Flight Lieutenant Godfrey Bremridge (1 March 1895 – 12 September 1941) was a World War I

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 ...

who was credited with five victories.

Early life

On 1 March 1895, Bremridge was born in

Winkleigh Winkleigh is a civil parish and small village in Devon, England. It is part of the local government area of Torridge District Council. The population of the parish at the 2011 census was 1,305, compared to 1,079 in 1901. The population of the el ...

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, England. His father was Reverend Henry Bremridge (1854–1913), vicar of Winkleigh. His mother was Dora Milne (1860–1895). Four weeks after his birth, his mother died. Bremridge was the second son. His elder brother was James Philip Alfred Bremridge, a Royal Navy officer. Before Bremridge was born, his sister Mildred Constance died in February 1895 at age two.

Career

Bremridge enlisted into the army, serving in the Army Service Corps in Egypt in 1914–15. At some point he returned to England, and transferred to the Royal Flying Corps where he was appointed a probationary temporary second lieutenant on 2 July 1917, being confirmed in the rank on 6 September 1917. Assigned to No. 65 Squadron, flying the

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the b ...

, between 18 December 1917 and 9 March 1918 he drove down three enemy aircraft, and destroyed two others,Shores ''et.al.'' (1990) and had a "share" of three victories with other pilots. He was promoted to acting-captain on 1 August 1918, and was awarded the Air Force Cross on 1 January 1919. After the war he emigrated to the Transvaal in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

where he started an orange farm, and became the father of two daughters and a son, John Henry, but returned to England in the mid-1930s. On 12 December 1935 he joined the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force (RAF) in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force ( ...

, where he was granted a commission as Flying Officer Class "C". On 22 January 1936 Bremridge, then living in

Weybridge Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge, Elmbridge district in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a cro ...

, Surrey, and Bernard L. Bremridge, a solicitor from

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

, founded Weybridge Air Services Ltd., a private company, to "carry on the business of carriers of passengers, goods and mails in aeroplanes, etc." However, on 26 April 1937 Bremridge was appointed manager of the sales department at Brooklands Aero Club, where he also worked as a flying instructor. During the Second World War he served as a pilot instructor.

List of aerial victories

Personal

Death

Bremridge was killed in a flying accident on 12 September 1941. He was buried at the churchyard of St Peter & St Paul at Sywell, Northamptonshire. Bremridge's brother James Philip Alfred Bremridge joined the Royal Navy, rising to the rank of lieutenant-commander before dying aboard in 1926, and is buried in Kalkara Naval Cemetery in Malta.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bremridge, Godfrey 1895 births 1941 deaths People from Winkleigh Royal Army Service Corps soldiers Royal Flying Corps officers British World War I flying aces Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) English aviators Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in England Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II Military personnel from Devon British Army personnel of World War I Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1941