Ivan Palmer was the son of Henry Boys Hartly Palmer and Agnes Alice Palmer. He was the husband of Monica Betty Palmer of Epsom, Auckland.

Ivan Palmer attended King's College (Parnell House from 1926-1929). He was from Levuka, Fiji. He was a newspaper reporter with the New Zealand Herald until 1936 when he left to crew on the ketch Idle Hour owned by an American, Dwight Long. He then went to Australia and joined the staff of the Sydney Sun.

He joined the Australian Air Force and went to Canada to complete his training under the Empire Air Training Scheme. He was posted to an operational squadron in Britain and transferred to the Middle East. He was a Beaufighter pilot in the defence of Malta. In his first fortnight of flying from the island of Malta he shot down three enemy aircraft.

On a sweep west of Malta aboard Beaufighter VIC EL 458, with nine other Beaufighters and four Spitfires, they carried out attacks on enemy transport aircraft and shipping west of Malta. With one of the Beaufighters damaged a flying boat at sea level, but on return to Malta on fire, crash landed NW of Qrendi after an engine cut. AWMM