Robert Miller has had a successful career as professional pilot, firstly with the RAF for over 25 years and in the civilian world as Senior Examiner and Instructor. His passion has always been formation flying and many hundreds of pilots have benefited from his instruction, encouragement, mentoring and monitoring over his long flying career

Robert gained his PPL on an ATC flying scholarship, flew on a university air squadron before joining the RAF in the 1960s. His first tour was on Canberras with 6 Sqn in Akrotiri. The majority of Robert's career has been instructing, on the Jet Provost and on an exchange tour on the SF260 with the Singaporean Air Force. He has over 4000 hours on the Chipmunk and competed in RAF Chipmunks in air races. He was the standards pilot at EFTS, also the CFS agent and he standardised instructors thoroughly The RAF philosophy was that if you were strict with the instructors, the students will all be at a high standard. Instructors under Robert’s care were in trepidation at standards rides with Robert, but he got results.  He had a record of 100% passes as A2 instructor grade (assessed as 'Above Average') and on its closure in 1993, all but one on the 15 instructors were A2 grade.

After the RAF, Robert was a company pilot and as a civilian instructor also trained military pilots for ten years from all three services. He also instructed for nine years at the Ultimate High Academy and MD Mark Greenfield commented “that Robert was very successful and maintained the high CFS standards”.

For nearly 30 years Robert has been perhaps best known and responsible for training hundreds of Chipmunk and Bulldog pilots in formation flying, both in individual training sessions as well as the big meetings known as Chipmeet in Europe and Chipfest in the UK.  Robert was involved from the onset, largely as a part of the 'Skyhawks' team which was the Bulldog operation run by Roger Hayes.  Robert was the 'de-facto' CFI as such and organised the training of the Chipmunk and Bulldog pilots.  In 2022, he resurrected the RV formation group.

Robert has ensured there has been a high level of discipline within the various groups.  Robert has ensured all groups use the RAF method, which is governed by the NATO STANAG (standard agreement) to ensure standards and safety.  This means the pilots can get together and all be confident their fellow formation members will be using the same SOPs and have a similar safety mindset.  Robert has masterminded so many formation events with aircraft numbering up to 25 in each formation to commemorate various themes such as the Macpherson Race, the Annual Battle Formation tribute to D-Day and in 2022 a Diamond 9 flew a “Missing Lady” formation over the Nation Arboretum 2 days before the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.  On another occasion he organised a formation to fly the letters DC in tribute to Liveryman David Cockburn, who had flown Chipmunks in post war Berlin to keep an eye on the Soviets.

Rod Brown,co-author of the book “Chipmunk -  the poor man’s Spitfire”, and organiser of a number of Chipfests comments “I feel very honoured to have not only worked closely with Robert in organising Chipfest but also in significant events such as the 70th and 75th Chipmunk Anniversaries, the RAF 100 and RAF Henlow 100 Anniversaries.

This year is the 80th anniversary of the Chipmunk, and Robert worked with two of his Chipmunk formation graduates, Upper Freeman Tony De Bruyn and Piet Luijken, to put up a “80” formation to fly over Hawarden airport, the place that many Chipmunks were made on the very day of the anniversary of the first flight.  Piet commented “The basis for formation flying, as I have learned through the years, is trust. And this was interwoven in the organisation that Robert Miller had set up in Abbeville during the BullChipmeet. Of course, this was not his first Chipmeet but the whole setup was amazing from an instructional point of view”.

Robert’s instruction was the accepted standard for all pilots, for all instructors and formation flying was always performed in this way. The trust of all pilots, and of all instructors, was in this well prepared and widely accepted foundation by Robert Miller in his flight techniques, in his radio calls, in the execution of all formation flights. And with this foundation, it was the ultimate breeding ground for the new formation trainees, who could study, learn, execute all exercises in a just culture, in an environment with a growth mindset, in a safe, positive and relaxed learning atmosphere, which ultimately gives the best results for progress.

Robert is still generous with his time and at many weekends during the summer, continues to pass on his formation skills and high standards to new formation pilots whilst supervising the many he has trained.  Accordingly, in recognition of many decades when pilots have benefitted from his passion and expertise in formation flying instruction, Robert Miller is highly deserving of the Pike Trophy.

1963/64  L V Worsdell Esq

1964/65  Captain Charles William Cowan Hamilton

1966  not awarded

1966/67  J W (Peter) Peckowski Esq AFC ARAeS

1967/68  Rex A Smith Esq

1969  not awarded

1969/70  Captain F Kirk

1970/71  W H W Lucas Esq

1971/72  Captain C W Sweetman

1972/73  A E Bramson Esq

1973/74  E Claxton Esq

1974/75  Captain Douglas E Batten AFC DFM

1975/76  Captain R R Critchley

1977 - 197  not awarded

1978/79  Captain J Varley

1979/80  James John Forbes (Hamish) Logan Esq

1980/81  Miss Joan Lily Amelia Hughes MBE

1981/82  F C Hector Taylor Esq DFM

1982/83  Sqn Ldr R T Bowring AFC

1984   not awarded

1984/85  Sqn Ldr John B Gratton RAF (Rtd)

1985/86  Sidney Harry Parker Esq

1986/87  Colin Beckwith Esq

1987/88  F J Loveridge Esq

1988/89  John K Hill Esq

1989/90  Sqn Ldr R J Cutler

1990/91  Harry A A Smeulders Esq

1991/92  Captain P W Kennedy

1993  not awarded

1993/94  Captain Donald G (Archie) Kinch DFM

1994/95  Peter F C A Thorn Esq

1995/96  John C Cole Esq

1997  not awarded

1997/98  Harvey R Britten Esq

1998/99  Captain Leonard James Otley

1999/2000  Captain Peter David Godwin FRIN

2000/01  Captain Thomas Michael Dyson

2001/02  Michael Arthur (Rufus) Heald Esq MBE

2003  not awarded

2003/04  Captain George Arthur Bedford

2004/05  William Frederick Arthur (Bill) Ison

2005/06 Captain Andrew Gutteridge

2007  not awarded

2007/08  Richard William Kenneth Snell

2008/09  Captain Richard "Dickie" Bird

2009/10  Ian Bain Mackie

2010/11  Mark Woodhouse

2011/12  Gp Capt Christopher E Gould

2012/13  Andrew Dunstan

2014 - 2015  not awarded

2016  Captain Philip G Mathews MAP

2017  Piers Hugh Smerdon

2018  not awarded

2019  awarded twice: 
      Dorothy Saul-Pooley
      Carol Louise Cooper

2020  not awarded

2021  Primo Lonzardi

2022  Anthony Mollison

2023  Anthony Cooke

2024  Eva Ceh

2025  Captain Alan Wrigley JP BSc MPhil Dhyp FRAeS