Usually preparing a profile involves a hunt to uncover material, but in this case it is to summarise it. If you type “Archie McKellar 1940” into Google you will find he was an RAF Squadron Leader in the Battle of Britain and claimed 21 German aircraft shot down, making him the second most successful RAF fighter pilot in the battle. A particular must-read for further info and photos is link, a Facebook page dedicated to Archie set up by a relative.
While he was known as Archibald Ashmore McKellar later in his life, he was born Archibald McKellar on 10th April 1912 at 4 South Park Drive, Paisley:
Ashmore was his paternal grandmother’s maiden name. This is his birth place today:
His father, John was 25 when Archie was born and had married Margaret Craig Crawford the previous year. John’s occupation was a plasterer.
By 1920 the family had moved to Glasgow and in the 1921 Census they were living at 3 Trefoil Avenue in Shawlands:
It is not the most attractive modern street view photo:
A map, admittedly from 1950 but presumably unchanged since 1921, suggests the building might have been altered
Here’s the modern satellite view, for comparison:
There is a story about Archie getting home from school when his mother was out and he climbed the drain pipe to the third floor to get in a window. I remain unsure whether number 3 is part of the existing corner building or whether something has been demolished.
Archie attended Shawlands Academy and his first job was in a stockbroker’s office. This did not seem to suit and a few years later he was working for his father as a plasterer. Around this time the family moved to 33 Airth Drive, Mosspark.
In his spare time he kept fit – he was a member of the Arlington Baths Club (link) and played in the three-quarters for Craigielea Rugby Club. He also pursued his interest in flying and obtained his Aero club certificate in 1935 flying from the aerodrome at Renfrew (the runway is a now long straight stretch of the M8 between Braehead and the turn off for Renfrew).
Archie came to the notice of the RAFVR based at nearby Abbotsinch (now Glasgow Airport) and he was invited to join (part-time) in November 1936. In 1938 he completed his training with 602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron and they were allocated the new Spitfire fighter.
By 1935 the family had moved to Navrig, Brora Drive, which is number 5. There is a story that Archie celebrated qualifying as a pilot by flying over his parents’ home and dropping a box of chocolates for his mother! This would probably have been Brora Drive (link, with thanks for this story and the earlier oen about Archie climbing the drainpipe).
Archie was called up full-time about a week before war was declared and 602 moved to RAF Drem to protect the east coast from attacks across the North Sea. (Drem is about midway between Haddington and North Berwick.) German incursions at this stage tended to be by single aircraft either taking photos or testing the British defence. Archie was involved in shooting down of two of these planes in separate incidents in October 1939, including the first one over the British Isles.
At some stage 602 must have been at Dyce (Aberdeen Airport) where the following photo was taken:
In June 1940 Archie was promoted to 605 Squadron, also at Drem but equipped with Hawker Hurricane fighters, as Flight Commander (the squadron had two flights, A and B) and on 15th August 1940 Archie’s flight intercepted a force of German bombers as they made their way from Norway to bomb targets in the north-east of England. With no escorting fighters (they did not have the range), the Germans were an ideal target for an inexperienced squadron and many were shot down or damaged (portrayed in the film “The Battle of Britain” although Archie does not feature as a character.)
I can imagine Archie being desperate to join the action as 605 continued to be held in reserve. RAF fighters had been in continuous action since May in France, then over Dunkirk, defending convoys in the English Channel, and then facing major German attacks since early August. They did not try to attack from Norway again so must have flown endless patrols and practices.
On 7th September they finally moved south and into the battle, based at RAF Croydon in the south of London. (Croydon was the main civilian aerodrome for London before 1939.) This was not the only change: Archie’s commanding officer had problems with his eyesight and so Archie started to deputise for him and on 25th September was formally given the rank of Squadron Leader.
The unofficial designation of ‘ace’ (as in ‘fighter ace’) was given to any RAF pilot attributed with five German planes shot down. I have not seen a date when Archie achieved this, but it must have been around the middle of September 1940. In October he achieved fame when he claimed five German planes destroyed in one day, four on a first mission and one more on a second. He had a total of 21 by the end of October.
When I read this, I was a little sceptical as I knew total RAF claims during this period exceed the actual German losses by a considerable margin, plus Archie was flying a Hurricane rather than the superior Spitfire, but I note air historians with considerably more knowledge than me have studied the reports of the time and find the figure plausible.
Online you will find contradictory material about his character – in some versions he is charming, vivacious, friendly and generous. Another version has the following to say:
“McKellar was … considered a capable leader in combat. Aggressive and instinctive, his fighting spirit was an inspiration to his squadron but according to one biographer, he was highly strung, vociferous and blunt with members of his unit. Nevertheless, his directness and socially confident nature singled him out for command. His dedication to his job as a fighter pilot and leader led him to refuse any leave from his Squadron while the Battle of Britain lasted. Invariably McKellar led from the front of his unit. He spent a large proportion of his time with his squadron practising combat tactics. While intensely loyal to anyone he considered a friend, McKellar’s attitude to others outside the squadron was either of utmost friendliness or utter dislike. He is said to have tended to see everything and everyone in black and white.” (link)
Pilots on standby, Archie snoozing with the squadron’s dog
Archie was in one final aerial battle on 1st November 1940 and his aircraft was damaged by enemy fire over Kent. He could have parachuted to safety, I suspect, but preferred to try to land the plane. Unable to make it to an airfield he seems to have been circling fields, looking for a landing spot when the plane dived into the ground and he was killed.
He was buried five days later at New Eastwood Cemetery:
He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross twice (DFC and Bar) and the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) posthumously:
