Victor HALL
Croix De Guerre (France)

Service Number: 2065 (RAAF) then 83880 (RAF) then NZ2444 (RNZAF)
RNZAF Trade: Pilot, and then Technical Signals Officer
Date of Enlistment: RAAF, 23rd of March 1936 to 13th of July 1938
RAF, 9th of March 1940 to 31st of March 1945
RNZAF, 1st of April 1945 to 10th of December 1945
Rank Achieved: Squadron Leader
Flying Hours: Unknown hours
Operational Sorties: Unknown Ops

Date of Birth: 9th of December 1915, at Christchurch, New Zealand
Personal Details: Victor was the son of Mr and Mrs Edwin P. Hall

Service Details: From May 1932 till May 1934 Victor served as a Private with the New Zealand Army (Territorial Force) in the 1st Waikato Regiment.

He joined the Royal Australian Air Force in March 1936, at Laverton in Victoria. He later applied to join the Royal New Zealand Air Force in either 1938 or 39, using Cambridge resident Lieutenant T.H. Harrison, RAF (Rtd) and Mr C.H. Priestley, Mayor of Cambridge as his referees. However he was not accepted, and so Victor joined the Royal Air Force instead in March 1940.

Victor became a member of No. 485 (NZ) Squadron for a time. He served in the RAF till March 1945 when he transferred to the RNZAF.

Victor received the Croix De Guerre, the highest honour bestowed in France

Today: Last known, Victor Hall was living in Australia in 2003. When contacted about this project he declined to participate

Connection with Cambridge: Victor lived in Cambridge before the war, and was very good friends with another local airman, Edward Wells

Sources:
Cambridge Museum records via Eris Parker
The Waikato Independent newspaper dated:
31st of January 1941 - Daring Airman (about EP Wells)
26th of January 1943 - Attended welcome home as a guest of EP Wells
26th of July 1944 - Croix de Guerre Awarded to Cambridge Flier

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