Orders, Decorations, Medals and Militaria

Caterpillar Club Certificate of Membership card ‘F/Lt. R. G. Ledwidge’; together with the recipient’s R.A.F. rank slides and cloth badges, very good condition £120-£160

A.F.C. London Gazette 25 July 1967:
‘On the morning of 9 May 1967, Flight Lieutenant Ledwidge, as pilot and captain of a Canberra, was flying with his navigator on a low-level navigation and bombing training mission over Northern Germany. The major part of the flight had been successfully completed and the aircraft was returning to its base when, at a height of 500 feet above ground level the aileron control suddenly jammed at about half left aileron deflection. The aircraft immediately started rolling on to its back. Realising that his aircraft was in imminent danger, Flight Lieutenant Ledwidge could at this point have used his ejector seat to escape; however, he was aware that his navigator, who was not equipped with an ejector seat, would have no chance of escaping from the aircraft before it crashed. With complete disregard for his own safety, Flight Lieutenant Ledwidge attempted to regain partial control of the aircraft and, although he could not prevent it from continuing to roll, he was able, by a superb display of airmanship and piloting skill, to use differential engine power, rudder and elevator to prevent the aircraft from striking the ground during the first complete roll at low level. He then continued to control the aircraft through a series of full power climbing rolls, by using rudder to influence the rate of roll at different stages and thus gain as much height as possible during each manoeuvre. Flight Lieutenant Ledwidge had warned his navigator of the emergency immediately, but the harsh use of the controls and the reversals of “G” during the early stages of recovery had caused the navigator to become disconnected from the inter-communication system and be thrown around the aircraft cabin. It was not until the aircraft was climbing that the navigator was able to re-establish contact with the pilot, who instructed him to prepare to abandon. Flight Lieutenant Ledwidge then waited until the navigator had fitted his parachute pack and the aircraft was approaching the normal wings level attitude during one of the climbing rolls before giving the order to abandon the aircraft. Only when he had seen his navigator leave through the escape exit did he himself operate his ejector seat, by which time the aircraft had reached a height of about 8,000 feet. Both the pilot and navigator made a successful descent by parachute and were quickly picked up by rescue services alerted by the distress call which the pilot radioed before abandoning the aircraft. Throughout the whole of this emergency, Flight Lieutenant Ledwidge displayed exceptional presence of mind. His handling of his aircraft in a dire emergency showed superlative judgement and outstanding skill, determination and sense of duty. These qualities, allied to a courage which is an example to all and in the very best traditions of a fighting service, undoubtedly saved his navigator's life.’

A.F.C. Second Award Bar London Gazette 15 June 1974.

Ronald Godfrey Ledwidge was born on 19 January 1938 and joined the Royal Air Force as a National Serviceman on 22 January 1957. Commissioned, he became a fist class test pilot during the Cold War, and joined the Caterpillar Club for having used his Irvin parachute to save his life on the occasion for which he was awarded his Air Force Cross. In later life, when asked about the incident, he commented that the citation to his A.F.C. stopped short of mentioning that his parachute landing was less than perfect, with him landing in a big heap in the middle of a field, surrounded by a gaggle of German farmworkers.

Ledwidge’s other claim to fame is that, whilst involved in flight testing the Handley Page HP115 Arrowhead at the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Bedford, he instructed the American astronaut Neil Armstrong, on a goodwill visit to the U.K. in June 1971 following the Moon Landings, in how to fly the aircraft. After briefing Armstrong (who was an experienced USAF test pilot in his own right), Ledwidge handed over the keys - needless to say the flight was a success.

For his services as a test pilot, Ledwidge was awarded a Second Award Bar to his A.F.C., and he eventually retired on 22 February 1976. He died on 20 July 2003.

Sold with some original letters and copied research, including various photographic images, including an image of the recipient briefing Neil Armstrong.