IRIS II at Gan

Story Behind the Scene. Chris French

Acclaimed aviation artist Chris French explains the origins of his latest artwork: a sun-bathed Handley Page Hastings of a little-known unit

Chris French FGAvA
You can almost feel the tropical heat with Chris French’s vivid new Handley Page Hastings print 
ALL CHRIS FRENCH UNLESS STATED
The subject of ‘IRIS II at Gan’, Hastings TG560, photographed during 1957 at RAF Habbaniya, west of Baghdad, in what is now modern-day Iraq 
KEN ELLIS COLLECTION

This painting was commissioned for an ex-crew member of Handley Page Hastings TG560, Flt Lt Robert ‘Bob’ Jones. He had a long career in the RAF, joining in 1947 and later serving on Victor tankers, which included involvement in the Falklands conflict. He eventually retired in 1993. 

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