Pilot Officer W.H (Bill) Simmonds was from the small town of Bunbury, Western Australia. He was a pilot in the Royal Australian Air Force’s 77 Squadron flying the newly acquired Meteor jet in Korea.
On 8th of May 1952 he was a part of a RAAF flight escorting US bombers attacking a North Korean supply depot near Pyongyang. They were attacked by (likely) Chinese MIG 15s and in the ensuing dogfight Simmonds was able to get onto the tail of one and gave it a burst with his four 20mm Hispano MKV cannon and shot it down. The ‘kill’ was confirmed by other squadron members who saw the enemy pilot eject his stricken aircraft.
The jet-powered Meteor replaced the WW2 era Mustang after the entry into the conflict of the excellent Soviet MIG 15, often operated by experienced Russian pilots. Unfortunately the conversion process was extremely short for the RAAF pilots and lacked dedicated air combat training, leading to claims the Meteor was ‘outclassed’ by the Soviet fighters and it was withdrawn from the interceptor role and relegated to ground attack.
Bill Simmonds went on to have a distinguished career with the Air Force becoming commanding officer of 77 Squadron and later Air Vice Marshal. He was seconded to both the British RAF and the US Air Force (USAF) and was a member of the ‘Deltas’ the 77 Squadron aerobatic team flying the French Mirage at the Golden Jubilee of the Royal Australian Air Force.
(Image source: Australian War Memorial P00660.002 / P00660.021 / Trove / Migman.com)
