Air Vice-Marshal Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

James Lindsay Gordon DFC (11 December 1892 – 3 March 1940) was a leading figure in the pre-World War II

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

and a pilot in the Royal Naval Air Service during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Career

James Lindsay Gordon was born on 11 December 1892 in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

the son of Edward Percy Gordon and his wife Helen Lindsay. The young Gordon was educated at Montreal High School and

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...

. In 1918, while a member of the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

, Gordon was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. His citation was as follows: From 1922 to 1924 Gordon was the first Director of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Promoted to

air vice-marshal Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

in 1938, Gordon continued to serve until poor health forced him to retire in January 1940. Gordon died only a few weeks later in March of that year.

Notes

External links

Hall of Valour - Temple Du Courage - James Lindsay GordonCanada at War - Air Vice Marshal James Lindsay Gordon
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Lindsay 1892 births 1940 deaths People from Montreal Royal Canadian Air Force air marshals of World War II Royal Air Force officers Royal Naval Air Service personnel of World War I Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Naval Air Service aviators McGill University alumni