{{Short description|Royal Air Force Air Chief Marshal & England international rugby union player (1912–1986)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}} {{Infobox military person |name= Sir George Augustus Walker |image= Sir George Augustus Walker.jpg |image_size= |alt= |caption= |nickname= Gus, One-armed bandit |birth_date= {{birth date|1912|08|24|df=yes}} |birth_place= West Garforth, Leeds |death_date= {{death date and age|1986|12|11|1912|08|24|df=yes}} |death_place= King's Lynn, Norfolk |burial_place= |allegiance= United Kingdom |branch= Royal Air Force |service_years= 1933–1970 |rank= Air Chief Marshal |service_number= |unit= |commands= Inspector-General of the RAF (1964–1967)<br />Flying Training Command (1961–1964)<br />No.&nbsp;1 Group (1956–1959)<br />RAF Coningsby (1951–1952)<br />RAF Pocklington (1943)<br />RAF Syerston (1942–1943)<br />No.&nbsp;50 Squadron (1940–1942) |battles= Second World War |awards= Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath<br />Commander of the Order of the British Empire<br />Distinguished Service Order<br />Distinguished Flying Cross<br />Air Force Cross<br />Mentioned in Despatches<br />Legion of Honour (France)<br />Croix de guerre (France) |relations= |other_work= }} Air Chief Marshal '''Sir George Augustus Walker''', {{postnominals|country=GBR|size=100%|sep=,|GCB|CBE|DSO|DFC|AFC}} (24 August 1912 – 11 December 1986) was a Second World War bomber pilot, a jet aircraft pioneer, and a senior Royal Air Force officer in the post-war era, as well as a rugby player.

==Early life== Walker was born on 24 August 1912 in West Garforth, Leeds, and studied at St. Bees School in Cumberland, and St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he took a second in the natural science tripos. He played rugby for Yorkshire, and twice for England in 1939.<ref name=ODNB>{{cite odnb |id=67140 |first=Robin |last=Woolven |title=Walker, Sir (George) Augustus (1912–1986) }}</ref>

==RAF career== He joined the Royal Air Force from university on 29 March 1933.<ref name=air>{{cite web |url=http://www.rafweb.org/Biographies/Walker_G.htm |title=Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Chief Marshal Sir Augustus Walker |website=rafweb.org |access-date=23 August 2017}}</ref> In November 1940 during the Second World War he was appointed Officer Commanding No. 50 Squadron in which role he earned the Distinguished Service Order and Distinguished Flying Cross before moving on to become Station Commander at RAF Syerston in April 1942.<ref name=air/> While working as station commander at RAF Syerston he rushed in a fire truck from the control tower to a taxiing Lancaster bomber when he saw it was on fire. He then tried to remove incendiary bombs from under the bomb bay in the hope that he could prevent a {{convert|4000|lb|adj=on}} bomb from exploding, but it detonated and he lost his right arm as a result.<ref name="air"/> Returning to active service with an artificial arm, he was referred to by personnel as the one-armed bandit.<ref name=RAFpdf>{{cite journal |issue=2 |url=http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/documents/Journal%202%20-%20John%20Terraine%20on%20WWII.pdf |journal=Proceedings RAF Historical Society |title=Air Chief Marshal Sir Augustus Walker |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206114420/http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/documents/Journal%202%20-%20John%20Terraine%20on%20WWII.pdf |archive-date=6 December 2010 |date=August 1987 |pages=68–74}}</ref> In February 1945 he was appointed Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters No. 4 Group and went on to receive the Croix de Guerre and Légion d'Honneur.<ref name=ODNB/>

After the War he was appointed Deputy Director of Operational Training at the Air Ministry before taking up the role of Senior Air Staff Officer for the Rhodesian Air Training Group in 1948.<ref name=air/> In 1951 he became Officer Commanding RAF Coningsby and in 1954 he was made Commandant of the RAF Flying College at Manby where he developed flying techniques for jet aircraft: he received the Air Force Cross in 1956 for his work in this and techniques for flights over the North Pole.<ref name=RAFpdf/>

He became Air Officer Commanding No. 1 Group in October 1956, Chief Information Officer at the Air Ministry in 1959 and Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Flying Training Command in 1961.<ref name=air/> He held the post of Inspector-General of the RAF from 1964 to 1966 when he became Deputy Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces Central Europe.<ref name=air/> He continued his interest in rugby, acting as a referee and being President of the Rugby Union in 1965–6.<ref name=ODNB/> He retired in 1970.<ref name=air/>

Following his retirement he carried out various voluntary activities, notably for the Royal Air Forces Association, including the role of President.<ref name=RAFpdf/>

==Family== On 5 September 1942 he married Dorothy Brenda Wilcox (who survived him) and they had a son and daughter.<ref name=ODNB/> He died 11 December 1986 in King's Lynn, Norfolk.<ref name=ODNB/> He is commemorated by a memorial blue plaque in Lidgett Lane in Garforth, where he lived as a child.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/blue-plaque-honour-for-village-s-raf-hero-1-2394103 |title=Blue plaque honour for village's RAF hero |date=12 October 2006 |first=Andrew |last=Robinson |newspaper=The Yorkshire Post |access-date=23 August 2017 }}</ref>

==References== {{reflist|30em}}

{{s-start}} {{s-mil}} {{s-bef|before=Sir Hugh Constantine}} {{s-ttl|title=Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Flying Training Command|years=1961–1964}} {{s-aft|after=Sir Patrick Dunn}} {{s-bef|before=Sir Paterson Fraser}} {{s-ttl|title=Inspector-General of the RAF|years=1964–1967}} {{s-aft|after=Sir Reginald Emson}} {{s-bef|before=Sir Edmund Hudleston<br /><small>As Commander Allied Air Forces Central Europe</small>}} {{s-ttl|title=Deputy C-in-C Allied Forces Central Europe|years=1967–1970}} {{s-aft|after=Sir Frederick Rosier}} {{s-end}}

{{Portal bar|Biography|United Kingdom|Aviation|Sports}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Gus}} Category:1912 births Category:1986 deaths Category:Royal Air Force air chief marshals Category:Royal Air Force rugby union players Category:English aviators Category:British World War II pilots Category:British World War II bomber pilots Category:Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Category:Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Category:Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Category:Recipients of the Legion of Honour Category:Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Category:Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Category:England international rugby union players Category:Yorkshire County RFU players Category:Alumni of St Catharine's College, Cambridge Category:People educated at St Bees School Category:People from Garforth Category:Sportspeople from the City of Leeds Category:Military personnel from Leeds