James Joseph Wellwood (15 October 1892 – 25 October 1984) was an Australian

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 seven aerial victories. After the war, he went on to a long career as an agriculturalist.

Early life

James Joseph Wellwood was the son of Elizabeth Anne Payne and James Wellwood. He was born in

Drouin Drouin is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * André Drouin (c. 1947 – 2017), Canadian politician * Claude Drouin (born 1956), Canadian politician * Derek Drouin (born 1990), Canadian high jumper * Francis Drouin (born 1983), Ca ...

, Australia on 15 October 1892, one of five brothers. Wellwood's mother died when he was ten.

Military career

Wellwood originally served in an Australian militia unit, the Royal Australian Garrison Artillery before he enlisted in the Siege Brigade of the Australian Imperial Force on 1 June 1915. On his enlistment papers, he stated he was a born British subject working as a motor mechanic. He later transferred to the

Australian Flying Corps The Australian Flying Corps (AFC) was the branch of the Australian Army responsible for operating aircraft during World War I, and the forerunner of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). The AFC was established in 1912, though it was not until ...

, and trained as a Royal Aircraft Factory SE.5 pilot. By mid-1918, he had been assigned to No. 2 Squadron AFC. He scored his first aerial success on 1 August, destroying a German two-seated

Rumpler Rumpler-Luftfahrzeugbau GmbH, Rumpler-Werke, usually known simply as Rumpler was a German aircraft and automobile manufacturer founded in Berlin by Austrian engineer Edmund Rumpler in 1909 as Rumpler Luftfahrzeugbau.Gunston 1993, p.259 The fir ...

reconnaissance plane southeast of

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...

. On 12 August, he destroyed a

Fokker D.VII The Fokker D.VII was a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the second half of 1918. In service with the ''Luftstreitkräfte'', the D.VII qu ...

over Licourt. Wellwood teamed with squadron mate Adrian Cole to destroy a DFW recon machine over Epinoy on 25 August. In September 1918, Wellwood struck twice, driving a Fokker D.VII down out of control on the 6th, and setting a Pfalz D.III afire on the 24th. Wellwood's final two victories were achieved on 4 November 1918; in separate patrols, he destroyed a Fokker D.VII and drove down another out of control. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his exploits, which was personally presented by General Sir William Birdwood on 20 March 1919.

Postwar

Wellwood married Myra Cantor on 28 June 1924 at Trinity Church,

Hampton, Victoria Hampton is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Bayside local government area. Hampton recorded a population of 13,518 at the 2021 census. Hampton is loc ...

, Australia. Wellwood was active in horse racing as early as 1929, and became secretary of the

Bunyip The bunyip is a creature from the aboriginal mythology of southeastern Australia, said to lurk in swamps, billabongs, creeks, riverbeds, and waterholes. Name The origin of the word ''bunyip'' has been traced to the Wemba-Wemba or Wergaia ...

Race Club in early 1933. He was selected as secretary of the Drouin branch of the United Country Party in early 1937. He was a member of a stock cooperative marketing merino sheep from 1937 to 1941. On 8 November 1945, Wellwood posted notice that he would not allow debts to be contracted in his name without his written authority. James Joseph Wellwood died on 25 April 1984 in Armadale, Victoria, Australia. He was cremated at Springvale Crematorium.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wellwood, James 1892 births 1984 deaths Australian Army soldiers Australian Flying Corps officers Australian recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Australian World War I flying aces Military personnel from Victoria (state) Royal Australian Air Force officers Australian agriculturalists