Roderic Hill

Air Chief Marshal Sir Roderic Maxwell Hill, (1 March 1894 – 6 October 1954) was a senior Royal Air Force commander during the Second World War. He was a former Rector of Imperial College and Vice-Chancellor of London University. in 1912, went to the fine arts department of University College, London, with the ambition of becoming an architect. From 1909 onwards both he and Geoffrey became fascinated by aviation; with money earned by Roderic from drawings published in The Sphere, they built, and successfully flew, a glider of their own design in 1913. and was posted to France in the second half of 1915. Hill first saw intensive combat in the Battle of Loos, where he earned a mention in despatches but suffered a wound in the side. He quickly proved himself a skilled pilot, making repeated patrols and engagements over the German lines and fighting in the air battles during the Somme offensive in November 1916. Shortly after this he was again mentioned in despatches and awarded the Military Cross, In December 1916 Hill became flight commander of No. 60 Squadron and was promoted captain. he had flown into a barrage balloon cable to test a newly invented protective device. At the Hendon Pageant of 1922, he demonstrated the manoeuvrability of the Airco DH.10 Amiens twin-engined bomber in a mock dogfight with S.E 5 fighters.

Hill remained at Farnborough until 1923, when he attended the RAF Staff College in Andover. After graduating in 1924, he was briefly employed on Air Staff duties at Inland and Area H.Q. then in September was posted as the commanding officer of No. 45 Squadron at Hinaidi.

Hill joined the Directing Staff at the RAF Staff College in 1927 and then went on to be the Officer Commanding the Oxford University Air Squadron in 1930, deputy director of Repair and Maintenance at the Air Ministry in 1932 and Air Officer Commanding Palestine & Transjordan Command in 1936.

Personal life Befitting of his original ambition to be an architect, Hill was a talented illustrator. During the First World War, and for a time afterwards, he was a frequent contributor of drawings to Flight.

Hill married Mabel Helen Catherine Morton in 1917. They had two daughters and an only son who was killed in action in 1944. Hill died from a coronary thrombosis near St Bartholomew's Hospital.

He is survived by his daughter Phoebe Caldwell