Air Marshal Sir Roy Austen-Smith
Air Marshal Sir Roy Austen-Smith, who has died aged 96, flew on operations during the final weeks of the war in Europe, saw action in Malaya and later held senior appointments overseas.
He trained as a pilot in Canada, and in March 1945 joined 41 Squadron based at Eindhoven flying the Spitfire XIV. For the next six weeks he flew almost every day on armed reconnaissance sorties and fighter sweeps into Germany.
The squadron moved frequently and was near Hanover by mid-April. On March 2, during a patrol over Schwerin airfield, he shot down a Fiesler Storch and damaged a second.