Harry Gosford Reeves
| Harry Gosford Reeves | |
|---|---|
| Born |
30 September 1896 Staines, Middlesex, England |
| Died | 24 January 1918 (aged 21) |
| Buried at | Communal Cemetery Extension, Bailleul, Nord, France (50°44′17″N 2°44′36″E / 50.73806°N 2.74333°ECoordinates: 50°44′17″N 2°44′36″E / 50.73806°N 2.74333°E) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | British Army |
| Years of service | 1917–1918 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | No. 1 Squadron RFC |
| Battles/wars |
World War I • Western Front |
Captain Harry Gosford Reeves (30 September 1896 – 24 January 1918) was a British World War I flying ace credited with 13 aerial victories while flying various models of Nieuport aircraft. He was killed in a crash while flight testing a Nieuport 27.[1]
Biography
Reeves was born in Staines, Middlesex,[1] and educated at St. John's College, Hurstpierpoint, Sussex.[2]
He joined the Royal Flying Corps in early 1917 as a temporary second lieutenant (on probation), and was appointed a flying officer on 19 May.[3] Reeves was then posted to No. 1 Squadron, flying a Nieuport 23, where he quickly began to gain success in the air, accounting for two enemy aircraft in June, one in July and three in August. Another three victories come in September,[1] and he celebrated being appointed a flight commander with the temporary rank of captain on 9 October 1917,[4] by accounting for another enemy aircraft, bringing his total to eight. He then flew a Nieuport 27, gaining five more victories, the last being on 18 November 1917.[1]
On 24 January 1918 Reeves was flight testing a new aircraft behind the British lines in France, when it crashed and he was killed.[2] He is buried in the Communal Cemetery Extension, Bailleul, Nord, France.[5]
List of aerial victories
| No. | Date/Time | Aircraft/ Serial No. |
Opponent | Result | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 June 1917 @ 1145 | Nieuport 23[6] (B1650) | Albatros D.III | Destroyed | Oosttaverne | Shared with Lieutenants Louis Jenkin & Charles Lavers. |
| 2 | 26 June 1917 @ 2100 | Nieuport 23 (B1630) | Albatros D.III | Driven down out of control | Becelaere | |
| 3 | 31 July 1917 @ 1425 | Nieuport 23 (B1672) | Albatros D.V | Destroyed | South of Terhand | |
| 4 | 13 August 1917 @ 0920 | Nieuport 23 (B1672) | Albatros C | Driven down out of control | Houthem | Shared with Captain Thomas Hazell. |
| 5 | 14 August 1917 @ 1910 | Nieuport 23 (B3558) | Albatros D.V | Destroyed | South of Moorslede | |
| 6 | 21 August 1917 @ 1910 | Nieuport 23 (B1672) | Albatros D.V | Driven down out of control | Houthoulst | |
| 7 | 4 September 1917 @ 1115 | Nieuport 23 (B1672) | DFW C | Driven down out of control | South of Polygon Wood | |
| 8 | 9 September 1917 @ 1035 | Nieuport 23 (B1672) | Rumpler C | Driven down out of control | East of Polygon Wood | |
| 9 | 11 September 1917 @ 1815 | Nieuport 27 (B3630) | Albatros D.V | Driven down out of control | Houthoulst Forest | |
| 10 | 9 October 1917 @ 1515 | Nieuport 27 (B6774) | Albatros D.V | Destroyed in flames | South of Polygon Wood | |
| 11 | 15 October 1917 @ 1200 | Nieuport 27 (B6774) | DFW C | Destroyed | Comines | |
| 12 | 17 October 1917 @ 1430 | Nieuport 27 (B6774) | Albatros D.V | Driven down out of control | Geluwe | |
| 13 | 18 November 1917 @ 0815 | Nieuport 27 (B6774) | DFW C | Driven down out of control | Becelaere | |
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Harry Gosford Reeves". The Aerodrome. 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
- 1 2 "Personals: Casualties". Flight. X (478): 210. 21 February 1918. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
- ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 30141. p. 6138. 19 June 1917.
- ↑ "The British Air Services: Appointments". Flight. IX (462): 1146. 1 November 1917. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
- ↑ "Casualty Details: Reeves, H. G.". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. 2015. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
- ↑ "Royal Flying Corps - Nieuport serials". airhistory.org.uk. 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2015.