Percy Charles Pickard
| Percy Charles Pickard | |
|---|---|
Secretary of State for Air, Sir Archibald Sinclair (in civilian raincoat), accompanied by Wing Commander Pickard, during the former's visit to Tempsford, Bedfordshire.
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| Nickname(s) | Pick |
| Born |
19 May 1915 Handsworth, Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire, England |
| Died | 18 February 1944 (aged 28) Amiens, France |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Royal Air Force |
| Years of service | 1937–1944 |
| Rank | Group Captain |
| Commands held |
No. 140 Wing RAF No. 51 Squadron No. 161 Squadron |
| Battles/wars | Second World War |
| Awards |
Distinguished Service Order & Two Bars Distinguished Flying Cross Mentioned in Despatches |
Group Captain Percy Charles "Pick" Pickard, DSO & Two Bars, DFC (16 May 1915 – 18 February 1944) was a Royal Air Force bomber pilot and commander during the Second World War. He is best remembered by the public for his role in the 1941 wartime propaganda film Target for Tonight in which he was featured as the pilot of 'F for Freddie'— a Wellington bomber of No. 149 Squadron. He was killed in action on Operation Jericho in 1944.
Pickard was born in Handsworth, Sheffield, in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England and was educated at Framlingham College. Pickard was the son of the late P. C. Pickard and Mrs. Pickard. His sister was actress Helena Pickard, married to English actor Sir Cedric Hardwicke.
Pickard received a short service commission into the Royal Air Force in January 1937, which was made Permanent in November. He served with a bomber squadron before being appointed personal assistant to the air officer commanding a training group at Cranwell in 1938. He participated in fighting over Norway, France and during the Dunkirk evacuation. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) in July 1940 while serving as a flight lieutenant in a bomber squadron. He was promoted to squadron leader with No. 311 (Czechoslovak) Squadron and was awarded a Distinguished Service Order (DSO) in March 1941. In May 1942, as wing commander in charge of No. 51 Squadron, he was awarded a bar to the DSO in recognition of his leadership in Operation Biting (also known as the Bruneval raid) on 27 February 1942. In March 1943, while commanding No. 161 Squadron – which carried out operations in support of the SOE in occupied Europe – at RAF Tempsford he was awarded a second bar to the DSO for outstanding leadership ability and fine fighting qualities. He was the first RAF officer in the Second World War to be awarded the DSO and two bars.
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