Ian Dousland Waddy

Squadron Leader Ian Dousland Waddy, (5 December 1914 – 16 September 1998) was a fighter pilot of the Royal New Zealand Air Force during the Second World War. He was an original member of No. 486 Squadron RNZAF, rising to become its commanding officer. He was shot down on 25 August 1944 while commanding No. 164 Squadron RAF, becoming a prisoner of war.

Early life Ian Dousland Waddy was born on 5 November 1914 in Blenheim, in the Marlborough district of New Zealand, the son of Charles and Ethel Waddy. Prior to the start of the war, Waddy was a farmhand in Seddon in the Marlborough region.

Second World War

Initial training Waddy enlisted with the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) on 31 August 1940, at age 25. His elementary flying training (EFTS) was conducted on a DH82 Tiger Moth on which he spent 10 hours. He completed this course on 21 March 1941 as a sergeant pilot. On 28 March 1944 he was again posted, this time to No. 3 TEU based at RAF Poulton.

No. 164 Squadron and Prisoner of War Waddy was posted to No. 164 Squadron RAF as its commanding officer on 17 August 1944. Like No. 486 Squadron, No. 164 Squadron also flew Typhoons. Only a week later, on 25 August, Waddy was shot down. As part of a Ramrod (bombing mission), he led eight aircraft to Rouen, France, where they then attacked tanks and military transport with rockets.

Waddy attended a Typhoon and Tempest Association reunion at RAF Tangmere in June 1984 with fellow No. 486 Squadron pilot Vaughan Fittall.

Ian Dousland Waddy died in Christchurch on 16 September 1998 at the age of 83. He is buried at Seddon Cemetery in Marlborough. He was survived by his wife and two sons.