John 'Cat's Eyes' Cunningham (27 July 1917 – 21 July 2002) was a Royal Air Force (RAF) night fighter ace during the Second World War and a test pilot. During the war, he was nicknamed 'Cat's Eyes' by the British press to explain his success and to avoid communicating the existence of airborne radar to the Germans.
Cunningham was born near Croydon Airport, London's main aerodrome. As a teenager, he was keen on entering the aviation industry. Temporarily abiding by his father's wishes for him to avoid the military, he approached the de Havilland company, and was accepted as an engineering candidate. Concurrently, he joined the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF) and became a member of 604 (County of Middlesex) Squadron. Cunningham began his training in August 1935, flew solo in March 1936 and received his wings in 1937. He became an established test pilot, gaining considerable flying time on different aircraft.
In August 1939, Cunningham rejoined his squadron, now equipped with a version of the Bristol Blenheim. His observer was Jimmy Rawnsley, who would serve as his gunner and radio operator for most of the war and contribute to all but three of his victories. In July 1940, the squadron was converted to a specialist night fighter unit, and was one of the first to receive aircraft interception (AI) radar. Cunningham was promoted to squadron leader (Sqn Ldr) in September 1940.
On the night of 19 November 1940, Cunningham claimed his first victory. By the time the Blitz had ended in June 1941, he had destroyed thirteen enemy aircraft and claimed three as probable victories and two damaged. After a long rest, he was promoted to wing commander (Wg Cdr) in 1942. He was also appointed to command 85 Squadron, by which time, his tally had reached sixteen enemy aircraft destroyed. In 1943 and early 1944, he added a further four victories, one probable and one damaged. Cunningham's combat career ended with twenty aerial victories, three probables and six damaged. He spent the remainder of the conflict in various staff officer positions. By the end of the war in Europe in May 1945, he had attained the rank of group captain (Gp Cpt).
After the war, Cunningham rejoined de Havilland and continued his test pilot career. He flew the world's first jet airliner, the de Havilland Comet, in 1949. He then flew commercial jets for a time in the early 1960s and continued flying in the industry until the late 1970s. He also worked for British Aerospace (BAe) as executive director, retiring in 1980. In recognition of his wartime exploits and his contribution to civil aviation, he was appointed a CBE.
Early life John Cunningham was born in Croydon in south London on 27 July 1917. His father, Arthur Gillespie Cunningham, worked for the Dunlop Rubber Company at Fort Dunlop in Birmingham, and rose to the position of company secretary. In 1910, Arthur Cunningham married Evelyn Mary Spencer. Her family owned an engineering company in Coventry which supplied heavy machinery to the fabric and textiles company Courtaulds. In the 1920s, her grandfather was Mayor of Coventry. The family moved to Croydon. Cunningham had two elder sisters, Mary and Janet, and a younger brother, William. John attended Bowden House School, a preparatory school at Seaford, East Sussex until he was nine years of age. He was subsequently a pupil at Whitgift School, a public school in Croydon. In 1926, on a school holiday, he took a flight in an Avro 504. His experiences encouraged him to enter the officer's training corps at the school. A personal tragedy occurred in 1930 when his father died. Still, Cunningham did well at school, particularly in mathematics. As a teenager, he was keen on entering the aviation industry.
de Havilland apprenticeship At 18, he joined the de Havilland Aircraft company in 1935 as an apprentice. Cunningham began his engineering career with some menial projects, before being invited to assist with the building of the de Havilland T.K.2 and de Havilland Moth Minor. At the same time, he joined the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), a part-time branch of the Royal Air Force (RAF), and became a member of No. 604 (County of Middlesex) Squadron after a recommendation by a friend of the family. Cunningham began his pilot training at Hatfield Aerodrome in August 1935, and flew solo on 15 March 1936, receiving his commission as a pilot officer (PO) on 7 May 1936.
He was awarded his wings in the summer of 1936. This was when he met Cecil F. 'Jimmy' Rawnsley, a 32-year-old electrical engineer who would later serve as air gunner and radar operator on all but three of his successful air battles. Cunningham later became a junior test pilot with de Havilland, working with light aircraft with Geoffrey de Havilland, the company founder's son and chief test pilot. The company was short of test pilots, and Cunningham caught de Havilland's eye as his flight experience grew. It was reflected by his promotion to flying officer (FO) on 5 December 1937. At this time, he began to care more for test-flying than manufacturing and design. He became one of de Havilland's four top test pilots.
In March 1938, he was called to readiness with 604 Squadron during the Munich crisis. At this time, the squadron was flying the Hawker Demon. He was displeased when they converted to the Bristol Blenheim. The machines were fitted with a tray of four 303 Browning machine guns to give forward-facing firepower. As a long-range fighter it was of dubious value. The German Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Messerschmitt Bf 110 could, and would, expose the frailties of the aircraft, which was originally intended as a bomber. However, Cunningham was told by the Air Ministry that it would be sufficient in the night fighter role, which is where they intended to use this variant. On 20 April 1938, he returned to de Havilland, test-flying de Havilland Moth Minors.
On 11 April 1939, he and Geoffrey de Havilland, narrowly escaped with their lives, both men parachuting to safety. They had taken a de Havilland Moth Minor into the air to test its response to spins. The prototypes had had an anti-spin parachute, but preceding tests had been carried out without needing to resort to it. Geoffrey put the aircraft into a left-hand spin, which was recovered. After climbing back to , the aircraft was put into a right-hand spin. The engine cut out, the nose reared up, and the aircraft stalled and entered a flat spin. When de Havilland's recovery efforts failed, both decided to bail out. Once they had done so, the lightened Moth lowered its nose and recovered from the spin. The engine ignition had been left on, and the wind-milling propeller started the engine. The aircraft began circling the descending airmen at dangerously close range. Fortunately, it descended at a faster rate than their parachutes did, and it was destroyed when it hit the ground. Cunningham casually took pictures of the wreckage and his parachute, which exemplified his cool nature.
After the Nazi–Soviet pact on 23 August 1939, the Royal Air Force (RAF) mobilized. Cunningham had been test-flying the de Havilland Dragon airliner. Only sixteen were completed before the declaration of war in September. At this juncture, Cunningham had to choose between de Havilland or to the RAF. The RAF had trained him, and he felt he could be of far more use in the RAF than test-flying aircraft.
Second World War In August 1939, Cunningham rejoined his squadron, which had been equipped with a version of the Blenheim. He was not enthusiastic about the aircraft; the turret had been removed to reduce weight and increase speed, but the flying suits and cockpit were not heated, which made winter flying an ordeal. The radios were too short in range, which caused communication problems. The Blenheim's cockpit windshield was made up of several panes and was difficult to clean. It was also liable to reflect light, which made cooperation with searchlights hazardous and problems were encountered with blind-flying instruments. The squadron suffered losses owing to the inexperience of crews flying patrols over the North Sea from RAF North Weald in Essex; a number of them a result of the difficulties with the aircraft. In January 1940, 604 Squadron moved to RAF Northolt and flew Blenheims adorned with the Finnish Air Force's blue swastika to Finland via Sweden to assist the country after the Soviet invasion.
Cunningham was promoted to flight lieutenant (Flt Lt) on 12 March 1940. In April, the squadron flew as escort for a de Havilland Flamingo carrying Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty, to Paris, to attend a meeting after Operation Weserübung, the German invasion of Denmark and Norway. Most of the unit's time during the Phoney War was spent in intensive training over The Wash, which included co-operation with searchlights and mine-laying operations. On 15 May, 604 relocated to RAF Manston. From this airfield, Cunningham flew sorties over the English Channel and patrols over Dunkirk during the Battle for France. Cunningham made no recorded contact with the Luftwaffe and France capitulated on 25 June.
Night fighter squadron On 26 July 1940, the squadron was made a specialist night fighter (NF) unit. The squadron was amongst the first to receive aircraft interception (AI) radar. 604 Squadron was sent a number of AI Mk. IV radar sets. Jimmy Rawnsley, Cunningham's friend and crew-mate, saw this as an opportunity to join a programme that promised a bright future. Rawnsley retrained as a radar operator and re-joined Cunningham in January 1941. In the intervening period, the squadron was frequently frustrated by the Blenheim's limitations. Even with the 'magic boxes', they were too slow to catch any of the German bombers if they were given the slightest advantage. Cunningham flew with 604 on the night of 18/19 June when the Luftwaffe flew its first big operation in the Greater London area. No victories were claimed in the summer of 1940.
Cunningham was promoted to acting squadron leader (Sqn Ldr) in September 1940, commanding B Flight. Within the month, the unit received the heavily armed and powerful Bristol Beaufighter. After the commanding officer, Cunningham was the second man to fly it. The Beaufighter went through teething troubles in relation to its gun sight. The sight projected a ring of light with a spot at the centre onto a small sheet of glass directly in front of the pilot's head. The spot in the centre provided the aiming point, and the ring, of variable diameter, helped him to judge the range and amount of deflection needed to attack a target. The light's brilliance was adjustable by rheostat, but the control was ineffective. Rotating it a fraction could produce maximum brilliance or cause the spot to flicker out.
Air marshal Sholto Douglas formed the Night Fighting Committee, and met regularly at RAF Bentley Priory to discuss operational problems. As an experienced aviator, Cunningham was invited to attend. Henry Tizard invited Cunningham to air his views at the meeting. Tizard referred him to the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) to meet Arnold Hall, a gun sight expert. With his engineering expertise, and Cunningham's assessment of the issue, Hall ironed out the inadequacies in the design. Hall later became Cunningham's managing director at Hawker Siddeley twenty years later. Cunningham also worked with Ground-controlled interception (GCI), carrying out various exercises. He made the acquaintance of Philip Joubert de la Ferté, Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), who dropped in on 604 as well as Douglas; the two men were always keen to hear the experiences of the crew.