[Sid Guttridge]

Hi PaulMacMillan,

p.44 of Pride of Eagles states, ".....the Air Ministry agreed to sell Rhodesia six Hawker Audaxes and three Gloster Gauntlets at a nominal cost."

p.51 states "Four Audaxes had been flown to Rhodesia in March but two were still with the RAF in Heliopolis."

One from the first flight was left damaged at Malakal in the Sudan (see p.48).

p.51 again: "This (the second) flight was scheduled to bring back three aircraft: two from Cairo, and the Audax that had been left at Malakal."

"However, only two reached Salisbury because Graham Smith's machine had to be left in Lusaka."

Thus, as I read it, there were only six Audaxes in total. They were despatched in two flights, one of four aircraft and one of two, but both flights had one machine delayed by damage en route.

Cheers,

Sid.

P.S. By June 1940 No.1 Squadron, SRAF, had already become 237 (Rhodesia) Squadron, RAF, so the use of RAF serials at that time need not be a surprise.