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...
(24 March 1910 – 17 September 1963), better known as Sailor Malan, was a famed South African World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
RAF
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...
fighter pilot who led No. 74 Squadron RAF
No. 74 Squadron RAF
No. 74 Squadron RAF, also known as a "Tiger Squadron" from its tiger head motif, is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It operated fighter aircraft from 1917 to the 1990s.-First World War:...
during the height of the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
. Malan was known for sending German bomber pilots home with dead crews as a warning to other Luftwaffe crews. Under his leadership the 74 became one of the RAF's best units. Malan scored 27 kills, seven shared destroyed, three probably destroyed and 16 damaged.
Malan survived the war - to become involved in the anti-apartheid movement
Internal resistance to South African apartheid
Internal resistance to the apartheid system in South Africa came from several sectors of society and saw the creation of organisations dedicated variously to peaceful protests, passive resistance and armed insurrection. It came from both black activists like Steve Biko and Desmond Tutu as well as...
in his country.
Early life
Malan was born in Wellington, Cape Province, South Africa. He joined the South African Training Ship General Botha in 1924 or 1925 as a cadet (cadet number 168), after which he joined the Union-Castle LineUnion-Castle Line
The Union-Castle Line was a prominent British shipping line that operated a fleet of passenger liners and cargo ships between Europe and Africa from 1900 to 1977. It was formed from the merger of the Union Line and Castle Shipping Line...
of the International Mercantile Marine Co.
International Mercantile Marine Co.
The International Mercantile Marine Co., originally the International Navigation Co., was a trust formed in the early twentieth century as an attempt by J.P. Morgan to monopolize the shipping trade. The end result was heavy losses for Morgan....
which later earned him the nickname of "Sailor" amongst his pilot colleagues.
Royal Air Force
In 1935 the RAF started the rapid expansion of its pilot corps, and Malan was one of the people who joined up. He learned to fly in the Tiger Moth at an elementary flying school near BristolBristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, flying for the first time on 6 January 1936. He completed training by the end of the year, and was sent to join 74 Squadron on 20 December 1936. He was promoted to Pilot Officer
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer...
in January 1937, and was appointed to acting Flight Commander of "A" Flight, flying Spitfires, in August. He received another promotion to Flight Lieutenant
Flight Lieutenant
Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...
just before the opening of the war.
The Battle of Barking Creek
No. 74 Squadron saw its first action only 15 hours after war was declared, sent to intercept a bomber raid that turned out to be returning RAF planes. On 6 September 1939, "A" Flight was scrambled to intercept a suspected enemy radar track and ran into the Hurricanes of No. 56 Squadron RAFNo. 56 Squadron RAF
Number 56 Squadron is one of the oldest and most successful squadrons of the Royal Air Force, with battle honours from many of the significant air campaigns of both World War I and World War II...
. Believing 56 to be the enemy, Malan ordered an attack. Paddy Byrne and John Freeborn
John Freeborn
Wing Commander John Connell Freeborn DFC* was a World War II RAF pilot. He was not only an ace but also held the distinction of having flown more operational hours than any other RAF pilot during the Battle of Britain....
downed two RAF aircraft, killing one officer, Montague Hulton-Harrop, in this friendly fire
Friendly fire
Friendly fire is inadvertent firing towards one's own or otherwise friendly forces while attempting to engage enemy forces, particularly where this results in injury or death. A death resulting from a negligent discharge is not considered friendly fire...
incident, which became known as the Battle of Barking Creek
Battle of Barking Creek
The Battle of Barking Creek was a friendly fire incident that happened on 6 September 1939, resulting in the first death of a British fighter pilot in the Second World War.-Incident:...
. At the subsequent courts martial, the courts accepted that the entire incident was an unfortunate error.
Dunkirk
Events soon overtook the squadron. After fierce fighting over Dunkirk during the evacuation of DunkirkOperation Dynamo
The Dunkirk evacuation, commonly known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, code-named Operation Dynamo by the British, was the evacuation of Allied soldiers from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, France, between 26 May and the early hours of 3 June 1940, because the British, French and Belgian troops were...
on 28 June 1940, Malan was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross having achieved five 'kill' claims. During this battle he first exhibited his fearless and implacable fighting spirit. In one incident he was able to coolly change the light bulb in his gunsight while in combat and then quickly return to the fray. During the night of 19/20 June Malan flew a night sortie in bright moonlight and shot down two Heinkel He-111 bombers, a then unique feat for which a bar to his DFC was awarded.
Malan and his senior pilots also decided to abandon the "vic" formation used by the RAF, and turned to a looser formation based on the "finger-four
Finger-four
The "Finger-four" formation , is a flight formation used by fighter aircraft. It consists of four aircraft, and four of these formations can be combined into a squadron formation.- Description :...
" that the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
had developed just before the war started. Legend has it that on 28 July he met Werner Mölders
Werner Mölders
Werner Mölders was a World War II German Luftwaffe pilot and the leading German fighter ace in the Spanish Civil War. Mölders became the first pilot in aviation history to claim 100 aerial victories—that is, 100 aerial combat encounters resulting in the destruction of the enemy aircraft, and was...
in combat, damaging his plane and wounding him, but failing to bring him down. Recent research has suggested however that Mölders was wounded in a fight with No. 41 Squadron RAF
No. 41 Squadron RAF
No. 41 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is currently the RAF's Test and Evaluation Squadron , based at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire. Its official title is "41 TES". The Squadron celebrates its 95th anniversary in 2011, and is one of the oldest RAF squadrons in existence.-First World War, 1916–1919:No...
.
Squadron Leader – 74 Squadron
On 8 August, Malan was given command of 74 Squadron and promoted to Acting Squadron LeaderSquadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
. This was at the height of the Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...
. Three days later, on 11 August, action started at 7 am when 74 was sent to intercept a raid near Dover, but this was followed by another three raids, lasting all day. At the end of the day, 74 had claimed to have shot down 38 aircraft, and was known from then on as "Sailor's August the Eleventh". Malan himself simply commented, "thus ended a very successful morning of combat."
On the ground, Malan was remembered as an inveterate gambler and often owed his subordinates money. Malan was older than most of his charges and although sociable and relaxed off-duty, he spent most of his time with his wife and family living near Biggin Hill. He would soon develop a routine of flying the first sortie of the day and then handing the squadron to a subordinate while he stayed on the ground to do paperwork. Despite frosty relations after the Battle of Barking Creek he would often give command of the squadron to John Freeborn
John Freeborn
Wing Commander John Connell Freeborn DFC* was a World War II RAF pilot. He was not only an ace but also held the distinction of having flown more operational hours than any other RAF pilot during the Battle of Britain....
(himself an ace
Flying ace
A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
of note), showing Malan's ability to keep the personal and professional separate.
Malan commanded 74 Squadron with strict discipline and did not suffer fools gladly, and could be high-handed with sergeant pilots (many non-commissioned pilots were joining the RAF at this time). He could also be reluctant to hand out decorations, and he had a strict yardstick by which he would make recommendations for medals: six kills confirmed for a DFC, twelve for a bar to the DFC; eighteen for a DSO.
On 29 December 1941 Malan was added to the select list of airmen who had sat for one of Cuthbert Orde
Cuthbert Orde
Captain Cuthbert Julian Orde was an artist and First World War pilot. He is best known for his war art, especially his portraits of Allied Battle of Britain pilots.-Family background:...
's iconic charcoal portraits. He also had the far rarer honour of having Orde paint a full colour painting.
Wing Commander – Biggin Hill
On 24 December, Malan received the Distinguished Service OrderDistinguished 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...
, and on 22 July 1941, a bar
Medal bar
A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...
to the Order. On 10 March 1941 he was appointed as one of the first Wing Leaders
Wing Commander (rank)
Wing commander is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries...
for the offensive operations that spring and summer, leading the Biggin Hill Wing until mid August, when he was rested from operations.
He finished his active fighter career in 1941 with 27 kills destroyed, 7 shared destroyed and 2 unconfirmed, 3 probables and 16 damaged, at the time the RAF's leading ace, and one of the highest scoring pilots to have served wholly with Fighter Command during World War II.
Group Captain
After tours to the USA and the Central Gunnery School, Malan was promoted to Group CaptainGroup Captain
Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks above wing commander and immediately below air commodore...
in 1941 and became Station Commander at Biggin Hill
Biggin Hill
Biggin Hill is an area and electoral ward in the outskirts of the London Borough of Bromley in southeast London, United Kingdom.-History:Historically the settlement was known as Aperfield and formed part of the parish of Cudham...
. Malan remained keen to fly on operations, often ignoring standing orders for Station Commanders not to risk getting shot down. In October 1943 he became OC 19 Fighter Wing, 2nd TAF
RAF Second Tactical Air Force
The former RAF Second Tactical Air Force was one of three tactical air forces within the Royal Air Force during and after the Second World War...
, then commander of the 145 (Free French) Fighter Wing in time for D-day, leading a section of the wing over the beaches during the late afternoon.
Rules of Air Fighting
Although not an instinctive, gifted pilot Malan was an exceptional shot and a very aggressive air fighter, and above all a superb tactician who instilled the methods and techniques he had honed in 1940 into successive generations of young fighter pilots who followed him.Malan developed a set of simple rules for fighter pilots, to be disseminated throughout RAF Fighter Command
RAF Fighter Command
RAF Fighter Command was one of three functional commands of the Royal Air Force. It was formed in 1936 to allow more specialised control of fighter aircraft. It served throughout the Second World War, gaining recognition in the Battle of Britain. The Command continued until 17 November 1943, when...
, which eventually could be found tacked to the wall of most airbases:
TEN OF MY RULES FOR AIR FIGHTING
- Wait until you see the whites of his eyes. Fire short bursts of one to two seconds only when your sights are definitely "ON".
- Whilst shooting think of nothing else, brace the whole of your body: have both hands on the stick: concentrate on your ring sight.
- Always keep a sharp lookout. "Keep your finger out".
- Height gives you the initiative.
- Always turn and face the attack.
- Make your decisions promptly. It is better to act quickly even though your tactics are not the best.
- Never fly straight and level for more than 30 seconds in the combat area.
- When diving to attack always leave a proportion of your formation above to act as a top guard.
- INITIATIVE, AGGRESSION, AIR DISCIPLINE, and TEAMWORK are words that MEAN something in Air Fighting.
- Go in quickly - Punch hard - Get out!
Later life
In 1946 Malan left the RAF and returned to South Africa where he joined the Torch CommandoTorch Commando
The Torch Commando was born out of the work of the Springbok Legion, a South African organisation of World War II veterans, founded in 1941 during the second world war by progressive anti-fascist servicemen, and the War Veterans Action Committee established with the involvement of Springbok...
a joint project of the anti-fascist ex-servicemen's organisation, the Springbok Legion and the War Veterans Action committee. Sailor Malan became the president of that new organization. In Malan's words, it was "established to oppose the police state, abuse of state power, censorship, racism, the removal of the Coloured vote and other oppressive manifestations of the creeping fascism
Creeping fascism
Creeping fascism is a political term documented in various forms during the first half of the 20th Century, especially after World War II ....
of the National Party regime".
Amongst the leading members of the Springbok Legion were many ex-servicemen who would later join the African National Congress and Umkhonto we Sizwe under the leadership of Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
. Amongst these were Joe Slovo
Joe Slovo
For Joe Slovo Informal Settlement in Cape Town, see: Joe Slovo .Joe Slovo was a South African politician, long-time leader of the South African Communist Party , and leading member of the African National Congress.-Life:Slovo was born in Obeliai, Lithuania to a Jewish family who emigrated to South...
, Jack Hodgson, Wolfie Kodesh, Brian Bunting and Fred Carneson. After the National Party came to power and began to implement its policies, many found the Springbok Legion, founded in 1941, (see Torch commando) to be too left orientated and too radical. In 1950 members of the Springbok Legion began to work with other more liberal organizations and even the United Party official opposition, to find new ways to mobilise protest support against a string of Apartheid laws.
In 1951 the Springbok Legion, formed a protest group together with the War Veterans Action Committee, to appeal to a broader base of ex-servicemen, which they called the 'Torch Commando', as a tactic to fight the National Party's plans to remove Cape's "coloured" voters from the roll. Harry Schwarz
Harry Schwarz
Harry Heinz Schwarz was a South African lawyer, statesman and long-time political opposition leader against apartheid, who eventually served as the South African ambassador to the United States during the country’s transition to representative democracy.Schwarz rose from the childhood poverty he...
, an ex-serviceman and later a leading figure in the anti-apartheid movement was one of the founders of the organization. The Torch Commando fought a battle for more than five years, and at its height had 250,000 members. The government was alarmed by the number of judges, public servants and military officers joining the organisation that a new law was passed to ban anyone in public service or the military from joining. The National Party ensured that the memory of the Springbok Legion, Torch Commando and of Sailor Malan was purged from history because there was a fear particularly that young Afrikaners might want to emulate Malan.
At its largest Torch Commando protest rally, the Springbok Legion attracted 75,000 people. In a speech at a rally outside City Hall in Johannesburg, Malan made reference to the ideals for which the Second World War was fought: “The strength of this gathering is evidence that the men and women who fought in the war for freedom still cherish what they fought for. We are determined not to be denied the fruits of that victory.”
Malan died in 1963 from Parkinson's Disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
, at the time a rare and essentially mysterious malady. A considerable sum of money was raised in his name to further study the disease, a fund that continues to this day.
He was survived by his wife, Lynda, son Jonathan, and daughter Valerie.
In the 1969 war film Battle of Britain
Battle of Britain (film)
Battle of Britain is a 1969 Technicolor film directed by Guy Hamilton, and produced by Harry Saltzman and S. Benjamin Fisz. The film broadly relates the events of the Battle of Britain...
, the Robert Shaw
Robert Shaw (actor)
Robert Archibald Shaw was an English actor and novelist, remembered for his performances in The Sting , From Russia with Love , A Man for All Seasons , the original The Taking of Pelham One Two Three , Black Sunday , The Deep and Jaws , where he played the shark hunter Quint.-Early life...
character 'Squadron Leader Skipper' was explicitly based on Malan, as recounted by director Guy Hamilton
Guy Hamilton
Guy Hamilton is an English film director.Hamilton was born in Paris, France where his English parents were living. Remaining in France during the Nazi occupation, he was active in the French Resistance...
in the documentary 'A Film for the Few', which was included with the 2004 Special Edition DVD release.
Awards
- Distinguished Service OrderDistinguished Service OrderThe 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...
and Bar - Distinguished Flying CrossDistinguished 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 Bar - Belgium Croix de GuerreCroix de guerreThe Croix de guerre is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was awarded during World War I, again in World War II, and in other conflicts...
- Czecho-Slovakian Military Cross
- French Legion Of Honour
- French Croix de Guerre
See also
- Flying aceFlying aceA flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more...
- List of top World War II aces
- List of World War II aces from South Africa
- Huguenots in South AfricaHuguenots in South AfricaA large number of people in South Africa are descended from Huguenots. Most of these originally settled in the Cape Colony, but have since been quickly absorbed into the Afrikaner and Afrikaans population, thanks to sharing a similar religion to the Dutch colonists.-History:Even before the large...
, for the history of French surnames (like Malan) in South Africa.