Winged Warfare

Bill Martin is a graduate history student at the University of
Saskatchewan.

Air Marshal William C. (Billy) Bishop is credited with the third-highest
number of enemy “kills” of any pilot serving with the Allied forces
in World War I. The 72 enemy aircraft Billy shot down ensured that he
became a genuine Canadian hero. His autobiography, first published in
1918 and reprinted here as an Air Combat Classic, retells the exploits
that garnered him every British decoration available to combat aviators.
As a hero, and consequently a part of Canada’s cultural mythology,
Bishop’s life deserves to be preserved through this book.

By examining Bishop and his exploits over France, the reader can
capture not only the flavor of the combat these “knights of the air”
waged, but also the flavor of the hearts that his exploits captured. The
cavalier account of his many battles and the laughing-off of brushes
with death and disaster reflect the audience Bishop was addressing—an
audience that celebrated the “sport” of “fair hunting” for the
despicable “Hun,” and would accept no fear in the face of the enemy.
Bishop duly exhibits the gallantry expected of a “knight” and hero,
euphemistically referring to dangerous anti-aircraft fire and rockets as
more-friendly-sounding “archies” and “flaming sausages.” He
casually refers to the horror and destruction of the grand battle as
“the little brown figures moving below me . . . men going to the glory
of victory or the glory of death.”

Winged Warfare is a personal and important account of aerial combat in
its infancy and innocence. The story is a product of a culture that
celebrated gallantry and courage when there was little else to
celebrate. As telling as it is about the writer, Bishop’s story is
equally telling about the culture that made him a hero. It deserves to
be read as a part of our cultural heritage.