Evan Mackie
Evan Dall "Rosie" Mackie, was a New Zealand fighter pilot and flying ace of the Second World War. Credited with at least 23 aerial victories, he was the highest scoring flying ace to serve with the Royal New Zealand Air Force.
Born in Waihi, Mackie worked as an apprentice electrician before joining the RNZAF in January 1941. He initially trained at Whenuapai before going onto further flight training in Canada. He then proceeded to the United Kingdom to serve with the Royal Air Force. After his arrival, he converted to the Supermarine Spitfire fighter and after completing his course, he served as an instructor. He was posted to No. 485 Squadron with which he achieved his first aerial victories on the Channel Front. In February 1943, he was transferred to North Africa where he served with No. 243 Squadron. He was responsible for destroying a number of German and Italian aircraft during his time with the squadron, which he commanded from June to October during the campaigns in Sicily and Italy. He was transferred away from the squadron as punishment for condoning the misappropriation of a vehicle by his staff. However, he was shortly afterwards assigned to command of No. 92 Squadron.
Rested from flight duties in April 1944, he served in a training role for a number of months but by the end of the year was back on operations with No. 122 Wing, flying Hawker Tempests. Given command of No. 80 Squadron in mid-January 1945, he led it through the invasion of Germany until early May, when he became wing commander of No. 122 Wing. He remained in this role until the wing was disbanded in September. Not keen on pursuing a career in the military, he was discharged from the RNZAF in January 1947 and in later life worked as an electrician. He died of cancer on 28 April 1986.
Early life
Evan Dall Mackie was born in Waihi, New Zealand, on 31 October 1917, one of five children of Thomas Mackie, an engine driver, and his wife Katherine Mackie. He attended Waihi East Primary School and from 1931, Waihi District High School. Due to the economic climate, he did not complete his formal education and from 1933 worked a series of menial jobs to help support his family. The tough physical labour that he performed during this early employment apparently contributed to his strong build and a ruddy complexion; in his later years, the latter attribute earned him the nickname "Rosie".Mackie began studying part-time at the Waihi School of Mines from 1934, doing two hours most evenings after his work. Late the following year he obtained temporary work as a junior electrician with Martha Gold Mining Coy Ltd., and went to work at the largest gold mine in New Zealand. This ultimately led to an apprenticeship with the company.
Second World War
Prior to the outbreak of the Second World War, Mackie enrolled in a correspondence course to prepare prospective aircrew for the Royal New Zealand Air Force. He did well in the course and this led to his application in May 1940 to join the RNZAF. He successfully completed the educational requirements and formally entered the RNZAF in January 1941 with the rank of leading aircraftman.Flight training
After a period of basic training, in March Mackie proceeded to No. 4 Elementary Flying Training School at Whenuapai in Auckland where he experienced flying for the first time. His training was completed in early April; although rated as an average pilot by his instructors, he was his intake's best student in the academic component of the course. Mackie underwent further flight training in Canada, departing New Zealand at the end of April aboard the ocean liner Awatea.At No. 32 Service Flying Training School, based at Moose Jaw in Saskatchewan, Mackie flew North American Harvard trainers. Although he had originally expressed a preference for flying duties involving multi-engined aircraft, by the end of his training in Canada he wanted to fly fighters. During his time in Canada, he became acquainted with fellow future flying ace George Jameson, who later described him as "a straightforward chap". Commissioned a pilot officer in August, he earned his aircrew brevet the same month, finishing top of his course. He was subsequently sent to the United Kingdom to serve with the Royal Air Force, departing from Halifax aboard the Dominion Monarch and arriving at Southampton in early September.
Mackie was sent to No. 58 Operational Training Unit at Grangemouth to learn to fly the Supermarine Spitfire fighter. Assessed as an above average pilot, he stayed on after completing his induction to the Spitfire to help train other pilots. Mackie later regarded the extra flying time that this gave him on Spitfires as advantageous when he began his operational flying. At the completion of his instructing duties, he was allowed to choose his operational posting and selected No. 485 Squadron; although part of the RAF, it was a "New Zealand" squadron which had been formed earlier in the year.
Channel Front
At the time of Mackie's arrival at No. 485 Squadron in early December, it was based at Kenley as part of No. 11 Group and operating Spitfires. There were few offensive operations so much of his early flying with the unit was patrolling and carrying out air-sea rescues. On 12 February 1942, the squadron flew a mission escorting bombers attempting to disrupt the Channel Dash by the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. This marked Mackie's first encounter with the Luftwaffe. His flight, led by Bill Crawford-Compton, pursued four Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters sighted as the squadron neared the Belgian coast. Mackie expended his ammunition without success in the resulting encounter although Crawford-Compton destroyed one Bf 109.Afterwards, the squadron resumed its normal duties but on 26 March, while escorting bombers to Le Havre, he shared in destroying a Bf 109; Crawford-Compton was the other pilot involved. Operations to France began to increase in number and exactly a month later Mackie was credited with the probable destruction of a Focke-Wulf Fw 190 fighter over Boulogne-Saint-Omer. His Spitfire was hit by flak in the port wing while crossing the French coast on the return flight to Kenley but he returned to base safely. In June he was appointed deputy commander of one of the squadron's flights. The following month, the squadron was withdrawn to Kings Cliffe, in No. 12 Group, for a period of less demanding duties of convoy patrols over the North Sea. However, it was still called upon to carry small scale low level sweeps, termed 'Rhubarbs' and involving two to six aircraft at a time, to northern France and the Low Countries.
No. 485 Squadron was one of several RAF fighter squadrons tasked with providing aerial cover for the Dieppe Raid on 19 August. It flew four patrols during the day; once during the landings as fighter cover, and then three times during the withdrawal. Mackie, who had been promoted to flying officer earlier in the month, only encountered the Luftwaffe during the first of these patrols, during which his Spitfire was lightly damaged by machine-gun fire. In October the squadron operated from Ballyhalbert in Northern Ireland for three weeks, proving aerial cover for ships leaving the northwestern ports of the United Kingdom with the Allied invasion force for Operation Torch, the invasion of French North Africa. It then returned to Kings Cliffe and resumed its duties with No. 12 Group.
In January 1943, No. 485 Squadron was sent back to No. 11 Group and was based at Westhampnett, as part of the Tangmere fighter wing. It was hampered by its Spitfire Mark Vbs, which were dated relative to the new Mark IX model that equipped many RAF fighter squadrons at this time. This limited much of its operations to second-tier work, such as air-sea rescue flights and coastal patrols. Mackie only flew a few operations in January, as he was posted to the Middle East at the end of the month.
North Africa
Sailing aboard the Monarch of Bermuda, Mackie arrived at Gibraltar in mid-February. After a period of leave, he was assigned a delivery flight of Spitfire Mark IXs that he was to lead to Maison Blanche, in Algeria. Handing over his aircraft on arrival, he was then posted to No. 243 Squadron, flying the Spitfire Mark Vc. His new unit was part of No. 324 Wing which operated under the auspices of the Northwest African Tactical Air Force and carried out offensive patrols and bomber escort missions. Mackie became one of the squadron's flight commanders.On 7 April, while patrolling over Beja-Medjez el Bab, he and eleven other pilots of his squadron engaged several Junkers Ju 87 dive bombers. He destroyed two of them and damaged another. Two days later, with his commander, Squadron Leader James Walker, he shared in the destruction of a Bf 109. This was followed on 10 April with the sole credit for shooting down another Bf 109, oil from which being splattered across his windscreen.
Promoted to acting flight lieutenant on 12 April, Mackie shared in the destruction of a Bf 109 while patrolling over the squadron's aerodrome near Béja the next day, his wingman sharing the credit. He shot down a Bf 109 on 16 April and damaged a Fw 190 two days later. On 24 April, having earlier in the day destroyed a number of vehicles while strafing the road between Pont du Fahs and Bir-Mecherga, he and his flight became involved in a dogfight with a Bf 109. During the encounter, another Spitfire collided with him and as a result, Mackie had to forceland near Pont du Fahs, close to the headquarters of the 1st Armoured Division. He returned to his squadron the following day.
Flying a replacement Spitfire, Mackie destroyed one Bf 109 and damaged another on 27 April while on a sweep over Tunis with several other pilots from No. 243 Squadron. The pilot of the aircraft that he shot down became a prisoner of war. Mackie damaged another Bf 109 the next day. At the end of the month Mackie learned he was to be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross ; this would be the first such medal to be earned by a pilot of No. 243 Squadron. His DFC was formally announced in May, the published citation reading: