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William ‘Billy Bishop: World War I Canadian Ace Fighter PilotAviation History | 3 comments | Print This Post | Email This Post
When Bishop was allowed to leave the hospital, St. Hellier invited him to continue his recuperation at her mansion in London. Their relationship blossomed. He called her Granny, and she began to introduce him in her influential circles as my grandson. His newfound friend spared no effort to help him. Subscribe Today
Possibly through her influence, Bishop was granted indefinite home leave in Canada for health reasons. Back in Owen Sound, he quickly recovered. He gave Margaret an engagement ring but decided to put off the wedding until he was more certain of his future prospects in the RFC. He had decided to become a fighter pilot.
By early September 1916, Bishop was back in England. His hopes of becoming a pilot seemed remote, however, as he was repeatedly rejected as medically unfit. To add insult to injury, all his service records had somehow vanished. But Lady St. Hellier pulled strings, and by November 1, 1916, Bishop was ready for his first flying lesson. At that time, so soon after the beginnings of powered flight, pilot training was anything but a well-defined, formal science. Instruction was by older pilots resting from the battle over France and Flanders or by younger pilots with little more experience than the trainees. The instructors were often reluctant to give their charges hands-on experience in the flimsy and marginally airworthy training aircraft. More casualties occurred in training than on actual missions.
But Bishop survived training and soloed. Once finally alone in the cockpit of a Maurice Farman, he felt lonelier than at any other time in his life. Once in the air, I felt better, he wrote to Margaret that night. I flew as straight ahead as I could….Suddenly an awful thought came to me: sooner or later I would have to get that plane down to earth again.Finally, gathering up all his courage, he pancaked the trainer from eight feet up. Bishop was not disappointed at his first landing, however — he was just happy that the ambulance that had sat, engine running, at his takeoff was not needed. Although he would fly 200 times into danger and return safely, the young Canadian’s landings never really improved very much. The Bishop landing would become a little legend in itself.
After joining a home defense squadron in England for advanced flight training, he made good progress, gaining his wings and the freedom he wanted to pursue a lone war against the enemy. Bishop was posted to No. 37 (Home Defense) Squadron east of London, where he accumulated a good deal of night-flying time, patrolling for the bombers and airships that were doing considerable damage in the city. In his two months in No. 37 Squadron, Bishop never engaged any enemy planes, but he became a better and more confident flier.
Anxious to get into the real war, Bishop applied several times for transfer to the Western Front. After an advanced course in single-seat fighters, he received orders to join No. 60 Squadron, which was then based at Filescamp Farm on the eastern part of Le Hameau aerodrome, 12 miles west of Arras, France. Number 60 Squadron was the top British fighter group on the Western Front and the first squadron to be fully equipped with French-made Nieuport scouts. Bishop was impressed. He had never before seen the beautiful little fighter close up. His arrival preceded by only a few days a major British air offensive on the Western Front.
Bishop flew his first patrol in a Nieuport 17 on March 17, 1917. Powered by a 120-hp Le Rhne rotary engine, the Nieuport was armed with a single .303-inch Lewis machine gun on the upper wing firing forward outside the propeller arc. More maneuverable but slower and more lightly armed than its chief opponent, the Albatros D.III, the little sesquiplane (biplane with a very narrow lower wing) was a potent weapon in the hands of several outstanding Allied aces. Its chief proponents included the Englishman Albert Ball, whom Bishop idolized, and Irishman Edward Mick Mannock. The young Canadian’s first sortie lasted two hours, and although the enemy was sighted, No. 60 Squadron’s pilots were unable to engage him. Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6Help HistoryNet by bookmarking to
            Tags: 20th - 21st Century, Aces, Aerial Combat, Aviation History, Historical Conflicts
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3 Comments to “William ‘Billy Bishop: World War I Canadian Ace Fighter Pilot”
hehyehehe
By 03we8w on Jun 16, 2008 at 11:43 am
this hero was a relative of mine and i am proud to see him on such a high pedastool. thank you to all those who helped in resurecting the story and background of William Avery Bishop and making it visible to to world who he was and what he stood for.
By Brandon William John Bishop on Apr 29, 2009 at 8:15 am
Dear Sir/Madam,
It is a fine bit of writing and a just tribute, to what was surely one of Canada’s most heroic figures. It is a strange travesty, that Canada has always had a problem with national icons.
It is difficult to imagine America disparaging the reputation of Sargeant York, or more relevantly, the justly famed LaFayette escadrille. It is doubly a black mark, that these false accusations came not from lame arm chair warriors, but from left leaning anti-war factions, one’s using public funds attributed to the National Broadcasting network.
These type of ugly distortions never quite go away, something that keenly shames one, as someone proud to be Canadain.
Though somewhat crude, it might be asked, how these left wing fanatical anti-war adherents, could out weight their limited contributions to our country, against Air Marshal William Avery Bishop’s massive contribution in creating, and or, otherwise promoting the Canadian Air arm of our highly estimed Canadian Armed services. Above all, however, they and we as a people, should ask individually and collectively, how we as a whole , would have performed flying machines that were little more than canvass and light wood frames, one’s offering for the most part, an extremely brief road to eternity.
Air Marsha lWilliam Avery Bishop belongs to a rare bred of men, one’s who in early manhood, were called upon and demonstrated a physical courage, one well beyond the norm in a field of endeavor where the attrition rate was most high. Like the great Air Aces of other lands and places, William Avery Bishop, stood at the pinnacle, sharing pride of place with such legendary figurs as Britain’s Albert Ball, a fellow V.C., and France’s well-beloved Captain Georges Guynemer.
In modern times, only the battle of Britain pilots rose to such fame, and though as young and courageous, in much better and more technically advanced flying machines. Even here, the dept to William Avery Bishop, stands out and above, as the vast majority of fighter pilots trained in schools founded by his foresight and ingenouity.
In the end, one should note, that by his singular courage and devotion to country, William Avery Bishop, should have earned the right to be judged only by his peers, and they chose to bestowed the V.C., D.S.O. and Bar, the Military Cross, the Flying Cross, the ED medal, the LĂ©gion d’ Honneur and the Croix de Guerre. In 1944 the Order of the Bath.
Considering the awe inspiring fact, that with the exception of the ED medal and the Order of the Bath, these are all valor oders for extreme galantry and courage, I should very much think, that a humbled people and nation, can honor the valiant and raw courage of an extremely young man, who rose to become our greatest World War 1 Ace, one who helped in a unique and singular manner to found the Canadian Armed Forces Air Arm.
In honouring William Avery Bishop, the Canadian people honour their estimed Armed Forces and the nation itself, for he embodies the best of our courage and devotion.
Faithfully yours,
Claude Cornet
By Claude Cornet on Aug 13, 2009 at 9:29 am