Charles German Hooper, RAF Chaplaincy (1942–6) and the RAF’s Moral Leadership Courses in South East Asia (1945–6)

RAF chaplaincy during the Second World War remains under-researched. This article draws on the letters of the RAF chaplain Charles Hooper to his wife Mary to explore Hooper’s ministry as RAF chaplain in England (October 1942–February 1945), and his responsibility for the RAF’s Moral Leadership courses in South East Asia (March 1945–July 1946). Hooper’s letters confirm that he took very seriously what he described as the ‘parochial’ aspects of RAF chaplaincy. In this, Hooper’s experience of RAF chaplaincy was largely coherent with other models of military chaplaincy. More distinctive is his role in shaping the programme and content of the Moral Leadership courses. Developed as a measure to combat what the RAF described as ‘Lack of Moral Fibre’ amongst air crew facing horrific levels of losses, in Hooper’s conception of them, these courses were intended to play a vital role in equipping RAF personnel for leadership in the post-war world.