James Francis Edwards
James Francis Edwards | |
|---|---|
Wing Commander | |
| Battles/wars | World War II
|
| Awards | Mention in Despatches Canadian Forces' Decoration |
James Francis Edwards,
Early life
Born in
World War II
Sergeant Edwards was posted to 94 Squadron RAF of 223 Wing in January 1942 flying the Curtiss Kittyhawk. On 23 March, he flew his first operational trip, during which he shot down his first enemy aircraft, a Messerschmitt Bf 109. In May, he was posted to No. 260 Squadron RAF, and saw intensive action for the rest of 1942. By September, he had 6 "kills" and was commissioned, jumping four grades to the rank of flight lieutenant. He was awarded a Distinguished Flying Medal and Distinguished Flying Cross by the start of 1943, by which time Edwards was a flight commander. His tour finished in May 1943, total claims made being 17 aircraft shot down and several ground kills; in fact, German records show Edwards underclaimed - 22 victories had been confirmed by German records.[1] One of Edwards' victims during the North African campaign was famous Luftwaffe experten Otto Schulz (51 victories), who was shot down by the Canadian ace on 17 June 1942.[2] On 3 September 1942, Edwards likely damaged Hans-Joachim Marseille's Bf 109 in combat. Marseille was the highest scoring pilot in North Africa, and shot down more Western Allied aircraft than any other German pilot.[3] Three days later, Edwards was the pilot who was believed to have shot down and killed Günter Steinhausen. Though Edwards claimed only a damaged enemy aircraft, it appears this is another victory for which he did not receive full credit.[4]
In November 1943, Edwards was posted to
After leave in Canada, Edwards returned to the Western Front, flying Spitfire XVIs as the commanding officer of 127 RCAF Wing in 1945. On 3 May, he shared in the destruction of a Junkers Ju 88, just a few days before VE Day. He finished the war with a total of 373 operational sorties without being shot down by the enemy.
According to Shores and Williams' Aces High, his final wartime score was 15 + 3 shared destroyed, with 9 more destroyed on the ground. Brown and Lavigne's Canadian Wing Commander credits him with 19 victories, 2 shared, 6.5 probable, 17 damaged and 12 destroyed on the ground. During an interview, Edwards himself specified that he had 19 confirmed victories during the war.
Post-war
Edwards stayed in the RCAF until after amalgamation and retired from the
In 1983, Edwards and Michel Lavigne published a book about his wartime experiences entitled Kittyhawk pilot: Wing Commander J.F. (Stocky) Edwards.
Also in 2009, Edwards was honoured as one of the 100 most influential Canadians in aviation and had his name included with the others on the 2009
Edwards died on 14 May 2022, at the age of 100.[6]
Vintage Wings of Canada
As part of their continued effort to honour and commemorate his achievements (along with those of all veterans), Vintage Wings of Canada has decorated their P-40N in the markings flown by "Stocky" in Africa. On 19 September 2009, Vintage Wings took him for a flight over Ottawa in this P-40 giving him a chance to fly it as well.[7]
Vintage Wings has also published stories on Stocky Edwards including the following:
Decorations
- Distinguished Flying Medal
- Distinguished Flying Cross (UK)and Bar
- Mentioned in Dispatches
- Canadian Forces' Decoration and Two Clasps
- Member of Order of Canada 10 December 2004
- Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal March 2012[10]
- Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame member. May 2013 [11]
- Legion of Honour, France. Chevalier (Knight). 28 November 2014
References
- ^ Tate 2008, p. 124.
- ^ [1] [permanent dead link]
- ^ Tate 2008, p. 165. (note 20)
- ^ Heaton and Lewis 2012, p. 155.
- ^ The transcript of this interview can be found on the site of Veterans Affairs Canada.
- ^ Little, Simon (15 May 2022). "B.C.'s 'Stocky' Edwards, top Canadian ace of WWII's Western Desert campaign dies". Global News Canada. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
- ^ Airshowstuff Magazine. Sept. 2009. Pages 80-81
- ^ "Vintage Wings of Canada, Dave O'Malley".
- ^ "Vintage Wings of Canada, Dave Hadfield".
- ^ "Comox Valley Record - Comox Valley men receive Diamond Jubilee Medals - Mobile Edition". Archived from the original on 3 May 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
- ^ Canada Aviation Hall of Fame, "Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame - Wetaskiwin, Alberta - CAHF". Archived from the original on 29 September 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2013., Members List
- Ralph, Wayne (2005). Aces, warriors and wingmen: the firsthand accounts of Canada's fighter pilots in the Second World War. John Wiley & Sons Canada Ltd.. ISBN 0-470-83590-7.
- Tate, Robert. Hans-Joachim Marseille: An Illustrated Tribute to the Luftwaffe's "Star of Africa". Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing, 2008. ISBN 978-0-7643-2940-1.
- Heaton, Colin and Lewis, Anne-Marie Lewis. The Star of Africa: The Story of Hans Marseille, the Rogue Luftwaffe Ace. Zenith Press, London. 2012. ISBN 978-0760343937
- Hehner, Barbara. The Desert Hawk. Harper-Collins Books, Canada, 2005. ISBN 978-1-443-40116-6
External links
- A biography of Edwards at acesofww2.com
- Century of Flight bio on James F. Edwards
- A detailed biog and informative of the Desert air war in general
 Canadian World War II flying aces with 10+ aerial victories | |
|---|---|
| 25+ |
|
| 20–24 |
|
| 15–19 |
|
| 10–14 |
|
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
