Biplane fighter aces

The Commonwealth

The Commonwealth produced 13 biplane fighter aces during the Second World War.

Biplane fighter aces:

Name Biplane victories Total no. of victories Note
Alan Boyd 6 6  
Charles Casbolt 5 13  
Homer Cochrane 7 7  
Nigel Cullen 6 16  
George Millar 'Paddy' Donaldson 6 6  
Joseph Fraser 10 10  
Donald Gregory 8 8  
Caesar Hull 5 6  
Edward 'Tap' Jones 5 5  
Thomas 'Pat' Pattle 15 50 Top Commonwealth biplane fighter aces
Lloyd Schwab 6 6  
Vincent 'Heimar' Stuckey 5 5  
William Vale 10 30  


The Shuttleworth Collection's Gloster Gladiator in the pre-war markings of 72 Squadron.
Click on the image to see it in full size.

The Commonwealth also produced 30 other aces with biplane victories.

Fighter aces with biplane claims:

Name Biplane victories Total no. of victories Note
Richard Acworth 4 7  
Wilfred Arthur 2 8  
Neville Bowker 2 10  
Brian Boyle 3 5  
George Burges 3 7  
Leonard Cottingham 4 11  
Ernest Dean 2 5  
Patrick Dunn 2 6  
Charles Fry 4 5  
Jack Groves 4 6  
Edward Hewett 3 16  
John Hewitson 1 5  
George Kettlewell 3 5  
Sidney Linnard 2 6  
Robin Pare 2 5  
John Perrin 1 probable 6  
Alan Rawlinson 1 probable 8  
William Riley 1 9  
James Sanders 1 damaged 6 (+10?)  
John Scoular 1 14  
Jack Sewell 1 5-6  
Gordon Steege 3 8  
Peter Turnbull 1 probable 10  
John Waters 2 4-5-6  
Gerald Westenra 2 8  
Basil Whall 1 7  
Peter Wickham 4 7 (+3?)  
William 'Timber' Woods 2 6  
Vernon Woodward 4 18  
Peter Wykeham-Barnes 3 14  

Fighter pilots with biplane claims:

Name Biplane victories Total no. of victories Note
Richard James Abrahams 2 2  
Arthur Frederick Appleby 1 1  
Edwin Banks 2 2  
George Barker 1 2  
Leonard Bartley 2 2  
Richard John Bennett 3 3  
Michael Amor Bentley 1 shared 1 shared  
Robert Blake 1 shared 1  
Ephraim Hugh Brown 1 1  
Harry Brown 3 3  
Peter Charles Lindsay Brunton 1 1  
Hendrik Johannes Piet Burger 1 1  
Richard Cleaver 1 2  
John Cockburn 1 damaged 1 damaged  
John Coetzer 2 2  
Thomas Condon 1 1  
Samuel Cooper 1 1  
Patric Coote 1 1  
Alfred Costello 2 2  
Dudley Craig 1 shared 2 shared  
J. Craig 1 shared 1 shared  
Michael Alexander Craig-Adams 1 1  
John William Donaldson 1 1  
Peter Townley Dowding 1 shared 3  
Andrew Duncan 1 4  
William Henry Dunwoodie 2 2  
Ralph Evers-Swindell 2 2  
Jack Falkson 1 shared 1 shared  
Michael Fell 1 shared 3 shared  
George Hermann Joseph Feeny 1 shared 1 shared  
Wanklyn Flower 1 2  
Charles Gaden 1 1  
Alan Gatward 2 2  
H. H. Geraty 2 2  
'Jock' Gillen 1 1  
Greg Graham 2 3  
Herman Francis Grant Ede 2 2  
Anthony Gray-Worcester 4 4  
Oliver Green 1 1  
Jack Hamlyn 1 3  
Henry Harrison 2 2  
Gordon Haywood 1 2  
Gerald Herrtage 1 1  
William Hickey 1 1  
Lancelot Charles Henry Hope 1 3  
Frederick William Hosken 2 probable 2 probable  
Louis Jacobsen 4 4  
E. A. Jarvis 1 1  
Walter Thomas Jeffrey 1 1  
John Jones 1 shared 1  
Charles Keighly-Peach 3 3  
Gerald Le Mesurier 1 3  
Kenneth Keith 1 1  
Herbert Kitchener 5 shared 5 shared  
Anthony Lydekker 1 1  
Guy Desmond D’Esterre Lyver 1 shared 1 shared  
John Filmer Marmont 1 shared 1 shared  
Patrick Massy 1 3  
Robert Seayears May 1 1  
Douglas Gordon Haig McDonald 1 shared 1 shared  
Ian McLachlan 1 1  
Sidney Robert McNamara 1 1  
George Milligan 2 2  
Stuart Mills 1 1  
A. B. Mitchell 1 probable 1 probable  
O. J. Roger Nicolls 1 shared 1 shared  
David Neil Hamilton Ogilvie 1 shared 1 shared  
Denis Parnall 1 2  
Geoff Peacock 1 shared 1 shared  
Blake Pelly 1 1  
Waldo Barker Price-Owen 2 probable 2 probable  
Phillip Purdy 1 1  
Sidney Richens 2 2  
Patrick Rushmere 1 shared 1 shared  
Albert Sabey 1 shared 3 shared  
John Sample 1 shared 1  
Schalk van Schalkwyk 1 1  
Frederick William Charles Shute 1 shared 1 shared  
Peter Simmonds 1 1  
Ronald Slater 2 2  
Richard Smeeton 1 shared 4 shared  
Denis Herbert Vincent Smith 1 probable 1 probable  
H. P. Smith 1 1  
Leslie Smith 1 1  
Robert Higson Smith 1 1  
William Eric John Stockwell 1 shared 1 shared  
Peter Strahan 1 1  
Frankie Stubbs 1 shared 1 shared  
Harold Sykes 3 3  
Alfred Theobald 1 shared 6 shared  
Leonard le Clues Theron 1 2  
Eldon Trollip 1 shared 1  
Cecil Hugh Livingstone Tulloch 1 1  
Trevor Martin Vaughan 1 1  
Servaas de Kock Viljoen 1 1  
Ron Walter 1 1  
James Watson 1 probable 1 probable  
Arthur Weller 1 shared probable 2  
Stanley Wells 1 4  
William Whitty 1 shared 2  
William Taylor Forest Wightman 3 3  
Timothy Wildblood 1 shared 3  
Alvin Williams 1 1  
Richard Winter 1 damaged 1 damaged  
Eric Woods 2 4  
Anthony Nugent Young 1 shared 1 shared  
Kenneth Henry Osborne Young 1 4  

Gloster Gladiator in Commonwealth squadron service
Gloster Gladiator claims in the Norwegian Campaign 1940
Gloster Gladiators and Fiat CR.42s over Malta 1940-42