Biography Percy Hobson (RAF officer)

1 biography

1.1 life , education
1.2 world war i
1.3 post war

biography
early life , education

hobson born @ parent s farm @ church end, fleet hargate, near holbeach in lincolnshire. attended local schools @ fleet , long sutton, before being sent boarding school @ dursley, gloucestershire, , attended framlingham college, suffolk, between 1905 , 1909. was, in own words, excellent @ nothing . family moved farm @ bungay, suffolk, , hobson worked there during holidays. after leaving school gained apprenticeship @ mann egerton electrician, learned nothing except blow fuses . in 1912, aged 18, father bought him ticket canada. hobson sailed aboard rms empress of ireland liverpool quebec, £5 in pocket. first worked on farm in ayr, ontario, , later worked painter in agricultural implements factory. after year moved buffalo, new york, working in store cleaning fur coats, served deckhand on lake steamer. jumped ship @ port arthur, ontario, , rode freight train winnipeg work on farm, until saved enough money take train vancouver, worked carpenter building houses in victoria, vancouver island, , handyman @ cement works @ bamberton. when war broke out in august 1914, hobson returned england, travelling via train seattle new york, liverpool aboard rms lusitania.

world war i

hobson enlisted honourable artillery company, serving driver, transferred royal flying corps on 10 may 1917, having spent ...a hell of long time messing south , east anglia... after ground training cadet commissioned temporary second lieutenant (on probation) on 21 june. posted salisbury plain flying instruction, , noted flying instructors hard-hearted lot of bastards – after 20 minutes dual instruction sent solo scot named blackwood – managed down in 1 piece, lucky, many weren t – number killed terrific. confirmed in rank on 27 september, , posted no. 84 squadron in france on 22 october, commanding officer sholto douglas. hobson, despite ...not knowing how fly machine less fight it... thrown action, , noted cheerful posted squadron found majority of recent additions writing letters opened when have gone . however, ...more luck managed away , survived.

hobson, flying s.e.5a single-seat fighter, gained first aerial victory on 13 february 1918, shooting down albatros d.v north-east of st. quentin. few days later, on 18 february, drove down out of control on beaurevoir. on 13 march shot down , killed oberleutnant zur see konrad mettlich, commander of jasta 8 on remaucourt, , on 16th , lieutenant george owen johnson destroyed lvg c reconnaissance aircraft on villers-outréaux.

during german spring offensive of march , april allies pushed back, , time no. 84 squadron based @ different aerodrome every night. reassigned high level fighter patrols ground attack role, made them more vulnerable anti-aircraft fire, , hobson noted ...it nothing come home 150 200 bullet holes in machine... . despite gained 3 more victories, accounting 2 more albatros s , fokker dr.i between april 20 , 23.

he subsequently awarded military cross, gazetted on 22 june 1918. citation read:

temporary 2nd lieutenant percy kyme hobson, general list , rfc.

for conspicuous gallantry , devotion duty. observing large body of troops transport, descended within 200 feet, and, despite severe enemy rifle , machine gun fire ground, dropped 4 bombs, 3 of direct hits on transport, causing severe casualties, increased accurate machine gun fire brought bear on target. on later occasion, observed large body of troops moving across open, , attacked these bombs , machine gun fire, causing many casualties , scattering them in directions. has been responsible destruction of 4 enemy machines, , has @ times shown complete disregard personal danger.

hobson returned england, flying night patrols on london, , being promoted acting rank of captain on 1 september 1918. served flying instructor, before leaving royal air force on 26 april 1919.

post war

after war hobson decided seek fortune in south africa, arriving @ cape town in january 1920. made way malalane in eastern transvaal, uncle had farm. , ex-rfc man managed make living growing vegetables, in 1927, moved further north, gaining position store manager in broken hill, northern rhodesia (now kabwe, zambia). employed driver transportation company of e. cort billy dunn, former major in royal engineers. on 22 december 1928 married colleen islay halliwell @ st mary s cathedral, johannesburg.

in 1930 , andrew thatcher, of dunn s drivers, founded own transportation company thatcher & hobson , single chevrolet 1½-tonner bought on hire purchase. running 3 vehicles, between broken hill , abercorn (now mbala), , gained contracts loangwa concessions transport personnel, , later mail contract. onset of great depression, economic activity in country ceased, , thatcher & hobson threatened bankruptcy. however, won contract transport aviation fuel mpika, imperial airways had constructed way-point on air route europe south africa, , managed survive, opening branch @ lusaka operations on great east road fort jameson (now chipata).

the company prospered, , later added fleet of buses commercial freight operations. in 1948 thatcher , hobson supplied piper cubs flying club of northern rhodesia, had been closed down @ outbreak of world war ii, , struggled restart afterwards. 1954 thatcher, hobson & co. passenger , goods transport business operating 250 trucks , buses, when taken on united transport company, , renamed central african road services. hobson had reportedly left business time before farm in tanganyika.