Billy Bishop

Ken, the Nighthawk was a post-war aircraft. The Nieuports you're talking about were the 11/17/17bis/23/24 family. One can go into a detailed description of the differences, but it's particularly difficult to the average viewer to discrimate between them, particularly the 17/17bis/23/24 group.

Thanks for the info.
I remember in my reading that the Gremans would much sooner fight with the British airmen than the French. Perhaps Billy Bishop had something to do with that. From my information there was only a B.A.T. Basilisk fighter with a higher airspeed of 162 MPH compared from a A.B.C. 300 HP engine The Nieuport Highthawk had a A.B.C. 320 HP engine with a top speed of 151 MPH.

Cheers
Ken McKenzie
www.starapex.com

[Graeme]

Just to put the record straight, between March and August 1917, Bishop was credited with 47 victories, 36 of them on the Nieuport, the rest on the SE5a. The remaining 25 victories were claimed on the SE5 as the CO of 85 Sqn RAF, 27 May to 19 June 1918.

Bishop wasn't the only high-scorer using obsolescent equipment - between 26 May and 22 August 1917, Philip Fullard of 1 Sqn RFC got 27 victories, all on the Nieuport (Bishop got 28 in the same period); Fullard got another 13 Nieuport victories before he broke his leg in November.

Graeme

It has been decades ,since I read Bishops book,
but I think he prefered,the Neuports,to theSE5a
Baron vonTecumseh

I have to admit to not being very knowledgeable when it comes to Billy Bishop, but can anyone explain why he didn't score any victories between August 1917 to May 1918? This sort of long break seemed to happen to a lot of pilots. MvR was away for several months if I recall. So did they all get a long break then decide to come back?

[Graeme]

After getting the VC (Gazetted 11 August 1917), he was promoted Major and taken away from the front, only returning as CO of 85 Sqn in May 1918.

For a little Nieuport and Fullard info check out:-http://website.lineone.net/~r.gaugall/

Graeme thanks for the information I was perplexed with information I have from a book called Years of the sky Kings by Whitehorse an observer and fighter pilot during WW1. He says that Bishop shot up the German airport in June of 1917. from your information it makes sense that the year was 1918.
Nick
In August of 1917 the British had lost every Victoria Cross awarded airman they had and Bishop was ordered back to receive one. Not only was his VC awarded but for the first time in british history his Magesty the King pinned the Victoria Cross, The Distinguished Service order, and the Military Cross on the breast of captain William Avery Bishop.
The King smiled and said "You have been making a nuisance of yourself out there haven't you Captain"

I am going to quote a paragraph from Whitehorses book.

There never was so relentless a fighting airman in any war. When Bishop had gained every decoration that empire could bestow. King George the fifth and Winston Churchill ordered him back home. It required some deception to enforce the command. A few months later Bishop had inveigled his way back again, supposedly to command a new S.E.5 squadron with strict orders to stay behind the line and engage in administration work.
It was over the next twelve days when he was presumed to be leading indoctrination flights inside the allied balloon line that he collected his final twenty five kills. The day he was ordered home he shot down five enemy aircraft during one afternoon's foray.

Cheers
Ken McKenzie
www.starapex.com

a modest correction to Ken's latest post; the author you refer to was not Whitehorse but rather Whitehorsesass, sometimes also abbreviated as Whitehouse.

Well I have just found by reading a chronical of Canada of a newspaper article dated August 12, 1917 Headlining Victoria Cross goes to Billy Bishop. The article describes his attack on the German airfield. So Whitehousesass was right.
Cheers
Ken McKenzie
www.starapex.com