RAF Technical Training during WW2 - Air Commodore Cyril Norman Ellen D.F.C.
Cyril Norman Ellen joined the Royal Naval Air Service (R.N.A.S.) in 1915, initially as a Chief Petty Officer (F4179), and gained a Commission at the end of 1916 in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (R.N.V.R.). He proceeded to operate as an observer in the R.N.A.S. and entered the Royal Air Force (R.A.F.) on the first list in April 1918, earning the Distinguished Flying Cross in that year. His service number was 03233.
Cyril gained his Wings in 1921 and subsequently qualified as a Signals Officer (electricity and wireless). He was the Squadron Leader of No. 5 (AC) Squadron based in Quetta, Balochistan, British India (now part of Pakistan) in 1935 when the massive earthquake struck the region. He and his family all survived but some of his men were killed.
During WWII Cyril Ellen transferred to the Technical Branch and from June 1940, he was the Officer Commanding, No. 3 Electrical & Wireless School at Compton Bassett, Wiltshire. He started and organised this school to hold 4000 trainees with a weekly turnover of 300.
From May 1942 he was appointed the Officer Commanding, No. 1 Signals School (capacity 5000) at Cranwell, Lincolnshire. The school changed its name to No 1 Radio School in 1943. It was at Cranwell on 3rd September 1942 that a Parade was held, large in number as can be seen from the photograph. Cyril received a letter of congratulations which was read out to the unit commanders on 9th September. At this stage his rank was Group Captain.
In February 1943 he became the Officer Commanding, No. 7 Radio School (capacity 1500) which was located in the South Kensington Science Museum, Exhibition Road, London.
The commands of No. 1 Signals and No. 7 Radio Schools were at schools already running but at which difficulties had occurred, and it was his task to correct. At these three schools (including No. 3 E & W School) tens of thousands of technical trainees, men and women, passed through his hands. For his work, he was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation by Technical Training Command on 24 Feb 1944.
In 1945, Cyril was appointed the Director of Signals, Air Division, Control Commission Germany (Military Section). He completed his Signals task in Feb 1946 and was transferred to assist the Deputy Chief of Air Division in Berlin on all matters, dealing directly with Russian, American and French officers during the post-war reconstruction of Germany.
Cyril Ellen retired from the RAF in 1946, retaining the rank of Air Commodore. Afterwards, he accepted appointments with the Control Commission under the Foreign Office. He commanded the Kreis Group HQ Paderborn (during demobilisation of the Commander) and finally acted as the British Resident in Landkreis Warburg in Westphalia.
