Air Commodore Tom Bennett, pilot who gathered air samples following Pacific nuclear tests – obituary
After his Pacific duties he flew helicopters in Malaya, evacuating casualties, and Ulster, where he supported the security services
Tom Bennett with Prince Charles
Air Commodore Tom Bennett, who has died aged 91, flew in support of an RAF detachment gathering air samples over the Pacific. He later served in helicopters during the Malayan Emergency, in Northern Ireland and in Hong Kong.
In the early 1950s, the UK joined the US in a secret intelligence programme to collect samples from the atmosphere following a nuclear explosion.
In January 1954, a high-priority requirement arose to support a US nuclear test programme at the Bikini Atoll in the Pacific. Two Canberra aircraft equipped to gather air samples flew to Kwajalein Island in the Marshall Islands, situated 200 miles south of the test site. To support these two aircraft, and carry ground personnel and spares, three Hasting