The Association has learned of the death of S/Lt(A) Phillip H Anns RNVR on 7 October 2019.
In his own words:
I spent many happy years from 1933 – 1939 at Shrewsbury House School, D J V Hamilton-Miller was the Head Master. At the end, I was the Head Prefect, captain of the school soccer and rugby teams and just managed to be in the cricket XI. At the school sports day in 1939, my Mother gave away the prizes, quite a few to me as the tallest boy.
After leaving school, I went to Dover College and with 6 credits in Oxford and Cambridge School Certificate, I was cleared to matriculation. I went to Christ’s College, Cambridge in 1942 for a year before reporting to the Fleet Air Arm as a pilot trainee.
In December 1943 I went to Canada for flying training followed in September 1944 at an Operational Training Unit (OTC) at Henstridge, Somerset in Seafires (naval version of Spitfires). In early 1945 as a Sub Lieutenant (A) RNVR, I went to Sri Lanka, converted to Hellcats and joined 898 NAS in HMS Pursuer, a US escort carrier (CVE). I therefore flew a US aircraft off a US ship, lent under the US Lease/Lend programme, BUT flying the White Ensign. We worked up for the invasion of Japan but fortunately for us and millions of Allied and Japanese troops and civilians, the atom bombs were dropped and World War II ended.
After being demobbed, I returned to Christ’s and in 1948 was admitted to the degree of BA and in 1951 to the degree of MA.
Through the Cambridge University Appointments Board, I secured a sales position in the Liverpool area with Tootal Broadhurst Lee, Manchester. After a year, Tootals offered me a position in their US subsidiary, T B Lee Inc. This was of particular interest to me as I had had favourable experiences in the States during my flight training in Canada. My time with T B Lee led me to a more lucrative position as assistant to the president at BASF inc, the US subsidiary of Badische Anilin & Soda Fabrik Ag.
In 1958 I joined E R Squibb & Sons (pharmaceuticals) as a trainee in International Management. After working in all departments at Squibb’s head office in New York including advertising and finance, working in manufacturing plants, detailing Doctors etc, in 1960 I went to Squibb Philippines as Assistant General Manager and then onto Squibb Australia as General Manager at the end of 1960.
My career continued in the pharmaceutical industry and I finally retired as the VP International AH Robins, (now Pfizer). We built a new UK plant near Horsham on a site that had been the UK base of the fuel pipeline to France towards the end of WWII.
I retired in 1991.