Alastair Ogilvy
RAF officer (1915-1995)

Squadron Leader Charles Alexander "Alistair" Ogilvy (30 November 1915 – 23 February 1995) was a British Royal Air Force officer who flew with Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain. Due to records lost during World War II, he was not recognised as one of The Few until after his death.
Early life
Ogilvy, who was known throughout his life as Alastair, was born on 30 November 1915 in Kelso, Scotland, the eldest of five sons. He was educated at Edinburgh Academy. After leaving school he moved to London and worked for the Northern Assurance Company. Whilst living in London Ogilvy played rugby union for the London Scottish rugby club.
Royal Air Force
Ogilvy joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in 1939 and was trained as a pilot at RAF Woodley near Reading. He was promoted to Sergeant on 29 September 1940. He joined No. 610 Squadron RAF at RAF Acklington on 14 October 1940 and flew two operational sorties on 25 October 1940, this qualifying him for the Battle of Britain Clasp.
“Alastair Ogilvy” enters the record as rAF officer (1915-1995). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Alastair, Ogilvy and officer can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Alastair Ogilvy” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Alastair, Ogilvy and officer provides the most credible route into that argument.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 9, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4708762. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1915, 1995, 1939 and 1940.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Alastair Ogilvy”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Alastair Ogilvy primary sources, Alastair Ogilvy archive and Alastair research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Alastair Ogilvy”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Alastair Ogilvy” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.