Major John Bowley Quested (14 December 1893 – 11 March 1948) was a

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 ...

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 England. He was credited with eight aerial victories, the most notable being his triumph over Gustav Leffers.

World War I service

Quested was commissioned as a temporary second lieutenant in the Army Service Corps on 11 November 1914. In April 1915, he began flying as an observer/gunner in 11 Squadron of 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 ...

, and was promoted to lieutenant on 1 December 1915. On 6 July 1916 he was appointed a flying officer, and transferred to the

General List The General Service Corps (GSC) is a corps of the British Army. Role The role of the corps is to provide specialists, who are usually on the Special List or General List. These lists were used in both World Wars for specialists and those not allo ...

, to become a pilot of the Royal Aircraft Factory FE.2bs of 11 Squadron. He scored his first aerial victory on 16 August 1916, driving a

Roland C Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was milit ...

two-seater reconnaissance biplane down out of control over

Fampoux Fampoux () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France east of Arras. Population Notable people * Paul Verlaine, poet spent his holidays there for several years, as his mother's family were from Famp ...

. On 2 September, he repeated and doubled the feat, driving down two Rolands over

Bapaume Bapaume (original Dutch name Batpalmen) is a Communes of France, commune in the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region of northern France. Geography Bapaume is a farming and light indus ...

. On the 15th, he destroyed another enemy fighter aircraft in the same area, the same day as being 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 rank of captain. A week later, on 22 September, he became an ace by shooting down and destroying an

Aviatik C Automobil und Aviatik AG was a German aircraft manufacturer during World War I. The company was established at Mülhausen (today in France) in 1909 and soon became one of the country's leading producers of aircraft. It relocated to Freiburg in 1 ...

two-seater over Longeast Wood. On 20 December 1916, Quested drove an

Albatros D.I The Albatros D.I was an early fighter aircraft designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Albatros Flugzeugwerke. It was the first of the Albatros D types which equipped the majority of the German and Austrian fighter squadrons ( ...

down out of control over

Monchy-le-Preux Monchy-le-Preux () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France southeast of Arras. History During World War I ten Commonwealth soldiers, from Newfoundland territory while still independent from Canada ...

, and a week later, on the 27th, he supposedly destroyed another over Wancourt, killing the pilot. However, his observer identified it as a

Nieuport 16 The Nieuport 16 C.1 (or Nieuport XVI C.1 in contemporary sources)The C in the designation indicates that it is a ''chasseur'' or fighter, and the 1 indicates the number of crew members. was a French World War I single-seat sesquiplane fighter air ...

; it seems a captured French aircraft was being used against them. This seventh victim of Quested was German ace Gustav Leffers. In turn, about an hour later, Quested was forced down behind British lines by another German ace, Wilhelm Cymera.Guttman & Dempsey (2009), p. 49. On 27 January 1917, he drove down an opposing fighter over

Beaurains Beaurains () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region in northern France. Geography A suburban town located 3 miles (5 km) south of Arras at the junction of the N17 with the D5 road. History The first c ...

for his eighth victory; his final tally was three enemy planes destroyed and five driven down. On 13 February, he was awarded the Military Cross, his citation reading: :Temporary Captain John Bowley Quested, RFC. :For conspicuous gallantry in action. He manoeuvred his machine with great skill, and thereby enabled his observer to bring down a hostile machine. He has on many previous occasions displayed great courage and ability. The ''Croix de Guerre'' from France followed on 1 May 1917. A crash in July 1917 ended Quested's flying career, although he continued to serve in non-flying command positions for the duration of the war. He was appointed a squadron commander with the rank of major on 27 October 1917, and was commander of No. 1 Aerial Gunnery Range. He was wounded in February 1918, and after recovering commanded No. 2 Aeroplane Supply Depot until the end of the war.

Postwar

Quested reputedly served in Germany and India. Differing reports have him commanding 79 Squadron in 1919, or serving in 48 Squadron in

Quetta Quetta is the capital and largest city of the Pakistani province of Balochistan. It is the ninth largest city in Pakistan, with an estimated population of over 1.6 million in 2024. It is situated in the south-west of the country, lying in a ...

that same year. He eventually left the RAF, being transferred to the unemployed list on 18 March 1920, and retired to

East Anglia East Anglia is an area of the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, with parts of Essex sometimes also included. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, ...

to farm. Quested died on 11 March 1948 and is buried alongside his father, John Egerton Quested (1866–1943), in the churchyard of St Martin's Church,

Cheriton, Kent Cheriton is a northern suburb of Folkestone, in the Folkestone and Hythe District, Folkestone and Hythe, in the county of Kent, England. It is the location of the English terminal of the Channel Tunnel as well as of the major army barracks of Sh ...

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Quested, John 1893 births 1948 deaths British Army personnel of World War I People from Elham, Kent Royal Army Service Corps officers Royal Flying Corps officers Royal Air Force personnel of World War I British World War I flying aces Recipients of the Military Cross British recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Military personnel from Kent Burials in Kent