Guy Desmond D’Esterre Lyver was born in 1911 and was from Chilworth, Hampshire.

He obtained his wings on 10 December 1939.

In April 1940 HMS Glorious was ordered home from the Indian Ocean to take part in the Norwegian campaign. She was chosen because her “T” shaped lifts permitted larger aircraft such as the Gladiator and Hurricane to be struck below. HMS Glorious arrived at Scapa on the 18 April having re-embarked the three aircraft she left at Malta.

Lyver was transferred to 802 Squadron when this unit was reorganized on HMS Glorious’s arrival in the Clyde on 17 April, and they rejoined the ship on 22 April 1940 off Scapa Flow, with nine aircraft, together with 804 Squadron, also with nine aircraft, for operation off Norway.
HMS Glorious was also carrying seventeen Gladiators and one Sea Gladiator belonging to 263 Squadron, which was being transported to Norway,

Together with 802 Squadron Lyver took part in both the Norwegian campaigns.

On 28 May 1940 three Sea Gladiators from HMS Glorious’ 802 Squadron flown by Lieutenant (A) George Hermann Joseph Feeny, Lieutenant Lyver and Lieutenant David Neil Hamilton Ogilvie were scrambled after a ‘shadower’. They intercepted a He115 and shot it down. This was an aircraft from 2 Staffel of KüFlGr506 flown by Feldwebel Fritz Stahl, who radioed that he had found a carrier 520 kilometres off Vestfjord. The aircraft was not heard from again. KüFlGr506 had sent out six He115 on reconnaissances during the day.

After the successful evacuation of 263 and 46 Squadrons fighters from Narvik on 8 June 1940 HMS Glorious sailed for Scapa Flow at all speed. However this successful evacuation was avail when the carrier was sunk by the German battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau later in the day with the loss of almost all aboard, Lyver being one of them.

At the time of his death, Lyver had claimed one shared victory, this one being claimed while flying Gloster Sea Gladiator.

Claims:

Kill no.	Date	Number	Type	Result	Plane type	Serial no.	Locality	Unit
	1940
	28/05/40	1/3	He115 (a)	Shared destroyed	Sea Gladiator		520 km off Vestfjord	802 Squadron

Biplane victories: 1 shared destroyed.
TOTAL: 1 shared destroyed.
(a) He115 of 2/KüFlGr506 shot down. Feldwebel Fritz Stahl and crew perished.

Sources:
Fledgling Eagles - Christopher Shores with John Foreman, Christian-Jaques Ehrengardt, Heinrich Weiss and Bjørn Olsen, 1991 Grub Street, London, ISBN 0-948817-42-9
Gloster Gladiator Home Page - Alexander Crawford.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Additional information kindly provided by Mark Horan.