Lieutenant James Knowles Jr. (1896–1971) 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 ...
credited with five aerial victories. He was one of the final aces in the war.
Knowles was a Harvard student who was accepted into the
U.S. Army Air Service in April 1917. In June 1918, he reported to the 95th Aero Squadron for duty as a
Spad XIII
The SPAD S.XIII is a French biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War, developed by ''Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés'' (SPAD) from the earlier and highly successful SPAD S.VII.
During early 1917, the French designer Louis Bé ...
pilot. Between 25 July and 8 November 1918, he shot down three German
Fokker D.VII
The Fokker D.VII is a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the '' Fokker-Flugzeugwerke''. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the second half of 1918. In service with the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the D.VII ...
s and two
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; one of the latter victories was shared with
Sumner Sewall
Sumner Sewall (June 17, 1897January 25, 1965) was an American Republican politician and airline executive who served as the 58th governor of Maine from 1941 to 1945. He began his aviation career during World War I as a fighter ace.
Life and car ...
and three other pilots. He came out of the war as an ace with the Distinguished Service Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Croix de Guerre, and the Aero Club of America Medal.
See also
*
List of World War I flying aces from the United States
The following is a list of flying aces from the United States of America who served in World War I.
Overview
Even before the United States entry into World War I in April 1917, many Americans volunteered to serve in the armed forces of Great B ...
References
Bibliography
* ''American Aces of World War I.'' Norman Franks, Harry Dempsey. Osprey Publishing, 2001. , .
External links
*
1896 births
1971 deaths
Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States)
American World War I flying aces
Harvard University alumni
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