Sqn Ldr Peter Hearne
Flew Mustang fighters and later built a mushroom business
SQUADRON LEADER PETER HEARNE, who has died aged 98, flew Spitfire and Mustang fighters during the Second World War and was credited with destroying at least five enemy aircraft and damaging others.
Hearne was in command of No 19 Squadron when it was sent to Peterhead in north Scotland on February 13 1945 to escort Beaufighter and Mosquito formations attacking shipping in Norwegian and Danish waters. The squadron was equipped with the longrange Us-built Mustang fighter.
After two successful operations escorting a force of Mosquitos to the Kattegat, Hearne led his squadron on March 12 as they protected 44 Mosquitos on a shipping sweep south of Oslo. As it passed to the south of Norway, it was attacked by Messerschmitt Bf 109s. A fierce dogfight developed. Hearne manoeuvred behind one and achieved hits on the enemy fighter’s wing and engine; it dived into the sea.
Over the next few weeks Hearne escorted other formations. On April 11 he was at the head of 10 of his Mustangs supporting Beaufighters when he observed a large force of Bf 109s. In the fight that followed he shot one down, seeing it crash into the sea. Three days later, he was involved in another similar operation when he again destroyed a Bf 109.
Hearne and his pilots continued to escort the Mosquitos and Beaufighters as they maintained their attacks against shipping and surfaced U-boats until the last day of the war. Shortly afterwards, Hearne was awarded the DFC for “always displaying the greatest keenness for operations and his high degree of courage”.
The son of an officer in the Indian Police, Peter Joseph Hearne was born in Allahabad, India, on February 7 1919. Aged nine he was sent to school in Belgium and did not see his parents again until he was 18. He completed his education at St John’s College, Southsea, then trained as an engineer at the Royal Small Arms Factory, Enfield.
He joined the RAF in February 1941 and trained as a pilot in Canada. After converting to fighters he joined No 65 Squadron in April 1942 to fly Spitfires. During the early months of 1943 he escorted bombers as they attacked targets in northern France. He engaged Focke Wulf 190 fighters and was credited with damaging several. In January 1944 he started to fly the Mustang on bomber escort duties before spending six months as an instructor on a fighter training unit.
He returned to operations with No 65 in October as a flight commander and on November 2 1944 shot down a Focke Wulf 190 near Minden in Germany. On December 12 he was again escorting a bomber force when he engaged a number of Messerschmitt Bf 109s and shot one down, probably destroyed a second and damaged a third. In January he was promoted to squadron leader and took command of No 19 Squadron.
After the war, Hearne joined one of the RAF’S first jet squadrons when he flew the Meteor fighter, before spending a year in Japan with the British Commonwealth Air Forces of Occupation. He later became a flying instructor and spent two years in Southern Rhodesia before returning to instruct fighter pilots. His last appointment before retiring in 1962 was to command a Thor Intercontinental Ballistic Missile squadron in Norfolk.
He became a successful mushroom grower, founding the company Capel Organic Mushrooms in Suffolk, which supplies some of the major retail outlets.
Bringing up his large family and his Catholic faith, which was central to his life, occupied most of his time in retirement.
Peter Hearne married Ann Barras in 1946; she died in 1999. He is survived by five sons and three daughters. Another son predeceased him.
Peter Hearne, born February 7 1919, died January 11 2018