Obituary: Peter Boggis

Born: 1919 in Dumfriesshire.

Died: 2 June, 2010, in Kirkbean, near Dumfries, aged 91.

The MacRobert Trust, run from Aberdeenshire, was established by Lady Rachel MacRobert in memory of her three sons all of whom were aviators and all, sadly, killed in flying accidents or in the Second World War. The eldest died in a civil air accident in 1938 and the other two sons when serving as officer pilots in the Royal Air Force on operational duties in 1941. In their memory the resourceful Lady MacRobert donated 25,000 to the nation to purchase a Stirling bomber which she asked to be named MacRobert's Reply. The four-engine bomber, which proudly displayed the family crest, was initially flown by Peter Boggis.

Lady MacRobert was a resilient woman. She was American and the second wife of Sir Alexander MacRobert, founder of the British India Corporation. He died when she was 38 and she lived to see the establishment of the MacRobert Trust, which gives an annual award for outstanding contributions to innovation in engineering and technology. When she was buried in Aberdeenshire, there was a fly-past by nine RAF Meteor jets.

Flying Officer Peter Boggis, at the remarkably early age of 22, was the first pilot to fly MacRobert's Reply and did so with much distinction, courage and skill. He had proved himself an exemplary pilot, having flown 15 operational sorties. He took control of the bomber and joined Squadron XV in September 1941.

At the time of her gift, Lady MacRobert wrote to the Secretary of Air: "It is my wish to make a mother's immediate reply in a way that I know would also be my boys' reply … attacking, striking sharply, straight to the mark.

"The gift of 25,000, to buy a bomber to carry on their work, expresses my reaction on receiving the news about my sons. They would be glad that their mother replied for them and helped to strike a blow at the enemy."

Boggis flew many bombing raids over Europe in MacRobert's Reply, attacking Pilsen, Nuremberg, Cologne and, in a daylight raid on the port of Brest, destroying many German battleships. That sortie was particularly hazardous: casualties were high and the trip home was interrupted by much enemy gunfire.

While flying over the Channel at almost sea level, Boggis heard his rear gunner shout that there were six aircraft on their tail. "They were Halifaxes" Boggis later recalled with relief. "They were a welcome sight. They opened up their formation in invitation and gratefully we climbed and were enfolded in their midst. We returned in grand style."

The manipulation of the Stirling bomber required much care. Their maximum bomb payload was 8,000lb so movement at take off and landing was, at best, cumbersome.

They usually flew at 15,000ft which made them easy prey for enemy fire.

For the Brest mission, his last with the squadron, Boggis was awarded the DFC for his bravery and skill: his flying under extremely dangerous conditions was highly commended. Boggis was transferred to a training squadron for the remainder of the war.

A few months later, the original MacRobert's Reply had an accident with a Spitfire on take-off at Peterhead. The badge on the nose was preserved and transferred to another Stirling. That, in turn, was shot down over Denmark in May, 1942. But the tradition of naming a plane in the RAF MacRobert's Reply has lasted to the present day.

After the war, Boggis took command of the squadron at Stradishall in 1947 and he retired from the RAF with the rank of squadron leader in 1967.

After his funeral at St John's Episcopal Church in Dumfries a flypast by two Lossiemouth Tornados, including MacRoberts Reply of XV Squadron took place.

Boggis maintained connections with the MacRobert Trust and visited Lady MacRobert until her death in 1954. In March 2003 he returned to the MacRobert Trust principal home, Douneside House on Deeside, to help unveil a magnificent bronze sculpture of the Stirling close to the resting place of Lady MacRobert. It is startling bronze and depicts the MacRobert Reply coming in to land.