He was forced to crash land behind enemy lines and died of his own wounds shortly thereafter. He was killed on September 29, 1918, following an attack in which he downed three balloons. Luke’s mediocrity rise to fame was brief, however. He was a lone wolf who chose to stalk his prey, usually a balloon, without thoughts as to the plausibility of the attack or the chances of survival. He was aggressive, but not foolish, and his capability as a pilot and marksman are indicated by his success.įrank Luke, the “Arizona Balloon Buster” was young, reckless and place little value on his own life. “Captain Eddie” was a mature, cool and calculating pilot. Rickenbacker, who had been told that he was too old to be a pilot, went on to become America’s “Ace of Aces” with 26 confirmed victories. Rickenbacker and Frank Luke, the antithesis of one another. Of America’s 2 most celebrated aces of world war one were Edward V. He was credited with his fifth victory on April 23rd making him the AEF’s first Ace. Baer of the 103rd Aerial Squadron shot down an Albatros near Cerney-les Reims. The first US air service victory did not come until March 11th, 1918, when Paul F. Unfortunately, he was killed in aerial combat before he could increase his score of 17 achieved while flying with the French. And sent to command the 94th Aero squadron. Lufbery scored his first aerial victory on July 30, 1916, and became an ace on 12 October when he downed a Roland C II over Obendorf. May have waned, his maneuver survived well into the jet age. To combat the “Flying Circus” tactics of the Germans he devised the “Lufbery Circle” as a defensive maneuver. This international adventurer was not only a fine pilot, but an excellent tactician of the day. However, his role with Barry, who first flew with the French Lafayette Escadrille. Libby went on to complete pilot training and gained four more as a pilot. In the capacity of gutter/observer he was credited with founding 10 enemy aircraft. Libby had seen service in the trenches with the Canadian Army before he was trained as an observer. The first American to shoot down five enemy aircraft was a Colorado cowboy, Frederick Libby. Some journey to Canada and England to join the Royal flying Corps while others went to France and join the French foreign Legion as a means of getting into flight training. The Germans were seriously engaged in war at this time and gave little thought toward establishing such a term as “Ace”, but they did bestow a form of knighthood upon their more successful pilots with the award of the “Pour Le Merite.”īefore the arrival of American units in action, however, there were quite a number of eager young man who had left their homes in the United States to cast their lot with the Allied cause in World War I. It was not until the Americans joined the combat that the greatest impetus was exhibited in the AEF arbitrarily established five aerial victories as qualifying one as an ace. The British, too, informally recognized 10 aerial victories as qualifying for “Acedom”, although nothing official ever developed. It was in the form of a “knighthood” and was considered perhaps the most glamorous distinction a man could achieve. They the “Ace” designation upon their pilots when a tenth aerial victory was accomplished. The French were the first to recognize the most successful pilots aerial combat in world war one. The race was on, and some 80–plus years later the limits still have not been reached. However, just as in hockey baseball or football, the gentle thoughts of the adversaries took a violent turn and means were rapidly devised to crush the enemy finally, at one historic meeting the pistol was drawn and shots actually fired. The Knights of medieval days had progressed to become nights of the air. Eventually they flew close enough to exchange a friendly wave. True, the earliest flights were strictly observation missions, but it was inevitable that English and French aircrews would sight German aircraft. History of the American Fighter Ace: World War I By Bill Hess with expanded text by Bill Martinĭuring the First World War, the airplane became a primary weapon system.
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