Lieutenant Carrick Stewart Paul DFC (5 February 1893 – 22 January 1919 was a

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

from

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. He was credited with five aerial victories in Palestine between May and August 1918 when flying a Bristol F.2 Fighter.

Biography

Carrick Paul was born at

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

in New Zealand on 5 February 1893. After the outbreak of the First World War he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force, and was posted to the 6th Light Horse Regiment. In April 1916, he was

mentioned in despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of t ...

. He later transferred to the

Australian Flying Corps The Australian Flying Corps (AFC) was the branch of the Australian Army responsible for operating aircraft during World War I, and the forerunner of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The AFC was established in 1912, though it was not until ...

and served in the

Sinai and Palestine campaign The Sinai and Palestine campaign was part of the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I, taking place between January 1915 and October 1918. The British Empire, the French Third Republic, and the Kingdom of Italy fought alongside the Arab Revol ...

. Flying a Bristol F.2 fighter, Paul claimed two victories on 23 May 1918, near

Nablus Nablus ( ; , ) is a State of Palestine, Palestinian city in the West Bank, located approximately north of Jerusalem, with a population of 156,906. Located between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, it is the capital of the Nablus Governorate and a ...

. One of the two Albatros D.Vs was piloted by German ace

Gustav Schneidewind ''Vizefeldwebel'' Gustav Schneidewind was a World War I flying ace credited with seven aerial victories. Biography Gustav Schneidewind was born on 28 August 1890, in the Kingdom of Prussia. He began his military service in the German Army (German ...

, who was wounded in both arms. Paul then destroyed

Rumpler Rumpler-Luftfahrzeugbau GmbH, Rumpler-Werke, usually known simply as Rumpler was a German aircraft and automobile manufacturer. History Founded in Berlin by Austrian engineer Edmund Rumpler in 1909 as Rumpler Luftfahrzeugbau.Gunston 1993, p. ...

reconnaissance planes on 13 June, 28 July, and 16 August 1918. The July win was shared with Alan Brown and Garfield Finlay. Paul and his observer William Weir were jointly awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) on 8 February 1919. Paul never knew of the honor; while on the voyage home to New Zealand, he drowned on 22 January 1919. The announcement of his DFC was made in ''

The London Gazette ''The London Gazette'', known generally as ''The Gazette'', is one of the official journals of record or government gazettes of the Government of the United Kingdom, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, i ...

''. The published citation read: Paul is listed on the Chatby Memorial, in

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

, Egypt, which commemorates military personnel of the Commonwealth who died at sea during the First World War and have no known grave.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Paul, Carrick 1893 births 1919 deaths New Zealand World War I flying aces Australian World War I flying aces New Zealand recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) People from Thames, New Zealand Deaths by drowning Australian military personnel of World War I