923478a

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Daily Sketch/REX (923478a) Biplane Wwi. Inglis Sees Mannock Die. 'mick' Mannock Of Great Britain Routinely Shared Victories With Other Pilots Or Didn't Bother Submitting Claims For Enemy Aircraft He'd Shot Down In Combat. After Selflessly Sharing His 61st Victory With Donald Inglis A Newcomer From New Zealand Who Had Yet To Score Mannock Was Killed When His Aircraft Was Shot Down In Flames By Machine Gun Fire From The Ground. Inglis Was Also Brought Down By Ground Fire But Survived. Major Edward 'mick' Mannock Vc Dso Mc Royal Air Force.. He Was According To One Of His Fellow Fighter Pilots A Brilliant And Ruthless Leader The Finest Of Air Tacticians And Patrol Leaders As Well As The Most Loveable Of Characters. Those That Flew With Him Regarded Major 'mick' Mannock Vc As The Leading British Ace Of The First World War Yet The Circumstances Surrounding His Death In July 1918 Are Still Controversial And To This Day He Lies In An Unmarked Grave. Born On 24 May 1887 The Son Of A Serving British Army Nco Mannock Was In Turkey On The Outbreak Of The First World War.on Repatriation He Joined The Ramc And Then Obtained A Commission In The Royal Engineers Before Transferring To The Royal Flying Corps In 1916. His Operational Career Began In April 1917 With A Posting To No 40 Squadron. By The Time He Joined No 74 Squadron As A Flight Commander In February 1918 He Had Been Credited With 16 Enemy Aircraft. Flying Se5s He Claimed A Further 36 Aerial Victories Before He Was Promoted And Transferred To No 85 Squadron Based At St Omer. Mannock Took Over Command From Major Billy Bishop Also A Leading Ace On 18 June 1918. He Soon Built No 85 Squadron Into A Strong Team Rather Than A Collection Of Individuals. In So Doing He Added At Least 8 Further Victories To His Score In A Matter Of A Few Weeks. At Dawn On 26 July 1918 Mannock Got Airborne Early From St Omer In Company With Lieutenant Donald Inglis A Recently Arrived Pilot Unfamiliar With Air Fighting...