The History of Hale School and its Old Boys - Old Haleians Association

World War 11 World War II Years Ian
Merv Parry (1924-31)
pictured with his wartime uniform
1940s
On the outbreak of World War II, Haleians
again joined in great numbers, 278 into
the army, 82 to the Royal Australian
Navy and 223 to the Royal Australian Air
Force. Twenty others served in British or
American units.
1940
Headmaster Buntine joins the AIF fighting
in N. Africa. Charles Hadley appointed
Acting Headmaster until Buntine resumes
at Hale in late 1944.
Former Master-in-Charge of the English
Department, Ralph Honner, won a Military
Cross for gallantry in North Africa in
1941, and then the Distinguished Service
Order for his leadership of the 39th Militia
Battalion on the Kokoda Track, and then at
the Gona in 1942.
Paul Royle
Paul Royle (High School, 1923-27) crash
landed his aircraft in France on 18th
May 1940 and was taken prisoner and
eventually lodged in Stalag Luft III. He
took part in the ‘Great Escape’ in 1944
and was one of those who escaped the 50
reprisal executions by the Gestapo.
Paul was welcomed back into the Hale
School fraternity at an Old Boy assembly
in 2002 - after an absence of 75 years!
He had been reported as killed in
1940 and the School had prepared his
commemorative plaque for placement
in the Memorial Grove before he made
contact again.
Captain of School, Kingsley Rudeforth (1996-2002)
welcomes Paul Royle (1923-27) back into the fold.
Keys
Ian Keys, another Haleian pilot serving in
England, was shot down over France in
1942 and was lodged in Stalag Luft III too.
He took part in the so-called ‘Wooden
Horse’ escape from that encampment,
also in 1944.
Mervyn Parry
Mervyn Parry was the Haleian who was
away the longest from Australia. At the
outbreak of war he joined the RAF and
was awarded a Distinguished Flying
Cross after his first ‘tour’. He was then
transferred to Training Command,
instructing on Oxfords, Wellingtons and
Stirlings until 1943. For this duty he was
awarded the Air Force Cross in a task that
he described as being more dangerous
than operational flying over Germany.
Then, as an acting Wing Commander,
he was transferred to 106 Squadron
flying Lancasters, completing another
operational tour and earning a bar to his
DFC.
Hugo Armstrong
Another to win two DFCs besides Parry
was Hugo (‘Hoogie’) Throssell Armstrong,
named after his famous uncle, Hugo
Throssell VC, as a fighter pilot with the
Royal Air Force. By early February, 1943
Amstrong had been in command of No
611 (RAF) Squadron for five months and
had scored 12 confirmed ‘kills’ with a
string of probables plus damaged enemy
aircraft to his credit. He had just been
awarded a bar to his Distinguished Flying
Cross when he lost his life over the English
Channel on the 5th February, 1943. In all,
Haleians won a total of 19 Distinguished
Flying Crosses for gallantry in the air.