Victor Groom Air Marshal Sir Victor Emmanuel Groom KCVO , KBE , CB , DFC & Bar ( 4 August 1898 – 6 December 1990 ) was a senior officer in the Royal Air Force and a flying ace of the First World War credited with eight aerial victories . He rose to become a consequential participant in air operations to support Operation Overlord , the re - invasion of France during the Second World War . World War I . Groom was educated at Alleyns , Dulwich . He joined the Artists Rifles of the West Yorkshire Regiment as a Private and was commissioned and transferred to the Royal Flying Corps on 26 April 1917 . He was appointed a Flying Officer on 30 January 1918 and placed on the General List of the Royal Flying Corps . On 18 March , he was assigned to 20 Squadron as a Bristol F . 2 Fighter pilot . On his first combat flight , his formation leader fired a Very flare that landed in the rear cockpit of Groom ' s Bristol . While the observer burned his hands smothering the fire that threatened to set off munitions , Groom safely landed . Having survived friendly fire , Groom began to triumph over enemy fire on 8 May 1918 , when he began a string of eight victories that would take him through to 30 July . Groom ' s final tally was three enemy planes set afire , four otherwise destroyed , and one driven down out of control ; his observer / gunner for all these victories was Ernest Hardcastle . Groom went on leave , was laid low by influenza , and did not return to combat in France . Instead , upon recovery , he was posted to 111 Squadron in Egypt . Between the World Wars . On 1 August 1919 , Groom was granted a permanent commission as a Lieutenant . On 15 December , he switched to 14 Squadron in Palestine and on 22 May 1920 , he continued Middle Eastern service with a new posting , to 55 Squadron . On 25 March 1922 , Groom returned home to begin a decade of staff assignments , enlivened only by being promoted from Flying Officer to Flight Lieutenant on 1 July 1924 . He was given command of No . 28 Squadron on 26 October 1932 . On 1 October 1934 he was promoted to Squadron Leader , his rank catching up with his position . He moved on to command of No . 58 Squadron , then on to staff work at Headquarters Bomber Command , even as he continued to ascend in rank . On 1 January 1938 , having earned an OBE at Bomber Command , he was promoted to Wing Commander . World War II . On 1 September 1940 , he was promoted to Temporary Group Captain and became Station Commander at RAF Marham . In 1941 , he moved back into staff work in the Directorate of Plans . The following year , he became head of the RAF Air Staff planning for Operation Overlord . As part of his duties there , he accompanied Air Chief Marshal Trafford Leigh - Mallory to North Africa to study operations there and bring home lessons learned . In the meantime , he continued his climb through the ranks : on 18 November 1942 , he was confirmed as a Group Captain . On 1 June 1943 , he was bumped up to Temporary Air Commodore and on 8 September 1943 he was promoted to Acting Air Vice Marshal on appointment as Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters Second Tactical Air Force . On 8 September 1944 he was promoted to Air Commodore while Acting as Air Vice Marshal . In August 1945 he became Air Officer Administration at Headquarters Flying Training Command . Post World War II . Groom became Director General of Manning for the RAF on 1 January 1947 and took command of No . 205 Group on 20 October 1949 . On 1 January 1952 , he was promoted from Air Vice Marshal to Air Marshal and appointed Ordinary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire . He took command of the Middle East Air Force in February 1952 and Technical Training Command in July 1952 . Groom retired on 26 September 1955 and died on 6 December 1990 .