Captain Ebenezer Thomson ('Tommy') Denholm OBE DL Royal Navy

Tommy Denholm has died in his 90th year. He was an Air Engineer and Pilot. He served on the staff of RNEC Manadon in the early 1950s and amongst other duties flew the College's Oxford, Harvard, Balliol and Tiger Moths, giving air experience to officers under training. My recollection is that he was Rhodesian born and bred, and he had a blunt manner but he was a most entertaining character. Typical of his style was his emphasis that one must never wear flying helmets when walking on the airfield at Roborough, then a grass field, because of the risk that failing to hear the noise one might walk into a rotating propeller. One chilly morning as we walked out to our aircraft I said "Excuse me, Sir, why are you wearing your flying helmet?" "Because my ears are fucking cold!" he replied. In retirement he became Mayor of Bodmin on, I believe, more than one occasion. My wife, very involved in museum activities, also encountered him in this context.