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Remy Van Lierde file photo [13070]

Remy Van Lierde

SurnameVan Lierde
Given NameRemy
Born14 Aug 1915
Died8 Jun 1990
CountryBelgium, United Kingdom
CategoryMilitary-Air
GenderMale

Contributor:

ww2dbaseRemy Van Lierde was born in Overboelare, Belgium. He entered the Belgian Air Force (Aviation Militaire Belge) in 1935 as an air observer, and undertook pilot training in 1937, completing it in Apr 1938. When Germany invaded Belgium in 1940, he flew several reconnaissance flights in a Fox III biplane, and was shot down on 16 May, becoming captured. Released after the invasion, he made his way into Spain, where he was imprisoned and made an escape, and eventually arriving in Britain on 22 Jul 1941. On 5 Sep, after being cleared by the British intelligence agency MI5, he was allowed to join the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. He trained with the No. 57 Operational Training Unit at RAF Hawarden in northeastern Wales, United Kingdom for three months, and then was assigned to No. 609 Squadron on 6 Jan 1942 with the rank of pilot officer. He damaged a Do 217 bomber in Jun 1942 in a Spitfire fighter, and scored his first kill, a Bf 109 fighter, in Jan 1943 in a Typhoon fighter. On 26 Mar 1943, he shot down a German Ju 52 transport aircraft over Belgium; his wife claimed to have witnessed the attack and collected pieces of the German aircraft that he had shot down. On 14 May, he became the first pilot to drop bombs on an enemy target from a Typhoon fighter. In Sep 1943, he was promoted to the rank of flight lieutenant, followed by an assignment to the Central Gunnery School at RAF Sutton Bridge in Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom in Dec 1943. He returned to flying duty in Feb 1944. As the commanding officer of No. 164 Squadron RAF, he was credited with destroying 44 flying bombs, and another 9 shared with other pilots. He flew missions in France and Germany toward the end of the European War. In May 1945, he was assigned to the 84 Group Support Unit, then became a Belgian Liaison Officer at the Allied 2nd Tactical Air Force Headquarters.

ww2dbaseAfter the war, in Aug 1945, Remy Van Lierde was given command of the all-Belgian No. 350 Squadron RAF flying Spitfire fighters; the squadron was transitioned into the Belgian Air Force in Oct 1946. In Jun 1946, he was given the rank of major in the Belgian Air Force and was given command of the 1st Fighter Wing at Beauvechain southeast of Brussels, Belgium. Between Oct 1947 and Nov 1950, he was at the helm of the Office of Group Operations. In 1948, he studied at the RAF Staff College. In Dec 1950, he became the commanding officer of the Belgian 7th Fighter Wing. In 1953, he became the chief of staff of the Belgian Air Force Operations Group. In Sep 1953, he was appointed former King Leopold III's aide. In Nov 1958, he flew the Hunter jet aircraft in Britain, thus becoming one of the first Belgian pilots to break the sound barrier. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in Sep 1954. In Sep 1956, he became the Deputy Chief of Staff to the Minister of Defense. In Sep 1958, he was promoted to the rank of colonel. In 1959, he was given command of the air base at Kamina in the Belgian Congo. After the Congolese independence, he served as the Chief of Operations to the Chiefs of Staff, the commanding officer of the 7th Fighter Wing, and the commanding officer of the Chièvres Air Base. He retired on 1 Jan 1968. He passed away at Lessines, Belgium in Jun 1990.

ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia

Last Major Revision: Jul 2011

Remy Van Lierde Timeline

14 Aug 1915 Remy Van Lierde was born in Overboelare, Belgium.
16 Sep 1935 Remy Van Lierde joined the Belgian Air Force.
1 May 1937 Remy Van Lierde began his training as a pilot.
16 May 1940 Remy Van Lierde was shot down while flying a reconnaissance mission over Belgium, becoming captured.
22 Jul 1941 Remy Van Lierde arrived in Britain.
5 Sep 1941 Remy Van Lierde joined the British Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve.
6 Jan 1942 Remy Van Lierde was assigned to the No. 609 Squadron RAF.
2 Jun 1942 Remy Van Lierde, flying a Spitfire Mk.Vb fighter, damaged a German Do 217 bomber over Skegness, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom.
20 Jan 1943 Remy Van Lierde scored his first kill, a German Bf 109G fighter, over the southern coast of England, United Kingdom while flying a Typhoon Ib fighter.
26 Mar 1943 Remy Van Lierde shot down a German Ju 52 transport aircraft over Belgium, which was his second kill.
14 May 1943 Remy Van Lierde became the first pilot to drop bombs on an enemy target from a Typhoon fighter; en route back to base, he shot down a German He 111 bomber, which was his third kill.
30 Jul 1943 Remy Van Lierde shot down a German Bf 109 fighter, which was his fourth kill.
5 Oct 1943 Remy Van Lierde shot down a German Ju 88 heavy fighter (his fifth kill) and destroyed another aircraft on the ground.
30 Nov 1943 Remy Van Lierde shot down a German Bf 110 fighter, which was his sixth and final kill.
22 Dec 1943 Remy Van Lierde was assigned to the Central Gunnery School at RAF Sutton Bridge in Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom.
7 Feb 1944 Remy Van Lierde was assigned to RAF Manston in Kent, England, United Kingdom.
27 Apr 1944 Remy Van Lierde was assigned to No. 3 Squadron RAF, flying Tempest Mk. V fighters.
3 Jul 1944 Remy van Lierde, a Belgian pilot with No. 3 Squadron RAF, shot down a V-1 flying bomb over Beachy Head, East Sussex, England on the south coast of Britain. He would go on to shoot down 44 in total.
4 Jul 1944 No. 3 Squadron RAF brought down 14 V-1 flying bombs over the coastal town of Hastings in southern England, United Kingdom; Belgian pilot Flight Lieutenant Remy Van Lierde, flying his Tempest V fighter (JN862/JF-Z), accounting for four in his two patrols. No. 486 Squadron RNZAF, also flying Tempest V fighters, brought down a further 14 over Tonbridge and the Kent coast.
5 Jul 1944 Belgian pilot Flight Lieutenant Remy Van Lierde of No. 3 Squadron RAF, flying his Tempest V aircraft (JN862/JF-Z), shot down five V-1 flying bombs in two sorties.
26 Jul 1944 At dusk, Flight Lieutenant Remy van Lierde, a Belgian pilot with 3 Squadron RAF, shot down two V-1 flying bombs and shared a third over the Bexhill area on the coast of Sussex County in southern England, United Kingdom. Van Lierde would go on to shoot down 35 bombs during the V-1 assault. He flew a Tempest V fighter and had the Belgian national colours painted on the spinner tip.
20 Aug 1944 Remy Van Lierde became the commanding officer of No. 164 Squadron RAF.
1 Dec 1950 Remy Van Lierde became the commanding officer of the Belgian 7th Fighter Wing.
1 Jan 1968 Remy Van Lierde retired from the Belgian Air Force.
8 Jun 1990 Remy Van Lierde passed away.




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Event(s) Participated:
» Invasion of France and the Low Countries
» V-Weapons Campaign

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