Veteran receives framed picture from Royal Navy for his loyal service

814 Naval Air Squadron commissioned the gift for John ‘Joe’ Cocker, aged 87, who joined the navy in the 1950s and served with the same unit.

Mr Cocker rose to become a chief petty officer writer before retiring from the service.

Accepting the picture on his behalf was Mr Cocker’s son Alan, who is linked to the squadron through his role as a technical team leader with aerospace engineering company Leonardo in Yeovil, where the helicopters used by the navy are built and supported.

Yet Alan was only aware of their mutual ties to the squadron, which is based at Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose, when his father was looking through an old photo album last year.

Alan said: “Dad dug out naval albums we had never seen before, bringing back memories and I saw an image of members of 814 squadron and told him that it was the same Merlin squadron that I was involved in.

“I joined Leonardo in 1993 as a Design Engineer for the Merlin Mark 1 and was Chief Project for the Merlin Mark 2 MCSP programme, so I have long-standing ties with RAF Culdrose.

“814 Royal Naval Air Squadron use Merlin Mk 2 helicopters to conduct front-line submarine-hunting duties and my father was seconded to them as a Squadron ’scribe’ in the late 1950s when they were flying Wessex. He produced a newsletter called the ‘Tiger Rag’, as 814 squadron are known as the ‘Flying Tigers’ due to their distinctive badge.”

The Tiger Rag was used to boost morale and maintain a sense of fun within the squadron as they made their way around the world on special missions.

John Cocker pictured with 814 Squadron members far left with Tankard (Image: Supplied)

Lieutenant Commander Mark Barber of 814 Naval Air Squadron said: “The Tiger Rag has a wonderful resonance and historical value for our squadron and it has been fantastic to see some of John’s photos of his service, which included major activities such as a joint exercise with the Australian Navy.

“We felt we wanted to thank John for his dedicated service and we are now collaborating with him to find a way to preserve his writing and photography which forms such an important part of our heritage.”

Although John was not able to make the journey to RNAS Culdrose in Cornwall to accept his gift, he was able to attend virtually while his son represented him at a presentation.

Reflecting on his time in the navy John said: “When you are part of the Royal Navy you are part of a team and when you work on the squadron there is so much camaraderie, professionalism and friendship. If there is a rush on, you work on it together until it flies.”

John’s ethos is one shared by both of his sons Alan and Dave, who each carried out apprenticeships with the Royal Naval Fleetlands Yard at Gosport.

Alan still supports 814 squadron in his role as Technical Team Leader at Leonardo in Yeovil, where the Merlin Mk 2 helicopters used by the squadron are built and supported.

Recently Merlin Mk2 Helicopters from 824, 820 and 814 Naval Air Squadrons flew with military precision as part of the Coronation Flypast on May 6, to honour the coronation of King Charles III.

Leonardo’s association with Yeovil dates back more than a century, since the Westland Aircraft Works was established in 1915.

Today, Leonardo Helicopters employs approximately 2,800 employees producing helicopters on site such as the Super Lynx 300, AW159 Wildcat and AW101 Merlin.

Alan added: “It has been a great honour for me to accept this gift to my father and I know it is one that he will treasure.

“We feel a great sense of loyalty and gratitude to the Royal Navy, as it has provided such a strong foundation for both of our lives. I’m so grateful that we came across those photos, as without them there is a whole world of my father’s experiences that I would have been unaware of.”

The men and women of 814 Naval Air Squadron continue to operate the Merlin Mk2 helicopters to conduct frontline anti-submarine warfare duties.