Robert W. H. Everett

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title: "Robert W. H. Everett" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1901-births", "1942-deaths", "australian-jockeys", "companions-of-the-distinguished-service-order", "deaths-by-drowning-in-the-united-kingdom", "fleet-air-arm-aviators", "fleet-air-arm-personnel-of-world-war-ii", "military-personnel-from-new-south-wales", "people-from-tenterfield,-new-south-wales", "royal-navy-personnel-killed-in-world-war-ii", "sportsmen-from-new-south-wales", "victims-of-aviation-accidents-or-incidents-in-1942", "20th-century-australian-sportsmen", "aviators-killed-in-aviation-accidents-or-incidents-in-wales"] description: "British jockey and Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve pilot" topic_path: "history" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_W._H._Everett" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary British jockey and Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve pilot ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox horseracing personality"]

Field	Value
name	Robert Everett
image_size
birth_date
birth_place	Tenterfield, New South Wales
death_date
death_place	Llanddona, Anglesey, Wales
resting_place	St Dona's Church, Llanddona
height
weight
race	1929 Grand National
1934 Irish Grand National
honors
horses	Gregalach
module	{{Infobox military person
allegiance	United Kingdom
branch
serviceyears	1940–1942
rank	Lieutenant
battles	Second World War
awards	DSO
::

| honorific_prefix = | name = Robert Everett | honorific_suffix = | image = | image_size = | image_upright = | alt = | caption = | native_name = | native_name_lang = | full_name = | other_names = | nickname = | occupation = | birth_date = | birth_place = Tenterfield, New South Wales | death_date = | death_place = Llanddona, Anglesey, Wales | resting_place = St Dona's Church, Llanddona | resting_place_coordinates = | nationality = | spouse = | children = | height = | weight = | career winnings = | career wins = | race = 1929 Grand National 1934 Irish Grand National | awards = | honors = | memorials = | horses = Gregalach | module = {{Infobox military person|embed=yes | allegiance = United Kingdom | branch = | serviceyears = 1940–1942 | rank = Lieutenant | battles = Second World War | awards = DSO

Robert William Hanmer Everett (29 May 1901 – 26 January 1942) was a British jockey and a Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve pilot during the Second World War. In 1929, he won the Grand National on Gregalach. In 1941, as a Fleet Air Arm pilot, he achieved the first "kill" by a rocket-launched fighter, shooting down a long-range Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor over the Atlantic. For this hazardous success, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). Knowledge of Everett's life is fragmentary, with just a few notable events.

Early life

Everett was born to on 29 May 1901 in Tenterfield, New South Wales, Australia. His parents were Lt. Colonel William Frank Everett and Charlotte Everett of Chelsea.

In 1929, he rode "Gregalach" in the Grand National at Aintree after the jockey engaged to ride him was injured in a fall. The horse was marked down by bookmakers as a 100-1 outsider, yet he won, beating the favourite, "Easter Hero", by six lengths. This race had the largest Grand National field ever and Everett was praised for his horsemanship over heavy ground. Later, in 1934, he won the Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse, this time on "Poolgowran".

At the same time, Everett had become an amateur pilot and jointly owned, with his father, a De Havilland Puss Moth, a relatively high-performance aircraft of its day. In 1934, with another Australian, Jimmy Melrose, he entered the MacRobertson Air Race (or the Melbourne Centenary Air Race) to Melbourne from Mildenhall, in England. This was successfully completed in 120 flying hours, despite landing at Darwin with empty fuel tanks.

Service career

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Hawker_Hurricane_launched_from_CAM_ship_c1941.jpg" caption="HMS ''Wanderer'']] which was escorting the nearby convoy, SL.81. Everett was awarded the DSO for this action."] ::

Death

Everett died on active service on 26 January 1942. He was flying a Hurricane from Belfast to Abingdon when it came down in shallow water close to the beach at Llanddona, Anglesey, Wales. Witnesses reported the aircraft seemed to be suffering from engine problems. The aircraft wreck was soon recovered but the cockpit was empty. Everett's body was washed ashore several months later; a post-mortem revealed he had drowned.

He is buried close to the scene of the crash, in St Dona's Church, Llanddona.

References

;Citations ;Bibliography

References

1. (23 Feb 2001). "HMS Maplin". Fleet Air Arm Archive.
2. Brookes, Geoff. "Robert Everett DSO". Stories in Welsh Stone.
3. In 1915 he attended the [[Royal Naval College, Osborne]], then served for two years as a [[Midshipman]] in the Royal Navy during World War 1. After the war, he working as a farmer in South Africa, before moving to the United Kingdom in 1927 to become a [[National Hunt racing. National Hunt]] jockey.Barker (2019),''p. 42''
4. Barker (2019),''p.43''
5. (7 June 1934). "England-Australia Race". [[Flight International.
6. Barker (2019),''pp. 54-55''

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