Sir Hughie Idwal Edwards

Air Commodore Sir Hughie Idwal Edwards VC, KCMG, CB, DSO, OBE, DFC

Hughie Idwal Edwards was born in Fremantle, Western Australia, on 1 August 1914, the son of Welsh-born parents Hugh and Jane Ann Edwards. Known as Idwal within his family, he left school after earning his Junior Certificate because his family could no longer afford to support his education. After working in a shipping office, a racing stable and a factory, he enlisted in the Permanent Military Forces in March 1934 and served with the 6th Heavy Battery, Royal Australian Artillery. Australian Dictionary of Biography

In July 1935 Edwards was accepted for flying training with the Royal Australian Air Force at Point Cook, Victoria. After graduating, he travelled to Britain and received a short-service commission in the Royal Air Force on 21 August 1936. Although Australian by birth and initial military service, Edwards spent the remainder of his military career as an officer of the British Royal Air Force. Australian Dictionary of Biography; Australian Government Anzac Portal

His flying career nearly ended in August 1938 when his Bristol Blenheim entered an uncontrollable spin after icing up in a storm. Edwards ordered his navigator and gunner to abandon the aircraft. When he attempted to escape, his parachute became entangled with the aircraft’s radio aerial and he remained attached as the bomber struck the ground. He was critically injured, including a badly broken leg, and spent much of the following two years recovering. Edwards eventually persuaded the medical authorities to permit him to return to flying in April 1940. Australian Dictionary of Biography

In May 1941 Edwards became commanding officer of No. 105 Squadron RAF. On 15 June he led six Blenheims in a low-level attack against enemy shipping near The Hague. Despite intense and accurate fire, Edwards attacked a vessel of approximately 4,000 tons from mast height and severely damaged it. His leadership, skill and gallantry earned him the Distinguished Flying Cross. London Gazette, 4 July 1941

On 4 July 1941 Acting Wing Commander Edwards personally led twelve Blenheim bombers in a daylight attack against the port of Bremen, one of the most heavily defended targets in Germany. With no cloud cover to conceal them, the formation flew approximately fifty miles over enemy territory at little more than fifty feet. The aircraft passed beneath high-tension cables, carried away telegraph wires and penetrated a formidable balloon barrage before encountering concentrated anti-aircraft fire over the port.

Every aircraft in the formation was hit and four were destroyed. Edwards nevertheless pressed home the attack and then withdrew the surviving bombers without further loss. His own Blenheim returned badly damaged and with a wounded gunner. For planning and leading the operation with full knowledge of its extraordinary risks, Edwards was awarded the Victoria Cross. His official citation declared that he had displayed “the highest possible standard of gallantry and determination.” London Gazette, 22 July 1941; Australian Government Anzac Portal

Later in July 1941 Edwards took No. 105 Squadron to Malta for operations against Axis shipping in the Mediterranean. He returned to command the squadron in August 1942, by then equipped with de Havilland Mosquito aircraft. On 6 December he participated in Operation Oyster, the celebrated daylight attack on the Philips industrial works at Eindhoven in the Netherlands. The bombers attacked at heights ranging down to rooftop level while facing heavy ground fire and enemy fighters. Edwards received the Distinguished Service Order for his part in the operation, becoming the first airman of the Second World War to achieve the combination of the Victoria Cross, Distinguished Service Order and Distinguished Flying Cross. London Gazette, 8 January 1943; Journal of the Orders and Medals Society of America

Promoted to acting group captain, Edwards assumed command of RAF Binbrook in February 1943. Although holding a senior station command, he continued to participate in operations with Lancaster bomber crews. In December 1944 he was sent to Ceylon as Group Captain, Bomber Operations. He subsequently served at South-East Asia Command, supporting the Fourteenth Army in Burma and later assisting with the recovery of prisoners of war and civilians in Malaya and the Netherlands East Indies. He was Mentioned in Despatches in January 1945 and appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1947 for his services in South-East Asia. Australian Dictionary of Biography; Australian War Memorial

Edwards remained in the Royal Air Force after the war and held a succession of senior appointments. He commanded RAF Wattisham and later RAF Habbaniya, where he served as station commander during the Suez Crisis and remained in command through the Iraqi Revolution of 1958. During the crisis at Habbaniya he successfully withdrew the force without casualties. Appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1959, he later served as an aide-de-camp to Queen Elizabeth II and as Director of Organisation (Establishments) at the Air Ministry. He retired from the RAF on 30 September 1963 with the substantive rank of air commodore. Australian Dictionary of Biography; Australian War Memorial; Australian Government Anzac Portal

Returning to Australia, Edwards entered business before being sworn in as Governor of Western Australia on 7 January 1974. In May that year he was appointed a Knight of Grace of the Order of St John, and in August he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George. Chronic ill health forced him to resign as governor on 2 April 1975. Australian Dictionary of Biography; Government House Western Australia

Sir Hughie Edwards died at Darling Point, Sydney, on 5 August 1982, four days after his sixty-eighth birthday. Remembered for his exceptional courage, determination and operational leadership, he is widely regarded as the most highly decorated Australian serviceman of the Second World War. His Victoria Cross and medal group are preserved at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. Australian Dictionary of Biography; Australian War Memorial; Australian Government Anzac Portal