Lewis Hodges
| Sir Lewis Macdonald Hodges | |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | "Bob" |
| Born |
1 March 1918 Richmond, England |
| Died | 4 January 2007 (aged 88) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Royal Air Force |
| Years of service | 1937–76 |
| Rank | Air Chief Marshal |
| Commands held |
Air Member for Personnel (1970–73) Air Support Command (1968–70) RAF Marham (1956–59) No. 357 (Special Duties) Squadron (1944–45) No. 161 (Special Duties) Squadron (1943–44) |
| Battles/wars |
Second World War |
| Awards |
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Commander of the Order of the British Empire Distinguished Service Order & Bar Distinguished Flying Cross & Bar Mentioned in Despatches Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour (France) Croix de guerre (France) |
Second World War
Air Chief Marshal Sir Lewis Macdonald Hodges, KCB, CBE, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar, DL (1 March 1918 – 4 January 2007) was a pilot for Special Operations Executive (SOE) in the Second World War, and later achieved high command in the Royal Air Force and NATO.
Hodges was born in Richmond in Surrey, England. He was educated at St Paul's School in Barnes and joined the Royal Air Force College Cranwell in 1937.
Known as "Bob" Hodges, he was commissioned into the RAF as a pilot officer in December 1938, joining Bomber Command and flying Vickers Wellesleys with No. 78 Squadron at RAF Finningley, and then moving to fly Handley Page Hampdens with No. 49 Squadron in 1940. On 4 September 1940, his aircraft was damaged in an air raid on Stettin, and he crash-landed in Brittany. He and a gunner named John Hugh Wyatt who had not bailed out attempted to escape to Spain, but were arrested by the Vichy police near Marseilles. He escaped from custody at Saint-Hippolyte-du-Fort, near Nîmes, and crossed the Pyrenees into Spain, only to be arrested and imprisoned at Miranda del Ebro. He was eventually released some weeks later, reaching Gibraltar and then returning to England in June 1941.
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