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Palletline Saves the Day for the RAF!
16 November 2011
Whilst we were celebrating Remembrance Day here in the UK, a unique ceremony was taking place across the channel in Ligny-Thilloy, Pas de Calais, commemorating the life of one of the unsung heroes of the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War – with Palletline playing a very special part in the proceedings.
Whilst we were celebrating Remembrance Day here in the UK, a unique ceremony was taking place across the channel in Ligny-Thilloy, Pas de Calais, commemorating the life of one of the unsung heroes of the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War – with Palletline playing a very special part in the proceedings.
Major Lanoe Hawker was the first Royal Flying Corps ‘ace’ and the first fighter pilot to win the VC. Tragically, at just 25, he was shot down and killed behind German lines by the notorious Manfred von Richthofen. Major Hawker began his illustrious military career in the Navy, changing to the cavalry and then to the Royal Flying Corps in their very early days – just six years after the Wright Brothers’ flight. Initially, planes were classed as observers and not armed, but Lanoe was in the habit of filling his pockets with hand grenades, carrying a rifle to take the odd pot shot and flying with bombs on the floor of his plane!No 24 Squadron was the RAF’s very first fighter squadron, and Hawker’s exploits earned him the role as its first commanding officer, and pioneered the mounting of machine guns on planes. A legend in his own lifetime, Hawker was awarded the DSO and then the VC for taking on three enemy planes in his ‘unarmed’ one, bringing them all down as he was returning from attacking a Zeppelin hanger by throwing some bombs over the side!For many years, it has been felt that the site of his grave deserved a permanent marker, so the RAF’s No 24 Squadron set up the Hawker Memorial Fund to finance the construction, with unveiling planned for the ninety-fifth anniversary of his death. All was ready for the ceremony in Ligny-Thilloy, Pas de Calais – but getting three pallets of cast stone there on time, in one piece and at an affordable cost was presenting real issues for the RAF!Palletline Europe provided the solution, with Birmingham-based Member Company Palletline Logistics taking up the challenge to transport the precious cargo safely via the network’s European partners. All went to plan, and the inauguration ceremony took place on Friday, 11th November 2011, led by Wing Commander Tim Jones and the Mayor of Ligny-Thilloy, Dominique Deleplace. “I would like to express my enormous thanks for the terrific help Palletline gave us in transporting our Hawker Memorial materials to France,” stated Wing Commander Jones. “As you can imagine, it was shaping up to be quite a complex and expensive move for us to organise, so for you to have stepped in like you did was just a fantastic gesture.”Palletline successfully transports a range of fragile goods throughout its UK and European network – including fresh eggs!