Published: 4 September 03
Air & Space Power Journal - Fall 2003

Knights of the Air: Canadian Fighter Pilots in the First World War by David L. Bashow. McArthur & Company Publishing, Limited (http://www. mcarthur-co.com/books.html), 322 King Street West, Suite 402, Toronto, Ontario M5J 1J2, 2001, 210 pages, $50.00 (hardcover).

Dave Bashow, assistant professor of military history at the Royal Military College of Canada, fills a void with his book Knights of the Air by telling a story that few American pilots are aware of: the significant contribution of Canadian fighter pilots to the history of airpower. He documents the fact that at least 171 of the 863 known British Empire aces of World War I were Canadian, and of the 26 with 30 or more kills, 10 were Canadian- including Billy Bishop, Canada’s leading ace, with 72 kills and Raymond Collishaw, who tied with Edward Mannock at 61.

Of interest to the American military historian, most of these kills were made long before the United States deployed any military aircraft to Europe. British Commonwealth aviators, along with the French, fought the Germans in the skies over France for two full years before American heroes like Eddie Rickenbacker took to the air in combat. The author carefully records how young Canadians paid for their own training (the substantial sum of $400), mostly in the United States, so they could enter British flying squadrons.

Early on, Canadian fighter pilots logged a number of (mostly) firsts in air combat. Redford Mulock was the first to intercept a German airship over England; the first to spot for artillery at night, using flares; and the second to bomb a submarine. Mulock, flying with the Royal Naval Air Service, was the first Canadian ace of World War I. Capt Andrew McKeever scored all of his 31 confirmed kills flying the two-seat F2a, when pilots made most of their kills in single-seat aircraft. British Empire fighter pilots moved from single aircraft to formation tactics; specifically, they invented the “finger four” formation, known to US airmen down through the next 60 years or so as “fluid four.” On 30 April 1916, Capt William Milne led the first finger-four flight, and a second Canadian, Lt C. E. Rogers, was a wingman in the flight.

No book on Canadian fighter pilots would be complete without a detailed history of Billy Bishop, a Canadian and British Empire hero of World War I. Bashow masterfully relates Bishop’s colorful history, which includes some of his not-so-well-known behavior. He also documents the last moments of Baron Manfred von Richthofen, whose last engagement involved an attack on a Canadian (Lt Wilfred May) while von Richthofen, in turn, was under attack by Lt Roy Brown, May’s former schoolmate and current squadron mate. Evidently, von Richthofen was shot down by Sgt C. B. Popkin of the Australian army; however, Bashow puts a fighter pilot’s perspective on his death by saying that the German ace violated his own rules by chasing Lieutenant May. 

Knights of the Air is about more than the exploits of individual Canadian airmen. Bashow uniquely covers the Somme offensive from the perspective of the aviator and relates air fighting to the important ground battles. His research is thorough and complete, even to the point of documenting the incomplete record keeping of German flying squadrons. He also discusses how this deficiency created some permanent holes in the history of air warfare in World War I.

Canadian fighter pilots made a substantial contribution during the war. Bashow’s record of the exploits of these daring, adventurous young men complements All the Fine Young Eagles (Toronto: Stoddart Publishing, 1996), his book on the history of Canadian fighter pilots in World War II. Both books are good reads for any airman. Clearly, the legacy of Canada’s first fighter pilots is still alive in the writings of Dave Bashow.

Lt Col Martin A. Noel Jr., USAF, Retired
Las Vegas, Nevada

Disclaimer

The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.