{{Short description|New Zealand flying ace of WWII}} {{good article}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}} {{Use New Zealand English|date=November 2024}} {{Infobox military person |name= Raymond Cammock |image=Raymond Cammock, 1944.jpg |image_size= |alt= |caption= |nickname= |birth_date= {{birth date|1923|7|4|df=yes}} |birth_place= [[Christchurch]], New Zealand |death_date= {{death date and age|1944|10|6|1923|7|4|df=yes}} |death_place= Near [[Arnhem]], Netherlands |burial_place=Lochem New General Cemetery, Netherlands |allegiance= New Zealand |branch= [[Royal New Zealand Air Force]] |service_years= |rank= [[Flying Officer]] |unit= [[No. 486 Squadron RAF|No. 486 Squadron]] (1944)<br/>[[No. 253 Squadron RAF|No. 253 Squadron]] (1942–1943)<br/>[[No. 485 Squadron RAF|No. 485 Squadron]] (1942) |commands= |battles= [[Second World War]] *[[North African campaign]] *[[Operation Diver]] *[[Western Front (World War II)#1944–1945: The Second Front|Western Front (1944–1945)]] |awards=[[Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] |relations= |other_work= }} '''Raymond Cammock''' {{postnominals|country=UK|size=100%|sep=,|DFC}} (4 July 1923–6 October 1944) was a flying ace of the [[Royal New Zealand Air Force]] (RNZAF) during the [[Second World War]]. He is credited with the destruction of at least 20 [[V-1 flying bomb]]s.
From [[Christchurch]], Cammock joined the RNZAF in August 1941 and was sent to England to serve with the [[Royal Air Force]] (RAF) once his training was completed the following year. He briefly served with [[No. 485 Squadron RAF|No. 485 Squadron]] before being posted to [[No. 253 Squadron RAF|No. 253 Squadron]] in September 1942. He flew [[Hawker Hurricane]] [[Fighter aircraft|fighter]]s extensively with this unit during the later stages of the campaign in North Africa. He returned to the United Kingdom in July 1943, and served with research and training units for several months. In May 1944, Cammock was posted to [[No. 486 Squadron RAF|No. 486 Squadron]], which was staffed with mostly New Zealand flying personnel and operated the [[Hawker Tempest]] fighter. The squadron was engaged in [[Operation Diver]], the RAF's campaign against the V-1, with Cammock being one of its most successful pilots. Killed on 6 October during a strafing attack on a train in the Netherlands, he was posthumously awarded the [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)|Distinguished Flying Cross]].
==Early life== Raymond John Cammock was born on 4 July 1923 to David John and Bertha Agnes Cammock in [[Christchurch]], New Zealand.<ref name=CWGC>{{cite web |title=Flying Officer 414723 Raymond John Cammock DFC - 486 (NZ) Squadron|url=https://www.cwgc.org/stories/stories/flying-officer-414723-raymond-john-cammock-dfc-486-nz-squadron/ |publisher=Commonwealth War Graves Commission |access-date=13 November 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Centotaph Record: Raymond John Cammock |url=https://www.aucklandmuseum.com/war-memorial/online-cenotaph/record/C21704 |publisher=Auckland Museum |access-date=13 November 2024}}</ref> He was educated at [[Papanui High School|Papanui Technical College]] and once his schooling was completed, he worked as a clerk for the New Zealand Government's [[Tourist bureau]] in Christchurch.{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}}
==Second World War== Cammock enlisted in the [[Royal New Zealand Air Force]] (RNZAF) in August 1941 and commenced his training as an [[airman]] pilot at [[RNZAF Station Weraroa]], near [[Levin, New Zealand|Levin]]. He proceeded to [[No. 3 Elementary Flying Training School RNZAF|No. 3 Elementary Flying Training School]] the following month, making his first solo flight on 4 October. After further training at [[No. 1 Flying Training School RNZAF|No. 1 Flying Training School]], he gained his [[aircrew brevet|wings]] and a promotion to [[sergeant pilot]] in January 1942. He was sent to the United Kingdom the next month to serve with the [[Royal Air Force]] (RAF). After a period of training at [[List of Royal Air Force Operational Training Units|No. 61 Operational Training Unit]] for familiarisation on [[Supermarine Spitfire]] [[Fighter aircraft|fighter]]s, he was posted to [[No. 485 Squadron RAF|No. 485 Squadron]] in July.{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}}
His new unit, composed largely of New Zealand flying personnel and equipped with Spitfires, was based at [[RAF Kings Cliffe|Kings Cliffe]], in [[No. 12 Group RAF|No. 12 Group]]'s area of operations from where it carried out convoy patrols over the [[North Sea]].{{sfn|Rawlings|1976|pp=449–450}} Cammock flew only seven [[sortie]]s with the squadron before he was transferred to [[No. 253 Squadron RAF|No. 253 Squadron]] on 6 September.{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}} Stationed at [[RAF Hibaldstow|Hibaldstow]], the squadron operated the [[Hawker Hurricane]] fighter and was preparing to be deployed to North Africa. Arriving at [[Dar El Beïda|Maison Blanche]] in Algeria in November, its duties were to protect shipping destined for [[Algiers]].{{sfn|Rawlings|1976|pp=357–359}} Cammock flew 97 sorties during his time with No. 253 Squadron, and with another pilot, shared in the destruction of one enemy aircraft. He returned to the United Kingdom in July 1943.<ref name=CWGC/>{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}}
In August, Cammock was assigned to the [[Air Fighting Development Unit RAF|Air Fighting Development Unit]] as a staff pilot. [[Commission (document)|Commissioned]] as a [[pilot officer]] a few months later, in March 1944 he was posted to [[No. 1695 Bomber (Defence) Training Flight RAF |No. 1695 Bomber (Defence) Training Flight]], again as a staff pilot, flying Hurricanes.{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}}
===Operation Diver=== In May 1944 Cammock was posted to [[No. 486 Squadron RAF|No. 486 Squadron]] and not long afterwards was promoted to [[flying officer]].{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}}{{sfn|Sortehaug|1998|p=146}} A New Zealand fighter squadron that was part of the RAF, it was equipped with the [[Hawker Tempest]] fighter and, flying with [[No. 150 Wing RAF|No. 150 Wing]] as part of the [[RAF Second Tactical Air Force|Second Tactical Air Force]] (2TAF), carried out attacks on transportation infrastructure in northern France, as well as on shipping along the coastline.{{sfn|Thompson|1956|p=266}}{{sfn|Rawlings|1976|pp=451–452}} Following the [[Operation Overlord|invasion of Normandy]], it patrolled over the English Channel.{{sfn|Thompson|1956|p=326}} In mid-June, the squadron was withdrawn from the 2TAF and, flying from [[RAF Newchurch|Newchurch]], tasked with destroying German-launched [[V-1 flying bomb]]s targeting southeast England as part of [[Operation Diver]], the RAF's campaign against these weapons.{{sfn|Lambert|2011|pp=327–330}}{{sfn|Sortehaug|1998|p=193}} [[File:Royal Air Force- 2nd Tactical Air Force, 1943-1945. CL1386.jpg|thumb|right|Cammock stands on the right, next to [[Owen Eagleson]]; the two were the most successful pilots of No. 486 Squadron's campaign against V-1 flying bombs]] On 28 June, Cammock intercepted a V-1 heading for [[Hastings]], closing in and destroying it at close range. He would go on to destroy several more over the following weeks, including two in one sortie in late July. By the time the squadron's role in Operation Diver had ended at the end of August, he had destroyed 20 V-1s, the second-most successful pilot of No. 486 Squadron behind [[Warrant Officer]] [[Owen Eagleson]].{{sfn|Sortehaug|1998|p=174}}{{sfn|Thompson|1956|pp=328–329}}
===Service in Europe=== In September, No. 486 Squadron moved to Europe and rejoined the 2TAF. It carried out armed reconnaissance sorties and [[close air support]] operations from airfields in Belgium and then the Netherlands.{{sfn|Rawlings|1976|pp=451–452}} On 6 October, Cammock, who was making his 116th sortie with the squadron, and seven other pilots were seeking out targets of opportunity near [[Arnhem]] and spotted a train. As he made a low-level strafing attack, his Tempest was struck by anti-aircraft fire and it crashed into the train and exploded, killing Cammock.{{sfn|Sortehaug|1998|pp=187–188}}{{sfn|Thompson|1956|p=361}}
There is some confusion regarding Cammock's tally of aerial victories. Some sources credit him with having destroyed 20 V-1s, and a half share in one enemy aircraft.<ref name=CWGC/>{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}} However, military aviation historians Christopher Shores and Clive Williams state that the half share was actually for a V-1, and do not mention any aircraft destroyed by Cammock.{{sfn|Shores|Williams|1994|p=661}} He was posthumously recognised for his successes with an award of the [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)|Distinguished Flying Cross]]. The announcement was made on 8 December; the citation, published in ''[[The London Gazette]]'', read: {{Blockquote|This officer has displayed great zest for operations and has completed a large number of varied sorties. He has set a fine example of skill and courage and his devotion to duty has been unflagging. Flying Officer Cammock has destroyed 20 flying bombs.|''London Gazette'', No. 36831, 8 December 1944<ref>{{London Gazette| issue = 36831| date = 8 December 1944| page = 5634|supp=y}}</ref>}}
Cammock, who was survived by his wife and son, was originally buried at [[Eefde]] in the Netherlands but after the war, his body was re-interred at Lochem New General Cemetery, where five other graves of Commonwealth personnel are located, in [[Lochem]] in the province of [[Gelderland]].<ref name=CWGC/>{{sfn|Martyn|2008|p=119}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Casualty Record: Flying Officer Raymond John Cammock|url=https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2648204/raymond-john-cammock/|publisher=Commonwealth War Graves Commission |access-date=13 November 2024}}</ref> In 2021, during work on the railway line at Wagenvoortsdijk in the Netherlands, remnants of his Tempest were found. A tunnel in the locality was named for him in 2022, with members of his family present for the unveiling ceremony.<ref name=CWGC/><ref>{{cite news |title=Kiwi WWII Hero's Exploits Honoured in Netherlands |url=https://www.1news.co.nz/2022/03/25/kiwi-wwii-heros-exploits-honoured-in-netherlands/ |access-date=13 November 2024 |work=1News |date=25 March 2022}}</ref> [[File:CAMMOCK, RAYMOND JOHN - 06-10-1944.JPG|thumb|right|The grave of Raymond Cammock at Lochem New General Cemetery in the Netherlands]]
==Notes== {{reflist}}
==References== *{{cite book|last=Lambert|first=Max|year=2011|title=Day After Day: New Zealanders in Fighter Command|publisher=HarperCollins Publishers|location=Auckland|isbn=978-1-86950-844-9}} *{{cite book |last1=Martyn |first1=Errol |title=For Your Tomorrow - A Record of New Zealanders Who Have Died While Serving with the RNZAF and Allied Air Services Since 1915 - Volume Three: Biographies & Appendices |date=2008 |publisher=Volplane Press |location=Christchurch|isbn=978-0-473-12829-6}} *{{cite book|last=Rawlings|first=John|year=1976|title=Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft|publisher=MacDonald & James|location=London|isbn=0-354-01028-X}} *{{cite book|last1=Shores|first1=Christopher|last2=Williams|first2=Clive|year=1994|title=Aces High: A Tribute to the Most Notable Fighter Pilots of the British and Commonwealth Forces in WWII|publisher=Grub Street|location=London|isbn=1-8-9869-7000}} *{{cite book|last=Sortehaug|first=Paul|year=1998|title=The Wild Winds: The History of Number 486 RNZAF Fighter Squadron with the RAF|publisher=Otago University Print|location=Dunedin|isbn=1-877139-09-2}} *{{cite book|last=Thompson|first=H. L.|year=1956|title=New Zealanders with the Royal Air Force|volume=II|url=http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-WH2-2RAF.html|series=[[Official History of New Zealand in the Second World War 1939–45]]|publisher=War History Branch|location=Wellington|oclc=300089346}}
{{New Zealand World War II Flying Aces}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cammock, Raymond}} [[Category:1923 births]] [[Category:1944 deaths]] [[Category:New Zealand World War II flying aces]] [[Category:Military personnel from Christchurch]] [[Category:People educated at Papanui High School]] [[Category:New Zealand recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)]] [[Category:Royal Air Force pilots of World War II]] [[Category:New Zealand military personnel killed in World War II]]