Captain Edwin Louis Benbow (10 December 1895 – 30 May 1918) was an English

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 ...

during the

First World War 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 ...

, credited with eight victories, comprising six destroyed and one shared destroyed, and one 'out of control'. He was the only pilot to gain 'ace' status flying the Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.8 exclusively.

Family

His father Joseph was the head gardener for the Ilchester Estate in

Abbotsbury Abbotsbury is a village and civil parish in the English county of Dorset. The village is located around west southwest of Dorchester and inland from the English Channel coast. In the 2021 census the civil parish had a population of 451. A ...

, having been born on 6 March 1864 in Ombersley, Worcestershire. Joseph married German-born British subject Jane Caroline Brommer in 1886, in Nice, France, and their first child William was born in Cannes, in 1889. William died in Abbotsbury in 1918, and is buried in the churchyard there. Edwin was born in 1895 in Abbotsbury where his father is listed as 'Head Gardener (Not Domestic)' in the 1901 Census.

Wartime career

Benbow joined the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It was created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of the regiment, the ...

in February 1915, and served for a yearGuttman & Dempsey (2009), p.63. being commissioned a second lieutenant on 27 May 1915. He was appointed to be a flying officer (observer), effective 10 March 1916, before being seconded to the

Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...

on 15 April 1916. He served his first eight months in aviation as an observer/gunner. He then trained as a pilot, was appointed a

flying officer Flying officer (Fg Offr or F/O) is a junior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Flying officer is immediately ...

on 7 July 1916, and was assigned to 40 Squadron as an F.E.8 pilot. He achieved all his successes while with this squadron; on 20 October 1916, using F.E.8, Serial No. 7627, he destroyed an

Albatros D.II The Albatros D.II was a German fighter aircraft used during World War I. After a successful combat career in the early '' Jagdstaffeln'', it was gradually superseded by the Albatros D.III. Design and development Albatros designers Robert Thel ...

for his first victory. Two days later he set a German two-seater afire over

Vimy Vimy lemish: Wimi or ; ) is a commune in the French department of Pas-de-Calais. Located west of Vimy is the Canadian National Vimy Memorial dedicated to the Battle of Vimy Ridge and the Canadian soldiers who were killed during the First Wor ...

. On 16 November 1916 Benbow shot down an

Albatros An albatross is one of a family of large winged seabirds. Albatross or Albatros may also refer to: Animals * Albatross (butterfly) or ''Appias'', a genus of butterfly * Albatross (horse) (1968–1998), a Standardbred horse Literature * Albat ...

two-seater. On 4 December he downed another Albatros D.II. On the 20th, he felled another Albatros two-seater; Benbow thus became the only F.E.8 ace, and No. 7627 the only Royal Aircraft Factory F.E.8 to be involved in the shooting down of five or more enemy aircraft.Shores, et al, p. 73. On the early afternoon of 23 January 1917, Benbow was in the midst of a dogfight when his gun jammed. While clearing his weapon, he evaded a head-on assault by the

Red Baron Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a sec ...

, who went on to down Benbow's squadron comrade Lt. J. Hay for ''

Jasta 11 Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 11 ("No 11 Fighter Squadron"; commonly abbreviated to Jasta 11) was founded on 28 September 1916 from elements of 4 Armee's ''Kampfeinsitzerkommandos'' (or KEKs) 1, 2 and 3 and mobilized on 11 October as part o ...

''s first victory. Benbow did not succeed in returning to the attack on that occasion, but on 14 February using F.E.8 Serial No. A4871, he destroyed another Albatros D.II. His seventh victory came the following day, with Benbow's only "out of control" claim. On 6 March, Benbow and the Red Baron clashed againGuttman & Dempsey (2009), p.64–65, when nine F.E.8s of 40 Squadron fought five ''Jasta 11'' aircraft led by Richthofen. While the Baron was attacking a

Sopwith 1½ Strutter The Sopwith Strutter is a British single- or two-seat Multirole combat aircraft, multi-role biplane aircraft of the First World War.Lake 2002, p. 40. It was the first British two-seat tractor configuration, tractor fighter and the first Briti ...

, Benbow shot him down, forcing him to land near Hénin-Liétard with a damaged engine, spraying fuel from holed tanks, and seemingly on fire, for Benbow's eighth victory (although Richthofen survived). On 12 March, 40 Squadron began its re-equipment with

Nieuport 17 The Nieuport 17 C.1 (or Nieuport XVII C.1 in contemporary sources) is a French sesquiplane fighter aircraft, fighter designed and manufactured by the Nieuport company during World War I. An improvement over the Nieuport 11, it was a little large ...

"tractors". A week later, Benbow was

wounded in action Wounded in action (WIA) describes combatants who have been wounded while fighting in a combat zone during wartime, but have not been killed. Typically, it implies that they are temporarily or permanently incapable of bearing arms or continuing ...

by anti-aircraft shrapnel, ending his first combat assignment in France. Benbow would serve as an instructor in his time away from the front. He was appointed a

Flight Commander A flight commander is the leader of a constituent portion of an aerial squadron in aerial operations, often into combat. That constituent portion is known as a flight, and usually contains six or fewer aircraft, with three or four being a common ...

with the concomitant rank of Temporary Captain on 31 March 1917, and posted to

Billy Bishop Air Marshal William Avery Bishop, (8 February 1894 – 11 September 1956) was a Canadian flying ace of the First World War. He was officially credited with 72 victories, making him the top Canadian and British Empire ace of the war, and a ...

's No. 85 Squadron in May 1918. On the 30th while piloting

Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 is a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. It was developed at the Royal Aircraft Factory by a team consisting of Henry Folland, John Kenworthy and Major Frank Goodden. It was one of the ...

a, Serial No.C1861, he was shot down and killed by Hans-Eberhardt Gandert of '' Jasta 51''.Guttman & Dempsey (2009), p.66–67.

Honours and awards

;Military Cross : 2nd Lt. (temp. Lt.) Edwin Louis Benbow, Royal Field Artillery and Royal Flying Corps. : For conspicuous gallantry in action. He has on several occasions displayed great courage and skill, and has destroyed four enemy machines under difficult conditions.

References

Bibliography

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External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Benbow, Edwin 1895 births 1918 deaths Royal Air Force officers Military personnel from Dorset People from West Dorset District Royal Field Artillery officers Royal Flying Corps officers Royal Air Force personnel of World War I British World War I flying aces British military personnel killed in World War I Aviators killed by being shot down Recipients of the Military Cross Burials at Duhallow ADS Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery British Army personnel of World War I