Group Captain Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force, where it originated, as well as the air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. It is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank i ...

Frederick Sowrey, (25 July 1893 – 21 October 1968) was a British aviator, military officer, and a

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

credited with thirteen aerial victories. He was most noted for his first victory, when he shot down Zeppelin L32 during its bombing raid on England. Having risen rapidly in rank during the war, he remained in service until 1940.

Early life and infantry service

Frederick Sowrey was born to Susan M. 'Cissy' Sowrey on 25 August 1893 in

Twigworth Twigworth is a small village near Gloucester in Tewkesbury (borough), the Borough of Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England. The population of Twigworth Parish was 340 people in mid-2014 in 170 households. A planning application for 725 new homes ...

, England. He was one of three sons of John William Sowrey, Deputy Chief Inspector of Inland Revenue. Frederick was home schooled until he was thirteen. He then won a scholarship to

King's College School King's College School, also known as Wimbledon, KCS, King's and KCS Wimbledon, is a public school in Wimbledon, southwest London, England. The school was founded in 1829 by King George IV, as the junior department of King's College London and ...

, Wimbledon. He earned a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree there, and was completing his graduate study when the First World War began. He immediately volunteered for military service; on 31 August 1914 he was commissioned as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the

Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wars ...

. He went to France as an infantry officer, and was wounded at the

Battle of Loos The Battle of Loos took place from 1915 in France on the Western Front, during the First World War. It was the biggest British attack of 1915, the first time that the British used poison gas and the first mass engagement of New Army units. Th ...

in 1915. After three months in hospital, he was invalided out, turned around, and joined the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

in December 1915.

Royal Flying Corps

Sowrey was posted to No. 39 (Home Defence) Squadron RFC on 17 June 1916; he was duly appointed a flying officer. It was during this assignment that he scored his first and most notable victory. On the evening of 23 September 1916, Sowrey launched from Sutton Farm at 2330 hours in a

Royal Aircraft Factory BE.2 The Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2 was a British single-engine tractor two-seat biplane designed and developed at the Royal Aircraft Factory. Most of the roughly 3,500 built were constructed under contract by private companies, including establish ...

c to patrol toward Joyce Green. Flying at 13,000 feet, he spotted Zeppelin LZ 74 (L 32) at about 0110 hours and closed with it. He fired three drums of incendiary ammunition into the belly of the gasbag before it exploded into flame. There were no survivors from the aircrew; most of the bodies recovered were charred and burned. The burning wreckage at

Billericay Billericay ( ) is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Basildon, Essex, England. It lies within the London Basin and constitutes a commuter town east of Central London. The town has three secondary schools and a variety of open spaces. It is ...

drew enormous crowds. Sowrey received the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...

for his feat, which was gazetted on 4 October 1916. That same day, Sowrey was nominated for a regular commission in the Fusiliers. Shortly thereafter, on 1 December, he was appointed a flight commander with the accompanying rank of temporary captain. Sometime in late 1916, he transferred to No. 37 (Home Defence) Squadron RFC. Sowrey went on liaison duty to France, and while there transferred to No. 19 Squadron RFC on 14 June 1917. In the four months between 17 June and 15 October 1917, he scored a dozen aerial victories, both by himself and teamed with aces

Alexander Pentland Alexander Augustus Norman Dudley "Jerry" Pentland, (5 August 1894 – 3 November 1983) was an Australian fighter ace in World War I. Born in Maitland, New South Wales, he commenced service as a Lighthorseman with the Australi ...

John Candy John Franklin Candy (October 31, 1950 – March 4, 1994) was a Canadian actor and comedian known mainly for his work in Hollywood films. Candy rose to fame in the 1970s as a member of the Toronto branch of the Second City and its '' SCTV'' ser ...

, and

Richard Alexander Hewat Richard Alexander Hewat (3 May 1896 – 14 August 1918) was an American pursuit pilot who flew with the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) in World War I. He joined the RFC in 1917 and was killed in action near Bailleul in France on 14 August 1918. He was ...

, as well as three other pilots. His final summary for the twelve victories other than the L32 tallied six enemy airplanes destroyed and six driven down out of control. For these feats, he was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

on 23 November 1917. The citation for the award read: "For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty in shooting down in less than two months two Albatross scouts and a Rumpler two-seater and a Fokker scout, and in two engagements flying very low and engaging and scattering hostile infantry." On 1 January 1918, Sowrey was advanced to

squadron leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also ...

; this meant that Second Lieutenant (Acting Captain) Frederick Sowrey was now a temporary major. On 4 April 1918, he was promoted to the substantive rank of lieutenant. He assumed command of

No. 143 Squadron RAF No. 143 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as a fighter unit in the First World War and reformed as an RAF Coastal Command fighter and anti-submarine unit in Second World War. History Formation and the First World War No. 143 Sq ...

until war's end.

Post-war career

Sowrey was awarded the Air Force Cross on 1 January 1919. He received a permanent commission in the new

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

, with the rank of squadron leader, on 1 August 1919. Sowrey's postwar career saw him posted to

No. 41 Squadron RAF No. 41 Squadron of the Royal Air Force is the RAF's Typhoon Test and Evaluation Squadron ("TES"), based at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire. Its official title is "41 TES". The squadron was formed in 1916 during First World War as part of the Royal ...

as its Officer Commanding on 2 February 1926, where he remained until 31 August 1928. For the last eight months of his tenure, he was concurrently Station Commander at

RAF Northolt ("Ready to carry or to fight") , pushpin_map = Greater London , pushpin_label = RAF Northolt , pushpin_map_caption = Shown within Greater London , coordinates = , type = Royal Air Force station , code = , site_area = , height = , owners ...

, which position he held from 6 January 1928 to 17 January 1929. Sowrey was promoted from squadron leader to

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

on 1 July 1928. He retired as a

group captain Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force, where it originated, as well as the air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. It is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank i ...

on 26 May 1940.

Footnotes

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sowrey, Frederick Royal Flying Corps officers Royal Fusiliers officers British World War I flying aces People educated at King's College School, London People from the Borough of Tewkesbury Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Military Cross 1893 births 1968 deaths