Stanley Browne (RNZAF officer)

This article is about the New Zealand flying ace. For the Australian educator and rugby footballer, see Stan Browne. For other people, see Stan Brown.

Stanley Browne
Browne, sitting in his Supermarine Spitfire fighter at Kenley
Born(1919-10-29)29 October 1919
Wellington, New Zealand
Died15 January 2011(2011-01-15) (aged 91)
Tauranga, New Zealand
AllegianceNew Zealand
Service / branchRoyal New Zealand Air Force
Years of service1941–1945
RankSquadron leader
CommandsNo. 485 Squadron
Battles / wars
AwardsDistinguished Flying Cross and Bar

Stanley Franklin Browne, DFC & Bar (29 October 1919 – 15 January 2011) was a New Zealand flying ace of the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) during the Second World War. He was officially credited with at least five aerial victories.

Born in Wellington, Browne was a university student when he joined the RNZAF in March 1941. Once his flight training in New Zealand was completed, he proceeded to the United Kingdom to serve with the Royal Air Force. He was posted to No. 485 Squadron in early 1942 but was shot down later in the year over German-occupied France. With the help of the French Resistance he avoided the Germans and made his way to the south of France. He was caught when crossing the border into Vichy France and was interned for several weeks. He escaped captivity and eventually got back to the United Kingdom. He was transferred to the Middle East where he ferried aircraft before being posted to No. 93 Squadron. He flew Supermarine Spitfires in the Tunisian campaign and in the Allied invasion of Sicily, shooting down a number of German aircraft before being rested in December 1943. After a spell on instructing duties he returned to operational flying with No. 485 Squadron during the final stages of the war in Europe. He briefly commanded the squadron before it was disbanded in August 1945.

Returning to civilian life after the war, he resumed his university studies, becoming a chemist. He briefly served in the New Zealand Territorial Air Force and later became a farmer and then a teacher. He died in 2011, aged 91, at Tauranga.