Stewart Menaul

Air Vice Marshal Stewart William Blacker Menaul, CB, CBE, DFC, AFC (17 June 1915 – 22 May 1987) was an officer in the Royal Air Force (RAF). During the Second World War he served in RAF Bomber Command with the elite Pathfinder Force. After the war he participated in the British nuclear weapons tests in Australia, and was on board the Vickers Valiant that dropped Britain's first atomic bomb on 11 October 1956 during Operation Buffalo.

Stewart Menaul
Air Vice Marshal Stewart Menaul in the 1960s
Nickname(s)Paddy
Born(1915-06-17)17 June 1915
Died22 May 1987(1987-05-22) (aged 71)
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchRoyal Air Force
Years of service1931–1968
RankAir Vice Marshal
Commands heldJoint Services Staff College (1965–68)
RAF Lindholme (1957–59)
RAF Upwood (1944–46)
RAF Graveley (1943–44)
RAF Gransden Lodge (1943)
No. 15 Squadron RAF (1942–43)
Battles/warsSecond World War
AwardsCompanion of the Order of the Bath
Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Distinguished Flying Cross
Air Force Cross
Mentioned in Despatches (5)

Early life and career

Stewart William Blacker Menaul was born on 17 June 1915. He was educated in Laurelvale and Portadown, in County Armagh, Northern Ireland.[1] He joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) in 1931 as an apprentice with No. 2 School of Technical Training at RAF Cranwell. In 1935 he commenced flight training with C Squadron at the Royal Air Force College Cranwell,[2] and on completion of his training, was commissioned as a pilot officer on 19 December 1936.[3]

Second World War

Menaul was posted to No. 21 Squadron RAF, which was then flying the Hawker Hind biplane.[2] He was promoted to flying officer on 19 June 1938,[4] and was granted the acting rank of flight lieutenant on 7 April 1939.[5] He relinquished the rank on 11 May 1939,[6] but was restored to it on 19 June 1940.[7] In 1940 and 1941 he was a flight instructor.[1] He was mentioned in despatches on 1 January 1941.[8]

Menaul's next assignment was to No. 15 Squadron RAF, a bomber squadron flying the Vickers Wellington and later the Short Stirling.[2] He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on 22 August 1941.[9] Promoted to squadron leader on 1 September 1941,[10][11] he became the squadron commander on 7 January 1942.[2] He was awarded the Air Force Cross on 1 January 1943, and was again mentioned in despatches on 1 January 1943 and 1 June 1943.[12][13]

In May 1943, with his combat tour completed, Menaul was assigned to the staff of No. 3 Group RAF.[2] He became acting wing commander on 1 July 1943;[14] the rank became substantive on 7 November.[15] He became the commander of RAF Gransden Lodge on 5 June 1943, RAF Graveley on 23 August 1943, and RAF Upwood on 6 December 1944.[2] He was again mentioned in despatches on 1 January 1945 and 1 January 1946.[16][17][18]

Post war

After the war, Menaul attended the RAF Staff College, Bracknell, and joined the staff of the RAF Directorate of Organisation (Forecasting and Planning). He attended the Imperial Defence College in 1950, and then became Deputy Director of Operations.[2] He was promoted to group captain on 1 January 1953.[19]

In 1955, Menaul attended US nuclear tests at the Nevada Test Site,[20] and then became the air task group commander for the British nuclear weapons tests in Australia.[2] He flew an English Electric Canberra bomber through the fallout cloud during Operation Mosaic to measure radiation levels,[21] and was on board the Vickers Valiant that dropped Britain's first atomic bomb on 11 October 1956 during Operation Buffalo.[2] He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 1957 New Year Honours.[22]

Menaul returned to England in 1957, and became the commander of the Bomber Command Bombing School at RAF Lindholme. In April 1959, he became the Air Officer-in-Charge Administration for the British Forces in the Arabian Peninsula.[2] He was promoted to air commodore on 1 July 1959,[23] and air vice-marshal on 3 May 1961.[24][25][26] He became Senior Air Staff Officer at Bomber Command on 27 April 1961, and was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 1963 Birthday Honours.[27] His final posting, on 5 July 1965, was as commandant of the Joint Services Staff College.[2][28] He retired on 29 April 1968.[29]

Later life

After leaving the RAF, "Paddy" Menaul (as he was known), became Director General of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). Under his guidance, it transformed from a society of military men with a respected journal into a well-known voice in public policy matters.[30] He retired on 13 August 1976, and became a defence consultant. He achieved widespread public recognition as an Independent Television commentator on the 1982 Falklands War.[1]

Menaul died on 22 May 1987.[1] After his death, documents relating to Menaul from 1950 to 1986 have been compiled in 1997 and stored in King's College London.[20]

References
  1. "Laurelvale". www.portadownphotos.co.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  2. "Stewart William Blacker Menaul", rafweb.org, retrieved 12 August 2018
  3. "No. 34363". The London Gazette. 26 January 1937. p. 560.
  4. "No. 34525". The London Gazette. 24 June 1938. p. 4084.
  5. "No. 34624". The London Gazette. 9 May 1939. p. 3113.
  6. "No. 34644". The London Gazette. 11 July 1939. p. 4769.
  7. "No. 34892". The London Gazette. 9 July 1939. p. 4179.
  8. "No. 35029". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 31 December 1940. p. 35.
  9. "No. 35254". The London Gazette. 22 August 1941. p. 4864.
  10. "No. 35270". The London Gazette. 9 September 1941. p. 5219.
  11. "No. 35791". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 17 November 1942. p. 5034.
  12. "No. 35841". The London Gazette. 29 December 1942. p. 34.
  13. "No. 36033". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 28 May 1943. p. 2454.
  14. "No. 36092". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 13 July 1943. p. 3199.
  15. "No. 36289". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 14 December 1943. p. 5488.
  16. "No. 36866". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 29 December 1944. p. 61.
  17. "No. 37407". The London Gazette. 28 December 1945. p. 89.
  18. "No. 38020". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 18 July 1947. p. 3418.
  19. "No. 39739". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 30 December 1952. p. 53.
  20. "Menaul, AVM Stewart William Blacker (1915–1987)". King's Collections. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  21. "Hero leads jet into deadly atom cloud". The Argus (Melbourne). Victoria, Australia. 17 May 1956. p. 1. Retrieved 13 August 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
  22. "No. 40960". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 28 December 1956. p. 9.
  23. "No. 41753". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 26 June 1959. p. 4227.
  24. "No. 42397". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 23 June 1961. p. 4769.
  25. "No. 42420". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 21 July 1961. p. 5501.
  26. "No. 42881". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 28 December 1962. p. 79.
  27. "No. 43010". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 31 May 1963. p. 4795.
  28. "No. 43663". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 28 May 1965. p. 5276.
  29. "No. 44575". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 26 April 1968. p. 4895.
  30. "Air Vice Marshal S. W. B. Menaul". The RUSI Journal. 121 (3): i. 1976. doi:10.1080/03071847609421244.
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