Albert Ball, standing in front of a Caudron G.3.

Ball's grave

Albert Ball, VC, DSO & 2 Bars, MC, Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur, Order of St. George (4th class) (August 14, 1896 - May 7, 1917) was an English First World War fighter pilot and recipient of the Victoria Cross. At the time of his death, he was the leading Allied ace with 44 victories^[1] and only trailed the Germans' top ace, Manfred Von Richthofen. He ended up tied for 11th place with Captain J. Gillmore in the top 20 World War One pilots in the British Empire. ^[2] Image File history File links Download high resolution version (809x1200, 497 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Albert Ball ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (809x1200, 497 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Albert Ball ... The Caudron G.3 was a single engined French biplane built by Caudron. ... Grave photo of Victoria Cross recipient Albert Ball, migrated from the Victoria Cross Reference site with permission. ... Grave photo of Victoria Cross recipient Albert Ball, migrated from the Victoria Cross Reference site with permission. ... The Victoria Cross (VC) is a military decoration awarded for valour in the face of the enemy to members of armed forces of some Commonwealth countries and previous British Empire territories. ... DSO medal The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other Commonwealth countries, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat. ... The Military Cross (MC) is the third level military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Army and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries. ... Chiang Kai-sheks Légion dhonneur. ... The Order of St. ... is the 226th day of the year (227th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1896 (MDCCCXCVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar). ... is the 127th day of the year (128th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1917 (MCMXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar (see: 1917 Julian calendar). ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total 130... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... The Victoria Cross (VC) is a military decoration awarded for valour in the face of the enemy to members of armed forces of some Commonwealth countries and previous British Empire territories. ... Look up ally in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... “Red Baron” redirects here. ... The British Empire in 1897, marked in pink, the traditional colour for Imperial British dominions on maps. ...

Biography

Born in Nottingham and educated at The King's School, Grantham, Nottingham High School and Trent College.^[3] Ball joined the 7th (Robin Hood) Battalion, The Sherwood Foresters (The Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) at the start of the First World War. While in England, he took private flying lessons at Hendon. He was seconded to the Royal Flying Corps in 1915 and trained at Norwich, but was then sent to the RFC Central Flying School where he was awarded his wings on January 26, 1916. He was sent to France three weeks later, to No. 13 Squadron RFC, flying the B.E.2c. On occasion, he managed to pilot the squadron's single seat Bristol Scout, finding the freedom of independent operations far more to his liking. His aggressive fighting spirit was actively encouraged by his Commanding Officer. In May 1916, he was posted to 11 Squadron, flying a mix of F.E.2bs and Nieuport 11 single seater biplanes. Nottingham is a city, unitary authority, and county town of Nottinghamshire in the East Midlands of England. ... The Kings School, is an English educational institution in Grantham, Lincolnshire with an unbroken history on the same site since the date of its endowment as one of the last acts of Richard Foxe in 1528. ... Nottingham High School is a leading UK independent fee-paying boys school situated about a mile north of Nottingham city centre. ... Trent College is a Co-Educational, Public Boarding School in Long Eaton, Derbyshire. ... The Robin Hood (T) Battalion was a unit of the British Territorial Army. ... The Sherwood Foresters (Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire Regiment) was formed during the Childers Reforms in 1881 from the amalgamation of the 45th (Nottinghamshire) Regiment of Foot and the 95th (Derbyshire) Regiment of Foot . ... Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... For other places with the same name, see Hendon (disambiguation). ... The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of World War I. Origin and Early History Formed by Royal Warrant on May 13, 1912, the RFC superseded the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers. ... Norwich (IPA: //) is a city in East Anglia, in Eastern England. ... The Central Flying School is the Royal Air Forces primary institution for the training of flying instructors. ... is the 26th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... No. ... The Royal Aircraft Factory BE.2 (Blériot Experimental) was the first military aircraft put into service by Britain. ... The Bristol Scout was a simple, single seat, rotary-radial engined biplane that functioned as one of the very first UK-built and designed fighter aircraft for the British armed forces in the first two years of World War I, even though it was originially intended to be a sporting... F.E.2b in profile. ... The Nieuport 11 was designed in response to the Fokker Scourge of 1915. ...

Transferring with part of 11 Squadron to No. 60 Squadron RFC in August (and now flying the improved Nieuport 17), the rest of 1916 saw Ball make steady claims for German aircraft shot down. Ball primarily fought as a 'lone-wolf', carefully stalking his prey from below until he was close enough to pull down his top-wing mounted Lewis gun on its Foster mounting and fire upwards into the belly of the enemy's fuselage. No. ... The Nieuport 17 was a biplane fighter aircraft manufactured by Nieuport, and prominent during the World War I era. ... The Lewis Gun is a pre-World War I era squad automatic weapon/machine gun of American design that was most widely used by the forces of the British Empire. ... In early 1916 Sergeant Foster of No. ...

On the ground too, Ball was very much a loner, preferring to live in his own hut away from the other squadron members. He spent his off-duty hours tending his small allotment garden and practising the violin. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

He was awarded his first decoration, the Military Cross, on June 27, 1916. By October, Ball had become the first person in the British Army to be awarded a DSO with two bars. By mid October, Ball was sent to England for a well-earned rest. By now a national hero, the young aviator had destroyed 13 aircraft (including one balloon), sent one aircraft 'down out of control' and forced a further 19 to land. He then became flight commander in the newly formed No. 56 Squadron RFC, which was the first unit equipped with the new S.E.5 scout. Ball considered the aircraft under-developed, and was allowed to retain a Nieuport 17 for his own use when the squadron went to France in April 1917. His S.E.5 was - on his orders - extensively modified, with both the cockpit 'greenhouse' and Vickers machine gun removed and the windscreen lowered to improve speed and performance. Ball's aircraft was easy to recognise, as he had a red propeller boss from an LVG he had shot down fitted to his aircraft. The Military Cross (MC) is the third level military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Army and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries. ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1916 (MCMXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Number 56 (R) Squadron is one of the oldest and most successful squadrons in the RAF, with battle honours from many of the significant air campaigns of both world wars. ... The Royal Aircraft Factory S.E.5 was a British biplane fighter aircraft of the First World War. ... The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a name primarily used to refer to the water-cooled . ...

Victoria Cross

He was 20 years old and a Temporary Captain when he performed the deeds for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross, on 8 June, 1917. Captain is a rank or title with various meanings. ... June 8 is the 159th day of the year (160th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

From 26 April to 6 May 1917, flying over France, Captain Ball took part in 26 combats, in the course of which he destroyed 11 hostile aircraft, brought two down out of control, and forced several others to land. Flying alone, on one occasion, he fought six hostile machines; twice he fought five, and once four. When leading two other British planes he attacked an enemy formation of eight - on each of these occasions he brought down at least one enemy plane, and several times his plane was badly damaged. On returning with a damaged plane, he always had to be restrained from immediately going out in another. is the 116th day of the year (117th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 126th day of the year (127th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article concerns the process of flying. ...

Death

On the evening of 7 May near Douai, eleven British aircraft from No. 56 Squadron RFC, including Albert Ball, encountered German fighters from Jasta 11. A running battle was fought in deteriorating visibility, and the aircraft became scattered. Both Lothar von Richthofen and Ball both crashed behind German lines. Ball was killed, but von Richthofen survived and was credited by the Germans with shooting Ball down. There is however some doubt as to exactly what happened, especially as Lothar von Richthofen's victory claim was for a Sopwith Triplane rather than an S.E.5, as flown by Ball at this time (the two types are very unlikely to be confused). German propaganda of the time made great play of German aerial aces, and von Richthofen may even have been ordered to make the claim. It is just possible that Ball was not shot down at all, but became disoriented and lost control^[4], a victim of a form of temporary vertigo, that has claimed other pilots since, or that he was shot down, but by a less famous German pilot. It is unlikely we will ever know for certain. is the 127th day of the year (128th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Douai is a city and commune in the north of France in the département of Nord, of which it is a sous-préfecture. ... The Jagd-Staffel 11 (Pursuit-Squadron 11), also known as the Richthofen Squadron was founded in September 1916 ,as part of the German Air forces expansion programme, forming permanent specialised air fighting squadrons or Jastas. Its first commander was Oberleutnant Rudolf Lang, although Jasta 11s first months of... Lothar von Richthofen (right) with elder brother Manfred Lothar-Siegfried Freiherr von Richthofen (27 September 1894 – 4 July 1922) was a German First World War fighter ace credited with 40 victories during the war. ... Sopwith Triplane Sopwith Triplane in the Aero Space Museum of Calgary. ... Vertigo, a specific type of dizziness, is a major symptom of a balance disorder. ...

His official tally of claims was 1 ballon, 27 and 1 shared aircraft destroyed, 6 'out of control', and 9 'forced to land'.^[5]

His Victoria Cross is displayed at the Sherwood Foresters Museum (The Castle, Nottingham, England). Nottingham Castle is a castle in Nottingham, England. ...

He was just 20 years old at the time of his death.

Notes

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ [2]
3. ^ Albert Ball V.C.. The Lenton Listener (Issue 14, September - October 1981). Retrieved on 2006-10-08.
4. ^ [3]
5. ^ 'Above the Trenches'; C. Shores, N.Franks, R. Guest, (Grub Street) 1990

For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... is the 281st day of the year (282nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

• Albert Ball, VC (Chaz Bowyer, 1994)
• Albert Ball, VC (Gillian Elias, 1993)
• Monuments to Courage (David Harvey, 1999)
• The Register of the Victoria Cross (This England, 1997)
• VCs of the First World War - Air VCs (P G Cooksley, 1999)
• Barker, Ralph (2002). The Royal Flying Corps in World War I. Robinson. ISBN 1-84119-470-0. 
• Full bio

Monuments To Courage is a book by David Harvey, published in 1999. ... The Register of the Victoria Cross A list of all 1350 Victoria Crosses with details of each recipient ISBN 0906324033 Publisher: Cheltenham: This England Books; 1981 Size: 8vo - over 7 3/4 - 9 3/4 Pagination: 303 + 4. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Albert Ball

1. ^ [4]
2. ^ [5]
3. ^ Albert Ball V.C.. The Lenton Listener (Issue 14, September - October 1981). Retrieved on 2006-10-08.
4. ^ [6]
5. ^ 'Above the Trenches'; C. Shores, N.Franks, R. Guest, (Grub Street) 1990

• Albert Ball - British Flying Ace of World War 1
• Albert Ball
• Burial location of Albert Ball "France"
• Location of Albert Ball's Victoria Cross "Sherwood Foresters Museum"
• Albert Ball
• News Item "(French school children honour WWI Fighter Ace)"
• [7]"A Song about Albert Ball"

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... The Wikimedia Commons (also called Wikicommons) is a repository of free content images, sound and other multimedia files. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ... is the 281st day of the year (282nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Further reading

• David Gunby, ‘Ball, Albert (1896–1917)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 2 July 2006