Johnny Smythe
Johnny Smythe | |
|---|---|
Pilot Officer J H Smythe RAFVR of Sierra Leone, photographed while undergoing training at No. 11 Operational Training Unit, RAF Westcott, Buckinghamshire | |
| Nickname(s) | Johnny |
| Born | 1915 Freetown, Sierra Leone Colony and Protectorate |
| Died | 1996 (aged 80–81) Thame, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom |
| Buried | St Mary's Church, Thame |
| Allegiance | British Empire |
| Branch | Royal Air Force |
| Years of service | 1939–1951 |
| Rank | Flight Lieutenant |
| Service number | 144608 |
| Unit | 623 Squadron |
| Battles / wars | World War II • Western Front |
| Awards | Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), Order of the British Empire, Queens Councel, Member of the Republic of Sierre Leone, Order of St Lazarus |
| Spouse(s) | Violet Wells Bain |
| Relations | Donald Smythe, Jennifer Smythe, John Smythe, Eddy Smythe, Kathryn Smythe |
| Other work | Barrister, Attorney General of Sierra Leone |
John Henry Clavell Smythe, QC, MBE (1915–1996) was a Sierra Leonean Royal Air Force officer during World War II and barrister. He was born a Sierra Leone Creole into the British Empire and served as a navigation officer in the Royal Air Force. He was shot down over Nazi Germany and spent two years as a prisoner of war. After liberation and return to Britain, he was a role model to those in the beginning of the Windrush Generation. He retrained as a lawyer, returned to his birthplace, and served as Attorney General of Sierra Leone.