Shortly after the outbreak of the
Second World War, Gillam was posted to
No. 616 Squadron at
Finningley and soon afterwards promoted to
flight lieutenant. His new unit was a squadron of the
Auxiliary Air Force, still relatively new, and Gillam was one of a few experienced pilots brought in to help bring it up to operational status. By early 1940, it was carrying out patrols along the East coast with its
Supermarine Spitfire fighters from its base at
Leconfield. In May it moved to
Rochford and commenced patrolling over the beaches of
Dunkirk from where the
British Expeditionary Force was being evacuated from France. On 1 June, Gillam damaged a
Junkers Ju 88 medium bomber over Dunkirk. After several days of operations, the squadron returned to Leconfield where it resumed its previous duties and occasionally had engagements with the
Luftwaffe.
Battle of Britain On 15 August, No. 616 Squadron was scrambled to intercept a Luftwaffe bombing raid launched from Norway and targeting
Scarborough. Gillam destroyed a Ju 88, one of eight to have been shot down by the squadron's pilots. After
The Hardest Day, it was moved south, to
Kenley, as a reinforcement squadron for
No. 11 Group. It flew extensively for the next two weeks. Gillam shot down a
Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter over
Deal on 26 August and followed this up three days later with the destruction of a
Messerschmitt Bf 110 heavy fighter north of
Le Touquet. Becoming increasingly fatigued, at one point, during an evening scramble, Gillam fell asleep mid-flight but woke in time to prevent his aircraft from diving into the ground. On 30 August, Gillam destroyed a Bf 109 near
Redhill, and also probably destroyed a second and damaged two more over
Eastchurch. The next day he shot down a Bf 109 over
Canterbury. On 1 September he was again heavily engaged, shooting down a
Dornier Do 17 medium bomber, probably destroying a second, and damaging a third, all to the south of Easterly. He also probably shot down a Bf 109 near
Folkestone. By this time Gillam was a
flight commander and agitated his seniors for the squadron to be rested for a week to recover from its losses; half its flying personnel had been killed, wounded or missing. The squadron's last day of operations in the south was 2 September, and after destroying a Bf 110 over
Maidstone, Gillam's Spitfire was struck by return fire from another Bf 110. With his aircraft's engine on fire, he safely bailed out. No. 616 Squadron was withdrawn to the north the next day. Gillam was transferred to
No. 312 Squadron on 6 September. This was based at
Tern Hill and staffed with Polish pilots. There was few engagements during Gillam's tenure as commander, and the squadron was mostly involved in patrolling duties. Gillam led the squadron until March 1941, when he was rested from operations. He was then appointed as a staff officer at the headquarters of
No. 9 Group, serving in this capacity until July, when he was given command of
No. 615 Squadron. The introduction to service of the Typhoon was troubled but by August Gillam's command included
Nos. 56,
266 and
609 Squadrons. Its first major operation was in the
Dieppe Raid of 19 August, when it was part of the aerial cover for the landings. Further training, this time in the United States at the
Command and General Staff School at
Fort Leavenworth, followed. At the end of the year, he was appointed
wing leader of
No. 146 Wing. This was part of the RAF's
Second Tactical Air Force (2TAF) and was involved in operations preparing for the
Allied invasion of France. On 14 January 1944, he damaged a Fw 190 over
Saint-Pol. Later in the month he became station commander at
Tangmere, and subsequently from April, was commander of
No. 20 Sector. He was promoted to acting
group captain and given command of No. 146 Wing in July, which was operating from
Advanced Landing Ground B3 in the Normandy beachhead. On 24 October Gillam led a major operation involving several Typhoons to
Dordrecht, where they destroyed a facility hosting several senior officers of the German
15th Army. As the lead pilot, he released the marker bombs at which the remaining Typhoon pilots aimed their ordnance. At least two German generals were killed, along with many other officers. In January 1945 Gillam was awarded a second Bar to his DSO. The published citation read:
Charles Portal at the
airfield at Deurne, Belgium, 1944 Posted to staff duties at the headquarters of
No. 84 Group in February, Gillam was still serving in this role when the war ended. He was credited with having destroyed eight aircraft, one being shared with other pilots, plus two destroyed on the water. Three more aircraft were considered probably destroyed by Gillam and he is also credited with damaging six aircraft. ==Later life==