Cecil Eldred Hughes was born on 3 December 1875 in Marylebone, London, to Eldred Augustus Hughes, an architect and surveyor, and Jessie Maud Hughes (née Cobbett). After education at the Misses Thomson's Preparatory School in Hove and Eastbourne College (1890-1895), he studied at University College London, forming a lifelong friendship with William Wedgwood Benn. Hughes began his career as private secretary to Shakespeare scholar Sidney Lee, editor of the 'Dictionary of National Biography'. His first published work was 'The Praise of Shakespeare: An Anthology' (1904), followed by contributions to 'C.B. Fry's Magazine', where he became assistant editor until 1911. Before the war, he authored 'A Book of the Black Forest' (1910) and 'Early English Water-Colour' (1913). In November 1914, at nearly 39 years of age, Hughes applied for a Temporary Commission in the 9th Battalion, Somerset Light Infantry. For two years he served in training camps and depots on home service. Despite suffering from a sinus infection, in November 1916 he was deemed fit for duty as a military observer at the seaplane base in Suez. Hughes arrived in Port Said shortly before Christmas 1916, becoming Assistant Intelligence Officer to the East Indies and Egypt Seaplane Squadron, RNAS, under his old friend Wedgwood Benn. When Benn returned to England in May 1917, Hughes took over as Intelligence Officer. This position afforded him unique insight into both the strategic planning and frontline operations of naval aviation in the region, though he is not recorded as having flown operationally as an observer. On 1 April 1918, Hughes transferred to the newly formed RAF, continuing as Intelligence Officer with 269 Squadron. For his services, he was twice Mentioned in Despatches (July 1918 and June 1919). He returned to England in April 1919 and resumed his publishing career at Ernest Benn. Hughes' wartime experiences formed the basis of 'Above and Beyond Palestine' (1930), illustrated with his own sketches. The Spectator praised it as cheerful and brightly written, noting that it revealed the previously undocumented work of naval airmen in the Eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea.
Ian Michael Burns was born in 1950 in Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire, UK. Growing up under the flight path of the Avro factory at Woodford, his early exposure to aircraft - particularly the thunderous take-offs of newly built Vulcans - sparked a lifelong passion for aviation that would shape both his professional career and scholarly pursuits. Following his education at public and grammar schools, Burns completed an engineering apprenticeship at A V Roe in Woodford. His subsequent career in aerospace spanned over four decades, beginning with Avro (later Hawker Siddeley Aviation/British Aerospace) where he specialised in structural test engineering until 1981. He then relocated to Toronto to join DeHavilland Canada in a similar capacity, later transitioning to the design of structural repairs for in-service aircraft. Burns retired in 2012, allowing him to devote himself fully to research and writing. Burns' historical interests have coalesced around early British naval aviation, with particular emphasis on the First World War period. This specialisation has resulted in two significant books: a 2008 history of the WW1 seaplane carrier HMS 'Ben-my-Chree' and a 2014 examination of Royal Naval Air Service operations over the North Sea. His expertise is further evidenced by numerous contributions to respected aviation publications, including Aeroplane Monthly, and the journals of Cross and Cockade International, the Australian Society of WW1 Aero Historians, League of WW1 Aviation Historians, Society of Friends of the Fleet Air Arm Museum and Salonika Campaign Society. Burns maintains that he finds the beginning of any enterprise to be more interesting than the continuing of it, which explains his fascination with aviation's pioneering era. 2025 will see the publication of his latest work, 'Floatplanes Over The Desert'', chronicling how the French Aéronautique maritime and British Royal Naval Air Service operated floatplanes far behind enemy lines. The narrative covers operations along the Palestinian coast, the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Akaba, ranging from the Maldives to Gallipoli and Salonika. Drawing on extensive research and rare photographs, this work promises to shed new light on these seaborne squadrons' vital yet little-known role in the First World War.
